Kate Middleton’s knitted Bardot dress is a cosy staple that'll take you from catch-ups over coffee to Christmas party glam

The Princess of Wales’s knitted Bardot dress from 2019 is a cosy staple that can easily take you from catch-ups over coffee to Christmas party glam.

Comfort is key when it comes to your winter capsule wardrobe and sometimes it can seem like an almost impossible task to find pieces that make us feel confident and chic as well as being easy to wear. It’s also important to have staples that can work seamlessly for both daytime and evening occasions and ticking all these many style boxes is a knitted or jersey dress. They come in so many silhouettes and materials and are the perfect alternative to your best wool jumpers and jeans when you want to look a little more put-together.

High neck dresses are especially popular in the winter, but in 2019 the Princess of Wales made a case for a bardot neckline when she wore a gorgeous Barbara Casasola dress. We’ve never quite forgotten how stunning this dress was and Kate wore it to the first annual gala dinner in honour of Addiction Awareness Week, paired with glittery heels.

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This event was held in June, but Kate’s bardot dress would make the perfect winter piece and appeared to be made of a knitted or jersey material, rather than silk or crepe like so many of her summer dresses. The fitted bodice flared out into a midi-length skirt that had delicate pleating to add volume and movement. The long sleeves were so elegant and the star of the show was undoubtedly the neckline.

The off-shoulder design was very modest and barely showed the Princess of Wales’s décolletage, but it gave this already beautiful dress a bit more of a formal feel. The subtle stripes running in different directions resembled ribbed detailing we’d see on jumpers and added depth to the otherwise all-white dress.

Whilst Her Royal Highness loves wearing a pop of colour when she attends royal engagements, for formal occasions she often steps out in white gowns - like the gorgeous Alexander McQueen one-shoulder dress she wore to the 2023 BAFTAs. For this important gala dinner in 2019, a white outfit was the perfect choice. It struck the right balance between being beautiful and understated, at such a poignant event which Kate attended as Patron of Action on Addiction - a campaign that aims to reframe existing perceptions of addiction and build awareness of it.

White dresses have so much versatility thanks to their neutral colour and if you don’t already have a favourite white knitted dress for winter it’s well worth considering. They look spectacular during the daytime worn under a longline tailored coat with ankle or knee high boots and for evenings out, you can easily dress them up. Kate did so at the gala dinner by adding sparkling silver accessories that contrasted with yet complemented her dress.

Her shoes were glittery Jimmy Choo court heels that glimmered as she walked and her patent silver clutch bag was equally eye-catching. The combination of the silver sparkles and white dress was fabulous and on a colder day Kate could easily have worn a long white coat over the top and added a silver-toned scarf to make it even cosier.

Taking inspiration from the Princess of Wales’s look, a white knitted dress would make one of the best Christmas party outfit ideas for anyone who wants to be comfortable and elegant without going for all-out sparkles and festive green and red tones. And if you're looking for accessories, there's some beautiful pieces in our pick of Christmas gifts for friends. As Kate has proved, silver accessories are a winning style partner for dresses like this, and a bardot neckline is a lovely detail to look out for if you want something a little different and even more glamorous.