Kate Madden, the 18-year-old daughter of reality television star Nicole Richie and Good Charlotte vocalist Joel Madden, transformed into an undead bride to celebrate Halloween on Saturday night, sharing photos of the costume on Instagram.
Posting on her Instagram account, @katemaddennn, the teenager shared two photos of herself posing in a white bridal two-piece outfit that included a lacy crop top and a miniskirt. She completed the costume with striking blue face paint and a wedding veil pinned to the top of her head.
Kate captioned the social media post with the two-word phrase: "I do." Her mother voiced her approval in the comments section, writing: "I'm very obsessed."
Harlow Winter Kate Madden's name and family background
While the teenager's full name is Harlow Winter Kate Madden, she goes by her middle name, Kate. She recently graduated from high school and celebrated the milestone with a rare public family reunion alongside Richie's adoptive mother, Brenda Harvey-Richie.
Kate is the older of two children shared by Richie and Madden. The longtime couple married in December 2010 after four years together and are also parents to a 17-year-old son, Sparrow Madden, who was pictured with the family in May.
In April 2024, Richie, Madden, Kate and Sparrow were photographed together alongside the teenagers' famous grandparents, appearing from left to right as singer Lionel Richie, his partner Lisa Parigi, Kate Madden, Sparrow Madden, Nicole Richie, Brenda Harvey-Richie and Joel Madden. Lionel Richie, known for his music career with the Commodores and as a solo artist, adopted Nicole Richie with his former wife Brenda Harvey-Richie, while Joel Madden fronts the rock band Good Charlotte alongside his twin brother, guitarist Benji Madden.
Nicole Richie and Benji Madden's 18th birthday tributes
Earlier this year, in January, Nicole Richie celebrated her daughter's milestone 18th birthday with a tribute on her Instagram account, @nicolerichie. She posted a series of throwback photographs tracing Kate's life from infancy through her toddler years to life as a teenager.
Richie tagged her daughter's Instagram handle in the post and wrote in the caption: "18 years of you." She later replied to followers in the comments section who were confused about her daughter's first name, confirming that Kate has gone by her middle name rather than Harlow "her whole life."
Kate's uncle Benji Madden also celebrated his niece in the comments section of Richie's birthday post. "How to make a grown man cry!!! love you Kate! You're a bad a**! Never forget it! Happy 18!!" he wrote.
What Nicole Richie said about raising teenagers
Richie has spoken warmly in recent interviews about raising two adolescent children. Two years ago, in April 2024, she said parenting had become "so fun" with both of her children in their teenage years, admitting that although the phase can be crazy, it is her "favorite stage."
During an April 2024 appearance on the morning show Today, Richie told co-anchor Hoda Kotb that watching her children grow up brought back vivid memories of her own youth. "I just so clearly remember being 16, that it's actually surprising how quickly I can go back there," she said.
"When my daughter's telling me drama with her friends, I go, 'I remember. Laila Heckmath did that to me.' I remember first and last names, so it's fun. It's wild. And just the best," Richie added.
She expressed the same view during an interview with People magazine in October last year. "I very much remember I think now that I'm seeing my kids at an age where I remember everything from that age, so they'll be telling me stories of whatever the comings and goings of them and their friends," she told the outlet, adding: "And it sounds exactly like what I was going through senior year. It's fun. It's like a TV show."
Nicole Richie on parenting in the social media age
In December 2024, Richie also discussed how she approaches social media as a mother during an appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show alongside Paris Hilton, her longtime friend and former co-star on the reality television series The Simple Life.
"Well, the platforms are there and they exist, and that is how people that age communicate with each other," Richie said on the daytime talk show.
She explained that "instead of make it this forbidden thing," she has "been more inclined" to "really, first of all, understand it on my own so that I know the world that they know." She noted: "The digital world and the real world are very different things, but it's very real."
Richie added that learning about social media herself helps keep her connected to her children, saying she wanted to avoid a situation where she did "not know anything about the digital world because then that just separates me even more from this generation that grew up in that world."
