Princess Charlotte’s Diana-Coded Charm Bracelet Signals Her “Grown-Up” Tween Style Evolution, Says Jewelry Expert

Princess Charlotte is growing up, and so is her style. Prince William and Princess Kate’s 11-year-old daughter channeled her mother as she attended the Wimbledon men’s finals, debuting a custom Jenny Packham dress with sweet flutter sleeves. In previous years, Charlotte has shown off handmade friendship bracelets and a Pandora charm bracelet while cheering on her favorite players, but this year, she went for an updated version of the style.

Charlotte showed off a Ted Baker bracelet as she attended the final day of the tennis championships on July 12, trading her Lion King-adorned Pandora style for a goldtone design featuring dainty heart, flower, pearl and bow charms.

The $85 style is still available at Nordstrom, and while it's an adult bracelet, it's a piece of jewelry that works for any age, as Princess Charlotte proved on Sunday afternoon. The sweet symbols make this an appropriate tween accessory, but the design wouldn't look out of place on Princess Kate.

Charlotte often wore adorable smocked dresses similar to the Liberty print styles worn by Queen Elizabeth as a child, but over the past year, she's leaned into proper designer clothing. Along with her Jenny Packham Wimbledon dress, the 11-year-old wore a floaty ivory style by one of Princess Kate's favorite designers, Alessandra Rich, to Trooping the Colour last month.

As for her new bracelet, charms were also a favorite of Charlotte's late grandmother, Princess Diana. Jewelry expert Nilesh Rakholia, founder of Abelini, tells Marie Claire that Princess Diana's gold charm bracelet represented “a collection of meaningful symbols connected to her life, family and experiences.”

She rarely wore her gold bracelet in public, but it featured personal charms such as Prince William and Prince Harry's initials and an apple to represent her love of New York City.

Unlike Charlotte’s Pandora bracelet, which, like Diana's, has personal charms such as her May birthstone, an engraved heart and Nala from The Lion King, the preteen's Ted Baker style doesn't have the option to add on new designs. However, Rakholia says the style is “a beautiful example of how even small details can carry meaning.”

“The heart is one of the most recognizable symbols of love and family, while the flower represents growth, happiness and new beginnings,” he says of her charms. “The bow has a sense of connection and togetherness, often associated with gifts, celebrations and the bonds between people.”

Pearls, of course, have long been associated with the Royal Family, with Queen Elizabeth in particular known for her love of a pearl necklace and earrings. Rakholia notes that the faux pearl charm on Charlotte’s bracelet “adds a timeless quality, for pearls have long been linked with elegance, innocence and tradition.”

“For Charlotte, this bracelet may be a small, grown-up accessory, but it represents something much bigger: the idea that jewelry can tell a story,” Rakholia adds.