4 Pillars That Define Royal Winter Style

royal-winter-style-274618-1544219886075-main

(Image credit: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)

If you walked into the Who What Wear office on any given day, chances are you'd hear us chatter on and on about the latest Meghan Markle or Kate Middleton ensemble. Suffice it to say that our fascination with all things royal style runs deep, and, well, we know we're not alone here, because you always consume our royal style content voraciously. Great—now that we've established we're all royal fashion stans here, we took it upon ourselves to dive into what makes their style so good. Consider this your guide to royal style: winter edition.

It's truly a wonder how members of the royal family are able to appear just as polished when it's freezing out as they do at any other point in the year. While we may be over here looking like a walking marshmallow in our puffer jackets, they remain sleek as ever via belted coat silhouettes. After a considerable amount of royal winter style research, four overarching pillars became abundantly clear to us. From Meghan Markle to Princess Diana, keep reading to discover which style "rules" have defined royal fashion for as long as we know.

1. THE GO-TO OUTERWEAR: BELTED

royal-winter-style-274618-1544219896556-image

(Image credit: The Grosby Group/Backgrid)

Who: Queen Letizia of Spain

Style Note: Royals know better than most that a belted coat is the key to a polished winter ensemble.

royal-winter-style-274618-1544219897483-image

(Image credit: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Who: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex

Style Note: Markle's satin belt adds some dimension and an interesting detail to her cold-weather look.

Shop belted coats:

3. THE GO-TO EVENINGWEAR: VELVET

royal-winter-style-274618-1544219898407-image

(Image credit: GOR/GC Images)

Who: Lady Kitty Spencer

Style Note: This time of year is synonymous with party season, and the number one way royals dress for the occasion is through luxurious velvet accents.

royal-winter-style-274618-1544219899232-image

(Image credit: Pablo Cuadra/WireImage)

Who: Queen Letizia of Spain

Style Note: For a subtler spin on velvet, Queen Letizia opted for a dress that mixed velvet and lace panels.

Shop velvet pieces:

2. THE GO-TO CASUAL ENSEMBLE: BLACK JEANS

royal-winter-style-274618-1544219897950-image

(Image credit: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)

Who: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge

Style Note: Middleton's black skinny jeans create a sleek and polished appearance when coordinated with a black turtleneck.

royal-winter-style-274618-1544219897023-image

(Image credit: Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images)

Who: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex

Style Note: Markle also opted for an all-black base and topped it off with a classic trench coat, though instead of skinny jeans, her denim of choice was very 2019: bootcut jeans.

Shop black jeans:

4. THE GO-TO FORMAL LOOK: RICH JEWEL TONES

royal-winter-style-274618-1544220851394-image

(Image credit: Tim Graham/Getty Images)

Who: Diana, Princess of Wales

Style Note: Thanks to her iconic '80s style, Lady Di's retro dresses have never felt more relevant than they do today. 

royal-winter-style-274618-1544219898879-image

(Image credit:  MAX MUMBY/INDIGO/GETTY IMAGES)

Who: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge

Style Note: Jewel tones like Middleton's emerald coat are easily styled alongside black accessories.

Shop jewel-tone pieces:

Next, Kate Middleton is wearing five new winter trends, and they're so fashion.

Senior Editor

Anna is an editor on the fashion team at Who What Wear and has been at the company for over five years, having begun her career in the Los Angeles office before relocating to New York, where she's currently based. Having always been passionate about pursuing a career in fashion, she built up her experience interning at the likes of Michael Kors, A.L.C., and College Fashionista before joining the team as a post-graduate assistant editor. Anna has penned a number of interviews with Who What Wear's cover stars over the years, including A-listers Megan Fox, Issa Rae, and Emma Chamberlain. She's earned a reputation for scouting new and emerging brands from across the globe and championing them to our audience of millions. While fashion is her main wheelhouse, Anna led the launch of WWW Travels last year, a new lifestyle vertical that highlights all things travel through a fashion-person lens. She is passionate about shopping vintage, whether it be at a favorite local outpost or an on-the-road discovery, and has amassed a wardrobe full of unique finds. When she's not writing, you can find her shooting street imagery on her film camera, attempting to learn a fourth or fifth language, or planning her next trip across the globe.