Over her years in the Royal spotlight, Kate Middleton has managed to establish a signature beauty look. Alongside her clever face-sculpting blusher technique (seriously, try it), the Duchess of Cambridge often rocks a super bouncy blow dry with large, loose curls.

But last night, Kate switched things up a bit while attending The Royal Variety Performance alongside her husband Prince William. Wearing a stunning green gown, the Duchess went for her usual side-parting but her curls were a lot tighter.

The finished effect were curls that looked more like ringlets for a dressier vibe, compared to her usual laidback brushed-out curls. We’re assuming curling tongs were used for the look, rather than a round brush and the effect is, as always, glossy perfection.

As a reminder, this is Kate's signature hairstyle:

london, england october 19 catherine, duchess of cambridge leaves bafta after making a keynote speech on october 19, 2021 in london, england led by the forward trust, taking action on addiction is a long term campaign which will work to improve awareness and understanding of addiction, its causes and scale in society to enable more people to ask for and receive help photo by neil mockfordgc imagespinterest
Neil Mockford//Getty Images

And here was Kate last night:

london, united kingdom november 18 embargoed for publication in uk newspapers until 24 hours after create date and time catherine, duchess of cambridge attends the royal variety performance at the royal albert hall on november 18, 2021 in london, england photo by max mumbyindigogetty imagespinterest
Max Mumby/Indigo//Getty Images

For makeup, Kate stuck to her signature fresh, radiant skin, sculpted cheekbones and a nude pink-toned lipstick. Basically, it’s the perfect look for any upcoming Christmas parties and we’ll be saving these pictures for future glam inspo.

If you’re considering trying the look for yourself, here’s our rundown of the best curling tongs around…