Monthly Archives: May 2013

Queen Máxima Visits Children’s Hospital

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Queen Máxima of The Netherlands attended the 150th Anniversary Of Sophia Children’s Hospital today in Rotterdam. For this visit, Máxima repeated the red suit she wore to New York in 2009 but paired it with a tan ruched straw toque.

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While this hat is similar to other straw toque-turbans Máxima has worn (this one in 2005, this one in 2007 and this one in 2009) this one appears to be slightly different and I strongly suspect it is new. Like the others, this is a Fabienne Delvigne design. I find this hat interesting- without a large brim, it’s a great  hat for visiting children as there is no large brim to obstruct one-on-one interaction or eye contact. It has taken me years to warm up to any hat that looks remotely like a turban and while I’m still not a big fan of the toque style, I’m starting to see their function.

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What do you think of this new hat?

Photos from Getty as indicated

Hats, Hairnets and the Chelsea Flower Show

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The world famous Chelsea Flower Show has attracted thousands (millions?) of visitors over the 100 years it has been held. The British Royal Family are loyal supporters- Queen Elizabeth has attended the show nearly every year and I thought it would be fun to look back at some of her hats.

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At the show in 1947, 1959, 1960 and 1966

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1952 and 1962

There are two peculiar things about the Queen’s millinery at this event. The first is that she stopped wearing hats to it in 1970. Second, In the early 1970s, she began wearing a hair net covered in black bows, something we don’t see her wear for any other occasion. Some writers have speculated that she did this to protect her hair from unexpected gusts of wind on her outdoor walk through the exhibition gardens but this fall flat for me- Queen Elizabeth’s other engagements include outdoor components in far gustier places than Central London. If if there was such worry about her hair… why not wear a hat?!

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1972, 1974, 1996, 2011

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1975, 1977, 2012

Update: since 2012, the Queen has visited the flower show with neither a hat nor a hairnet. It remains one of the very few daytime public events she  attends bare headed.

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We’ll likely never know the reason(s) why the Queen replaced hats at the flower show with hairnets (and subsequently, no head covering at all!)  What do you think?

Photos from Getty as indicated

Swedish Royal Wedding Banns Read

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Banns for their marriage of Princess Madeleine of Sweden and Christopher O’Neill were published this morning in the Royal Chapel of the Royal Palace in Stockholm. After the service, guests attended a reception at the Royal Palace. Princess Madeleine wore a green satin dress with matching hair bow designed by Pär Engsheden (who designed Crown Princess Victoria’s spectacular wedding dress three years ago). It’s a bit twee for my liking.

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Queen Silvia looked very elegant in a pistachio green pillbox… or so I thought. Belgian hat designer Fabienne Delvigne (who I suspect made this hat) must be trying to start a convertible hat craze because this is the second European monarch this month to wear an open topped hat (see the Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg here). I love everything about this hat on Silvia except the open top.

Crown Princess Victoria was very pretty in pale pink with a large fascinator pinned around her chignon. I wish we had a better view of the fascinator because it looks like it is an exquisitely detailed combination of silk flowers and lace trim. Without a good view, it is difficult to make a fair assessment but I do wonder if this headpiece, which is softly romantic, would look better with a less severe hairstyle.

Chris’ mother Eva O’Neill wore an embellished fez-shaped hat. It’s a unique shape that doesn’t rank among my favourites but paired well with her printed dress. Chris’ sister Tatjana D’Abo wore a tall ivory straw Philip Treacy cloche with huge cabbage rose.

This week, it was announced that the groom respectfully declined a  royal title as he plans to continue his career as an investment consultant in New York. It appears that the couple will have a non-royal life in New York. I suspect, sadly, there will be very few occasions in future where we will see Princess Madeline wear a hat.

**NOTE** several comments about Sofia Hellqvist’s attendance at this event not been approved. Further comments along this topic will also not be approved (consider yourself warned Olivia R.) There’s plenty of other forums and blogs out there where you can discuss this young woman and her relationship with the Royal Family. For the record- all name calling and debate about who should or should not be included in royal events is not welcome here. Let’s keep it to hat love, people!

Photos from Corbis and Stella Pictures  

Confirmation of Danish Prince

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Prince Nikolai of Denmark, son of Prince Joachim and grandson of Queen Margrethe, was confirmed today at Fredensborg Palace Church by Bishop Erik Norman Svendsen. While it was a private event, the royal family appeared for a brief photocall after the service, before a private lunch. A brief video of The Royal Family taken just after the confirmation can be viewed on the Danish Monarchy website here.

Queen Margrethe wore a new hat for the occasion in beautiful marine blue. Margrethe looks great in picture hats and this one, with a contrasting white brim trimmed in the same blue as the crown, was beautiful and unique. Princess Marie (current wife of Prince Joachim) continued the blue theme in a navy straw hat with net wrapped around the crown  and a side flower. Marie last wore this hat for the 350th anniversary of the Danish Supreme Court in February 2011 and it’s a lovely hat on her. The shape might be a little plain and I’m not taken with the slapped-on flower but the colour on her is spectacular.

The Countess of Frederiksborg, Queen Margrethe and Princess Marie | The Royal Hats BlogPrince Nikolai’s mother, the Countess of Frederiksborg, wore a large feather fascinator. It’s gloriously over the top (it’s nearly the same size as Alexandra’s face!) and contrasts nicely with her dark hair but for this occasion, I think I would have preferred her in a hat. What do you think?

The Countess of Frederiksborg | The Royal Hats Blog

Prince Nikolai’s godparents and extended family were also in attendance. His maternal grandmother, Christina Manley, wore a small fuchsia hat with upturned brim and black bow to coordinate with her fuchsia and black suit. His maternal aunt, Nicola Baird,  wore a small cream feathered fascinator that looked like an afterthought plunked on her head. I would have loved her to wear a large cream picture hat to balance out the large print of her lovely wrap dress instead of that too-small fascinator. Nikolai’s godmother, Camilla Flint, wore a gorgeous chocolate brown picture hat with tilted brim and ruched crown that beautifully contrasted against her blue patterned frock.

Danish Royal Family | The Royal Hats Blog

My favourite hat of the day was tied between Queen Margrethe’s new blue and white picture hat and the beautiful chocolate brown hat worn by Camilla Flint. Which one is your favourite?

Photos from BT.dk and  Kongehuset 

The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh Visit Cornwall

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Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh visited the remains of the castle at St Michael’s Mount, off the coast of Cornwall today. The Queen repeated the lilac Angela Kelly pleated fabric hat she last wore in February to open the new Royal London Hospital.

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It’s the sixth time in two years she has worn this hat and coat so it must be a favourite for her. For some reason, I liked it much better today than I have any of the other times she’s worn it. That might be because I thought the photo of her making a concrete stamp of her shoes is utterly adorable. I guess that’s all in a day’s work for a Queen.

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Much has been speculated around recent announcements that the Queen and Prince Philip will be cutting back their public engagements and international travel. It was lovely to see them looking so spry and energetic today.

Photos from Getty as indicated