Duchess Kate's Skirts Are Too Short for the Queen's Taste

The Queen of England isn’t much into knees, especially those belonging to Kate Middleton. Her highness recently sent down a “dictum” on how the Duchess of Cambridge should dress for her upcoming tour of Australia and it included a lot of longer skirts and old timey jewels.

The overhaul will see Kate wearing couture daytime dresses with “lower hemlines” than she typically goes for. Additionally, she will be “encouraged to wear the tiaras favored by the Queen and Queen Mother,” and will also be urged to wear “statement jewelry and gemstones from the Queen’s personal collection.” The idea here is said to be positioning Kate—currently vacationing in the Caribbean, sans William, with baby George—as “more Royal than ever.”

Outside of the Queen’s watchful gaze, the Duchess is already reportedly in talks with designers Alexander McQueen and Alice Temperly to fashion gowns and other outfits for her jaunt down under. But it has to be weird for the Queen, who’s said to be running out of money, telling Kate to wear more tiaras, when Kate’s probably thinking, “Shouldn’t we sell these for cash?”