Kate Middleton Debuts New Hairstyle in Royal Outing

The Princess of Wales is flirting with fringe. Earlier this month, Kate Middleton displayed evidence of a new haircut as she returned to royal duties. Instead of her usual side part and long layers framing her face, the 41-year-old royal sported a middle part and curtain bangs that appeared to have been recently clipped.

It was Princess Kate’s new bangs that caught the eye on Wednesday as she attended a family portage session for children with special needs. Her hair was swept into an elegant updo, which gave her the chance to show off her new fringe.

In terms of her hairstyles, Kate likes to experiment with slightly different ones every so often, and it looks like the fall is her favorite time of year for doing so. As she accompanied her three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, to school, the royal debuted a chic autumn-inspired look reminiscent of the season.

Following Kate’s time away from the spotlight for part of the summer, when she and Prince William were spending time together as a family, this latest hair update comes after she stepped back into the spotlight once again. On Sept. 8, she rejoined her husband for the first anniversary of Queen Elizabeth‘s death in Wales to honor her. Her hair was likely already cut but was swept into a chignon and concealed under a hat at the time.

The Princess of Wales has also possessed a variety of hairstyles over the years, including a shoulder-length cut in 2017 after anonymously donating seven inches of hair to a charity named the Little Princess Trust. Founded in Herefordshire, this organization makes real hair wigs for children who have lost their hair as a result of chemotherapy or radiation treatments.

A valid reason for Kate’s updo on Wednesday was that she interacted with children and their families at the portage session, which helps children with special educational needs and disabilities. As part of her Royal Foundation Center for Early Childhood campaign, the royal launched the Shaping Us initiative earlier this year.

“The campaign is fundamentally about shining a spotlight on the critical importance of early childhood and how it shapes the adults we become,” Kate said in a speech surrounding the project’s launch. “This is why it is essential, to not only understand the unique importance of our earliest years but to know what we can all do to help raise future generations of happy, healthy adults.”