Does Kate Middleton Take This Fashion Cue From The Queen?

Since the moment she married into the royal family, Kate Middleton became a fashion icon. Whether she's dressed casually to take her kids to school or in formal attire for a special event  — like the glamorous, gold beaded Jenny Packham gown she wore to the premiere of the James Blond flick "No Time to Die" — Kate always manages to wow. And many of her styles sell out within hours of her wearing them.

In fact, research by fashion school the Fashion Retail Academy, according to Tatler, found that nearly half of those surveyed — 47.8% percent — voted Middleton the royal family's number one fashion icon, compared to the 20.1% who preferred Meghan Markle. "Meghan may have commanded more column inches recently but it is Kate who has emerged as the royal leading the fashion stakes by a country mile," said Principal and CEO of the Fashion Retail Academy, Lee Lucas. "By embracing the fashion world and Princess Diana's often daring style, Kate has learned how to balance trends with tradition, and it's nice to see that she is keeping tradition alive."

But in recent years, it seems like Kate is also finding fashion inspiration from none other than Queen Elizabeth!

While she is already revered for her fashion sense, Kate Middleton has been taking some inspiration from Queen Elizabeth by adding bright colors to her wardrobe. The queen is known for her colorful ensembles, with her daughter-in-law, Sophie, Countess of Wessex, revealing in the documentary, "Our Queen at 90," (via People), "She needs to stand out for people to be able to say 'I saw the queen.'"

With that in mind, Kate wore a green jacket to her and Prince William's Generation Earthshot event in October 2021 — even though William had once joked to her that it was a "bit bright," per People, after she wore it to an event in New Zealand (see above). And both Kate and the queen wore bold floral dresses to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in 2019, and color-coordinated in powder blue frocks for the Royal Ascot that same year. Elizabeth Holmes, author of "HRH: So Many Thoughts on Royal Style," believes that Kate has been studying Elizabeth's style in preparation for her future role as queen. "I think they understand the power of clothes, the role it has in their public duties, and have remained consistent with their style," Holmes once told Insider.