Comparing Kate Middleton's Back-From-Maternity Leave Outfits After the Birth of Each Child

Clothing, Street fashion, Fashion, Outerwear, Jacket, Jeans, Blazer, Neck, Style, Top,

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 2 October 2018

On Tuesday afternoon, Kate Middleton returned from maternity leave after taking a six-month break from public engagements. For her first event, the Duchess of Cambridge visited the Sayers Croft Forest School and Wildlife Garden at Paddington Recreation Ground. As expected, she dressed down in an army green jacket by Fjallraven, a Joseph blouse layered under a green sweater, and Zara moto jeans. She wore her go-to Penelope Chilvers brown boots.

Kate's maternity leave time has varied with each child she had. After giving birth to Prince George on July 22, 2013, she was back to work in six weeks at a Ring O’ Fire Anglesey event. She took a longer break after the birth of Princess Charlotte on May 2, returning to work officially on September 17 when she visited the Anna Freud Centre in central London. The outfits she wore to each of these formal engagements semi-differed, too.

For the marathon event in 2013, Kate went for a more laidback look with an olive blazer, printed shirt, and jeans. She also wore a pair of wedge espadrilles, which Queen Elizabeth might have had opinions on. For the Anna Freud Centre visit, Kate wore a houndstooth print Ralph Lauren shirt dress and black pumps. It appeared Kate wanted to channel her more casual self, since this time she opted for jeans and a sweater—the perfect fall-friendly outfit.

Check out what Kate wore to each of her first, back-to-work public events after giving birth to her children.

Clothing, Jeans, Outerwear, Fashion, Footwear, Blazer, Event, Jacket, Leg, Grass, — On August 30, 2013, Kate Middleton attended her first public event since giving birth to Prince George. She joined Prince William at the Ring O’ Fire Anglesey event in Holyhead, Wales.

The Duchess Of Cambridge Visits The Anna Freud Centre — On September 17, 2015, Kate Middleton returned from her maternity to visit the Anna Freud Centre in central London. She gave birth to Princess Charlotte on May 2, which put her leave at around four months.

Clothing, Street fashion, Tights, Fashion, Footwear, Thigh, Snapshot, Leg, Knee, Riding boot, — On Oct. 2, 2018, the Duchess of Cambridge visited the Sayers Croft Forest School and Wildlife Garden at Paddington Recreation Ground, London.

The looks compared:

Now that she's officially back in the spotlight, expect her to debut a mix of old and new pieces from her royal wardrobe. It'll be back to fancy skirt suits and coat dresses for this mum of three.

Marina Liao is the former fashion news editor at Marie Claire, where she covered celebrity style (from Meghan Markle to Katie Holmes), fashion trends, and shopping advice, plus conducted original interviews with industry insiders. She's now the Senior Commerce Editor at House Beautiful, where she owns coverage on deals and sales across home decor and accessories, in-depth product reviews on furniture and appliances, as well as news around new product launches since 2023. With help from leading designers and tastemakers, Marina spotlights quality products while tracking current design trends, a skill she’s mastered over six years in fashion media. Marina holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Stony Brook University, beginning her career in narrative-driven commerce coverage as an editorial assistant at PopSugar.