Author Archives: HatQueen

Favourite Repeated Royal Hat of 2019

Posted on by

In 2019, many lovely hats stepped out on royal heads for the second, third, (or ninth!) times. Throughout the year, you picked favouritea from these repeatedly worn designs and assembled a list of nine stunning semi-finalists for the year. It is now finally time to share your top four choices for Favourite Repeated Royal Hat of 2019:

Embed from Getty Images
Queen Elizabeth’s orange hat with magnolia blooms and brown straw leaves by Angela Kelly (made by Stella McLaren) worn March 7 to the Science Museum in London


Princess Hisako’s cream straw hat with black brim stripe and monochrome flowers worn September 24 for the Japan Sports Masters Tournament in Gifu Prefecture


Princess Alexandra’s pink straw picture hat with bow & feathers by Rachel Trevor Morgan worn to Ascot on June 18

Countess of Wessex’s natural straw cutout saucer with tan organdie twists and coral feathers by Jane Taylor worn for the Order of the Garter on June 17

This hat was also your pick for top repeated royal hat in 2018 (and made the top three in 2017!), making it the first design ever on Royal Hats to win two years running! Congratulations to British milliner Jane Taylor and the Countess of Wessex, whose millinery partnership is clearly a winning one, and to the other three milliners who designed these beautiful runners up. It’s a wonderful (and well deserved) surprise to see an Imperial royal hat in this year’s winner’s circle. 
Jump over to this post to see the poll results in greater detail. What do you think about these winners?
Photos from Gifu; Robin Utrecht via Shutterstock;  Pool/Max Mumby via Getty; and Getty as indicated 

Monday Multiples: Queen Máxima

Posted on by

Last week in Indonesia, Queen Máxima repeated a ruched brown straw toque-inspired headpiece with open crown. So far, she has paired this headpiece with three very different dresses:

Look #1: With a turquoise metallic silk dress embroidered with gold, silver, copper, bronze and black beads and sequins by Natan, worn for King’s Day in 2014

Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty ImagesQueen Máxima

Look #2: With a vibrant green draped sleeveless dress also by Natan, worn on July 7, 2015

 

Look #3: With a long coral floral print linen dress with balloon sleeves by Zimmerman, worn March 12, 2020 in Indonesia.

Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images

Which ensemble do you think works best with this headpiece?

Photos from Rpe/Albert Nieboer/dpa via Corbis and Getty as indicated 

This Week’s Extras

Posted on by

Yesterday, Empress Masako was photographed arriving for the Spring Equinox Festival at the Imperial Palace in an ecru silk covered hat with upturned Breton brim. This video shows Crown Princess Kiko, Princess Mako, Princess Kako and Princess Hisako arriving in cream silk bumper hats and Princess Tsuguko in a her cloche with short cartwheel brim.
King Harald and Queen Sonja and Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit shared greetings and words of encouragement along with photos of how they are keeping occupied in isolation


View this post on Instagram

God fredag❤️. Her kommer noen bilder herfra i denne spesielle tiden. Hos oss er det hjemmekontor ,telefonmøter, lekser, turgåing, bading og rutiner som holder moralen oppe. Haakon, barna og jeg sender mange gode tanker til alle som på hver sine hvis holder hjulene i gang om dagen. En ekstra hilsen til dere som føler dere mer ensomme nå. Og til alle som har blitt syke: Måtte dagene bli lettere snart. Min måte å finne ro ser du hvis du blar videre❤️ Sender @askerhusflidslag og Heidi en stor takk for lånet av hjemmevev! Hvis noen trenger boktips så kan jeg anbefale å ta opp igjen John Irving. Spesielt «Last night in twisted river» Irving skriver så levende historier at man kan unne seg å være midt i et annet univers en stund, og det er vel noe vi alle trenger nå.... En liten pause. Kommer med flere boktips etterhvert. Sender en klem her fra vevstua... ❤️🇳🇴❤️#sammenholdervimoralenoppe

A post shared by H.K.H Mette-Marit (@crownprincessmm) on

Several of you have commented on this re-post of Queen Margrethe making a dachshund hat. It’s certainly worth another watch!
I have no idea when this photo was taken but it shows one of the wives of  Swazi King Mswati III in a fun, deep red headpiece that I don’t remember seeing before.
The following new millinery designs caught my eye this week:

 Blue straw fedora with saucy brim with silver lace appliqué with hand embroidered sequins by Dutch milliner Wies Mauduit
Black beret percher rimmed in straw blooms and a straw bow by New York-based brand Suzanne Couture Millinery
Another bold and wonderfully vibrant sinamay headpiece by American milliner Amy Fowler
Lovely drape on this vibrant blue felt beret percher’s double bow by Australian milliner Neil Grigg
Exaggerated and striking white boater hat with tall crown and cutout brim by Korean milliner Q Park
Blue ombre bandeau headpiece of overlapping straw leaves by British milliner Bee Smith
Lovely mulberry felt fedora with extended brim and fantastic pheasant feathers by Kenya-based miliner Chloe Mitchell
Black and white straw saucer with flying rim trimmed with lace by American milliner Tiffany Arey
Mysteriously beautiful veiled black lace mask headpiece by British milliner Jane Taylor
Tan felt fedora with fascinating textured brim by Australian milliner Felicity Northeast
Two-toned blue sinamay percher with sweeping shape by New York-based milliner Sally Caswell
Futuristic black straw saucer brimmed design with orbiting planets by British brand Miss Ginny Millinery
Two blush leather halo bandeau headpieces with statement flowers here and here by Australian milliner Cessiah Alice
For our dear gents, this sleek black fedora with silk paisley hatband from Danish brand Hornskov København

And from British milliner Anne Tomlin, this amazing percher made from straw braid sewn with wire and formed into a caged button percher, trimmed with exquisite handmade lily-of-the-valley and silk abaca leaves.
View this post on Instagram

Lily-of-the valley are harbingers of brighter days ahead. Green is the colour of hope and is connected with the colour of springtime; hope represents the faith that things will improve after a period of difficulty, like the renewal of flowers and plants after the winter season regardless of the virus. Pollution levels are now lower and that can only be a good thing for nature to thrive and improve our immune systems. Maybe there will be things to learn after this crisis enabling us to rethink how we live our lives and how we can protect our natural world. 🌿 I made this very delicate hat for a competition. It didn't win but to me it it will always be a winner. Looking at it makes me happy and emotional. I loved the challenge of making a hat completely by hand. Sewing the wire in to the straw braid and hand sewing the edges took days but it was a really therapeutic project. 🌿 It currently sits under a big glass dome looking very green and positive. I hope it brings you some cheer in these difficult times. 🌿 A big thank you to my beautiful friend Sue @cesuemac for modelling it with such serenity and for Ian my photographer @skellu 🌱🌿🌱🌿 #lilyofthevalley #handmade #flowermaker #silkflowers #millinerymaker #millineryflowers #positivenews @bumble_mag @selvedgemagazine @bloom_the_magazine @hortusjournal #greenforce #healing #beautifulobjects #environment #botanical #naturecure #lookafteryourself #craftmanship #creativelifehappylife #hatalkcompetition

A post shared by Anne Tomlin (@annetomlinflowers) on

Happy news from Bhutan on the safe arrival of a new prince on Thursday.
View this post on Instagram

❀ Announcement ❀ We are honoured to announce the birth of the second Royal Child of Their Majesties The King and Queen, a Prince, on the 19th of March 2020, corresponding with the 25th day of the 1st month of the Male Iron Rat year, in Lingkana Palace, Thimphu. Her Majesty and the royal baby are in good health, and His Royal Highness The Gyalsey was delighted to meet his younger brother. Their Majesties express their gratitude to the medical team, the Zhung Dratshang and to everyone for their well-wishes and prayers. While this remains a very happy occasion for the Royal family and the nation and people of Bhutan, Their Majesties wish to remind all Bhutanese to be mindful, responsible and supportive to each other in the wake of the COVID-19 virus. Their Majesties have everyone whose lives have been affected by this global pandemic in their thoughts and prayers. (Royal photograph taken in February 2020) #RoyalBaby #Bhutan #Prince

A post shared by His Majesty King Jigme Khesar (@kingjigmekhesar) on

The Belgian princes and princesses sharing waffles with the staff and residents of two nursing homes.
View this post on Instagram

⁣ ⁣ Solidair met de meest kwetsbaren: huisgemaakte wafels voor de bewoners en zorgpersoneel van twee rusthuizen en telefonische contacten met eenzame bejaarden. Samen sterk tegen Corona!⁣ —————⁣ Solidarité avec les personnes âgées : gaufres faites maison pour les résidents et le personnel soignant de deux maisons de repos et contacts téléphoniques pour soutenir les personnes âgées isolées. Tous ensemble contre le Corona !⁣ —————⁣ Solidarity with the most vulnerable: home-made waffles for the residents and nursing staff of two nursing homes and telephone conversations with lonely elderly people. Strong together against Corona!⁣ ⁣ #Belgianwaffles #waffles #wafels #gaufres #belges #gauffres #ouderen #elderly #personnesâgées #SamenTegenCorona #EnsembleContreCorona #GemeinsamGegenCorona #confinement #TogetherAgainstCorona #Corona #Covid_19 #COVID19BE #CoronaVirus #BelgianRoyalPalace #MonarchieBe

A post shared by Belgian Royal Palace (@belgianroyalpalace) on

What are you doing to spread support and encouragement these days?

Photos from social media as indicated

Hat From the Past

Posted on by

Royal Hats thirty years to March 21, 1990 and a tour of Cameroon that saw Diana, Princess of Wales in a wide-brimmed pink straw picture hat with layered hatband and slightly pinched (like a safari hat!) crown by Philip Somerville.

Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images

Photo from Getty as indicated

Most Flowers?

Posted on by

While many of us are practicing social isolation during this global health crisis, I thought it was a good time to bring back the weekly hat questions that have entertained us during quiet periods in the past (see an index of the hat shapes and trims we’ve explored here) and given us hours of fun research!

We’re going to restart this series back in Queen Elizabeth’s hat closet. We’ve seen her hats with the largest flowers  but which one of her hats contains the most number of flowers? Or has flowers covering the largest surface area?

Embed from Getty Images

Photo from Getty as indicated

Countess of Wessex’s Commonwealth Day Hats

Posted on by

The Commonwealth Day service, held every year on the second Monday in March, always brings us a lovely lineup of hats, often the first spring designs we see of the season. After last week’s beautiful service, I thought it might be interesting to look back at retrospectives of hats we’ve seen different members wear. Interestingly, the Countess of Wessex has only attended the service four times:

Embed from Getty Images  Embed from Getty Images
Sharply sidesweeping grey slice hat with open weave brim and pale pink feather trim by Jane Taylor in 2012;
Ecru lace covered beret percher with multi looped bow also by Jane Taylor in 2014

Embed from Getty Images  Embed from Getty Images
Navy  straw percher with swirling cream and gold feather trim in 2018 and navy felt domed pillbox with dotted veil in 2020, both by Jane Taylor

While all four hats could be described as having neutral palates, they each still make a significant style statement! The large grey hat with pink feathers in 2012 is one I’ve hoped we’d see again- even though the feather placement is a little awkward, it’s such a showstopping design and paired so beautifully with Sophie’s oyster silk coat.

What does this progression of four hats, worn over eight years, tell you about the Countess’ evolution of millinery style?

Photos from Getty as indicated

Monday Multiples: Queen Elizabeth

Posted on by

Thanks to Jimbo for providing the introduction and background research for this “Monday Multiples” series.

Jimbo’s Introduction: Today, we have two very different white hats with red trim, both paired with the same bold red coat. When traveling the globe, Queen Elizabeth “must be seen to be believed,” as she herself stated long ago. These hats were worn in Canada, Germany and Portugal and she certainly stood out well with this wonderful color combination.

Look #1: A white veiled pillbox by Ian Thomas trimmed with large red silk poppies on the back. First worn in Canada on September 24, 1984 and repeated in Berlin on May 27, 1987

Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images

Look #2: White straw cloche with upturned, sidesweeping short brim piped in red binding, also trimmed with large red silk poppies, this time placed on the side. Worn March 27, 1985 on a state visit to Portugal

Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images

What’s interesting here is that the first hat was repeated after the second one was introduced (not a common pattern) and both are trimmed by those distinctive red silk poppies! I can’t imagine the poppies were removed from one hat, placed on the other, then returned to the first, and it seems a bit peculiar to commission two white hats for this coat, both bedecked with the same trim. Puzzling indeed. I think, Jimbo, you have uncovered a millinery conundrum!

Which hat do you think paired best with this coat?

Photos from Getty as indicated