The Best Dressed at Royal Ascot Day 2: Catherine, Princess of Wales and Jade Holland Cooper

Jade Holland Cooper Royal Ascot 2026

Royal Ascot is now into its second day, and Jade Holland Cooper is already setting the standard for modern race-day dressing. Wearing a fully bespoke Holland Cooper ensemble designed, fitted, and made at the brand’s British atelier, Jade arrived at the Royal Enclosure in the kind of look that reminds you what occasion dressing is actually for.

Catherine, Princess of Wales made a much-anticipated return to Ascot alongside her, wearing a custom marigold Roksanda dress in her third outing of the piece, and together the two looks told the same story: that the women who dress best at Ascot are the ones who understand their clothes before they put them on.

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Day One: Jade Holland Cooper

Before a single piece of fabric was cut, Day 1 began with Jade at her drawing table. The look was entirely bespoke, designed, fitted, and made at the Holland Cooper Atelier in Britain. Jade described the process herself: the outfit started with a sketch, moved through the atelier, and arrived at the Royal Enclosure as a finished piece.

The result was a polka dot ensemble in black and white, worn with a black hat. It is a combination that requires confidence to pull off at Ascot, where the instinct is often to reach for colour. Monochrome polka dot is graphic and precise, and the structured Holland Cooper silhouette gave it the formality the Royal Enclosure demands without sacrificing femininity. The tailoring did the work that a softer dress cannot — it held its shape across a full day of racing, photographing, and being watched by an enormous audience.

This is exactly what I mean when I write about Holland Cooper’s occasionwear. The structured silhouette is formal enough for Ascot’s dress codes, but the way the brand cuts means women look like themselves in the clothes rather than wearing a costume. That balance is harder to achieve than it looks.

Day Two: The Influencer Edit

Joining Jade on Day 2 are influencers Josie Irons, Chloe Rose, and Laura Blair, all dressed in Holland Cooper. Where Jade’s Day 1 look was sharp and monochromatic, the influencer edit has landed firmly in pastels — soft blues, florals, creams, and pale pinks. The effect is exactly right for a British summer race day, where the light is softer and the mood slightly more relaxed than the Royal Enclosure’s strict formality.

The pastel palette is not simply a trend choice. Pale colours at Ascot read as considered and feminine without competing with the extraordinary hats that frame every look. Holland Cooper’s construction means the softness of the colour is anchored by the precision of the cut, so nothing looks underdressed. It is the brand’s central skill: clothes that feel comfortable and look impeccable at the same time.

Together, Jade and the four women around her represent something specific about where British occasionwear is heading. The era of the heavily embellished, overtly formal race day outfit is giving way to something more refined — tailoring that is elegant rather than stiff, colour that is considered rather than loud, and craftsmanship that is visible without announcing itself.

Holland Cooper has owned that space for several seasons now. This week at Ascot, they are owning it again.

For more on what to wear to Royal Ascot and how to dress for the Royal Enclosure, our Royal Ascot dress code guide covers every enclosure and the rules worth knowing before you go.

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