TORONTO -- The newly released fourth season of "The Crown" has some fans interested in its drama and history, and others in the fashion.
The new season features some of the most iconic royal looks, including Diana's 1981 wedding dress, but style reporter Elizabeth Holmes says the late Princess of Wales' style was only the tipping point in royal fashion.
"Diana made royal fashion exciting. She brought a trendiness and a boldness that we hadn't seen before, and it was at a time that the media landscape was really exploding, and her fashion kept her in those glossy pages," Holmes told CTVNews.ca on Monday.
She explained in a telephone interview from California that other royal women have since followed Diana’s example, bringing more attention to what they wear.
When the Royal Family steps out in public, they know all eyes are on what they’re wearing, and Holmes says the outfits they select reflect conscious choices to support a country they’re visiting, one of their charity initiatives or a specific clothing brand.
In Diana’s case, the late princess made royal watchers care about fashion and turned clothing into a talking point when discussing the Royal Family, according to Holmes who offers sartorial commentary on the Royal Family through her Instagram Stories series "So Many Thoughts" and her new book "HRH: So Many Thoughts on Royal Style."
"[The fashion] is sort of a flashy, shiny, fun thing to look at, but also a chance to have a deeper conversation about what they're doing or the events that they're attending," Holmes said.
While Diana may sparked an interested in royal fashion, Holmes said the original royal style icon is actually the Queen.
Holmes explained that since ascending to the throne in 1952 at age 25, the Queen has approached her clothing "very much like a uniform," prioritizing function for the everyday while also looking presentable.
Holmes said every detail in the Queen’s ensembles are used to make her seen by the public.
"Those bright colours that she wears, those are devices so she can be spotted in a crowd. She’s often pictured on a balcony or at garden party, and people want to see her and those bright colours make that happen," Holmes said.
She added that the Queen’s hats are big enough to make a statement, but never so big that they would obscure her face. As well, the armholes of her dresses and coats are cut so she can wave and shake hands.
"It’s all very thought out and I think that's an important thing to remember about royal fashion is that it's a working wardrobe," Holmes said. "Appearing in public is big part of their job and so their clothing has to function with them."
KATE AND MEGHAN
Holmes acknowledged that the public will never know exactly what the royals are trying to say with their clothing because the Royal Family does not give interviews or speeches that divulge any personal information.
However, Holmes works to connect the dots, which she says has become easier following the additions of Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, to the Royal Family.
With so much public excitement around what Kate and Meghan wear, Holmes says it gives the two women an opportunity to highlight certain brands. She added that royal exposure for any brand has a major impact on their business.
For example, Meghan sported a military-style coat made by Canadian fashion brand Mackage in 2018 during a public meet-and-greet in Nottingham. Five hours after being seen in the jacket, the garment was sold out.
When Kate officially became a part of the Royal Family in 2011 by marrying Prince William, Holmes said she brought royal fashion into a new generation.
Holmes said Kate made royal fashion relatable.
"She wore off-the-rack styles so that anybody could go out and buy them," Holmes said. "Suddenly, here was a woman who was relatable within the Royal ranks. If you could see yourself in Kate's clothes, you could see yourself in the Royal Family."
When Meghan arrived on the scene, Holmes said the former actress was "several steps ahead" of Kate and Diana in her fashion choices.
Holmes explained that as an actress, Meghan had worked with costume designers whose job it is to tell a story through clothes. She says this helped Meghan understand the language of fashion before ever meeting Prince Harry.
However, Holmes says Meghan was able to bring a “more modern aesthetic” to fashion after joining the Royal Family.
"When we're talking about the Royal Family, we're working within certain guardrails; it tends to be quite formal and old school elite… What Megan did was not outrageous by any sense, but to see more trousers and day wear for example -- it wasn't something we've previously seen," Holmes said.
Holmes said Meghan also entered the royal fashion scene already knowing how the paparazzi covers the royal’s clothing, especially online.
"She understood that people collage photos, they put them together in a slideshow, they like to compile the looks so we can all flip through them and gush over them and she dressed very methodically in that sense," Holmes said.
With this understanding, Holmes said Meghan displayed a "visual progression" from one outfit to the next and has remained committed to this way of dressing even in her new life outside of the Royal Family.
"She favoured certain styles, a boat neck for example or cape detailing, and it just helps to build a visual brand for the viewer to know a little bit of what to expect, and then get excited when they see it," Holmes said.
While 2020 has been short on memorable royal style moments due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Holmes says there is a lot of inspiration one can take from the thought these royal women put into how they get dressed.
Holmes said "The Crown" is a good starting point for royal inspiration. She explained that the show takes previously seen royal looks and gives them a modern twist that current watchers could see themselves wearing.
While certain elements of the royals’ wardrobes may seem dated, Holmes said some aspects can inspire everyday women to choose clothing that not only looks beautiful, but is personal to the wearer.
"I do think for bigger moments… if you add something -- a colour that means something to you or you wear a designer that you admire or it has a sustainable ethos to it -- putting that extra amount of thought into your clothes is really empowering," Holmes said.
