London, England (CNN) -- As she posed with William Tuesday showing off Princess Diana's engagement ring, Kate Middleton looked every inch a style icon in the making.
Wearing an understated blue Issa dress, the bride-to-be seemed to send a signal that she is ready to join the elite ranks of the world's most stylish royals.
Princess Grace of Monaco was famed for her elegance in Christian Dior, while today Queen Rania of Jordan and Spain's Letizia, Princess of Asturias are among those royals regularly hailed by the global press for their style and beauty.
Comparisons with William's mother, the late Princess of Wales, a style icon who favored wearing Versace, are also inevitable.
"She's tall, she's slim, although she's dark, aesthetically she's not dissimilar from Diana," Katie Nicholl, royal correspondent for UK newspaper The Mail on Sunday, told CNN.
"She is following in Diana's footsteps as a style icon," added Nicholl who is also author of "William & Harry: Behind the Palace Walls".
CNN
