Queen Máxima attended the 10th anniversary of Foundation Language at Sea (Taal aan Zee) that offers Dutch language lessons for foreign-speaking women, refugees and asylum seekers yesterday in The Hague.
For this event, she repeated her olivey-avocado hued green felt hat with flat crown and wide, cartwheel brim trimmed with Petersham ribbon brim binding, hatband, and back bow.
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We’ve previously seen this hat and dress worn with a houndstooth coat, but the ensemble works so much better without it, the slightly different shades of green working more harmoniously, especially in indoor lighting. Yes, the colour is not going to be everyone’s cup of tea but it’s unexpected, brave, bold and just plain interesting. What stands out more, however, is the brim shape, elongated in the front and gently curved downward at the back. It’s subtle but really great.
We’ve talked in the past about Queen Máxima’s large hat pins… pins she might have wished she’d employed on this day!
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Milliner: Fabienne Delvigne
Previously Worn: Dec 14, 2018; Nov 22, 2018; May 23, 2018
Today, the Dutch queen braved windy conditions again, attending the opening of A Beautiful Mess restaurant, a social and vocational support enterprise for refugees in Amsterdam.
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For this visit, she repeated her red felt Garbo hat trimmed with slim leather hatband. It’s a more casual piece that seems to have suited this event well; beyond casual, the unfinished edges of both the felt brim and the leather hatband and the floppy brim (the back brim falls back sharply unlike the beautiful curve in the hat above) just don’t read handmade or couture. I want to see royal hats finished and trimmed with greater technique and finesse.
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Milliner: Fabienne Delvigne
Previously Worn: Dec 1, 2016; October 14, 2014; November 8, 2013
Thoughts on these two vibrant hats on the Dutch queen?
Images from Getty as indicated
Royal Hats 
I love the chartreuse ensemble. Gorgeous!
These are just classic Máx looks and I love ‘em! The chartreuse with the olive hat is such a combo that only she would go for, it’s fabulous. And all that red - not for the faint hearted.
So glad that Máx is keeping the hat wearing, she’s totally unafraid to Queen it up.
I agree with your comparative analysis of the hats, HatQueen, but I think from the distance of a crowd, both ensembles would make the same bold impression. Maxima is the royal today who really embraces QEII’s philosophy of standing out so people can see her in a crowd, with her hats being a key part, and she’s to be applauded for it! I fear hat-wearing is increasing seen as too formal for modern royals, but I love Maxima’s approach.
…increasingly… (not sure if I can edit to correct typos!)
Avocado: The 1st photo of the last set shows just how soft and pliable the felt is. That’s a lot of acidic chartreuse ensemble – not for the faint-hearted.
Red: Too monochromatic for me; black or grey added, perhaps would soften the overall effect. The windy conditions show how flexible this hat is, also.
Max is keeping the Royal-hat-wearing tradition alive, and she’s to be applauded for it. Headbands and smaller headpieces don’t supply the millinery punch that is appreciated today by hat lovers the world over.
Max is such a good sport! She is laughing so hard!
I adore the chartreuse look 100%. The dress is gorgeous and the hat makes me swoon. The color is wonderful and the mismatch between hat and dress adds richness and depth.
I much preferred the chartreuse hat to the red. I also liked the look of both hats better without the outer layer – too much red when the Queen first arrived with everything monochrome and voluminous!
Good for Maxima that she continues to wear hats and jewels though, which many other royals seem to be abandonning.
This avocado and chartreuse ensemble has grown on me over the years, and I’m glad to see it again. However, the hat seems to have been placed back on Máxima’s head a bit haphazardly, leading to the brim looking a bit off-kilter from multiple angles. Oh well, at least it demonstrates she struggles with the elements just like we would, and they did manage to pop back out the dent. 😀
True, I don’t care for Delvigne’s finishing most of the time, but I don’t mind the more casual feel of this tomato red hat because it’s still made from velour felt, which looks more elegant than cheap wool felts or straws. In the end, I’m glad to see this hat again after so long.
Brava for Máxima continuing to bring out the hats for all sorts of occasions!