Christening of Prince Alexander: Extended Family & Guests

After reviewing the hats and headpieces worn by Princess Sofia and members of the Swedish royal family to Prince Alexander’s christening last Friday, it’s now time to turn our attention to those worn by extended family and royal guests. The only foreign royal guests at this event were Prince Leopold and Princess Ursula of Bavaria (Prince Leopold is Prince Carl Philip’s godfather). Princess Ursula followed the trend set by the Swedish royal family, opting for a triple silk bow fascinator with cascade of feathers in pale sky blue. The headpiece is fun but its whimsical feel was at odds with her more streamlined and formal coat. I really like both pieces… but not together.

Princess Ursula, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats   Princess Ursula, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats

The Haga princesses were represented by Princess Margaretha, who did not wear a hat. Frida Bergström, partner of Princess Christina’s son Victor Magnusson who was named as one of Prince Alexander’s godparents, was one of just two members of the extended Swedish royal family to wear a full-on hat. In pale oyster grey straw, the large saucer hat features a gently sloped pyramid at the crown that extends to a slight point on the bottom brim; the hat is simply trimmed with a straw double bow with centre knot embellished with crystals. The scale of this piece works well on Friday and while the colour is not best for her, I like the hat simply because it stands out amidst all the other headbands and fascinators at this event.

Frida Bergström, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats Frida Bergström, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats Frida Bergström, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats Frida Bergström, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats

Countess Marianne Bernadotte of Wisborg repeated the silk flower and arrow trimmed gold feather headpiece she wore to King Carl Gustaf’s 70th birthday celebrations on April 30.  Mrs. Dagmar von Arbin (granddaughter of Prince Oscar Bernadotte) who at 100 years old is currently the eldest member of the Swedish royal family, topped her coral suit with a small black silk bow and net fascinator.

 Countess Marianne Bernadotte, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats   Dagmar von Arbin, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats

Countess Marianne Bernadotte and Dagmar von Arbin, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats

Countess Jill Bernadotte (wife of Count Bertil Bernadotte af Wisborg) topped her honeycomb suit with a natty navy straw hat trimmed in feathers. The shape of this piece is a little unusual but it works with Jill’s short hairstyle and fits well with the informality of this event.

Countess Jill Bernadotte, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats    Countess Jill Bernadotte, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats

Several members of Queen Silvia’s extended family were also in attendance. Bettina Aussems (wife of Silvia’s nephew Thomas Sommerlath) wore one of my favourite pieces of millinery at this event. Built on a base of transparent black straw, this cocktail hat is all about its central mass of striped feathers. The overall flower shape of the piece is so lovely and the gentle sense of movement provided by the swaying feathers (which were beautifully caught by even the slightest breeze) made me smile. I think this is a great example of how to do a hat at an informal event… and the royals could take note!

Bettina Aussems, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats Bettina Aussems, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats Bettina Aussems, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats

The other Sommerlath family members in attendance were Queen Silvia’s nephew Patrick, his wife Maline and their family. Maline wore a simple navy fascinator attached to a headband while the couple’s twin daughters Chloe and Anais wore darling floral trimmed headbands.

Maline Sommerlath & Family, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats

And that wraps up the hats and headpieces at this christening. Several of you have commented about the wide use of headbands and fascinators at this event and wondered if this is  a permanent millinery future direction the Swedish royal family. While the Swedish royal princesses have favoured smaller headpieces for several years, the King’s 70th birthday celebration in April showed that when royal hat ‘A game’ is required, the Swedish royals deliver. Prince Alexander is fifth in line to the throne and as such, his christening was a less formal event than those of Princess Estelle and Prince Oscar. I think the informal headpieces we saw here were simply a reflection of the overall informality of the event and not a permanent eschewing of hats.
Now that we’ve seen all the millinery worn for this occasion, are you able to choose your stand out favourites?
Photos from Olle Sporrong, Meli Petersson Ellafi, Anders Wiklund/TT, Jonas Ekstromer/TT, Henrik Montgomery and Claudio Besciani/TT via IBL and TT News Agency

Wrapping Up The Danish Summer Cruise

We have a lot of royal hatted events to catch up on today, dearest readers! First up is the last leg of Queen Margrethe’s late summer cruise. Last Thursday, the the royal yacht Dannebrog sailed into Rudkøbing Harbour for a two-day visit to Langeland Municipality (see the Queen’s view of this harbour entry in the video clip below).

For the first day of this two-day visit, Queen Margrethe repeated her pink straw hat with navy floral hatband. After all the nautical red and navy she wore on this trip, the vibrant pink was a nice departure.

Queen Margrethe, September 8, 2016 | Royal Hats

Queen Margrethe, September 8, 2016 | Royal Hats

Queen Margrethe, September 8, 2016 | Royal Hats

Queen Margrethe, September 8, 2016 | Royal Hats

Designer: unknown
Previously Worn: June 27, 2016June 3, 2016August 31, 2015June 26, 2015

It feels like we’ve all said whatever there is to say about this hat already… are there any new thoughts about it?

This Week’s Extras

Royal Hats

While there are still a few more hats and headpieces to look through from yesterday’s christening in Sweden, I’ll save those for Monday and get on with our regular weekend review. 

Infanta Elena and another fedora at a bullfight. ‘Nuff said. (Hola)

Princess Kiko in a prim white hat with blue pleated hatband to accompany her son, Prince Hisahito, on his birthday visit to the Imperial Palace (Getty)

Reader Laura passed on this retrospective of Queen Elizabeth and 30 hats worn to Ascot (Good Housekeeping)

Speaking of Ascot…I have long thought that one of the UK royals should collaborate with Scottish milliner William Chambers. This ostrich trimmed hat he shared this week would make SUCH a fantastic statement at the races!

Belgian milliner Fabienne Delvigne shared a peek at this new design – I wonder if we’ll see it again soon on a young Belgian or Dutch princess?!

View this post on Instagram

Elegance is ageless.

A post shared by Maison Fabienne Delvigne (@fdelvigne) on

 Royal Hats

Lovely photo shared by Princess Madeleine of young Prince Nicolas meeting a new equestrian friend (Princess Madeleine Facebook)

The British Royal family spotted today, headed out for a Highland picnic (Daily Mail)

Christening of Prince Alexander: Immediate Family

As with other recent Swedish christenings, today’s baptism of Prince Alexander was an family-centric affair. Queen Silvia debuted her third ‘grand-baby christening colour’ (she wore pink for the christenings of Princess Estelle and Prince Oscar and blue for the christenings of Princess Leonore and Prince Nicolas) along with a new hat.

Embed from Getty Images   Embed from Getty Images

In a modified calot shape (the back did not completely cover the crown of Silvia’s head), this design is entirely covered in silk hydrangea blossoms that cascade down onto the shoulders of her coordinating jacket. While the hat has a decidedly 1960s vibe to it (reminiscent of other past royal hats here and here), the flowers lend wonderful texture and celebratory feel to this piece, which is a beautiful colour on Queen Silvia.
Queen Silvia, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats   Queen Silvia, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats
Designer: unconfirmed
Previously Worn: This hat is new

Crown Princess Victoria topped her coral pink Elie Saab dress with a custom bowed headband made of the same lace. Any more use of lace on the headpiece would have been complete overkill but… this headpiece left me wanting more. I think this is another case where a neural straw percher could have done a lot to lift this all-lace ensemble and provide some much needed textural contrast.

Crown Princess Victoria, September 9, 2016 in Malinda Damgaard | Royal Hats   Crown Princess Victoria, September 9, 2016 in Malinda Damgaard | Royal Hats

Crown Princess Victoria, September 9, 2016 in Malinda Damgaard | Royal Hats    Crown Princess Victoria, September 9, 2016 in Malinda Damgaard | Royal Hats

While this headpiece fell completely flat for me, my heart was warmed by the matched hues of Victoria and Estelle’s frocks. So very sweet.

Embed from Getty Images   Embed from Getty Images
Designer: Malinda Damgaard
Previously Worn: This headpiece is new

Princess Madeleine topped her blue floral Erdem dress with a stylised double bow headpiece in navy and sky blue. The pointed shape of the bows saves the bow from saccharine cutesey-ness (barely) and the piece works well with Madeleine’s chignon hairstyle. I’m not a great fan of the piece but at an event that saw almost no real hats, it held its own.

Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images

Princess Madeleine, September 9, 2016 in Malinda Damgaard | Royal Hats

Princess Madeleine, September 9, 2016 in Malinda Damgaard | Royal Hats

Designer: Malinda Damgaard
Previously Worn: This headpiece is new

Inquisitive young Princess Leonore sported a white double hair bow.

Princess Leonore, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats   Princess Leonore, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats

Embed from Getty Images
Designer: I suspect Livly
Princess Sofia’s mother Marie matched her pink lace dress to a fascinator of straw leaves and feathers in the same hue.
Marie Rotman Hellqvist, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats   Marie Rotman Hellqvist, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats
Sofia’s sister, Lina Frejd, who was named as one of Prince Alexander’s godparents, topped her chic blue dress with a ruffled floral fascinator in pale grey, pinned to the back of her hair. Sofia’s other sister, Sara, wore a navy triple bow fascinator anchored to a headband. At an event with such pared-back millinery, the pieces worn by Hellqvist family members fit right in.
Lina Frejd, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats Lina Frejd, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats   Sara Hellqvist, September 9, 2016 | Royal Hats
 All in all, I’m afraid today’s royal millinery in Sweden was disappointing for me. My favourite piece here is Queen Silvia’s hat simply because it’s the only thing that comes close to being an actual hat. What are your impressions of the hats worn by the Queen and Swedish princesses today?