How does royal fashion work, really?

[bumbershoot]

When I see the royals in so many new outfits every year and learn that, for the most part, they are from designer labels, I find myself wondering how that process works. I don't think the major royal women, for the most part, are seen at the designer fashion shows on a regular basis. And with their busy schedules -- particularly Kate's growing involvement in public appearances -- I can't see them trucking off to the designers' ateliers for private showings or fittings.

So what happens instead? I'm assuming the various royals' measurements are on file. Do the designers send them digital images or actual printed out look books from which they can select various items and have them made to order? Or is there someone on staff who makes those selections for them? And then are there extensive fittings as well?

It seems to me that it's easy to envy the royals' apparently endless wardrobes of lovely new things, but I wonder if dealing with fashion becomes a giant PITA after a while. The few times I've had garments that required multiple fittings has just driving me crazy with the time that's wasted and the discomfort of standing there and being stuck with pins. I'm betting that many of the folks whose photos we see all the time have gotten over the wonder at having a fairytale wardrobe and may even resent that so much time, energy and public scrutiny is devoted to their clothing.

And does anybody else have an Angela Kelly who, by the way, seemed to get stuck repeating herself endlessly the last few years of the Queen's life. From my perspective, Cams is always very well dressed and in age-appropriate clothing that looks comfortable and yet elegant when the situation calls for it.  Daisy does pretty well too, and I don't mind her eccentric hats or her raincoat of many colors. Kate can be elegant and sometimes really pulls it off, but she certainly has a wardrobe filled with so many virtually identical items. With Victoria it's hit and miss, and people should never let Mette Marit wear anything but outdoor sports gear, in which she looks way beyond fabulous, but otherwise . . . . And we won't even talk about some of Mathilde's latest appearances. Uff da!

[Countess of Cows]

I'm curious too.  I know quite often we see outfits that have been modified from the runway (neckline higher, leg slit gone, ruffles re-arranged)  so there must be some kind of communication.  Don't you think measurements are on file and they use a fitting dummy, who has time fittings these days?

Cammy seems to have her own style and a personal seamstress, she seldom puts a foot wrong.  Kate has the body of a model everything looks good.

 I always figured they have stylists that send them things (which begs the question if some of them don't like their clients  )   Vickie has never been a style maven (but her wedding dress was flawless), Leti usually gets it right, being so petite she has to make sure she's wearing the garment and it's not wearing her.  Mares is into labels whether they flatter her body type or not.  Sophie has really stepped up her game lately TG.  Mette Marit, the less said the better. Max is Max, you just never know.   Mathilde is such a class act she usually pulls it off...but boy sometimes lately it's a hem too far LOL

Benny in Denmark, ChaCha & Caro in Monaco are usually the best dressed IMO (not that Caro can't go too far at times) elegant, polished and understated.  ChaCha must have had some help to develop her style because when she first came on the scene, she put the tack in tacky!  Who can forget that bright green satin dress at her first event.  In a later article even she asked, "what was I thinking".

[lula]

Queen Letizia, alone, with her mother or with her daughters, has been photographed shopping on several occasions. When she was a princess, she followed Sofía's advice, and she had a designer, Felipe Varela, who designed most of her wardrobe.

Since she is queen, she has a person, Eva Fernández,  who is the intermediary with fashion brands. According to the press, she also has a seamstress who is in charge of making alterations or even completely sewing some clothes (when the press does not discover the designer they say it is the seamstress's design).

There are brands that the queen usually wears (Carolina Herrera, Hugo Boss, Pedro del Hierro), that have her measurements and that will send their catalogs and from there they choose what she wants. Other times she can order specific designs for an event or modifications to catalog designs.

Eva is who visits the fashion shows, the showrooms and the stores, and on that she chooses clothes for the queen and her daughters and they have the final decision. When they do custom orders, Queen Letizia and Eva visit the designer's workshop. In recent years, she has really worked hard and well, looking for clothes from different important Spanish designers and  looking for small Spanish fashion brands that sell quality clothes and sometimes semi-made to measure, and that have an affordable price. For these brands, being worn by the queen or her daughters is great publicity. They are really doing a good job of supporting and promoting national fashion.

Eva is also the one who supervises what the brands send to Zarzuela. The brands send or catalogs or directly clothes and accessories. With the gift regulations of King Felipe, if they like something and the queen wants to keep it, they pay for it, otherwise they return it.

Queen Letizia and Eva shopping.







Letizia, Leonor and Sofía shopping in Mango

[Ghost]

I remember three facts in regard to this topic. It’s about Diana.
One was a photo, she was on a street, summer of ‘82, in London, she was shopping, fiddling with her purse. They said that she’d left Balmoral to go shopping.
Another one, she was sitting on the floor in KP living room with the Emmanuels, there were fabric samples everywhere and the caption said that they were planning the wardrobe for a tour.
And the last one was a story that she requested a dress to be like this and that so she can use it often as a “work dress”. It was a blue floral dress, short sleeves, there are plenty of photos of her in that dress. It was the beginning of the ‘90.

[Nappyolean]

I think Camilla dresses beautifully and they are all custom. Kate, even at university and before marriage didn’t seem too interested in fashion. She isn’t ever at the shows and I don’t think it would be terrible if she went to British fashion houses at Fashion Week in Paris or Milan. I just don’t think she cares enough. She may send someone or just have Jenny Pacham and her other preferred designers send over a look book with swatches. The finished clothing, in her measurements,  are made and sent to her. I bet there are 1-2 seamstresses that work for Cam, Kate, Now Sophie. They couldn’t risk security breaches with an unvetted seamstress sent from the designer.

[Aubiette]

I’m guessing people come to them. Maybe they get catalogs of a sort online or actual books and arrange to see/try things they like.

I’ve noticed Kate buys many identical things in different colors. That’s certainly a time saver when you find a style you like.
I bet tour wardrobes are a pain.
The whole thing would not be my cup of tea. It stresses me out just thinking about it.

[VanillaMoomin]

What I really don’t understand is why these days they don’t wear their clothes repeatedly the way the rest of us do. I don’t begrudge them each a nice new wardrobe each season, but they should wear each garment repeatedly throughout that season, it’s dispiriting to see all these fancy clothes just worn once. Or if “reworn”, it’s such a special thing that notice is taken. Celebrities wear new clothes each time for public events and photo shoots because their clothes are sample size and on loan. If royals actually want to represent the people of their countries in any meaningful way they can’t just be celebrities.

I enjoy looking at the gowns and jewels, and I don’t begrudge them having new ones often, I just want some sanity about it. And I want royals who talk about ecology then wear clothes only once, given as much of a hard time as royals who talk about ecology then use helicopters constantly. We can still talk about their fashion in seeing how they style this season’s clothes into daily outfits.

[ralf103]

Sophie Wessex uses Suzannah London a semi couture retailer. They made the custom outfit for the late Queen's funeral for her - I assume they wither have measurements on file or get ones sent with a commission. I suspect Sophie pays for all pieces but given that the company certainly do use what she was worn in their social media, website etc I bet she gets a decent discount.

I assume the royal ladies likely have access to a seamstress, I wonder if the late Queen use to allow the royal ladies to use one on her staff as needed rather than having their own. If not, they probably get the made to measure outfit in plenty of time to allow it to be sent bak with any minor alterations as needed.

I would think as much as a lot of the work can be done for them by staff / friends/ advisors they probably all visit their designers as some point or another for a visit one per season where they get a sneak peek at upcoming designs, get measured, agree on pieces they want and any modifications needed. Didn't Maxima break down once travelling to Belgium where she was visiting Natan?

I simply can't imagine how many clothes some of the royal ladies must have - and some very similar ones (Catherine's blue coat dresses being one example). I assume they must have vast rooms full of clothes not mere wardrobes like most people. I wonder if they regularly give away clothes discreetly or not. I'd love to see them start to use the many ways people can now rent clothes for some of their pieces at least.

[bumbershoot]

While I really hate the Daily Fail, I'd love it if the publication found a way to smuggle a photog into Kate's and Cam's and Mary's and Max's closets just to give us a look around at how those extensive wardrobes are arranged and cared for. I bet we'd be staggered to see acres of shoes and accessories as well as those endless coat dresses of Kate's. And oh my the hats.

For that matter, it would be fun to see how many identical hats Oma Trixie has in all colors. I think she found a hat shape she likes and by God she's gonna stick with it.

And then there's the endless tartan that Cam now has to don every time they head north. Somehow I don't think it's her natural metier. She looks good in it, but never quite as comfortable as she does in other clothing.

And then there's Anne's closet where everything is still in the same size she wore when she was 19. Sigh . . . if only the rest of us could make that claim.

[Nappyolean]

“And then there's Anne's closet where everything is still in the same size she wore when she was 19. Sigh . . . if only the rest of us could make that claim.”

Same hairstyle too at 19!