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Australia’s fashionistas are gearing up to put their best foot forward at this year’s Melbourne Cup carnival.
Fashion on the field is set to be bolder than ever as officials have relaxed strict dress codes for 2023 to allow shorts, bare backs and exposed midriffs.
The change comes after many rule breakers sparked scandals with their risky looks and some even sparked a fashion revolution.
Guests who raised eyebrows by challenging conservative sartorial restrictions included Paris Hilton with her midriff-baring number in 2003 and model Jean Shrimpton who stepped out in a mini-skirt in the mid-’60s.
Even though the dress code has been relaxed to allow for more modern fashion, guests are still expected to look smart.
Melbourne Cup officials have relaxed the event’s strict dress codes to allow shorts and allow women to expose their backs and midriffs.
The change comes after several rule-breakers sparked scandals with their daring looks, including Paris Hilton’s midriff-baring number in 2003.
What are the dress code rules in 2023?
This year, men and women will be able to wear shorts in the members’ section for the first time.
Women will also be able to show off their midriffs, wear cutouts and exposed backsides in the Birdcage enclosures filled with celebrities and members for the first time in the Cup’s 162-year history.
Even though the rules have been relaxed, customers are still expected to dress to a high standard.
Backless dresses should stop at the waist. Belly buttons can’t be exposed, and while ’90s fashion is making a comeback, bralettes or bandeau crop tops haven’t been approved.
The new rules require shorts to be just above or below the knee for both men and women.
Punters will be allowed to wear shorts (left) just above or below the knee. Although midriffs have been approved, bandeaus and bralettes (right) are still on the banned list
Etiquette expert Amanda King said punters should always dress to a high standard and not look casual or like they’ve just come from the beach (Guests at the Caulfield Cup)
“We just hope customers don’t look casual or look like they just came off the beach,” Australian Finishing School director Amanda King said.
“In no definition of a formal event do shorts enter the fashion pool, so this will be an interesting new deal.”
Ms King said the changes demonstrate that the Racing Club recognizes that “fashions have changed” while guiding punters to make “appropriate” fashion choices for the environment.
Fashion moments that break the rules
For an event steeped in tradition and proud of its strict dress code, the Melbourne Cup has had its fair share of rule-breaking fashion moments.
The world’s first supermodel, Jean Shrimpton, arguably caused a sensation when she wore a shift dress that stopped five inches above her knees, without gloves, stockings or headpiece, on Derby Day in 1965.
The next day she was described in a local newspaper as “snubbing the ironclad conventions of fashionable Flemington”.
Model Jean Shrimpton caused a sensation when she wore a shift dress that stopped five inches above her knees without gloves, stockings or headpiece on Derby Day 1965.
“At a time when women did not leave the house without wearing a hat, it was an outfit that both scandalized the nation and sparked a fashion revolution that would define the Swinging Sixties,” Ms. King said of this breathtaking moment.
She advised guests participating in this year’s race to ask themselves if their outfits are getting attention for the “right reasons.”
“What do you want to be remembered to be respectful, classy, elegant or self-centered and obnoxious to the rules that are given so that there can be a standard,” she said.
Strict rules regarding the wearing of hats, gloves and stockings were gradually phased out over the following decades, but continue to be a feature of race day outfits.
Home and Away star Bec Hewitt’s outfit for Cup Day 2006 flouted many of the dress code rules of the time, including no shorts and no cutouts.
In the 1970s, flared pants and denim began to appear at the Cut, but the material was quickly banned, a rule that still stands today.
In 2003, Paris Hilton flouted the dress code when she arrived at the Birdcage wearing a barely-there floral top, with her back and belly button clearly visible.
Security clearly turned a blind eye to the reality TV star’s ignorance of the dress code.
Home and Away star Bec Hewitt’s outfit during the 2006 Cup has gone down in history as one of the racecourse’s most controversial moments.
Wearing white shorts and a balconette-style top with a cutout between the ribs, Hewitt flirted with several dress code rules of the era, including no shorts and no cutouts.
Ms King said although strapless dresses are traditionally “not acceptable”, if you opt for a strappy dress they should be thicker (Guests at the Caulfield Cup)
The last major update to the racing dress code was in 2018, when men were allowed to bare their ankles.
Ms King said although trends change over time, there are protocols at races that will always remain in style.
“No clothing should be torn or torn. And leggings or tights are not pants, best left for the gym,” she said.
She also added that while strapless dresses aren’t traditionally acceptable, if you’re going for a strappy dress, they should be thick.