Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh attended Sunday Service at St Peter and St Paul Church in West Newton this morning. After the service, they took time to greet assembled well wishers, giving photographers an opportunity to get some lovely shots of Her Majesty’s red hat.
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An early version of Angela Kelly’s split crown design, the hat is covered in the same textured red bouclé wool silk as the matching coat and trimmed with red Lady Amhurst feathers anchored with overlapping red felt leaves. The hat balances extremely well with the crisscross collar on the coat and while the overall ensemble is fairly one note and could use a few tweaks (different trim on the hat, smaller buttons on the coat etc.), it works.
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We’ve not discussed this specific hat here before- what are your thoughts?
Photos from Getty as indicated
Royal Hats 
It was good to see this hat again, but it seems that the brim has been slightly altered from its original appearances. Instead of being straight and pointing slightly down, the brim is now lifted slightly at the back and side. Difficult to explain in words, but noticeable when you compare the 2009 pictures side by side with photos from Sunday!
Brilliant observation- I hadn’t even noticed this change but there’s certainly been a brim tweak. Great catch!
I agree this is a warm rich red color for HM. I like the split crown and feathers and the texture of the fabric. A great look for the colder months. And though this is a hat site I must add that I love the interesting detail on the collar of the coat.
Both hat and outfit in general are great (and I like the outing with the red suit very much too). I particularly like the way that the angle of the feathers echoes the split of the brim, I think that helps give it a very cohesive look.
Of course I meant split crown…
I know I just complained on a previous post about too much matchy-ness with hats and coats, but this one works better than many, or I’m just excited to see this hat again after so many years! It’s a great shape and gorgeous color for HM, one we don’t see too often unfortunately. While I like the uniqueness of the collar, I’ve always thought it looked too wide.
Don’t worry, Jake- royal hat admiration can be a fickle enterprise! I often find myself liking a hat feature one day that I complained about the day before.
Slightly off-topic, but I didn’t recognize the brooch HM was wearing and could only find one other occasion of her wearing it among photos online — interestingly, almost exactly two years ago, at the exact same event (attending Sunday Service at St Peter and St Paul Church in West Newton), and coincidentally also wearing red:
https://royalhats.wordpress.com/2016/02/08/queen-on-post-church-walkabout/
Here is a list of the brooch’s wearings since 2012:
http://queensjewelvault.blogspot.hr/2012/07/the-ruby-and-gold-flower-brooch.html
Love this rich red colour on HM. The feathers are great as trimmings. Much prefer this hat paired with the simpler jacket.
I like this hat and coat combo! The collar detail and texture make it more interesting, and HM looks lovely in red.
I love this hat primarily for its rich red color, but also for the fact that they reached further back in the closet to retrieve such a beauty. The last time this hat was worn, in February of 2012, HM wore a suit with it instead of the long coat! This was a great alternative to her usual long coat.
Sorry, forgot to attach a nice photo.
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Hmmmm…. as lovely as it is to see the Queen in a suit for a change, I prefer this hat with the coat. It pairs so well with this coat’s unique collar, me thinks.
I love the hat. It is such a vibrant color. I love its architecture. It is truly a three dimensional hat. The only thing I would change is the position of the brooch. Either on the coat or on the collar, but not on both
I agree Shue. The brooch position is the only flaw here, it makes the lapel area feel somehow overcrowded.
However, this brooch can’t fit anywhere else on this coat, and it needs to be vertical. I’d choose a different brooch altogether – a round one like the good old ever-versatile Jardine Star would work fine.
Vibrant colors, and also pastel colors, look beautiful on HM. I love this outfit from her hat to her coat. The overlapping collar saved the coat from being humdrum.
I was very happy to see this lovely red outfit make a repeat performance today. And I was equally surprised to read it’s been 6years since we last saw it!
It’s a great colour for HM, and the design features give it enough interest without tipping over into the heavy handedness that Angela K can be guilty of.