What is Traditional Highland Dress?

[OC Richard]

Wowza.

Two things really strike my eye about these photos:

1) PC has some very nice Highland Dress. Excellent taste is being shown. Is it all his own, or does he have a Gentleman's Gentleman or other person who chooses or helps choose his dress?

2) CPB is obviously striving to match in with PC's dress, with varying degrees of success.

Her Lovat Green dress works OK. Appears to be made from the same cloth as PC's jacket. In my opinion it would be better to wear a colour that harmonises with PC's overall look than to match one specific colour. Perhaps a muted green somewhere between the colour of PC's jacket and PC's kilt would have been best.

Her ensemble with the tartan jacket looks awful juxtaposed onto what PC is wearing. (In other words it might look OK if he weren't standing beside her.)

Likewise the ensemble with the skirt and jacket which matches what PC is wearing is just too much, coming off almost as a parody. Much better I think to wear a skirt of the same tartan but wear a jacket which contrasts with PC's jacket.

Only the reddish dress which picks up on the stripes in PC's kilt works well to me. Though it also displays her unfortunate penchant for tartan lapels.

Co-ordinate rather than match should be the keyword.

[JSFMACLJR]

Wowza.

Two things really strike my eye about these photos:

1) PC has some very nice Highland Dress. Excellent taste is being shown. Is it all his own, or does he have a Gentleman's Gentleman or other person who chooses or helps choose his dress?

2) CPB is obviously striving to match in with PC's dress, with varying degrees of success.

Her Lovat Green dress works OK. Appears to be made from the same cloth as PC's jacket. In my opinion it would be better to wear a colour that harmonises with PC's overall look than to match one specific colour. Perhaps a muted green somewhere between the colour of PC's jacket and PC's kilt would have been best.

Her ensemble with the tartan jacket looks awful juxtaposed onto what PC is wearing. (In other words it might look OK if he weren't standing beside her.)

Likewise the ensemble with the skirt and jacket which matches what PC is wearing is just too much, coming off almost as a parody. Much better I think to wear a skirt of the same tartan but wear a jacket which contrasts with PC's jacket.

Only the reddish dress which picks up on the stripes in PC's kilt works well to me. Though it also displays her unfortunate penchant for tartan lapels.

Co-ordinate rather than match should be the keyword.

You know, this has got to be one of the silliest posts ever! Since when must a wife "harmonise" her dress with that of her husband? My friend, women can wear WHATEVER THEY WANT TO WEAR!. I think the Duchess of Rothesay looks very well dressed in these photographs. If she doesn't live up to your high standards, write her and let her know.

Perhaps, though, you should be critisizing the Duke instead. Maybe HE should have checked with his wife before he dressed to make sure he was wearing something that "coordinated" with her clothes.

PS. My wife thinks you are a pompous chauvanist, by the way!

[artificer]

To my eye, untrained as it is, HRH looks perfectly turned out. I wish I had his tailors.

Since when must a wife "harmonise" her dress with that of her husband? My friend, women can wear WHATEVER THEY WANT TO WEAR!.

I would argue that when the wife is married to part of a royal family, and where ever they go there WILL be pictures taken, there should be a certain balance between her dress and her husbands (the same would work in reverse, and usually does with every NON-royal couple). It makes photos much more pleasant to look at, and enhances everyone in the shot.

You wouldn't want to see the Duchess in pink chiffon when PC is wearing ANY of these outfits. I think the original commentator is bringing it up because she appears to be attempting to 'mirror' PC's outfits rather than find something suitable that isn't visually jarring (or 'in-harmony').

As for women being able to wear whatever they want, that's mostly true... but have you read British press commentary on clothing before?? They're not always the kindest.

[OC Richard]

You know, this has got to be one of the silliest posts ever! Since when must a wife "harmonise" her dress with that of her husband?

I never said, or implied, that she MUST harmonise. But obviously she is striving to match. Or at least it's obvious to me that she's striving to match. It is she, not me, that is putting a priority on attempting to match the Prince's dress.

My point was simply that she would be better off harmonising/co-ordinating rather than matching.

The Prince himself is admiriably demonstrating this principle in his own attire.

The Kilt Hire photo of matching white Prince Charlie, plain white kilt, white hose, white shirt, white bowtie, white sporran, and white flashes looks silly to us for that very reason.