Sophie Duchess Edinburgh Royal Ascot wears black bow dress on day two
Sophie, Duchess of Edinburgh, wore a black puff-sleeve Suzannah London dress with a large bow on day two of Royal Ascot. The look placed sophie duchess edinburgh royal ascot in focus because black is usually tied to mourning or evening wear, not a daytime summer meeting.
She appeared alongside her husband, Prince Edward, in the Victoria Shirt Dress from Suzannah London. The made-to-order design has a buttoned bodice and an A-line midi skirt, and it also comes in pink and orange.
Royal Ascot dress rules
The dress did not break Ascot’s dress code. Women are required to wear dresses below the knee with modest necklines and hats, and Sophie paired the black dress with white accessories, pointed-toe kitten heels from Jimmy Choo and a striped hat.
Black has a different meaning in royal dress history. Princess Diana wore a black gown by David and Elizabeth Emanuel to a fundraising concert in 1981, and in 1991 she reportedly said Charles remarked, “Only people in mourning wear black!”
Danielle Stacey on royal mourning
Danielle Stacey, HELLO!'s Online Royal Correspondent, said royals keep mourning clothing ready for travel after Queen Elizabeth II faced a problem during her royal tour of Africa in 1952, when King George VI died. She said the family does not wear mourning attire for long by modern standards and described a typical modern royal mourning period as two weeks.
“I think the royals never want to be in a situation where they're unprepared for such a scenario, having learned from Princess Elizabeth's return from Kenya when her father died, so it would make sense for them to always have a black outfit to hand,” Stacey said. She also said: “But in comparison, the modern royal family do not wear mourning attire for very long, in comparison to their ancestors. Typically, a two-week mourning period is observed.”
Sophie had worn a soft cream Suzannah London tea dress with a coral and green floral print days earlier for the Order of the Garter service. That contrast left the black bow dress as the day two choice that stood out most at Ascot.
