Tag Archives: Empress Michiko

Day Two of Japanese Imperial Visit to Philippines

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The Imperial royal couple continued their visit to Philippines today, visiting the Tomb of the Fallen Soldiers, laying a wreath at the monument to Philippine national hero Jose Rizal and receiving a ymbolic key of Manila from Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada. For these events, Empress Michiko looked characteristically serene in a large white saucer hat with domed crown and wide rim, decorated with exquisite gray-green silk flowers and leaves. It’s a beautifully delicate piece (even while being one of the Empress’ larger hats) that Michiko wears so very well.

Designer: Likely Akio Hirata
Previously Worn: I believe this hat is new
Photos from Getty as indicated

Imperial Couple Visit Philippines

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Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko departed Tokyo this morning for the Philippines where they embarked on a four day visit. The Empress looked very smart in a dark slate blue rimmed saucer hat trimmed in a large crepe silk folded bow.

Empress Michiko, January 26, 2016 | Royal Hats

Designer: likely Akio Hirata
Previously Worn: I believe this hat is new

The couple were bid farewell by members of the Imperial Family. Crown Princess Masako wore a vibrant blue wool coat with matching hat which features a flat crown and upturned brim. The piece is trimmed with a wide ribbon around the crown that coordinates with the black accents on her coat. She stood out in a sea of neutral toned Imperial royal ensembles and I love her for it.

Princess Masako, January 26, 2016 | Royal Hats Princess Masako, January 26, 2016 | Royal Hats

Designer: unknown
Previously Worn: I believe this hat is new

Princess Kiko repeated a simple navy hat with short, upturned brim and a rounded, straight sided hat. The hat is trimmed with a thick navy band around the base of the crown, giving a slight stepped detail to the piece.

Princess Kiko and Princess Masako, January 26, 2016 | Royal Hats

Princess Masako and Princess Kiko, January 26, 2016 | Royal Hats

Princess Mako wore a navy felt cloche hat embellished with a double grosgrain ribbon bow at the side. A band, edged in folded ribbon on both sides, encircled the base of the crown’s hat, giving it some contrast and dimension.
Princess Mako, January 26, 2016 | Royal Hats
Princess Tsuguko of Takamado wore a fedora in winter white wool trimmed with a spiky spider mum flower at the back.  It’s a wonderfully chic hat that worked so well with her black and white suit and black cape.
Princess Tsuguko, January 26, 2016 | Royal Hats
Princess Yoko of Mikasa wore a cream hat with flat crown, vertical sides and a short, rolled brim. Her sister, Princess Akiko, topped her winter white coat with a matching cloche hat with an upturned cuff brim. Their mother, Princess Nobuko, wore a streamlined grey toque hat that provided interesting style and texture contrast with her fur coat.

Imperial Royal Family, January 26, 2016 | Royal Hats

Arriving in the Philippines, the Empress removed her coat and scarf to reveal a tailored jacket in large plaid to match her hat and skirt. At closer look, the hat also features a layer of the plaid fabric incorporated in the bow, tying the ensemble together. It’s a very predictable hat for the Empress, both in shape and in colour, but one she wears well.

I suspect we’ll see several more new hats from Empress Michiko before the week is done- stay tuned!

New Royal Hats Of 2015: Japan Part 1

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2015 best hat small

As per your request, here is a review of some of the new hats we saw this year worn by members of the Imperial Royal Family. The Japanese royals are one of the most prolific hat wearing royal houses- there are too many hats here for a poll so I have numbered each one and invite you to name which hats are your favourites in the comments. Click on each photo to jump back to the original post with additional information, views and detail on each hat.

While I don’t think any of these hats are in the running for best overall new royal hat of the year, there are some beautiful millinery details not to be missed  (the lace trim and lattice outer brim of #5 is exquisite while the braided trim on #27 is so smart). The wonderfully saturated colour makes #12 and #18 stand out as my favourites- Which hats or details on hats here stand out most to you?

Empress Michiko

1.Empress Michiko, January 16, 2015 | Royal Hats   2.Empress Michiko, March 13, 2015 | Royal Hats   3.Empress Michiko, March 13, 2015 | Royal Hats   4.Empress Michiko, April 8, 2015 | Royal Hats   5.Empress Michiko, April 9, 2015 | Royal Hats

6.Empress Michiko, May 13, 2015 | Royal Hats   7.Empress Michiko, June 10, 2015 | Royal Hats   8.Empress Michiko, August 5, 2015 | Royal Hats   9.Empress Michiko, September 25, 2015 | Royal Hats 10.Empress Michiko, September 27, 2015 | Royal Hats

11.Empress Michiko, October 3, 2015  12.Empress Michiko, October 26, 2015 | Royal Hats  13.Empress Michiko, October 30, 2015 | Royal Hats  14.Empess Michiko, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats

Crown Princess Masako

15.Crown Princess Masako, March 18, 2015 | Royal Hats 16.Crown Princess Masako, June 26, 2016 | Royal Hats 17.Crown Princess Masako, October 20, 2015 | Royal Hats 18.Crown Princess Masako, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats 19.Crown Princess Masako, December 9, 2015 | Royal Hats

Princess Kiko of Akishino

20.Princess Kiko of Akishino, January 9, 2015 | Royal Hats 21.Princess Kiko, January 14, 2015 | Royal Hats 22.Princess Kiko, January 21, 2015 | Royal Hats 23.Princess Kiko, March 18, 2015 | Royal Hats 24.Princess Kiko, June 26, 2016 | Royal Hats

25.Princess Kiko, October 28, 2015 | Royal Hats 26.Princess Kiko, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats 27.Princess Kiko, November 24, 2015 |Royal Hats 28.Princess Kiko, December 23, 2015 | Royal Hats

Princess Mako of Akishino

29.Princess Mako, November 8, 2015 | Royal Hats  30.Princess Mako, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats  31.Princess Mako, December 23, 2015 | Royal Hats

Princess Kako of Akishino

32.Princess Kako of Akishino, January 9, 2015 | Royal Hats 33.Princess Kako, January 14, 2015 | Royal Hats 34.Princess Kako, March 6, 2015 | Royal Hats

35.Princess Kako, January 15, 2015 | Royal Hats 36. Princess Kako, June 26, 2016 | Royal Hats 37.Princess Kako, December 23, 2015 | Royal Hats

This Week’s Extras

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Royal Hats

The Norwegian royals attended an outdoor memorial for last week’s attacks in Paris (Norwegian Royal Court)

The Imperial royal couple celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (Imperial Family of Japan)

Princess Hisako wore a smart pillbox to open the JAPANTEX Interior Trend Show (Imperial Family of Japan)

Royal Hats

The Duchess of Cambridge spoke at a conference for children’s mental health (Crown Chronicles)

Crown Prince Frederick of Denmark showed off his curling skills, throwing the first rock at the European Curling Championships in Esbjerg.

Imperial Royals Host Annual Autumn Garden Party

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The Japanese Royal Family were in attendance yesterday at  Akasaka Palace for the annual autumn garden party held in the palace’s imperial garden. One of two garden parties hosted by the Emperor and Empress each year (one in spring and one in autumn), this event is a highlight on the Imperial Royal calendar. Empress Michiko wore a dove grey suit for the occasion with a matching saucer hat. One of the Empress’ larger scale hats, the flat rimmed piece was simply trimmed with a dove grey and white silk bow.

Empess Michiko, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats

Designer: likely Akio Hirata
Previously Worn: I believe this hat is new

The garden party made international news thanks to the presence of Crown Princess Masako who has not attended this event in twelve years. She looked marvellous and relaxed in a Byzantium purple suit and matching hat. The simply shaped hat, with a flat brim and straight sided, domed crown, was given visual and textural interest thanks to a wide sash of draped fabric wrapped around the crown.The sash gave a sense of movement to this hat and, combined with its vibrant colour, made it a stand out piece.

Crown Princess Masako, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats Crown Princess Masako, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats

Designer: unknown
Previously Worn: This hat is new

Princess Kiko topped her white silk suit with a coordinating hat. The squared crown of the hat, which was wrapped at the base in a wide pleated band, smoothly extended in the characteristic ‘bell’ shape of a cloche out to a rolled brim. A nice enough piece on its own, I found the proportion and scale too large for petite Princess Kiko. Her daughter, Princess Mako, topped her peach silk suit with a brown felt hat with narrow, rolled brim. Trimmed with a peach puff on the side, the simple hat provided an interesting contrast against her feminine, ruffled suit.

Imperial Royal Family, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats

Designer: unknown
Previously Worn: I believe this hat is new

Princess Nobuko of Mikasa wore a navy Breton hat. The outer side of the hat’s upturned brim was covered in the same navy appliquéd lace as her dress. Princess Akiko dressed up her black bowler hat with a wide sash of the same graphic black and white plaid fabric as her jacket while Princess Yoko took a more classic approach in a white hat with mushroom brim. Princess Yoko’s hat looked to be overlaid in a layer of crin (or organza?) which gave it a decidedly romantic feel. Princess Tsuguko topped her mint suit with a cream bumper hat trimmed in a green silk bloom at the side.

Imperial Royal Family, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats

Designers: unknown
Previously Worn: I believe all of these hats are new

Finally, Princess Hanako repeated a sage green silk covered hat we have seen several times before. While not visible on the photo below, the brim of this piece is wrapped in green lace which is repeated on the peplum of her jacket. The unusual shape (a variation from the more common mushroom brim as seen on Princess Yoko above) and the interesting use of lace on this piece has always made it a winner for me.

Princess Hanako, November 12, 2015 | Royal Hats

Designer: unknown
Previously Worn: August 5, 2015; June 26, 2015; May 19, 2015

These Imperial garden parties often bring out the most vibrant and interesting royal hats we see on the Imperial royals all year. The stand outs today for me were Crown Princess Masako and Princess Nobuko- which hats stood out to you?

Photos from Getty as indicated; Asahi; Kyodo via the Japan Times; and ANN News