Hatters Happy About Princess Beatrice's Crazy Millinery

Possibly the most enduring image of the royal wedding between Prince William and his commoner bride, Kate Middleton, was the fanciful hat worn by Princess Beatrice, William's cousin. Gravity-defying and startling, the bow-shaped "sculptural" hat in a "delicate tea rose silk" designed for the princess by milliner Philip Treacy inspired derision, adoration, passionate defense and imitation.

The hat has been called ridiculous, crazy and even compared to the headgear of the ugly stepsisters in Disney's Cinderella. (Treacy, by the way, said his inspiration was "beauty and elegance," a rather oblique and obscure way of saying he thinks it's lovely, thank you very much.)

Here's the thing, though: This hat did its job. Not only did it give rise to a flurry of attention about Beatrice -- which perhaps has not been quite flattering -- it has also inspired a renewed interest in British millinery and, indeed, millinery worldwide. According to the Hat Gallery in London, "We're definitely expecting hats to start reappearing at weddings; sales have risen by up to 20% since the [royal] wedding."