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Summer may be coming to a close, but Kate Middleton is fully embracing her sunny new 'do ... putting her blonde locks on display for the first time in public.

Check it out ... the Princess of Wales stepped out alongside her husband, Prince William , on Thursday to pay a visit to London's Natural History Museum ... where they took in the museum's new and improved gardens. Getty

However, it wasn't the flowers that had everyone clamoring, as the princess emerged with honey blonde highlights ... a striking difference from her usual dark 'do.

She wore the blonde strands down in loose curls, which rounded out her business-casual fit of a brown blazer, dark slacks, and a white button-down.

Kate's massive sapphire wedding ring -- an heirloom from the late Princess Diana -- ev

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