Meghan Markle Launches Capsule Collection, Marking Second Major Solo Project as Duchess

The 38-year-old ended her maternity leave on Thursday with the launch of the Smart Set collection.

Meghan Markle’s maternity leave is officially over!

The 38-year-old Duchess of Sussex launched her Smart Set capsule collection in collaboration with Smart Works on Thursday. Markle is an official royal patron of the charity, which is dedicated to helping women dress for job interviews. 

The Duchess unveiled the collection on the rooftop of the Oxford Street John Lewis in London, one of the busiest shopping areas in the city. 

She arrived at the event wearing black Jigsaw trousers from her collection and a thin brown belt and a white button-down Misha Nonoo shirt, also from the collection. She paired the look with pumpkin-colored heels.

Chris Jackson/Getty Images

The Smart Set capsule collection features top British clothing brands including Jigsaw, John Lewis & Partners, Marks & Spencer, and Misha Nonoo. 

The collection includes a blazer and trousers from Jigsaw, a tote bag large enough to fit interview essentials from John Lewis & Partners, a dress from Marks & Spencer, and “the perfect crisp white shirt” from Misha Nonoo.

Jigsaw
Jigsaw
John Lewis & Partners
Marks & Spencer

For every item bought during the collection’s sale, one will be donated to Smart Works, allowing customers to help the women using Smart Works to succeed. 

The collection is on sale starting Thursday for at least two weeks. 

In a statement to the press, Markle said, “Since moving to the UK, it has been deeply important to me to meet with communities and organizations on the ground doing meaningful work and to try to do whatever I can to help them amplify their impact.” 

This marks the Duchess’ first big solo project since last year’s Together: Our Community Cookbook, in which she collaborated with victims of London’s Grenfell Tower fire. 

While Markle's official duties were limited during her pregnancy, royal expert Katie Nicholl tells ET that Markle has "not been putting her feet up while shes been on maternity leave." 

"Yes, she's been off since Archie was born in early May, but that laptop has never been too far out of reach. In fact, shes been quietly working a lot of the time," Nicholl says. "She's been really heavily involved behind the scenes."

"This is a woman with an amazing work ethic. The queen has noted Meghan Markle's work ethic," she notes. "Yes, this is her official return day to work. But the truth of the matter is that she has actually been working quite hard behind the scenes for most of her maternity leave."

Markle is currently preparing to embark on her Royal Tour of Africa with Prince Harry and baby Archie later this month. For more from the royals, watch the clip below:

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