10 Times Princess Diana Recycled Her Royal Wardrobe

Although she was one of the most photographed women in the world, that didn’t stop Princess Diana from regularly rewearing – and altering – her royal wardrobe. Time and time again Diana recycled her royal wardrobe, proving that it's not what you wear, but how you wear it that leaves an impact.

Ever the People’s Princess, Diana realised her impact on the public and dressed accordingly; rewearing pieces for both public appearances and private outings. She wore her famed Jan Van Velden black and white blouse on Royal Tour in Australia, and then to watch a polo match in Cirencester in 1983.

Diana wasn’t precious about her designer pieces either, as the princess got stuck in wherever she went. She wore her navy blue tweed Chanel suit to an appearance in Peterborough in January 1991, and later the same year to visit sick children at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London.

Diana’s pink checked trousers are one of her most instantly recognisable looks, and one she wore at least twice in the public eye. Here she wore them first with a signature white shirt, and then with a matching pink cardigan, a look that was recreated in The Crown Season 4 on Emma Corrin.

Little did Diana know she had created another iconic monochrome look when she stepped out at the polo in Windsor in her Victor Edelstein polka dot dress in 1986. The look was cemented in the style books when she rewore the dress a year later at the Epsom Derby, having removed the frill at the waist.

Diana’s affinity with foreign designers accelerated when her separation from Prince Charles was announced in 1992. Cue looks from Chanel, Versace and Dior through the ‘90s, not to mention an enviable designer handbag collection and Chanel’s sailor dress became a wardrobe stalwart for the princess.

Diana chose a Caroline Charles tartan skirt suit and wore it with the buttons done up early on in her marriage in 1981. But four years later, she updated the look, leaving the collar open to reveal her blouse, and instead opting for knee-high black boots for a royal visit in Swindon.

Blink and you might think that this isn’t the same dress, but if you look carefully, you’ll see that Diana’s blue Catherine Walker gown worn in 1987 in Lisbon has been altered to remove the puff sleeves, and reveal a strapless style for her to wear two years later in 1989.

This Catherine Walker gown had a decidedly ‘80s style skirt when she first wore it in Kuwait in 1989, but Diana adapted and wore the top part of the gown once again with a purple column bottom half and the Spencer family tiara three years later on a trip to Seoul.

Diana understood the power of an ensemble when it worked, and why mess with a good thing? She switched a navy blazer and court shoes for white iterations when she re-wore this striped puff-ball mini dress from her 1987 Lisbon visit to the Cannes Film Festival later that year.