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It’s the Return of the Reiss Olivia Coat for Day Two of the Ireland Tour!

The Duchess brought back an old favorite for the day’s first two engagements. Kate Middleton Reiss Olivia Coat Ireland

Day Two of the Ireland tour started with a visit to Jigsaw National Centre for Youth Mental Health.

As Victoria Murphy writes in her Town and Country story, the organization “provides a range of mental health services including one-on-one therapy sessions, community programs, research, online support, and a program in secondary schools.” The Jigsaw headquarters are in Temple Bar, Dublin.  Kate Middleton Jigsaw Mental Health Equipment Spots Polka Dots Blouse Dublin

Rebecca English reports the couple “spoke to young people at the drop-in in Dublin whose lives were turned around by charity Jigsaw.”

Rebecca’s Daily Mail story also notes “The couple met young people supported by the charity and spoke with community campaigners, teachers, parents and coaches about the impact of Jigsaw’s work in one-to-one, neighbourhood, school and online services.”

Jigsaw’s “mission is to advance the mental health of young people in Ireland by influencing change, strengthening communities and delivering services through our evidence-informed, early intervention approach.”Kate Jigsaw Dublin Equipment Polka Dot Blouse

More about today’s visit from The Daily Mail story: 

Ella Barton, 19, said, ‘They were amazing. So down to earth and really connected with what we were saying and the issues young people face. What was amazing about the visit is that they were on the same page of many of the issues I have struggled with.

‘I explained that the school system had failed me and they agreed that more needed to be done in schools to help young people before they reach the stage when they need to seek help, particularly bullying and other school stresses.

After their time at Jigsaw, the Duke and Duchess visited ‘Love Lane,” often called one of the most romantic places in Dublin.

Love Lane is part of a Dublin initiative to decorate streets. 

The concept was created by a local street artist named Anna Doran.

In this video from Hello’s Emily Nash, you can better see some of the art. 

  And here you can see Anna Doran working on the installation and some of the finished product in images shared by the artist on Twitter

The next engagement on the itinerary was at Savannah House, a facility run by social justice charity Extern; it offers overnight stays to young people who are already using other Extern services. Below, the couple when they initially arrived at Savannah House.

The Duchess as the couple is welcomed at Savannah House. 

The couple was scheduled to make soup. They left Savannah House shortly after arriving so they could do a little shopping at a local market. More from this York Press story

Before they set off, the Cambridges inspected the fridge with the youngsters and checked the ingredients needed for the soup – all designed to teach the children life skills.

William said: “There’s only one leek. Do we have to stick to the menu?”

He then told the others in the kitchen: “We’re going to shop for you. We’ll be back in a minute. We’ll bring back all the wrong ingredients.”

The couple, who had 20 euro (£17) to spend, returned 15 minutes later with a bag of provisions including brown bread, butter and leeks.

A photo tweeted by journalist Geraldine Herbert shows the duo heading into the store.   

 Here you see William and Kate with two young people from Savannah House as they shopped.

And from Kildare Now

The royal couple smiled and waved at the cheering crowds as they left their Range Rover vehicle and disappeared inside the convenience store for a few minutes. 

The area outside the Londis shop had been cordoned off by gardaí since earlier this morning and word had spread rapidly that William and Kate may be surprise celebrity customers. 

Kate and William did a walkabout after they shopped. 

Prince William posed for some photos that Donna Malone shared on Twitter. That’s Donna’s daughter Jennifer on the left.

More about Jennifer from The Mirror

…the sports superfan was on hand to greet the Duke and Duchess of Cambrige on Wednesday as they visited Prosperous village in Co Kildare.

Her mum Donna told the Irish Mirror how Jennifer gave William a bunch of daffodils to give Kate Middleton – and the prince embraced the youngster and thanked her for the kind gesture.

Here is a terrific video of William and Jennifer posted by Mary Carroll on Twitter.  

 Below, the couple back at Savannah House and in the kitchen.

A quick video from Richard Palmer of The Express. 

 Then it was time to get busy.

Kate scrubbing her hands. 

More from the York Press article

The Cambridges asked the children about whether they cook at home and what food they like.

As they washed and peeled carrots, Kate asked: “Do you cook any vaguely healthy things?”

It looks like William had veggie chopping duties.

One more quote from the York Press piece:

William asked the boys if they like pancakes, following Shrove Tuesday last week, and added: “I tried to get my children to eat pancakes but they weren’t so interested this year. Maybe next year.”

Kate also took on William in a game of ping pong. 

Extern posted a video of the match on its Facebook page. 

And the first point goes to…???

The Duchess of Cambridge proving she is a dab hand with a paddle as she goes…

Posted by Extern Charity on Wednesday, March 4, 2020

This is not the first Extern facility the couple has been to; they visited one in Northern Ireland in February 2019

Now for our look at what Kate wore for the day’s engagements. 

We start with Kate’s ‘Olivia’ coat by Reiss. Many immediately recognized the piece from its 2008 appearance at William’s RAF graduation ceremony. 

The coat is a wool/cashmere blend in a fit and flare silhouette. It features a faux double-breasted design with a tailored bodice that has quite a bit of top-stitched seam detailing; a wide, foldover collar; and a concealed front zipper. You can see some of those details in these photos.

If you look at the garment side-by-side you will see it has been tailored since the last time we saw the Duchess wearing it: much of the fullness of the skirt is gone and I *think* the collar has been narrowed a little as well.

For photos of all the occasions when Kate has worn the coat, see this post from the always-on-top-of-things Jane at From Berkshire to Buckingham. 

Beneath her coat, the Duchess had on a repeated blouse and a pair of what I believe are Zara jeans.

We first saw the polka dot blouse in September.

Kate was sporting a new pair of boots today. They look like the ‘Date Night’ style (£225, about $290 at today’s exchange rates) from Russell and Bromley. The suede boots have a slightly rounded toe with an inside zipper and 3.3″ heel.

Thank you to Middleton Maven for today’s boot ID. 

Kate’s (new, shorter) hair was styled down with just the ends curled under.

She had on new earrings that were a nod to Ireland’s national flower, the shamrock.

They appear to be the Mini Cupid Hoops with Baby Shamrock Charms (£120, roughly $155 at today’s exchange rates) by Daniella Draper. The earrings are sterling silver; the shamrock leaves stand for faith, hope and love. Many thanks to Mari and also to Valerie for their ID work on this item. 

In our next post, Kate’s quick change for a visit to a research farm in County Meath. 

VIDEO

This Royal Family Channel piece covers the Jigsaw engagement.

This video has a bit from last night, but the majority is from today’s events. 

Here’s a 1:30 video of the Jigsaw engagement from Virgin Media News. 

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Larissa

Monday 13th of April 2020

What a fun engagement at Savannah House! I must admit I get a kick out of seeing William and Kate do "normal" things like cooking and grocery shopping. I never would have guessed that William is so bad at ping pong! ;)

This is a great look on Kate, very appropriate to the occasion and flattering on her. The blouse gives just enough volume to balance out the skinny jeans. And I have missed boots! It feels like we barely saw any other than the Penelope Chilvers pair this past autumn/winter. The coat is so lovely and a welcome return, I am honestly surprised this is its first post-wedding public apperance. Love seeing Kate pull these "vintage" pieces out of her closet again.

Hilary

Monday 9th of March 2020

I loved this whole look. As someone who's only about 5 years younger than the Duchess, I can affirm that skinny jeans are very much work appropriate! Plus...she was cooking, shopping and out and about with kids, not working in an office like many of us. Jeans are spot on! NOTE: admin edit

Amelie

Thursday 5th of March 2020

This is a solid outfit. I always find Kate does better with "business casual" than strictly "business", for me her dresses are hit or miss. And it's nice to see not too many people harping on the skinny jeans. I never did understand the criticism and agree with other posters that this is a standard work outfit for many women around Kate's age (I'm only a bit younger than Kate). And the polka dot blouse is cute too. She sure loves her polka dots along with buttons and ruffles.

And it's nice to see her rewear this coat and to keep it in her closet for so long. I think it's one of my favorite coats of hers (and she has so many!) because it fits her so well. It's nice to see she kept the flare but just toned it down a bit (I liked the original flare too) and it looks like the zipper is concealed better too?

katefanatic

Thursday 5th of March 2020

I agree with multiple other posters who state that this is the look that many professional women wear every day, myself included. I think she looks just gorgeous in this outfit. The coat is a classic and the tailoring to remove volume is done well. She looks so slim and it in the picture where she is reaching out to shake hands, and I admire how smoothly the blouse tucks into the jeans. Hurray for the jeans! They look great. The earrings are fine.

I love those boots so much----but R&B doesn't ship to the US and I am unsure how to get a pair for myself. Does anyone have any ideas?

Although I love the shorter overall length of her new haircut, I wish her stylist would refrain from cutting a side fringe when he shortens it. It seems to bother her or get in her way, and I think the overall look would be better without the side fringe. William and Kate are great with young people and they really shine at events like this.

Elaine Silverstein

Thursday 5th of March 2020

Lovely coat, but it doesn't seem to work well with the casual outfit, nor, for that matter, with many of her current dresses because it's quite short. I for one am happy to see that she is wearing mostly longer skirts these days.

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