The first Saturday of May has galloped by, leaving in its wake a receding tide of mint juleps and oversized floppy sun hats.
Oh, you read that correctly.
The Kentucky Derby – the famed horse race held the first Saturday of every month for more than 130 years – was held May 4 in Louisville, Ky.
The preppy elite of the world gathered at Churchill Downs in their various pastel print uniforms, clothed in everything from Vineyard Vines bow ties and headbands to Lilly Pulitzer sundresses and seersucker suits.
As the photographers descended on the most decadently dressed individuals, the throngs of attendants struck their very best poses in honor of the greatest two minutes in sports.
The high spirits of the Derby-goers couldn’t even be dampened by the stormy skies that hovered above the horse track. However, the precipitation certainly left its mark on the day’s fashions.
See-through plastic ponchos made practical accessory additions to many wardrobe ensembles, muting the colorful palettes beneath without extinguishing them.
Glamorous spring floral prints covered Derby attendees in an array of bright yellow, red, turquoise and violet hues.
But hold your horses! This affair wasn’t about stylishly mingling with the uppermost crests of society. It wasn’t solely focused on observing the purest of thoroughbred steeds race around a track, either.
The Kentucky Derby is considered first and foremost (by all serious hat aficionados) as the great hacienda of headwear.
And these hats, always show stealers at the annual event, did not disappoint. From classy and wearable to outlandish and terrible, the head garments fell into a wide assortment of categories this year.
One man’s top hat was shrouded in rosebushes growing up to the Heavens, while a woman’s blue hat, in a festive nod to the Derby’s true celebrities, was crowned with a My Little Pony doll. Still, another Derby-goer’s hat housed a plastic pink flamingo jauntily perched atop a sea of fuchsia roses and turquoise daises.
The crowd of horse and hat enthusiasts was also graced with a few celebrity faces.
Supermodel Coco Rocha sported purple orchids beneath her white hat while country singer Luke Bryan flashed a smile beneath a simpler wide-brimmed fedora.
Whether one’s headwear style is smashing or simply eye-catching, The Kentucky Derby remains the one place in sports history where hat crafting is just as much a part of the game as the race itself.
Hats off to that!
