Ever since Kate Middleton joined the royal family, she hasn’t ruffled too many feathers.
She’s sophisticated, absolutely gorgeous, and a great future Queen. Unfortunately for Meghan Markle, she’s viewed as the more likable royal bride of the two.
But Kate isn’t entirely a royal goody-good. She’s broken some rules here and there, too.
Here are 10+ of them.
1. When she didn’t do the Duchess slant.
In case you don’t know what that is, it’s when royal females sit with their legs slanted to one side with their ankles together.
This just looks more proper compared to sitting with their legs open.
2. When she let LeBron James touch her in a photo.
Physical contact with royals in photos is a major no-no. And yet, Kate didn’t shrug off LeBron’s arm in this photo.
She and Prince William’s awkward face here pretty much says it all.
3. When she didn’t wear her engagement ring in public.
If I had the 12-carat sapphire that was worn by the late Princess Diana, I know that I would never want to take it off.
But to each their own, as Kate has been spotted without it several times.
In her defense, some of these times made sense.
Like when she was photographed without it in January when visiting a children’s hospital.
Later, her office told Hello! that she did it to avoid any hygiene risks.
4. When she wore bright nail polish.
In case you didn’t know, the Queen’s choice of nail polish is Ballet Slippers by Essie. It’s a nude, pinkish color that is very sophisticated.
So whenever Kate goes for a bright mani, she’s going against the grain.
5. When she wore bright colors to the Queen’s Christmas luncheon in 2018.
By now, you’re probably well-aware of the fact that the Queen loves her bright colors.
They look great on her and it helps her stand out in large crowds.
But while the Queen has the monopoly on bright colors, Kate wore pink to the Queen’s event.
The year before, she showed up dressed in a color-appropriate color: an all-black ensemble.
So why the switch?
6. When she wore short dresses.
It’s an unwritten rule that royal females don’t wear skirts or dresses that are more than three or four inches above her knee.
Yet, Kate has broken this rue on more than one occasion.
7. When she wore denim in public.
While Meghan Markle was the first royal to wear blue denim to an official royal event , Kate has been a fan of denim for years.
This goes against strict rules of proper attire for royal engagements.
8. When she wore wedges.
The Queen has a bone to pick with the heel. “The Queen isn’t a fan of wedged shoes,” a royal source told Vanity Fair .
“She really doesn’t like them and it’s well known among the women in the family.” This certainly makes Kate’s favorite Stuart Weitzman pair quite awkward.
9. When she wore black tights.
Female royals must wear nude stockings while working (i.e attending events), according to royal etiquette expert Myka Meier .
If that were it, Kate would have been fine with her black tights. But Meier said that they have to be in the color nude.
10. When she didn’t have her chin level to the ground.
Royal etiquette expert Myka Meier spoke to The Sun about why this rule is so important.
“When your chin points down or up it gives the impression that you’re not paying attention or not interested in what’s happening.”
11. When she didn’t wear weights in her dresses.
It sounds weird, but most royal females have weights hemmed into their dresses to avoid pulling a Marilyn Monroe from the wind.
It’s a good style tip, but one that Kate has skipped throughout the years.
12. When she wore heels that were taller than three inches.
It’s not just her wedges that are a problem.
Kate often skips the three-inch heel rule by opting for something taller. Like when she wore four-inch Jimmy Choo “Romy” ombré glitter pumps to a musical event in February.
13. When she and William spent Christmas with her family.
There are a lot of royal Christmas traditions that you might not know about. For instance, did you know that the royals don’t open Christmas presents on Christmas Day ?
They do it on Christmas eve instead.
Traditionally, the royal family also always gets together for the holidays in Sandringham. This includes attending church, enjoying dinner, and so on.
Kate and William broke this rule twice now by spending Christmas with Kate’s family during her first pregnancy and then when Charlotte was a baby.
14. When she wore Diana’s pearl earrings to Archie’s baptism.
These earrings were the subject of controversy when Kate wore them to the baptism of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s son.
That’s because people saw them as Kate trying to “upstage” the couple on their special day.
People even found the move “disrespectful.”
“It would have been a nice gesture of hr to lend them to Meghan instead,” another wrote .
Since there was already alleged drama between Prince William and Kate and Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the earring drama certainly didn’t help.
