Meghan wore Jason Wu for today’s Royal Foundation forum.
This was the first time we have seen Harry, Meghan, Kate and William at an official function together. While the foursome was seen walking to and from church on Christmas Day, that isn’t considered an official engagement.
Using a theme of Making a Difference Together, the event covered why the Foundation was initially formed, offered updates on current projects and looked at plans for future endeavors. Here is look at the program for today’s forum via reporter Omid Scobie.
These details on today’s forum come via The Telegraph:
William opened the event, held in the City of London, by outlining the philosophy behind the Foundation, saying: “We would not seek quick wins, but would strive to make a real and lasting difference.”
He took the opportunity to make an official welcome for Ms Markle, saying he was “particularly happy to be at our first Royal Foundation event with Meghan”.
Below, Prince Harry talking about the Foundation and its future.
There was a 20-minute Q & A segment moderated by BBC presenter Tina Dahomey. Here is a video of that portion of the program.
All four spoke about what the Foundation means to them and hopes for its future work. William noted that the four together are much stronger than the sum of their individual parts. Meghan said that she has been meeting with different organizations and wants to “hit the ground running” after her marriage to Prince Harry in May. We learn more about Meghan’s comments today from The Daily Mail:
Simon Perry of People reports that Foundation CEO Lorraine Heggessey said that Meghan “… has a passion for charity work. She’s already shown that in the past and that’s one of the things Prince Harry and she have spoken about and they’ve bonded over.”
Also from the Daily Mail:
The young Royals showed their softer side at the foundation forum today when joking about the challenges of working together as a family.
After being asked by presenter Tina Daheley if the ‘ever have disagreements’ William immediately burst into laughter before responding with a drawn out ‘Ohhhh yes’.
Harry was quick to clarify they were ‘healthy disagreements’ and joked they ‘come so thick and fast’ when asked what the last thing they quarrelled on was.
After their portion of the program, the royals joined the audience.
They listened to individuals and organizations that have benefited from the Foundation’s programs. Below, a photo shared by the Endeavor Fund.
Endeavor Fund (click photo to visit Twitter feed)The foursome spoke with attendees after the formal presentation.
Now we take a look at what Meghan wore for the forum, starting with her dress by Jason Wu. If unfamiliar with the brand, a very quick overview: the designer debuted his first RTW collection in 2007. He is a favorite of Michelle Obama, as well as Reese Witherspoon, Christy Turlington and many other celebrities. The label is headquartered in New York, and 90% of the Jason Wu Collection is made in the city’s garment district, no small accomplishment in this day and age. Below, the designer with Diane Kruger last December.
Meghan was in the brand’s Crepe Back Satin Belted Wrap Dress.
The dress is an acetate/viscose blend, with elements of a classic trench coat influencing the design. It was shown on both the 2018 S/S runway in New York and Singapore; that piece has shoulder epaulets like those seen on Meghan’s dress. In this photo, you can see that both sides of the fabric are visible in the finished garment: the glossy, shinier side, as well as the crepe (or matte) side.
A little better view of the bodice as well as the treatment of the exposed seams.We show the dress at Nordstrom ($1795) but it is also available in most sizes at Net-a-Porter ($1795), however, neither of those garments have the epaulets found on Meghan’s garment. Thank you to Meghan’s Fashion and Perth Fashion for their assistance with info on the dress!
Meghan was in what appeared to be a new pair of shoes. It looks like she was wearing the Aquazzura Casablanca 85 Multi-Strap Suede Pumps. (The photo shown below is digitally enhanced to better show details of the shoes.)The style features a multi-strand ankle wrap with an oversize buckle and 3.5″ heel. It is available at My Theresa ($750) as well as at Harrods ($725). Our thanks to Michelle of Perth Fashion for her speedy ID of the heels.
For jewelry, we saw the return of Meghan’s Stackable Splash ring by Birks.
Meghan’s earrings are a challenge because of the lack of really good photos. We’re still undecided on them. Meghan’s Mirror thinks they are the Isabel Marant style seen below left and Michelle of Perth Fashion wondered if they might be this Chloé since Meghan is fond of the brand. We may never know unless we stumble upon an exceptionally good photo or Meghan wears them again.
We are still working on identifying Meghan’s bracelet.
LINKAGE:
- Learn more about the Royal Foundation at its website here
- The Daily Mail coverage of today’s events may be seen here; The Telegraph’s story is here; The Express article is here; The Mirror’s live blog is here
- PopSugar’s gallery is here; People’s style story is here and its news story here
Sandra says
Any news in the bracelet she wore ? Looks lovely.
WhatMeghanWore says
The UFO Bangle Bracelet – we’ve been looking at several close-up photos of the bracelet, none have been extremely clear enough to correctly identify the piece. We hope to have something on this in the near future as she has often worn it. We will update in a post for sure as soon as we find out. 🙂 Thanks for asking! – sac
Ettennyls says
I don’t care for this dress, it appears to be in need of some tailoring to fit more flatteringly on Meghan. The hem in particular appears to be too long in photos in which she is standing, and I find the lapels and the voluminousness of the dress generally unflattering. I am guessing Meghan may be purposefully dressing “down” to lower expectations that she will be a “fashion plate” known more for what she wears than the causes she supports. She may find the endless fascination (and criticism) of the clothing ensembles of the female members of the British Royal Family unnecessary and misaligned with seriousness of many of the causes the Royal Family supports. I am just surmising, I could be quite incorrect; however, I can’t help but notice that she appears to have had a far more “exciting” and noticeable style prior to her involvement with Harry and the international spotlight that her relationship entails.
To be clear, I like her understated style very much, though it does not appear from this post! I gravitate towards minimalism and simplicity; I am hopeful Meghan’s style will evolve more pointedly in that direction as well. Lastly, I love participating and watching the dialogue that surrounds the style of Kate and Meghan; I have a busy job, but find quite a bit of pleasure on the days that Kate or Meghan step out in public view.
TZH says
Wow! Well done meghan…not bad for first public speaking!
I think we have seen better outfits on her…I don’t like how it hangs on her and I think the material looks a bit pathetic (…almost cheapy!) but that’s only my opinion
I really wish she would do more full curls like kate…it would make her look a lot more strongly built and bold
I can see that she is just getting the royal swing of things but she will get there soon!
Nice one meg!
Jessica says
I like everything about this except the epaulets–they’re just gilding the lily. But I love the color, the semi-unstructured style, and the use of both the matte and shiny sides of the fabric. Really nice design.
Love her modern jewelry, as always, and those shoes! It really is nice to see some fierce shoes on the royal fashion scene.
Julie says
Epaulets were featured on the runway version and have the added advantage of securing a bra strap so it doesn’t slide around. I think her choice was excellent (Michelle Obama wore these designs well, too); the style portrays confidence, and Wu’s designs are sewn with more attention to detail than the sloppy seams we sometimes see in other designers.
Shirley says
I do love her look — the shoes are to die for. In the US a lot of newscasters and celebrities wear sleeveless dresses all year long so it doesn’t surprise me that she’s thinks it’s appropriate. Kate’s style evolved and became more “royally appropriate” but I’m not sure we’ll see that from Meghan. She’s her own woman and as an American, well, hmm … there’s just that sense of being who you want to be and not conforming. It will be interesting to see if she evolves … we may never know if she’s advised to do so or if it comes from her own desires. But she’ll never be a Kate. Also the expectations for her role are less bound in tradition that those for Kate’s role. Only time will tell, but I think people will give her a pass and pretty much let her wear what she wants unless it’s loudly inappropriate. I love her style — it’s bold, modern, young, and unique. She picks a lot of lesser known but wonderful designers. Kate wants to fit the role and does it beautifully, but Meghan seems to want to carve her own. We’ll have to wait and see how far she can go with that, and have a lot of fun along the way.
Jenny says
I have mixed feelings about the dress. I’m glad to see her wearing one, and I think the color and material are lovely. I like the belt and the trench coat references.But I’m not sure I like the lapels, which look more like flaps to me. They remind me of the white coat she wore to announce her engagement, and the brownish number she wore at Christmas, both of which I disliked, due to the huge lapels that swamped her, and looked sort of — messy.She and Kate certainly don’t have to dress as conservative look alikes when they’re together, but next to Kate’s dress I thought Meghan looked overdressed. Overall I thought Meghan looked lovely, but somewhat out of sync with the event.
ElizaMo says
It feels like something of a departure from previous outings for Meghan to have finally conceded to wearing a formal day dress and I find this a sophisticated take on the classic shirtwaister. Being Meghan there is always a twist, in this case an underlying sensuality partly via the long front opening and also in the neat use of satin veneer on the fabric reverse to great effect on lapels and on front and shoulder inserts.
I love the shoes too, they’re decidedly sexy with their whip-thin ankle straps, possibly a hint of vamp which may be a little strong for a royal engagement. I wonder if Meghan’s acting background leads her to sell herself a little more in this way when royal outings might be more about sticking to a conservative tradition.
Much as I like the frock I’m feeling a minor niggle that we’re still seeing Canadian names in the spotlight and I’m wondering when we might see more of a transition to Meghan’s new country of residence. I’m also getting tired of lank and straggly hair which strikes me as a shade adolescent against the kind of polish Kate has achieved – despite being three years her junior Kate looks the more mature one here. Still, it took Kate some five or six years to gain real royal poise and Meghan is doing pretty good so far.
Bonnie says
I agree, ElizaMo, that Meghan’s look is somewhat vampish. On another site someone said the dress and shoes are something that she would wear on a late night, television, talk show. It is early days yet, but let’s hope that Meghan finds a style that will be true to herself, but more in keeping with expectations that will be upon her, as a member of the Royal Family.
I’m sorry but you are mistaken about the age difference between Kate and Meghan. It is not three years. Kate was born January 9, 1982 and Meghan’s birthdate was August 4, 1981…so they are just five months apart in age.
ElizaMo says
Thank you for the update on the girls’ ages! Looks like I got a bit confused with the age difference between Meghan and her intended.
She does tend to go for a sexy vibe in many of her outfits which could be at odds with the whole royal thing. It must be tricky working out how to accommodate a previous private civilian style with the royal image, so I suppose she’s on an interesting journey and we have the pleasure of following her on it.
Bonnie says
Meghan looks stylish and the dress has so many unique features. Navy is still very neutral and I wonder if we will ever see her wearing colour. I think the sleeveless look is a tad odd given how very cold it is in Britain right now. Personally I would have chosen navy shoes with this navy dress, but these black ones certainly make a statement. Meghan is articulate and will continue to add positive elements as the Royal Three becomes the Fab Four.
Karen Mills says
love this dress and not sure why the fuss is about it having no sleeves. venues are warmed and you just put on a jacket and scarf whilst in transit.
Maluhia says
Gorgeous dress choice by Meghan! She looks fantastic. I’m beginning to see that Meghan, like Kate, is one of those women who look better in a dress than the original dress model and promotional photos for the dress do!
Lana says
I really like this dress, but not for February. It’s snowing in London and I’m cold just looking at her.
Becky says
I think she looks great – fresh and modern. Love the shoes!
SG says
I love the dress and her shoes. I too relish her willingness to make bold fashion choices AND that she is very vocal about women’s issues and gave a shoutout to Times Up and Me Too. I know there was speculation that the palace forbids such support and it is nice to see that it hasn’t and that she is embracing it and using her platform to shine a light on it.
LadyLeah says
Both ladies look lovely.
What a thrill it must be to be able to make a difference on a scale like this via The Royal Foundation.
Megan’s dress is modern and professional and she spoke like with clarity and passion.
Great shoes and great hair, and what a winning smile!
Cass says
Pretty dress, I like the movement to it in the photo with the model… would be nice to see in action rather than sitting still.
Holly says
Meghan’s just so stylish! It’s so refreshing to see such bold choices.
Julie says
Love Meghan’s poise and professional speaking abilities. She’ll be an asset to the foundation and, I hope, make waves in regard to women’s issues.
Lacey says
Oh I do love this dress! Love the color and the styling. I really love how it drapes. I’m still one of those people that have a hard time putting together navy and black the way she’s done with the black shoes. I need to get over it. 🙂 I also love her hair today.
megan-wore says
I think she and Kate complimented each other nicely today with their choice of blue dresses. I love her choice of a Spring line dress as it reminds us that the warmer weather is not that far off (plus they were on a stage under hot lights, I’m sure it was warm in that room so smart on her part to wear something comfortable like that.)
Brit07 says
I don’t see comments section anymore, not sure why? My monitor is also displaying some of the material in tiny font, very difficult to read. Maybe it’s just my set up, but I don’t see comments with smartphone access either.
megan-wore says
Hi – we are currently in the midst of making some updates to the blog/site and have yet to restore the comments on previous posts. As well, some minor issues popped up with some of the font appearing smaller in various places within the post. Please bear with us as we continue to adjust and enhance.
thanks! – sac
Brenda says
This is fresh and modern, and Meghan certainly seems to like navy. But, it’s snowing in London today. It seemed a little odd to see her in a sleeveless dress.