Kate Middleton is known for a lot of things. Her down-to-earth nature, her athleticism, her devotion to her children. But she's also known for something else: her hair. Her amazingly, glorious, Disney princess-like hair. It's incredible. So why would the Princess of Wales ever try to change it? Whether it was because she was in a rut or because she wanted to be more "on trend," there have been a few occasions when Kate has attempted a new 'do.
Although her hair always looks amazing, we cannot tell a lie: Long, loose, and bouncy is how we like her best. Alas, however, Kate is human, and, historically speaking, humans get bored of their hair. So try a new 'do she did! (Must be a real drag to look at long, blindingly shiny locks in the mirror every day.)
She's never done anything too drastic, such as dye her hair blond, but on occasion, she mixes it up. Honestly, we love her glossy dark tresses, and as fun as it might be to see her change up her color, we think brunette suits her best.
Of course, she always looks good, but we're definitely a little surprised whenever we see her without her signature style. Hey, we're creatures of habit. From bangs to bobs, here are 22 times when Kate Middleton tried a new hairstyle. Oh, to be as tress-blessed as she!
The Curious Case of the Headband
Headbands aren't typically part of Kate's beauty routine, so when she rocked one during a trip to Haida Gwaii in 2016, we were a little surprised. It looked cute, though — and if she wanted to start adding more hair accessories to her routine, we wouldn't be mad at it.
The Fancy 'Do … Plus a Hairnet
Every once in a while when she's sporting a chic updo, Kate wears a hairnet. True story! And here we thought her strands obeyed her every command. But honestly, the hairnet is mostly about keeping her hair in place when she's on official duty and too busy to constantly fix it.
Pinned-Back Princess
It isn't every day that Kate pins back her two front pieces of hair. Adorable — and you know she feels it, too, from the look on her face! This is a style that we've seen Princess Charlotte sport many a time, so maybe they'd like to try twinning?
Bangin'
Remember that time Kate tried side bangs? It was cute but super short-lived. Her hair must grow at lightning speed, because those bangs were gone in a flash, and for the most part, she's avoided them. Maybe she's realized that she doesn't mind showing off her forehead?
Half-Up, Half-Down
Kate is not usually a half-up, half-down (with bangs split down the middle!) kind of gal. But hey, she's mixing it up — and she looks good doing it. It's a simple way to get the hair out of her face when she really needs to buckle down and get things done.
Wild Woman
For the most part, Kate's hair is usually super smoothed and coiffed, with every last strand in place. But every once in a while, she lets it go loose and wild, and while many of us might look messy trying to copy this look, Kate just looks hot. How does she do it?
Wild(er) Woman
And every once in a while, she lets it go really loose and wild, which results in a head of hair that looks like this. She definitely looks like she's somewhere humid in this one — look at those curls! We have a feeling the weather definitely played into this 'do.
Low Side Pony
Kate's part is going one way, but her pony is going the other, which makes this otherwise plain look a little interesting. We love it when she goes casual with her hair, even though styles like this one haven't been too common for Kate in a long time. She looks cute — and totally like a mom.
Fancy Pin-Back
Whatcha got there, Kate? A fancy, twirly, pinned-back tendril of hair? Very cute! And very helpful for keeping your hair out of your face when you stop to smell the flowers or talk to little ones who may or may not be misbehaving (we're talking about you, Prince Louis!).
The Big Chop
In July of 2017, Kate chopped off most of her hair, which was relatively shocking considering the fact that for most of her life in the public eye, she's kept it long. And of course we now know it was really to divert attention away from her pregnancy. Clever lady!
Middle Part
Shortly after cutting her hair, Kate even experimented with a middle part. Bold! Of course, as we know now, middle parts are totally in, so if Kate wanted to start wearing her hair like this again, she would be on trend. But Kate tends to be more of a trendsetter than a trend follower.
Hard Hat Chic
OK, so this isn't a new hairdo exactly, but can we just take a moment to marvel at the fact that even under a hard hat, Kate's hair looks on point? Color us impressed. Not to mention that of all the accessories we've seen her wear, this was probably the one we could have never predicted.
Air Dry?
Believe it or not, there was a time when Kate (kind of, sort of) let her hair air dry — even though she hasn't done that in quite some time. And somehow, even when being air-dried, her hair still looks better than ours does when we do the same thing. It's just not fair.
Crazy Long
Once upon a time, before she was a royal and she was just living her life a bit more freely, Kate had long hair. Like, Rapunzel-like long hair, and it looked so good on her! But hey, being a busy wife and mom (and now the Princess of Wales), something had to give.
Pin Straight
Usually one to have a little wave or curl in her hair, Kate sometimes just wants to play it straight, which was something she did a bit more often when her hair was shorter. We get it, girl. Change can be a good thing! And she looks so gorgeous here.
Chignon With a Twist
When at a fancy event like Royal Ascot, a simple blowout (no matter how perfect) or a casual ponytail just won't do! Kate tucked her perfectly coiffed hair under a hat, and the look was perfect. Most of us worry about hat hair, but we have a feeling Kate doesn't.
Khaleesi-Inspired Braids
Kate is a known Game of Thrones fan, and we can likely guess who her favorite character is by her hair here. It has to be Daenerys Targaryen, also known as Khaleesi, Mother of Dragons, who wears her hair in complicated braids. Do we think she inspired this look?
Those Dramatic Bangs
We really wish Kate's bangs phases had lasted a little bit longer. Not everyone can pull off bangs, but she looks spectacular with them, and this was during a time when everyone was trying out the side bang trend. Nobody nailed it quite like Kate did!
Under Wraps
While on a royal tour of the Far East, Kate visited the Assyakirin Mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and dressed accordingly. It's not often we can't see her hair, which made this 'do all the more interesting. Luckily, she was able to find a way to keep it out of her face and look so classy.
Half-Up With a Twist
Kate usually goes for a bouncy blowout, low ponytail, or simple chignon, but we are loving this twisted half-up, half-down style. And those curls are just perfect. This is another one of those styles we wish she'd try on Princess Charlotte. It would look so adorable on her.
Super Curly
In fall 2021, Kate started wearing her hair super curly, like in this photo. She ended up amping up the curls for a few events in a row, making us think that she was going for a major hair change — but not too much longer after this photo was taken, she went back to her usual style. Kind of a bummer, because this was cute on her!
Straight as a Stick
During her and William's tour of the Caribbean in 2022, Kate wore her hair perfectly straight more than she ever has before — in fact, it looked like she was definitely getting reacquainted with a flat iron! It was a good look for her, but we weren't too bummed when she went back to adding in a little body and volume.