The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were in Surrey today to attend the wedding of Prince Harry’s friend since childhood, Charlie Van Straubenzee, to Daisy Jenks.
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The Duchess, who also celebrates her 37th birthday today, attended the wedding in a new hat. With a teardrop shaped base in fine black straw, the hat is trimmed with signature Philip Treacy twists and a single feather quill.
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It’s a smart hat for Meghan that paired very well with her colour blocked dress. The twist trim gives the hat some energy and character while the monochrome scheme is elegant and mutes the hat’s overall statement, leaving it able to easily blend in with the crowd. And kudos to Meghan for excellent placement, hugging the side of her head.
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Previously Worn: This hat is new
Royal Hats 
I do wish it was not black. The outfit in what I call midnight blue would be lovely. I hope Meghan lightens her colour choices in the future especially during the warm months. She is so beautiful. I also hope she keeps her own style. This hat is leaning towards what most of the other royal women wear. It’s nice but not individual. Be yourself Meghan….but not in black.
I think it’s “leaning towards what most of the other royal women wear” because the shape is currently very much in style.
Chicago Chuck will be pleased tartan trousers seen on wedding guest !! but to be fair I have to say I did like Charles’ better !!!! 😉
A Phillip Treacy percher is never wrong. She’ll get a lot of use out of this hat. Well done, Duchess!
Happy Birthday to the Duchess! This look is tremendous especially compared to the last wedding she attended with Harry and I don’t mean her own. It doesn’t matter to me what color the hat is, it looks wonderful on Meghan.
Love this look on Meghan. Going with such a dark palette isn’t that summery, but the lift of colours in the skirt really lifts it and makes the outfit a lot of fun. The hat is simple but a great complement and should be one she’ll get a lot of wear out of.
Why didn’t Pss Eugenie wear a hat?
You’d have to ask her!
Great hat. (How on earth does she walk on those heels?)
I’m on Team Black concerning if this hat and dress is black or navy. In direct sunlight, many black hats get a blue hue (this happens to a lot of hats on display in the window where I work), and therefore many people think they are navy and not black until they get a closer look. Also, not all blacks are the same based on material. But I could be wrong!
At any rate, I think this is wonderful piece for Meghan that certainly will work with many other outfits. And like Kate, Meghan has beautiful hair, and I think it looks wonderful down here; relaxed, but still refined. Brava!
Very hard to pick if it’s black or navy it looks different in different pictures. Does the old rules of not wearing black or white to a wedding still apply?
Overall, it’s not black/navy enough to look funerary, and not white enough for there to be any suggestion that she’s edging onto the bride’s territory. All black/navy or all white would be another matter, I think.
The hat is the best bit in my opinion (biased? moi?) and, as HatQueen says, the placement is spot on.
Lyn, I well remember the first time I saw guests wearing black to a wedding, and that was in the late 1980’s. I was a guest too, wearing a hat (of course!) and a floral ensemble, and the daytime summer wedding was a combined service-plus-reception in a garden, so caterers were there. I remember mistaking the young wearers of black for the wait staff, and was struck when I realised how wrong I was. But black had just become THE universally fashionable colour to wear anytime, any place. It’s been that way for nearly 3 decades now, and I doubt it will ever lose its pre-eminence as western fashion’s most-worn colour.
Since that time I have seen a guest wear a luxury evening gown to a daytime church wedding; I have seen sequin-embroidered cocktail dresses and glitter shoes worn to a daytime church christening, as well as flip-flops and muumuus (and those were all members of the christening parties!); and I’ve seen a spaghetti strap, cotton beach mini-dress worn to a chapel funeral (immediate family party again!). Oddly enough, as black has become mainstream and seen often at weddings and christenings, the wearing of black at funerals is rapidly disappearing among the general public — at least in my neck of the woods. These days, as Cole Porter wrote, anything goes 🙂
Somehow, perchers always look better to me on an updo. Also, I’d like to see more of a contrast with the Duchess’s hair. But these are quibbles since this hat is overall an excellent complement to the dress.
Nonie may be right that it might have looked better with an updo – I’m undecided about that – but I definitely think there isn’t enough contrast between the hat and the hair. I think this hat looked much better on the Treacy model. I particularly don’t like it in the photos where she’s also wearing sunglasses. Might have looked different in indoor lighting, though we’ll probably have to wait for a future wearing for that, since this was a private event.
Matthew, looks like I was posting just before your comment came up — we agree on both the updo and the contrast! I’m visualizing something like her Ascot hat — it showed up so well against her hair.
Contrast would make her stand out and I think that’s probably the last thing she would have wanted to do at someone else’s wedding.
With respect, Eliza, that doesn’t make sense. Contrast can be as simple as the same hat in a different solid color, maybe one of the colors of the skirt rather than the navy/black, or having the base be navy/black and the twists or the feather be one of the lighter colors, just to set the hat off a bit more from her dark hair. Certainly a royal guest at a non-royal wedding doesn’t want to overshadow the bride, but she doesn’t have to blend into the woodwork either!
But that’s not her style. I love her monochrome looks. SOOOO much more sophisticated than 99% of the other royal fashion we see.
I’m sorry but what you’re suggesting sounds matchy-matchy and twee to me.
I agree- I think matching the hat trim to the colours in the dress would be overkill and put the hat at odds with the dress, which, let’s be honest, is the real focal point. In this case, the hat is an accessory (not the star!) and I think this was the right call. Sophisticated indeed.
In addition, i would think matching one of the other colors in the dress would limit her ability to wear the hat with other outfits. Personally, I don’t love the hat as that style is not my favorite but I think it looks better as is.
l would like to address this to Meghan … first of all … and most important today … a very Happy Birthday to you Meghan – I hope you’ve had a wonderful day ! but can I just say – this is not the best outfit I’ve seen you wear … first of all the model for the dress is 5’10” and you’re not ! 😕 then the model at PTs had an updo and it’s my opinion that this style of hat looks so much more polished when the hair is not blowing around .- sorry ! I don’t want to imply that it’s awful .. just not right for you (in my opinion) 😕
Yet another faux pas. Unkind colour for an ensemble for a wedding .
It’s a black/navy patterned dress with matching hat. I don’t see anything wrong here.
Are you sure it’s navy? Both the hat and the dress are sold as black on websites and her shoes, belt and purse are black.
Hmmm…the Club Monaco website does not say what colour the dress is and that’s it’s true source. And there appears to be contrast in some photos between the belt and shoes and the dress. It certainly looks navy in sunlight…
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In this picture the dress and hat and clutch look navy to me and there is a definite contrast with the black belt. I have to take back my former comment earlier this year that Meghan may have already found her hat style. She has worn many different styles this last summer and wears them well including this one! Well done, Meghan and a very happy birthday to you!!!
I think Jake might be right- I have a hunch that while the dress, hat and clutch look navy in sunlight, they are actually black. We’ll have to wait for a repeat on the hat to determine its colour for certain.