Kate brought back her Michael Kors coat for today’s engagements.
The Duchess started the day at Hampton Court Palace; she was there to officially open the Magic Garden, a fabulous new play area for children. Below you see her with Rupert Gavin, chairman of Historic Royal Palaces (center); on the right, you see the landscape architect for the project, Robert Myers.
It was a bright and breezy day, nice weather for the formal opening of the play area. A very quick video of Kate’s arrival.
Video: Kate and the Magic Garden pic.twitter.com/2qEUCrTIEE
— Rebecca English (@RE_DailyMail) May 4, 2016
As described by Historic Royal palaces, “The Magic Garden draws inspiration from the myths and legends of the Tudor Court and offers families a new way to explore Hampton Court’s past.”
More about the Garden from Gordon Rayner’s story in The Telegraph.
The Magic Garden at Henry VIII’s former residence in south west London includes its own secret grotto and a 25ft smoke-breathing dragon.
Kate chatting with some of the children visiting the Garden today. There was a cute exchange with one of the children. Simon Perry’s story in People has the details.
As Kate toured the garden, one youngster tugged on the sleeve of the chairman of Historic Royal Palaces, Rupert Gavin, and asked him: “Who’s that?”
The Duchess of Cambridge, he replied.
“Then the child said, ‘Ooh, are you the princess?’ ” says Gavin.
She said: “Just call me Kate.” (When Kate herself had asked the kids her name, they chorused, “Princess Kate!”)
The Duchess always seems to enjoy herself when she is interacting with children. Here you see that 25-foot dragon mentioned above.
From Rebecca English’s story in The Daily Mail:
The Duchess of Cambridge told school children today how she thought two-and-a-half year old Prince George would be ‘a bit scared’ of a 25ft plastic dragon in a newly-unveiled playground.
Kate spoke to Elodie and Olivia, both eight, from St John the Baptist Church of England Junior School, who were sitting on top of the plastic and clay dragon at Hampton Court Palace’s Magic Garden.
In the course of chatting with the children, Kate revealed the Cambridges have a new pet.
She actually is said to have told the children Charlotte and George have a new pet, but you get the gist of the story. As you might imagine, this sparked a flurry of social media chatter, including ‘artist’s renderings’ of Marvin.
Kate and Mr. Gavin unveil the plaque commemorating Kate’s visit and the Garden’s official opening. There was also an intricately decorated cake.
Kate’s second engagement was with the Anna Freud Centre. You can see Kate removed her coat for the indoor function, held at Spencer House.
We return to Gordon Rayner’s story
The lunch was held at Spencer House, the ancestral London home of Diana, Princess of Wales, which was recently the venue for Rupert Murdoch’s wedding to Jerry Hall.
…the Duchess thanked major donors who have so far raised £3.25 million towards the £10m capital needed to build a new children’s mental health centre.
This was Kate’s first engagement as Patron of the Freud Centre.
Kate talking with parents from the Freud Centre’s Family School, a program offering specialist education for the whole family.
Kate was in her Roksanda Ilincic “peridot” dress, first worn in 2011 when arriving in Los Angeles and again for a 2012 reception at The Royal Academy.
Obviously the dress is not the green shade associated with peridot, it is described as a light blue-grey. It has that distinctive draped/pleated bodice and neckline; center back pleats; small pleated panels at the back waistband; an exposed back zipper from neckline to hem; and a front tie.
Kate’s Michael Kors coat was initially worn on the final day of the 2014 tour. Called an indigo twill jacquard swing coat by Michael Kors, the garment was single-breasted with front flap pockets and a full skirt. 
The Duchess accessorized with her nude Fern pumps by LK Bennett.
While currently sold out, the company is going to be getting more in; you can register your interest in purchasing a pair by giving LK Bennet your email at this page.
Kate carried a new Nina clutch, also from LK Bennett, in the same ‘Trench’ color as her shoes.
Kate wore her Mappin & Webb Empress pendant and earrings.
She also wore her Cartier Ballon Bleu wristwatch.
You can see her hair was partially pulled back; this picture from Rebecca English shows a bit of the back and side.
UPDATES 6pm EDT:
In response to queries about the Sledge, I consulted a post titled “It’s Been How Long Since We Saw The Sledge?” dated April 8, 2015. My records show Kate as having worn the Sledge on August 4 of 2014 in Liège, Belgium for events commemorating the Centenary of World War I.
Also today, The Telegraph has a fun sidebar piece about the hypothetical amortization of Kate’s nude heels.
Our comprehensive look book of Kate’s style highlights reveals 30 occasions when she has chosen either the Floret (£175), Fern (£195) or Sledge (£195) heels from L.K Bennett, from their very first sighting at the Epsom Derby shortly after her wedding to today’s outings.
We calculated that on that basis, this tots up to a cost-per-wear of just £6.16.
There are other nude heels not included in the equation, like the Choo Gilbert or Russell & Bromley’s Pointy. But the piece is meant to be lighthearted, it isn’t intended to be the definitive mathematical statement on Kate’s per-wearing cost. The story does raise a point many of us have discussed over the years:
Of course, in the same way that the Queen orders new versions of her beloved Launer handbag each season, it’s highly likely that the Duchess is stockpiling numerous pairs of nude shoes to ensure they’re pristine for every occasion.
We’ll never know how many pairs of each style Kate might purchase, but my guess is when she finds something she likes she buys in multiples.
We’ll see you shortly for Kate’s engagement at the National Portrait Gallery where she will view the Vogue 100: A Century of Style exhibit.
LINKAGE:
- The Magic Garden website is here, the Facebook page is here
- The Anna Freud Centre website is here; its Facebook page is here and Twitter feed here
- Gordon Rayner’s story in The Telegraph is here; The Daily Mail’s photo-laden story is here; The Mirror’s rolling live coverage is here; The Express story is here
- PopSugar’s slideshow from the Magic Garden event at Hampton Court Palace is here
Jules
Sunday 8th of May 2016
Really interesting that she said, "...call me Kate." There's been so much debate about her name. I think now, after hearing this, she has probably mainly been known to her friends and family as Kate. Not Catherine. Like Pippa--who's Christian name is "Phillipa"--goes by well, "Pippa!" I think we have formal names that are professional--and in this case titles--but in her heart, I think she is Kate. And I really like that about her. I hope she tries to hold on to being organically herself. I know this has nothing to do with the sartorial aspects of the blog--but it charmed me. Cheers!
Lindsey
Thursday 5th of May 2016
I think Kate's look worked well today and I think that practicality was the name of the game. She's not always trying to make a statement and be a fashionista - sometimes she just has to stay warm and have her hair pinned back so the wind isn't in her face - right? I think the first piece she chose for the day was the Ilincic dress for the luncheon. Then she chose a coat she could wear over it for the playground opening. I'm not in the UK, but I'd be willing to bet it was cool. No, the color of the Kors coat doesn't shout spring, but it is neutral and looks pretty warm. The swing style also makes it a great choice for bending down and talking with the children and moving about the playground as needed. Overall, great choices today.
katefanatic
Thursday 5th of May 2016
I would not have thought to put these two items together if they were both in my closet but in my opinion the look works. I would point out that this coat was part of the Kors spring collection and I just think the Duchess runs a little colder than others do sometimes. I am the same way when on the thinner end of my healthy weight range. Also, there is enough give and swing that when she was hunkered down talking to the children it protected her modesty and didn't show dirt/sand. The dress is one of my favorites and just right for a dressy lunch---love the new clutch and her hair looks great.
Beth
Thursday 5th of May 2016
She always looks lovely in everything she wears. However, I've noticed how thin she looks these days. Perhaps taking care of two little ones and keeping up with with engagements leaves her with little time to eat!
Michelle
Thursday 5th of May 2016
I like everything she is wearing, but I don't care for it all together. I love this dress, think it works well for the event, and the shoes are a fine choice. However, I preferred the dark accessories from her previous outing with the coat. So while the coat was a good choice for the first event (she matches the formality of the men in suits with her), the dress and shoes didn't go great with it. I understand wanting to have a layered outfit for the day that can adapt to two separate events, but I would have chosen a different coat that looked better with the dress and shoes, or chosen a different dress and shoes if her heart was set on the coat.
Or just worn navy shoes to the first engagement and kept the nude shoes in the car for changing later. It's not like she had to use public transportation and worry about carting her spare shoes around all day. :-D
Regardless, she looks lovely, and I like seeing some my old favorites, even if I don't like them together.