At Royal Ascot, the Hats Are as Thrilling as the Horses
An English garden party is about two things—cocktails and fashion—and at this year’s prestigious Royal Ascot horse race, the Surrey Hills handcrafted spirit Silent Pool spearheaded both
At what’s arguably the world’s most acclaimed horse racing event, tradition at 300-plus-year-old Royal Ascot begins before you even enter the racecourse. Strolling through Car Park 1, the British version of tailgating (think Downtown Abbey extravagance with Range Rovers opening up to fully catered garden parties, complete with white tablecloths and candelabras), securing a parking (or rather, picnic) spot near the Royal Enclosure is as exclusive as gaining access to the haute Enclosure itself. Once inside, while sipping gin-infused cocktails on the Royal Enclosure’s sixth-floor perch in Silent Pool’s box, everyone was vying for a glimpse of the royals in the Royal Box below, but we were even more curious to see the creations the Princess of Wales and others would be sporting on their heads.
The Royal Enclosure, the most prestigious of the Royal Ascot’s four areas, requires membership akin to a country club and a dress code as regulated (traditional morning dress with tailcoats and top hats—worn at all times—for men, matching pantsuits or knee-length dresses for women and hats—not fascinators—required). “Fashion is a pretty key part of the Royal Ascot experience, and I think millinery is the signature element other than perhaps the Royal Enclosure dress code,” says Tom Johnson, Ascot Racecourse’s commercial director. “It’s one of the biggest moments of the year for that industry—the craft that isn’t as widely used as it once was, so we’re proud to play a role in keeping that going.”
For this year’s collection, the Royal Ascot Millinery Collective—the official design arm of the Royal Ascot—drew inspiration from British photographer Cecil Beaton’s Roaring Twenties and ‘30s portraits of sculptural silhouettes and couture florals from Bright Young Things. “There is so much synergy between Beaton’s work and Royal Ascot that it made perfect sense; there was one quote from him in particular that stood out to me because it’s the same way we approach dressing for Royal Ascot and made for the perfect brief for this year’s milliners: ‘Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary,’” explains Daniel Fletcher, Royal Ascot’s creative director.
The collection debuted first at London Fashion Week in February before it was brought across the pond for an exhibition at Waldorf Astoria New York—all in partnership with Silent Pool, the racecourse’s official gin that’s handcrafted in England’s Surrey Hills, not far from the Ascot Racecourse. While Pimm’s No. 1 Cup is a quintessential summer sipper—and one you’ll see carted around in jugs at Royal Ascot—Silent Pool, crafted on the Duke of Northumberland’s Albury Estate, offered a regal, honey-steeped spin (the Surry Hills distillery claims two of its own beehives) in the form of the racecourse’s signature Royal Ascot Blush cocktail, which blends the 24-botanical gin with strawberry cordial and lemonade.
“We are lucky to have a fantastic array of milliners here in the UK, a craft undoubtedly kept alive by Royal Ascot and the demand it creates for headpieces,” says Fletcher. “One of the things I love to see is a mix of tradition and innovation, milliners who embrace modern techniques and materials whilst retaining the traditional values of millinery are the ones that really excite me and in the future, I think we will see much more of this.”
Now in its 11th year, the Royal Ascot Millinery Collective brings together 11 key milliners, from celebrated creators like Stephen Jones (who designed the feathered headpiece Lady Gaga donned during the Paris 2024 Olympics Opening Ceremony) to promising newcomers like Finley Howie, a graduate of the Chanel & The King’s Foundation Métiers d’Art Millinery Fellowship 2026, initially a lampshade maker who worked with interior designers and hotels.
“Before starting the course, I had only made cut-and-sew hats and had never blocked felt or straw—looking back at how much I’ve learnt and how far I’ve come over the past year is incredible,” says Howie, adding that each hat he created for his final collection, inspired by Queen Elizabeth II’s royal tour of India in 1961, reflects a specific location, color palette, or ceremonial occasion. “The collection brings together craftsmanship, storytelling and conscious design, blending couture millinery with a streetwear influence to celebrate Indian culture through a fresh, modern lens.”
