The Princess chose a navy and white ensemble for today’s visit to the new V&A East Storehouse.
The Storehouse just opened to the public two weeks ago. The Princess has been the V&A’s patron since 2018. Today, she enjoyed a behind-the-scenes tour of the museum’s newest facility. 
Simon Perry has more in his People article.
The Princess of Wales, 43, stepped out in East London on June 10 to visit the new V&A East Storehouse, a branch of the Victoria and Albert Museum that offers unprecedented public access to more than 500,000 objects spanning fashion, film, visual art, design and performance.
During Tuesday’s engagement, Kate toured the East Storehouse behind the scenes, observing how pieces in the museum’s vast archive are collected, conserved and displayed. Wherever possible, glass barriers have been removed to allow visitors to get closer than ever to the historic works.
We learn more about the facility from this AP piece.
The 16,000-square-meter (170,000-square-foot) building, bigger than 30 basketball courts, holds more than 250,000 objects, 350,000 books and 1,000 archives. Wandering its huge, three-story collections hall feels like a trip to IKEA, but with treasures at every turn.
The V&A is Britain’s national museum of design, performance and applied arts, and the storehouse holds aisle after aisle of open shelves lined with everything from ancient Egyptian shoes to Roman pottery, ancient Indian sculptures, Japanese armor, Modernist furniture, a Piaggio scooter and a brightly painted garbage can from the Glastonbury Festival.
Here you see the Princess with the V&A’s director, Tristam Hunt.
And in this image, the Princess is shown the largest Picasso canvas in the world. The Daily Mail reports, “The gigantic canvas measuring 30m by 40m has spent most of the last 80 years rolled up in storage.”
The canvas was created as a backdrop for the Ballets Russes’ 1924 season. The Telegraph explains, “The picture, which the Princess stood in front of, is a copy of the original 1922 painting Two Women Running on the Beach, created by another artist but which so impressed Picasso that he later signed it personally, making it authentic in the eyes of the art world.” Below is a quick video of the Princess viewing the canvas.
In this next image, you see the Princess looking at a 19th-century riding habit with Oriole Cullen (c), the museum’s senior fashion and textiles curator, and Kate Parsons (r), the director of collections care and access. 
The Princess and curator Oriole Cullen look at another item of clothing. 
This Telegraph story by Hannah Furness has more about the item the Princess viewed.
The Princess, known for her support of the fashion industry, immediately identified that a black and gold coat dress was by Alexander McQueen, the British fashion designer. She said: “You see a certain shape and you know the designer.”
You have a somewhat better look at the garment in this photo; I believe it is the Alexander McQueen design referenced in The Telegraph article. 
This next photo shows the Princess viewing a ballet shoe that the museum was photographing. 
We return to The Telegraph’s coverage.
The team needed to photograph a 1943 ballet shoe worn by Alice Markova at a performance of Giselle at the Old Vic. The inside sole of the shoe had been signed by the ballerina who had also written a message.
Watching how it was photographed for the collection, the Princess said: “Gosh it’s so small and I like the fact you can see her handwriting.”
Below, the Princess views another large piece of art. 
Arguably, one of the most fascinating features of the new museum is the Order an Object service. We return to the Associated Press piece.
In the museum’s biggest innovation, anyone can book a one-on-one appointment with any object, from a Vivienne Westwood mohair sweater to a tiny Japanese netsuke figurine. Most of the items can even be handled, with exceptions for hazardous materials, such as Victorian wallpaper that contains arsenic.
The Order an Object service offers “a behind-the-scenes, very personal, close interaction” with the collection, Parsons said as she showed off one of the most requested items so far: a 1954 pink silk taffeta Balenciaga evening gown. Nearby in one of the study rooms were a Bob Mackie-designed military tunic worn by Elton John on his 1981 world tour and two silk kimonos laid out ready for a visit.
The Wandsworth Guardian reports, “With a keen interest in the arts and a love of the natural world, she chose a number of items themed around nature, a large William Morris sample book, rolls of ornate textiles, and a musical instrument for the private moment.”
Here you see the Princess looking at textiles. I *think* this may be one of the William Morris pieces referenced above. 
Here is a quick video via Hello!
The Princess seemed to enjoy her time at the museum thoroughly.
We return to the People article for thoughts on today’s engagement, quoting Mr. Hunt, who is seen in the photo above with the Princess.
Following the outing, Tristram Hunt, director of the V&A, told PEOPLE: “It was about celebrating the opening of the Storehouse it was about our royal patron championing what we’re doing here in terms of art and design and creativity and getting young people involved in the creative industry, and celebrating the breadth and enormity of the collection.”
“Her Royal Highness was really interested and knowledgeable, particularly around textiles, around some of the woven silk material from William Morris, looking at some of the wallpapers,” he added. “She’s got both great passion and interest in material culture, so for her I think it was also a really enjoyable visit.”
Deputy Director Tim Reeve also spoke about the Princess’s visit; more from LBC’s story.
Mr Reeve said later about Kate: “It’s clear today she really loves the idea of what we’re trying to do, show that back-of-house world and to be a member of the public seeing that behind-the-scenes experience is what this is about.
“She’s obviously fortunate to see quite a bit of the back-of-house world, but I think she really understood today that she was sharing it with the public, everyone is seeing the same space, everyone has that privileged access to our collection.”
The Daily Mail reports, “Kate’s two-hour visit ran over by 30 minutes as she was so engrossed in the artefacts and artwork on display.” Victoria Murphy shared a video as the Princess left the Storehouse.
A quick wave to those gathered, hoping for a glimpse of the Princess. 
Here is a brief video about today’s engagement posted by Kensington Palace on social media.
A special visit to V&A East Storehouse and a new kind of museum experience.
Built to open up access to over 600,000 objects, this purpose-designed space brings people closer than ever to the V&A’s remarkable collections. From fashion to film, design to performance, every object… pic.twitter.com/kDk8VHYypU
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) June 10, 2025
Now, let’s take a look at what Kate wore. 
She brought back her Alexander McQueen separates in the ‘electric navy’ colorway, the Leaf Crepe Jacket and Cigarette Trousers (no longer available in this color). 
The single-breasted style is crafted from a blend of 52% viscose and 48% acetate, featuring peak lapels, sharply angled front flap pockets, and a double back vent. The Leaf Crepe Cigarette Trousers are done in the same fabric, featuring side pockets, a front zipper, and a jetted back pocket. We do not yet have an ID on the white top worn beneath the jacket.
We saw the Princess return to her Prada Pumps.
She also brought back her Laura Lombardi Portrait 14kt Gold-Plated Chain Necklace ($105 on sale at SSENSE). It showcases a chunky design with round and oval links, accompanied by a T-bar fastener. The necklace is described as being “plated with 14kt gold using a zero-waste technique.” 
The necklace was first worn to the Boston Celtics game the Royals attended in 2022. The necklace is available at Laura Lombardi ($188). (I have added some less expensive options on the RepliKate Necklaces page.)
The Princess repeated her Stella Lapis and Moonstone Earrings ($165) by British brand Carousel Jewels. The earrings feature a 22K gold finish on 925 sterling silver. They were first noted on Easter Sunday, 2023.
NOTE: The post originally stated that the earrings were first worn on Easter 2024, which is incorrect. Thank you to Anastasia for her comment, which brought the error to my attention; my apologies for the mistake.
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Hello! Magazine reports the Princess returned to work last week after the children’s school break ended. The publication notes, “… the Princess held an Early Years Meeting at Windsor Castle on Wednesday, according to the Court Circular.”
The Princess’s next engagement is likely to be this Saturday at the King’s Birthday Parade, also known as Trooping the Colour. Rehearsals for the annual event have been underway for weeks. Here you see the Massed Band of the Household Division on parade at the Colonel’s Review last Friday. 
This photo shows a rather sodden rehearsal at Horse Guards Parade as members of the Household Cavalry go through their paces in the pouring rain at the end of May. 
Here is a quick glance back at the Princess’s Trooping the Colour style over the years. In 2011, the Duchess wore an ivory Alexander McQueen coat with Lock & Co.’s ‘Lion Tamer’ hat. The next year, we saw a blue-grey Erdem dress and a Jane Corbett hat. For the 2013 festivities, the Duchess chose a soft pink Alexander McQueen maternity coat with another Jane Corbett hat. The Duchess opted to wear a skirt suit by Alexander McQueen in 2014, paired with a Jane Taylor hat. In 2015, the Duchess wore the ‘Astrid’ coat by Catherine Walker and the ‘Marisabel’ hat by Lock & Co. She brought back Princess Charlotte’s christening look in 2016, an Alexander McQueen design paired with a Philip Treacy hat. 
In 2017, the Duchess paired a hot pink Alexander McQueen dress with the ‘Lyssa’ hat by Jane Taylor. She chose a soft blue Alexander McQueen dress in 2018 and a Juliette Botterill hat. For the 2019 ceremony, the Duchess was in a pale yellow design by Alexander McQueen, topped with a Philip Treacy hat. In 2022, the Duchess repeated an Alexander McQueen design accented by a Philip Treacy hat. The Princess of Wales wore a vivid green Andrew Gn dress in 2023 with a Philip Treacy hat. And in 2024, the Princess updated a Jenny Packham design with another Philip Treacy hat. 
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One more bit of royal fashion news, this one covering the Princess’s brooch worn to the HMS Glasgow naming ceremony in mid-May, when she debuted a new brooch. We have a few more photos of the brooch to share with you. 
The piece was designed by James Porter and Son, one of Scotland’s oldest jewelers; these photos are courtesy of the jeweler. The brooch was “inspired by the crest of the Royal Navy warship HMS Glasgow.” 
The jeweler explains the brooch is “Crafted from sterling silver, it features a depiction of St Kentigern — patron saint of Glasgow — framed by the Scottish thistle.”
We’ll see you Saturday, if not before!
VIDEOS:
The Royal Family Channel has more than three minutes of coverage from today’s engagement.
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