- Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge (AKA Kate Middleton) and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (Meghan Markle) are reportedly banned from wearing diamonds during the day
- An etiquette expert opens up about the royal style rule and the reason for it
If there's one fashion detail that Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle do particularly well, it's jewellery. With a slew of high profile events in the calendar, the Duchesses have ample opportunity (and ability) to wear some of the finest jewels in the UK.
In addition to their own stunning pieces and those of their late mother-in-law Diana, Princess of Wales, Kate and Meghan are frequently granted permission to wear select pieces from the royal collection.
Whilst you'd think that access to such a vast range of fine jewellery would deliver endless accessory options for every occasion, it turns out the Duchesses are surprisingly restricted in what jewels they can wear at different times of the day.
More specifically, etiquette teacher Myka Meier explains that there's likely a very ~proper~ reason why Kate and Meghan are rarely spotted wearing diamonds before 6pm (engagement rings excepted, obvs).
“Other jewels are worn pre-6pm,” Meier tells news.com.au, which explains why the duo are usually spotted sporting stones like pearls and topaz, or classic minimalist precious metal pieces during the day.
But why, you ask? Welp, it all comes back to the royal family and how they want to be viewed.
Everyone's clicking on...
By avoiding wearing diamonds while the sun's still up, the Duchesses are meant to avoid looking "flashy" (which is apparently a bad thing?).
“Before 6pm, you’ll see metallics, gemstones, pearls, sapphires," explains Meier. "At night, you’ll see the diamonds come out, and that’s in order to not come across as flashy in your appearance.”
Huh, the more you know.
Diamonds or not, Kate and Meghan always look a zillion bucks IMO.
Follow Natasha on Instagram.
Like this article? Sign up to our newsletter to get more articles like this delivered straight to your inbox.
Natasha Harding is the former Fashion Editor (Digital & Print) at Cosmopolitan & Women's Health UK. Working in fashion journalism for just under ten years, she’s covered over 30 international fashion weeks, hundreds of red carpets and religiously scours the runway every season to create the brand’s bi-annual trend report. Joining Cosmopolitan back in Australia, Natasha moved to London a few years ago and is now the resident expert for celebrity style and industry news, fashion features and e-commerce. Follow Natasha on Instagram
