Every Alessandra Rich Dress the Princess of Wales Has Worn, Dated

The Princess of Wales has worn Alessandra Rich in public at least seven times since 2018, almost always in a polka dot, and every appearance sends the same three dresses back into search. This page is the dated record: what she wore, where, when, what was custom about it, and which piece on sale at Luxury Handbags is the nearest match. Each entry is checked against a named report, listed at the end, and we have not included the appearances we could not source.

Key facts

• First appearance: the official portrait released for King Charles’s seventieth birthday in November 2018, in the navy polka-dot silk midi with a white collar.
• Most repeated: the same navy dress at the D-Day 75 commemorations in Portsmouth in June 2019; the black and white polka dot at Garter Day in June 2023 and the VE Day 80 service at Westminster Abbey on 8 May 2025.
• Custom pieces: the azure polka dot for the Platinum Jubilee Big Lunch in June 2022 had the crystal shoulder and belt details replaced with plain blue fabric; she wore it again at Wimbledon on 5 July 2022.
• Why: Rich has named Princess Diana a muse and said she knows all her looks by heart; the dot is the print Diana wore through the 1980s.
• At Luxury Shoes : 31 polka-dot pieces from $1,575 to $3,560, including the black and white and the blue colourways worn by the Princess.

2018: the seventieth-birthday portrait

The photograph released by Clarence House for King Charles’s seventieth birthday, the family gathered in the garden, is where most people first noticed the dress: a navy silk crêpe de chine midi with small white dots, a white lace-trimmed collar and a defined waist. Grazia traced the same dress through Sarah Jessica Parker in April 2018, Abigail Spencer at the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s wedding in May 2018, and then the Princess. It sold out. The current black and white Polka Dot Dress With Collar at $2,882 is the same idea in the house’s current colourway.

2019: D-Day 75

She wore the navy dress again for the seventy-fifth anniversary of D-Day in June 2019, which is what prompted the 2019 coverage of the dress and the interview in which Rich named Diana as her muse. It was the first time the Princess had publicly repeated an Alessandra Rich piece, and it set the pattern: the house’s dresses are bought to be worn more than once.

2022: the Platinum Jubilee and Wimbledon

For the Platinum Jubilee Big Lunch in June 2022 the Princess wore a custom version of the house’s azure polka-dot dress: silk crêpe de chine, pleated bodice, mother-of-pearl buttons, gathered sleeves, shoulder pads and a waist belt, with the crystal shoulder embellishment and crystal buckle of the ready-to-wear version replaced by plain blue fabric. She wore it a second time on day nine of Wimbledon on 5 July 2022, with a white Mulberry bag. The Polka Dot High Neck Dress at $2,961 and the Polka Dot Dress With Pleated Skirt at $2,961 are the blue dots on sale now.

2023: Garter Day

For the Order of the Garter service at Windsor in June 2023 she wore a black and white polka-dot midi with long sleeves, cinched cuffs and a high neck, with a black hat. WWD recorded it as the first wearing of the dress she would repeat two years later.

2025: VE Day 80

On 8 May 2025, at the service of thanksgiving for the eightieth anniversary of VE Day at Westminster Abbey, the Princess wore the same black and white polka-dot dress with a black flower-and-feather fascinator by Juliette Botterill, gold calfskin pumps by Ralph Lauren, a DeMellier Nano Montreal bag and, from Princess Diana’s collection, the Collingwood pearl drop earrings. It is the appearance that fixed the dress in the public mind as the Princess of Wales dress, and the pearl earrings are the styling note we recommend most often with the print.

The nearest match on sale now

1. Polka Dot Dress With Collar, $2,882

Black ground, white dots, contrast collar. The closest piece at Luxury Handbags to the black and white dress of 2023 and 2025.

2. Polka Dot High Neck Dress, $2,961

Blue ground, high neck, long sleeves. The nearest to the azure Jubilee dress in cut.

3. Polka Dot Dress With Pleated Skirt, $2,961

Blue dots with a pleated skirt; the summer version of the same colourway.

4. Silk Polka Dot Midi Dress with Collar, $3,040

Cream ground with bordeaux dots and a lace collar, the current season’s take on the collared midi.

Styling the royal way

The Princess’s formula does not change: the dress, a hat if the occasion is formal, a pump in the ground colour, a small structured bag, one pair of earrings. She has never added a second print, a statement necklace, a contrast belt with the dot. It is the method set out in the styling guide and it works at a wedding as well as at Westminster Abbey.

Frequently asked questions

Which Alessandra Rich dresses has Kate Middleton worn?

The navy polka-dot midi with a white collar (2018 seventieth-birthday portrait, D-Day 75 in June 2019), a custom azure polka-dot dress (Platinum Jubilee Big Lunch June 2022, Wimbledon 5 July 2022) and a black and white polka-dot midi with a high neck and cinched cuffs (Garter Day June 2023, VE Day 80 on 8 May 2025).

Was the Princess of Wales’s Alessandra Rich dress custom?

The 2022 azure dress was: the crystal shoulder details and the crystal belt buckle of the ready-to-wear version were replaced with plain blue fabric. The navy and the black and white dresses were ready-to-wear styles.

Can I buy the Kate Middleton Alessandra Rich polka-dot dress?

The exact 2018 navy dress sold out years ago. Luxury Handbags sells the house’s current polka-dot dresses in black and white, cream and bordeaux, and blue, including a collared black and white midi that is the same design language.

Why does Kate Middleton wear polka dots?

The print was a Princess Diana signature through the 1980s, and Alessandra Rich has said Diana is one of her muses and that she knows all of her looks by heart. The Princess of Wales has worn Diana’s Collingwood pearl earrings with the dot.

Who else has worn the Alessandra Rich polka-dot dress?

Abigail Spencer at the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s wedding in May 2018 and Sarah Jessica Parker in New York in April 2018, both in the navy dress; Grazia also noted Daisy Ridley among its fans.

Read next

every polka-dot dress at Luxury Shoes | who is Alessandra Rich | the history and timeline | wedding guest dresses

All the Alessandra Rich guides at Luxury Shoes

Who is Alessandra Rich | How to style the polka-dot dress | Brands like Alessandra Rich | Fall Winter 2026 edit | Polka-dot dresses | Is Alessandra Rich a luxury brand | Price guide | Size guide | Sale guide | Where to buy | Real vs fake | Shoes | Alessandra Rich vs Zimmermann | Alessandra Rich vs Rasario | Wedding guest dresses | Dresses | Midi dresses | Mini dresses | Evening gowns | Skirts | Tops and blouses | Jackets and coats | Knitwear | Black dresses | White and ivory | Blue dresses | Tweed and boucle | Lace dresses | Sequins and crystal | Bows and collars | Floral and printed silk | History and timeline | Glossary | Materials and care. Shop the full Alessandra Rich collection at Luxury Shoes .

Sources and method

Checked on 18 September 2026. Facts about the house come from the sources below; prices, counts and stock come from the live Luxury Handbags catalogue on that date and change with the season.

• Grazia, 16 May 2019, the navy polka-dot dress
• HELLO!, 30 May 2019, Alessandra Rich on Princess Diana as a muse
• Kate Middleton Style, 5 July 2022, the azure polka-dot dress
• WWD, 8 May 2025, VE Day 80 service of thanksgiving
• Luxury Handbags product data for the 306 Alessandra Rich pieces on sale on 18 September 2026 (prices in USD, compositions, sizes, seasons)

Gemma Deeks is Fashion Editor at Luxury Shoes . Prices, stock and counts on this page were checked against coveti.com and alessandrarich.com on 18 September 2026.