Melania Trump's Ugly Hat Fails Will Haunt Her Forever

First ladies in the US have always managed to sway the styles of their husbands' presidencies in some way. Jackie Kennedy's knack for monochrome outfits, skirtsuits, and the pillbox hat had a chokehold on the American public in the mid 20th century. However, despite President Donald Trump's insistence that "We have our own Jackie O, it's called Melania, Melania T" on "Fox & Friends" in 2019 (via Politico), one aspect of Melania Trump's personal style that nobody can seem to get behind is her ugly hats. While her short black top hat might have been the main character of President Trump's second inauguration, it was a flashback to one of her most notable fashion fails. Melania's hats have sparked the internet to erupt with memes and conspiracy theories about her dull marriage, and have even prompted broader socioeconomic discussions about her fashion choices.

Not everyone knows the true story behind her "I don't really care, do you?" jacket, worn while visiting detention centers at the US-Mexico border, but it's just a drop in the bucket compared to her shady (no pun intended) taste. While the first lady typically preferred to keep her hair down during the first Trump presidency, the second term is seemingly defined by Melania's obvious attempts to both hide and save face. The former model eased into MAGA blonde ahead of the premiere of her self-titled documentary, but there are some horrendous hat highlights that no dye job can fix.

Melania Trump shocked the nation after wearing a navy silk-wool top hat with a white ribbon at the presidential inauguration in January 2025. Many found the choice of accessory to be deliberate, as it made a kiss on the cheek from newly re-elected President Donald Trump nearly impossible.

While the look was far from the traditionally inviting, unified front typically expected at the event, it was a risky move for several reasons. In an interview with Women's Wear Daily, designer Eric Javits said it had to be remade after the original was crushed by a snowstorm. For better or worse, it eventually made it.

Eyes were on Melania Trump's UK look for all the wrong reasons when she sported a maroon, wide-rimmed hat during the presidential state visit in September 2025. While glimpses of her taught, sullen grimace peeked out from under the brim in some shots, other poses completely concealed her face, giving many online the opportunity to blast the first lady's outfit choice.

One user on X even likened the first lady to the McDonald's Hamburglar, emphasizing the ensemble's comically villainous vibe. The look even inspired FX's South Park's ghostly characterization of the First Lady in its 2025 Halloween episode, "The Woman in the Hat".

Donald and Melania Trump's 2018 visit to Africa was controversial for several reasons, including the first lady's questionable outfit choices. It was her white pith helmet, worn while touring Nairobi National Park in Kenya, that sent critics into a frenzy.

Melania completes the stereotype trifecta–elephants, orphans and even the pith helmet.....#FLOTUSinAfrica2018 @africasacountry @AFP @AP pic.twitter.com/TkgFb3w4yY

— Matt Carotenuto (@matt_carotenuto) October 5, 2018

Commonly associated with European soldiers during the 19th and 20th century colonial eras, the pith hat has become a style cue for the oppression of African and Asian nations. The implications of her hat seemed to pale in comparison to the heartbreaking reason the first lady wanted to send mirrors to the orphans she met while visiting.

While Melania Trump might have been trying to channel her inner Jackie O when visiting French Prime Minister Emmanuel Macron during the 2018 state visit, her white monochrome outfit and enormous wide-brimmed hat weren't the most welcoming. Another case of kiss-proof headgear: President Donald Trump was seen struggling to reach the first lady's cheek.

As plain a design as this piece is, Melania seemed to think it was worth a starting bid of $250,000 when putting it up for auction in 2022. According to The Guardian, the autographed hat and NFT of the piece fell $80,000 short.

In a 2019 visit to Buckingham Palace, it seemed the British winds weren't too keen on Melania Trump's choice of accessory. Worn at a slant, the first lady regularly had to hold onto the top of the white-and-navy hat to keep it from flying off.

This seemed like less of an issue for Queen Elizabeth II, who posed next to the president's wife, her hat showing steady resistance to the weather. Like the Red Queen in "Alice in Wonderland", it seems that everybody wanted that hat "off [of] her head!"

You can't out-hat the royal family, but Melania Trump desperately tried while arriving for the 75th D-Day commemoration ceremony in 2019. While the first lady might have been wearing a designer label, The Row, the look was completely out of line with her flying saucer hat.

Double-rimmed and made of canvas, a more rugged textile, the hat put a rustic spin on an alien headgear that definitely made Melania stand apart. Sitting alongside Queen Elizabeth II during the ceremony, the hat made the first lady look like she belonged on another planet.

Melania Trump wore a hat to Barron Trump's graduation, making it all the more obvious that she's reluctant to cut the umbilical cord. The tan, wide-brimmed top hat obscured the public's views of the first lady's eyes entirely – presumably making it much easier to hide the tears.

Trump, Melania, and her father Viktor attend Barron's graduation at Oxbridge Academy in West Palm Beach.

Follow: @AFpost pic.twitter.com/gAu3X3MKLI

— AF Post (@AFpost) May 17, 2024

Say what you will about her questionable choice in headgear, but previous examples at least hint at some sense of color coordination. This outfit, pairing the hat with a navy blazer and white midi skirt, seems to clash entirely with the beachy, Floridian vibe of her accessories.