Less colorful than his mother who wanted to be seen, the new king is no less extremely demanding on his wardrobe, with a unique and timeless style that has even earned him the title of best-dressed man. of the world.
A dandy in a three-piece suit or a gentleman farmer depending on the occasion, Charles is made-to-measure by the best tailors using the finest materials, and worn by the best shoemakers in the Kingdom.
An army of servants watches over her wardrobe changes, often several times a day, and one of them is even said to be in charge of ironing her shoelaces, if a recent biography is to be believed.
Designated as the best-dressed man in the world in 2009 by Esquire magazine, the prince preferred to joke about it, believing that it was a way of selling paper.
At a reception at London Fashion Week in 2012, he described himself as a “stopped clock”, taking him from “best-dressed man to worst-dressed man (…) every 25 years”.
But he also admitted to being “concerned with details and color combinations”.
Always outdated, it has become timeless.
– In tie and shorts –
His childhood photos show him in shorts, already wearing a tie and sometimes a blazer.
In Scotland, since its earliest years, the kilt has been worn as a family with high socks.
As she enters adulthood, her sporty look in a polo shirt is a dream for young girls. He loves accessories, sunglasses, cufflinks, and even a huge bow tie on a ski suit.
He wears a signet ring on his little finger, and still has the same impeccable parting.
He willingly embraces local traditions when he travels: in Saudi Arabia in 2014 he wears traditional attire when he tries his hand at sword dancing.
In Ghana in 1977, he wears a long striped tunic. And in Afghanistan in March 2010, we find him sitting cross-legged on a carpet, in camouflage.
But no question of wearing a lycra cycling jersey in England: when he launches a fundraising bike in June 2021, rocking a vintage bike in front of the cameras, he wears a blazer, a tie and dress shoes. “It’s a nightmare to fit” in lycra, he says.
At 73, he often wears light double-breasted suits with a silk pocket square that is always different from the tie. When he is on his land, he cultivates his image as a gentleman farmer, his hands buried in the huge pockets of his Barbour waxed cotton jackets.
For special occasions, the military uniform is de rigueur, as for appearances on the balcony of Buckingham Palace or the portrait of his 60 years, red ceremonial uniform of the Welsh guards, with medals on the chest and golden sword at the belt .
The long-criticized Charles is said to own hundreds of suits, many from Anderson & Sheppard on Saville Row in London. Impeccable and comfortable cut, it appears as comfortable there as in pajamas, estimates the men’s fashion magazine GQ.
In recent years, this great defender of the environment has taken care of his eco-responsible image, explaining that he does not like to throw anything away.
For his son Harry’s 2018 wedding to Megan Markle, he wore a 1984 pearl gray frock coat. “As long as I fit in it…I only wear it a few times a year,” he told Vogue, adding that he couldn’t see at his age how another frock coat could be “radically different.” .
We also see it with the same two coats – in double-breasted tweed and the other in caramel color – for years.
“His tailors keep large pieces of fabric, to possibly mend them”, explains Michel Faure, author of a biography on the new king.
Last year, he launched into sustainable fashion in partnership, for a luxury capsule collection sold on the internet, designed in Italy by six student designers and made in Scotland by six young people trained in traditional techniques by his charity organization The Prince’s foundation.
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