As millions of football fans were absorbed by World Cup fever, Royal Ascot closed on Saturday, near London, as a very different kind of social spectacle. The horse-racing meeting remains one of the last strongholds of Britain’s elite, drawing aristocrats, royals, business figures and celebrities who come not only for the races but also to be seen at a centuries-old ritual.
Fashion again dominated the event. On the second day, Catherine, Princess of Wales, wore a canary-yellow Roksanda Ilinčić dress she had previously worn twice in 2022, paired with a lemon-yellow Jane Taylor hat with netting that helped her withstand strong wind. Queen Camilla stayed closer to her usual style, choosing soft pastels, conservative silhouettes and elegant hats rather than bold fashion statements.
For the opening day, Camilla wore a custom white coat dress by Anna Valentine with a matching wide-brimmed hat, then appeared the next day in a pale mint dress by the same designer. At the final day’s closing ceremony, she wore a simple blue dress by couture designer Fiona Clare Aldridge, a Philip Treacy hat she had worn before, and a medium-sized pearl Lady Dior bag. The bag costs $6,000, as the article noted, “for ordinary people.”
Royal Ascot is held every June for five days and attracts about 300,000 visitors each year. Founded in 1711, it is still defined by dress codes, especially in the royal enclosure, where men must wear morning dress and top hats and women must wear a hat or head covering at least 10 centimeters high. Outside that area, the rules relax and more theatrical styles appear, including floral hats, sculptural designs and even 3D prints. Among the standout guests were fashion writer Flora Gibbs and stylist Flora Macdonald Johnston, who wore a Daniel Fletcher Mithridate pantsuit with a pink cake-like hat by Owen Goulding for Lock & Co. Hatters. Gibbs showed several looks ranging from modern to 1980s retro, including a white dress, black hat and a small handbag shaped like Frida Kahlo.
