Live Like a Royal: Diana-Inspired Fashion

It’s no secret that 90’s style is back in full force (despite my serious concerns about seeing college students repeating my middle school fashion mistakes) and Princess Diana is definitely a big inspiration out there for the fashion crowd and her royal daughter-in-laws. While I get annoyed that people try to invoke Diana whenever possible, there are some big fashion moments that are definitely meant to be tributes to her.

Celebrity Copycats

I was not a huge fan of Hailey Bieber’s Paris Vogue shoot where she recreated Diana’s off-duty looks when it first came out, but honestly I kind of love it now? We’ve obviously seen the rise of bike shorts with large sweatshirts and sneakers as a style trend with millenials and celebrities, as well as looser silhouettes, but I do get a kick out of these models who weren’t even alive at the same time as her taking such big inspiration from her least “royal” looks. I also just love this photo of Harry Styles in an Lanvin sweater vest that is very Diana-esque.

Live Like a Royal: Diana-Inspired Fashion

Royal Dupes

Both of Diana’s daughters-in-law constantly have their outfits compared to hers, and while in most cases I think it’s a stretch (I mean, just because she wore blue sequins once, does that mean Meghan is “paying tribute” by wearing blue sequins?), there are definitely moments that are obvious references. I also think they both do a good job of pointing to Diana, but giving it their own style and updated vibe.

For Kate, those big moments seem to be around the births of her children (and polka dots). When they introduced Prince George outside of the hospital, she wore a very sweet blue polka dot dress, which seemed to pretty directly correlate to the polka dot dress Diana wore when she had William. Then, when she had Princess Charlotte, her red dress with a white collar was another obvious tribute to what Diana wore when she left the hospital with Prince Harry. She definitely swaps out the very 80’s fits and for more sleek and modern versions.

Meghan can be both a little bit more obvious and a little bit more subtle in her choices. She tends to be very referential with her color palettes and hats/silhouettes, while leaning hard into more modern styling choices.

Exact Dupes

There are also companies taking more….direct…inspiration from Diana, including Rowing Blazers which actually partnered with the two original UK sweater companies that made two of Diana’s iconic looks to remake her “I’m a Luxury…Few Can Afford” and “Black Sheep” sweaters. If you want to really own these iconic looks, these are the essential items.