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kate middleton in white coat split with melania trump in white dress© Getty

Melania Trump copies Princess Kate with gigantic face-covering hat

Donald Trump's wife took fashion cues from Prince William's wife  

Katie Daly
Lifestyle Writer
January 21, 2025
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Melania Trump made her first fashion statement as the new First Lady of the United States as her husband Donald Trump was inaugurated into his second term as president. 

The politician's wife seemed to take style cues from a royal style icon as she witnessed the inauguration parade at the Capital One Arena in Washington D.C. Melania, 54, was seen wearing a navy hat by Eric Javits with a white ribbon around the band.

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Melania Trump almost didn't wear her statement hat© POOL/AFP via Getty Images

The hat, which was so large and worn so low it almost covered her entire face, was of a similar proportion to the green number the Princess of Wales wore in 2023 to the monarch's birthday parade, otherwise known as Trooping the Colour.

 Catherine in carriage waving in green hat and dress© Getty

Kate's enormous saucer-like hat by Philip Treacy was teamed with an Andrew Gn straight-cut dress adorned with oversized bejewelled buttons.

Barron Trump and first lady Melania Trump at POTUS inauguration© Getty Images

Melania's hat mishap

The former model almost didn't wear her Kate-coded headwear. "It arrived all crushed," revealed Eric Javits, the designer and expert milliner, recalling the results of the hat being shipped from his Miami office to New York. "It looked like it had been sitting in snow drifts for about a week. It couldn’t really be repaired, because of the construction of it."

Melania Trump dressed in a sleek navy coat Paired with a dramatic wide-brimmed hat and pointy stilettos walking down the stairs next to husband Donald Trump© Getty Images

The hat was remade by Eric and hand-delivered to Melania via a car that was put on by her stylist Hervé Pierre. "No other hands touched it, nor did any other eyes see the hat prior to Hervé and the First Lady receiving it," Eric told WWD.

The hand-crafted hat was paired with a structured coat by Adam Lippes and a white neck scarf. 

First Lady Melania Trump look sensational in the custom gown© Getty Images

Melania's gown

After the inauguration parade, Melania joined her husband at the Commander-in-Chief inaugural ball at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. She wore a custom Hervé Pierre gown featuring an unusual strapless neckline and leg-split skirt. 

The couple enjoyed their first dance as President and First Lady© Getty Images

The gown featured a built-in choker and she wore her hair in loose waves.

First Lady Melania Trump, Karen Pence, President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, former president Barack Obama, former vice president Joe Biden, Michelle Obama and Jill Biden stand on the steps of the U. Capitol on January 20, 2017 in Washington, DC.
Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States Friday -- ushering in a new political era that has been cheered and feared in equal measure© Getty

A different inauguration look

Melania wore a totally different look in 2017 when she stood on the steps of the U.S. Capitol during the inauguration ceremony that made her businessman husband the 45th president of the United States. 

President Donald Trump and Melania Trump in blue walk hand in hand© Getty

DISCOVER: Melania Trump's rise to the White House – from humble roots in Slovenia to First Lady

The mother of one chose a cornflower blue coat dress by Ralph Lauren with matching pumps and gloves. 

5 surprising Donald Trump facts

Smiling Donald Trump in blue suit and orange tie with white slanted stripes© Getty Images

1. Pet hates

He is one of only three US presidents never to have had any presidential pets. When he assumed office in 2016, he was the first in 100 years not to have pets in the White House, with only James K. Polk and Andrew Johnson abstaining before then.

2. Man of convictions

He is the first ever convicted felon to become president of the United States after being sentenced on 34 different charges pertaining to his hush money case in New York City in 2024.

3. Till divorce do us part

He has been married three times: to Ivana Trump from 1977 to 1990, Marla Maples from 1993 to 1999, and current wife Melania Trump in 2005.

4. Lights, cameos, action

He has made a slew of cameos on popular TV shows and movies, such as Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, Sex and the City, Two Weeks Notice, Zoolander, and The Nanny, among others.

5. Alcohol free

He claims never to have drunk alcohol in his life, inspired by older brother Fred “Freddy” Trump Jr who was an alcoholic and died in 1981 aged 42 from a heart attack linked to years of alcohol abuse.

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