Another Royal Tour for William & Kate, Updates & It’s Almost Time to Pick Your Favorites

Greetings, we hope everyone is surviving the holidaze (yes, that is how we occasionally refer to this time of year), we have an abundance of news to share! Readers will no doubt be familiar with several of the stories, but in an effort to provide a comprehensive overview, we’ll cover as many as we can.

First and foremost, Kate and William will be on tour again next year. They are heading to Malaysia, Singapore, the Solomon Islands, and the tiny nation of Tuvalu. Tuvalu is the third smallest nation in the world, second only to the Vatican and another island nation, Nauru.  The Telegraph spoke with the country’s consul to the UK about the trip:

We will give the Duke and Duchess a traditional way of welcome. The first surprise they will have will be when the arrive on the shores of Tuvalu.

They will sit in a canoe and the young men of the island, dressed in skirts of coconut fibre, will carry the canoe on their shoulders.”

This form of welcome won’t come as a surprise, it’s likely Kate and William will have seen photos of a previous royal visit to the island, below we see none other than Her Majesty on Tuvalu, back in 1982.

The trip is part of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee; almost all of the royals will be touring next year. Dates have not yet been announced for Kate and William’s tour, the Jubilee is formally marked by multiple celebrations the weekend of June 2-5, although there will be events throughout the year. For the news release detailing all of the tours, click here. To learn more about Jubilee Events, click here.

Obviously there is interest in what Kate will wear on the tour, she will be in hot and humid conditions, to be sure. One designer she may well be looking at is Bernard Chandran. Below, pieces from Mr. Chandran’s fall 2011 collection.

Not only is the designer Malaysian, he has a boutique in Knightsbridge, so Kate may already be familiar with him. Below, styles from the Bernard Chandran Spring 2012 collection, via British Vogue.

Mr. Chandran offers angular, exaggerated silhouettes in many pieces, as well as outsize embellishments on others (obviously not shown in these photos, we tried to edit the looks to share some with ‘Kate appeal’); celebrities spotted in his creations include Lady Gaga, Tori Amos and Rihanna. While that may seem to contradict Kate’s design aesthetic, I think there is plenty he offers that she would find attractive.

We’ll be showcasing other designers we might see the Duchess wear on tour moving forward, but brevity is needed today as there is a plethora of other news.

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Other quick headlines:

• Monday the Duke & Duchess will attend the Sun Military Awards, known as the Millies in some circles; This is a formal occasion, and we’re expecting a party frock from Kate
• Wednesday the couple will be at homeless shelter Centrepoint for a cooking session and to also watch a talent show, “Centrepoint’s Got Talent.”  William is Centrepoint’s patron, but he was introduced to the charity by his mother, Princess Diana, she was long a patron of the facility. To learn more about Centrepoint or donate, click here; for those on Facebook, the Centrepoint page is here. Below we see Princess Diana at the facility, and William spending a night sleeping out on the streets of London.
• An update on EastAfricaCrisis.org, the UNICEF efforts to feed the hundreds of thousands of malnourished children affected by famine in the region. The Daily Mail reports a joint appearance by William and Kate and Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary helped raise more than £1,000,000 (about $1,550,000) to help those most severely impacted by the crisis.

It’s the time of year when we see all manner of lists. You know the kind: best dressed, worst dressed, best wedding, best hair, etc. Because we know many of these hold interest we are sharing a few of them, beginning with Maclean’s naming the couple Newsmakers of the Year. From the story by Anne Kingston:

“In a year riven by political turmoil, economic malaise and rioting in the streets, a young, fresh-faced couple formally titled the duke and duchess of Cambridge (but affectionately known as Will and Kate) provided ongoing romantic relief”and distraction. The photogenic pair delighted the masses and were a boon to the media that tracked their every move, real and speculative.

To read the entire story, click here. We’ll also be offering more ‘best of’ lists with Kate in the next ten days.

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As mentioned above, it’s the time for lists and we’ll be trying to ascertain your favorite Kate looks starting next week, but we need a spot of insight from you before we launch the polls. At this point we plan to have three clothing categories:

• favorite casual look
• favorite day dress (short dress, for lack of a better term)
• favorite formal style, gown

We’re also planning to vote on favorite jewelry, favorite handbag, and favorite footwear. If your trusty scribe is up to it, we’ll also try and look at your favorite hat or fascinator. We would love to hear from you about the styles you would like to see included in any and all categories, just leave a comment(s) with your input. The WKW Facebook Community has weighed in, but we want to hear from everyone.