Princess Hisako of Takamado attended the opening ceremony of 2014 Tableware Festival 2014 yesterday in Tokyo. She wore an oxblood wool suit with matching hat; the hat was unembellished except for a flat, upturned charcoal grey brim. I do not like beanie shaped hats for royal occasions and I’m afraid this hat does not change my opinion. What do you think?
Photo from The Imperial Family of Japan
The annual ceremony of New Year’s Poetry Reading (Utakai Hajime) was held at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. The Japanese royal ladies attended this event in court dress, just as they did the annual New Years lectures last week.
Empress Michiko, at far left, did not wear a hat. To her right is: Princess Kiko in a grey embroidered calot; Princess Hanako in a marvelous green pillbox wrapped in green fur (or maribou?) studded with wispy grey feathers; Princess Akiko in a pale pink calot; Princess Hisako in a royal blue bumper hat; and Princess Noriko in an embellished terra-cotta orange brimless pork pie hat. It is marvelous to see the ladies in some colour and hats with a bit of personality, isn’t it?!
Photo from The Imperial Family of Japan
The annual Ceremony of New Year’s Lectures was held today at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo (members of the Imperial family attended expert lectures in the fields of human, social and natural sciences). While Empress Michiko did not wear a hat, Princess Kiko wore a beautiful navy pillbox. I can not find record of Kiko wearing this hat previously so can only guess that it is new.
Closeup photos of the other royal ladies do not appear to have been released. Princess Hanako was in forest green velvet with a coordinating hat that looks to be trimmed with a large green feather. I believe it is Princess Hisako in the vibrant turquoise hat and suit. The other hats appear to be de rigueur unadorned pillboxes in soft pastel colours.
The Imperial ladies were all in court dress (long gowns and hats) for this event. I suspect this is traditional dress- does anyone know exactly why?
Photos from The Imperial Family of Japan
Last week, the Japanese Imperial couple spent the week on tour in India. On Wednesday, December 4, Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko visited the Kalakshetra Art Academy in Chennai. The Empress debuted a new hat, in her signature ‘saucer’ shape. This hat, one of Michiko’s larger saucers in white, was trimmed with silk orange blossoms and green leaves. I thought it was quite delicate and looked rather pretty on the Empress.
The Imperial couple returned to Japan on Friday. Empress Michiko repeated the dove grey saucer hat with charcoal grey origami flower she wore while on the Indian tour.
Designer: unconfirmed
Previously Worn: December 2, 2013
As is tradition, they were greeted at Haneda International Airport by other members of the Imperial family (from right: Crown Prince Naruhito, Crown Princess Masako, Prince Fumihito, Princess Kiko, Princess Mako, Princess Hanako, Princess Akiko and Princess Hisako). I’m not sure I have ever seen so many blue small brimmed royal hats at the same event…. I wonder if a memo was sent requesting all the Imperial ladies to wear a blue hat?!
Photos from FNN and The Imperial Family of Japan
Empress Michiko, Honorary President of Japan Red Cross Society, presented the Florence Nightingale Medal to several nurses at an award ceremony in Tokyo yesterday.
The Empress wore one of her customary small grey, this one with a rimmed edge and layered bow. While this does look like many of Michiko’s other hats, I can’t find another instance of her wearing this particular design and guess that this one might be new. I have come to accept these flat millinery designs for The Empress (it really is her signature style) but I dearly wish she would break away from her many, many grey hats and wear a little more colour.
Princess Kiko, Empress Michiko’s daughter-in-law, wore a large white silk pillbox decorated with a flat bow at the back. This is the same hat she wore in September 2006 to present her son, baby Prince Hisahito, to the Shinto Shrine on the grounds of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo.
Princess Hanako, wife of Emperor Akihito’s younger brother Prince Hitachi, wore a pale blue silk bumper hat with a rolled brim. I think the bunch of blue and white cooked spaghetti trimming her hat was a little odd, although it did provide a hit of interest and colour in the otherwise monochrome and very plain hats of the Imperial ladies!
Princess Hisako, widow of Emperor Akihito’s first cousin Prince Takamado, wore an dove grey silk hat with a tightly upturned brim. I think it looked quite flattering on her although I prefer hats with brims that don’t look so sewn in place. This hat does look great with the high collar of her dress and that fabulous string of pearls.
We don’t often see the Japanese royal ladies at an engagement together so I can’t resist asking you, dear readers, which hat you liked best?
Photo from The Asahi Shimbun via Getty and The Tokito Blog
Royal Hats 