If you think about what to wear for a day at the summer races, your mind probably jumps to wide-brimmed hats and floral dresses at Royal Ascot – or maybe Audrey Hepburn as Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady – looking chic. In short, this is all very smart, but not exactly what exciting young fashion is all about.
But it really needn’t be so boring, these days, for young fashionistas with nothing to prove. The more outlandish you are – the better you’re going to like it. But do check the dress codes at the various racecourses around the country before you go – as otherwise you simply may not get in in the first place.
It’s also pretty easy to be kitsch. You can stand alongside all the top hats and tails and pillar box hatted ladies wearing whatever you choose in an ironic way if that’s what does it for you – and this can be great fun. Alternatively, you can be tongue-in-cheek – dressing to kill but completely inappropriately so as so many young ladies seemed to manage at Aintree’s Grand National meeting last March.
In short, it’s all about standing out from the crowd with the ideal race-day outfit, covering everything from killer heels to some fantastic fascinators for the females. The males can get away with pretty much anything depending on the meeting. At the moment, the emphasis seems to be on pocket squares, seersucker suits and summer derby brogues – in light browns and pale blues together. With hats – it’s all about kitsch trilbies.
Just do your homework on the requirements of the individual racecourse before you go. Also – be warned here; you will face some pretty stiff competition. Fashion and racing have always been pretty closely linked all around the world – and it just seems to keep getting bigger. It’s also getting a lot better and a lot less formal – particularly for anyone under about 30. So whatever you do – don’t feel constrained by convention unless, of course, the individual racecourse demands it as with Royal Ascot etc. But even in these cases, there are ways around the rules – where you can still inject a note of individual style and panache.
Really, the summer is where it’s at as the styles can get pretty bland in the winter. In the UK, this really means the flat racing from June to August inclusive. Enjoy – and concentrate on the races and the fashions rather than the betting. On BetFair, for example, you’ll generally enjoy better prices and you should be able to get a free bet if you haven’t signed up with the site before. Because Betfair is an exchange rather than a conventional bookmaker, it’s often wise to leave a bet to be taken at a certain target price as it’s surprising how far the market moves sometimes. Of course, this doesn’t always work, but picking your horses before you go the races and leaving your bets on with Betfair does enable you to enjoy the afternoon or evening without racing off to the Tote offices or bookies every half an hour.
Just make sure your wagers are as stylish as you are on the day!