Catherine, Princess of Wales always comes back to chunky boots in the winter and they’re a great blend of practicality and stylish design.
The Princess of Wales can switch up her style at the drop of an Ascot-worthy hat when the occasion calls for it and in winter practicality often becomes a priority more than any other time of year. Most of us will have our go-to boots in our winter capsule wardrobe and Kate is no different. She always comes back to chunkier designs which are great for grip as well as looking incredibly chic. The chunky boot trend will never really go out of fashion and the future Queen has three key pairs that she reaches for – hiking boots, Chelsea boots and cleated sole boots.
The best winter boots are cosy but beautiful at the same time and when the Princess of Wales has to tackle more challenging terrain, her Berghaus Supalite II GORE-TEX Hiking Boots are her must-haves.
They’re also a more fashion-forward take on waterproof footwear than even your best wellies can give you, a pair of chunky hiking boots like these are perfect. The Princess of Wales has worn hers in the snow when she visited the Irish Guards in March 2023 and also for an abseiling exercise during her time in Merthyr Tydfil in Wales in April 2023 the next month.
Both times she styled her Berghaus hiking boots with her beloved skinny jeans, thick socks and cosy layers. These aren’t the only type of chunky boots that Kate regularly returns to, though, as her Reiss Chelsea boots are another favourite.
Reiss is highly-regarded as one of the best British clothing brands and the Princess of Wales is known to champion homegrown talent and timeless designs like the Thea boots. These exact boots are still made but are sadly virtually out of stock, although Reiss do sell similar chunky-soled Chelsea boots. Kate has the chocolate brown leather boots which have the classic elasticated sides and a chunky rubber sole.
We saw Her Royal Highness wear them with dark-wash, straight leg jeans by Mother Denim, a striped jumper and her Alexa Chung x Barbour jacket in 2023 when she visited “Dadvengers” – a community for fathers and their children. These Chelsea boots were perfect for striding through puddles on a rainy walk whilst still being cool and stylish.
Blending the practicality of her hiking boots and the elegance of her Chelsea boots are Kate’s other go-to chunky boots – the See By Chloe Eileen Combat Boots. They’re an investment piece but they are beautiful with their lace-up design. Kate’s boots are the brown suede versions with tonal leather trims and a block heel that gives a bit of elevation but the sturdy sole helps to keep them grippy.
The Princess of Wales tends to style these combat boots in the same way as she does her Berghaus boots; with skinny jeans and knitwear and this helps to balance out the chunkiness of the boots. She wore them for a visit to Cumbria in 2019, visits to County Durham and Scotland in 2021 and for visiting The Queen’s Dragoon Guards in 2023. These See By Chloe boots were also her footwear of choice for the special photo she shared for Mother’s Day last year.
