Princess Astrid Unveils Statue

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Princess Astrid of Norway unveiled a statue of her grandfather yesterday in London at Sjømannskirken i London (The Norwegian Church and Seamen’s Mission), the church attended by the late king and his son, Crown Prince Olaf, during their WWII London residency. For this event, Princess Astrid wore a small navy textured straw hat with bubble brim, trimmed with two straw leaves in lighter blue sinamay straw. The colour is so lovely on Astrid and while the scale doesn’t seem quite right, the quirky shape suits her surprisingly well.

Hat From the Past

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Royal Hats to 52 years ago yesterday and the most charming hat, covered in lily-of-the-valley. It’s not the first trim that comes to mind when one thinks of autumn but it’s very sweet on Princess Margaretha nonetheless.

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Photo from Getty as indicated

This Week’s Extras

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Royal Hats

Princess Anne in more casual hats last weekend here and here to present awards and cheer on her daughter at the Gatcombe Horse Trials last weekend.

On Thursday, Sayako Kuroda (Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko’s daughter)  was photographed at the Ise Jingu Grand Shrine in a white pillbox hat. The former Imperial princess became Chief Priestess of the Shrine in June.

Sayako Kuroda, Sep 14, 2017 | Royal Hats

Queen Elizabeth repeated her white straw hat with tweed and feather trim for church last Sunday while the Duchess of Cornwall repeated her taupe straw beret.

Queen Margrethe repeated her textured red hat last Sunday at Maribo Cathedral.

Princess Alexandra visited HMS Warrior 1860 this week in her dove grey hat


Prinsjesdag, the annual Dutch opening of Parliament is scheduled for Tuesday next week. For a visual reminder of all the hats Queen Máxima has worn to this event in the past, jump over to this retrospective post.

After being seduced by felt fall/winter hats last week, my eye was drawn this week to these more summery designs thanks to racing season which is in full swing in Australia! Here’s what caught my attention:

Multi hued blue cocktail hat and grey design with twisted brim from Dutch milliner Myra van de Korput
Beautiful white and grey picture hat (see stunning side view here) from Annáy Millinery London
White straw slice with green hydrangea trim from Brisbane based Marilyn Van den Berg Millinery
Beautiful detail and texture on this pale grey design from New Zealand milliner Claire Hahn
Lace covered vertial straw disc hat with leather twist from Irish brand Montgomery Milinery
Black and white houndstooth straw button percher with sequins and feathers by Chris Mullane Millinery
Elegant silver straw boater with pearls and black & white button percher from Myra van de Korput
Black and red straw halo hat with red flowers from Aussie Brand Neigh Millinery

And from Country Peonies Millinery in Queensland, this whimsical pink percher with leather floral trim.It’s such a fun and happy hat!

 Royal Hats

Interested to buy a royal palace? There’s one for sale in Sweden 

New portrait of Prince Daniel released this week by the Swedish royal court on the occasion of his 44th birthday.

Clarence House shared this sweet photo yesterday in celebration of Prince Harry’s 33rd birthday.

Queen Máxima Supports Professionals Helping Youth

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Queen Máxima stepped out in her second calot hat in as many days to attend a conference for professionals in the fields of youth care and youth protection today in Utrecht. For this event, the Dutch Queen repeated her sculptural calot headpiece in beaded pinky-beige ruched silk abaca.

Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images

The last time we saw this full ensemble during a tour of Australia, it was worn with an orange beaded lobster necklace – an omission today that improves it dramatically. The hat hue is not a particularly striking one for Máxima but combined with a matching blouse, does well to balance the vibrant skirt. As far as working outfits go, it’s perfectly fine. Having seen some truly spectacular hats and ensembles on Queen  Máxima, however, ‘fine’ seems a little flat in comparison.

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

Designer: Fabienne Delvigne
Previously Worn: Nov 3, 2016;  Oct 25, 2015;  Apr 2, 2014 
What do you think- is this ensemble improved or made more bland by the loss of lobster necklace?
Photos from Getty as indicated

Princess Beatrix Opens Uranium Storage Facility

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On Wednesday, Princess Beatrix opened a new storage facility for depleted uranium at the Central Radioactive Waste Organization (COVRA) in Borssele. The building is noteworthy- designed by engineer F. Koch in collaboration with artist William Verstraten, its form is in that of a sundial (the largest in Europe now) in reference to the importance of time in radioactive waste management.  For this event, Pincess Beatrix wore a navy bumper hat with pyramid shaped crown made of lattice textured straw.



Designer: likely Suzanne Moulijn 
Previously Worn: I believe this hat is new
The textured straw gives much dimension and visual interest to the otherwise unadorned design and while we’ve all become very used to (and accepting of!) the high folded bumper brims that Princess Beatrix has favoured for years, I’m not fond of the conehead pyramid crown. That all being said- we see numerous royals in head-to-toe ensembles in the same colour and the mix of textures here on Beatrix’s dress, coat and hat all work together but make a far more interesting look than one where the individual pieces are all crafted from of the same fabric (yes, that’s a veiled criticism of Angela Kelly). For additional views of this piece, check out this excellent gallery over at Monarchy Press.
What do you think of Princess Beatrix’s hat?
Photos from Splash News and social media as indicated