Valentino "very much" wants to create a dress for Britain's Duchess Catherine.

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The acclaimed designer thinks the royal - who was known as Kate Middleton before her marriage to Prince William - is "very beautiful" and would love to design a gown for her to wear.

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He said: "I find Kate very beautiful, she is not too much, she is modest. And yes, I would very much like to give her a dress."

The 80-year-old designer - whose full name is Valentino Garavani - also admitted he would find it hard to create "cheap" clothes, but admires the work done by high street retailers - even if they "copy" his designs.

He told the Daily Mail newspaper: "I'm not able to do cheap, cheap, cheap. The High Street, they're very good at what they do, they do fantastic, but they copy. They copy me."

And Valentino revealed his biggest hate - dresses that expose a woman's ankles.

He said: "A dress that reveals a woman's ankles while she is walking is the most disgusting thing I have ever seen."

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