After looking at the numerous new and repeated royal hats we saw in January, you have named two very clear winners:

Empress Michiko in a white saucer hat trimmed in pale teal silk roses and leaves in the Philippines on January 27

Queen Máxima in a black wide-brimmed Garbo hat by Fabienne Delvigne worn on January 6

As always, dearest readers, your choices show impeccable taste. While February has been a slower month of royal hats, stay tuned for a similar pair of polls on March 1. Jump over to the bottom of the original poll posts (new hats here and repeated hats here) to look at the results in greater detail.

Photos from Jay Directo via Getty and Patrick van Katwijk/dpa/Corbis

As introduced yesterday, we’re going to narrow down our favourite royal hats of 2016 by choosing favourites every month. Because some of our favourite designs of the year might be repeated hats, we’re going to include these in their own series of polls. As there are usually too many repeated hats every month to feature in a single poll, I will draw finalists from the hats that receive a particularly warm response in your comments.

Looking back over the repeated hats we saw in January, seven were met with particularly high praise. Click on any of the photos below to jump back to original posts with additional photos and information:

1.    2.

Countess of Wessex in a navy Jane Taylor fedora on January 3
Queen Máxima in a black wide-brimmed Garbo hat by Fabienne Delvigne on January 6

3.    4.    5.

The Duchess of Cambridge repeating a black felt cocktail hat with flower trim by Lock & Co. on January 10
Princess Benedikte in a raspberry felt brimless hat with stripes and black feather trim on January 16
Queen Sonja in a black brimless hat with veil and jewelled button trim for the Norwegian Silver Jubilee on January 17

6.    7.

Queen Margrethe in a rimmed white felt saucer with fur trim for the Norwegian Silver Jubilee on January 17
Queen Silvia in a purple silk bumper/calot with feather spray for the Norwegian Silver Jubilee on January 17

Voting will remain open until February 15 at midnight GMT and each computer or mobile device may vote once per day for as many hats as you like. Results will remain hidden until the poll closes. Happy voting!

Photos from Albanpix; Patrick van Katwijk/dpa/Corbis; Max Mumby via Getty;  Marijan Murat/dpa/Corbis;  NRK; Ragnar Singsaas and Ragnar Singsaas via Getty

This year, we’re going to take a different approach to choosing our favourite hats of the year. Instead of cramming December with multiple retrospectives and polls, we’re going to choose our favourite new and repeated hats at the end of each month. Next January, we’ll face off the favourites from each month to name top hats of 2016 (and add a third category for royal men’s hats). As there are usually too many hats every month to feature in a single poll, I will draw finalists from the hats that receive a particularly warm response in your comments.

Looking back over the new hats worn over the past month, eight stand out from your comments as the most memorable and successful new pieces. Click on any of the photos below to jump back to original posts with additional photos and information:

1.    2.   3.

Zara Philips in a blue feathered cocktail hat by Suzy O’Rourke Millinery on January 8
Zara Philips a woven headpiece in navy straw by Danica Erard on January 9
Queen Elizabeth in a split crown winter white felt hat by Angela Kelly on January 10

4.  5.

Queen Sonja in a hat with wide fur collar brim for the Norwegian Silver Jubilee celebrations on January 17
Princess Beatrix in a mushroom grey felt brimmed hat with metallic straw sash trim on January 23

6.  7.  8.

Princess Tsuguko in a winter white felt fedora with flower embellishment at the back on January 26
Crown Princess Masako in a blue velvet Bretton hat with black ribbon trim on January 26
Empress Michiko in a white saucer hat trimmed in pale teal silk roses and leaves while in the Philippines on January 27

Voting will remain open until February 14 at midnight GMT and each computer or mobile device can vote once per day for multiple hats (this is to accommodate those readers who have multiple household members who wish to take part). To keep things mysterious, results will not be visible until the poll closes.

This is an experiment so please, let me know what you think. Stay tuned tomorrow for a similar poll relating to repeated hats we saw worn in January.

Photos from Media-Mode; Bradley Kanaris via Getty; Stella Pictures; Ragnar Singsaas via Getty;  Rpe/Albert Nieboer/dpa/Corbis;  Motoo Naka/AFLO/Nippon News/Corbis; Motoo Naka/AFLO/Nippon News/Corbis; and AFP/Jay Directo via Getty