Shall we pick up where left off? Let’s. February feels like a billion years ago now that we’re in the midst of a global pandemic, but at the same time, writing about this winter is nearly long enough to be nostalgic, so let’s go with that. On February 26, the Duchess of Cambridge attended a SportsAid event in London where she joined a foot race and tried her hand a taekwondo.
Frankly, I have very little to say about this event, save one thing: I am constantly amazed by how natural Kate looks in situations the rest of us would probably embarrass ourselves in. If you asked me to try taekwondo while I was being photographed, knowing those pictures would land on the front pages of tabloids the next day, I would likely need a Xanax prescription stat.
In fact, Kate tends to look more comfortable during engagements where she’s doing something – getting down on the floor with children, playing a game, or competing against the Duke of Cambridge. She looks the most stilted during the more traditional engagements made up of shaking hands, cutting ribbons, and looking at displays, so it makes sense that Kensington Palace would pack her schedule with the opposite as much as possible.
But the real headline from this day is this outfit. Matching green culottes with a green jumper – this is bold, but also still very in keeping with Kate’s style. She has the height and figure to pull this look off, and whatever you think of culottes, she’s clearly doubling down on them. She arrived with a blazer and heels, which she nixed in favor of trainers for the substance of the engagement, so the look had to serve two purposes: professional enough to mark that she’s at work, but utilitarian enough that she would be able to participate in the activity. Sometimes Kate leans heavily into the latter, but today she straddled the line, and I think did so well.
The only aspect tripping me up is the (slightly) matching greens, and I will say that these trousers definitely don’t work with the trainers, but all in all, I’m going to give her props for pulling this off with nothing less than joie de vivre.
Rebecca, thanks for this and hope that you are well.
I totally agree; Kate is at her very best when doing “active” engaged things and ‘joie de vivre’ sums up how she seems at these times perfectly. I think she looks least comfortable during balcony appearances, really.
Kate looks adorable. Her smile is worth a million dollars!