Bill Gates’ stepmother Mimi Gardner Gates steals spotlight with unique flower hat ahead of Jennifer’s wedding

Microsoft founder’s daughter Jennifer Gates is set to marry her fiancé Nayel Nassar this weekend

Bill Gates has arrived in New York with stepmother Mimi Gardner Gates for daughter’s wedding (Getty Images)

Bill Gates’ arrival in New York for the wedding of his eldest child Jennifer Gates to Nayel Nassar has been amusingly overshadowed by his stepmother’s hat choice.

On Thursday, ahead of this weekend’s ceremony, which is expected to take place on Jennifer’s horse farm in Westchester County, New York, on Saturday, the billionaire Microsoft founder arrived in New York via helicopter alongside a small group of friends and family.

While Gates appeared casually dressed for the trip, his stepmother, Mimi Gardner Gates, opted for a more unique look, with the 79-year-old photographed exiting the helicopter wearing a black hat with what appeared to be a felt red, blue and yellow flower protruding from the top, according to photos published by Page Six.

Apart from the interesting accessory, Gardner Gates, who married the tech entrepreneur’s late father, Bill Gates Sr, in 1996, was also casually dressed in black pants, boots and a black coat.

The unexpected look prompted amusement from people on social media, with many wanting to know more about the hat choice, while others suggested that Gardner Gates had “stolen the show” with her headpiece.

“Are we all ignoring that woman’s hat?” one person questioned on Twitter, while another wrote: “Can we talk about that hat?”

Someone else asked: “Am I the only one wondering what’s on that lady’s head?”

The photos of Gardner Gates’ hat taken during the family’s arrival in New York also prompted a range of comparisons, with people claiming that the art historian’s accessory looked like everything from a “cat toy” to a plunger hat, or a Dr Seuss character.

“Setting everything else about this aside, why is that lady wearing a cat toy on her head?” another person tweeted.

Another person claimed that the hat made Gates’ stepmother look “like a Dragon Ball Z side character on vacation”.

“I​​’m sorry but we all seem to be glossing over this woman’s hat,” they wrote. “She looks like a Dragon Ball Z side character on vacation.”

As of now, the father of the bride-to-be has not made any public comment about his stepmother’s outfit choice.

While Gates just arrived in town, his ex-wife Melinda Gates, who he separated from earlier this year after 27 years of marriage, has been photographed attending pre-wedding errands and festivities with the former couple’s eldest daughter ahead of the ceremony.