Princess Anne surprised yesterday in a hat that I suspect is new. The navy straw design features a short, upswept brim and is trimmed with a generous pouff of cream and tan feathers.
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Jill: Although this is a hat shape we have often seen on Princess Anne, I think it suits her well and I like the combination of straw and silk which is perfect for the cooler weather. I very much like the cream piping on the brim, it brightens the whole hat to her face but my favorite part is definitely the trim. It has a bit of a “hunt” feeling which seems to be right on point and is perfect with her cream jacket, (those oversized buttons are divine).
Royal Hats: I also love the cream piping on the brim which adds such a sharp, polished finish. I’m less enthralled about the feather explosion trim but since it looks like this is a new hat for Anne (and one that looks like it belongs in this century!), I’m not going to complain one bit! It is a great pairing with her ivory coat.
Fiona: Love her white coat with that statement rolled collar and that interesting necklace, but the hat I feel is a little dated with a lot of fussy feather trimming. She tends to wear the higher-crowned, narrow-brimmed hats a lot – I’d like to see a slightly wide brim on Anne, I think she could carry it. The detail around the brim edge is very nice with that thin line of white. But I do love her coat, I think it makes her glow and shows off her porcelain complexion beautifully!
Christie: It’s lovely and refreshing to see that Princess Anne is wearing navy and ivory this year. I wasn’t a huge fan of her many brown elements last year, although she still managed to sneak in some brown feathers in the centre of her trim! All in all, I think that this is a well executed and age appropriate look. I’m glad that her milliner has used mesh sinamay in her brim, as it works well with her pleated bind and sisal crown.
Designer: unknown
Previously Worn: I really do think this hat is new!
It’s not every day that we get to review a new hat for Princess Anne and I can’t wait to hear what you all think of this design!
Royal Hats 
The hat is good and it looks like it’s from this century which is sayin’ something for Anne. I like it on her. But what’s with the modesty pannel bib front on her coat? It looks Amish.
She look smashing and I am happy to see her looking so well. I like the exuberance of the trim except that it blocks the view of the silhouette of this gorgeous hat. Well done.
Anne looks quite lovely
I love the white brim and the texture of the navy hat, although I wish we could see more of it. 😉
I confess we’ve seen this hat shape on her so often I assumed it was a repeat (but a good one!). Love the navy/cream combo, but agree that the feathers seem to have swallowed the hat. Also, while I like the brown feathers for color contrast, they read as a little “fallish” IMO.
Yay for Princess Anne and her continued channelling of Violet, dowager Countess of Grantham. A new hat, well, I’ll be blowed, and it’s a good one too! Marvellous stuff.
Love this new hat on Princess Anne! The blue and cream combo is perfect. The trim is exuberant, which is perfect for Ascot. Trims can be altered or swapped out, right? I doubt Anne would bother, but it occurred to me that both she and Camilla could get more use out of their Day 1 hats by reducing the flowers a bit.
This is a hat style that really suits Anne. I also think it is worth pointing out the interesting collar and large buttons on the coat. These details ramp up an otherwise plain coat.
A bit of a surprise with the trim. I like it.
Good hat for Anne for Ascot – but for me, it’s a little too much trim for her find the hat re-purposeful.
I agree that the trim needs to be trimmed! Overall, though, this one of Princess Anne’s more successful hats. This style can look a little too costumed, as though she is portraying her great-grandmother or, as many have suggested, the Dowager Duchess of Grantham. But this one is more contemporary.
Thanks to the guest milliners for their expert commentary. So interesting to read the analysis of the many things that make the hat work. That piping is an example — what a great detail.
This is a great (and new!) hat for Anne. If you can’t go crazy on the feather trim at Ascot, then when can you? Love it. My only minor complaint is I wish the upturned part of the brim stuck out as far as the other side, rather than have the asymmetry that’s going on with it now (and it would give her a slightly wider brim overall). Her coat is good, but it feels a bit heavy for Ascot in June. And the matching navy gloves are the perfect tie-in for this hat.
The large pouff of trim is fun for Ascot. My only wish is that the hat not cover Anne’s face so much. In the photo where the camera looks up at her from below, she looks really nice. Maybe position the hat a bit back or turn the brim up a tad. In some pictures the trim looks like it’s hanging in her face as well.
just loved the look. Ok the hat probably needed less trim but if I look at the outfit in total she looked great- and on a personal level that big smile made her look very special indeed
I have just noticed the handbag over her shoulder with the folding umbrella handle hooked there – the ever practical !!
Say what you will about Princess Anne, I don’t think she ever wears anything she is not comfortable in and she probably has minimal interest in what we hat-mavens think about her attire. Good for her, self assured and secure, great beauty in itself.
How exciting! Princess Anne gets my new favorite hat for the month of June, well…because…Her Hat is New. And the huge burst of feathers and trimming is perfect for Ascot. I really like the blue hat and gloves with the white coat. She is timelessly beautiful.
You mentioned that it would be nice to see Princess Anne in wider brimmed hats – well she used to wear wide brimmed in the 70’s and looked lovely and I agree it would be nice to see her in them again. I would have liked this hat better with about half the amount of trimming!!
I agree that this hat would like much better with half the amount of trim, but overall I think this is one of Anne’s best recent hats.