King Philippe and Queen Mathilde wrapped up a week long official visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo today, a week which saw the Belgian queen in two millinery designs. For their arrival at the N’djili International Airport in Kinshasa on June 7, Queen Mathilde repeated her pale woven pink calot with multi-loop side bow.
Designer: Fabienne Delvigne. Dress by Giambattista Valli
Previously Worn: Jul 10, 2019; May 19, 2016
On June 8, she wore a new red straw circular headpiece with draped ruffle bow on the side.
Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images
I know bandeau designs are not widely embraced by Royal Hats readers and I’m curious- how does this shape rate in comparison? I’ve warmed to ring-shaped headpieces over the years and see them as a good option for royal visits to tropical climates. The ruffled trim on this design isn’t particularly attractive on its own yet gives great movement and presence to the look of the overall piece.
Designer: Fabienne Delvigne “Rueda” design. Dress by Natan.
Previously Worn: This headpiece is new
On Saturday, Queen Silvia attended the opening of the National Museum in Oslo in a new hat, a cloche variation in vibrant blue with beautifully bound brim edge.
Queen Silvia has favoured the cloche shape and the jaunty angle of this one, which sits the hat back almost like a halo brimmed design, is a good variation. The star here is the colour and the slight sheen from the brim binding, that adds just the right punctuation to the monochrome look.
Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images
What do you think of this trio of hats?
Images from Getty as indicated
Royal Hats 
The arrival ensemble with the light pink calot is very lovely. Brava!
The red circlet hat looks nice at certain angles, but at others it feels quite awkward to me; I think a bandeau or a full calot would’ve been better when perched like this on her head, and the circlet part itself is so cylindrical that it feels more like an athlete’s sweatband.
It’s great to see Sonja in a new hat that’s also in a color we rarely see her in; she seems to prefer neutrals and warm/dark colors (like red), so this royal blue really shines on her. My only complaint is the necklace feels very chunky/clunky compared to the rest of the streamlined ensemble. P.S. I also quite like Harald’s tie.
I think Mathilde wears small hats very well, and on occasions like these where she may be the only hat-wearer, they seem particularly suitable. The pink one is a perfectly inoffensive hat, if not memorable in any way, and makes a nice pairing with the dress. I really like the red one from the front, I think it has presence and movement. I just don’t see what being a doughnut adds to it! From the side it simply looks less polished than a hat with a complete crown would.
Sonja’s hat is such a gorgeous colour, not a particularly memorable shape, but a good solid working hat, as it were.
In answer to your query re the donut versus bandeau styles – I do prefer the donut, as they are generally trimmed, like this one. What I have objected to in bandeaux is that they can be hardly more than a headband, which is IMO a poor substitute for a hat.
Recently though, bandeaux too have become fancier, with shaping, trim and added textural detail like beading, which brings them right into hat territory for me.
I do understand that a small plain headpiece can be beautifully crafted and needing excellent workmanship to produce – but I personally like a Royal Hat to bring something extra to an ensemble, especially in these days when hat wearing generally is reduced to formal occasions. Bring the Trim is my motto!
Queen Sonja looks so stylish and chic, love the hat.