twenty-three years to June 21, 1996. While the Queen Mother’s blue veiled capulet hat is a classic and very recognizable millinery look for her, the Countess of Snowdon’s ecru straw design with black stripes is a unique shape I can’t remember seeing on another royal hat- can you?
If there are any royal hats worn today, please share and discuss in the comments as well.
Photo from Getty as indicated
Royal Hats 
It’s a brioche!
I love both hats. My eye noticed the Russian Sapphire Brooch on the Queen Mother. My favorite sapphire brooch!!
Can someone please tell me how they think Serena’s hat stayed on her head? Hair this short is notoriously “slippery”, and even a series of combs or a head band wouldn’t be secure enough to make me wear this at Ascot. But then, that would be the least of my worries. This is a strange hat, and I don’t think it compliments her dress. Don’t we usually see more pastel shades at this event?
An elastic might do the trick, worn under the hair, passing round the back of the neck. The hat is made of sinamay, so probably rather light.
Can’t figure out what kind of shape this is. Quite unusual and reminiscent of a soup bowl.
Wies, my thoughts exactly, but maybe a fruit bowl? If you turn the hat upside down, that little part on top would make a perfect pedestal.
Mmm, you are right: fruit bowl is better than soup bowl, because it is asymmetric and if it were turned upside down and filled with soup, the soup would spill over.
I don’t usually compare hats to plates, bowls or lampshades (it is such easy critisisim) but this one is rather peculiar and seems to have no relation to the dress at all.
I think black and white is fairly common, too, a la “My Fair Lady”, though not usually in a style this, um…structured? Serena seems to have always marched to her own drummer sartorially.
Lordy that’s an unusual hat on Serena. She was quite fashion forward when she was younger, it didn’t always work, and I think this was one of those occasions unfortunately. This oddly shaped hat doesn’t really go with her cropped hair. I think she looks much better these days.