The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended a Service of Commemoration and Thanksgiving commemorating Anzac Day today at Westminster Abbey.
For this event, the Duchess wore a new halo bandeau headpiece covered in textured white tweed. A large black silk bow trims the piece across the back, joining the sides together in a circle.
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The headpiece pairs beautifully with Kate’s coat dress, its texture and black bow contrasting with the sleek lines of the coat. The pieces combine to create an elegantly restrained ensemble that well suited this event.
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Designer: ‘Calypso Halo’ by Jane Taylor. Coat dress by Alexander McQueen
Previously Worn: This headpiece is new
What do you think of Kate’s new hat in London today?
Images from Getty as indicated
Royal Hats 
Love this hat! The whole ensemble is regal from the center part in her hair to her lovely brooch holding her poppy to the tweed bandeau. Black accessories finish off the look and the bandeau is the crowning glory.
Never been a fan of the headbands but I dislike this one more than most. I wish she would wear a “real” hat.
Whilst I was not a fan of the hatband, this halo style is lovely. I like the flared shape, and the way it curves over the head. I’m also liking this current trend for using tweed, which gives interesting texture to simple outlines. The black bow was perfect for both the event and to stop the ensemble being over-matched, yet not bitty. It’s a 10 out of 10 fom me.
Forgive me for another terminology correction… a hatband is the band around the base of a hat’s crown, where it meets the brim. A hatband is not actually a style of hat.
Thanks Boss! I meant the padded bandeau styles seen recently, which look to my eyes like a hybrid of a hairband and hat.
It was great to see such an attractive hat on Kate today. I’m becoming quite partial to the pretty padded head-band look. It does not look at all juvenile to me – quite the contrary.
I think after years of very cute cocktail hats tilted fetchingly over one brow, it takes our eyes a minute to adjust to new proportions. I applaud Kate for switching it up.
I like this halo bandeau on the Duchess and I think it’s beautifully made. It pairs well with the elegant coat dress and the black accessories. But overall I would have preferred a full pillbox design for this occasion.
This looks nice, but I wish the Duchess had of worn a hat instead.
I’m afraid I cannot like these headbands at all…..on anyone. It’s a no from me.
As I understand, a headband is a slim, flat band that sits directly on the head. They are often used to hold hair in place although might also be worn over the forehead, horizontally around the head, as the examples below illustrate. A bandeau, such as Kate wore today, is visibly wider.
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This is very beautiful, and the shape of the headpiece reminds me of the fabric Kokoshniks worn by the Russian Grand Duchesses. The black and white palette, accentuated with her accessories is gorgeous. This is a much worn coat absolutely elevated by this lovely piece.
My ooooooonly quibble is that the headband is not dissimilar to the one worn for Prince Louis’s christening, which could easily have been retrimmed for this event.
James, I think she has at least two versions of this outfit, one in white and the pale-creamy yellow worn for The Sussexes wedding. There is a difference between the two but it’s so minor I can’t remember what it is!
She does; the colour difference between the two is practically imperceptible though. This is one, and the other is very pale primrose. She also has it in blue, that’s only been seen once though.
I also immediately thought of the knotted sisal bandeau from Louis’ christening when I saw this headpiece today. That was a beautiful piece, although in its original form too festive for today’s occasion; but as JamesB said, it could be retrimmed for a more somber look.
While Kate looks elegant as usual and I know this halo headpiece is constructed well, I’ve just always found this particular design odd and honestly not flattering in general for anyone, especially when viewed from the side. But clearly other people like them, and that’s what helps make the world go round!
Interesting, fabric and colour..white..
It looks like a tiara. I do think the black bow adds to and completes it.
It almost looks too Royal..a hat might be nicer.
It really does look almost like a tiara — I didn’t quite put my finger on that until you said so! I actually like this quite a bit, and the textured fabric sets it apart from the dress, avoiding a matchy feeling, with the all-white look emphasizing the importance of the occasion. It is indeed, as HQ stated, an elegant ensemble.
HQ, thanks for including the rear view of this bandeau – a great shot at the rear bow, as well as Kate’s beautiful hair! I like the different textures derived from this entire ensemble.
I like this very much. I’ve always suspected a Kokoshnik tiara would suit her and this headpiece only confirms that view. Hopefully, QEII will oblige and pass one on to Kate to wear.
The oversized bow is much better than the bow on Sophie’s headpiece worn for the DoE’s memorial service.
I really like the black bow but I wish she wore a real hat.
In recent weeks, comments have crept back onto Royal Hats with statements about certain styles of millinery being a “real hat”. The implication is that bandeau styles, in particular, are not.
A fabric covered halo bandeau such as this is created with the same techniques as a pillbox or brimmed hat- a base is blocked (likely of buckram or sinamay in this case) that once dried, is overlaid in fabric using couture methods of sewing and construction. The piece would be wired, lined and finished, making the start-to-finish process one that spans more than a day and includes hand stitching at multiple levels. I understand that these headpieces might not appear to be as involved to make as other styles of hats but they are.
While bandeau designs might not be to everyone’s taste, the skill and technique required to create one such as this makes it a very “real” and legitimate piece of millinery. When a comment suggests otherwise… well, it makes my heart break for the milliner who created the piece. My day is so much better when I don’t need to remove a comment for this reason!
I absolutely understand and appreciate your comments about the skills needed to make pieces like this bandeau, HatQueen, and that they are millinery in the same way as other styles. However, I hope you don’t mind my saying that I feel there’s a perfectly legitimate point of view that a “hat” by definition has some sort of crown, however, exiguous (am I right in thinking that’s what the Ascot definition is?), and when people are making comments about “real” hats, I suspect it’s this sort of definitional aspect they are talking about, not any disparagement of the making of it at all, but the style in general. And surely it’s legitimate to feel that some styles of millinery (however they are referred to) are more suitable to some occasions or outfits than others?
You raise an interesting point. What do we do about saucer hats, which often don’t have a crown distinguishable from a brim? Are they “real” hats or not?!
The issue for me is the word “real.” Take that out, and we don’t have any issue!