Hattery Event: Garter Day 2012
"GASP! Ladies, have you SEEN the amount of plumage in this castle today???"
Yes, hatters, it's that magical day of the year when everybody gets to wear a hat!
These two get hats! (And the Duke apparently gets amused by something nearby -- God love ya, Phil, I missed you during the Jubilee!)
These two get hats! (Anne should ALWAYS wear either her Garter duds or a uniform, shouldn't she? BOSS.)
These two get hats! (When's Harry going to get a hat, too, you guys? Should we start taking bets? Poor, lonely, spare Harry.)
These two get hats! (KENTS! Alexandra, I credit all of Kate Middleton's princess transformation to you. I KNOW you've been dishing out lessons just like I asked you to lo these many years ago.)
And these two get hats, too -- even Sir Tim! I think it's regulation size, but for some reason, Sir Tim's top hat looks hilariously wee to me here.
And the non-Garter Ladies get hats, too!
Katie Cambridge is totally back in my good hattery graces after her Trooping the Colour stumble, everybody. This is GORGEOUS! Great deconstructed bow detail, good angle, provides shade but doesn't hide the eyes -- PERFECT.
Although she did seem awfully interested in Will's fancy plumage:
OMMMMM. It's like she's silently willing HM to make her a Garter Lady. Hold your horses, your royal highness -- your father-in-law will take care of that one as soon as you're Princess of Wales, I'd put money on it.
The current Princess of Wales went with a much-seen dusty rose, strapped-in cabbage flower for the occasion. I'm ready to see this one retired (the hat, not Camilla -- I kind of love her and would LOVE to have a pint with her. You know she's got the good dirt).
Birgitte went with a pretty blue chapeau that's somehow both soft and bold. I like.
The Chatto/Linleys (let's be honest, folks, in my head I ALWAYS call them the Princess Margarets) went neutral. Safe. Eh.
So THANK GOD Sophie went wacky with her neutrals! Love it when a hat can double as elegant daywear AND a pink-eye shield.
Okay, hatters, time to go to bed with visions of neon fascinators dancing in your heads -- it's HAAAAAAAT CHRISTMAAAAAAAS in the morning!!!!!!!!! PLEASE PLEASE let Santa bring me Yorkies and Zara in ridiculous hats this year!!!!!!!
PHOTO CREDITS: (1) REUTERS/Paul Edwards/Pool, (2) Gareth Cattermole - WPA Pool/Getty Images, (3) PAUL HACKETT/AFP/Getty Images, (4) Murray Sanders - WPA Pool/Getty Images, (5) Gareth Cattermole - WPA Pool/Getty Images, (6) Gareth Cattermole - WPA Pool/Getty Images, (7) Paul Hackett - WPA Pool/Getty Images, (8) PAUL HACKETT/AFP/Getty Images, (9) Murray Sanders - WPA Pool/Getty Images, (10) Gareth Cattermole - WPA Pool/Getty Images, (11) Paul Edwards - WPA Pool/Getty Images, (12) Paul Edwards - WPA Pool/Getty Images
Tags: beige, beret, black, blue, cream, feather, floral, netting, pink, ribbon, velvet, white
I think the gasping Windsors is my best pic of the year! Love that they are so colour co-ordinated... Goddammit, I jut want to sneak in for a gossip woth those girls.....
You get a hat! You get a hat! You get a hat! Everybody get's a hat!
Sorry, couldn't resist after reading the post : )
My favorite one is Kate's. It looks really fun and its almost like a cousin to the hats she wore on Christmas Day and the Remembrance Day.
Woo-Hoo for velvet poufs with feathers! Can never get tired of the costume ancienne!
Mrs Cambridge's topper is vastly better than yesterday's version, but to the casual millinary observer it would probably seem like she repeated hats two days running... given the similarity of the shape and the bunchy stuff on top. (Yes, MrFitroy realizes it was different bunchy stuff today!)
It has finally become abundantly clear that Mrs Cornwall has fully claimed the GIANT HAT as her particular sartorial signature (Sometimes it takes MrFitzroy a while)....
you go Cams! if you are gonna corner the market on big honkin' statement hats, you gotta own it --- and she does -- every last surging projectile and enormous petal!!
Let's see something EVEN BIGGER tomorrow for Hat Xmas.....
we dare you!!
There are so many things I love about this post. The gossiping royals is, of course, the best and first. The second, the nickname Katie Cambridge cracks me up. The third, Katie Cambridge's ensemble-it's just perfect. But, the one thing I do not like about this post (not to be a downer) is referring to Camilla as the Princess of Wales. Believe me, I love Camilla and I'd love to have a pint with her as well. And I know you did not mean it that way, but it seems very disrespectful to Diana. But, aside from that, thanks for another wonderful post from Ella Kay.
Nope, don't see it. If you like Kate's hat here, how can you not like the Trooping one?! They are such very close cousins, worn at an almost identical angle, that anyone not interested in such minutiae would have to look long and hard to realise that they were indeed different hats (apart from the really not very marked difference in colour). Now, for myself, I like this one and I liked the other one too! Kate didn't suffer from wind disturbance so much today, of course, so the overall effect was generally better groomed. Actually all of them, Birgitte, Camilla and Sophie, all looked grand, I thought, as well as Kate.
Sorry. I don't buy it. When did a couple of twisted pieces of straw on a white disc become a hat? Where is the artistry, charm, elegance or even whimsy in an overblown rose stuck onto a shallow straw basin and worn at a weird angle? If the Duchess of Cambridge and the Countess of Wessex don't care about hats and how they can lift an outfit from banal to amazing, then I would rather they went bareheaded. But let's not pretend these are great hats. They look like typical offerings from the local rent-a-hat outlet to me. Not something senior members of the royal family would/should choose to wear to a grand occasion to complement their outfits and show respect for their roles.
Well I get it! They are NOT wearing fedoras, tams, toques, or baseball caps on backwards. IMHO they are dressed "to the nines" - by which I mean "to exceptionally high standards". Perhaps it is time to relax and just enjoy the silliness of Garter Day garb.
I LOVE Kate and Camilla's hats. Immediate jumpy claps! Now THOSE hats are simply the best of the best. And your caption Ella, was a knee-slapper of the first degree. Carry on...
So glad to see all the Garter Day regalia! Definitely one hat that seems to flatter everyone.
Turning to the non-Garter hattery: Kate's hat is lovely as usual, but I'm tiring of this shape as she's worn it almost constantly for at least 6 months now. Camilla, I love you, but please put some of your other hats in the rotation.
Birgitte was my favorite of the day: color and a classic shape. Nice to see Tim Laurence in a morning coat and top hat.
Sarah Chatto played it safe again, but at least she didn't repeat her chic saucer hat (I love it, but want variety too). Serena's hat is interesting, but I really wish she would do more color. Imagine this in royal purple or cobalt blue; it would be smashing!
Finally, Sophie, I'm glad you at least kept things interesting and busted out a new saucer hattinator.
Overall, everyone looked great, I was just bored with the lack of color and repeats of looks.