piqué for a Duchess

.

she wore white piqué.

etymology : from the French, literally 'backstitched', past participle of piquer

a ribbed  fabric where two fabrics stitched together to make a pattern, or a single fabric imitating this effect

 

 

 the weave can be seen in this photograph

 

 

Piqué, or Marcella, refers to a weaving style, normally used with cotton yarn, which is characterized by raised parallel cords or fine ribbing. The weave is part of white tie, and some accounts even say the fabric was invented specifically for this use. It holds more starch than plain fabric, so produces a stiffer shirt front. Marcella shirts then replaced earlier plain fronts, which remain a valid alternative. Marcella's use then spread to other parts of the dress code and it is now the only fabric used in the tie and waistcoat of white tie.
Marcella weaving was developed by the Lancashire cotton industry in the late 18th century as a mechanised technique of weaving double cloth with an enclosed heavy cording weft. It was originally used to make imitations of the corded Provençal quilts made in Marseille-

the manufacture of which became an important industry for Lancashire from the late 18th to the early 20th century. 

The Duchess of Cambridge's dress-reminiscent of a Georgian riding habit.

The Sharpe Family by Johann Zoffany, 1779-1781

 ^{a close up of the Sharp family with ladies wearing their riding habits}

^{there is No doubt, She has style, and this fitted riding habit jacket style is one she obviously favors-}

^.