Letizia, the Queen of Spain, attended a function in Merida, Spain, earlier this month wearing the exact same dress as law professor Inmaculada Vivas Tesón, to whom the Queen presented an award. Costing £59.99, the dress was a black and white number from Mango and sold out less than a week after Letizia and Inmaculada were seen wearing it.
But, what did the two women do when they realised their fashion mishap?
They smiled, laughed, and hugged each other - in short, they refused to treat it as a fashion mishap at all.
Personal stylist and fashion expert Miranda Holder agreed that making light of the situation is the best reaction one can have in cases like these.
She went on to give further advice, saying: “Wearing the same outfit as someone else at a gathering feels like the ultimate sartorial faux pas.
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“If we aren’t feeling overly confident anyway it can sometimes trigger feelings of negative self-comparison, but sometimes it simply cannot be avoided.
“If this happens, I advise my clients to take a few moments to gather and centre themselves - if needed pop into the loo and repeat a few self-love or confidence affirmations in the mirror.
“Then, go up to the other person and pay them a sincere compliment on what great taste they have and how fabulous they look.”
Miranda stressed that “this will instantly break any tension and lighten the mood”.
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“If you feel the urge, do absolutely make a joke out of it and have a few pictures taken,” she added.
“Having a giggle will help you relax - and you never know, you may have just met a new close friend. Or at least a kindred spirit style-wise.”
But what if the circumstance makes it difficult to laugh and take pictures with the other person?
Unlike Letizia, Sarah, 29, from London felt like she couldn’t even talk to the other woman wearing the same dress as her when she attended a party last summer.
She said: “I turned up to a work party for my new boyfriend in the same dress as his ex - she worked for the same firm.
“It was a bold sequin number as well, so no hiding. Mortifying.”
Sarah explained the dress was “from Reiss and was a sort of blue, sequined, floor-length one with a thigh high slit”.
“I definitely just tried to avoid her because there was still bad feelings from the fact that she was his ex,” she recalled.
“Fortunately there were enough people that it wasn’t too embarrassing, but people still commented.”
But Sarah stressed that the comments were “definitely light hearted”.
“It was kind of funny in hindsight,” she said.
“They were kind of saying that my boyfriend clearly had good taste in women.”
However, Sarah and Queen Letizia are not the only ones to have experienced this - many people have been there.
With garments which are both beautiful and affordable available at a push of a button, it’s inevitable.
Even actor Jared Leto and Gucci designer Alessandro Michele turned up in the same suit at the Met Gala earlier this month.
Their reaction to the situation? To take multiple photos with each other.
