Princess Beatrice Puts Wacky Hat on eBay

Whether you think it was wonderful or wacky, the flamboyant hat worn by Princess Beatrice at the British royal wedding last month could now be yours after she put it up for sale Thursday on eBay.

The princess, the oldest daughter of Prince Andrew and a granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II, has put the Philip Treacy creation on the online auction site with a starting price of £5,000 ($8,000, 5,700 euros).

Proceeds of the sale will be split between two charities: the United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, and British charity Children in Crisis.

The 22-year-old princess is trying to cash in on the notoriety of her hat, which generated almost as much publicity as newlyweds Prince William and Catherine, although much of it highly critical.

Observers compared the creation to a toilet seat and a giant pretzel, and it has inspired its own Facebook page, "Princess Beatrice's ridiculous royal wedding hat", which has a following of 137,000 people.

"When my hat started getting so much publicity I really wanted to put it to the best possible use and try and raise some money for the children they help," Beatrice said in a statement Thursday.

Treacy, a world-famous London milliner who has designed hats for a string of top fashion houses, said he was "surprised by the overwhelming response to the hat" but welcomed the princess's decision to use this to help out a good cause.

"I’m delighted, flattered and touched by Princess Beatrice's decision to donate the hat to charity," he said.

"I hope that people all over the world will be generous and that this hat will benefit many. A hat is a symbol of positivity."

One hour after the auction began at 1600 GMT, someone had already put in a bid for the full £5,000, but buyers still have 10 days to put in an offer.

The hat is described on the site as "a unique sculptural celebratory headpiece" made of tea rose silk, adding: "This is a gravity defying hat!"