Having an ever-revolving, frighteningly expensive wardrobe is one of the main perks of being a Hollywood actress and member of the royal family. But Meghan Markle - the epitome of the modern, conscious icon - isn’t like most other stars.
The Duchess of Sussex halved the amount she spent on clothes in 2019, preferring instead to recycle and rework pieces. While that may be de rigueur to literally everyone living outside the LA bubble/royal palaces, it’s pretty forward thinking for someone who is so heavily scrunitsed in the public eye.
In 2018, Meghan’s wardrobe came to a rather eyewatering £406,600 (so claims FEMAIL), compared to last year’s £211,693. Her most expensive outfits were worn during a royal tour of Morocco in February but since returning to duties following the birth of baby Archie, she’s been noted for reworking various pieces during her trip to South Africa.
During that trip, Meghan wore the same House of Nonie trench dress to meet Nelson Mandela’s widow that she wore to his memorial event in London back in 2018. During an event in Cape Town, she wore the same monochrome striped number that she debuted on the royal tour of Australia the year before.
More impressively, the duchess continued to wear outfits that she first wore during the early days of her pregnancy in the months following giving birth - which is huge, considering the enormous pressure for women to ‘bounce back’ after having a baby. Through the recycling of outfits, Meghan showed that new mums can look radiant in spite of the ridiculous body standards society and the entertainment industry try to impose on them.
While no doubt she’ll still come in for some schtick over the cost of her outfits from certain newspapers, but it’s great to see such a style icon openly embrace a more green approach to fashion. In fact, both Kate and Meghan have been noted for re-wearing outfits and dedication to local and sustainable brands.
We mere mortals might have to re-wear our clothes but stars who have access to any designer they want, don’t. So when someone like Meghan chooses to do so, it means something.