In the United Kingdom, the headpieces are called fascinators and seem to serve no functional purpose whatsoever.
Think of them as headbands gone wild.
The purely aesthetic headpieces are simply for adornment and have become a symbol of high-society women in royal circles.
Thelate Princess Diana wore some epic headpieces and hatsin her day, and the tradition carries on.
We’re most likely to see fascinators at royal weddings because they’ve become synonymous with British status.
“There has to be a hat, it’s part of the social fabric.”
And when it comes to these headpieces, it seems like the more over the top, the better.
“But it was a very modern hat, and modernity is always an unusual thing.”
She donated the money to UNICEF and Children in Crisis.
On the auction page, Beatrice thanked her bidders.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to raise as much money as possible for two fantastic charities.
I hope whoever wins the auction has as much fun with the hat as I have.”
That’s certainly an impressive turnaround after all of the trolling.
Her hat was of a different variety altogether, but it was no less ornate.
The blue of her hat perfectly accompanied the blue of her Vivienne Westwood skirt and jacket.
Like her sister, Eugenie was lambasted online for wearing such an elaborate headpiece.
This ridicule was hard on both of them and not for the last time.
“[S]he had a bit of a wobble and cried.
I was looking after her.
However, Phillips and Tindall’s big day was much more subdued than that of their predecessors.
They tied the knot at an intimate gathering in Edinburgh, Scotland.
What wasn’t subdued was Camilla’s headpiece.
The then-Duchess of Cornwall wore a large, floral wreath that looked something like a halo.
Camilla paired her headpiece with a mint-green coatdress and opted for statement jewelry.
She wore a choker made of five strands of pearls, centered around a pink topaz set in diamonds.
She was no wallflower at that wedding!
To be fair, it was back in 2006, and Catherine was still just girlfriend status.
Catherine opted for a cream-colored coatdress, a fashion staple she has still not dropped.
While we’ve seen Catherine re-wear the coat several times since, the fascinator has never made another appearance.
Princess Beatrice and the butterflies
Leave it to Princess Beatrice to make the list twice.
Our girl loves her headpieces.
This is why fashion editor Hadley Freeman’s piece inThe Guardianin praise of Beatrice was that much more refreshing.
Palmer-Tomkinson wore an off-the-shoulder blue dress with blue opera-length gloves.
In the center of it was a blue flower.
She had actually been concerned about a nose injury.
Perhaps that’s why her headpiece hung so low on her face.
Tragically, Palmer-Tomkinson died in 2017 when she was 45 of a perforated ulcer.
Camilla arrived in pastel pink, wearing a hat by Philip Treacy that was also a shade of pink.
Camilla’s subdued coatdress, designed by Anna Valentine, made way for the opulence of her headpiece.
Camilla has a long-standing relationship with milliner Treacy.
Camilla seems to have struck the perfect balance of elegant headwear without getting too formal.
And her pink fluffy piece at Harry and Meghan’s wedding was far from formal.
It was all play.
He must get busy when it’s the nuptial season for royals!
Fashion guru Molly Elizabeth spoke toExpressabout Phillips' look.
Of course, Elizabeth also made mention of the headpiece.
She pulled up at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle wearing a citrus-green dress with purple accessories.
The dress she wore under her lime-green coatdress was done in purple, gray, and bright green silk.
Her coat and dress were by Stuart Parvin.
The hat that she wore was made by Angela Kelly and wrapped in the same silk her coat was.
It was decorated with crystals and pearls by Lucy Price.
She chose a headpiece that was also lavender and sat flat on top of her head.
She wore her hair in an updo and made her headpiece the central focus.
In the middle of the headpiece there was a purple flower with lace.
The look was heavily coordinated with a purple and green coatdress over a purple shift dress.
She wore a necklace made of three strands of pearls.
However, the Princess Royal didn’t recycle the headpiece.
