Being a lady is hard. Even if you’ve got the manners thing down pat like our girl Kate Middleton, a strong gust of wind can take you down faster than a scandal ever could. But Mother Nature has met her match in Middleton. When it comes to wind-blown dresses and skirts, the Duchess of Cambridge is like a lion tamer, subduing fly-away clothing with a steady hand and a poker face—all while the world is watching. (She puts the easy in breezy.) Even when her enviable locks get whipped around, somehow she still manages to look like a Vogue cover girl. Good genetics? Sure. But princesses aren’t only taught how to hold a handbag and curtsy; keeping style on lockdown is part of their gig, too.
I may not be a princess (an official one anyway) but when it comes to wardrobe malfunctions I can relate. I remember one particularly windy summer day when I was on a ferry heading over to Nantucket with my now in-laws. I was standing by the bow and dressed to impress in a swingy skirt. Thanks to one big gust of wind, my future mother-in-law had a front-row seat to a surprise peep show starring my Eberjay undies. I mustered up my inner Kate, smiled gracefully and smoothed my skirt, while silently screaming, “Holy Sh*t!” Clearly, I need a few more lessons from her, and chances are you do, too.
Here are 7 times Kate Middleton saved herself from an embarrassing wardrobe malfunction. All hail.
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Kate Middleton Wardrobe Malfunction
On Day 2 of the Royal Visit Canada tour, Kate smoothens out her Alexander McQueen dress – effortlessly, of course – before being greeted by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the Immigration Services Society of British Columbia. Clearly, the temperamental Vancouver weather has nothing on the future Queen of England.
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Kate Middleton Wardrobe Malfunction
While attending the ceremonial welcome for Singapore’s President Tony Tan Keng Yam in London in 2014, Middleton’s skirt took flight, but the Duchess stayed grounded.
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Kate Middleton Wardrobe Malfunction
David Beckham in a dress? Kate Middleton’s hand placement made playing games at The Oval Maidan in Mumbai this April a snap.
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Kate Middleton Wardrobe Malfunction
When the wind caught the Duchess’s hair on an official visit to the Action on Addiction Centre in 2015, she made it look like a wind machine in a Beyoncé video.
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Kate Middleton Wardrobe Malfunction
Arriving at Wellington airport in 2014 for their tour of New Zealand and Australia, a gust of wind exposed Middleton’s thigh, but all eyes were on Prince George. Well played.
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Kate Middleton Wardrobe Malfunction
When the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the war memorial India Gate in New Delhi in 2016, Mother Nature gave photogs a Marilyn Monroe moment—the Duchess edition.
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Kate Middleton Wardrobe Malfunction
At a Sportaid Athlete workshop in London in 2013 (her first solo engagement following the birth of Prince George), the Duchess proves abs and skinny jeans are a winning combo on the court, but never the castle.