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The Duchess Debuts a New Label at Shout Engagement

The Duchess was in a new dress for an engagement at Shout, the mental health text messaging service. 

She was there to commemorate the service’s one-millionth conversation with those seeking mental health support.

The Duchess met clinical supervisors, volunteers, and fundraisers while at the firm’s Notting Hill offices.  Below, chatting with volunteers Alexis (c) and Angus(r).   Alexis began volunteering at the start of the pandemic and has had more than 250 conversations with people contacting the organization. Angus is one of Shout’s very first volunteers; he has provided more than 1,000 hours of support to people in distress.

Shout notes that its volunteers “are often the first person our texters have ever spoken to about how they are feeling, and they work to take someone in distress to a calmer place.”  In a social media post following her visit, the Duchess said, “Having met some of the incredible volunteers today to hear their stories and see how they facilitate conversations, it’s obvious how their empathetic approach helps people feel safe, calm and listened to…”. 

She heard about the ways data from the service’s first million conversations will help the organization “better understand the scale of the nation’s mental health needs and experiences.”

The Duchess also saw a live demonstration of the Shout platform from Clinical Supervisor Nisha Lar-Warburton. The Duchess spent time with people who have raised funds for the service.  Here you see her chatting with Leo Street, a 13-year-old Scout, who raised £8,000 by sleeping outdoors in a hammock for a year.

More from Robert Jobson’s story for The Evening Standard. 

Kate met Leo Street, 13, and called the teenager “an inspiration” after he braved temperatures as low as minus five to raise money for the charity. 

During a visit on Wednesday, the duchess joked: “There really isn’t a big enough Scout badge for that. What you achieved is really inspiring.”

Back to The Evening Standard piece: 

“You must have had some impressive kit to keep warm,” she said.  Leo, from Swanley, slept under a heavy-duty tarpaulin to shield from the extremities of the weather.

Leo told the Duchess his next fundraising endeavor will be a bike ride to Scotland. 

The Duchess clearly enjoyed speaking with him.

Rhiannon Mills of Sky News shared a video. 

  You may remember Shout’s launch in 2019.  Below, the Duke and Duchess at a November 2019 event celebrating Shout volunteers. 

Danielle Stacey reports in her Hello article that “Use of the platform has jumped by 140 percent since the start of the pandemic, and Kate was told of the need for more volunteers to meet the growing demand.”

Now for our look at what Kate wore today, beginning with her dress by Derek Lam 10 Crosby, a brand we’ve not seen her wear before.

The Sammy Leopard Print Dress (most recently selling at $125.99, originally $525) is crafted of an army-green, black, and brown chiffon in 100% viscose with a polyester lining.  The dress features a button-front with bow, unlined sleeves with buttoned cuffs, and a tiered skirt. Many thanks to Emily and Caroline P. Parr for another terrific ID.

Closeups show the front bow, gathers at the back yoke, and the sheer sleeve.   

San Francisco native Derek Lam launched his eponymous brand in 2003, adding the 10 Crosby line in 2011. (10 Crosby is the address of the brand’s former headquarters).  He folded his higher-end collection in 2019 to focus on 10 Crosby and sold that business to Public Clothing Company in 2020; Mr. Lam is 10 Crosby’s Chief Creative Officer. 

Middleton Maven suggests the Duchess wore a belt by ba&sh, the brand’s Betty Buckle design ($135) in black suede. (I digitally lightened the product shots a bit to better show the belt.) The company’s name comes from its two owners, Barbara Boccara and Sharon Krief, who launched the Parisian-based label almost twenty years ago. 

She brought back her boots by Ralph Lauren Collection (no longer available), shown below as worn to a previous engagement. 

She repeated her ASOS design earrings ($14.50).

The Express reports the Duke and Duchess will be at BAFTA headquarters tomorrow; I’ve not seen confirmation of this. It’s possible only Prince William is going to be there in his role as president of BAFTA.  Hopefully, the Express report will be accurate and I will see you tomorrow!  
UPDATE JAN 27: Prince William did the BAFTA engagement solo. 

VIDEOS

The Royal Family Channel offers about 3 minutes of video from today’s engagement.  

 

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DuchFan

Tuesday 12th of July 2022

The more I look at this ensemble, the more I like it. As others have noted, this look feels authentic to the duchess's down-to-earth, caring personality. And at this engagement, it diverted attention from her outfit and toward the important work at hand. Love the green on her; the belt lends a lovely cinch; and oh, the boots. Yay! Bottom line: She looks beautiful and relatable.

SnowEyes

Monday 31st of January 2022

I'd love to see this dress under a long camel wool coat. I think the DoC is trying, and doing a better job, of finding clothing and accessories that can be worn again in different combinations. While I loved and still love the tailored and shorter dresses and skirt suits that the DoC wore from 2016-2019, these items really couldn't be worn in different outfits with a different skirt, pants, or jacket. They functioned only together. I like the switch to boots and more substantial heels versus the daintier pumps. I also like the switch to more affordable jewelry.

I'm really happy that the DoC is feeling more confident and willing to experiment more. I'm also really happy that the DoC is willing to adjust her wardrobe to fit the times, which are more casual and more reasonably priced.

Kate

Monday 31st of January 2022

Better without the belt and the bow tied at the neck both of which make it rather mumsy, but hey she's cool, awesome and oh that hair!

ElizaMo

Saturday 29th of January 2022

It really is something to see the success of various Cambridge-inspired projects , what a tremendous achievement for Shout to have hit the one million mark in support conversations. No mere vanity project here.

Derek Lam 10 Crosby seems something of a mouthful by way of a name, but I really admire this print. The Sammy dress has features I’m not normally fond of in the tie neck and tiered flounces, but this particular leopard-print is so unusually contrived it looks as much like modern art as animal print. The lovely sludgy colours, with olive green base, give it a hint of camouflage, and it works to soften a variety of style features by smoothing them out.

The other big plus is the use of chiffon so nothing is too heavy. It hangs so nicely the skirt layers are contained and not intrusive, and the garment moves beautifully with along with Catherine. It also has the advantage of being able to create extra interest in the translucent sleeves. With the fascinating pleating on the back as well, it really is a shirtwaister with a difference. Another example of Catherine staying with favourite style features while still ringing the changes. A very canny work dress and relatable for meeting young people.

The ba&sh Betty Buckle belt is needed and well chosen to finish the look, and the Ralph Lauren boots look fabulous, the spikey heel playing into the slightly party feel of the dress. I’m all in favour of raiding High Street sources for work earrings, and this Asos pair looks well against Catherine’s luxurious hair.

Jessica

Thursday 27th of January 2022

Please understand when I say this is an ugly pattern, I'm not casting aspersions; I think an ugly pattern *can* be deployed brilliantly. But to do that effectively requires an unimpeachably luxe fabric, which this is not, and a touch of the avant-garde, which I also don't think is happening here (though the boots, which I like, are trying hard). The flounce on the skirt is also detracting; I don't honestly know how I'd restyle this to make it better. I'd be glad to see it go into that cold storage system we all keep speculating about!

AMW

Saturday 29th of January 2022

I think it flows better without belt ( as seen in center picture)

Debs

Saturday 29th of January 2022

Why is the pattern ugly , I don’t get it ? It is certainly not a loud design , quite subtle in fact and difficult to see in the photos from a distance , which I think might be the point a sort of take on camouflage . I don’t see the animal print but perhaps that was inspiration behind the design. Please I am not criticising anyones right to dislike it that would be silly , I just don’t get don’t get the ugly design , uninspiring , too dark etc yes , ugly no . I like the comment about the dress looking good on the sofa , I do think that was taken into the equation as I am sure the Cambridge’s have visited numerous times and Catherine has an artist’s eye and her team would also have that contrast in mind , as we live in such a visual age . I noted most of the women wore dark outfits and the office has a modern minimalist vibe . I thought the whole episode quite eye catching with Catherine standing out in the dark rather frivolous dress !

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