Kate in New Styles for Nursery/Preschool Visit

The Duchess was in a mix of new pieces (new to us, anyway!) for a visit to Stockwell Gardens Nursery & Preschool in London this morning.

The school is part of LEYF, London Early Years Foundation, a network of 39 nurseries across London.

This visit was initially planned as part of the mini-tour Kate did last week when launching 5 Big Questions, her UK-wide survey on early childhood. You may remember that last week the Duchess kicked off the Survey during a visit to MiniBrum at the Birmingham Science Museum on the 21st, along with visits to the Ely and Careau Children’s Centre in Cardiff and HMP Send Prison (the post on these two events is here) on the 22nd.  Today’s engagement was initially scheduled as part of the launch events, but it had to be canceled because of bad weather. 

This school is home to the LEYF Early Years Chef Academy,  which offers “the first specialist qualification for chefs either working or keen to work with children up to the age of eight.” 

Below, the Duchess meeting trainee chefs Luke Nelson-Neil and Rouchelle Scott-Ashby. 

More from The Daily Mirror: 

The trio chatted about food nutrition for children and when they started discussing particular foods Mr Nelson-Neil joked about beetroots saying “I still can’t get them to eat it.”

The duchess, who is the mother of three young children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, said: “Mine absolutely love it – it’s one of those things until you try it you don’t know.”

Kate’s visit was scheduled in the morning so she could highlight the importance of a good breakfast.

More from Verity Bowman’s Telegraph story: 

As she added bowls of fruit to a trolley laden with cereals and milk before wheeling it into a classroom during a visit to a social enterprise-run nursery and pre-school in Stockwell, south London, the Duchess said: “It’s great to visit places like this where communities come together to support one another.

Breakfast is served!

Kate making one of her funny faces. 

And another.

More from The Daily Mail piece: 

Kate poured out cereal for Lucy and her classmates, asking them to say ‘Stop’ when there was enough in their bowls, and later she turned to a plate of orange, banana, grape and papaya segments, asking ‘What do you think of the fruit? What’s your favourite?’ 

High fives after breakfast.

And time for fun with some of the other children having fun with a water play pit.  

During today’s visit, it was revealed that more than 100,000 people have already filled out the 5 Big Questions.  Below, the Duchess as she was leaving the school.

We return to The Telegraph’s piece: 

Following the royal visit, LEYF chief executive June O’Sullivan said: “You can’t capture just how important the early years are.

“There’s a raft of research that shows if you invest in them when they’re little, if you give them the right kind of nurture, if you give them the time to speak, learn, listen and concentrate – and opportunities of personal development – then they actually grow into really capable, successful human beings.”

Now for our look at what Kate wore for today’s school visit. 

Kate’s sweater is by Sézane, the brand’s ‘Tulio’ jumper ($125) in merino wool with a lace collar.

The product page describes the sweater as having “fancy plastron and lace on the front,” which sent me to the Google Machine so I could learn what a “plastron” is.  The term is defined as “an ornamental front of a woman’s bodice or shirt consisting of colorful material with lace or embroidery, fashionable in the late 19th century,” which certainly describes the sweater.  Here is a closer look at that section of the garment. 

Thank you to AAA on Twitter for sharing the sweater ID. The Duchess’s coat and jeans have not yet been identified. Thoughts on today’s look from Tamara Abraham writing in The Telegraph: 

But on a visit to a preschool in south London on Wednesday morning, the Duchess of Cambridge made the case for an alternative shade in a new petrol blue coat.

Petrol blue, the slightly darker, green-inflected sibling of classic blue, is a favourite in the world of interiors (Inchyra Blue and Hague Blue have both long been popular Farrow & Ball shades), but a relatively unsung hero in fashion.

It was a look that was polished, yet comfortable enough to engage with small children – and despite joining the youngsters for a meal and some ‘messy play’, Kate was able to keep her cream top pristine.

The Duchess debuted a new pair of boots, the Fab-Dry style from Aquatalia (originally £295, on sale for £145, about $190) available at Russell and Bromley.

The booties are a gaucho style with a stacked heel, zipper, and elastic inserts. They’re made of Aquatalia’s weather-resistant suede and have a padded footbed and 2″ heel.  Our thanks go again to AAA on Twitter for the shoe ID!  NOTE: These are quite similar to the Aquatalia ‘Fallon Dry’ the Duchess has worn, but it isn’t the same style. 

 

The Duchess also brought back her Simple Filigree Short Drop Earrings (£5, now sold out) by British retailer Accessorize. 

 

The earrings have long been sold out. With thanks to Valerie for her blog comment with a tip, here is a repliKate possibility: the Allison Rose Bohemian Drop Earrings ($13.98), as shown online at Amazon.

• Learn more about the LEYF Early Years Chef Academies by clicking here 
• Rebecca English’s Daily Mail article is here; The Daily Mirror’s story from Russell Myers is here; Verity Bowman’s article for The Telegraph is here; The Evening Standard’s piece is here; 
• The Telegraph’s fashion column by Tamara Abraham is here; Simon Perry’s People story is here; Danielle Stacey’s piece for Hello is here; Town & Country’s gallery is here; Just Jared’s gallery is here