For the fourteenth year MAGGIE MAE DESIGNS® of Cape Cod and Old Friends in Kentucky and Cabin Creek are teaming up again for “Hats Off to the Horses: The Road to the Derby”!
“Hats Off” is an unparalleled Derby hat fundraising experience sponsored by MAGGIE MAE DESIGNS® Custom Millinery. This auction series features four one-of-a-kind Derby hats created to benefit the retired racehorses of Old Friends. All proceeds from the sale of the hats go to Old Friends. To learn more about this exciting online fundraiser, please click on “About Hats Off to the Horses”.
The first auction hat up for bid for the 2026 “Hats Off to the Horses” fundraiser honors Kentucky-bred, Cozmic One.
Bidding on the “Cozmic One” auction hat has now ended.
Congratulations to Donna P. of Georgetown, KY who is our winning bidder of the “Cozmic One” hat! Thank you to our terrific models, Andie Biancone and Keith Asmussen, and to Lowcountry Lens for her fabulous photos of the photo shoot at Dream Chase Farm. And please stay tuned, our February auction hat flies up on February 1st!
The Story of Cozmic One
Owned by Ann Holbrook and her late ex-husband, Jerry Moss, Cozmic One was legendary race mare Zenyatta’s first foal by 2006 Preakness Stakes and Travers winner, Bernardini. Zenyatta was the 2010 Horse of the Year, a Hall of Famer and beloved the world over. Deemed one of the greatest racehorses of all time, Zenyatta had the eyes of the world upon her at the birth of her first foal.
In an October 3, 2024 press release Ann Moss described the dark bay foal’s March 8, 2012 birth as a “magical night”. Moss continued, “First, it was a full moon. And, then there was this incredible snow that was just falling vertically, but the snowflakes were like five-inches long and they looked like feathers. Also, it was Women’s Day, so I thought it was honoring his mama, Zenyatta, too.”
A John Shirreffs trainee, Cozmic One began his career relatively late, in 2015 as a 3-year-old. He continued to race as a 4-year-old, without much success. However he did have a second career show jumping under the care of Sergio de Sousa, and his daughter, Isabela. Notably, Cozmic One competed in the Kentucky Horse Park’s 2018 Retired Racehorse Project Thoroughbred Makeover.
Cozmic One Finds His Forever Home at Old Friends
In October 2024, owner Ann Holbrook decided to retire a 12 year-old Cozmic One to Old Friends in Georgetown, Kentucky.
Old Friends President/CEO, John Nicholson stated, “We are thrilled to welcome Cozmic One… As the first-born offspring of the incredible champion and Horse of the Year Zenyatta, Cozmic One holds a special place in the hearts of racing fans everywhere” (from an October 2024 Old Friends press release).
Founder of Old Friends, Michael Blowen, shared his impressions of Cozmic One, “Once again, Sally’s millinery skills capture the essence of her inspiration. This time, it’s Zenyatta’s celebrated first born, Cozmic One. From the swirling colors of Jerry Moss and Ann Holbrook’s Cozmic One, the hat doesn’t care that he didn’t live up to everyone’s inflated expectations. He’s a big attraction for all of his fans and that’s all that really matters.”
From the Milliner’s Studio – The Making of the Cozmic One Hat
Cape Cod milliner, Sally Faith Steinmann was well aware of Cozmic One’s story and knew that Zenyatta’s boy needed an exceptional, one-of-a-kind hat. It had to be a design, top to brim, celebrating Cozmic One’s pedigree, his journey as an athlete and his arrival at Old Friends.
A quick sketch of the hat for style and colors came next; the essential roadmap for this unique design.
Sally gathered fabrics in a blend of tones and textures for the hat foundation, the lining and the trims. The stage was set for the creative process to begin!
Sally chose a wide-brimmed Derby hat design to showcase Cozmic One’s nearly black coat. In addition, the hat trims would feature the Moss racing silk colors of teal and pink.
First, Steinmann took black dupioni silk and fashioned a wide-brimmed foundation. Next, she topstitched a layer of black silk organza with a “running horse pattern” of black and midnight blue threads. Sally handstitched this ruffled layer to the edge of the brim to reflect Cozmic One’s bay coat and “the magical night” that the colt came into the world.
For a bit of “celestial twinkle”, Sally handstitched tiny teal beads to fancy black braiding sewn along the brim edge.
Hat Trims for a Prince
Sally wanted the hat trim centerpiece to also reflect the magical full moonlit night of Cozmic One’s birth. To do this she handcrafted a single large, multilayered Marguerite with pink and white silk organza petals. She then topstitched the petals in matching pink thread.
A teal silk-covered button was the final touch for the center of the delicate flower.
Next, she fashioned two-toned teal dupioni silk leaves and then topstitched them with matching thread to frame the Marguerite.
Owner Ann Moss said that the snowflakes that fell on the night Cozmic One was born “looked like feathers”. So Sally created a medley of black silk organza “feathers” to frame the flower as a remembrance.
A delicate wisp of pink hat veiling was the final touch for the centerpiece. Sally wanted the entire trim centerpiece to feel almost “starlike”, and certainly magical!
When the main trim was finished, Sally created a sash in teal dupioni silk to surround the crown…
…adding a large matching triple bow to the back of the hat for stylish balance.
Finally, Sally stitched in a black dupioni silk lining to coordinate with the entire hat design.
A Braided Horsehair Heart for Cozmic One
As a physical remembrance of Cozmic One, Sally asked Old Friends for a few strands of his tail hair. She then braided and shaped the hair into a heart that she handstitched between several trim layers. This unique, one-of-a-kind Derby chapeau now honored Cozmic One not only in spirit but in substance as well.
And as you can see, the Cozmic One Derby hat was stunning from every angle, measuring approximately 22 inches end to end!
The Cozmic One Photo Shoot at Old Friends
In mid-October, the completed hat shipped to Old Friends farm in Kentucky for a photo shoot with two of horse racing’s rising stars, Andie Biancone and Keith Asmussen. Andie Biancone, the daughter of well-known trainer, Patrick Biancone is a reporter/racing analyst at FanDuel Racing. Keith Asmussen, son of Hall of Fame trainer, Steve Asmussen, is a well known graded stakes-winning jockey. The couple modeled the hat beautifully! “Hats Off” is grateful to these new team members so dedicated to the welfare of our retired Thoroughbred athletes.
Special thanks also go to photographer, Carson Blevins of Low Country Lens for her stunning images of the photo shoot…
… and to Old Friends volunteer and photographer, Laura Battles for her beautiful photos of Cozmic One.
And to all the Old Friends volunteers who made this photo shoot possible, a special thank you! It takes a village dedicated to the safe retirement of our equine athletes at Old Friends.
Auction Details
The “Cozmic One” auction hat has now ended.
For future auction hats, please bid on as many hats as you like during this running auction. All of the proceeds go to the retired racehorses of Old Friends. Bidding ends January 11th at 8 PM EST.
For more information about the eBay bidding, contact Old Friends at 502-863-1775.
Freight charges (including insurance) will be at the expense of the winning bidder. Winning bidders, please allow two to three weeks for delivery of your hat to allow time for proper sizing.
To view the couture Derby hats from previous auctions, please click on “Hats Off – A Retrospective”.
Thank you for supporting Old Friends!