Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, attended a Maundy Thursday service today at Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford, England. As per tradition, the Queen distributed specially minted Maundy money to 87 women and 87 men- 87 pence (the Queen’s age) a piece. She wore a royal blue stovepipe hat with a large feather sweeping around the brim. The crown came to a point in front, making the hat uniquely teardrop-shaped. The designer is unconfirmed but it’s widely agreed to be Angela Kelly (it fits perfectly with Kelly’s penchant for fabric covered hats in unusual shapes). The color was great the Queen (who still looks a little pale) but I’m not sure about the teardrop shape. What do you think?
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images
Photos from Getty as indicated
Royal Hats 
I love the Queen but this hat is rubish. Has she worn it before?
I don’t recall seeing it before so I think it’s a new one. Has anyone else here seen it before?
That shade of blue is lovely on her, and I love how the feather wrap’s around the brim instead of sticking straight off the side.
The shape is not good. And, how can you tell the designer just by looking at the hat?
Good question! I recently confirmed Angela Kelly as the designer of this cream hat and this fuchsia and black hat (at the bottom of the post). If you look closely at the crown of these hats, you will notice a distinct shape where one side almost “waves” over the other side. This kind of shaped crown is not common and The Queen’s royal blue hat today is rather similar. That’s my first clue that it’s an Angela Kelly designed hat. My second clue is the fabric- since Angela Kelly is a dressmaker, many of her hats for the Queen are covered in the same fabric as the Queen’s coat. If you look at this purple hat and coat also designed by Angela Kelly, you’ll see they are the same fabric. This beige hat or this purple hat, which are both designed by Rachel Trevor Morgan, coordinate with the Queen’s coat but are not entirely covered in the same fabric. This is not a fool proof method (here’s a Rachel Trevor Morgan hat in blue that is in the same fabric as the Queen’s coat!) but if you look closely, you’ll see that each designer has a sort of “signature look” to the crown shape and brim of the hat. After a while of looking at hats, you begin to notice similarities and signatures of each designer. The final reason I suspect this is an Angela Kelly hat? Often, the major designers in Britain will confirm when a royal wears one of their hats. Because Angela Kelly works directly for the Queen, she does not make many public confirmations. If no one else steps forward as the designer, more often than not, it’s Angela Kelly!
That’s an awfully long response… how about doing a series on the different major designers sometime?
That’s so interesting. I never thought about hat designers having a “signature” look. It makes sense- a Chanel jacket has a certain “look” common to most Chanel jackets. So do Armani jackets. It’s fairly easy to tell them apart. So please, please, do a series on the different designers!
It is very ugly. But Angela Kelly hats always are. You’ve said so here yourself.
I’m not sure I would go as far as to categorize all Angela Kelly hats as ugly. I really loved the hat she designed for the Diamond Jubilee Service of Thanksgiving last year. But yes- I find the shape of many Angela Kelly hats a little odd. When it comes to Queen Elizabeth’s headgear, I usual prefer her in designs by Rachel Trevor Morgan.
Um… NO!That is not a good hat. Color is ok but the shape is bad bad bad.
Tear-shape for the tears of Jesus today. I just am loving this hat.
It is the prow of a ship ploughing through the waves.
YES – Brilliant! Rule Britannia!
From the side it looks more like a shark fin out of the water!
Not seeing that.