Many time the Princess of Wales will use her clothing to represent or convey messages of support. She’s often made an effort to dress diplomatically when visiting foreign lands and will wear national colors, flag hues or other themed items.
For instance, in Canada in September 2016 she wore red and white dresses (the national colors), Ulu brass earrings from local artisans like Ottawa based Shelley MacDonald and an alpaca wrap coat from luxury Canadian outerwear brand Sentaler.
The princess has perfected the art of using sartorial signals to send tributes to her hosts and bring attention to London based clothing designers and fashion houses.
And while Kate may cleverly dress ‘on-theme’ when going abroad, she often has a way to celebrate her family closer to home.
The princess often wears acorn jewels and gems in honor of her birth family — the Middletons. She even wore Robinson Pelham oak leaf and acorn sparklers commissioned by her family for her wedding day earrings.
In addition, she frequently wears jewelry dedicated to her children and has many sentimental and symbolic pieces in her collection including necklaces engraved with the Wales’ children’s initials and personalized with their full names.
Plus, Kate loves to send subtle shoutouts to her children by donning their birthstones.
Here Are All the Times Kate Middleton Wore Her Children’s Birthstones:
Prince George of Wales, July 22, 2013 — Birthstone: Ruby
Despite having a considerable amount of sapphires, diamonds and pearls, Kate owns just a few select pieces of ruby jewelry.
She has worn Queen Elizabeth’s Boucheron ruby and diamond bandeau necklace to a state banquet in July 2017 as well as donning the Mouawad ruby and diamond bib necklace (believed to be a wedding gift) to a December 2011 military awards.
As Prince George was born on July 22nd, 2013, it’s possible that her ruby and white diamond necklace set which appeared on a tour of Poland and Germany in the summer of 2017 was a shoutout not only to her Polish hosts but her eldest son.
The princess also appeared in a pair of chunky statement earrings from Soru featuring ruby gemstones set in a multi-faceted crystal drop in January 2020; these gems may have been another way to pay homage to her son, second in succession to the throne.
Princess Charlotte of Wales, May 2, 2015 — Birthstone: Emerald
Three years before Charlotte’s birth, Kate stepped out in November 2012 in a green Mulberry dress wearing emerald and diamond oval earrings whose provenance remains unknown.
Since that time, Kate has worn the petite emerald earrings on eight more occasions including their most recent outing on St. Patrick’s Day in March 2023.
Yet, despite the frequency of her green drops, the princess has rarely worn other emerald jewelry.
Still, whether a tribute to Princess Diana or her only daughter, Kate did step out in some striking emerald stones in December 2022 in Boston. For the Earthshot Prize Awards, Kate wore a slinky highlighter hued neon green rented dress by Solace London along with Queen Mary’s Art Deco diamond and emerald choker with a pair of new $11,375 Asprey London Emerald and Diamond Earrings mounted in platinum.
Perhaps, Prince William gifted his wife the earrings to match Diana’s beloved green choker or even possibly to pay tribute to their only daughter.
Prince Louis of Wales, April 23, 2018 — Birthstone: Diamond
The Princess of Wales owns many pairs of diamond hoops, chandelier earrings and cushion drops — thus, it’s impossible to say when she’s honoring her youngest son.
Still, of significance is the earrings Kate debuted in January 2018 a few months before the arrival of little Louis.
Clad in a blue (hint hint), Erdem velvet dress with velvet sleeves and a fluted hem, the mom-to-be wore a new pair of $6400 diamond hoops.
The princess wore a pair of Celeste Aspen earrings set with white diamonds in 18-carat white gold from the same jeweler responsible for her wedding earrings, Robinson Pelham. The oval diamond hoops could have been a gift in anticipation of the arrival of her April baby.
William, Prince of Wales, June 21, 1982 — Birthstone: Pearl
It’s Kate’s ‘signature stone’ — the pearl — which has the strongest symbolism for the Wales family.
A gemstone favored by Princess Diana, the shiny cream colored stone appeared on William’s mother frequently in the form of layered pearl chokers, collared pearl necklaces and multi-strand pearl wraparound necklaces.
Diana also loved wearing large gold-tone pearl clip-ons from Chanel.
The current Princess of Wales embraces polished pearls for their regal aesthetic; she’s worn pearl disc stud earrings, baroque pearl drops, pearl hoops and mother-of-pearl earrings.
It’s noteworthy that Kate wears pearl for momentous family occasions including wearing her Cassandra Goad studs for the christening of Prince Louis and her Annoushka pearl hoops for the introduction of Princess Charlotte to the world following her birth at St. Mary’s hospital.
She also debuted a pair of double drop pearl earrings for a garden party at Buckingham Palace in May 2012. Still a newlywed at the time, the origins of the earrings remains a mystery. It’s possible Prince William gifted his wife the earrings as a wedding present or first anniversary gift.
