The Duchess's Secret Weapon: Who Is Behind Kate Middleton's Flawless Look

Everyone was looking forward to the appearance of the Duchess of Cambridge at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle: less than a month after the birth of Prince Louis, she needs to please the audience and even at an event of such a grand scale. Appearing at the doors of the church almost the last, Kate Middleton did not disappoint fans with her appearance. Anticipating the question of how she does it, we talk about those who are responsible for the ideal image of the mother of the future king. In fact, the whole team is two people, stylist Natasha Archer and hairdresser Amanda Cook, who are always there when needed.

Natasha Archer

It is to her that Catherine owes her current title of British style icon. A Spanish university graduate, she began working with William and Keith in 2007 as a Personal Assistant. In 2014, she was transferred to a position similar to the style advisor - the girl had to ensure that the Duchess's outfits were always matched to the requirements of the situation.

Last year, Natasha married photographer Chris Jackson, who actively shoots the Cambridge, and now the Dukes of Sussex, for photobanks (Chris collaborates with Getty Images). By the way, she chose a wedding dress from Jenny Packham, one of the favorite designers of Kate Middleton's mother (for more details ─ “The Art of Coming Home: How Princess Diana and Kate Middleton changed the age-old tradition”).

What did Natasha do for Kate's wardrobe? Officially, Kensington Palace has never disseminated or replicated the information that it was she who was responsible for how wonderful the Duchess looks in public. But a number of designers themselves wished to speak out about working with Archer. So, the founder of the Canadian brand Sentaler, designer Bozena Sentaler (born Serbian) said in an interview that Natasha herself found Sentaler and contacted them directly. The brand provided several options, and Archer quickly picked the right one. Sentaler, by the way, is a rather expensive brand of outerwear, which is chosen by the wife of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and, of course, the current Duchess of Sussex (the brand is registered in Toronto).

In the Sentaler cardigan:

"Marrying" Kate Middleton's sympathies with the demands of the situation is perhaps Natasha's most difficult task. On her royal tour of India in 2016, Katherine wore a print dress from the national brand AnitDongr, altered by Natasha. “In India, many people wear this dress ─ Gulrukh ─ with trousers and a stole. The Duchess's stylist simply cut off part of the cape, turning it into a belt, and also shortened the length. It turned out fresh and unusual,”said designer Anita Dongre.

In AnitDongre dress:

The most accurate confirmation that Natasha plays the main role in Katherine's fashion life was received when she appeared on the porch of the Lindo wing of St. Mary's Hospital, with a hanger under her arm, shortly after the birth of Prince George. Presumably, it was there that Jenny Packham's sky-blue dress with white polka dots, in which the Duchess of Cambridge first appeared in public as the mother of the future king, was there. After that moment, Archer's handwriting became more visible in the public image of Kate Middleton - it became more thoughtful and glamorous, but also successfully casual too. At the same time, Natasha herself, according to insiders, buys clothes in online stores.

Amanda Cook

Despite the fact that women all over the world are jealous of Kate's hair, Prince William once called her hair "a real nightmare." At one of the public events, the duke, having thrown a couple of proposals with a trainee hairdresser, lamented that his wife had already been unable to find someone who could adequately cope with the taming of her long and coarse hair. Katherine's secret weapon since 2012 is Amanda Cook.

She is a hairdresser who has come a long way from Prince William's haircuts to styling the Duchess of Cambridge for the most important events. Whether Kate leaves the hospital, attends social events abroad or takes Prince George to school, her hair looks flawless. Having entrusted her locks to Amanda for the first time during a tour of Southeast Asia, the Duchess never parted with her. Cook accompanies Kate Middleton everywhere - both at meetings and on the road, and is also responsible for the evening tiara styling.

Her ex-husband Neville Tucker ran a salon in Knightsbridge, one of London's most fashionable neighborhoods, that served the Royal Court from 1980 to 1994. During this time, Neville and Amanda worked closely with the Queen's hairdresser (for example, they cut the young princes William and Harry), so, without a doubt, Cook's candidacy was approved at the highest level.

They say that Amanda became the second visitor to see Prince George after birth, ahead of his grandparents - Carol and Michael Middleton. It was Cook who styled Kate's hair after the birth of both George and Charlotte, and now Louis.

After Prince Charles grabbed a copy of Amanda's check from her first royal tour in 2012, it was revealed that she was charging £ 300 a day to “be on hand at all times” and fix a stray strand in time. However, clarifications were immediately made that Kate pays for the services of her hairdresser herself.

Stylish styling, signature tight curls, an elongated bob that Kate showed off last summer before the pregnancy announcement are all the work of Amanda. The Duchess still visits Richard Ward's salon in Chelsea for all the painting services, but Amanda Cooke most likely gets her hair cut within her own walls. By the way, Amanda is also behind Kate's styling on the cover of the anniversary Vogue in 2016. From that moment on, the Duchess of Cambridge practically admitted that she trusted her hair only to Cook.

Before the Instagram account was deleted (this happened relatively recently), Amanda sometimes shared in it life hacks for the care of royal hair and interesting photos. For example, during the trip of the Cambridges to Sweden and Norway, they found out that 2 hair dryers, 13 brushes, 7 combs, 3 curling devices and 6 styling and care products (among them you can identify hairspray from L ' Oreal, Charles Worthington Texture Spray, and Smoothing Coconut Oil).

And at the beginning of the year it became known that the Duchess of Cambridge decided to donate 7 inches of her own hair (about 18 centimeters) to the Little Princess Trust, which makes wigs for children with cancer. The foundation has existed for 12 years, and during this time it has made and donated 5,500 wigs to children who have lost their hair due to chemotherapy or radiation therapy. A noble gesture, especially considering that Amanda donated the Duchess's curls to the foundation anonymously - as "from an ordinary woman from Kensington."

On discharge from the maternity hospital in Prince Louis, Kate looked wonderful, but not all fans appreciated the image of the Duchess at Prince Harry's wedding. Someone noted that her hair was too disheveled, straight, with split ends, and even long. The haters did not miss the opportunity to denigrate that in this way the Duchess of Cambidia expressed her disdain for the celebration (and the Duchess of Sussex). But perhaps her hairdresser was just taking a little vacation?

Photo: Getty Images, press archives