Meghan Markle has once again pulled back the curtain on her time in the Royal Family, this time zeroing in on something as simple—but surprisingly symbolic—as tights.
Speaking in a recent interview, the Duchess admitted that being required to wear nude pantyhose during official events felt “a little inauthentic” and far from her personal style.
She explained that several years ago, she “had to wear nude pantyhose all the time” and couldn’t express herself as openly as she wanted.
Reflecting on it now, she laughed at the memory, saying it reminded her of outdated films from the 1980s.
The Unspoken Dress Code in the Royal Family
While there was never an official written rule, Queen Elizabeth was known to prefer female royals in sheer tights during engagements.
Kate Middleton, now the Princess of Wales, consistently followed this unspoken guideline, often choosing affordable John Lewis pairs that blended seamlessly with her outfits.
Meghan, however, struggled with the expectation.
Her first major public appearance in tights came at King Charles’ 70th birthday garden party shortly after marrying Harry in 2018.
From that point on, she would wear them when standing beside senior royals but often ditched them when attending events solo or just with her husband.
The Tights Debate That Sparked Wedding Drama
This wasn’t just a personal style gripe—it even spilled over into wedding planning.
Reports claimed Meghan and Kate had a disagreement over whether Princess Charlotte and the other young bridesmaids should wear tights during Meghan’s Windsor Castle wedding.
According to sources, Kate wanted to stick to protocol, while Meghan thought tights were unnecessary, especially on a hot day.
Photos from the big day show the bridesmaids with bare legs, in contrast to William and Kate’s 2011 wedding, where the young attendants wore tights.
Public Criticism and Wardrobe Mishaps
Meghan’s relationship with pantyhose was never smooth.
On her first official outing as Duchess, critics claimed the tights she wore were too pale for her skin tone.
Later that year, at the Festival of Remembrance, she wore shimmery tights that got soaked in the rain, leaving blotches that cameras captured under the flash.
Some fans sympathized, noting how hard it can be to find tights that properly match darker skin tones.
Specialist brands catering to women of color were not as widely available in mainstream stores at the time, which may have left Meghan with limited options.
Balancing Authenticity with Royal Expectations
Looking back, Meghan framed the tights issue as more than just fashion.
To her, it symbolized a bigger challenge: trying to balance her own authenticity with the weight of royal expectations.
She admitted that while it might sound trivial, it perfectly illustrated how she couldn’t always “show up in her own skin” during her royal years.
Now settled in Montecito, California, Meghan says she feels freer to express herself through both her words and her style.
Meghan’s New Chapter Beyond the Palace
The Duchess has since channeled that authenticity into her projects.
She relaunched her lifestyle brand, As Ever, which picks up where her old blog The Tig left off.
Meghan says she’s excited to share her love for cooking, gardening, and crafting once again.
Her Netflix series With Love, Meghan just released its second season, featuring guests like Chrissy Teigen, John Legend, and Tan France.
The show has sparked mixed reviews—some finding it charming, others calling it contrived—but Meghan appears undeterred, timing the launch with new lifestyle products like marmalade and fruit spreads.
For her, tights may have been a symbol of restriction in the past, but today she’s embracing a new chapter—one where she gets to decide not only what she wears, but how she presents herself to the world.
