The media is having a frenzy over Meghan Markle’s $37,000 outfit, which she wore during an afternoon outing in London.
Star reported that the former Duchess of Sussex met Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai for afternoon tea at Claridge’s hotel in Mayfair on Oct. 7.
But it was Markle’s expensive designer ensemble that drew criticism over its price and overall look, becoming the focus of online attention.”
The ensemble included Ralph Lauren’s white satin Masina trousers, valued at approximately $2,247; a cashmere sweater from Los Angeles-based label CO, worth $832; and a camel-colored Tove Studio coat, priced at approximately $2,240, Star reported.
Markle carried a black Chanel handbag valued at more than $9,000 and wore Saint Laurent ivory-and-tan flats priced at $1,050.
She also wore a Logan Hollowell diamond and emerald necklace estimated to be worth approximately $21,415, according to Star.
The necklace alone accounted for more than half of the outfit’s reported $37,000 price tag.
The cost drew criticism online, with some commenters questioning why Markle spent so much on the ensemble.
Others mocked the look, with one comparing the outfit to inexpensive, oversized hand-me-downs, Star reported.
Users on X also criticized the outfit and the photographs of the meeting, The Mandatory reported.
One commenter reportedly described the appearance as “the ultimate contradiction,” while another suggested the outfit was deliberately chosen to attract criticism. A third called it a “DISASTER!”
Some of the criticism extended beyond fashion to the couple’s security arrangements in the United Kingdom.
One commenter questioned the couple’s efforts to obtain taxpayer-funded security while Markle wore an ensemble reportedly worth tens of thousands of dollars, Star reported.
Prince Harry has pursued legal challenges over decisions by the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures (RAVEC) concerning his security arrangements in the U.K.
The Mandatory reported that the committee was understood to be reconsidering the couple’s police protection.
Harry and Markle stepped back from their roles as working royals in 2020, and their security arrangements have remained a point of public debate.
The Oct. 7 meeting took place in Claridge’s Foyer and Reading Room, where Markle and Yousafzai reportedly enjoyed traditional afternoon tea, including cucumber sandwiches, scones, jam and clotted cream. The hotel’s afternoon tea service costs approximately $126 per person, according to uInterview.
The meeting also brought together two longtime advocates for girls’ education. Markle and Yousafzai previously participated in a virtual conversation with Prince Harry in October 2020 to mark International Day of the Girl.
During that discussion, Markle said that “when young girls have access to education, everyone wins, and everyone succeeds,” uInterview reported.
Yousafzai rose to international prominence after surviving a 2012 assassination attempt by the Taliban in Pakistan, where she advocated for girls’ education.
She co-founded the Malala Fund and received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014, becoming the youngest-ever recipient of the award.
Markle has also developed her lifestyle brand, As Ever, and starred in the Netflix series “With Love, Meghan.”
