After admiring the incredible feather work on your choices for favourite royal hats of 2019 yesterday, our discussion item this week just had to be about… feathers!
We’ve already looked at which of Queen Elizabeth’s hats have the largest feathers but I can’t resist looking into all other millinery closets- which royal hat has the largest feather? Please note I’m not asking for the longest or tallest but the LARGEST!!
Photo from Getty as indicated
2019 saw some truly wonderful hats introduced into royal fashion- hats that awed, inspired and took our breath away. Throughout the year, dearest readers, you have narrowed down your favourite new hats and to a finalist list of nine standout and very beautiful designs. Here are your Favourite New Royal Hats of 2019:
Embed from Getty Images
Queen Máxima’s tawny pink straw saucer covered in pearl-centered feather flowers by Berry Rutjes worn for her Royal Ascot debut on June 18
Embed from Getty Images
Autumn Phillips’ sage green felt beret percher with flying bow and cut feather leaves by Sally Ann Provan, styled by Annie Miall, worn on September 9 to the Braemar Games
Embed from Getty Images
Autumn Phillips’ lattice straw saucer with large silk roses and feathers by Sally Ann Provan.styled by Annie Miall, worn to Ascot on June 22
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
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
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?
Photo from Getty as indicated
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
The Countess of Wessex has stepped out in an elegantly draped collar, pale Armani coat on numerous occasions, four with different hats:
Look 1: with a Jane Taylor rounded pillbox hat in leopard print velour felt trimmed with a flat black bow on the side, worn on Christmas Day, 2014
Look 2: with a pheasant feather covered beret cocktail hat for Easter Sunday, April 5, 2015
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images
Look 3: with an angular, tall burgundy felt Philip Treacy cloche with flying bow on December 27, 2015 for church at Sandringham
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images
Look 4: with a Hicks & Brown casual camel felt fedora with overlapping pheasant feather hatband worn on December 23, 2019, again for church at Sandringham
It’s an interesting quartet of hats- which look do you think pairs best?
Photo from Getty as indicated; Splash News, ADavidson/GoffPhotos.com/Splash News and GoffPhotos.com/Splash News via Corbis
