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Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, is known for her classic regal style. From her ball gowns to her more casual looks, she’s been able to transition her personal style into looks that work well in her role as the future queen consort.

Though she adheres to tradition, which includes a more modest look than she may have had outside of the royal fold, Kate is sure to put her own personal touch on her fashion choices. From experimenting with her hair color to her large array of colorful coats, she’s been able to pull off countless timeless looks.

However, this doesn’t mean the fashion-forward duchess hasn’t ever missed the mark. Kate once explained why she regretted her 2019 Christmas Day outfit.

Kate Middleton smiling in a red coat
Kate Middleton | Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

Kate Middleton tried to change her image in the past

When she met Prince William as a college student, Kate had a flirty style that many women in their 20s lean into. They included shorter more form-fitting dresses and skirts. However, as she and the prince got more serious, her clothing did as well, as to not give the British tabloids anythings to admonish her for.

In fact, following her 2010 engagement to the future king, Kate tried to shift and define her image even further. Exhausted with not being taken seriously by the press, who dubbed her “Waity Katie” for waiting nearly 10 years before an engagement, the duchess wanted to take control of the narrative about her.

“With Prince William’s engagement now a surefire certainty, there are intriguing signs that Kate Middleton is preparing for her future role,” journalist Adam Helliker told Sunday Express. “It looks like she’s taking it very seriously indeed too. I hear that in the past few weeks, the former accessories buyer has quietly informed friends that she would like to drop the informal ‘Kate’ and in future wishes to be known by her full name: ‘Catherine.’”

However, that didn’t exactly pan out the way she’d hoped, people still mostly refer to the duchess as Kate.

RELATED: Kate Middleton Just Clapped Back at Rumors She Feels ‘Exhausted and Trapped’ as the Royals Rethink Their Stiff Upper Lip Policy

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Kate Middleton’s style has changed drastically recently

Though no one really calls Kate by her given name except Prince William, the duchess has mastered a more regal style now that she is one of the main faces of the British royal family.

“She has also modeled her approach on royal life directly after the queen. “Kate is impenetrable,” Tatler Magazine reported. “There is nothing to like or dislike. She has a ruthless survival streak, just like the House of Windsor. It’s why she is so well suited. She keeps her head down because the prize of being queen is so great. She models herself on the Queen and now speaks like the Queen.”

Part of that modeling has to do with Kate’s fashion choices. “We must give her credit for staying true to who she has and not molding herself into something else entirely,” celebrity stylist Anthony McGrath told Express. “Slowly, but surely, she has finessed her style over the years, and her style is, without a doubt, suitable for a future queen.”

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge attend the Christmas Day Church service
Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge attend the Christmas Day Church service | Stephen Pond/Getty Images

Kate Middleton has a major regret about her 2019 Christmas outfit

Though Kate has mostly mastered her style, that hasn’t stopped her from having an off day now and then. On Christmas Day 2019, the duchess, Prince William, and their eldest children Prince George and Princess Charlotte, participated in the royal Christmas walk.

That day, the duchess outfit of choice was a thick grey Catherine Walker coat, a green hat, bag, and heels. When chatting with a 19-year-old royal fan named Rachel Anvil, Kate revealed that she’d chosen the wrong look for the unseasonably warm weather.

“Kate was talking to my daughter about clothes and how she was feeling too hot, she said ‘I really shouldn’t have worn this,'” Rachel’s mother told the Metro. “I’m there talking to Charlotte about dolls and my daughter’s talking about fashion with Kate.”