Cambridges Kick Off Day 1 In Sweden

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The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge arrived in Sweden late last night and kicked off their visit officially this morning on an informal note, visiting an outdoor ice-skating venue in the center of Stockholm. For this event, where they watched a youth bandy hockey game and tried their hand at shooting a goal, Kate sported a chunky knit wool hat in grey and silver topped with a dark-gray faux fur pompom.  William wore a burgundy wool knit hat with a cream Nordic design.

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Designers: Kate’s hat is Eugenia Kim’s Rain with Faux Fur Beanie. William’s hat is the Burgundy Snow Star Bobble Hat from Gandys London.
Previously Worn: 
The Duke and Duches were greeted at the Royal Palace in Stockholm by Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel and the two couples walked together to Stortorget (central town square) and the Nobel Museum. For this part of the program, the Duchess of Cambridge repeated her black alpacca fur hat with wide, cuffed brim.

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Kate added three alpaca hats to her wardrobe in the past year, a move that some of you predicted would bring many repeats for these designs at cold weather events – no doubt, it’s a practical choice for this kind of event in the middle of Swedish winter. Beyond practicalities, the coat pairs beautifully with Kate’s new dark green coat- the trio of  hat, collar and cuffs (the latter two are faux fur, I believe) is wonderfully luxurious and sets off the coat so well.

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Visits like these, which are decidedly less formal than a state event, must be difficult hit the right note of fashion formality. I thought Kate was right on point today- what did you think of her hats?

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Photos from Getty as indicated

Inventory: Princess Victoria’s Red Hats

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One millinery closet we have yet to peek into during our inventory series is the one belonging to Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden. We’re going to remedy that today with a look at all the red designs in Princess Victoria’s wardrobe. Surprisingly, there are just three for us to view-  here they are in the order they were introduced:

1.May 20, 2003 | Royal Hats  2.Nov 19, 2005 in Fabienne Delvigne | Royal Hats 

Designer: unknown ( I suspect Britta von Koenigsegg); Fabienne Delvigne
First Worn: May 20, 2003; November 19, 2005

3.Dec 1, 2017 in Corinne Hair Accessories | Royal Hats     

Designer:  Corinne Hair Accessories Leather Bowtie
First Worn: December 1, 2017

Princess Victoria does not wear hats to most regular engagements but even so- the amount of state functions she has attended over the years as a full-time, working royal leaves me surprised at this small group. Even more interesting is the 12 year gap between #2 and #3. I’m truly astounded have not been repeated- they are both classically styled pieces that, paired with the right ensembles, could work without looking dated today. The draped hatband on #1 is an especially lovely detail.

We’re going to have to delve further into the other hues of hats in Princess Victoria’s wardrobe to see if this trend continues- I have a hunch we’re going to be surprised by how few hats she actually has. In the meantime, what do you think of these red designs?

Photos from IBL; Pool via Getty; Jonas Ekstrommer/TT

This Week’s Extras

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Royal Hats

The Royal House of Norway released a new photo of Princess Ingrid last weekend, taken by her father Crown Prince Haakon, to mark her 14th birthday.

King Carl Gustaf in his trusty fedora and Queen Silvia in a fur hat on Tuesday for their visit to Kiruna (Swedish Monarchy)

Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Daniel, Princess Estelle and Prince Oscar in cosy knit wool hats to open a multisports facility in Daniel’s hometown on Thursday.  The prince also donned hockey gear for a charity match.

Her Majesty Margareta, Custodian of the Crown, celebrated her nation’s Union Day on January 24 in a black wool hat with a brown fur cuff bumper brim (Royal Family of Romania)

Jan 24, 2018 | Royal Hats Jan 24, 2018 | Royal Hats Jan 24, 2018 | Royal Hats

Princess Kiko wore a new black felt cloche with diagonal crown wrap on Wednesday to the Japanese Olympic team’s send off to the Pyeong Chang Olympics. While so similar to Queen Elizabeth’s diagonal wrapped crown cloche hats, this one somehow feels much more modern and sleek.

Jan 24, 2018 | Royal Hats

Also on Wednesday, Princess Alexandra wore a black hat with grey faux fur cuff brim for a visit to The Old Moat Garden Centre in Epsom.

The following new millinery designs caught my eye this week:

Feathered Philip Treacy masterpieces here and here on the Valentino show runway in Paris
Interesting shape on this teardrop saucer with silk rose trim by Jane Taylor
Black leather button with net veil brim and cream leather flowers from Australian brand Jill and Jack Millinery
Two brimless designs from Bundle McLaren with a wonderful feather flourish and green feather overlay 
Lavishly trimmed cocktail hat by Australian brand Millinery by Mel proves brown hats aren’t always boring
Classic black straw upsweep with white feather flowers from Marilyn Vanden Berg
Bumper with the most charming bow in the loveliest shade of blue from UK brand Mind Your Bonce
Sharp red straw boater with striped navy and white ribbon trim from Australian milliner Julia Watson
Simple, wearable but beautiful grey felt hat with upturned brim from Dutch milliner Myra van de Korput
A  trio of whimsically embellished helmets from New York milliner Carol Markel

And an exquisite lace, silk flower and net veil headpiece from Vivienne Sheriff’s upcoming summer collection.

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 Royal Hats

Congratulations to Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank on the announcement of their engagement. While we’ve yet to hear details, this means potentially two major hatted events (in addition to Trooping the Colour and Ascot etc.) for the British Royal Family in 2018. BRING ON THE HATS.

Peek at the lovely photo King Albert and Queen Paola used for their Christmas card this season

Prince Jacques of Monaco and Princess Gabriella of Monaco accompanied their parents last night for the annual ceremony of Sainte-Devote

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We end this week with a The Prince of Wales reading “My Heart’s In The Highlands”, shared in honor of poet Robert Burns’ birthday yesterday.

Photos from The Asahi Shimbun via Getty; Daniel Angelescu via the Royal Family of Romania

Readers’ Pick: Top New Royal Hats of 2017

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While the contest for top repeated royal hat is always an interesting one, the ultimate award here at Royal Hats goes to the design chosen as Favourite New Royal Hat of the Year. 2017 was a great year of new designs- we saw 290 new royal hats and substantial headpieces. As we were introduced to each one, we discussed its merits, its flaws, and its suitability to the wearer. Some we liked, some we did not. And some we absolutely adored.

From this group of 290 designs, you chose eleven favourites- one dome, three perchers, one pillbox, two upsweeps,a cartwheel, two saucers, and a boater.  When it came time to cast your vote, you chose a clear winner, although the runners up were exceptionally close (just fifty votes between second and sixth place). Your top choices and winner of Readers’ Favourite New Royal Hat Design of 2017 are:

 

Dec 25, 2017 in Emily London | Royal Hats

Autumn Phillips’ red velvet button percher with bow and jewelled picks from Emily London  worn Dec 25

 

Duchess of Cambridge’s pink button percher with triple crin ruffle trim by Jane Taylor worn June 17

 

Nov 19, 2017 in Gallia e Peter | Royal Hats

May 20, 2017 | Royal Hats

Princess Anne’s cream straw hat with upswept brim and curling feathers worn May 20 in Scotland

 

June 21, 2017 in Jane Taylor | Royal Hats

Countess of Wessex’s plum straw oversized boater with silk roses by Jane Taylor at Ascot June 21

Your favourite royal hats at Ascot each June often become top choices for the year and this hat, which initiated so much positive chatter at its debut, is no exception. What did surprise me, however is the runner up- a lovely hat on a royal head we don’t associate as being particularly fashionable. It’s also wonderful to see Princess Charlene, who doesn’t wear many hats, crack the top three for the second year in a row. Special congratulations to British milliners Jane Taylor and Emily London and Italian milliner Gallia e Peter (along with whoever designed and made Princess Anne’s hats) for their very fine work on these pieces. 

Jump over to this post to see each of the eleven finalists and full poll results. You can also see past winners over at the Fan Favourites page.

Photos from  Ward/WENN.com ORG XMIT: wenn33520371;  Max Mumby/Indigo and SC Pool/Corbis via Getty; Church of Scotland;  Max Mumby/Indigo via Getty

Readers’ Pick: Top Repeated Royal Hats of 2017

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In 2017, we saw 390 repeated royal hats (not counting military uniform hats, casual sports hats or embellished headbands) step out for a variety of different public events including state visits, family celebrations, racing events, charity visits, memorials and regular daytime engagements. Each month, you named your favourite designs and from here, we assembled a list of eleven semi-finalists. You cast your votes and a clear winner emerged. Without further ado, here are the your top choices and winner of Top Repeated Royal Hat Design of 2017.


Duchess of Cornwall’s pale blue straw upsweep with large rose by Philip Treacy worn at Ascot June 21

 

Sep 29, 2017 in Jane Taylor | Royal Hats

Countess of Wessex’s blue swirled straw percher with crin flowers by Jane Taylor worn Sep 29

 

Oct 5, 2017 in Jane Taylor | Royal Hats

Countess of Wessex’s  natural straw saucer with lattice brim and coral feather by Jane Taylor worn in Brunei Oct 5

 

Mar 21, 2017 in Susanne Juul | Royal Hats

Crown Princess Mary’s black Susanne Juul hat with tall felt crown, straw brim & feather quills on Mar 21

 

 

 
Crown Princess Masako’s dark burgundy hat with double hatband worn Dec 5
Dearest readers, you often surprise me (something I adore!) and I must admit I didn’t foresee an Imperial royal hat walking away with this title! I’ll also admit that this is not my pick for this award, as beautiful as it is. For those of you who voted for Crown Princess Masako’s burgundy felt hat – what was it about this design that made it stand out for you above the others?
Jump over to this post to see all eleven finalists and the poll results and stay tuned later today to see your pick for favourite new royal hat last year.
Photos from  Mark Cuthbert and Max Mumby/Indigo via Getty; The British Monarchy;   Patrick van Katwijk and Asahi Shimbun via Getty