Tag Archives: Prince Michael of Kent

October Review: Week 1

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Hello again, dearest readers! It’s wonderful to be back with you- thank you all so very, very much for keeping the conversation going while I was away. I want to quickly review the hats we’ve seen this month and give you all the opportunity nominate any designs you wish to see in our October favourite new and repeated hat polls. Here are the hats we saw October 1 to October 7:

Sunday, October 1: Empress Michiko in a repeated pale grey rimmed saucer with origami circular trim worn on a visit to Ehime Prefecture

Oct 1, 2017 | Royal Hats

Tuesday, October 3: Crown Princess Victoria attended the opening of the Swedish Church meetings at Uppsala Cathedral in a new headpiece of dark green silk folded into dahlia blooms, each with a knotted silk center scattered with beads. It’s from Swedish label “Parant Parant” by Örjan Jakobsson.

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Tuesday, October 3: Prince Naruhito and Princess Masako attended the closing meeting of the 14th Science and Technology in Society forum in Kyoto in a repeated caramel brown bowler style hat with upturned Kettle brim, edged in a wide stripe of ribbon.

Oct 3, 2017 | Royal Hats

Tuesday, October 3: For the opening of Danish Parliament, Queen Margrethe repeated her blue beanie hat with black patent leather cuff by Per Falk Hansen. Princess Benedikte repeated her red felt brimless hat with stacked crown by Susanne Juul, Crown Princess Mary repeated her Jane Taylor designed purple pillbox with beaded side feather trim and Princess Marie repeated her navy straw fedora with wide net tulle hatband wrap and silk flower trim

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Danish Royal Family, Oct 3, 2017 | Royal Hats

Tuesday, October 3: Princess Hisako of Takamado attended a conference on public nutrition in Shimane Prefecture. She repeated an oyster grey straw variation on a boater hat with textured straw hatband, side bow and feather spray.

Oct 3, 2017 | Royal Hats

Wednesday, October 4: Queen Máxima  opened an exhibition at the Mauritshuis museum in a new cranberry felt Garbo hat with hatband and side bow from Fabienne Delvigne

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Wednesday, October 4: Princess Ayako in a black straw Breton hat to attend the National Sports Festival

Wednesday, October 4: Princess Anne was joined by the Duke of Kent and Princess Michael of Kent at the memorial Mass for Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor at Westminster Cathedral. Princess Anne repeated a black cocktail hat with net veil wrapped beret base circled in feathers by Amy Morris-Adams. Princess Michael repeated a  black felt Breton hat with side bow.

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Wednesday, October 4: Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko visited the Brunei Embassy in Tokyo to sign a guest book of good wishes for the Sultan of Brunei. The Empress repeated a small grey rimmed sauce hat with origami bow.

Thursday, October 5: The Earl and The Countess of Wessex attended The Sultan of Brunei’s Golden Jubilee celebrations. Sophie repeated the natural straw saucer hat she first debuted at Ascot, with a slight change of trimming. The hat’s first outing featured black silk twists which were replaced here with taupe crin ones and a large coral pink feather.

Thursday, October 5:  Queen Máxima attended a Teachers’ Congress in Amersfoort, repeating her midnight blue felt fedora.

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Friday, October 7: Princess Beatrix in a navy straw bumper hat (with giant belt loops) to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Team Motor Assistance in Driebergen.

That wraps up the hats we saw during the first week of October- do any of them receive your nomination for top new or repeated hat this month?

Photos from Asahi; Stella Pictures; Sankei; Press Association; Keld Navntoft/Scanpix; Søren Bidstrup/Scanpix; Mazur/catholicnews.org.uk; Chugoku Shimbun; Asahi Shimbun via Getty

Royal Ascot 2017 Day 2: The Gloucesters & Kents

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Royal Ascot | Royal Hats The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester made their first appearance at the races this year today. The Duchess repeated her raspberry pink nubby straw hat with curved brim and net tulle hatband, tied at the side while the Duke sported a grey felt top hat with black hatband.

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Designer: unknown
Previously Worn: June 14, 2016;  May 12, 2016; June 17, 2015; June 13, 2015; June 17, 2014

Princess Alexandra topped her brightly patterned suit with a new hat in blush pink straw. The crown on this piece is tall and domed with straight sides (a go-to shape for Princess Alexandra) and the brim follows a traditional cartwheel shape. The piece is trimmed with what looks like a spray of white feathers and a hatband in the same print as the suit. While Alexandra’s brother, the Duke of Kent, was photographed at the races today, the only photo released of him so far does not show his hat.

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Designer: likely Rachel Trevor Morgan
Previously Worn: I think this is new

Princess Michael surprised in a giant picture hat that dates back at least 22 years. The hat features a round pillbox shaped crown with a flat top and a large brim that is edged in a wide stripe of fabric that renders it opaque, leaving a halo of light streaming through the straw around Marie Christine’s face. The hat is very simply trimmed with a diamond cutout of the same brim fabric on the side of the crown. Prince Michael repeated his black top hat.

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Designer: unknown. Maybe John Boyd?
Previously Worn:  June 19, 2002; June 16, 1998; June 21, 1995; May 7, 1995
Photos from Getty as indicated

Royal Ascot 2017 Day 1: The Kents

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 Prince and Princess Michael of Kent enjoyed the races today along with their children. Prince Michael repeated his hourglass shaped black top hat while Marie Christine repeated her white straw picture hat with voluminous feather boa wrap.

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Designer: John Boyd
Previously Worn: June 17, 2017;  June 10, 2016; June 17, 2015;  June 6, 2015; June 7, 2014

Lady Frederick Windsor (Sophie) granted our weekend wish and repeated the window-weave straw pyramid hat with dip dyed rose and feathers that she wore to Trooping the Colour with a more colourful dress. Lord Frederick repeated the short crowned grey top hat with black hatband we’ve seen him sport at this event in years past.

Designer: Jane Taylor. It is the ‘Clusia Rosea‘ from SS 2017
Previously Worn:  June 17, 2017

Lady Gabriella Windsor wore a hat very similar in shape to the one the Duchess of Cornwall wore today, with upswept brim and off-center peaked crown. Gabriella’s hat is trimmed with Treacy’s signature flying bow loops and twists (I think, here they are in silk).

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Designer: Philip Treacy
Previously Worn: This hat is new
Photos from Getty and social media as indicated;  

Buckingham Palace Garden Party

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Members of the British Royal Family joined Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh today for the first Buckingham Palace garden party of the season. For this event, the Queen repeated her pale pink boater hat with wide hat band.  In a sea of feathered and flowered millinery, the clean lines of this piece stand out and its simplicity is something I have come to adore. Since this ensemble’s last outing, more buttons have been added to the coat, a change I’m less pleased about. The previous single button closure on the coat allowed much of the dress to show through, providing much needed contrast in pattern and texture against the sleek coat and hat.

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Designer: Angela Kelly
Previously Worn: July 5, 2015;  June 21, 2014

The Duchess of Cambridge repeated her pale blue straw saucer hat with raised back and calla lily trim. The scale of this piece, which is a little larger than most of Kate’s other percher hats, is great on her and while the colour is a little bland, the textured straw is a great counterpoint to her satin coat.

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Designer: “Sweet Delight” design from Lock & Co. Coat by Christopher Kane.
Previously Worn: June 16, 2014

Princess Beatrice also wore a boater hat, in navy and white straw. I love the classic feel of this hat but wish she had paired it with a dress that read less “bellhop” than this one does.

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Designer: Laura Apsit Livens. Dress is “Winston” by Tory Birch.
Previously Worn: This hat is new

Princess Anne repeated her cream straw teardrop shaped percher hat with looped straw bows, silk flowers and white net. It’s a decidedly modern piece for our champion royal hat recycler and while not a perfect match for her beautifully embroidered ivory suit, the ensemble works.

May 16, 2017 | Royal Hats May 16, 2017 | Royal Hats May 16, 2017 | Royal Hats

Designer: unknown
Previously Worn: June 10, 2014

Princess Michael of Kent repeated a straw picture hat with cream brim and long, arrowhead feather contrasting against a tall, domed and straight-sided black crown. The brim on this design is oval (the left extends much further than the right), a feature better visible during its last outing. The classic colour scheme works well for this most modern shape although her myriad of other accessories makes this a look with a LOT going on.

Designer: unknown
Previously Worn: June 8, 2002; June 27, 2000

I think this is a strong quintet of hats from the British Royal Family. Which pieces stand out to you most here?

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Photos from Getty as indicated and Press Association via the British Monarchy

Day 4 Royal Ascot: Wrap Up

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Royal Ascot  Royal Ascot is not just about the ladies and before we wrap up on this, the fourth day of the races, we need to peek at the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince of Wales, Duke of York and Prince Michael of Kent in their handsome black silk top hats.

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Also at the races today were the Earl and Countess of Hopetoun and John Warren and his wife, Lady Carolyn Warren. Skye, Countess of Hopetoun, wore an exaggerated black straw fedora with tall crown, trimmed with straw roses and soaring quills. Lady Carolyn Warren wore a large red straw picture hat with angled crown, trimmed with long straw twists. I believe both hats were made by Philip Treacy.

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That wraps up the royal hats worn today- if there are any non-royal hats that stood out to you, please feel free to share them in the comments. I’ll be back tomorrow with the final day of hats for Royal Ascot 2016.

Photos from Getty as indicated