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
Who: Queen Letizia of Spain
Style Note: Royals know better than most that a belted coat is the key to a polished winter ensemble.
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
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.
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:
Also available in more sizes.
2. THE GO-TO CASUAL ENSEMBLE: BLACK JEANS
Who: Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge
Style Note: Middleton's black skinny jeans create a sleek and polished appearance when coordinated with a black turtleneck.
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
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.
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.
-
I Forgot About These Winter Boots Until Meghan Markle Styled a Pair In the Most 2025 WayGood thing they're on sale.
-
Meghan Markle Traded Her Usual Black Skinny Jeans for a Denim Trend That's About to Be EverywhereAnd you can too.
-
This Once-Neglected, Princess Diana–Approved Pant Trend Will Reappear This SpringGuaranteed.
-
16 Mango Sale Finds That Give Kate Middleton VibesFit for a (future) queen.
-
Kate Middleton Traded Black Leather Pumps for the Color and Material That Are Far TrendierTrendy yet classic, of course.
-
The Designer Behind Meghan Markle's Wedding Dress Just Debuted a Jewelry Collection at ReformationIt'll go fast.
-
Kate Middleton Paired 2024's Two Biggest It Colors With Winter's Most Coveted Shoe TrendShe's the definition of seasonally appropriate.
-
Meghan Markle and Fashion People Just Proved This Bag Color Can Look ElegantA key new-season trend.
