The Kentucky Derby may have started as a horse race but now, 150 years later, it has become a month-long party filled with Kentucky traditions, glamourous celebrities, regional food and drinks, community-wide events, and fashion. So much fashion.

“One of the joys of the Derby fashion tradition is the surprise of seeing something new, unexpected, humorous, wild, or drop-dead gorgeous each year,” Jessica Whitehead, Kentucky Derby Museum curator of collections, told the Courier Journal

To celebrate the 150th Run for the Roses, which takes place May 4, 2024, the Kentucky Derby Museum will soon launch an online fashion contest where you are invited to show off your favorite Derby wardrobe. And get this, if your submission is selected, it will become part of the museum’s new fashion exhibit. In addition to the use of the winning items in the fashion exhibit, all submissions, not just winners, may be showcased on the museum’s website, social media, and other marketing and communications initiatives.

To enter, simply submit photographs of your favorite ensembles to the Kentucky Derby Museum’s “Derby 150 Fashion Contest.” Submissions are due no later than 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 15. Judging will take place in mid-January 2024 and contest winners will be announced by the end of the month.

A panel of distinguished fashion and racing professionals will decide the winners to be included in the Kentucky Derby Museum’s upcoming exhibition “See & Be Seen: 150 Years of Derby Fashion,” scheduled to open summer of 2024. 

“We’re so excited to see your submissions because we know that we’ll be recreating that fashion experience with this contest, “Whitehead said.”We can’t wait to go through the gems that you share with us, and the stories that go with them.”

Here’s what to know to enter the Kentucky Derby Museum’s “Derby 150 Fashion Contest.”

The ‘Derby 150 Fashion Contest’ is divided into four categories:

• Ensembles, 1875-2023: Complete, accessorized ensembles or costumes. Ensembles will only be considered and displayed as a unit.
• Individual items of apparel for all genders, 1875-2023: Suits, dresses, costumes, as well as separates (pants, shirts, skirts, etc.). Entrants are encouraged to only submit individual separates for consideration if they make a compelling visual statement related to the Kentucky Derby. Otherwise, entrants should try to submit separates as an ensemble.
• Individual items of headwear for all genders, 1875-2023: Hats and fascinators.
• Individual accessories for all genders, 1875-2023:Purses, shoes, scarves, belts, and statement jewelry. Accessories, unless submitted as part of an ensemble, must have some sort of unique expression of the Kentucky Derby in their designs.

How many submissions can I enter in the ‘Derby 150 Fashion Contest?’

Each participant is allowed to make up to two submissions. Only digital submissions will be considered. The museum will not accept physical items to be judged as part of this contest. To review the contest details and submission guidelines or to make a digital submission, please visit derbymuseum.org/fashion.html.

Where do I send my submissions for the ‘Derby 150 Fashion Contest?’

The secure online contest portal is now open for your submissions. For more information on contest rules and entry details, visit derbymuseum.org.

Reach features reporter Kirby Adams at [email protected].