Why The Princess Of Wales' Bold Turquoise Trooping The Colour Outfit Is A Vibrant Return To Form

The Princess of Wales has made an appearance with her family during the Trooping the Colour parade in Central London. Her 13th time attending the annual occasion, Kate Middleton wore a turquoise coat dress with contrast white lapels and cuff detail by one of her long-favoured designers, Catherine Walker.

In design, the dress had a distinct 80s feel, which makes for easy comparison to looks chosen by her late mother-in-law Diana, Princess of Wales. While the dress offered strong-shouldered, sleek tailoring, Her Royal Highness then softened it with an asymmetric wide-brim Juliette Botterill hat finished with tonal florals and an elaborate updo fastened at the nape of her neck.

By comparison to last year's outfit, a white long-sleeved dress decorated with a bow by Jenny Packham, which marked her first official outing after stepping back from the public eye during her cancer treatment, this ensemble is fashionably bolder. It offers a concerted striking contrast to the military uniforms around her at the parade, which speaks to a confidence and a return to form and the vibrant colour palette she has often chosen for Trooping.

The Princess of Wales' jewellery included a pair of diamond and pearl earrings, originally belonging to the late Queen Elizabeth II, which Catherine has worn regularly, while the Irish Guards brooch was pinned at her shoulder.

The Princess' sons Prince George and Prince Louis wore navy suits with matching red ties, while Princess Charlotte echoed her mother in a sweet turquoise dress and a white bow fastened in her hair as the sun shone down on the capital. The 10-year-old also wore the horseshoe brooch she wore to Queen Elizabeth's funeral.

The Princess' 13th (2020 and 2021 were cancelled due to the pandemic) Trooping look says more than just what she's favouring now as it speaks to her evolution as not only a senior member of the royal family but as a woman growing into her personal style, too.

The now mother of three first made an appearance at the annual event, which marks the Monarch's official birthday, a few weeks after her April 2011 nuptials. Clearly still revelling in the newlywed moment, she wore an ivory Alexander McQueen dresscoat in a silhouette reminiscent of her wedding gown's skirt. Her hair was blown out as she so often wore it then and finished with a black hat.

Since, the Princess has moved away from the girlish sensibility of her earliest Buckingham Palace balcony appearances to find a sense of matured polish that extends from intricate, immaculate updos to supreme coordination that runs from well-brimmed hats up top to sharper silhouetted dresses by a roll call of her favourite brands. Her choices, along with her clearly growing ease of edging closer to the centre of the balcony line-up, tell of a public figure that is more comfortable in her place and in understanding in what she chooses to wear when the spotlight shines brightest on her and her family.

For Trooping, an event that has existed for 277 years, the Princess often leans into the more traditional side of her wardrobe. The Victoria Beckham trouser suits she prefers for her working days are swapped out for skirted dresses or suits primed for decoration with sentimental jewellery and her hair is off her face in a fashion that any other mother of three might appreciate.

As she adds turquoise Catherine Walker to her Trooping arsenal, revisit the Princess of Wales' Trooping The Colour ensembles over the course of the last 14 years.