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How Princess Beatrice owned the 'toilet hat' faux-pas at Kate and William's wedding

One of the most talked about outfits from Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding in 2011 (aside from the bride’s dress) was Princess Beatrice’s.

The then-22-year-old royal wore a pale pink Valentino Haute Couture dress with a dramatic Philip Treacy hat, that got compared to everything from a fallopian tube to a toilet seat.

It even ended up with its own Facebook page at one stage - the now defunct “Princess Beatrice’s ridiculous Royal Wedding hat.”

But Beatrice had the last laugh as the creation ended up selling for over £80,000 in an eBay auction, with the proceeds going to charities Unicef and Children in Crisis.

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Princess Beatrice at Kate and William's wedding at Westminster Abbey. [Photo: PA]
Princess Beatrice at Kate and William's wedding at Westminster Abbey. [Photo: PA]
Princess Beatrice's Philip Treacy hat sold for over £80,000 at auction. [Photo: Getty]
Princess Beatrice's Philip Treacy hat sold for over £80,000 at auction. [Photo: Getty]

Speaking on Yahoo UK’s ‘The Royal Box,’ fashion journalist Antonia O’Brien says: “I think she [Princess Beatrice] has handled that brilliantly and like you said, owning it, owning the joke and raising a huge amount of money because yes, it’s called the fallopian tube hat, the toilet hat, it’s got the most unflattering names of all time.

“She tried to make a style statement and then is actually laughing a bit with all of us as well, which I really respect her for, she must have a really good sense of humour.”

Irish milliner Philip Treacy spoke about the hat on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs last year.

"There was a moment where I thought I would find myself with my head on a spike outside the Tower of London," he told presenter Kirsty Young.

"But it was a very modern hat and modernity is always unusual things."

READ MORE: Princess Beatrice's original name was 'vetoed by the Queen'

Princess Beatrice's outfits: A Self Portrait dress, a Reiss skirt and The Vampire's Wife dress. [Photos: Getty]
Princess Beatrice's outfits: A Self Portrait dress, a Reiss skirt and The Vampire's Wife dress. [Photos: Getty]

While Princess Beatrice, 30, and her sister Princess Eugenie, 29, haven’t always got things right in the fashion stakes, the pair have had a style overhaul of late.

Beatrice has reportedly enlisted the help of socialite Lady Emily Compton and her business partner, fashion writer Olivia Buckingham, according to Vanity Fair.

Her most recent looks include a black v-neck cami with a Reiss satin slip skirt, a floral midi dress by The Vampire’s Wife at a garden party and a navy lace Self-Portrait frock for Lady Gabriella Windsor’s wedding.

Beatrice works full-time in business and splits her time between London and New York.

She is currently dating property developer Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and according to reports, he has moved in with the royal at St James’s Palace.

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