Meghan Markle spotted with Prince Harry alongside Kim Kardashian at Lakers game: a look at her style change

Although all eyes were on Meghan Markle for seemingly refusing a kiss from Prince Harry when they appeared on the big screen, if truth be known, the focus was also on her outfit and the other celebrity guests who were in attendance. The couple were joined by the A-list in Hollywood, including Kim Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Adam Sandler and Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs. 

Now, back to Meghan and her outfit. She wore a ‘Maxwell’ Linen blazer, £360 and ‘Eris’ linen shorts, £225 by Staud, that were available at Harrods, but now appear to be sold out. The founder of the Staud brand is American fashion designer Sarah Staudinger who was named in Forbes 30 Under 30 Arts & Style list in 2019. According to the Staud website, she co-founded the brand in 2015 with George Augusto and decided to launch it because they believed that “fashion shouldn’t just empower women- it should be accessible, too.”

Eagle-eyed fashion fans will have noticed that this is not the first time Meghan Markle has worn the label Staud. She wore a khaki dress by the label while on tour in South Africa with Prince Harry back in 2019. 

However, what struck me about her Staud ensemble this time is that it is worlds away from the style she adopted when she was a senior working royal and more similar to her fashion looks before she met Prince Harry and whilst she was dating him. 

Meghan’s Staud outfit for the basketball game had a relaxed vibe to it but was given a more ‘Hollywood’ feel thanks to her shoes; they appear to be ‘the Purist’ Pump heels by Aquazzura. This is not the first time Meghan has worn a blazer or shirt/short combination and this seemed to be her go to style as far back as 2009 when she attended the DPA pre-Emmy Gift Lounge at the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills dressed in a black shirt and matching shorts.

Before her ‘Harry dating days’ Meghan also was not afraid of showing a little skin as her outfit to the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in 2014 demonstrated (she opted for a short black skirt and cropped top). At the MuchMusic Video Awards in Canada in 2013, Meghan opted for another short number and a much more tightly fitted style in a white dress. 

Before Meghan first started dating Harry, the ‘shorter, more tightly fitted dresses’ seemed to be her go to look, however when they became a couple, these seemed to be replaced by more relaxed outfits such as jeans with rips and simple white shirts which she wore when she attended the Invictus Games in Toronto in 2017. However, it soon became apparent when she announced her engagement to Prince Harry in 2017, that her wardrobe was set for a radical change. 

In the Harry & Meghan Netflix docuseries, Meghan revealed that “Most of the time that I was in the UK I rarely wore colour. She went on to say “I wore a lot of muted tones, but it was also so I could just blend in. Like, I’m not trying to stand out here.”

Although Meghan did wear a lot of black, navy, and camel, she did wear a few bolder colours too before they decided to step back as senior working royals. On a trip to Birkenhead in January 2019, Meghan chose a bold red Sentaler coat, red Stuart Weitzman heels and a purple dress from Babaton by Aritzia. She also wore a dress by the same designer to attend the One Young World summit in October of the same year.

On their royal tour in 2018, Meghan opted for a bold blue Safiyaa dress and a yellow Brandon Maxwell dress when she went to the Your Commonwealth Youth Challenge event in the same year. 

When she completed one of her final royal duties, Meghan made sure she wore colour and opted for a vibrant green Emilia Wickstead dress for Commonwealth Day. She certainly made a statement that day in terms of the colour she chose. 

It would appear that now that she has stepped back from royal duties and has settled into Montecito life, Meghan feels confident once again to embrace her pre-royal wardrobe and opt for fashion styles that are more reflective of her as a person today.