Meghan Markle looked effortlessly chic during her latest appearance online today, donning one of her favoured looks of a shirt and jeans combo, as well as jewellery worth over $400,000.
The Duchess of Sussex, 40, who gave birth to her daughter Lilibet Diana Mountbatten-Windsor on June 4 this year, appeared on the YouTube account Brightly Storytime to read her children’s book The Bench.
Dressed in a casual blue shirt, with her long sleeves rolled up, Meghan opted to add some glitz to her ensemble with a $23,000 gold Cartier Tank watch that once belonged to Princess Diana and was gifted to her by her husband in the early years of their relationship, which she paired with a $6,900 Cartier Love bangle.
She is also thought to have sported a $3,000 mini gold tennis bracelet designed by Jennifer Meyer and a pinky ring designed by celebrity jeweller Lorraine Schwartz and worth an estimated $62,000. Page Six previously claimed the mysterious piece was made with ‘gifted diamonds from the Middle East’.
Sitting on a comfy-looking chair in her garden at her $14.65million Montecito mansion she shares with Prince Harry and their two children Archie, two, and Lilibet, the duchess completed her look with a smattering of glamorous makeup.
Wanting to stick to her low-key vibe, the mother-of-two kept her locks tied back away from her face when reading from her £12.99 ($18.99) book, which is inspired by Prince Harry and her son Archie.
Meghan Markle (pictured) looked effortlessly chic during her latest appearance online today, donning one of her favoured looks of a shirt and jeans combo, as well as jewellery worth over $400,000
Meghan is thought to have sported a $3,000 mini gold tennis bracelet designed by Jennifer Meyer and a pinky ring (pictured) designed by celebrity jeweller Lorraine Schwartz and worth an estimated $62,000
A CUSTOM PIECE FROM THE MIDDLE EAST? PINKY RING ‘DESIGNED BY LORRAINE SCHWARTZ’
This evening, the Duchess, who is known for her love of symbolic jewellery, also showed off her new mysterious pinky ring (pictured left), which is believed to have been made with ‘gifted diamonds from the Middle East’
This evening, the Duchess, who is known for her love of symbolic jewellery, also showed off her new mysterious pinky ring, which is believed to have been made with ‘gifted diamonds from the Middle East’.
Interest in the Meghan’s pinky ring overshadowed the Duchess of Sussex’s appearance on the cover of Time magazine last month, because many were intrigued by a growing mystery surrounding the ring on her right pinky finger.
Initially, Harry and Meghan denied claims that the ring, made by celebrity jeweller Lorraine Schwartz and reportedly worth an estimated £45,000 ($62,000), was fashioned with diamonds gifted to the couple by a mystery donor in the Middle East.
They said the ring was sourced by a stylist on the shoot directly from the designer and that there was no link to a mystery donor in the Middle East.
But in a spectacular U-turn, they later rolled back the denial, and clarified that they were referring only to a ring on Meghan’s left hand – a £380 ($525) pinky ring from Shiffon, which is meant to represent women’s empowerment.
There was no further mention made of the Lorraine Schwartz ring in question on her right hand, begging the question of whether Meghan had something to hide about the provenance of the diamond, which was first seen on her finger in October 2020.
It was also claimed Schwartz used the same set of diamonds to create earrings, which the Duchess wore at Trooping the Colour in 2019, and then again at a premiere of the Lion King a month later, according to Page Six.
If the diamonds did indeed come from the Middle East, it’s not clear if Meghan received the gift while she was still a working royal, or after she performed her final official duties in early March 2021.
She did not visit the region officially, but there’s always the possibility she made a private trip.
Buckingham Palace only publishes a list of gifts received by royals while on duty in the UK or overseas, and there is no public record of Meghan being given any diamonds.
Gifts sent to the royals outside of official engagements are recorded but not made public.
The palace have previously directed inquiries about the diamonds back to the Sussexes’ representatives in the US, who have also been approached for comment.
PRINCESS DIANA’S GOLD £17,800 CARTIER TANK WATCH
Meghan also wore a Cartier Tank Française watch, as pictured, gifted by Harry that once belonged to Princess Diana. The watch was worth $23,000 (£17,800) but this one has a special history
Meghan’s elegant timepiece was originally owned by Diana, who is seen wearing it on her left wrist at an engagement at the British Lung Foundation in 1997
The watch, thought to be a present from Harry, was worth £17,800 ($23,000) at the time but is now likely worth a lot more given its history, and is one of the pieces sported by Meghan today.
The elegant timepiece was worn by Diana at a number of occasions, including a 1997 visit to London’s Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu Temple and an engagement at the British Lung Foundation that same year.
Meghan is known to be a fan of the Tank watch and splurged on her own two-tone version back in 2015 when ‘Suits’ was picked up for a third season.
At the time, she told Hello Magazine, ‘I’ve always coveted the Cartier French Tank watch. When I found out Suits had been picked up for our third season—which, at the time, felt like such a milestone—I totally splurged and bought the two-tone version
‘I had it engraved on the back, “To M.M. From M.M.” and I plan to give it to my daughter one day. That’s what makes pieces special, the connection you have to them.’
Meghan has been gifted several items from Diana’s collection. They include Diana’s butterfly earrings and gold bracelet which she wore on their Australian tour in 2018.
Yet the watch is a favourite and she has been spotted wearing it often. The watch had been gifted to Diana by her father on her 21st birthday.
$6,900 GOLD CARTIER LOVE BANGLE
Symbol: Among her other old favourites were a gold $6,900 Cartier Love bracelet, which is also thought to have been a gift from Prince Harry in the early days of their romance
Meghan has always been known to favour more conspicuous jewellery stacks, while members of the royal family typically prefer to keep their accessories to a bare minimum, and her choice of bling for her latest appearance was no different.
Alongside the Cartier watch, the mother-of-two stacked a $6,900 Cartier Love bracelet.
It’s a design that she has worn many times in the past, and which is also thought to have been a gift from Prince Harry in the early days of their romance.
The oval Cartier band is made of two C-shaped halves screwed together and the only way to remove it is with a screwdriver, like the 18-carat one supplied – a feature said to be inspired by medieval chastity belts.
The Duke of Windsor and Wallis Simpson each had earlier versions of the Cartier Love Bracelet as well.
THE £271,000 ENGAGEMENT RING MEGHAN RE-DESIGNED AFTER HER PROPOSAL FROM PRINCE HARRY
Prince Harry proposed to Meghan in November 2017 with a glittering ring comprising a solid yellow gold band set with three diamonds, pictured
Harry proposed to Meghan in November 2017 with the glittering ring comprising a solid yellow gold band – however in 2019, images revealed that the design (pictured on Meghan’s hand) had been changed in order to incorporate a thinner band that was set with several pave diamonds all around it
Next to her pinky ring, Meghan sported her £271,000 ($350,000) engagement ring, which was originally designed by Prince Harry and court jewellers Cleave and Company using one stone from Botswana and two smaller stones from Diana’s collection.
Harry proposed to Meghan in November 2017 with the glittering ring comprising a solid yellow gold band – however in 2019, images revealed that the design had been changed in order to incorporate a thinner band that was set with several pave diamonds all around it.
Shortly after their engagement, Prince Harry spoke out about the design process behind the ring, explaining that he had chosen each element in order to ensure that it fit his future bride’s tastes perfectly.
‘The ring is obviously yellow gold because that’s [Meghan’s] favourite and the main stone itself I sourced from Botswana and the little diamonds either side are from my mother’s jewellery collection, to make sure that she’s with us on this crazy journey together,’ he said.
Meghan called it ‘incredible’, explaining: ‘Everything about Harry’s thoughtfulness and the inclusion of [Princess Diana’s stones] and obviously not being able to meet his mum, it’s so important to me to know that she’s a part of this with us.’
‘It’s incredibly special to be able to have this [ring], which sort of links where you come from and Botswana, which is important to us. It’s perfect.’
$3,000 MINI TENNIS BRACELET FROM JENNIFER MEYER
Chic and simple: She also sported a $3,000 gold tennis bracelet from designer Jennifer Meyer – who describes the piece as a ‘true staple’
Meghan also added a more dainty $3,000 mini gold tennis bracelet designed by Jennifer Meyer, estranged wife of actor Tobey Maguire.
On her website, the jewellery designer describes the bracelet as ‘chic complement to everyday style’ and ‘a true staple.’
Storytime with Meghan! Duchess dons casual blue shirt and jeans to read her children’s book The Bench from the garden of her $14 million mansion for YouTube story channel for kids
Meghan Markle cut a chic figure in a blue shirt and jeans as she appeared on a children’s YouTube channel to read her book The Bench today.
The Duchess of Sussex, 40, swept her hair into a slick bun and heaped on the jewellery for the the video, in which she could be seen reclining on a seat in the garden of her $14 million mansion in Santa Barbara.
The video was shared on the Brightly Storytime channel, which is run by Penguin Random House, the publishing house which published The Bench and with which Prince Harry also has a book deal.
Before she began reading, she explained: ‘Today I’m going to be read to you my book called The Bench with illustrator Christian Robinson…I asked him to do something special for me and use watercolours, which isn’t the normal medium he works in but he did it to make it extra special.
‘I wrote this as a poem for my husband and our son Archie, and then turned it into a book so you could enjoy it too.’
Meghan Markle cut a chic figure in a blue shirt and jeans as she appeared on a children’s YouTube channel to read her book The Bench today
At the end of the clip, the Duchess can be seen closing the book, explaining: ‘I hope you enjoyed The Bench, I loved being able to share it with you.
‘And now I hope you’re able to go and find your own special bench, or chair, or little quiet nook.
‘Just a place that means something to you that you can share with someone you love. Have a great day and come back to Brightly Storytime soon. Bye!’
Meghan has claimed her children’s book The Bench shows ‘another side of masculinity’ in a message to thank readers after it became a New York Times bestseller.
In a statement announcing her book in May 2021, the duchess said she wanted the story, which was published on June 8 by Random House, to be told through an ‘inclusive lens’ and feature a ‘diverse group of father and sons’.
The book was illustrated by Christian Robinson, 35, from Sacramento, who was brought up by his grandmother in a one-bedroom flat also shared with his brother, two cousins and aunt.
The Duchess of Sussex explained how she wrote the book as a poem for her husband Harry and their son Archie
The bestselling artist, who has worked for Pixar, has previously detailed how his creativity growing up was his way of ‘having some say over my circumstances’ while his mother, who struggled with addiction and mental health, was in prison for most of his childhood, for reasons unknown.
Meghan, who revealed her book was inspired by a poem she wrote for Prince Harry at the time of the birth of their son Archie, said she worked closely with Christian to create the ‘beautiful and ethereal watercolour illustrations’ in the story.
In a statement on the Archewell website in June, the Duchess said: ‘While this poem began as a love letter to my husband and son, I’m encouraged to see that its universal themes of love, representation and inclusivity are resonating with communities everywhere.
‘In many ways, pursuing a more compassionate and equitable world begins with these core values.’
Meghan even went so far as to suggest that her book could be part of a blueprint for a new world, saying: ‘To depict another side of masculinity — one grounded in connection, emotion, and softness — is to model a world that so many would like to see for their sons and daughters alike.’
The Bench was inspired by a poem the Duchess of Sussex wrote for Prince Harry on Father’s Day, the month after Archie was born, and explores the ‘special bond between father and son’ as ‘seen through a mother’s eyes’.