Princess Kate Makes “Significant” Jewelry Choice on Surprise Outing

After a few days of Mom Duties as Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis settled in to the school year, Princess Kate made a surprise appearance with Prince William to mark World Suicide Prevention Day. At a soccer stadium in Liverpool, the Prince and Princess of Wales teamed up to promote Prince William’s newly-launched toolkit, On Your Side. Developed by The Royal Foundation in partnership with the British Standards Institution and Chasing the Stigma, the toolkit provides a how-to guide to warning signs and supportive conversations to support those experiencing a mental health crisis.

The event struck a delicate balance between hopeful optimism and poignant remembrance for World Suicide Prevention Day. Princess Kate’s carefully-chosen outfit featured a “significant” pair of earrings with a special meaning. The Issy Star earrings are “a tribute to [the designer’s] beautiful cousin Issy Phipps who took her own life on the 29th of April 2023,” and have become a go-to earring choice for the Princess of Wales when marking suicide prevention and mental health causes. Since Princess Kate first wore the charity earrings in 2023, Issy Star has raised over $40,000 for mental health and suicide prevention charities.

In an exclusive interview with Hello, Issy Star founder Sophie McGown said that Princess Kate’s support “touched and resonated with so many people.” McGowan said, “I think what Kate did by wearing our earrings meant so much to us because it opened up a talking point about mental health and suicide.” The Princess of Wales’s earrings are more than just fashion fodder—they become a public message and a talking point. “The amount of people that contact us that are buying the earrings for people who are struggling or gifting them to someone who has just lost someone is numerous.”

Princess Kate knows the impact of her platform, and has used it wisely. “I think Kate talking about all of the things she's been through and making space for these people who go through hell on a daily basis is phenomenal,” McGowan said. Whether she’s choosing charity earrings or leading by example by speaking of her own experiences, the princess can change a conversation and bring important causes into the spotlight.