In addition to being exceedingly cute with her husband Prince Harry, painfully adorable with newborn son Archie, and showing the world how diplomatic fashion is really done on a 10-day royal tour of South Africa, Meghan Markle is also taking this trip as an opportunity to experiment with her look.
Since kicking off the tour, she's mostly stuck to the classics, wearing her hair long and parted down the center, as well as donning her signature sleek bun. But on Tuesday, she added something that we don't often see on the duchess: a hair accessory.
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As with anything Markle does, this one comes with a pretty sweet backstory. While walking the streets of the colorful Bo-Kaap neighborhood in Cape Town for Heritage Day, Markle accepted a bouquet of flowers from a child who greeted her. Moments later, she chose to tuck one of the lilac blooms behind her left ear, and continued to wear it for the rest of the day, which included a celebratory meal at a home in the area.
According to Los Angeles-based florist Eric Buterbaugh, the flower Markle chose is a lilac chrysanthemum, which are widely believed to represent optimism and joy.
Markle has worn flowers in her hair before, most notably during her royal tour of Fiji, where she wore several yellow and white frangipani flowers, which are native to Fiji and have come to symbolize a lasting bond between a married couple.
In this case, there appears to be no obvious hidden meaning to this particular flower type or Markle's decision to wear it. However, there's something to be said about a duchess like Markle feeling joyful and carefree enough to spontaneously add a flower to her hair — all while honoring the warm welcome it represents.