Last night’s state dinner hosted by the President of Fiji was in fact quite the milestone for the Duchess of Sussex – her first public black tie event since her wedding five months ago. Given her propensity for wearing trouser suits and erring on the side of informality, I know many have been waiting for the “princess” moment – this was essentially that, and there’s plenty more such nights in her future.
But before we get into the evening or this dress, I was first struck by the side pictures of Meghan where she was clearly cradling her “bump,” for lack of a better word (I hate that phrase). Meghan has to be solidly in her second trimester, right? The more I see her out and about this week, the more I’m convinced that she has to be well past the 12-week mark. All Kensington Palace has said is that a baby is due in the “spring,” but I’m inclined to think that must mean early April at this point.
Anyway, because of said baby, the couple toasted at dinner with, you guessed it, Fiji water. President Konrote paid tribute to the late Princess of Wales in his remarks, noting that she would be proud of Harry and the happiness he has found in his marriage.
In his own speech, Harry noted:
“It really is a privilege to be here. We share Commonwealth values and common goals – a love of rugby and a sense of humour! Our ties run deep. Your soldiers fought with the British Armed Forces during the first and second world wars, and continue to serve alongside our soldiers to this day, with more than 1,250 Fijians currently serving.
“I must emphasize my respect, admiration and camaraderie with the Fijian soldiers that I served with in Afghanistan. We trained together, we fought together and, most importantly, we laughed together.”
As for Meghan’s gown, the color is fittingly Fijian blue, while its cut is loosely reminiscent of the navy Stella McCartney cape dress she recently recycled – the black tie version, if you will. It also reminded me of the pink Alexander McQueen that Kate wore during her trip to Norway in January – a flattering, Duchess-approved cut during pregnancy, if ever there was one.
We didn’t get a great glimpse of the shoes, but the thought is they are navy Manolo Blahniks and the statement diamond earrings are still TBD. I would call this a solid win – Meghan looked gorgeous.
I will cover off in a few on the state banquet underway at Buckingham Palace – and some new Kate news. And tomorrow is set to be a big day for Meghan, which we’ll cover here as well. Never a dull moment!