Kate Middleton's Tacky Polka Dot Dress Is A Fashion Fail We'll Never Forget

Catherine, Princess of Wales, is the epitome of class. She's the quintessential royal who leads by grace and honor, and it's clear William, Prince of Wales, found someone to love who shares many traits with his late mother, Princess Diana. While all that's well and good, Kate Middleton has had some fashion moments that live rent free in people's heads — and not in a good way. One outfit from September 2016 particularly stands out.

For the Heads Together mental health campaign, William and Kate visited the Stewards Academy school. Kate was photographed wearing a baby blue dress with black and white polka dots haphazardly printed all over. The outfit also had leg slits, which showed off her killer legs. While a polka dot pattern isn't instantly a fashion faux pas, wearing one with leg slits just doesn't work. Polka dots are typically seen as cute and carefree, but cutting the fabric for a more leggy look seems tacky. Quit trying to make polka dots sexy, Kate. You're attending an event about students' mental wellbeing. Definitely not the time and place.

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At least Middleton left her two favorite accessories in her closet for this getup. She opted out of wearing one of her ginormous and usually ridiculous hats this time. The mother of three also didn't rock any bows, hair or otherwise. Seriously, her bow obsession has gotten out of hand, with people like Kimberly Guilfoyle also getting in on the trend.

That baby blue polka dot dress was hardly Catherine, Princess of Wales', only attempt at pulling off the iconic pattern. She's had many good (and bad) polka dot looks. She wore an example of the former in July 2013 with a different baby blue polka dot dress to greet the country (and the world at large) with the birth of the future king, Prince George of Wales. That outfit's style was classy and totally fit the occasion. She had just become a mom for the first time, and wore a blue-colored outfit to introduce her son to the world. It also didn't appear to have any leg slits in it.

Clearly, Kate Middleton loves the color blue in numerous shades, especially when combined with dots. Back in May 2019, Middleton attended a Bletchley Park exhibition for the D-Day landings' 75th anniversary. She wore a long, dark blue dress peppered with polka dots — and a thigh-high slit that showed off her killer legs. Like the baby blue polka dot dress from 2016, this 2019 outfit probably got her more than a few side-eye glances from the monarchy, since it broke a royal fashion rule about showing too much skin. However, its white collar and cuffs, plus the uniformity of the polka dots, elevated the look beyond her 2016 fashion fail.