Rebecca Vallance on Dressing Royalty: "A Magical Moment to See Their Wear"

2025-03-02 04:41:00

When it comes to the ultimate wish-list of royal family members Australian designer Rebecca Vallance is keen to dress, the
Princess of Wales
and
Queen Mary
are right at the top.

"It would be wonderful to dress both of these women," Vallance told pinare.onlinebefore getting on a plane to London recently.

"We don’t push these things, we like them to happen organically [but] we hope it’ll happen."

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With Catherine and Queen Mary previously
wearing other high-profile Australian labels
, there’s a high chance of it happening in the near future.

The Sydney-based designer already has a number of dedicated clients in the
British royal family
and now, her influence is spreading to European royalty.

Recently, the
heir to the Belgian throne
Princess Elisabeth wore the ‘Estella midi dress’ to an event with her mother, Queen Mathilde. The $1099 dress is now sold out.

Princess Elisabeth, 23, is one of royalty’s rising fashion stars and, like a number of her stylish peers from other monarchies, her clothing choices are highly-sought after.

With countless social media pages dedicated to royal fashion watching, it’s easier than ever to find out which brands the royals and wearing and where to buy them – often within minutes of the event happening.

When a royal wears a particular outfit, the buzz it generates for the brand is the type of publicity many can only dream about.

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In the UK, the so-called ‘Kate effect’ has been so monumental, copycat sales of her clothing were found to have boosted the British fashion industry by about £1 billion (approx. $2 billion) each year since her engagement to Prince William in 2010.

It’s safe to say Australian fashion is having a moment on royals around the world, with high-profile queens and princesses wearing garments to big events and, in turn, raising the profile of our home-grown talent even further.

But for Vallance, when a royal wears one of her designs she sees it as being far more significant than just a boost in sales.

"It’s always such a incredible moment to see anyone from the royal family wearing your pieces," she said.

"We love dressing the royals, we’ve been doing it for a long time."

King Charles’ niece
Zara Tindall
has been loyal wearer of Rebecca Vallance for some time, and in recent years her royal cousins
Princess Beatrice
and
Princess Eugenie
have followed suit.

On May 13, photos of Princess Beatrice wearing Vallance’s red

‘

Henrietta Button Gown’ to an event at Kew Gardens spread across the Internet, reaffirming her place as one of the House of Windsor’s most stylish members.

"It’s an expensive dress," Vallance said.

"But we sold a lot of that [after Beatrice wore it]. She looked stunning."

In 2024, Princess Beatrice was named by society bible

Tatler

as
Britain’s best dressed
, topping a list of 25 "style kings and queens" in the magazine’s all-important September issue.

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Days after the Kew Gardens appearance, Princess Beatrice was again seen in a Vallance dress, this time at an awards night in New York.

It was the third time Beatrice had chosen to wear the ‘Eliana’ black velvet dress, featuring large large crystal bows, which Vallance said was "fantastic".

"One of the great things about the royal family is they do re-wear their dresses," Vallance said.

"I think that’s a beautiful thing."

Beatrice’s younger sister Princess Eugenie chose a Rebecca Vallance design for the
Chelsea Flower Show in May
and was seen in the same outfit again – the halter neck Orchid blues midi dress – in June, attending UN Ocean Conference events in Nice and Monaco.

That outfit, too, is now sold out.

"There’s definitely a very strong correlation between the royals and sales," Vallance said.

"The second the images are released to the public and in the media, you definitely do see a correlation between what they’ve worn and what’s sold online or in our stores. There’s no doubt about it.

"But it’s more that we’re very honoured to be dressing them rather than it being a commercial thing."

Eugenie had purchased the dress herself, Vallance confirmed.

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It’s actually not an unusual thing for the royals to buy their own clothes even though most have a stylist or two working with them.

"Often they will buy things themselves and the other times we’ll work with key stylists directly, it really depends on what it is and what the event is," she said.

Beatrice’s stylist Olivia Buckingham is widely credited for helping to transform the princess’ wardrobe since they began working together in 2019.

Zara has been working with London-based Australian stylist Annie Miall for years now. Miall’s Instagram page has many gorgeous photos of Zara looking at her absolute best, with Vallance designs featuring prominently.

Zara, 44, "was buying our clothes years ago" Vallance said.

She noticed that the royal, who is Princess Anne’s daughter, had a particular affinity for the brand when photos began popping up on social media of Zara wearing her designs.

"We became friends with her stylist and I was lucky enough that she attended our relaunch in Harrods in London a few years ago. Zara was just such a delight – so down to earth and so lovely.

"Since then we’ve been collaborating together. We love working with them. Zara’s a really lovely lady."

Last month Zara wore a modified version of the ‘Skye’ dress to day one of Royal Ascot,
attending with the King and Queen Camilla
and Princess Beatrice.

The dress had been modified from its original mini to a more moderate mid-length due to the style "rules of racing", in consultation with Zara’s stylist.

Zara had previously worn the dress to the Magic Millions on the Gold Coast in January.

One of Vallance’s favourite looks on Zara was from last year’s Royal Ascot, when the royal wore a custom version of the ‘Michelle’ dress, minus its daring back cut-out panels.

"That photo of her looking up in the carriage was quite iconic, very beautiful," Vallance said, reflecting on Zara’s arrival in the Royal Procession.

"That colour on her just looks incredible, it brings her eyes out."

Royal protocol, or modesty, is something Vallance considers when designing her clothes but it’s not the only thing.

"With everything we do, whether it’s a dress in our collection or a custom dress for somebody in the royal family, there’s always a lot of work, a lot of thought, a lot of love.

"Our silhouette, our aesthetic, is one that has a polish to it. It’s elevated.

"I always want to make women feel their most beautiful selves and I want them to be comfortable as well. But we definitely have a refinement to the collection."

With Wimbledon underway, expect to see more royals wearing her brand.

Zara is a frequent guest at the Championships, Princess Beatrice was
spotted in the Royal Box
earlier this week, and it’s hoped the Princess of Wales will make an appearance in the coming week in her role as patron.

Vallance doesn’t give much away when speaking about Wimbledon and whether any royals will be wearing her brand.

"There’s a lot happening [with the royals]," she said, hinting that "we have stuff coming up, you’ll have to watch this space".

But, she added, "because they often buy their own things, you don’t always know [what is coming]".

Vallance started her business 15 years ago "when everyone was wearing jeans and and T-shirts".

By the end of this year the brand will have 13 stores across Australia, she said.

"People thought I’d lost my mind [back then] because I was making these beautiful dresses that were fitted with a lot of tailoring," Vallance said.

"I think Rebecca Valance is for an elegant woman. So I guess that plays into the royals as such."

Vallance said she considers it an honour when any woman wears her brand, but admitted the royals were on another level.

"I think women, at the end of the day, they want to look their best selves," she said.

"There’s so much to choose from in life, so the fact that they’ve chosen Rebecca Vallance, I always take that as such a compliment.

"I definitely don’t take it for granted."




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