Mallory Bowling is a 29-year-old attorney based in Virginia who has a strong love for a very familiar style icon: Kate Middleton [1]. "Lots of young girls here in the USA followed Kate during my college years. I think the real hype started when she got engaged, though. There was so much in the news about it — especially that amazing blue [Issa] dress [2] she wore," Mallory said. From there, Mallory turned taking inspiration from the duchess's iconic outfits [3] into a hobby. She was influenced by Kate's Alexander McQueen bridal look [4] when planning her own wedding, and Mallory eventually joined the "Replikates" group on Instagram where loyal fans track down the pieces in Kate's wardrobe [5], such as her L.K. Bennett pumps, which Mallory buys discounted.
"It's a lot easier if someone's already identified where Kate's clothes are from. If not, the 'Replikate' community will do a very comprehensive search and we'll quickly track the retailer down. A lot of the girls are very creative. Some even make their own clothes and we all help each other out. For example, if something isn't available to buy in the country one of us lives in, we'll ask if someone else can try and get it where they are instead," Mallory said, admitting she's never paid full price for an item and has spent "a few hundred pounds over five years" on her project.
Mallory generally searches on eBay, Amazon, and apps like Depop for preowned or copycat versions of Kate's looks. She even found a replica of Kate's engagement dress for $25 at a consignment store. Read on to see side-by-side shots of Mallory and Kate. Their ensembles are so similar, you'll obviously want to share with all your friends and perhaps even follow Mallory's account [6], because she predicts she'll probably try to re-create some of Prince Harry's girlfriend Meghan Markle's outfits [7] soon.
Kate's Issa Dress
Mallory found a $25 version of Kate's blue Issa dress [9], which the duchess wore on November 16, 2010, to announce her engagement to Prince William at St. James Palace in London. Harvey Nichols famously restocked the dress [10] in 2015.
Kate's Naeem Khan Dress
Kate wore this dress by Naeem Khan [11] to visit the Taj Mahal with Prince William in April 2016. The Indian-American designer explained the inspiration behind the mosaic pattern [12].
Kate's Self-Portrait Dress
Kate wore this white Self-Portrait gown [13] to the premiere of A Street Cat Named Bob in November 2016. She's not the only royal to wear the dreamy label [14] to an event.