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The Duke & Duchess Do Some Gardening and Play a Little Tennis

The final day of the Scotland Tour included a mix of old and new designs.  The day began with a Fields in Trust engagement at Edinburgh’s Starbank Park. 

Prince William has been President of Fields in Trust since 2013 when he took the role on from his grandfather, Prince Philip, who had been involved with the organization since 1948.

People magazine’s Simon Perry shared a video of the Earl and Countess of Strathearn as they arrived at the park this morning.  

The Duke and Duchess with volunteers who have worked for years to improve the park. 

More from Simon’s People story

Spending time with the young children from Edzell Nursery, who use the area for some of their play and outdoor activities, Kate and William joined in as the group sowed seeds for bee-friendly, and butterfly attracting, plants.  

Richard Palmer of The Express shared a video

Back to Simon’s story

“She was spontaneous and relaxed. Perhaps because she has her own children, you can see she is keen on children. William was also great with them,” the kindergarten’s practitioner Jo Harding, who was with the kids, tells PEOPLE. ‘They have an openness about them that makes them feel friendly.”

Another view. 

More from Robert Jobson’s Evening Standard story

They heard about the organisation’s Green Space Index, which is an annual barometer of green space provision and distribution across the UK, and heard from volunteers and families how crucial the park has been to the local community.

The Green Space Index is an analytical tool that identifies inequities of green space provision and consequently enables the planning and protection of green infrastructure that can help mitigate climate change at a local level.

Fields in trust reports at today’s event, “Edinburgh’s Lord Provost unveiled a new commitment by The City of Edinburgh Council which will ensure almost everyone in the city lives no more than a ten-minute walk from a green space which is legally protected for good.” 

The duo also met members of the community who use the space including local families, nursery groups, and Duke of Edinburgh Award participants.

The Duchess with one of the children.  

The Daily Mail reports, “The green-fingered royal also revealed she ‘loves weeding’ in a conversation with one girl.”  

Next on the agenda, tennis with children from Canal View Primary School. 

The session was at the Craiglockhart Tennis Centre in Edinburgh. 

The royals learned about LTA Youth, a new Lawn Tennis Association program designed to “help more children enjoy the benefits of playing and staying in tennis, whatever their age, gender, ability, disability or background.”

The Duchess is the LTA’s royal patron. 

They took part in a set of exercises from the LTA Youth program that included hopscotch, floor tennis, and team cones.

Both royals competed with the children to see who could keep rallies going the longest.

The LTA reports “Their Royal Highnesses each captained a team of children in an epic game of ‘team cones’ with each child playing a mini-match against the others to secure a point for their team. Ultimately the Duke/Duchess’s team was victorious.”

A video from Kensington Palace. 

We turn now to our look at what Kate wore, starting with the day’s first look. 

The Duchess brought back a Massimo Dutti green blazer first worn in November 2020 and again in January of this year. 

She also wore a pair of cuffed, straight-leg trousers that are not yet identified.  They looked like they were dark green, not the black UFO pair worn earlier this week, but that could be caused by the lighting. It may be the same black pair.  

Beneath the jacket, it looks like she was in the Silk Spot Print Cardigan (£130 originally, most recently £45, sold out) by Jigsaw

Made of 100% silk crepe de Chine, the piece has a slim fit with a shawl collar, v-neck, and button cuffs.  A style tip says “…wear done up as a top with tailored trousers or styled open over a plain dress.”  Thank you to Emily for another terrific ID. 

We saw the return of a go-to shoe for Kate, the Superga 2750 Cotu Classic Sneakers ($65).  

The Duchess added to her Daniella Draper jewelry collection, wearing the Gold Fixed Alphabet Necklace ($720).  The piece is made in the UK of 100% recycled solid 9ct yellow gold. 

Thank you to Chrissy via Middleton Maven for the speedy ID.  

Jewelry today also included the Orelia Chain Huggie Hoops ($22) worn several times on the tour. 

The Telegraph’s fashion editor, Tamara Abraham, writes in today’s colum

Kate chose black, cropped, straight-leg trousers for a morning engagement in which she met with nursery children at Starbank Park in Edinburgh. Teamed with a dark green Massimo Dutti blazer, a Jigsaw polka-dot shirt and a pair of white Superga trainers, it struck the kind of balance we’d all like to achieve with our clothes: a bit more fashion, but not trying too hard.

It was polished but youthful – and comfortable enough to engage with the youngsters who had gathered to meet her and William. In short: the perfect post-lockdown work look that’s easy to copy – whatever your age or body shape. It’s not always the case with Kate’s style – the glamorous, long, wide-legged trousers she wore earlier in the week don’t translate to real-life as effortlessly, as the hems get dirty if they’re even a fraction too long.

The second ensemble brought the return of a Ralph Lauren design. 

The brand’s Cable-Knit Cricket Sweater is modeled on the original Ralph Lauren Cricket Sweater created in 1972. 

The piece was first worn in Northern Ireland in February 2019 (it is sold out).  The Duchess wore black cuffed trousers, not the UFO pair seen yesterday.  

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Stacey

Wednesday 2nd of June 2021

The first outfit is a miss for me because the pants are too short and the superga shoes don't really go with a fancy blazer. Though, I do love the shoes and they went much better with the second ensemble. The shorter pants made much more sense with a casual sweater.

allie kidd

Sunday 30th of May 2021

William is wearing the same shoes that Harry has on in his sons baptism official photo, except Hs are Blue. #Brothers #Funny

Laura

Sunday 30th of May 2021

I’m not in love with the white-trainers-with-cropped pants look, but Kate pulls it off very well. I love her green polka dot blouse with the blazer. This is a casual look that is polished bout sporty at the same time, and that’s really hard to achieve.

Like most people commenting, I also have no idea if the trousers are green or black.

Sarah

Saturday 29th of May 2021

These pants are the worst. The longer trousers are so much better (or her skinnies, which are best). These are just tragic flood pants that look SO awkward.

Susan

Tuesday 1st of June 2021

Agree 100%. She’s has such a slim figure, she needs a form-fitting pant with full length legs.

LovesBlue

Saturday 29th of May 2021

I love these outfits. So appropriate for the events and her participation in them. I absolutely love the photo of her speaking with the child in the yellow jacket. She looks so genuine with her interest in her interaction. Pair that with the huge smile while beach sailing and her thrill of participation and competition with William. What a wonderful mix for the future Queen. Queen Elizabeth participated in real life activities during the war, and while the participation is different now, I suspect there are kindred spirits there.

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