Don't scare the horses

RACE-DAY FASHION:Best-dressed competitions at race meetings are hugely popular. But some entrants don't dress in a manner appropriate for the occasion. Boutiques are full of great race-day outfits, and here, DEIRDRE McQUILLANoffers some guidelines to keep you on track

WHEN IT COMES TO fashion at Irish race meetings, there are no dress codes, no rules, no dictators. At Ascot, you can ban fake tan, prohibit bare midriffs and spaghetti straps, but stripping away such attire in Ireland would empty half the racecourses and dampen the girly enthusiasm and high spirits.

Many racegoers competing for the best dressed stakes seem to confuse night and day when they dress up for the parade ring, as Orna Mulcahy once observed writing in this Magazine. Or maybe the judges do. But how to impress when the prize is €10,000 or more? Why not look sleek, fit, well groomed and thoroughbred, just like a champion stallion?

Now that Kate Middleton has made Burberry coats and Dubarry boots fashionable racing wear, maybe it’s time to forgo the chiffon and the feathers and the killer heels and set new standards as the season approaches.

Starting with Fairyhouse’s Easter meeting this month, followed by Punchestown and the Curragh, before the grand finale at the Galway races in July, festival fever and best-dressed competitions will bring out slap-happy dressers willing to be judged publicly on their style.

Coco Chanel made her mark on the racecourse by keeping things simple.

To look like you own the place, a hat has to stay in place and the more elaborate it is, the simpler the dress. Common sense applies. Dresses should fit and flatter body shape, likewise jackets. Keep jewellery minimal.

Shoes shouldn’t sink the outfit nor sink into the ground. What’s wrong with boots in wet weather? If you must, wear wedges. With sandals, pedicures are imperative.

Strong winds demand protection. Tie the hair back and wear a coat that doesn’t look as if it should be at a wedding.

What are the judges looking for?

Top tips from Aisling Kilduff, owner of Design Centre in the Powerscourt Town House, and judge of several best-dressed competitions:

“I hate to see too much skin and gimmicky dressing. Please, no horses on the head. Summer racing can be very scary and you can feel decidedly underdressed sometimes,” she says.

“Colour always stands out with the Irish weather, and headpieces are essential, but steer away from feathers.

“It’s important to have one good on-trend piece, be it a bag, a dress, a headpiece or shoes – that will always bag a judge.

“Shoes are incredibly important. I always go for the overall look, then survey head-to-toe. Please take stickers off the soles of the shoes – that’s a real faux pas.”

Some key shops for racing wear

Kalu in Naas, Co Kildare; Joanne in Killaloe, Co Tipperary; Compagnie L in the Merrion Centre; Mijou, South Anne Street, Dublin; Divine in Maynooth, Co Kildare; Fran Jane, Clarendon Street, Dublin; Design Centre, Powerscourt, Dublin; Arnotts in Henry Street, Dublin; Elaine Curtis, Carlow; Fitzpatricks, Grafton Street and Dundrum Town Centre (for Dubarry boots), Dublin, Jenny’s Boutique in Ashbourne and Dunshaughlin, Co Meath