It’s White Lace by Alexander McQueen for Royal Ascot

Kate wore another white lace dress for Royal Ascot today.

The Royals departing Windsor Castle this morning in a gaggle of Bentleys.

The Duke and Duchess were in the third carriage.

In the first carriage, HM and the Duke of Edinburgh; the Queen wearing a ‘lime green’ ensemble by Stewart Parvin with a hat by Rachel Trevor Morgan.

Kate and William with Sophie, Countess of Wessex and Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex.

There was a little hiccup as Sophie entered the carriage. The Telegraph has the details:

The Countess appeared to stumble as she got into the Royal Ascot carriage she shared with her husband, the Earl of Wessex, and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Falling forwards, she was caught under the arms by the Duchess who helped to steady her with a comical gaped mouth of shock before the pair caught one another’s eye and descended into giggles.

The Countess wore an Emilia Wickstead dress and a Jane Taylor hat.

It was another very warm day, with temperatures hitting 30℃, that is about 86℉. It was so warm Ascot apparently relaxed its wardrobe rules. More from the News Shopper:

Sweltering conditions at Royal Ascot forced organisers to relax the strict dress rules in the prestigious royal enclosure for men dressed in top hat and tails.

When temperatures hit 30 degrees Celsius during the afternoon the racecourse decided to relax its rules – believed to be for the first time – for men in the Royal Enclosure, which stipulate they must wear black or grey morning dress with a waistcoat and tie – but not a cravat – and a black or grey top hat.

Ascot Racecourse

Back to the News Shopper article:

A Royal Ascot spokesman said: “We took the decision in light of the hot weather, not to enforce the jackets rule.”

Before there was any racing, there was a moment of silence. More from The Telegraph:

The Queen has led Royal Ascot racegoers and her family in observing a minute’s silence in memory of the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire and London and Manchester terror attacks.

With her head bowed and her hands clasped in front of her, the Queen joined tens of thousands of punters paying their respects. The racecourse is making a donation of £100,000 to the British Red Cross UK Solidarity and London Fire Relief Funds and local charities to support those affected.

Other royals attending Ascot today included Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.

The Daily Mail reports Beatrice is wearing a Claire Mischevani dress; Polka Poppins says she is in the Stuart Weitzman ‘Capsize’ pumps. Eugenie opted for a hat with a very broad brim; a black sleeveless dress; a bespoke Ethan K clutch; and the Ellen heel by Reiss. Our thanks again to Polka Poppins for the info on Eugenie’s outfit.

Below, Kate with the Queen’s granddaughter, Zara Phillips.

Princess Anne was also at Ascot today, as well as Autumn and Peter Phillips. 

Kate with her mother, Carole Middleton, who is wearing Goat Fashion’s ‘Devon’ dress in pacific blue. Several savvy fashion followers point out she is wearing the same hat worn to Kate & William’s wedding.

The Duke and Duchess prepare to make a trophy presentation.

Kate’s frock is by Alexander McQueen. It appears to be a bespoke version of this piece, the Lace Mini Dress ($1842); the design is from the Resort 2017 collection. We show it at Farfetch; it is 40% off at Eleonora Bonucci ($2303) in limited sizing; it is also available at Harrods ($3145) in very limited sizes; and in ivory at Nordstrom for 60% off ($1474, with thanks to Carol G on the Facebook page for this tip!). The most obvious distinction between Kate’s dress and the off-the-rack version is length; hers is several inches longer. Thanks to Kate’s Closet for the identification of the dress.

The piece is crafted from a cotton/rayon/poly blend and has a silk lining. It features floral lace created in Italy; a high, scalloped neckline; three-quarter sleeves with scalloped hem; grosgrain ribbon and peplum detailing at the waist; a scalloped hem.

A closer look at the peplum detailing at the waist and the frill across the upper back.

Kate carried a new clutch from a new brand. A delightful reader, KMB, suggested Kate might be carrying a Loeffler Randall clutch, the “Tab Lizard-Effect Leather Clutch.” The bag measures roughly 5″ x 9″ and comes with a concealable chain, allowing it to be carried over the shoulder. We show the piece at Net-a-Porter, where it is sold out. The bag is available in ivory at Saks, where it is on sale for $144.

The New York-based company is helmed by the husband/wife duo of Jesse Randall and Brian Murphy. The impetus behind the brand was Jesse Randall’s, who says “I started Loeffler Randall in 2004 with my husband Brian because I couldn’t find the kind of shoes that felt like a natural extension of my own style – understated, elegant, effortless.” 

We started the post with a sentence referencing “another white lace dress” because that is what the Duchess wore for Royal Ascot last year. Here we put the Dolce & Gabbana lace dress from 2016 next to the  McQueen design worn today.

The Duchess wore a new hat that remains unidentified.

The Royal Hats blog describes the piece far better than I ever could:

The cocktail hat is built on a cream base and trimmed with lattice printed crin bows that circle around the form a folded brim. The brim is anchored with pearl-centred floral lace trim that also cascades from the back, and cream silk flowers.

We saw the return of the Duchess’s Gianvito Rossi suede heels in the ‘praline’ colorway. The style is available at Net-a-Porter in most sizes ($675); offered in a mix of sizes at My Theresa ($675), and in very limited sizes at Madison Style ($675).

The Duchess brought back a pair of earrings we have seen before, loaned to her by the Queen. The earrings were a wedding gift to HM from Bahrain.

For more detail and background information on the earrings, pop over to the Queen’s Jewel Vault.

A look at Kate’s name badge.

One more photo from the day.

Here is a video of the arrivals.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are present at #RoyalAscot for today’s racing as Her Majesty The Queen leads the Royal Procession pic.twitter.com/3bDK8ovUND

— Ascot Racecourse (@Ascot) June 20, 2017

Editor’s notes: Prince Hamdan of Dubai was incorrectly identified as Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai. Also, I posted a montage of Kate’s Deco-style diamond earrings, as opposed to the Queen’s pair worn today; many thanks to those who let me know. I appreciate those taking the time to email or comment; it is *such* a help; we’d all rather have a post that is accurate than one with errors.

LINKAGE:

• The Ascot Racecourse website is here; its Facebook page is here; an online Ascot shop is here; the official Style Guide is here
• The Daily Mail’s story is here; The Express story and gallery may be seen here; there are Daily Telegraph stories here and here; The Sun’s story is here
• The Mirror’s fashion story is here; an Express fashion story and gallery may be seen here;