🎙️ Voice is AI-generated. Inconsistencies may occur.
Kate, the Princess of Wales, suffered a rare fashion mishap on Sunday as she took center stage at the annual Wimbledon tennis championship final to present Carlos Alcaraz with the tournament trophy after his defeat of seven-time champion Novak Djokovic.
The royal, usually pristinely turned out at official events, drew focus with her overall appearance, committing an unusual fashion faux pas as photographers and film cameras picked up on her creased Roland Mouret dress during the presentations.
Though Kate's wrinkled Wimbledon look was a rare moment in her vast array of official engagement outfits, she is not the first or only royal to suffer a similar mishap.
Princess Diana was famously a victim on her wedding day in 1981 when she had to compress down her voluminous ivory silk taffeta wedding gown to fit into the horse-drawn carriage that carried her from Clarence House to St Paul's Cathedral.
When she arrived, the royal and dress were freed from the carriage, resulting in the latter taking on a crumpled appearance. This was soon rectified by the designers who spent time smoothing each layer before the bride walked down the aisle.
More recently, and in contrast to the reception met by Kate's creased appearance on Sunday, sister-in-law Meghan Markle has also had her experience with wrinkled ensembles during royal engagements.
Though Kate's appearance has prompted little response from British fashion critics and commentators by comparison, the same could not be said of Meghan, whose creased style moments have inspired numerous social media posts and critical tabloid stories over the years.
One article published by the Mail Online in January 2019 in particular held the duchess to account over her appearance, asking readers: "Why ARE Meghan's clothes always creased?"
The article suggested that though Meghan had displayed an array of stylish outfits in the year since marrying Prince Harry in May 2018, there was one "fashion faux pas that appears to plague the Duchess of Sussex—she regularly steps out in ensembles that are creased."
The article cited a pregnant Meghan's recent visit to a charity event in Kensington, London, where it told readers: "Her £2,600 tan Oscar de la Renta coat was heavily creased from the moment she stepped from the car before her engagement had even begun."
It also featured comment from a fashion expert suggesting that Meghan should move away from the light fabrics she was then favoring, to switch to knit "a fabric favored by the Duchess of Cambridge [Kate]," which was less prone to wrinkling.
Like Meghan's London charity visit back in 2019, Kate's appearance at Wimbledon in South West London on Sunday was likely the result of a long car journey from the Windsor Great Park where Kate and William live at Adelaide Cottage with their family, and where until earlier this year, Meghan and Prince Harry had their home at Frogmore Cottage nearby.
The creasing for both royals is a common issue when sitting for long periods in a lightweight fabric, particularly in warmer climates, though Kate's usual go-to fabric choices of wool-blend materials are most resistant to wrinkling owing to their heavier weight than chiffons, silk or cotton blends.
Speaking about the attention and, to some degree, criticism of this styling mishap in connection with Kate and Meghan, royal fashion expert Christine Ross labeled the focus a "distraction."
"The state of royal women's wardrobes is under a constant microscope, and something as harmless and human as a creased dress makes headlines," she told Newsweek.
"Often this is simply the case of real-life situations: a long car ride from Windsor on a humid day, or last-minute running around after children to get them out the door on time, is likely to lead to more wear and creasing on a dress."
Of Kate's appearance on Sunday, Ross explained: "The drive to Wimbledon is probably longer now that William and Kate have decamped to Windsor [from their former home of Kensington Palace], and with two children in tow the morning of, probably didn't go as smoothly as a solo outing."
"Some royal women employ tricks such as starch or wrinkle-free fabric, or even dressing at the last possible moment or at the venue to minimize any lines," Ross said. "Kate has always been careful to avoid easy-to-wrinkle fabrics, like linen, and to employ a heavy hand at ironing to ensure her outfits are pristine. While a wrinkly dress doesn't hurt anyone, it quickly becomes a distraction and takes away from the real story and heroes of the day."
Since stepping down from her role within the monarchy alongside Prince Harry in 2020, Meghan has spoken out about what she feels was her unfair treatment at the hands of the British tabloid press.
Speaking to Oprah Winfrey in 2021, the duchess cited the publication of a story alleging that she had made Kate cry as a turning point with the media, pointing to an increase in negative headlines in the months that followed.
In the years since, Meghan has not only faced criticism over the creasing of her own clothing, but has also extended to the clothing worn by her children.
In June 2022, Meghan and Harry released a portrait photograph of their daughter, Princess Lilibet, to mark her first birthday. Tabloid newspaper The Sun ran a story soon after highlighting criticism that the 1-year-old's dress appeared unironed.
The story ran initially with the headline "WRINKLE IN TIME Royal fans gush over Lilibet's adorable birthday snap but eagle-eyed mums are all saying the same thing." This was later changed to: "WRINKLE IN TIME Royal fans gush over Lilibet's adorable birthday snap but harsh mums are all saying the same thing."
Newsweek approached Kensington Palace and representatives of Meghan Markle via email for comment.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
Do you have a question about King Charles III, William and Kate, Meghan and Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We'd love to hear from you.
About the writer
James Crawford-Smith is a Newsweek Royal Reporter, based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on the British royal family ... Read more