The most surprising royal fashion double act: How Sarah Ferguson is taking a leaf out of Kate’s fashion book with strikingly similar ensembles… but has the Princess of Wales taken inspiration from Fergie too?

She has not always been known as a fashion icon, but in recent years the Duchess of York appears to have drawn wardrobe inspiration from the Princess of Wales.

On several occasions, Sarah Ferguson’s outfits have been strikingly similar to ones worn by Kate.

A good example was the sleek black gown with a crisp white cape detail over the shoulders that she wore for a charity gala in Cannes earlier this year.

It bore close resemblance to the frock Kate wore to the premiere of Top Gun: Maverick in 2022. 

More recently, Sarah opted for a Safiyaa caped gown that was again similar to a gown from the same designer that Kate wore last year. 

By emulating Kate’s fashion formula, Fergie is aligning herself with the timeless elegance that has become synonymous with the younger royal.

But the copying cuts both ways. More than once, Kate appears to have drawn inspiration from Sarah’s outfits of old.

Designer double 

The Duchess of York has had some fashion fails in the past but all that was forgiven as she stunned in a Safiyaa gown while at a glitzy charity event in Sweden earlier this month. A vision in emerald green, her figure-hugging cape dress was strikingly similar to the sleek Safiyaa gown which Kate wore to the Royal Variety Performance last year

The Duchess of York has had some fashion fails in the past but all that was forgiven as she stunned in a Safiyaa gown while at a glitzy charity event in Sweden earlier this month.

A vision in emerald green, her figure-hugging cape dress was strikingly similar to the sleek Safiyaa gown which Kate wore to the Royal Variety Performance last year. 

Both outfits featured the same cape silhouette, and, like Kate, Sarah carried a stylish clutch.

Monochrome mirror 

Sarah Ferguson opted for black-and-white dressing as she joined A-list guests for a charity gala in Cannes earlier this year. 

The sleek black gown with a crisp white cape detail over the shoulders, again from Safiyaa, was strikingly similar to the Roland Mouret frock Kate wore to the premiere of Top Gun in 2022. 

However, the Princess of Wales’s dress did feature an off-the-shoulder neckline. 

Sarah Ferguson opted for black-and-white dressing as she joined A-list guests for a charity gala in Cannes earlier this year. The sleek black gown with a crisp white cape detail over the shoulders, again from Safiyaa, was strikingly similar to the Roland Mouret frock Kate wore to the premiere of Top Gun in 2022

Head to toe green 

For the Christmas Day church service at Sandringham last year, Sarah oozed elegance in an emerald green coat from Kate’s go-to designer Holland & Cooper.

She added a peacock headband and coordinating boots to keep with the colour-blocking theme – a tactic often championed by the Princess of Wales.

The ensemble was reminiscent of Kate’s all-green look when she touched down in Ireland in 2020. 

She layered a Catherine Walker coat over an Alessandra Rich dress and added a Jane Taylor headband.  

For the Christmas Day church service at Sandringham last year, Sarah oozed elegance in an emerald green coat from Kate’s go-to designer Holland & Cooper. The ensemble was reminiscent of Kate’s all-green look when she touched down in Ireland in 2020

Purple reign

For a royal visit to the Henry Fawcett Children’s Centre in 2019, Kate set the purple trend in Gucci, wearing a silk-crepe pussy-bow blouse back to front.

In November last year, Sarah followed in her footsteps with a floaty purple dress complete with sheer arms, ruffled wrist cuffs and the same high neck. 

Regal at a Red Cross charity event in Rome, Sarah added a neck tie to her Me & Em gown.

For a royal visit to the Henry Fawcett Children’s Centre in 2019, Kate set the purple trend in Gucci, wearing a silk-crepe pussy-bow blouse back to front. In November last year, Sarah followed in her footsteps with a floaty purple dress complete with sheer arms, ruffled wrist cuffs and the same high neck

Puffed sleeve yellow 

The Duchess of York’s 80s wardrobe featured plenty of big shoulder pads, big hats and big colours. 

One of her most memorable outfits was a canary-yellow polka dot skirt suit, which she wore with a matching wide-brimmed hat at Royal Ascot in 1987.

Kate surprised everyone with his puffed sleeved dress by Alessandra Rich but it was the Duchess of York that wore the look first

During her tour of the Bahamas with Prince William in 2022, Kate paid homage to the 80s silhouette by wearing a button front printed dress by Alessandra Rich.

The look boasted puffy sleeves and a peplum waist.

Like Sarah, Kate also paired the look with white leather accessories. Hers were from Gianvito Rossi and Ferragamo.

Ladies in red

Kate channelled a look that Sarah Ferguson wore in 1999 to attend the Motor Neurone Disease Association Christmas party when celebrating Commonwealth Day in 2019. 

Her Catherine Walker double-breasted coat featured gold buttons.

The only notable differences between the pair was Kate’s hat, and the fact that she wore different shoes and tights to Sarah.

The red double breasted, gold  button coats are almost identical

Polka dot princesses 

Kate Middleton stepped out at Wimbledon in 2021 looking as stylish as ever, wearing a midi pleated polka-dot skirt by Alessandra Rich. 

She paired with a white blouse, a navy Smythe blazer, and white Gianvito Rossi heels.

Kate may have been taking a page out of Sarah’s style playbook. For Princess Beatrice’s first day at prep school in 1991, she sported a very similar ensemble. 

d 

Both women adopt an almost identical look over thirty years apart, even down to the gold button blazers

d 

Green hats

For the wedding of her daughter Princess Eugenie in 2019, Sarah chose a green wide-brimmed hat with stiff gold ribbon trim by Jess Collett which matched her Emma Louise Design dress. 

In 2023, the Princess of Wales eschewed her usual colour tones in favour of something a little more daring, a custom look by Andrew GN paired with a Philip Treacy hat. 

Making as much as a statement as Sarah, both ladies chose hats with large structured bows at the back.

This was a more daring look for Kate  at Trooping the Colour in 2023 but Sarah pulled off a similar colour for Eugenie’s wedding in 2019