How to dress like … The Duchess of Cambridge | 40+ Style - How to look and feel great over 40!

From the moment she became associated with Prince William, Kate Middleton has become a media mainstay. In today’s post we go behind the glitz and glamour of being royalty, and show you how easy it is to achieve the Duchess of Cambridge’s chic and classically British style.

So, what does it take to dress like the Duchess of Cambridge?

What makes Kate Middleton’s style so covetable AND achievable, is that she is very classically stylish. Once she was bound for royalty her look metamorphosed into the epitome of proper style. However, she plays up her assets very well and integrates trendy pieces in a very subtle way.

Here are a few quick tips to get your Duchess of Cambridge inspired wardrobe together:

Define your waist. You can do this with belts or extremely well tailored pieces.
Dark blazers are your friend. If you look through most of Kate Middleton’s casual looks, a dark blazer is involved and with good reason. Well tailored (once again), they polish every look and define her body shape well.
Stick to knee length styles. As the future Queen, Kate already has this element of propriety down. Most, if not all, of her shorter dresses are knee length. She still is able to carry a classy and sexy look without going above the knee.
Pastels are always appropriate. Like Kate, find pastels that flatter you and wear them with pride.
Nude pumps are glorious. The LK Bennett sledge pump, need we say more.
Repeating an outfit is an art. Kate Middleton is never shy about repeating an outfit and has become quite an expert in this regard. When something fits well and is a wonderful investment, never be shy about reinventing it in new ways or repeating it.

Take a look at some of the Duchess’ great looks here, and give yourself the royal treatment with our guide to dressing like Kate Middleton below.

The 33-piece Duchess of Cambridge wardrobe

Dresses

Kate has an enviable collection of dresses. The rule of thumb here is not to shy away from patterns and bright colors. A number of the Duchess of Cambridge’s dresses consist of patterns and/or bright colors. She isn’t demure about celebrating color, but always finds a way to keep it tasteful.

She also understand the power of knowing what fits her body shape well with the value of good tailoring. Combine those two elements and you have a knockout dress.

Tops

We love Kate Middleton’s top selections because they are so accessible. She tends to follow a standard approach to high quality basic pieces that can be mixed and matched (think breton and gingham tops).

Pants

The Duchess has a working formula and she tends to stick to it when it comes to her pants. Black and blue straight leg or skinny jeans, navy and black pants, and bright well tailored pants on occasion. Once again, these can be mixed and matched with a variety of tops. While everything is high quality, nothing is ever ostentatious.

Blazers and Jackets

As mentioned above, Kate Middleton believes in a well fitting blazer for casual affairs. Reiss is one of her favorite bands, and she tends to go for dark gray, navy blue, and black blazers. She also has an affinity for a well built nylon jacket when she’s engaged in anything physical.

Coats

Cate coats are always well tailored. Severely classic (you’ll never see them go out of style), The Duchess has invested quite a bit in high quality coats.

They nip in at the waist perfectly, flare out in just the right way, and always take her look to that next level. As we said above, she never shies away from pastels and treats her coats like a pivotal piece of her look.

Shoes

LK Bennett, Stuart Weitzman, and Sebago loafers are regulars in Middleton’s shoe closet. She tends to favor nude pumps and skin tone sandals that give enough height to further elongate her frame, match most anything, and are comfortable enough to walk in.

She also has been seen wearing and re-wearing these Stuart Weitzman cork wedges (which go with almost everything). They always sell out, however, at the time of writing there is one pair left on sale at bloomingdales (just to show you how popular they are).

Accessories

For obvious reasons, we’re not including any tiaras (though the temptation was there). Beyond her access to a vault of amazing and priceless jewelry, Middleton’s other accessories are classic and chic. Think Longchamp totes, neutral clutches for the evening, and high quality printed silk scarves. The foundations of a classic capsule wardrobe.

Here are 9 looks inspired by the Duchess of Cambridge that you can easily replicate

Shop the looks featured in this post here below

Are you a fan of Kate Middleton’s style?