Meghan’s inclination for designer jeans isn’t an accident! Denim guru LESLEY TORSON reveals how the Duchess makes a statement with her expensive style
Meghan knows the power of a good pair of jeans. Whether she’s making her debut with Prince Harry at the Invictus Games or cheering courtside in Los Angeles, her denim choices have always done the talking.
Quiet, polished, unmistakably expensive. They’ve become her unofficial uniform, a symbol of laid-back confidence that whispers stealth wealth.
And this week, the Duchess of Sussex reminded us once again that she’s never really off duty when it comes to style.
Stepping out at the LA Dodgers’ World Series game on October 30, Meghan delivered a masterclass in effortless luxury.
An oversized white Givenchy shirt, a navy Brochu Walker sweater slung just so over her shoulders, a Dodgers cap, and a pair of perfectly cut dark-wash £211 jeans by Veronica Beard. Relaxed? Yes. Ordinary? Not a chance.
‘Meghan’s denim choices perfectly reflect a quiet luxury aesthetic,’ says Lesley Torson, founder and buying director of denim specialist Trilogy. ‘With no heavy branding and a timeless fit, she creates a look in which she wears the jeans, they don’t wear her.’
When Meghan first strolled hand in hand with Prince Harry at the Invictus Games in Toronto back in 2017, her £290 Mother Denim ripped jeans were casual yet calculated, together with a designer price tag.
Meghan paired her baseball hat with £211 Veronica Beard jeans and a crisp white Givenchy shirt with a navy cashmere sweater by Brochu Walker draped around her shoulders
In ripped £290 Mother Denim Looker jeans at the Invictus Games in Toronto in 2017, Meghan made her debut with Harry in dressed-down denim and her Misha Nonoo husband shirt
First worn by Meghan shopping in London in 2017, she wore these £275 Mother Denim Runaway jeans again for the 2018 Invictus Games trials held at the University of Bath
Wearing white Frame Le Skinny De Jeanne crop ankle slit jeans, £190, for an appearance in Germany, Meghan went head to toe in the same hue and a Ralph Lauren sweater
Fast forward to her most recent appearance and Meghan’s undeniable love affair with denim is still going strong – only now it’s sleeker, more sophisticated and infinitely more Californian.
Amid the sea of jerseys and casual tees, her Veronica Beard bootcut jeans were the definition of stealth wealth – relaxed yet unmistakably expensive.
Her denim has grown up, just as she has. Where once she flirted with a playful Californian vibe, she now leans into something more assured, still relatable, but carefully controlled.
Watching her in those jeans, one can’t help but ask the inevitable question, can you really spot a rich girl by the jeans she’s wearing? In Meghan’s case, absolutely, though the signs are subtler than they used to be.
There’s no flashy logo, no conspicuous embellishment. Instead, it’s all in the details, the way the fabric falls, the precision of the tailoring, the quiet assurance of a perfect fit.
Her jeans speak in whispers, not shouts. They suggest luxury to those who know what they’re looking for.
Denim guru Lesley believes that they relay the rich girl aesthetic. ‘Her choices of styles and washes are a modern take on polished minimalism that’s sleek, elevated and completely timeless.
‘The difference with designer denim lies in the proportions and precision including pocket placement, all those small details make a huge difference to how jeans look and feel.
‘Meghan’s denim always looks perfectly cut and tailored to her shape, and it’s that combination of quality fabric and refined fit that gives her look such effortless polish.’
To attend the Jaguar Land Rover Driving Challenge at the 2022 Invictus Games, Meghan polished up a pair of faded £265 Moussy Vintage jeans with a black tweed Celine jacket and Chanel pumps
Breaking Wimbledon etiquette, Meghan attended the tennis championships in 2019 dressed down in £265 Mother Denim The Swooner jeans with a L’Agence blazer
The Duchess of Sussex favours AYR, specifically the brand’s £185 The Stir jeans, which she paired with a striped shirt to star in her Netflix show, With Love, Meghan
Of course, Meghan’s affection for designer denim is hardly new. She’s been flying the flag for premium jeans on many Invictus Games appearances, rotating between figure-hugging pairs by Frame and the cult label Moussy, both known for their sculpting fit and sky-high price tags.
Even her on-screen moments have carried that same air of elevated ease. In her Netflix docuseries, With Love, Meghan, she was seen padding around her Montecito home in cropped denim from AYR – another label favoured by the quietly rich of Los Angeles.
Time and again, she’s shown that her idea of casual comes with couture-level credentials.
It’s the antithesis of fast fashion, the rejection of trend-chasing. Meghan’s jeans aren’t about novelty, they’re about know-how as her personal style has become a seamless blend of California cool and Montecito money.
With Meghan, denim is never just denim. It is narrative. It is branding. It is identity. She uses a simple wardrobe staple, the most democratic of garments, to craft a message of high wealth status.
