One of Diana's wardrobe choices for her solo tour of Pakistan in September of 1991 was this red linen top and silk floral wrap skirt, worn to the Khyber Pass and Chitral. The Pakistani trip was Diana's first major solo tour and her bid to establish herself in the eyes of the establishment as a viable public figure in her own right, not just as Charles' wife. (upper left)Despite a few rough patches, such as appearing at a mosque in a skirt deemed a bit too short, it was a great success. Diana even earned kudos for making it to this stop at the Khyber Pass, as the weather was so stormy there was uncertainty if her plane could even make it. But she persevered, to the great pleasure of the locals who thought she might cancel. This trip to Pakistan - and the Khyber Pass - also illustrated a little known but crucial facet of royal tours. Part of Diana's 'job' on this trip was to promote the British-made small plane that flew her to the Pass, demonstrating its capabilities to the Pakistani airline in hopes they would place an order.
This suit became another workhorse for Diana in the early 90's. She wore it to a Buckingham Palace garden party in the summer of 1991, and with the addition of a green straw hat, the outfit became useful to visits to countries where green was a national color - she wore it on the Wales' tour of India in February of 1992 (lower left) where she and Charles placed a wreath at the memorial to Mahatma Ghandi, and In June on a day visit to Belfast, and despite the fact that security demanded only a few hours notice to the people of Belfast, she garnered the largest crowd at that time ever to greet a royal visitor. (right) That May she wore it on a rainy day visit to Devon, and as late as July of 1993 she wore it to the graduation ceremonies at the Royal Academy of Music, of which she was president.
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The skirt for this outfit is made of floral printed cotton, fully lined in white. It's a faux wrap skirt, and actually closes in the back with snaps. The red jacket is in linen, again fully lined in white to prevent staining, and features 'brass' buttons on the front and sleeves. It closes in the front with snaps. (The neckline is actually lower, much closer to the original, than my photograph shows, I couldn't get a good angle.) Includes the hat of synamay straw, painted green and with a red ribbon trim, as did the original, and also the red pleather clutch purse. The shoes are from the Franklin Mint Red Dress With Bow outfit, and the earrings and watch are from the Casual Khaki outfit. |
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