Monthly Archives: July 2013

Queen Margrethe Opens Danish UN City

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Queen Margrethe of Denmark joined UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt to officially open the new UN City in Copenhagen today. The new UN City consists of state of the art office facilities and a high-tech warehouse in Copenhagen’s north harbour district. For this opening, Margrethe chose a blue hat and suit in the same distinct blue as the UN flag. This hat, which we’ve seen numerous times before, is a great hat on Margrethe and I thought the colour choice today was a thoughtful touch.

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Designer: Unknown. Likely Per Falk Hansen
Previously Worn: May 26, 2013; May 5, 2013; June 14, 2012; September 20, 2011; and September 6, 2011  

Photo from Getty as indicated

Birthday of Queen Sonja

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Queen Sonja of Norway  (née Sonja Haraldsen) celebrates her 76th birthday today. Before marrying into the Norwegian Royal Family, Sonja trained as a dressmaker and tailor- an interesting skill to bring into royal life, don’t you think? One of my favourite of Sonja’s hats is this oyster coloured wool hat with wide, waved brim she wore in April 2010 for the opening of the Oslo Cathedral. The beautifully shaped brim saves this from being a boring beige hat and the sense of movement it creates is visually stunning. After a while, a lot of royal hats begin to look the same but this one really stands out for me.

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Photo from Getty as indicated

The Queen in Scotland

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Queen Elizabeth carried out a full day of engagements in Scotland today, beginning with a visit to the John Buchan Museum in Peebles. This afternoon, The Queen officially reopened Abbotsford House, the former home of author Sir Walter Scott in the Scottish Borders after its multi-million pound restoration. For these events, she repeated a lavender straw Rachel Trevor Morgan hat she first wore during her Diamond Jubilee tour last year. In the past, I have been quite critical of The Queen’s hats that feature diagonally-shaped crowns… but I like this one. Somehow, the shape of this crown along with the corresponding upturned brim just works. I think the silk flower trim adds a softness that is missing from many of The Queen’s other diagonally shaped hats . This is a more modern shape than Queen Elizabeth usually chooses but I think it looks great on her (and that colour is divine!) What do you think of this asymmetrical hat?

Designer: Rachel Trevor Morgan
Previously Worn: June 14, 2012 

Photos from Ian Rutherford/The Scotsman/PA Wire URN:16976402 (Press Association via AP Images) 

Countess of Wessex Attends Military Luncheon

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The Countess of Wessex attended The Worshipful Company of Glovers’ Livery Lunch at Fishmongers’ Hall yesterday in London. She repeated the vibrant blue straw hat with lace trim she wore two weeks ago at Ascot. I continue to love this hat- it is a wonderful shape and the lace trim is light, fun and intricately beautiful. I’m just not sold on the dress it is paired with and wonder if whole ensemble suffers from the “too much blue” syndrome that Princess Anne’s ensemble also suffered earlier this week. The hat on it’s own is wonderful though, isn’t it?!

Designer: Jane Taylor
Previously Worn: June 18, 2013

Photos from Darren Woolway

The Queen Hosts Scottish Garden Party

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Queen Elizabeth hosted her final official Garden Party of 2013 at Holyrood House in Edinburgh today. Despite a downpour, The Queen looked lovely in a pale aqua textured straw hat trimmed with a dove grey silk rose and arrow feathers. The colour combination of this hat is somewhat unexpected but I think it lends modern touch to an otherwise very traditionally shaped hat. What do you think of this hat?

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Designer: Rachel Trevor Morgan
Previously Worn: June 13, 2012; and October 19, 2011 

Photos from Getty as indicated