The truth about Kate Middleton's nail polish 'rules' has been revealed

Kate Middleton's nail polish 'rules' have finally been revealed – and they're not as strict as you might think. 

• Kate Middleton is rarely spotted with dark nail polish, preferring to go with paler colors when she gets a manicure. 
• The Duchess of Cambridge is technically allowed to wear any color, but chooses to stay with lighter shades for a specific reason. 
• In other royal news, the Queen experiences heartbreak as she will never again enjoy this special birthday tradition after losing Prince Philip.
  

Kate Middleton's manicures have always given us serious nail envy – along with a sharp reminder to top up our chipped polish. 

From her filed fingertips to her moisturized cuticles, the Duchess of Cambridge consistently rocks a perfectly groomed pair of hands to perform her public service. 

However, there's one notable feature on these manicures that fans have been quick to spot. 

The Duchess is rarely seen wearing dark shades on her fingers, leaving many to speculate that there may be a royal protocol on nail polish. 

While a specific rule has never been confirmed, it's widely accepted that women in the Royal Family should adhere to lighter colors when painting their nails - á la Her Majesty herself. 

The Queen has reportedly not changed her manicure routine in decades, after falling in love with Essie's Ballet Slippers in her early sixties. The soft pink, opaque varnish has graced the monarch's cuticles since 1989 and was even worn by Meghan Markle on her wedding day to Prince Harry in 2015. 

Kate also chose a neutral color when she tied the knot to Prince William in 2011, opting for the sheer pinkish-white Allure by Essie. 

While the Duchess of Cambridge has continued to wear similar shades over the years, she is entirely free to change things up if she feels like it. 

“There’s no actual protocol about dark nail polish,” royal correspondent Omid Scobie told BAZAAR.com in 2018. “It’s simply about being appropriate.”

Kate has experimented with deeper colors in the past, even wearing a shiny burgundy pedicure at a Royal Albert Hall concert marking the 2012 Summer Olympics in 2018. 

Meghan has also enjoyed dabbling with darker shades that compliment her warm skin tone and brunette locks. She arrived at the British Fashion Awards in 2018 wearing a black velvet Givenchy dress paired with slicked-back hair and a set of gleaming black nails. While some accused her of breaking protocol at the time, many applauded her for embracing a richer color and challenging royal tradition.