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Call us sticklers for rule and regulation, but those attending this year’s Melbourne Cup Carnival have really taken heed of the dress canons which more or less govern it. Age-old dress codes have very much dictated the Carnival thus far, with Birdcage attendees abiding by its fashion rules, save for a few peekaboo waists and sock-less ankles.
There’s no better example of this than the colour codes which have presented. Derby Day dished up its traditional monochrome palette of black and white, Cup Day saw a riot of bold block colour, and today’s Oaks Day, or as it’s affectionately known, Ladies’ Day, honoured its long-standing tradition of the feminine and the floral, with girlish pink the overall style winner.
A sartorial homage to the day’s crowning flower, the pink rose, celebrities whipped up sweet treats in the form of frothy tulle frocks in soft blush, magenta blazer mini dresses and babydoll smocks in salmon. Kate Waterhouse was lip-smackingly good in Prada, as too Rebecca Harding, who brought a little ’60s swing to Flemington with a babydoll dress replete with era-appropriate accoutrements – a headband and long black gloves – as styled by the VRC’s boy wonder, Elliot Garnaut.
But it wasn’t all sweet-as-pie trackside, many dabbled in a little colour clash, too, adding splashes of red to otherwise saccharine ensembles, proving the once-taboo colour combo is fashionable yet again.
Here, a look at the sweet and (a little) spicy fashion of the day.
