Kate Middleton for the third time tops vanity fair's 2012 best dressed list!

Her unique style has inspired the ‘Kate Effect’, with millions of women throughout the world trying to copy her look.

And last week the US magazine Vanity Fair declared that the Duchess of Cambridge had topped their best-dressed list for a third time, making the Royal fashion icon their September cover girl.

See survey of outfits worn by the Duchess in the past two years.

Kate’s choice of a cutting-edge designer highlights exactly why she’s the world’s most colourful style icon.