From flowing dresses and traditional jewelery to a simple, traditional hand-knitted skirt and a repurposed jacket, the Duchess of Sussex’s eight outfits for her three-day private visit to Nigeria were a masterclass in powerful, charmingly offensive dressing. Although worth more than £130,000.
The 42-year-old duchess, who reportedly did not hire a stylist but insisted on dressing herself, was apparently there to support her husband Harry by visiting wounded soldiers and local charities.
But all eyes were on her, and the pressure was on to release a repertoire of sets that would turn what was not officially a ‘real’ tour into something worthy of the same level of attention.
Whatever your opinion of Meghan, it’s hard to fault her sartorial choices on this occasion. To start, she wore a luscious apricot maxi dress by Californian designer Heidi Merrick, called (no doubt significantly) ‘Windsor’ and priced at £1,106.
The dropped waist and billowing hem were a departure from the meticulously tailored midi dresses we were used to seeing in Meghan’s ‘royal’ days. Paired with vintage gold disc Lanvin earrings and a stack of bracelets, including her beloved $5,500 (£4,380) Ariel Gordon Diamond Hex Tennis bracelet (rumored to be a gift from Harry) and the princess’s Cartier Tank Francaise watch Diana’s look, which retails for £21,400, was very feminine, although perhaps a little extravagant for a visit to a local school.
Still, thankfully, a chunky wooden necklace given to the Duchess that day gave the look a little more earthy.
Meghan Markle wears a Heidi Merrick dress, £1,106; an Aurate collar necklace, £556; Lanvin earrings, estimate £450; a Cartier Love bracelet, £7,050; and a Cartier Tank watch, £21,400
Wearing a white Altuzarra trouser suit, £1,800; Manolo Blahnik pumps, £545; Ariel Gordon Royal Signet Stallions, £219; and the same Aurate necklace from earlier that day at an official military reception.
Later that day, Meghan swapped the stunning maxi for a simple white pantsuit for an official military reception. If the jacket looks familiar, it’s because she is: Meghan first wore the Altuzarra Acacia jacket in 2018 to an Invictus Games reception in Sydney, Australia.
Back then he combined it with black jeans and a shirt. This time, he got a more polished look in Altuzurra’s white flared pants and heels. Her look looked ‘Bianca Jagger-meets-Girl Boss,’ which is fitting since the Duchess recently launched her own brand, American Riviera Orchard.
On day two, the wardrobe value soared as Meghan mixed things up for a local volleyball match in a £2,275 palm leaf print dress by Colombian designer Johanna Ortiz, one of her favourites.
Ortiz has a talent for creating feminine outfits that feel fresh and, whisper it, a little bit sexy, something the Duchess would have veered away from when she first married Harry. The peephole and thigh split are certainly a departure from how we’ve seen Meghan before, especially when paired with simple, walkable Cecilia sandals (£385) by American shoe designer Emme Parsons.
At a local volleyball match, Harry walks with Meghan, who shows off a Johanna Ortiz sundress, £2,275; Heidi Merrick sunglasses, £185; Emma Parson Shoes, £385; and Jennifer Meyer earrings, £2,794
At Nigerian Defense Headquarters, Meghan wears a St Agni dress, £335; Aquazzura Shoes, £565; an Ariel Gordon bracelet, £4,379; Dior Earrings, £350; a Lorraine Schwartz pinky ring, £49,460, and a bracelet, £12,000
That evening, Meghan headed to a reception at the Nigerian Defense Headquarters in a strapless ivory dress from St Agni that looked strangely bridal. Still, she felt like one of the few sartorial mistakes and was saved by Princess Diana’s beautiful vintage Dior earrings and gold and diamond cross pendant.
A few hours later, Meghan was center stage at a Women in Leadership conference, looking like a Spanish flamenco dancer in a scarlet red dress with a ruffled hem, paired with a bun and simple gold jewelry.
“I quickly realized that I needed to wear more color so I could fit in with all of you and your amazing fashion,” she laughed onstage.
The dress, with its delicate spaghetti straps, was the work of Lagos-based designer Orire and costs just £265. Even if it was a last-minute outfit change, it was a diplomatic masterstroke, flattering of the place Meghan now refers to as “my country” after a DNA test conducted in the United States showed she was 43 percent. cent Nigerian.
The Duchess steals the show at a Women in Leadership conference in a scarlet Orire midi dress with ruffle hem, £265; Aquazzura shoes, as before; Kimai Earrings, £695; and a Logon Hollowell necklace, £12,608
Meghan is wearing a Carolina Herrera shirt, £1,278; a traditional wrap skirt; Lanvin earrings; Heidi Merrick sunglasses, £177; and Burberry sandals, £900
But it was on day three that Meghan stole the show, wearing perhaps my favorite outfit of the entire 72-hour tour: a £265 white Carolina Herrera shirt with a traditional Nigerian fabric skirt.
We’re used to seeing the Duchess in a variety of white button-down shirts. She wore one of hers to her first public appearances in 2017 and has worn them in rotation ever since. But her blue striped skirt was given to him at a reception in Abuja when she first arrived, so one suspects it was another last-minute addition to her wardrobe. If only she’d also ditched the sky-high gold heels (Burberry Prorsum Berkeley heels she’s owned since 2013), in favor of something simpler.
Naturally, she added the wow factor with her choice of jewelery – an Ariel Gordon disc pendant, worth around £2,000, as well as a stack of bracelets and a Cartier watch.
Later that day, for a formal state reception, she turned to Herrera again, this time in a sun-yellow trapeze maxi dress that completely upstaged her husband Harry in his understated oatmeal jacket. She’s not the easiest in the world to work with, but paired with flats (again) and with her hair up, she was both modern and chic.
For a formal state reception, Meghan wears a sparkling Carolina Herrera dress, estimated at £3,500, paired with Jennifer Meyer disc earrings, £2,794, and necklace and jewelery from earlier in the day.
Meghan wears a printed Johanna Ortiz dress, £1,587, with gold Burberry sandals in the evening
For her final outfit of the tour, Meghan again chose Ortiz and a £1,587 sleeveless, draped cream dress with elegant tie detail.
Accessorized with coral earrings and her £15,000 Against Evil Eye Lorraine Schwartz bracelet, she once again opted for her repurposed gold Berkeley sandals to finish off the look.
Of course, there will be those who will scoff at the exorbitant six-figure retail value, including Louise Schwartz’s £50,000 pinky ring which she wore throughout the event.
But if the goal was to show off the same royal family soft power they’ve jettisoned, then, for the most part, it was nothing short of a triumph.
Additional research by Emma Mesquita and Laura Connor
