10 December 2023 , 10:00
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With Christmas just weeks away, the royals will no doubt be preparing for their annual festive getaway to Sandringham.
Each year, the Firm gathers on the Norfolk estate for their traditional Christmas celebrations, and for many years now, the Princess of Wales has been a firm fixture at the gathering. Nearly every year she is seen on the traditional walk to church and it appears that this year will be no different.
But before her 2011 wedding, tradition dictated that before being married into the Firm, attending family occasions such as Christmas and Easter was off the cards. In fact, Kate didn't join an official royal Christmas celebration with Prince William and the rest of his family until December 2011 - the Christmas after her wedding when she was first Duchess of Cambridge.
The Princess of Wales at Sandringham last year (Getty Images)However, when it came to her sister-in-law Meghan Markle several years later, she was allowed to join royal Christmas with Prince Harry - despite the pair not being married - leaving people asking why the same offer hadn't been extended to Kate. But according to a book, the late Queen did actually invite the princess to a festive event prior to her engagement to William, but she turned it down.
In his biography Battle of Brothers, Robert Lacey claims the monarch broke from tradition and extended her first invitation to an unregistered partner for the family's traditional Christmas lunch in 2006. But Kate, who was 24 at the time, is reported to have declined the historic request. In his book, he writes that Kate "would go to Sandringham on Christmas Day only when she was engaged".
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He explains: "By 2006, the couple had been dating seriously for the best part of five years. Yet when William invited Kate to join him that year at Sandringham for the Royal Family's traditional Christmas lunch, she refused. It was the first time the Queen had extended such an invitation to an unregistered 'girlfriend', but Kate had her own take on that break with tradition: she would go to Sandringham on Christmas Day only when she was engaged and had a ring to prove it."
For the Sandringham Christmas trip, careful packing is required with several different outfits needed for festivites. Of course, Kate will take a lot of care with this, however, it seems she might have made a last minute alteration to last year's ensemble for church - and it might have been down to a thoughtful gift from her husband.
When Kate joined her royal in-laws for the family's traditional walk to church last December 25, she debuted a beautiful pair of earrings which were reportedly a Christmas present from Prince William. The royals open their presents on Christmas Eve and Kate was clearly keen to wear the newest addition to her jewellery box as soon as possible.
As she stepped out in Sandringham, Kate looked chic in her forest-green Alexander McQueen coat and a Philip Treacy fedora hat, which she then elevated with the generous gift. The ocean blue Dina earrings are made from gold-plated recycled brass and natural stones. The cluster of blue jewels makes them the perfect addition to any festive ensemble.