On Tuesday, January 14, Princess Margriet arrived at the Royal Palace in Amsterdam for the annual New Year’s reception in a casual, navy hat (she and other members of the Dutch royal family changed into formal attire inside the Palace!)
Burgundy felt brimmed hat on Empress Masako for the the 40th anniversary ceremony of the National Rehabilitation Center for Disabled People & the National Occupational Rehabilitation Center on January 22. The windowpane pleated silk on her lapel is repeated on the hatband for an interesting touch.
Fun connection made for Princess Tsuguko’s burgundy hat- it seems to date back as far as 1993
Zara Tindall in a heathered grey felt fedora with darker grey hatband today at the Festival Trials Day at Cheltenham Racecourse
British milliner Jane Corbett shared this photo of a bespoke hat she created and was shipping off to a lucky client. Many of you will recognize it…
The following new millinery designs caught my eye over the past two weeks:
Bright pink felt cloche variation with stitched black ribbon trim by British milliner Jenny Roberts
Layered black and red sinamay straw hat by Zambian Dutch milliner Alice Ng’andwe Vermeulen
Stunning headpiece in purple and pink hand rolled organdie by British milliner Bee Smith
Beautiful bugle bead embroidery on this cherry red felt calot by Tasmania-based milliner Meghan Briton
For our dear gents, this handsome chocolate fedora with silk hatband by Danish brand Hornskov København
Deep claret felt beret percher with very fun feather pompoms by British milliner Awon Golding
Pink and purple felt fedoras with lovely pleated hatbands by German brand Bedacht Millinery
Love the sparkle on this sequin covered beret percher by Texas-based brand The Mad Duchess
Australian milliner Jill Humphries’ feather covered percher with flame twist in midnight blue
Beautiful colour and shape on this claret red felt fedora from British brand Christys Hats
Stunning headpiece in purple and pink hand rolled organdie by British milliner Bee Smith
Beautiful bugle bead embroidery on this cherry red felt calot by Tasmania-based milliner Meghan Briton
For our dear gents, this handsome chocolate fedora with silk hatband by Danish brand Hornskov København
Deep claret felt beret percher with very fun feather pompoms by British milliner Awon Golding
Pink and purple felt fedoras with lovely pleated hatbands by German brand Bedacht Millinery
Love the sparkle on this sequin covered beret percher by Texas-based brand The Mad Duchess
Australian milliner Jill Humphries’ feather covered percher with flame twist in midnight blue
Beautiful colour and shape on this claret red felt fedora from British brand Christys Hats
From Dutch milliner Eugenie van Oirschot, this showstopping hat in navy and royal blue silk that leaves me at a loss of words to describe.
Two interesting interviews: one with with Princess Madeleine about her family, work and life in Florida and the other with Her Majesty, Margareta on the 30th anniversary of her (and her family’s) return to Romania
I suspect I’ve missed a number of noteable royal events and hat outings over the past week but trust you’ll share them here to catch me up!
Photos from social media as indicated
Royal Hats 
HQ, my Youtube feed has just given me this video of Empress Masako on Jan 23 in her burgundy hat. There is a great closeup 1:24 to 2:06. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMxPZn4h2DM
(I would never have come across this video unaided, as I don’t use Japanese search terms LOL – so I’m grateful for the YT algorithm! I ‘m fascinated by Japanese public/ceremonial events, so hopefully YT will continue to offer me otherwise unsearchable material containing imperial hats again!)
The Eugenie Van Oirschot hat reminds me of the rotor blades of an aeroplane engine. The hat is absolutely gorgeous and I would love to wear it!!
The burgundy brimmed hat is beautiful on Masako, and looks like an even better version of our 2017 favorite repeated hat (https://royalhats.net/2018/01/26/readers-pick-top-repeated-royal-hats-of-2017/).
I really like this fedora on Zara, especially with her hair down. A great look that can be a bit dressier, but easy to wear anytime!
And whoever is getting a replica of one of our all-time favorite royal hats is extremely lucky!
Princess Benedikte opened the exhibition “100 years with Denmark – Southern Jutland since the reunion” on 17 January
http://kongehuset.dk/foto-video/hkh-prinsesse-benedikte-aabnede-udstillingen-100-aar-med-danmark-soenderjylland-siden-genforeningen
Thanks for posting! A fun unstructured shape in a great color.
Arguably my favourite look ever for Princess Benedikte. That hat is not for everyone, but on the princess it is perfection. And the red is outstanding.
I adore the red and black hat by Zambian Dutch milliner Alice Ng’andwe Vermeulen.
Interesting about the burgundy hat worn by Princess Yuriko and Princess Tsuguko.
On January 17th, Princess Kiko attended the 25th anniversary memorial ceremony of the Great Hanshin Earthquake in Kobe.
Back on December 1st, Princess Yoko attended the 53rd Miyasama Charity Bowling Tournament.
HQ: How do you do it? Even with a full plate, you come through with the goods! I hope all is going well for you.
1. Zara looks fantastic in her casual fedora!
2. The Ruby red Jane Taylor hat is everyone’s favorite – a real beauty.
3. Your “Caught My Eye” department was outstanding this week!
4. Queen Elizabeth and opera diva Kiri Te Kanawa went to church together today. HM wore a black fur coat that dates back to at least 2005.
Embed from Getty Images
Dame Kiri, really? I didn’t know that she and HM were friends. Both ladies look great.
Kiri Te Kanawa went to church with the Queen. You stopped me in my tracks with that one Jimbo! She’s such a remarkable talent, and if you Google the hat that she wore to Prince Charles and Princess Diana’s wedding, it holds up even today. The color is so lovely. I can’t locate a photo on Gettyimages, but here’s an article from the gov’t of NZ: https://nzhistory.govt.nz/page/kiri-te-kanawa-sings-royal-wedding
I looked at these pics of the Queen on another site without reading the captions first, and found myself musing, ” gosh that Lady-in-Waiting’s resemblance to Kiri Te Kanawa is uncanny”. What a surprise to discover that it was the Dame herself!
I do love HM’s fur hats. And I love the look of black hats on HM all the more, now that her hair is fully silver – the silver adds lustre, depth and contrast to a black hat like no other hair colour can.
Thanks so much for putting your time into the Extras while you are attending to the HQM, HatQueen. I appreciate the story about Margareta of Romania, HatQueen. She really sounds devoted to her country.
Earlier in the week, someone posted a comment on another blog about Princess Benedikte looking chic in a fuzzy red hat. Alas, no link, and my Google search didn’t turn up anything. Has anyone seen that?
The Jane Corbett hat photos are amazing. That is one lucky recipient. I hope she’s one of your followers and can dazzle us with a photo!
– I love the color and style of the bright pink felt cloche with stitched black ribbon trim by British milliner Jenny Roberts. I immediately think of CP Mette-Marit in these shapes, but since she doesn’t often wear hats anymore, perhaps her beautiful daughter Princess Ingrid might wear this.
– Such beautiful layered colors on the sinamay straw hat by Zambian Dutch milliner Alice Ng’andwe Vermeulen. A great talent for us to now eagerly watch! I think Queen Mathilde would look lovely in this.
– the pink and purple felt fedoras with lovely pleated hatbands by German brand Bedacht Millinery are like eye candy! And then you look at the background in those photos and there’s more candy! I can see a lot of these designs on Queen Margrethe.
– I can see Lady Kitty Spencer in the sequin covered beret percher by Texas-based brand The Mad Duchess
– Zara Tindall would look great (again) in Australian milliner Jill Humphries’ feather covered percher with flame twist in midnight blue. The color is great, and, if I can steal a great line from Wies Mauduit “I love her mathematical precision” of the feathers.
– The claret red felt fedora from British brand Christys Hats would look great on Autumn Phillips.
I share in your enthusiasm for Jane Corbett’s trilby. That’s a very lucky customer, indeed. So fun to imagine that it’s one of us!
Great picks, as always! I love the idea of one of those fedoras for Queen Margrethe and the sequinned beret for Lady Kitty. I can imagine the pink cloche for Queen Mathilde as well as Princess Ingrid.
Empress Masako looking gorgeous in her burgundy felt hat, one of her best!
I agree! That color is dynamite on her!
Yes!
Each and every hat by Eugenie van Oirschot is a delight for the eyes. I love her mathematical precision!
The headpiece by Bee Smith is actually made of petals of hand rolled organdie, not feathers. Organdie rolling was a much used technique in millinery in the 1950’s and 60’s. There is a happy revival these days, thanks to old milliners passing on their skills to younger ones.
You are a blessing to us Wies with your extensive knowledge. The hand rolled organdie tidbit is wonderful and adds to the amazing craftsmanship of the hats.
You’ve reported to us that there is not much hat-wearing in your country, Wies, so where are those Eugenie van Oirschot hats going?
And I’m echoing Shanon’s appreciation of your professional perspective. Organdy rolling — so fascinating, and what a beautiful result.
Though the Netherlands are a comparitively small country, I never met Eugenie, so I can’t ask her. But I’m sure there are women of character who buy and wear her hats. She also makes (or made?) some wholesale hats. Simpler designs, but still very interesting and mathematical. And some of her “one-of’s” will end up in museums, for they are true works of art!
I include two pictures of the results of an organdie rolling workshop I did with five other milliners last year. No fingertips left at the end of two days, but such fun! The caption in the second picture tells a bit more about the milliners who still share this technique.
Oh, thank you for these photos and for your insight into the Bee Smith headpiece.
I have learned so much about millinery by reading your comments on this blog.
I don’t really think that everyone in your country knows each other, just that you might have some professional contact with other milliners!
“No fingertips left,” indeed! I can imagine that this must be labor intensive, but your results are exquisite. So interesting to think of the technique getting passed on from one milliner to another.
Mittenmary, I’m sorry if my comment sounded ironical, I didn’t mean to! Indeed there is a milliner’s association (the Dutch Hat Association) of which I’m a member, but Eugenie is not. So I know or have met quite some fellow milliners, but not her. She is an internationally renowned and respected teacher and teaches abroad. Our paths have yet to cross.
Absolutely stunning designs Wies! Thank you so much for sharing these gorgeous photos!
Much appreciation from me too, this info and pics are fascinating.