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Will and Kate Proved They Will Be an Amazing and Modern King and Queen

Posted: 07/11/2011 6:05 pm

From unplanned PDA and heartfelt confessions to the public, to Kate's wardrobe of re-worn clothes and visits with underprivileged kids, the royal newlyweds just gave the monarchy a giant insta-makeover on their rocking Royal Tour.

Princess Diana would be so proud. Her son William, 28, and his beautiful bride, Kate Middleton, 29, quietly revolutionized the world's ideas about British Royals form the moment they stepped off their British Airways jet and arrived in Ottawa, Canada.

All the work that William's beloved "mommy" Princess Diana did to bring warmth to her role and to mingle with regular folks and help those desperately in need like AIDS patients and victims of landmines, has now been carried on.

Prince William and Kate refused to behave like stuffy, protocol-obsessed Royals. Kate picked out her entire wardrobe for the 11-day trip, re-wore her J Brand jeans three times, re-wore her navy Prada pumps and LK Bennett beige pumps and wedges, re-wore her white Reiss engagement dress, and then sported and inexpensive skirt and top from Whistles -- a chain store -- in Britain, when she met with inner city kids in LA. She's now a far more frequent re-wearer-in-chief than Michelle Obama. And her regular girl mixing and matching, which she pulled off to perfection, provided inspiration to every young woman in these recessionary times. Her down-to-earth style made the Kardashians and their multiple Birkin bags look ostentatious and outdated.

Hey, she's even got William into the act, re-wearing his plaid shirt and Levi jeans on July 7 and 8 in Calgary.

Kate, the unpretentious princess also made do with no lady-in-waiting or makeup artist on her trip -- she did her own makeup -- and she looked naturally pretty wherever she went.

Just like Diana would have, she warmly hugged little six-year-old cancer victim, Diamond Marshall. She also hugged her hubby after losing a dragon boat race on July 4 in Canada, she sat around a campfire and helped Inuit women prepare caribou meat without wrinkling her nose like Kate Gosselin, and stayed in a northern lodge without electricity for a night.

But best of all, she actually spoke to and shared feelings with the everyday Canadians and Americans she met. She confided that she hoped to be a mom.

Meanwhile Prince William proved at every turn he was his mother's warm and empathetic son. He proudly put his arm around Kate at many times, cracked jokes with guests at Royal functions to break the ice, and then revealed to three sisters in Yellowstone who had lost their mother to cancer that he shared their pain. "William said that he had been there and he knew how hard it was to lose your mother," one of the the sisters, Margot Cooper, said. Has Queen Elizabeth or Prince Charles ever said anything warm, empathetic, or personally revealing to a member of the public? That would be Nu-oh!

Then there's the quiet stylish diplomacy that Kate perfected. Her red maple leaf fascinator, specially made for Canada Day, her dresses in Canada by Canadian designer Erdem Moralioglu, her green dress by American designer Diane Von Furstenberg at the Royal welcome reception in LA on July 8. Smart, Kate, smart.

Then there's what's most important about the Royal couple who smiled, laughed and truly appeared to have a blast on their North American tour -- they showed compassion.

Click here to read more about Will & Kate revolutionizing royalty and for pics!

 

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From unplanned PDA and heartfelt confessions to the public, to Kate's wardrobe of re-worn clothes and visits with underprivileged kids, the royal newlyweds just gave the monarchy a giant insta-makeove...
From unplanned PDA and heartfelt confessions to the public, to Kate's wardrobe of re-worn clothes and visits with underprivileged kids, the royal newlyweds just gave the monarchy a giant insta-makeove...
 
 
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
avacat
09:52 PM on 07/17/2011
The Queen has served her country tirelessly, and with great dignity, she is a product of a different era.
Maybe she is just extremely disciplined, not sure the 'stuffy' connotation is fair. Prince Phillip is know for his jokes and jovial manner.
That being said, William and Catherine are an almost miraculous breath of fresh air. However, if Charles shares his parents longevity, William is unlikely to be King anytime soon..Pity..
05:33 PM on 07/17/2011
How do we know that she didn't have two pairs of jeans in her suitcase?
11:09 PM on 07/12/2011
Kate seems sensible enough and it is nice to see someone wear something twice for a change but I do wish she could have been a little bit more glamorous in her wardrobe. She will never match the style of William's mother. She was definitely one of a kind.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Cassandra45
"Let us do our best, even if it gets us nowhere."
05:10 PM on 07/13/2011
Why should she?
This user has chosen to opt out of the Badges program
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07:18 PM on 07/12/2011
Its not a coincidence that many of the highest-ranked countries on the UN's Human Development Index are constitutional monarchies, including Australia/NZ, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Holland, Japan.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Human_Development_Index

As well, Canada's First Nations have a special relationship with our monarchy that is often not recognized, but the treaty of 1763 continues to be a key point of Indigenous Rights.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Canadian_Crown_and_Aboriginal_peoples
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
3Nox
Turns into a hedgehog when messed with
12:32 PM on 07/12/2011
Oh my god, a woman who re-wears her clothes? Get out of town!
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kapalabhati
Lokah Samasta Sukhino Bhavantu
12:26 PM on 07/12/2011
She is Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge. Or Mrs. Wales. She is not Kate Middleton. I have no real dog in the fight about the propriety or impropriety of the Monarchy in the 21st century. I am not a subject. Nevertheless, she has elected to be known by her married name and has had a title bestowed upon her. I wish people would respect those designations.
11:11 PM on 07/12/2011
Well, you can't have it both ways. You can't act more like a commoner and then expect everyone to regard you as royalty.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Cassandra45
"Let us do our best, even if it gets us nowhere."
03:08 PM on 07/16/2011
Actually, she IS royalty now; she married a Prince and became a Duchess; she is no longer Kate Middleton, although the press will probably always call her Kate. And she shows a lot more class than some of those to the manor born, if you ask me.
06:00 AM on 07/12/2011
I really like Kate and the image she portrays, she is definitely a role model and someone women should aspire to instead of the so called reality stars that are on our TV all the time.

I have followed their story and made me a royal supporter and I can't wait to see what they do next.
06:24 PM on 07/12/2011
I beg your pardon? What exactly is it that Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge done under her own steam other than marry a royal? Are you saying that other women should go out in search of princes?
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09:35 AM on 07/13/2011
She's shown class and poise, demonstrated good manners, and shown genuine compassion. There is more than one type of role model possible.
06:18 PM on 07/11/2011
When William and Kate arrived in Ottawa, they came via a Canadian Forces AirBus jet, not British Airways. When they left Calgary to LA, they were also transported by the Government of Canada in the same jet. They did leave LA to UK via British Airways.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Cassandra45
"Let us do our best, even if it gets us nowhere."
03:20 PM on 07/12/2011
This writer doesn't bother to check details, you may have noticed.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
goldengirl43
Older than dirt!
12:13 PM on 07/16/2011
Yep. It's YellowKNIFE, for starters.