Now here at Ella Mag HQ we’ve not been the biggest fans of Kate Middleton.  Not because she’s annoying or anything just because she’s seemed a bit, well,  bland.

But now we’ve changed our opinion. In fact we think Kate totally rocks. Why? Because she is just like us, a total bargain hunter and it appears a great one at that.

Kate, God Bless her, has always loved shopping at High Street clothing chains. She’s worn, Zara, Reiss and is also known to wear a bit of L.K.Bennett.

But now it appears Kate is an even more savvy shopper. She’s apparently a fan of dress agencies, shops that specialise in second hand clothes.

Kate Middleton’s apparent penchant for choosing used clothing was outed when she wore a Jesire coat dress at her first official engagement without hubby William.

Grazia Daily the website of weekly glossy Grazia said”While we never expected to see the cost-per-wear-aware KM bring out a high street coat dress we’ve never seen before when we were waiting for her to turn up to her first solo appearance wearing something ridonkulously grand! What’s more, Jesiré is a slightly random label that is now *GASP* defunct.”

Grazia speculates that  Kate has bought the item either from second hand clothing shops Jeanne  Pettit or The Stock Exchange both not far from her parent’s home in Berkshire.

So Kate has proved you don’t need a princess’ budget to look like one. And you don’t need to live near a posh dress agency either.

With several little ones (and a website launch to pay for) our clothing budget has been next to nil for a while now. Until that is we discovered charity shops and our favourite local vintage dress agency Friends.

From there we’ve picked up a Gucci shopper for just £50, a DNKY navy leather shoulder bag for £10. Burbery/Scholl clogs, a Reiss black dress for £30, not to mention a unusual lace black top for £5 and some Earl skinny leg jeans for £10.

But it’s not just dress agencies. Charity shops have been a goldmine for our post mummy makeovers. In fact in the last 18 months we’ve managed to buy a pair of J Crew jeans (RRP around £90) for £5 in the Oxfam shop, a body suit from Coast in the Sue Ryder Shop for £10. Not to mention a Diane VonFurstenburg black wrap dress for £10.

We’ve also picked up a Hobbes shift dress and jacket suit for £30, a Hobbes dress very similar to Kate Middleton’s for £20 in our local British Heart Foundation shop and a Jesire (Kate Middleton’s latest favourite) trenchcoat for £7.

Vintage clothing is a savvy fashion choice. Not only can you pick up unique, sometimes designer, pieces for a fraction of the cost, you can also wear your outfit knowing that the chances of bumping into someone wearing the same thing is nil.

Now there is one more thing you may want to consider. Vintage clothing needs ‘givers’ and not just ‘takers. So those unworn designer dresses, shoes, jeans, bags etc you have, need homes too.

The only decision you need to make is whether you choose to sell them via your local dress agency or give them to a charity shop.

And you get to do your bit for the planet too – genius.