The Sussex Team

Meghan Made a Surprise Visit to Victoria Yards in Johannesburg

All while our duke is busy with royal duties in Malawi, Meghan made a surprise at Victoria Yards, a creative hub in the Johannesburg.

Credit: SussexRoyal Instagram

While there, she had the opportunity to meet artisans, musicians, and community members.

Artist James Delaney shared some photos in a tweet showing us Meghan chatting with locals, captioned: “The Duchess of Sussex visited our studios at Victoria Yards, Joburg, today,”

He told HarperBazaar afterwards that “She was very friendly, and everyone was excited to meet her and show her around. We’re all so happy she was able to come and see this amazing space.”

Credit: James Delaney / Twitter

Meghan also made a stop at Tshepo Jeans, who received a call two weeks ago from the British embassy, requesting an order for a pair of jeans for Meghan. Owner, Tshepo Mohalla have later admitted that he initially did not realise who Meghan was and after it dawned that she was the Duchess of Sussex, he thought colleagues were pulling a prank on him.

https://twitter.com/TshepoJeans/status/1178706816269787138?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1178706816269787138%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.harpersbazaar.com%2Fcelebrity%2Flatest%2Fa29306903%2Fmeghan-markle-victoria-yards-johannesburg%2F

When he realized it wasn’t a prank, it took five days to finish Meghan’s pair of jeans, and a day to finish Archie’s dungarees. He said as soon as the fabric arrived from Mauritius, he got straight to work.

Tshepo Mohlala said: “She was so excited to come into the studio, she was excited to meet the team and her eyes popped when she saw Archie’s jeans. I saw a mother who loves her child.” Also revealing that he told Meghan “The crown on my jeans represents the three ladies who raised me. Enjoy wearing this crown.”

Credit: Tshepo Jeans website

While there, Meghan also visited several organizations including Sneakers 4 Change, which provides shoes to those who are less fortunate and Young Bucks, a small business that creates books out of recycled materials. She also met the children and organizers behind Timbuktu in the Valley, a kids development program. Meghan also stepped by a small market and listened to a performance by spoken word artist Belita Andre.

Credit: Daville Instagram

Meghan of course shared an Instagram post about the visit saying that it was “an exceptional afternoon” where she got the opportunity “chance to connect with the children and founders of the phenomenal programme for kids’ development Timbuktu in The Valley. She was also struck by the local denim designer who founded eponymous brand Tshepo who shared this info about the logo for his line: “The crown on my jeans represents the three ladies who raised me. Enjoy wearing this crown.” Such a beautiful and touching sentiment!”

For the appearance, Meghan wore a navy-blue collared shirtdress from Artizia’s. From their website: “This is a vintage-inspired, button-front shirt dress with a self-tie belt, a notched lapel and inseam pockets. It’s made from drapey fabric with a subtly pebbled texture.”

She paired the look with her Everlane Editor Slingback flats

She accessorized her outfit with a pair of Magi earrings in blue. The earrings are described as “dusted in gold and beads arched like a rising sun. Magi is the origin of the word magic and was used to describe people of great sacred knowing. The alchemy of your own transformation is your medicine and magic.”

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