Elizabeth II and fashion: a queen of style

Queen Elizabeth II in three different dress styles.

AP - AP Illustration

Text by: Silvano Mendes

4 mins

Far from being a 

, Elizabeth II had a wardrobe that changed little over time, but still attracted attention.

Her outfits often carried messages, which also helped to build the image of a sovereign who, in her own way, handled the rules of style.    

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When the United Kingdom was torn over Brexit, the British press was waiting for only one thing: the opinion of the queen.

But the role of the sovereign did not allow her to intervene in politics, even if she was at the same time head of state, of the armies and of the Anglican Church.

However, when Elizabeth II appeared in 2017 in front of Parliament, during a speech on leaving the European Union, wearing a blue coat over a yellow and blue skirt, with a matching hat, it was impossible not to not see an implicit message there, as it embodied a real European flag.

A sharp image in front of the gray suits of the parliamentarians and red robes of the Lords.     

In 2020, Elizabeth II wore a green dress when she addressed the British to talk about the Covid-19 pandemic.

As a sign of hope for his subjects.

And in 2011, during her first visit to Ireland since the creation of the Republic, the queen had landed in Dublin in green too, but this time the color referred in particular to the Catholic national liberation movement of the Emerald Isle.

Quite a symbol.

An almost unchanging pace

During her reign, Elizabeth II knew how to play with her image.

If until the 1970s, she dared to change her style of dress, over time, the sovereign adopted an almost unchanging look, especially during her official appearances.

In recent years, skirt suits or dresses in relatively discreet cuts have been de rigueur.

Only detail, her skirts were always weighted with small invisible weights, just to avoid any incident caused by an indiscreet gust of wind.  

On the other hand, her looks were often very colorful.

You could even say that was his trademark.

Canary yellow, dazzling green, electric blue, vibrant pink, coral… The queen was fearless and for a reason: by her often united, but very 

outfits , she was recognizable from afar.

In the middle of the crowd, he was easily identified, which was a boon for his subjects, for the photographers, and especially for his security guards.    

The same bag since 1968   

Beyond the outfits, the Queen of England also had her mania for accessories.

Brooches on almost every outfit, including the most precious cut from the largest rough diamond ever found, the Cullinan.

At the head, sometimes extravagant hats and, of course, the crown on special occasions.  

Another particularity: the queen has been wearing the same bag since 1968!

A model designed by the London brand Launer, which has become the official supplier of leather goods to the British royal family.

Elizabeth II would have 200 copies, of all colors, made to measure and adapted to her size.

And unlike the bag created by Dior especially for Lady Diana during the princess's visit to Paris in 1995, and which can be bought by anyone who can afford it, the model of the queen's bag could only be worn by the sovereign.  

In addition to keeping her mints, according to those around her, this little bag also served to protect the queen from "inconvenience" characters.

The British press, which loves these details, loves to say that, during a reception, if the queen passed her bag from the left arm to the right arm, her team understood that her interlocutor was annoying her and found a way to interrupt the conversation.   

Scarf and quilted jacket  

But apart from the occasions of representation, the queen could very well pass for a grandmother doing her shopping in an affluent neighborhood.

In the countryside, she adopted a rather relaxed style, between cardigans and quilted jackets or trench coats on sunny days, often with a scarf tied on her head at the slightest outing.

Accessory, moreover, which has been adopted by trendy young people, girls or boys, in recent seasons, proof of its indirect and obviously involuntary influence.

Mocked or imitated, the sovereign has never been far from fashion.

Like when she announced in 2019 that she had banned fur from her wardrobe, following a fundamental trend of an entire industry.

Or during his “surprise” appearance in 2018, at the London fashion show of young British designer Richard Quinn, a rising star who had just been awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design, in a real exercise in 

 for British fashion.  

Sitting in the front row, 

, she shared the flashes with the other queen, that of the podiums, Anna Wintour, the powerful boss of  American

magazine  .

No one remembers the collection.

On the other hand, everyone obviously noticed Elizabeth II, in front of a crowd of 

 dressed in black or garish colors, while the sovereign wore a plain light gray suit, very discreet.

Once again a strategy of contrast worthy of someone who mastered the codes of fashion to get noticed.

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