3 days Ago By Harriet Verney
It was the hat that birthed a thousand memes. Some called it the ‘pretzel hat’, its creator Philip Tracey called it a ‘ ’, but others had less favourable names for 's memorable headwear at the royal wedding of the Duke and Duchess of back in 2011. The designer himself thought it might see him with 'his head on a spike', as he told Kirsty Young on an episode of .
(The princess went on to sell it for charity, fetching over £81,000 on auction site eBay. Every cloud and all that..
.) The Irish born milliner, a former Contributing Editor at , has made hats for some of the world’s most famous heads. Kings and queens, Madonna, Lady Gaga, Grace Jones, as well as houses such as , , Valentino and Givenchy have all called on him for his breathtaking head sculptures.
It was his mentor and friend (and former Fashion Editor) Isabella Blow who got him his first fashion work, with Chanel’s , after introducing them at a party. 'She thought she was doing Karl a favour!' laughed Philip on the radio show, which aired last Sunday. But, he continued, he wouldn’t be sitting here today without the support of the hat-wearing British monarchy.
'If the royal family decided not to wear hats...
then I wouldn’t be sitting here having this conversation with you, because hats are part of the culture of Britishness.' Where hats used to be, he says 'a conformist accessory' they are now an 'accessory for rebellion,' and while the 1960s saw an influx of hair lovers and not hat lovers, hats are (thankfully) having a renaissance. ! Moet and Chandon fashion gala for Philip Treacy at the V&A, 2002 Philip Treacy couture, Autumn/Winter 2001 Alek Wek modelling Philip Treacy for Umbro Autumn/Winter 2006 Model wearing Philip Treacy creation on the catwalk, 1994 Princess Beatrice wearing the 'bow' hat to the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011 Philip Treacy Spring/Summer 2013 Model wearing Philip Treacy creation on the catwalk, 1994 The Duchess of Sussex wearing Philip Treacy to the Royal Ascot Naomi Campbell wearing Philip Treacy in 1993 Philip Treacy haute couture, 2000 The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall at their wedding, 2005 Philip Treacy Autumn/Winter 1998 Frances McDormand wearing Philip Treacy to the Met Gala, 2018 Isabella Blow and Philip Treacy (and his dog Mr Pig) in 2002 Philip Treacy Spring/ Summer 2013 Philip Treacy Autumn/Winter 1999 Sarah Jessica Parker wearing Philip Treacy to the Met Gala, 2015.
