A New Date on Kate’s Calendar & Alexander McQueen for Fall

We are back with word of a new engagement on Kate’s Calendar. Saturday, October 10th she will join William for an event marking World Mental Health Day. They will meet young people with mental health problems who now volunteer with Mind, the mental health charity co-hosting the event. More from Hello!:

…(they) will learn about the new Mindkit project, which is being delivered across London and educates young people about emotional health and resilience. They will also be introduced to the anti-stigma campaign Time to Change, which aims to break down the stigma of speaking about mental health issues.

William and Kate will also meet “Champions” of Time to Change, an organization working to fight the stigma surrounding mental health issues. More in a news release from Time to Change:

Our young Champions have been central to our children and young people’s campaign, and have delivered training in schools so that staff and students get to hear people’s real life stories. The young Champions also helped create materials for secondary schools to use to run their own Time to Change campaign.

The engagement will be at Harrow College, located about an hour north of London. It is very much in sync with Kate’s continued focus on mental health issues, especially those impacting children and young people. From a Kensington Palace statement:

Work to build awareness and understanding of mental health problems is a major priority for both The Duke and Duchess.

In terms of Kate’s calendar we continue to look at the possibility she will attend another Rugby World Cup event; in the Palace release about the World Cup and Kate’s participation it was noted that she was “…expected….(to) attend several matches and events.” There are reports Kate was in Cardiff (Wales) today, that is where William attended the Wales vs. Fiji match. From Berkshire to Buckingham site has an Instagram photo said to show Kate with William today. If the reports are accurate it’s possible Kate and/or the pair had a private engagement today, or perhaps they have something planned in Wales tomorrow. At any rate, the next Wales match happens to be October 10th; there’s no conflict with the Mental Health Awareness event though, as that will be a daytime function and the rugby match doesn’t begin until 8pm.

NOTE: The Daily Mail’s royal reporter, Rebecca English, says the reports are not accurate, that Kate was *not* in Wales.

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We move now to fall styles from the brand that is arguably Kate’s favorite designer label, Alexander McQueen.  In seeing new pieces from the fall collection several struck me as being suited to Kate’s style aesthetic; it seemed fun to take a gander at what is available, especially with several engagements for Kate now on the schedule.

We begin with the Wool Military Jacket in navy (if interested in the trousers shown with the jacket, I believe they are the Slim Flatfront Pants); also in navy, the Mock Neck Ruffled Double Breasted Coat (the photo is color treated slightly to better show design details); on the far right, the Military Peplum Jacket in black. All pieces are shown at Nordstrom.

Saks also has the Military Peplum Jacket, but their version is in midnight blue.

At Alexander McQueen the Jacket is offered in military green, and shown with the collar standing.

Offering different retailers styles in different colors is one way brands boost their sales, it helps stores differentiate themselves, allowing them to promote that they have “an exclusive color you’ll only find here at _______” (fill in the blank).

Another midnight blue piece at Saks, the Double Breasted Flared Coat.

Initially I thought this style was reminiscent of the Samurai Folds coat by Alexander McQueen Kate has worn previously.

But aside from both pieces being double breasted with a fitted bodice and full skirt, they are not really alike. On the right we show a slightly different style in black, the Double Breasted Folded Drape coat, you can see the different material used on the skirt.  The current season garment has a layered, flared skirt, while the Samurai coat has many more folds and draping in the skirt, as well as details like the oversized pocket flaps at the waist.

Perhaps the jacket most suited to Kate that I discovered when surfing gleefully painstakingly researching this post (cough-cough) is the Double Breasted Stretch Twill Jacket, shown in blush at Net-a-Porter.  It just quietly shrieked “Duchess-worthy” when I first saw it.

It isn’t difficult to envision the Duchess wearing this Pleated Back Double Breasted Coat, it shares structure and tailoring on the back similar to the Prince of Wales check coat Kate wore for the Singapore state visit welcoming ceremonies last October. It might be difficult to see, but the construction of the upper back is almost identical to the bespoke piece. This particular color is ‘teint,’ a word many will recognize, it is commonly used by many cosmetic companies; roughly translated it means “fair” or “fair skin” or “fair complexion”.

When it comes to dresses, there are several pieces we could see the Duchess sporting. On the left we show the Front Zip Leaf Crepe dress in black, albeit with the zipper not up quite that high; second from the left, the Full Circle Skirt Knit Dress, the addition of sleeves and a little more length could make this workable. On the right we show a piece that is very much like several McQueen styles we have seen Kate wear, it is the Crepe Coat Dress; it is an acetate/rayon blend, so it could also be ideal for spring’s warmer temps. It certainly incorporates several key Alexander McQueen design elements; it too has the same upper bodice construction as the coat shown above and Kate’s Prince of Wales check coat.

From the Alexander McQueen site we show the Placed Rose Jacquard Crew Neck dress; second from the left you see the black Wool Crepe dress as shown at Harvey Nichols, although I’m not convinced Kate would go for the draped fabric at the front of this garment. Multi-store site Farfetch offers the V-Neck Dress second from the right; the Lace-Effect Jacquard dress in ivory is also at Harvey Nichols, it’s a rayon/silk/poly blend that I am guessing is probably very comfortable.

Next, the Alexander McQueen Wool Ruffle Coat in black, as shown at Saks. The photos on the far left and right have been digitally altered to better show the details in this piece.

The Cotton Pique Flared Shirtdress has panels in the skirt that are pleated, with oversized French cuffs and a point collar. It’s not inconceivable Kate would wear it in a customized version.

One final item, a jacket one can see Kate wearing in a solid color, the Double Breasted Patchwork Felt Blazer at Lane Crawford.

While at Farfetch I noticed several pieces in the Prince of Wales check fabric used for Kate’s coat; they are all on sale with sizeable discounts. From left to right we show the Blazer, Jacket and Cropped Trouser.

For those interested in the Alexander McQueen spring 2016 runway show, it is part of Paris Fashion Week, and scheduled for Sunday at 8pm local time, that is 2pm EDT.

We also want to share a few brief retail updates, starting with LK Bennett. The retailer’s white and black ‘Lasana’ dresses, modeled on Kate’s ‘Lasa’ dress with its snorkel blue poppies, are both on sale on the UK site. Normally £250, they are marked down to £195.  Good news if you are in the UK, LK Bennett is doing free delivery on all UK orders; use the code HEELS at checkout.

On the US/Canada site I only see the Lasana in black, and it is not discounted, still priced at $425.

Also on the UK site, Kate’s Cayla dress is back in stock in all sizes. And there’s a new color for the dress, Sloane Blue.

The retailer is doing its Friends and Family event, with 20% off ‘selected full and sale price styles,’ making some discounts quite deep. Use promo code FF2015 for the discount.

Finally this evening, the Ralph Lauren Austin Shirtdress the Duchess wore for her visit to the Anna Freud Centre remains available in almost all sizes at Neiman Marcus. (This is not a surprise, price-wise the frock is north of $1500.)

The version that is slightly shorter than the style worn by Kate also remains available at Ralph Lauren.

LINKAGE:

• Read the full news release about the Mental Health Day engagement by clicking here
• Learn more about Mind by visiting its website here, its Facebook page is here and Twitter feed may be seen here
• Visit the Mindkit website here, you can visit the organization’s Facebook page here
• The Time to Change website is here, the group’s Facebook page is here