The Duchess brought back a dress by designer Martin Grant for tonight’s reception in Cape Town, South Africa.
The party was at the residence of British High Commissioner to South Africa, Nigel Casey, and it celebrated the accomplishments of young people.
Town and Country reports the 200-person guest list included “…female township leaders, local entrepreneurs, representatives of the fashion industry, and those working on conservation efforts in the region, among others.”
More from Channel 24’s coverage:
While the guests at the reception included a few famous faces, the Duke and Duchess were delighted to meet the youth involved in ocean protection and conservation, female township leaders, young entrepreneurs, water crisis responders, and more.
“Thank you for introducing us to Cape Town,” Prince Harry began his speech. “Especially to my wife, who hasn’t been to this part of Africa before.”
Below you see the couple with Jade Bothma who is 12, and Hunter Mitchell, age 11. Jade started a charity called Oceano Reddentes; its mission is described as “Saving the sea one piece of plastic at a time.” Both Jade and Hunter were presented with “Point of Light” awards at the reception.
Channel 24’s story quotes Hunter: “I raise money for injured and orphaned baby rhinos after their mothers have sadly been poached. That money goes to rescuing, raising and rehabilitating these baby rhinos back into the wild. So it helps the rhino population grow.”
In this video, you see Meghan admiring Jade’s necklace made of recycled plastic pieces, and also helping Jade out when her shoe slips off.
The Duchess speaking with guests.
Now for our look at what Meghan wore this evening.
As many immediately recognized, it is the Martin Grant dress worn at Bondi Beach during the Australia tour last year.
From the designer’s Resort 2019 line, the striped dress features a fitted bodice with a full skirt. Thoughts about the look from Tamara Abraham’s fashion column for The Telegraph:
The striped maxidress, by Melbourne-born designer Martin Grant, looks as current as it did the last time she wore it on Sydney’s Bondi Beach – in fact the olive green and ochre hues are very much in keeping with this autumn’s prevailing palette.
The Duchess is re-wearing clothes that she last wore while expecting son Archie and in doing so, she’s showing us that shopping for ‘maternity wear’ isn’t what was. It’s no longer a question of buying specially made or XXL garments that serve no purpose once the baby is born. Instead, Meghan is proving it’s possible to find looks that both accommodate a growing bump and later be a working mum’s wardrobe heroes.
Below you see Meghan in the dress this evening and in October 2018.
Back to The Telegraph fashion piece.
As we all shift towards more sustainable fashion habits, Meghan, like the rest of us, is expecting every item in her wardrobe to work harder than ever before. Instead of buying into ephemeral trends, we’re leaning towards more classic, timeless pieces that we can wear and repair until they fall apart.
The Duchess accessorized with black pumps. It is possible they are the Manolo Blahnik BB Point Toe Pumps in black suede the Duchess has worn on multiple occasions.
We saw the porcelain Flora Leaf Earrings (R 400, roughly $27 at today’s exchange rates) by Nina Bosch again.
The Duchess wore the Jennifer Meyer Marquise-Cut Turquoise ring ($250) and the ring we believe to be her wedding band.
If you’ve not seen today’s earlier coverage, click here for our post on this afternoon’s visit to South Africa’s oldest mosque and the Bo-Kaap neighborhood (L); click here for the post on this morning’s engagements at Monwabisi Beach (R).
Here’s your look ahead to the events on tomorrow’s schedule.
VIDEOS:
eNCA has 35 minutes+ from tonight’s reception.
This Daily Mail video runs about 1:30.
LINKAGE:
- a Daily Mirror story is here; Channel 24’s full story is here; The Daily Mail’s story is here; a People article is here; The Daily Express has coverage of the full day in this piece
- Caroline Hallemann’s Town & Country piece is here; Hello’s coverage of the entire day may be seen here; a BBC piece about the day’s events is here; Good Morning America’s coverage of the day’s activities is here;
Shannon says
The dress is too casual for an evening reception she should of worn the black valentino gown and wore this to the beach event.The stripes are so vivid and funky and perfect for this african trip but it’s too long for the grass and her shoes which could of caused a tumble!
Laura says
I’m afraid I didn’t like this dress in Australia, and I still don’t like it. It isn’t really appropriate for this formal event. Its too casual, and at this stage, it’s too tight in many places. It just seems much too informal for an evening reception where others are dressed in their best. I’m all for recycling clothes, but maybe a royal tour reception where everyone is dressed in their very best, is time for a new dress, not Givenchy or Valentino, but by a local British or African designer, well-tailored and not a recycle. That would have been more respectful of the people attending, and she could recycle another dress during the daytime events. For example, my least favorite tour dress so far, the olive green Staud maxi shirt dress she wore to the mosque, which was actually quite expensive. She could replace that with a recycle, and could have worn the new dress to the reception.
ElizaMo says
Interesting to see how laid-back and casual several of the outfits are at the event, so Meghan doesn’t look out of place re-wearing a dress last seen on the beach. I’m beginning to suspect that could be par for the course for the dress code in a sunny place like Cape Town. I’m delighted to see this Martin Grant dress again, it’s so striking while using a basically simple theme like stripes and some muted earth tones, but with effective use of white as a highlighter.
Fun too to see the dress up-switched for evening with formal pumps and new earrings – even better that they are locally sourced. I wouldn’t have minded a pair myself – I think they’re lovely – but the postage from SA was as much if not more than the earrings themselves. Very savvy to get the gold/black contrast in keeping with the dress stripes. Loose hair is looking good tonight, not too many straying strands, but reasonably held together.
gitijaan says
Hi. I LOVE THIS DRESS AS MANY TIMES I SEE IT. THIS COLOR GOES TO MAGHANS SKINCOLOR.
i like the brown color for myself but donot know the price. if i find the texture i would buy .
Stephanie says
Beautiful look! I would personally like to see this dress about an inch shorter and a strappy heel. And speaking of fashion perfection, wow can we get a full body shot of that woman in head to toe blue with the colorful necklaces?? Now that is a fashion moment, she stole the show!
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Mallory says
Beautiful colours for Meghan! Glad to see this back. It is perfect for the weather, and the maxi length adds a little formality without being over the top.
Agree with those who think it’s a little too long; if it’s like this with a higher heel, it needs to be shortened a little. That said, I have to admire The Duchess for managing both the long dress and the shoes on the grass!
Alyssa says
I like this dress as well. As others suggested, it’s a tad to long for her. Overall I love her look, I would personally like to see her with a cute hair up do for this dress. She has long gorgeous hair.
ElizaMo says
I don’t have a problem with the length, I’m just assuming it’s fashionably intentional and part of trying to be funky. I perfectly appreciate fashion has rather lost its way if the resulting funk was to leave the wearer falling flat on her face, but happily Meghan manages to move with perfect grace here!
Tessa says
Her hair looks gorgeous here. She always looks lovely with it down, but the side part looks especially good. She is glowing. Dressing up this outfit with a statement necklace, high heeled shoes, and some bracelets would have helped to have it be more on par with the occasion. She and Harry are loving this tour and loving being parents — they just glow with happiness and I’m so glad.
ElizaMo says
Thanks for pointing out the side-part, I hadn’t realised that’s why Meghan’s hair was looking better tonight!
Susan says
Pretty dress. And I love the hair with it. Many of the men are quite casual, so it seems completely appropriate to me to pair a long dress with a more casual hairstyle at this event.
celine says
I like the dress but I don’t think it’s right for Meghan or the occasion. It needs a taller woman. I also think that together with the loose hair, the entire look seemed a bit untidy. Maybe if shortened and with higher heals and shoes that show, it could look better. It also seems to be the type of dress that needs to be accessorized.
Carol says
WOW Maybe someone read my post on how pretty she is with her hair parted on the side? I think she looks so much better with it done this way. Lovely dress with the verticle stripes and colorbut it is too long. She looked great and loved the pantsuit too. My favorite so far. Cant wait for more!
Just-A-Thought says
I actually like this dress, and except for the length, it fits well. I wish she would have added a necklace, maybe one from an African artisan.
Sarah says
Ah, it’s a study in figure changes (via pregnancy) and differences. Megan is short-waisted, (I’m short-waisted, too, and I watch this blog to get ideas for what I should and should not wear.) When one is very thin, one can get one’s proportions from the fashion of one’s clothes. But when one gets a few more curves, from whatever source, those underlying shapes more strongly influence how clothes visually adjust proportions. For example, compare this against the chartreuse shirtwaist dress from later this week. The wide belt of the shirtwaist dress divides Meghan with little vertical breathing room, not the present Western beauty ideal (though one that has been popular in the past, and men still seem to like it!). Whereas this fitted silhouette with its vertical stripes and dropped ‘waist’ before the broadening of the skirt at the hipline, visually lengthens her torso. I struggle with this myself – I’d love to wear shirtwaist dresses…but as long as my bust is as large as it is, I look too mama-like for my comfort!
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Barbara says
I liked this dress last year and I still like it. The pattern is very striking and the color is very flattering to the Duchess. It is too long. Perhaps different shoes would have helped? Her hair is lovely. She and Harry seem very engaged and happy as they interact with other guests. They are dressed more casually than almost everyone there. Especially Harry. It’s an evening garden reception and I wish the Duchess had chosen different accessories to add a little glamour to the dress.
Ellen says
I loved the dress the first wear, I love it now. I do wish she would fix the hem however. Could have used done a simple basted hem that could been altered depending upon the heels worn with the dress in the future.
Kay Khyabani says
Meghan is glowing on this trip! She and Harry look like they are having a lovely time. I have to say, when she first wore this dress to Bondi Beach, it wasn’t my favorite. It just seemed too long and I didn’t care for the colors. Well, how wrong was I!?! I LOVED it here. Maybe because the lighting is different but the olive green just seems to pop. I loved it with her hair down.
Thank you ladies for posting these so quickly! I love reading about the engagements and seeing these great pics!
SuzyQ says
I like the dress objectively. I don’t think it works for this event – a bit too casual with straps instead of sleeves, and especially since the last time she wore it she was sitting on a beach! It’s also too long for her which ruins the lines. It does fit a bit tighter this time, but it doesn’t look bad.
I’d like it much better for a reception if it had some sort of sleeves – very brief cap sleeves maybe. Also, I think rewears need to be for similar type of events. The blue dress was more successful that way.
I think a block heeled sandal would have been a better choice for the dress. Her hair was very.nice.
Jessica says
I liked this dress on first wearing, and I like it now too, though I agree with others that it’s just a bit too long. I understand that it’s a maxi dress, but I’ve never liked that dragging-on-the-ground look, for dresses or trousers.
I do like that she’s keeping it casual for this tour.
Kathy says
Harry seemed a bit like “Prince Charming” helping Jade with her shoe – Cinderella flashback!
I love the olive green color that Meghan wears (Louis’ Christening, the summer polo match, yesterday at the mosque and in this dress- and I am sure I have missed some!)- nice warm color for her.
Marta says
In my opiniom this dress does not go well with these shoes and what’s more impotants it’s a bit too long, so it looses shape. I like that she’s rewearing clothes, but she (or her team) should not forget that they may need some additiinal fitting as well. I love the hair and makeup.
Sally G says
So good to see Meghan recycling her clothes. As to jewellery I was advised to leave mine at home when travelling to Africa. When a diamond ring could feed a family for the next 10 years it is unkind to flaunt wealth in their faces
Donna says
I liked this dress from the moment I saw Meghan in it at the beach in Australia. It is so unusual in print and color, yet so pretty and becoming on her. She looks great in it this time too, even though the fit is a bit off. I like those earrings too. They were an excellent choice with this dress.
My only issue is that she seems too casually dressed compared to others at the event. I had a similar problem with the denim jacket with rolled up sleeves at the beach event earlier in the tour. She looked fine and the fit on the jacket was great, but she looked rather sloppy overall. I know that this couple want to be more modern and less formal but people have expectations regarding how BRF members present themselves when representing the monarchy. I am hoping she gets a better knack for it as she gains some experience.
Also, any chance of getting a better look at the recycled plastic necklace Meghan seemed to find interesting. She and Harry trying to help with the girl’s shoe was priceless!
Heather says
I like this dress but as with most of Meghan’s other maxi dresses, it’s a bit too long on her. I’m glad she wore the heels otherwise I’d be worried she’d trip on the fabric.
I like that so far on this trip we’ve seen a number of repeat pieces as well as some affordable new pieces. Perhaps Meghan worked with some new advisors in planning this trip.
Jessica says
Meh. The dress seems too tight across the bust, almost as though it is being pulled. The bust is looser on the model and, in my opinion, this is more flattering. I liked the dress better at the beach than an evening reception (even a relatively casual one). She is clearly very happy to be there, though, and her smile and enthusiasm are beautiful to see!
Bonnie says
I liked this dress when Meghan first wore it on the beach in Australia. In fact I think it is even more suited to this event. The dress is sophisticated, yet simple. I especially like the way the three horizontal strips contrast against the vertical stripes. Her earrings work well. For safety sake I’d opt to have it a tad shorter, but Meghan seems to be navigating okay.
So far Meghan’s tour wardrobe has been reasonably priced dresses or repeats. Maybe a conscious effort is being made to wear clothes that we can relate to.
Dawn C says
On it’s own I loved this dress last year and I love it again. If I could own it I would and I’d wear it out- and I don’t even like dresses. That being said, it really needs to be hemmed up a bit so it doesn’t drag the ground and it’s definitely tighter fitting in the bodice now than last year. It actually looks a bit uncomfortable with how snug it looks but she has the stones to wear it so more power to her.
MuchLove says
I may like the dress a bit better now that I did in the first wearing of it. I remember it being more brown, but the olive stands out to me more this time. I’m a bit puzzled by the choice of jewelry, though.
Anna says
Meghan’s hair and makeup have been incredible this trip. I especially love it when she wears her hair like she is here, loose and long. Also, I really like the warmer and richer lip. She glows!