Horse Racing

Melbourne Cup fashion guide: How to pick your dress, hat and more

The Melbourne Cup is one of the most iconic sporting events in the world. It is, of course, an enormous horse racing event. Yet sometimes, it’s the Melbourne Cup fashion on show that steals some of the attention away from the participants. This has regularly been a key focus of various media channels over the years, and with good reason. Many celebrities, famous personalities, and even politicians have attended the Melbourne Cup in the past. And they always love to put on a show when it comes to what they are wearing.

Melbourne Cup Fashion

For the ladies, it’s all about looking as glamorous as possible. After all, some of the photographs that are taken will be put on the front page of domestic newspapers or posted on various social media networks. So image is everything for the ladies. As for the men, it’s all about looking slick and well-presented. 

With that said, how do the Melbourne Cup fashion requirements change between the two genders? And are there any particular items of clothing that receive a little more focus than others? Check out our guide below to find answers to these popular questions.

Melbourne Cup Fashion – the ins and outs

As mentioned above, the Melbourne Cup is a time for great sporting performances. Yet it’s also a time to put on a show in the fashion department. Naturally, the fashion requirements do change depending on how you are attending the event. If you are simply going to watch the race with the rest of the crowd, smart-casual attire is generally the go-to. But if you are going a little more up-market, then it’s time to push the boat out. 

Either way, you face a set of choices for the different areas relating to fashion ahead of this event. Therefore, we’d like to clarify these choices with a breakdown right now.

Melbourne Cup dress code

When it comes to the official dress code for this event, the guidelines are a little vague. In fact, the text that relates to this, as published by the event organizers, simply labels the requirements as ‘suitable racewear attire’ for ladies. As for the men, it’s a little more specific, as the requirements show that a jacket, shirt, blazer, and formal shoes need to be worn. However, there is a bit of a twist for the Melbourne Cup compared to some of the other prestigious horse races held around the world.

Since this race at its very core is there to reflect prosperity and joy in this part of the world, slightly livelier colours are more actively encouraged. This also extends to the men, even though strictly speaking, it’s the women who get a bit more flexibility in this department. Therefore, it’s perfectly acceptable for women to head to the Melbourne Cup in bright green, gold, yellow, or blue dresses. Of course, these also reflect the colours of the Australian flag, as is fairly common for a nation as Patriotic as Australia.

The men, however, are a little more restricted. Sure, brightly coloured undershirts are a typical part of the Melbourne Cup fashion for the guys. But only the most daring will arrive with bright pink, green, or yellow suits. Needless to say, these kinds of things always draw the attention of the cameras.

Melbourne Cup hats

As is fairly typical for major horse races held around the world, hats are a big part of the fashion for this event – especially for the ladies. You will see females arriving in hats of all shapes, colours, and sizes for the Melbourne Cup. These often come with some form of accessory either on the top or the side of the hats too. After all, there is only so much variation that a hat can actually have, which is where the accessories help to produce a unique feel.

As mentioned earlier, it’s great if these hats can also match the colour of the ladies’ dress. This way, you can arrive in a perfectly colour-coordinated style, and you will feel like a million dollars in the process. 

Melbourne Cup dresses

Much like the hats discussed above, the dresses that ladies choose for the Melbourne Cup are often rather loud and vibrant. Bear in mind that the guidelines state that these dresses should coincide with the description of ‘suitable racewear. Because of that, any dresses that are a little too revealing or a bit too outlandish likely won’t go down too well. This gives you a decent scope of options, but it does put more of a formal twist on what you go for.

It’s worth mentioning that dress length is an important factor here. Dresses that go down to the knees or below are generally accepted across the board, and this gives an opportunity to choose fancy trims. However, dresses that finish above the knee can still be okay, as long as they aren’t viewed as overly eccentric. 

Melbourne Cup men’s fashion

We’ve talked a lot about women’s fashion here, so let’s quickly flick over to the guys. Once again, the guy’s choice of fashion is naturally going to be more reserved than the women. Suits and jackets are a go-to, and even if you are just going to watch, these still need to be reasonably formal to keep in tune with the prestige of the event. On that note, as long as you go with a reputable suit brand you can’t go far wrong.

And beyond that, it’s entirely your choice as to whether you go all-out with an eye-catching suit or whether you simply go for a stylish shirt and tie. 

Conclusion on Melbourne Cup Fashion

We hope you’ve enjoyed this breakdown of the Melbourne Cup fashion expectations. And if you are actually attending the event, we wish you a great time! With that said, keep in mind that the Melbourne Cup is quite literally a few days away, at the time of writing. So if you want to pick out a fancy dress or a fantastic suit, make sure you get your skates on. Who knows, if your fashion is unique enough you might even star in a few photos that get featured by the media!


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