Duchess Kate welcomes you in her 40s with a glamorous new photoshoot.
Kensington Palace released three new portraits of Kate the night before her 40th birthday on Sunday, taken by photographer Paolo Roversi in Kew Gardens last November.
A sepia-stained photo shows her in a see-through off-the-shoulder dress, tied at each arm with dangling ribbon bows. Her hair is worn in loose waves and Princess Diana’s famous sapphire engagement ring is visible on her left hand. She dons a white dress with a ruffled neckline for a close-up.
In the third color portrait, Kate wears a one-shoulder dark red dress with pockets and a dramatic pouf sleeve, with diamond dangling earrings.
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The photos are a departure from the more casual images typically posted by 39-year-old Prince William and Kate to mark special occasions in the royal family. The couple celebrated their 10th anniversary last April with casual photos showing them dressed in matching blue outfits and hugging in front of Kensington Palace.
Official social media accounts for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge note that Kate’s new portraits will enter the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery in London, of which the Duchess has been the royal patron since 2012.
The photos will be included in the gallery’s “Coming Home” project, an initiative in which portraits of people are sent to places with which they are closely associated. Kate’s portraits will be displayed in three places where she lived: Berkshire, where she grew up; St. Andrews, where he went to college and met William; and Anglesey, where the couple lived early in their marriage, before moving to Kensington Palace.
Kate wowed royal spectators during the holidays by playing the piano to accompany Scottish singer-songwriter Tom Walker on his Christmas ballad “For Those Who Can’t Be Here” for “Royal Carols: Together at Christmas,” a Christmas concert recorded at the Abbey of Westminster.
Contributing: Maria Puente, Brian Truitt
