Guest Post by TheModernCool

This week, I invited Magda from TheModernCool to write a guest post. As a London blogger, who better to give us a little insight into the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee? Enjoy this fun post about dressing for the races! Cheers, E. 

Yesterday, 2^nd June, marked the 60^th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation. As part of the Jubilee Weekend celebrations in London, the Queen attended the Epsom Downs races. This marked the beginning of the summer social events calendar.

So, not only did you get invited, you have accepted and now you have have your ticket too! Great! But what are you going to wear? If you are lucky enough to be at the Queen’s stand (Epsom) or the Royal Enclosure (Ascot), there are some very strict rules regarding what you can and cannot wear.

First of all: the dress! While there is quite a lot of liberty in terms of dress styles (and at the races you can surely spot some really odd ones!), there are some dos and don’ts that you need to be aware of. Any type of formal day dress or a tailored suit will be fine, as long as the dress is “modest” length (no more than 2 inches above the knee). Straps are fine too, as long as they are more than one inch. Strapless dresses or string strap are not allowed. If the dress has cut-outs, they must be covered by a pashmina or a jacket.

Probably the biggest thing is the hats. There is almost full liberty when it comes to hat styles and in fact you can spot some really outrageous ones around  - eccentricity is rather welcome in this regard. If you are going to Epsom races, you may wear a fascinator (as long as it’s quite substantial), but from this year onwards fascinators are no longer allowed at Ascot: a hat it is, then!

Men are required to wear either black or grey morning suit with a tie (no cravats!), black shoes and of course a top hat.

All sounds great, but you still don’t know what to put on? Why not try this outfit:

Mikael Aghal short sequin cocktail dress, $208

Casadei high heels, £670

Alexander Mcqueen handbag, £1,195

Lisa Freede vine ring, $98

NIGEL RAYMENT feather hat, £155

Tom Ford gold nail polish, $30

Vincent Longo ‘Wet Pearl’ Lipstick Olympia Rose One Size, $23

And don’t forget – you are in England – so you may want to bring a fancy umbrella with you to.... unless you like your hats soggy, that is.

Love xx

M. from TheModernCool