[randhrshipper1]

The blue tweed suit was perfection, the grey dress was accessorized perfectly with that belt and a great hairdo, and this latest outfit has fine beginnings with that interesting white shirt. Keep it up, Kate!

[YoninahAliza]

That white shirt is #734 looks awesome. I'd love to see what she paired it with. Slacks or a skirt?

[Label Basher]

I need that McQueen belt in my life. Made Kate's dress look ever better.

[Margaret24]

One thing I love about Kate is how classy she always looks in the way that she dresses. Even though the clothes she wears are not the kind of thing I would prefer to wear, I still think that she always looks great.

[Ochi Chernye]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boomer ^ Just lovely!!! CNN will have a new documentary on Kate airing worldwide during the first week of May! Check your local listings, as they say...

more info on this

Who is the Duchess of Cambridge? Kate Middleton we knew: an English girl, from a comfortable middle class background who went to university and bagged her Prince. But since the ‘wedding of the century’ her life has changed beyond recognition.

As the first anniversary of their marriage passes, William and Catherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, celebrate a year of married life but also another milestone for Catherine – her graduation as an independent working royal.

In ‘Kate, Duchess of Cambridge’ CNN’s Royal Correspondent, Max Foster, is granted exclusive access to a senior royal source to find out what’s gone into her training and how Catherine feels about her first year in the Royal Family. He also speaks to key figures in her working life: the leaders of her chosen charities, the official photographers who have captured enduring images of her and those who helped transform her into a style icon.

Friday 04 May at 1630 BST / 1730 CET
Saturday 05 May at 1400 BST / 1500 CET and 2130 BST / 2230 CET
Sunday 06 May at 1030 BST / 1130 CET and 2130 BST / 2230 CET
Monday 07 May at 0430 BST / 0530 CET and 0830 BST / 0930 CET
Tuesday 08 May at 1030 BST / 1130 CET and 1730 BST / 1830 CET
Wednesday 09 May at 0530 BST / 0630 CET
Duration: 30 minutes

[Boomer]

^ Thanks- sounds good, but only 30 minutes?
And BBC America (and perhaps other BBC outlets) will be running Bios and Documentaries on the Royals including William and Kate all day tomorrow, Sunday Apr 29th!!

[lucy92]

The hair-raising inside story of Kate's wedding day... by the men behind that unforgettable look



Turning heads: Kate on her big day with the 'demi chignon' style

It was on November 16, 2010, that hairdresser James Pryce’s career took an unexpected turn and his life, as he knew it, changed for good.
The 34-year-old Londoner was working as a senior stylist at the Richard Ward salon just off Sloane Street when he received a call from a senior adviser to Prince William and Kate Middleton.
They asked if he could go to Clarence House as soon as possible – an announcement was imminent and Kate would be making a television appearance. The request, he was told, came directly from Miss Middleton.
‘Of course I accepted immediately,’ says Pryce. ‘They told me she and Prince William were engaged to be married.
‘Lots of thoughts went through my head and I admit I did let my mind run away with me – I couldn’t help but think about the wedding and whether I would be lucky enough to be asked to do that.’
Pryce was indeed lucky enough to be asked, and he accepted the commission of a lifetime.
‘Life became very strange almost overnight after they announced their engagement,’ says Pryce. ‘I had journalists booking in for cuts with me, and Kate lookalikes coming into the salon. Every woman with long brown hair suddenly wanted what was being called The Kate blow-dry.’
Pryce knew when it came to the wedding day on April 29 that the elegant ‘half-up, half-down’ style he had created – christened the demi chignon – had to be perfect.
From January until April he worked to perfect the style, while his boss Richard Ward assigned eight stylists to work on the bridal party in complete secrecy.


Ward was also trained to do the bride’s hairstyle.
‘I knew where every pin went, just in case James had food poisoning or something awful like that and I had to do Kate’s hair on the day,’ he recalls. ‘I’d practised on my assistant Sam and I knew the style so well I could do it with my eyes closed. We both did.’
It was Pryce, however, who worked with Kate creating mood boards and practising the style at Clarence House as the big day drew near.


Trend-setting: Kate and Prince William announce their engagement in November 2010. Her blow-dried style - her 'usual' - became known as The Kate


As the son of two hairdressers, Pryce, of Kensal Green, North London – who now works as a senior stylist at trendy Holland Park atelier Josh Wood – always knew he wanted to continue the family tradition.
‘It was the most important blow-dry I’d ever done and it was a great honour,’ says Pryce.


‘Kate was wearing that amazing blue Issa dress and she just asked for the usual.’


But despite having cut the Middleton family’s hair for seven years, he could never have imagined that a blow-dry one crisp November afternoon would have such an impact on his career.
As he made his way to the Palace that day, he knew that a few hours later the world would be watching his client as she and the Prince gave their first television interview.
‘It was the most important blow-dry I’d ever done and it was a great honour,’ says Pryce. ‘Kate was wearing that amazing blue Issa dress and she just asked for the usual.’
‘The usual’ is a style that has become known as ‘The Kate’. It is a blow-dry that many have tried to emulate but few can achieve and is best suited to naturally glossy, thick hair.
Stylists: James Pryce, left, who created the hairdo, and Richard Ward

‘Kate has beautiful long hair and she keeps it in amazing condition with regular trims and weekly conditioning treatments,’ Pryce reveals. ‘Her hair was always going to be a real focal point on the wedding day.’
The two discussed different styles and Pryce presented Kate with a number of options. ‘I put together mood boards with drawings and clippings from magazines,’ says Pryce.
‘She had a clear idea of how she wanted her hair to look. She wanted it half-up, half-down, as she knew her face had to be properly seen.
‘There was talk of her wearing flowers in her hair but in the end it was decided that a tiara would be more suitable. I think she decided on the tiara in February or March.
‘The half-up, half-down style was perfect because the tiara needed something to sit on.’
According to Ward, the tiara was fitted using a small plait in the centre, which was then sewn into Kate’s hair to prevent it from moving.
‘That was my biggest worry,’ he recalls. ‘I remember watching Princess Diana leave St Paul’s Cathedral [at her wedding] and her tiara wasn’t central.’
Kate was said to have had a choice of tiaras from the Queen’s personal collection and decided on the Cartier Halo, which was given to the Queen by the Queen Mother on her 18th birthday. The tiara was made in 1936 with 149 baton diamonds. ‘Kate chose the tiara that she loved and we practised with that,’ says Pryce.
The practice sessions were at Clarence House in William and Kate’s private quarters. Says Pryce: ‘The tiara never left Clarence House, I was absolutely in awe of it and the history of such a special piece of jewellery.’

The stylist had a number of secret practices with Kate and says it was her calmness that helped him to keep his nerve. ‘I spent every minute thinking about the hair and how to do it. I came into the salon on my days off and practised on the girls at work with a fake £10 tiara.’

The half-up half-down style from the back became an overnight phenomenon

Aware that the world would be admiring his work when Kate walked up the aisle at Westminster Abbey, Pryce knew he had to create something timeless and elegant.

‘Kate had described the neckline on the dress but she wouldn’t tell me anything else,’ he says. ‘I didn’t know it was going to be lace, I didn’t know who the designer was until minutes before the wedding.’
On the big day itself, Pryce, Ward and their team convened at Clarence House at 6am and made their way to The Goring hotel where the bridal party was staying.
Pryce and Ward were assigned to Kate for the day while Adolfo Vollono tended to Kate’s mother Carole and wedding-hair expert Fiona Chandler was responsible for Pippa’s elegant up-do.

‘When we set off the streets were eerily silent. I remember there being a strange calm and the police setting up the barriers,’ recalls Pryce. ‘
The paparazzi were outside the hotel and the street had been closed. We went straight upstairs to a room that had been reserved for doing Kate’s hair.
‘She came in at about 8.30 and she was amazingly calm. There were no interruptions, it was my time with her and you couldn’t hear anything else.

There was no noise from the street and no TVs in the background. She was keeping me calm,’ says Pryce. ‘She was very collected and she kept it together. That’s just her, that’s why she’s so great.’
‘She came in at about 8.30 and she was amazingly calm... she was keeping ME calm'


The styling took an hour and a half and Ward, who assisted Pryce, recalls: ‘When he finished and she walked out to go and get into her dress, James and I had a hug.

'It was a very proud moment. We had all put so much hard work into it.’ Pryce says he will never forget seeing Kate in her dress for the first time.

‘I had gone to her suite to do one final check,’ he remembers. ‘I went in and I was just bowled over. I was like, “Wow! You look amazing.” The vision of her was just incredible.’
Party time: Kate wore her hair down for the wedding reception

While Ward stayed at The Goring, Pryce accompanied dress designer Sarah Burton to the Abbey where they were seated at the back, close to Sir Elton John.
Halfway through the last hymn, he had to leave for Buckingham Palace, ready to check Kate’s hair for the official photographs and balcony appearance. ‘It barely needed anything – the tiara had stayed firmly in place,’ says Pryce.
Several hours later Pryce returned to Clarence House, where William, Kate and Prince Harry were watching the wedding on playback.
‘I was asked to go and do Kate’s hair for the evening. Kate wanted her hair down and needed help taking the tiara out. It was lovely seeing them so relaxed and happy. You could see how in love they were.
‘The tiara came out very easily, and Kate and I had already agreed that I would just blow-dry her hair like we always did. I did what I’d done many times before.’
Later, as he walked along The Mall, Pryce took in for the last time the crowds who were still gathered.
‘I was feeling so very happy,’ he says. ‘I headed to Hampstead where I’d arranged to meet friends at my local. I got a big round of applause and a few well-earned drinks.’
Then it was back to work on Monday – and back to reality with a bump. (katie nichol/dailymail)

[Boomer]

Are there no good pictures of the outfit with the beautiful white blouse? I can't find any...

[Glittering Star]

Kate attended a friends wedding on the weekend, wearing the lace Erdem dress she wore in Canada.

[randhrshipper1]

Like the jacket she put over the Erdem dress, from what I can tell. It looks cropped--a nice, unusual choice for her.

[Ashcottmanor]

The dress is ok but she shouldn't have worn it with the belt. I wish we could see her hat better.

[MiuMiuLove]

Yeah, I like the Erdem dress, but she ruined the look with that belt in my opinion. Too much going on. The belt looked great on the plain gray dress, just not with all the lace on this one.

[Label Basher]

I agree she looks fantastic but the belt was not needed.

Is she wearing a hat/fascinator? Can't tell.

[wild roses]

Glad to see the Erdem dress again. Second that she didn't need to pair that belt with it, but she still looks good.

Label Basher, she is wearing a fascinator. I wasn't sure at first myself, but if you look at the pics closely, you can see bits of the upper part of the hat.

[Glittering Star]

Clearer photos



Dress: Erdem
Belt: Alexander McQueen
Clutch: Anya Hindmarch