King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium paid a one day official visit to Rome yesterday.
For this visit, the final stage of a tour to the founding countries of the European Union, Queen Mathilde wore another new hat. This calot, worn off to the side of her head, was covered in the same fabric as her Armani coat and featured a wide twisted ribbon tail.
While the scale is great on Queen Mathilde, I think the same fabric on both the hat and coat made the overall look one-note and flat.
Designer: Philip Treacy (see this pair of very similar designs)
What did you think of this hat?
Photos from Getty as indicated
Royal Hats 
I love this entire outfit; the bodice on her coat is delightful, the hat is wonderful. The Dutch Queen Maxima could benefit from Queen Matilde’s style tips.
I like the outfit well enough but would have loved it if the hat was in a soft grey suede like her glovers. Armani in Italy! That Queen Mathilde is so sartorially astute!
This is a great idea as well… to match the hat with the gloves. And good point about Armani in Italy!
I love hats that are of the same material as the outfit worn so I love this outfit. I think the overall look is very chic and the color is splendid. As far as the decoration on the hat, it doesn’t bother me at all and I think gives the hat a special twist to it.
hat looks like lightening, coat looks like straight jacket
I love love love this look. So elegant. Cant love it enough
The colour is nice, but that’s about it. The hat and dress look a bit odd.
Lovely, I really like this look though I think the hat should have been the soft solid grey rather than the pattern. She really is quite regal and elegant.
Too weird looking for me.
My goodness, I don’t think I have ever seen Queen Mathilde look so elegant!
I’m surprised that the silver color suits her so well. The coat is my favourite, beautiful and regal. But this hat did not work for me.
The hat shape is a nice departure for Mathilde but the fabric choice is hideous. The Armani coat was beautiful in it’s original form on the runway. This incarnation is not successful.
I don’t like the matchiness at all. Love the shape of the hat — it’s young and fresh — but, to my eye, it fades into background in spite of the lightening bolt.
I do like the coat and hat in the same fabric, but if they had put a softer trim in the color of her gloves it would have made it perfect. She looked very queenly, in my opinion. loved the coat on her.
I understand the lightning bolt comment, but I think the outfit is marvelous. The odd twist in the hat goes with the striking curves on the top of the jacket. Matching the hat to the coat/dress fabric was an excellent idea, I think. With multi-toned fabric, the only real alternative would have been a completely different color for the hat. Otherwise one fixates on the discrepancies in hat and coat color. This way one is wowed by the impact of the whole outfit: fantastic!
Very elegant. Kate could take a few lessons from Q. Mathilde.
I think I am more distracted by the weird lapels on her jacket. Today’s coat and yesterdays are quiet unattractive in my view. I don’t mind the hats.
MrFitzroy suggests she might, perhaps, have taken an accessory cue from Queen Elizabeth to salvage this coat, which is quite charming. The self fabric on the hat would be workable, if the trim were a bit less severe and softer (bow or flora) and in a strong darker gray, or black — matched by her shoes, gloves and accessories. That would anchor everything. The hat shape itself is quite nice on her, especially from certain angles, and her hair is flawless.
Is she trying to dress like Queen Elisabeth, in matching coats and hats, often featuring somehow some fabric from the clothes? And are these calots / berets a new trend?
I wonder, since Queen Elizabeth’s style is also what has made her instantly identifiable as The Queen.
I like her dress and hat by matching up colors, but I agree with you that the twisted ribbon look kind of odd on her hat.
I think it would be more nice if she didn’t tied her hair back, because she already have a neat style and it wouldn’t bother her with some loose on her hair.