It’s my pleasure to be joined today by Dutch milliner Wies Mauduit, creator of La plus belle! bespoke millinery in The Hague, to talk about today’s royal hats at Ascot!
Princess Anne repeated a dark, ink blue straw hat with pork pie indented crown, trimmed with velvet brim piping and a velvet hatband affixed with a gold horse pin in the center.
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images
Royal Hats: This ensemble makes me smile. While the hat dates back until at least 1999, it gets a shot of updating adrenaline paired with Anne’s navy and cream patterned dress. Yes, there are other hats that would make a better pairing for this dress but this hat, with its brass equestrian pin at the front, makes an eccentric topper for it that Anne continues (and continues and continues) to wear well.
Ever practical, I also love that Princess Anne was the only one truly prepared for the rain. I also adore the photos of her exuberantly waving as her mother and brother’s carriage rode by!
Wies Mauduit: Princess Anne is right to hang on to this hat. It is made of beautiful braided straw which is not to be found anymore. I’m not quite sure, but it looks like old fashioned Baku straw. Baku is a strong, rather stiff material, beautifully polished, giving it a waxed-like sheen unlike any other material.This hat doesn’t make for a very summery look for Anne, but it was well adapted to the weather of today!
Designer: unknown. Likely John Boyd or Graham Smith
Previously Worn: May 13, 2018; Apr 24, 2011; Sep 3, 2010; Apr 23, 2000; Apr 4, 1999 ; Jun 17, 1997; and likely more
What do you think of Princess Anne’s hat today?
Photos from Getty as indicated; Rupert Hartley and David Hartley via Shutterstock
Royal Hats 
I love Princess Anne’s dress, and the velvet jacket helps the hat go with it. The hat itself is lovely, and I love love love that she keeps wearing things from years ago. The hat itself doesn’t look dated at all.
That dress is wonderful on her. Eclectic accessories with the choker and horse pin:-) It was a tough weather day for “summer” dressing.
well I have to say – 10 out of 10 for effort. resigned myself to the fact that its never going to be a knockout with hrh proyal, but nice to see some positive comments. i think she did rather well pulling together that look with old and new(ish)! in reply to the outerwear comments, perhaps she could borrow camillas cape-effect macintosh???
still hoping for a new hat, perhaps for ladies day, and a non-chocolate or navy look later this week….
That’s my gal! (We share a birthday, although are some years apart in age.) I wish that the law of primogeniture had been retrofitted to include her!
I agree that this hat is a keeper – I only wish that it had been freshened up, perhaps it’s the effect of the light, but it does look slightly….battered. The hat goes perfectly with the flattering dress which looks terrific. Glad to see the red lipstick out again too.
I am quite sure that Anne owns a dressy waterproof long coat — so what is that stockman’s weather coat which she wears at the Horse Trials doing there? (rhetorical question only- please don’t answer, I don’t want to know). Raincoat aside, this jumbled look could be instantly integrated by first removing the choker necklace. Camilla, queen of the pearl chokers, knows that if you’re going to wear one of these beauties you can’t have competing focal points, such as a gold horse brooch in the very centre(!) of your head — plus, a boldly patterned dress nearby – plus a blue flower also in the centre (!) line of her torso. Camilla also knows that tight, high chokers are unflattering on the mature woman – in fact she appears to have had all hers lengthened (it’s a standard jewellery procedure).
The other difficult item is the midnight blue velvet jacket. It’s too high contrast against Anne’s skin for daytime wear, making her look strikingly pale, especially on her arms and upper chest — creating a somewhat “Goth” effect. (It would be OK for an evening event when the lighting conditions are softer). A medium blue or navy jacket, closer in tone to the navy in the dress, would be fine.
And finally, the gold brooch doesn’t really coordinate with the dress pattern. I actually love the brooch and its placement; and I would love to see this hat/brooch combination as the outfit focal point — worn with a non-patterned dress.
Couldn’t have said it better myself!
When I first saw this outfit earlier today, it made me stop. I love the dress and I wish we could see more of it. I like the velvet coat and don’t mind it paired with the dress.
I do agree with Jake’s hat pick for topping off this outfit.
I saw the picture of Princess Anne waving to the Queen … and my first reaction was … wow she looks fabulous !!! 😁 I’m not sure why but I thought her whole outfit was very interesting and the horse pin on her oft worn hat was just the icing on the cake ! I’ve always been a fan of hers and it seems to me as she gets older she becomes more endearing ( though I bet she wouldn’t care to hear that ! 😉😉)
Another fine hat for Anne, but again it feels unseasonal, even with all the rain, and rather plain, even with the thematic horse pin (which I wish was on the side). That said, it does pair well with her dress for something new. If I had to choose, I would keep the dress and find another hat to pair with it, like this one (https://royalhats.net/2018/03/12/british-royals-celebrate-commonwealth-2/).
P.S. This hat was worn at Ascot in 1997, with an outfit that made everything feel much more summery:
Embed from Getty Images
Jake, I totally agree with your suggestion of an alternate hat to go with this dress — that one would be an excellent choice! I wonder if Anne’s penchant for wearing outfits and hats that are decades old stems not only from thriftiness, but also from the fact that she is such a busy and businesslike woman — one of the busiest of the royals, involved in so many charities and other activities. It’s hard to imagine her spending her time in shopping and fittings, or even home visits from designers.
Great hat and great dress suggestion Jake! that 1997 outfit is really sharp!
While this is a disjointed, somewhat strange-looking outfit, I nonetheless find the regal look of Princess Anne is amazing. That hat, with its gold horse pin, is totally in keeping with the outfit as a whole. This is not a look that would be recommended for others, but it seems completely appropriate for Princess Anne and quite flattering, actually.
Well said! There’s something magical about this look- I shouldn’t like it for many reasons, but I do!
I’m so impressed at how you two are finding something positive in everything! It’s true that the “old fashioned Baku straw” does have have a nice sheen. And it does look surprisingly sharp with the blue and cream dress.
Thanks to Wies for sharing her expertise today!
If only I saw the rest of life and the world as I see hats! I’m really not stretching here- I honestly like Princess Anne’s new dress on her and I’m amused/amazed she managed to pair it with this old hat and look so good.