Six-month pregnant Kate Middleton and her mother were spotted in upmarket South Kensington together, browsing some of the London’s most exclusive baby stores after enjoying a spot of lunch together at the Zefi Mediterranean restaurant where they were seen by fellow diners sipping healthy fruit juices.
First on their list was Blue Almonds, which boasts that it creates “magical rooms for children” – perfect for the third in line to the throne.
Dressed in identical dark blue skinny jeans and knee-high black boots, Kate and Carole Middleton spent up to an hour browsing the Moses baskets on sale.
Priced up to £295 ($450) for an off the shelf model, they are certainly out of reach price-wise for many new mothers-to-be.
Some bespoke versions at the store can cost up to £1,000 ($1,600) and be customized with frilled fitted sheets and sun shades.
Kate Middleton, 31, who was wearing a loose blue maternity top with a pretty white lace collar, and her mother finally settled on a large white wicker version and walked out into the street together, clearly discussing their purchase.
They were then whisked off by a waiting car driven by one of Kate Middleton’s bodyguards, presumably back to Kensington Palace where Kate is overseeing the renovation of her new apartment.
According to recent reports, work on Apartment 1A, once the home of the Queen’s sister, Princess Margaret, will not be finished until at least September or October this year, well after the birth of the Duchess of Cambridge’s baby.
Kate Middleton and Prince William are currently living in a small two-up, two-down cottage in the grounds, which is less than ideal to bring a royal heir home to.
As a result, say sources, Kate Middleton has decided to eschew the help of a maternity nurse and spend the first six weeks after her child’s birth living with her parents at their new $7.5 million Georgian mansion in Bucklebury, Berkshire.
The duchess has told friends that she cannot think of anyone better suited to helping her in those first difficult few weeks than her mother, who has brought up three children of her own.
“It’s where I feel safest,” Kate Middleton has said.
Carole Middelton is said to be nervous but thrilled at the prospect of becoming a grandmother for the first time – to a future king or queen at that.
Although Izabela Minkiewicz, the owner of Blue Almonds, has declined to comment on Kate Middleton’s purchases, she confirmed that she was “honored” to have received a visit from the duchess.
“We spend a great deal of time making sure that we get to know the client, their particular taste and demands,” Izabela Minkiewicz said.
The following day Kate Middleton was seen back out shopping for baby goods again at the Peter Jones department store in Chelsea, where she spent several hours mulling over buggies and a car seat.
Kate Middleton has revealed that her baby is due in mid-July and that she will be going on maternity leave around a month earlier but insists, contrary to speculation, that she and Prince William have chosen not to discover the sex of their first child.
