Meghan Markle’s decision not to follow royal fashion protocol may have upset Queen Elizabeth, with the flouting of one rule in particular standing out.
The American Suits star found herself under a whole new level of scrutiny when she got together with Prince Harry but it seems her failure to wear nude stockings really stuck out to the late Queen.
It is generally expected that royal women will wear nude tights under their skirts or dresses when out on a public engagement, however Meghan chose to show off her bare legs.
Royal expert Victoria Arbiter said this was surprisingly the Queen’s most important rule, saying: “I would say that’s really the only hard, steadfast rule in terms of what the Queen requires.”
This wasn’t the only fashion rule that the Duchess of Sussex broke as her penchant for wearing one colour did not come across as very royal.
The Duchess would often wear black to royal occasions, even though that shade is typically only worn by the Firm during an official period of mourning or at a funeral.
When Meghan attended the WellChild Awards with Harry in 2018, she wore an all-black outfit which some royal experts believe was chosen on purpose.
Colour psychologist Karen Haller told Fabulous: “Whilst black has many different traits, looking at these specific events she attended they all have one thing in common.
“The occasions when she is choosing to wear black suggest she isn’t seeking to be the centre of attention. She is OK with being in the background.”
In the Netflix documentary series Harry & Meghan, the Duchess claimed she never felt comfortable wearing colour on royal events as she wanted to avoid “embarrassing” the Firm.
In the third episode of the documentary, Meghan says: “When I was in the UK I rarely wore colour. I wore a lot of muted tones. I also wore it so I could just blend in. I’m not trying to stand out here. I don’t want to embarrass the family.
“To my understanding, you can’t ever wear the same colour as Her Majesty if there’s a group event. But then you also shouldn’t be wearing the same colour as one of the other more senior members of the family.”
Even though she now lives separate from the Firm in the US, Meghan is still more often snapped in neutral shades such as browns, beiges and creams, suggesting it was also a personal style choice.
Royal style expert Miranda Holder told Express.co.uk: “Despite Meghan famously announcing in her Netflix documentary that she only wore neutrals during her time as a Royal as a bid to blend in, the Duchess has somewhat surprisingly remained faithful to a sartorially safer colour palette of beiges, creams, blacks and whites in recent months.
“It’s a little unexpected, as following her statement, I think we all expected the Duchess to be sipping out in a rainbow of vivid hues and making the most of her newfound freedom on the wardrobe front, but it’s quite the opposite.
“These tones definitely suit Meghan, but she looks great in the brights too, as she has proven on numerous previous occasions, so why is she staying in her sartorial safe zone?
“Personally, I think it indicates a very relatable conflict of emotions with Meghan’s current predicament. On one hand, she yearns to be back in the spotlight, adored by the public and forging ahead with exciting new projects and on the other, behind that radiant smile, she is understandably very frightened about just how she will be received, not only by the public, but more crucially by the world’s media.”