Princess Kate can access a vast array of furniture that has been amassed by the Royal Family as she looks to move into the eigh-bedroom Forest Lodge in time for Christmas
Princess Kate will be able to pick furniture from an enormous warehouse located on the grounds of Windsor Castle as she prepares to move home. The Prince and Princess of Wales, along with their three children, are set to move to Forest Lodge.
It will see them swapping their four-bedroom Adelaide Cottage for the much more grand eight-bedroom property in Windsor Great Park. Their new home is said to be where they will reside once William becomes King.
The family originally moved to Windsor from their Kensington Palace apartment in London in August 2022. It is understood the move afforded them more privacy.
According to Royal author Richard Kay, Kate will have access to a massive warehouse known as California to help decorate her new home.
Speaking on the Daily Mail’s Palace Confidential podcast, he explained: “The Waleses are on the move yet again and to the surprise of many they have selected another home within Windsor Great Park, they’re not coming back to their fabulous Kensington Palace apartment, but they’re upscaling from little Adelaide Cottage to the much more impressive Forest Lodge.
“[It has] Eight bedrooms, tennis courts, barrel dancefloor, all sorts of things. And she, the princess, has indeed been looking for the appropriate furniture.
“She hasn’t got to buy anything, of course she hasn’t, because the royals have, at Windsor Castle, an enormous storage unit known as California stores. It’s called California because it’s vast, like the state of California.
“I’m told it’s the most amazing place, bigger than any museum’s overspill space, and from that, she is always said to choose a large dining table for the new home.”
Kay says a lot of the items in California are understood to be “surplus furniture” as well as gifts and artworks that are “not valuable enough” for the Royal Collection. In 2019, the late Queen Elizabeth II applied to have a huge storage facility the size of eight tennis courts built at Windsor Castle.
The structure was designed to house the Royal Collection while Buckingham Palace was undergoing its £369 million renovation. The area it occupies was previously a series of disused walled gardens located close to Frogmore Cottage.
Buckingham Palace is currently undergoing a major refurbishment to ensure the electrical cabling, plumbing and heating is fit-for-purpose. The work began in 2017 and is expected to be completed by 2027.
Meanwhile Kensington Palace this week announced the Prince and Princess of Wales would be moving to Forest Lodge with George, Charlotte and Louis. They will pay market rent on the property.
The house was put on the rental market in 2001 for £15,000 a month following a £1.5 million refurbishment. It is understood the family will move into the property by Christmas.
