Sophie’s excited, and so am I! Let’s get right to the jewelry and hats of the second day of the races at Royal Ascot, shall we?
New day, new(ish) brooch, same queen. HM clearly loves the new floral brooch that she debuted during the French state visit earlier this month, because she’s repeating it again here. I love the brooch — not such a fan of the multicolored floral embellishment on the hat. This would be so much more elegant if the flowers were the same minty-sage color as the rest of the chapeau.
Camilla brought out her pearl choker with the large Edwardian pink topaz clasp again, plus a pair of interesting earrings that I’d really like a better look at. As for the outfit — would love to see something brighter for Ascot. The ivory is elegant but zzzzzzzzz.
Sophie Wessex’s ensemble is also neutral, yes, but I can’t help loving it, including the hat. But what I love even more here are the jewels: diamond earrings and a pair of Art Deco diamond clips given to her as a wedding present by the Queen Mother. Gorgeous!
In the immortal words of Donny Hathaway, and then there’s Anne. I kid you not, this entire outfit, hat and all, was worn by Anne in the 1980s. She does this all the time, and yeah, thrift and all, but COME ON. Anyway. The earrings are perfectly lovely, the pearl necklace is on the small side but okay, and the brooch — well, the brooch is obscured by the strap of Anne’s purse, which has also got to be from the ’80s, because I remember putting that exact knot in the strap of the purse I took to Sunday School in 1988. I should move on, this makes me grumpy.
Oh, so much better. The Duchess of Gloucester has worn this entire outfit, hat and all, so many times. I can’t even see her jewelry in the photo, but I already feel revived.
Which is good, because that meant I was prepared for the moment when the Ghost of Coco Chanel inhabited the body of Princess Michael of Kent. (Except I don’t think Coco would have put that feather anywhere near that hat. That’s pure Zsa-Zsa Kent, right there.) I’m really intrigued by those silver-toned pearls.
I still was not fully prepared, though, to see Princess Haya bring the Full Van Gogh to the races. Nice earrings and bracelet, though.
One final pair of royals-adjacent at Ascot on Day 2: the Earl and Countess Spencer, uncle and aunt of Princes William and Harry. The (newest) Lady Spencer looks absolutely lovely. Her husband looks like a little boy who is wearing his father’s too-big hat — which, knowing the frugality of the British aristocracy, may actually be the case.
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