One of my favourite dresses in the Countess of Wessex’s closet is a vibrant green design from Suzannah with collared boatneck, black bow belt and full pleated skirt. Sophie has paired this stunning dress with three black Jane Taylor hats:
Look #1: With a black straw pillbox trimmed with vintage straw braid detail worn for a VE Day Service of Thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey on May 10, 2015.
Look #2:With a black felt button percher with silk abaca overlay and triple bow worn June 15, 2015 for the Order of the Garter Service at St. George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle.
Look #3: With a dramatic, wide waved disc straw hat with floral vine worn for Trooping the Colour on June 8, 2019
Which hat do you think pairs best with this dress?
Photos from Getty as indicated
Royal Hats 
I love this dress. I think the hats suit the occasions she wore them. No.3 would have looked wrong at any other occasion, no. 2 might have been ok for occasion no.3 but looks absolutely appropriate for the Garter ceremony. Hat no.1 is my favorite however. It is very appropriate for the occasion it was worn for, at a memorial, but would have looked wrong at the other 2 occasions. Well done Sophie
You make an excellent point, Audrey- part of what makes a hat look great is it making the right statement for the event it is worn to. This trio of hats show, despite them all being black hats, how different that statement can be.
I like both #1 and #2 but the bows in the second hat look great with the bow at the waist. I really dislike that I can see how hat #3 balanced on her head. Seeing the black cap thing (what is the technical name?) spoils the magic.
I like all the hats!!! But, today, the 1st hat hit me as looking the best. Very classic and a very 50’s hat(or was that the 60’s when pill box hats were all the rage?) for a very 50’s style dress! Tomorrow I might choose a different hat because I honestly like them all.
I’m normally not a percher fan, but I think #2 (black button percher) is the perfect foil for the full-skirted green dress. She looks fantastic in it!
I’m “meh” on #3 and a very loud “NO!” on the pillbox, which looks like it’s about to slide off of Sophie’s head.
I prefer Hat #3 followed by #2. The dress really is a beautiful shade of green that Sophie wears so well.
It’s definitely Hat #2 for me! I adore the bright apple green color of this dress, and the shape flatters Sophie so well. I also love this cocktail hat with the way the silk abaca is draped over the velour felt base (the cocktail/percher hat style in general is one of my favorites); like JamesB said, the height perfectly balances out the fuller skirt. This is one whole ensemble repeat I would love to see again soon!
I agree with everyone that all 3 hats look great. I have always loved hat 3 with this dress, but my choice today is hat #1. I really like the 1950s vibe is gives.
I’m with you on that! The first hat matches the period look of the dress.
Third is my fav. The skirt and the wide brim give a good balance of movement to each other.
I agree a joy the dress, it’s absolutely stunning. I think this was the first time Sophie embraced that fuller skirted 50s silhouette, which she has gone for a lot since. You can see why, it’s amazing on her. Only quibble with the dress is the collar which is a little messy. If it were folded over it would stand cleaner.
Re the hats; All of them! I think the third is my favourite hat, but the second is my favourite pairing with the dress, the height added by the bow just balances out the filler skirt beautifully. But all of them are stellar looks.
my thoughts exactly!
I would select the third hat as well. I like all the hats but the larger brim compliments the dress the best.
All of these hats look good with this dress, which I like very much. Actually almost any black hat to match the belt would look good. I prefer the third look. It is one of my favourite of Sophie’s hats anyway, with that meandering vine trim, but the width of the hat balances the fullness of the skirt to improve the overall look on the duchess.