Princess Kate’s Summer Hair Switch-Up Has Become a Balmoral Tradition—And It’s Right on Trend for Fall 2026

It was exactly one year ago when Princess Kate shocked royal fans with her drastically lighter hair, and it seems blonde highlights have become part of her Balmoral vacation routine. Last summer, the Princess of Wales was spotted driving to church with a bright bronde hair color, and on Sunday, August 23, she repeated the tradition.

Princess Kate headed to the Sunday morning service in Crathie Kirk wearing a Princess Diana-esque piecrust collar blouse by Holland Cooper, topping off her blonde highlights with a chocolate brown Lock & Co pillbox hat.

The royal's new hair color appears lighter than the slightly sun-kissed brown shade the princess showed off during her last public appearance on August 1, but not as drastic as the blonde transformation Kate made last summer.

The Princess of Wales caused a social media frenzy when she made her first public appearance of fall 2025 with shockingly light, extra-long blonde hair. But four days later, Kate was back to brunette while attending an event to mark the anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s death.

This summer, Princess Kate went for a more subtle bronde shade—a look that hair color specialist Leslie Shores recently told Marie Claire is one of autumn’s hottest trends. “It adds exotic warmth, depth, and dimension to the hair that feels like a golden hour,” Shores says.

Whether the Princess of Wales returns to her deeper brunette tone once the temperatures drop remains to be seen, but until then, there's still plenty of summer days left to soak up before royal duties await.