Melania Trump's UK State Banquet Dinner Look Crumbles With One Bizarre Detail

For the second time in his two presidencies, Donald Trump has embarked on a state visit to the United Kingdom. Almost any official engagement undertaken by the POTUS comes with its controversies, but for his most recent trip across the pond, all eyes were on Melania Trump's outfit. Shortly after arriving on English soil on Wednesday, September 17, the Trumps were invited to a formal State Banquet at Windsor Castle. We've seen from Catherine, Princess of Wales' lookbook that these dinners are the ultimate chance to dazzle in opulent evening gowns — and probably the closest events in the royal calendar to Cinderella's ball. But for the occasion, Melania turned heads with an unexpected sartorial choice.

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The FLOTUS donned an off-the-shoulder column gown from Carolina Herrera in eye-catching yellow, but the detail that's really dividing onlookers was her chunky lilac belt. Though the bright accessory matched her Manolo Blahnik heels and certainly brought a new dynamic to her formal dress, some felt that it was out of place for such a prestigious event. "I love our first lady," one Instagram user started their compliment sandwich. "So classy, but I am not a fan of her choice of gown. I would love to see her in something more regal. Her gown would be perfect at a formal dinner in the WH Rose Garden." Another Instagrammer agreed: "Not her best look." But fashion is in the eye of the beholder, and under the same Instagram post, other users came to the first lady's defense. "Love her dress with that belt. So stunning," one fan wrote.

By comparison, the Princess of Wales opted for a gilded Phillipa Lepley silk gown that was draped with a Chantilly lace evening coat. Following tradition, she completed the look with the Lover's Knot Tiara. Both outfits attracted press attention, as did the ensembles that the two women sported earlier during their first meeting of the day.

Melania Trump's earlier wardrobe for the U.K. state visit was a little more palatable than her boundary-pushing banquet gown. As she arrived in London, she paid tribute to England with a dapper Burberry Kensington Heritage trenchcoat, which she paired with Dior riding boots and Saint Laurent sunglasses, offending precisely no one with her sophisticated garb. Then, when the FLOTUS first stepped off the helicopter to greet the royal hosts at Windsor Castle, she was donning a much darker 'fit. Though she's typically been working with American designers during her second term as first lady, she instead went for a dark-gray Dior suit. However, adding pops of color seems to have been the theme of the visit, as she paired the suit with a wide-brimmed purple hat that also left many onlookers doing a double take. Meanwhile, Catherine, Princess of Wales went for similar dark-toned shades in an Emilia Wickstead dress and Jane Taylor hat, both in burgundy.

While this look didn't make headlines like the banquet gown did, Melania was the butt of a few jokes on social media, with one Instagram user quipping, "What is with the purple hamburgler hat." On another Instagram post, another user was a little gentler with their criticism: "Both beautiful I don't like our first lady hat because it hides her lovely face and hair." Again, this subjective ensemble still earned some praise from die-hard fans, as one shared under the first Instagram post, "Both the Princess and First Lady look beautiful and elegant." Seemingly, one fan's disaster outfit is another fan's submission to the list of Melania Trump's best looks of 2025.

The FLOTUS' vibrant belt at the State Banquet may have come as a surprise, but for those who have been watching the Melania Trump's style transformation, it shouldn't have. After all, the first lady has made it abundantly clear that she loves a statement belt. Earlier engagements from her pre-presidential life often showed her accessorizing with both minimal and statement belts, even on red-carpet dresses. She was belted up for a "Good Morning America" visit in 2012, pairing a chic lavender sleeveless dress with a black belt, and also at the Trump International Hotel Launch in 2008, when she teamed her purple flowy midi with a brown textured belt under the bust. She's followed suit as the first lady, too, famously wearing an oversized statement belt at the 2020 Fourth of July celebrations. 

Most of the criticism of Melania's Carolina Herrera gown argue that the belt was unnecessary for such a grandiose affair. "Personally I'm really not a fan of dress belts (feels very 2000 to me)," one Redditor weighed in on the subject of belts with bridal gowns (which can even be less formal than the attire required of a State Banquet). Another concurred, writing, " ... for me adding the belt takes away from the clean lines and cuts you in half. If you want to add sparkle, I'd do it with accessories." 

The best example of what to wear to a royal shindig has to be Catherine, Princess of Wales, who doesn't typically opt for belted looks for these exclusive occasions. That said, Kate Middleton's most regal looks of all time do include some belted numbers that she wore to various red carpets over the years. But are State Banquets and red carpets in the same caliber? We're not relying on Buckingham Palace to release a statement either way, but in our opinion, even the chicest belt does not a banquet look make.