As I wrap up a review of the hats at the Swedish royal christening on Sunday, I thought we would take a quick peek at some hats worn by members of the extended Swedish royal family. The King’s sister, Princess Christina (who is Princess Madeleine’s godmother), wore a purple flower fascinator trimmed with wispy purple feathers. I love the contrast of this shade of purple in her white hair but paired with her purple dress, coat, and wrap, the look was rather one-note.
Princess Margaretha (to the left, behind Chris O’Neil) wore what looks to be a white feathered fascinator. To her right (immediately above Chris’ head), Princess Désirée to her right seems to be wearing a white calot hat at the back of her head. We’ll have to save judgement on these pieces until better photos are available.
Countess Gunnila Bernadotte of Wisborg (widow of the King’s uncle Prince Carl Johan of Sweden) wore a stunning pale grey straw hat. The under side of the brim was in white straw, edged in slim black piping and the hat was trimmed with a black sash around the crown and large black loops. Countess Marianne Bernadotte of Wisborg (widow of the King’s uncle Prince Sigvard of Sweden) wore a lovely mint green straw hat trimmed with a monochrome ribbon around the crown and spray of silk blossoms on the side.
Bettina Aussems (wife of Queen Silvia’s nephew Thomas Sommerlath) topped her red sheath and scarf with a simple hat in the same colour. Embellished only with a ruched sash around the crown, I thought this hat was a great tutorial for effective monochrome dressing.
Maline Sommerlath (wife of Queen Silvia’s nephew Patrick Sommerlath who was named one of Princess Leonore’s godparents) followed the unofficial dress code of the day: lace dress + fascinator in the same colour. I thought the headband on this fascinator drew too much attention away from the bloom itself and would have preferred it hidden in her hair. This one fell a little flat for me.
And finally… Prince Carl Philip’s longtime girlfriend Sofia Hellqvist wore a grey looped bow fascinator trimmed with white net and feathers. I found this headpiece most haphazard, with the trimmings unrelated to the looped bow (and another visible headband problem). Sofia’s hair was beautifully styled for a fascinator but this was not the right one.
Looking back at all the marvelous millinery at this christening, my favourite headpiece was the one worn by Crown Princess Victoria. I am curious- which one was your favourite?
Photos from Patrick Van Katwijk via Corbis; Bertil Ericson/TT via Kungahuset; Patrick van Katwijk and Patrick van Katwijk via Corbis; Lasse Allard and Jonas Ekstromer via Aftonbladet
Royal Hats 
My favorite hat of all at the event was that of Countess Gunilla Bernadotte of Wisborg’s simple, elegant, classic pale grey straw hat. I liked that the under side of the brim was white straw, which added a nice summery touch, and the black trims added a nice contrast. It looked good with her simple, understated outfit, that was perfect for a relative at a Christening. My second favorite hat was that worn by Countess Marianne Bernadotte of Wisborg, as I am a lover of mint green for summer, and straw hats for summer, and the simple trims of a ribbon and of silk blossoms was just enough, and it coordinated well with her classic suit. Bettina Aussems wore my third favorite hat, brimmed and with simple trimming, which matched her red sheath and scarf, though I think wearing all bright red at a Christening, looked somewhat like she tried to upstage the mother and close family members, though I would have loved this outfit at some other event.
I found the brimmed hat wearers more appropriately attired for a Royal Church Christening, than the brigade who wore all manner of rather uninspired fascinators, such as Princess Madeleine, and Crown Princess Victoria, whose headpiece looked like she had a bandage around her head from the back!
My least favorite hat and outfit of all was Maline Sommerlath’s shapeless lace dress, which looked like she made it out of a tablecloth, and that awful fascinator, with the visible headband holding it on, that was obviously meant to be hidden in the hair. My second least favorite was the fascinator of Sofia Hellqvist, which had an awful visible headband also, and an over-abundance of mismatched trimmings.
Thanks HatQueen for bringing us this wonderful gathering of royal hats.
Dear HatQueen,
I was looking for very much for your opinion of this events hat, and thank you for doing this wonderfull job!
In this big work, you made a small mistake by having named one lady twice (Countess Gunilla). Since I have no idea which one she is, I would like to ask you that, and in this case who is the other lady?
My favourite hat from the event was of TatjanaD’abo’s, and I think new grandma Princess Cristina was very lovely with those purple feathers in her white hair.
Countess Gunilla is the lady to the left wearing a gray hat with a black ribbon. She is the widow of the Kings uncle Prince Carl Johan of Sweden. The lady to the right in mint green is Countess Marianne Bernadotte, widow of the kings uncle Prince Sigvard of Sweden (a well known designer) Countess Marianne will be 90 years old in July
My apologies, Emese, for the error. It has been fixed but your response from ladyofthemanor seems to have set you straight!
Princess Christina’s facinator is not happening for me at all — it’s the wrong balance for her dress and body type. I don’t think older ladies should wear something this young and youthful even if they are stick thin. It looks like something I might have picked up at what we call in the US – ‘the dime store’ which is like a pharmacy that has things from a small supply of socks to full hair accessories (but cheap ones)