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Royal recycling

UsualMaximas dressly I cringe when journalists comment on what women wear, but this time I cheered when the news broadcast that Queen Maxima of the Netherlands chose to wear her coronation dress a second time.

Of course for fashion magazines that is the topic to talk about, but in most other media, it is completely irrelevant information – that is never included when commenting on men. It does not add insight to the news to hear about Angela Merkel’s outfits and I am puzzled by Forbes writing about Christine Lagarde as an icon of fashion. And I loved Amal Clooney’s answer when a journalist asked who she was wearing as she went into the European Court of Human Rights. She replied “Ede and Ravenscroft” (a legal robes maker) to divert the attention back to the case or the Armenian genocide. Glad we never get such comments on what male public figures are wearing, and it should stop for women, too! They are in the news for what they accomplished or are working on – not for their latest hairstyle or outfit.

What made me happy about the Dutch Queen’s dress in the news is that the focus was on the fact that she chose to wear it again. And an official visit to Denmark was the perfect occasion to re-use it, as Denmark ranks high on the list of sustainability-minded countries. Even the fashionistas – usually urging us to buy more clothes we do not really need – were raving over the reuse of this dress. And not just because it is a stunning work of art by Dutch designer Jan Taminiau – but also to confirm that it is OK to wear clothes again.

Written by Marjolein Baghuis (@mbaghuis)

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