NOTE: Some of you may have seen me reference a second post to deal with the activities after the welcome and Palace arrival, but I decided to keep it all in one post, including the outside events with Kate in new boots and her alpaca hat.
Kate returned to Catherine Walker for day 3 of the royal tour.
Kate chose an ensemble we’ve seen before for today’s visit to the Hornsey Road Children’s Centre in Islington, London.
The Duchess was in garments by Goat Fashion and Topshop.
The Children’s Centre provides vital mental health support to parents, as well as offering antenatal & postnatal services, a nursery and playgroups.
The Duchess was there to learn more about programs at the Centre supported by Family Action, the UK’s leading family charity.
Family Action has been providing services to disadvantaged and socially isolated families since it was founded in 1869.
This is the engagement originally scheduled in September that needed to be canceled because of Kate’s illness.
Kate spoke with parents who have been helped by the charity.
She also heard about Family Action’s perinatal mental health services.
A volunteer worker spoke of the benefits of the Duchess’s involvement, saying “…it’s so good because it really raises the profile of perinatal mental health.
Kate has been learning more about maternal mental health. Earlier this month she hosted a roundtable discussion on the topic at Kensington Palace.
The Duchess was given a lovely posy by a young lady named Neveah.
More from Victoria Murphy’s Mirror story:
“She asked me what my favourite colour is,” said Nevaeh, who wore a baby pink party dress to present the Duchess with bouquet of flowers.
“I said it was pink and she said that’s Charlotte’s favourite colour too.”
During the visit Kate also shared that Prince George is very fond of helicopters.
Now to what Kate wore for today’s engagement. Many of you immediately recognized the Redgrave coat (£600, about $780) from Goat Fashion. The coat is 100% wool and made in the UK. It features an A-line silhouette, hidden front snap closure, and diagonal welt pockets.
The Duchess first wore the piece in 2013 for an engagement with Prince William at Child Bereavement UK.
UPDATE Nov 20: Goat tells me Kate is wearing the coat in nude, not cream as many wondered.
Thoughts about the look from The Telegraph’s Caroline Leaper:
When Jane Lewis founded her label Goat sixteen years ago, she did so with the intention that women would wear and re-wear the pieces she designed, for years to come, without them ever looking dated.
Surely there is no better affirmation that this principle has worked than seeing the Duchess of Cambridge today wearing her Redgrave coat once again, a piece that has been on rotation in her wardrobe since she was pregnant with Prince George back in 2013.
More from Ms. Leaper’s article.
This is the second time in as many weeks that Kate has worn pieces from the London-based line, after buying a new Eloise tunic dress in burgundy to give a speech at the Place2Be forum.
Despite the fact that Goat isn’t a maternity fashion line, the Duchess seems to repeatedly turn to Lewis’s designs when she is expecting – its fuss-free lines and quality fabrics presenting easy, failsafe looks for anyone with a changing figure. The Eloise is likely another piece we’ll see her wearing again and again in the future.
For those interested in the Eloise, Goat is taking info from anyone who would like to be notified when the dress is back in stock.
Kate appeared to be wearing the same dress seen at the 2013 Child Bereavement engagement with William, the contrast collar shift dress from Topshop.
We saw the return of Kate’s Half ‘n Half boots from Russell and Bromley. They’re one of the styles done by Stuart Weitzman for the upscale accessory retailer, and they remain available in all sizes.
Kate also carried her Bayswater waller clutch by Mulberry. 
The Kiki McDonough hoops and Annoushhka pearl drops were back. 
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One other quick note today, this one about our annual What Kate Wore calendar. We are doing a 2018 version (this one is a special edition!) and expect to have it available for pre-ordering in the next week to ten days. Thank you to everyone who has asked about it!
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We saw the Duchess wearing a new brand for today’s opening of a new Art Room at a London school.
©James Whatling/Splash News
We move to the second trimester in our retrospective look at Kate’s maternity styles. (Our post on the first trimester is here.)
January 11th Kate attended the official unveiling of her first portrait at the National Portrait Gallery wearing the Sophie Rae dress by Whistles. At the end of January the Duchess did a bit of shopping in her Seville Boots by Really Wild Clothing and a plaid cape. We still haven’t determined if the cape was a 2010 Zara piece or a 2012- 2013 item from Orvis.
PA Wire/TOPSTAR Photos
February brought just one official engagement for the Duchess, a trip to Hope House in South London on the 19th. Kate wore a 2011 wrap dress by Max Mara Studio.
All Images SplashNews.com
Kate joined the Queen and Prince Philip today for a visit to London’s famous Underground.
The occasion was part of the events celebrating the Underground’s 150th Anniversary.
The anniversary was officially marked on January 9, but events commemorating the milestone will go on all year.
Transport for London
It was good to see HM out and about, although most accounts noted that she looked pale. It was the first time she carried out public engagement in almost ten days, she continues to recover from “symptoms of gastroenteritis”.
Rebecca English, The Daily Mail, Mail Online
The Queen was wearing a Karl Ludwig tweed dress with an Angela Kelly hat. As one might anticipate, everyday Tube riders were surprised to encounter members of the Royal family at an Underground station.
Transport for London Twitter
They were given a tour of Baker Street station, below we see Kate being welcomed with some lovely flowers.
Transport for London
Richard Palmer of the Express explains how Kate came to be involved in today’s function.
She and Philip were joined by Kate, who had scheduled a series of official engagements this week and asked if she could be part of the visit to the historic Tube station after their two offices compared diaries and the Queen formally invited her. “She just fancied it. She asked if she could come along,” a senior royal aide said.
Kate was given a new ‘accessory’ during the visit, one of the famous Baby on Board buttons.
For those unfamiliar with the buttons, here is more from the Daily Mail:
The lapel badges are available free to expectant mothers using public transport as a gentle hint to fellow travellers to offer them their seat and behave, well, in a slightly more courteous manner.
PA Wire
The Duchess did not put the button on but instead commented she would wear it at home. The group also toured a new train and HM unveiled a plaque naming that train ‘Queen Elizabeth II’.
Kate wore a teal blue By Malene Birger coat for today’s engagement.
Laure Laura from Kate Middleton Style discovered this posting on a fashion selling/swapping/trading site.
VideDressing.com
The piece is 100% wool with elaborate trim at the neckline and down the front. There are large tabs at the cuffs and on the outer front pockets, accented by oversized buttons. The piece is closed with concealed hook & eye fastenings, if you look closely at the image of the coat back above you will see the additional fabric gathered at the waist.
When our friends at Grazia asked a Malene Birger representative about Kate’s coat they were told it was not one of their designs. But looking at details closely reveals the piece is identical (except for color) as the Malene Birger.
VideDressing.com/PA Wire
The soutache style trim is topped with black beads, those beads are set on individual sequins.
The dual signatures on the inside of the garment confirm the listed piece is by Ms. Birger. You can see the interior pockets and polka dot fabric referenced on the Vide Dressing listing.
One FYI, if reading the VideDressing description (which is in French), it may appear the coat style or name was ‘manteau,’ that is merely because manteau is French for coat.
Denmark’s Princess Mary has also worn this piece, it dates back to at least November of 2006. Coincidentally, Princess Mary was also pregnant when seen in the coat. Many thanks to the WKW Facebook friends who shared this information, as well as those messaging and emailing.
This is not the first time we have seen the Duchess in a coat with the Birger name on it, she wore a piece by Day Birger et Mikkelsen several times, although Ms. Birger left this company to start her eponymous label. We show Kate wearing it to the 2006 wedding of Laura Parker Bowles to Harry Lopes (below left), then again in 2010 for another wedding (Mel Nicholson and Oli Baker at St. Andrews) and once more for the wedding of Zara Phillips (below center) and then July of 2012 for the London Paralympics Opening Ceremonies.
Splash News/Splash News/Paralympic Sport TV
Kate accessorized with a hat we have seen previously, the elegant Whiteley beret-styled piece worn in January of 2011 to the wedding of Harry Aubrey-Fletcher and Louise Stourton.
PA Wire/Splash News
We also saw Kate’s Episode ‘Angel’ pumps again, along with her Cornelia James Wool Gloves with Bow, and sapphire earrings.
We have included links below to a few sites, including the London Transport Museum’s Gift Shop. It has all manner of London Underground 150 items, including mugs and books like these.
London Transport Museum Gift Shop
The teal was perfect for Kate’s coloring and the accessories worked well. She truly looks happy and very centered these last few weeks. Today’s coat looked a trifle short though, hopefully the Duchess isn’t planning to stick with the shorter lengths.
I apologize for the tardy post, we’ve encountered significant technical issues throughout the day. We’ll see you Friday for coverage of Kate’s time with the Scouts.
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