TOP VIEW from the

Absolutely chats to master milliner-and Rickmansworth resident- Louis Mariette as he showcases some of his creations at this year’s Royal Ascot

By VALERIE AND ALLISTAIR MCDOWALL

Many of the Royals attended Ascot this year, and it was a very special year for King Charles and Queen Camilla as they attended for the first time since the Coronation celebrations.

Fashion’s own royalty was in attendance at Ascot on Ladies’ Day too, in the shape of Louis Mariette, the Rickmansworth designer of the world’s most expensive hat. Louis’s famous hat, worth £1.5m, sadly wasn’t on display; however, he and many of his other beautiful hats were. Louis, who never fails to look dapper, co-ordinated wonderfully with his stunning actress friend, Sofia Hayat, who sported Louis’s own special gold cup winning colours of the day, a stunning red bejewelled skull cap styled hat embroidered with gold sequins, and glass bugle beads, high grade Precosia crystals, complemented with red velvet roses and Lady Amherst pheasant feathers on top, with the jewel in the crown being an intricate hand-crafted centre-piece embellished with Siam red and clear crystals.

Sofia was certainly spotted and found popularity with the paparazzi on Ladies’ Day, as she made quite the impact using one colour styling. And with Louis’s attention to detail seen when he added matching red roses to his own traditional black top hat, and red tie to his morning suit, together they rollicked their own racing colours, and were easily amongst the most impactful couples of the day.

Louis, who was one of the judges in the fifth series of Britain’s Next Top Model, was only happy to tell us more about his journey in life. “I have had the honour and privilege of travelling to the most fascinating and unusual places on the planet,” he recollects. “Seeing the exotic migrating birds in their thousands on the tiny exotic Bird Island, which is part of the Seychelles in the Indian ocean. Their dazzling array of patterned feathers, and palette of colours, is an endless source of inspiration. On a trip to the furthest Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan, a country open to only a few privileged. I was honoured to be invited there by an anthropologist. Part of the trip was to witness rare ceremonies that were never usually seen by Westerners. The high standard of fabric dying, embroidery and embellishments on their outfits and millinery was simply breathtaking.”

How does he go about designing a bespoke piece of headwear? “When I create a bespoke piece for a client, I always decide what will best suit her individual style and personality. The creation must be an extension of her. This can be in the form of a hat or bejewelled headband, the latter of which is very popular with brides. The true inspiration is all about the lady, and if they reach out with a letter or call of thanks, then I know I have done my job well and I take pride in that.”

Discussing his career highlights, Louis says: “There have been many exciting highlights. I was delighted to be invited to be a milliner judge on series five of Britain's Next Top Model. They recreated some of my highlight photoshoots including underwater photographer Zena Holloway’s Pinewood studio water tank shoot, complete with scuba divers! Through my millinery platform I try to take any opportunity to plug causes close to my heart. Through supporting The Lupus Trust and The Children’s Trust, I was invited twice to 10 Downing Street. Also I’ve been raising awareness and fundraising for the WWF who provide pro-active methodical projects to wildlife and environmental conservation, to me the most important factor that should be a priority in all our lives.

The planet is our home, we are custodians of this, our duty should be sacred to the cause.

“An experience that I adored was being asked to present at Royal Ascot’s 300 year celebration live on the BBC,” Louis continues. “This prestigious event is one of my highlights every year. Ladies dazzling in their chic attire and showcasing heavenly millinery by talented hatters. Gentlemen in top hats and tails, refined and sophisticated. Of course the pomp and ceremony of the Royal traditions and the honour of being in the presence this year of our new King!

“I also had a collaboration with Harrods and the Platinum Guild and designed a hat called Chapeau d’amour, made of a rare weave of Platinum fabric and diamonds worth £1.5m. It once even travelled in its own first class seat on a flight from Mauritius to London!”

“My creativity, love and passion have been elevated to a new level with my new venture. I’ve pushed my skills to the utmost and enjoyed every precious moment of a threeyear project from the beginning of lockdown. A highly intricate Oriental sculpture display cabinet in Italian clay that perches my ornate perfume bottle and luxurious scent. I won’t say too much as you will have to wait for the launch and unveiling next year.”

Louis is interesting, charming and amusing, he lives life to the full, but still finds time to help people and fundraises for charity. After hearing about his adventures and his future plans, it’s also reassuring that a designer with such kudos still remembers that wildlife, the environment, and our planet are the most important things to consider with anything we do.

So, we can put high stakes on Louis to ensure he will be racing ahead to make his fashion items as sustainable as possible, because he genuinely cares about helping our environment to improve.