Look of the Week: Forget the naked dress, Kendall Jenner makes the case for underwear as outerwear
By Leah Dolan, CNN
(CNN) — On Monday, Kendall Jenner stepped out onto the L’Oréal Paris womenswear runway in a scarlet red Mugler gown that might have looked familiar to anyone with a sharp memory of 1999.
The front of the dress was slashed open across Jenner’s right shoulder, exposing a matching denier bra. The peekaboo moment conjured up memories of another example of fashionable flashing: Lil’ Kim’s purple embellished jumpsuit at the VMAs 26 years earlier. On the red carpet, Kim’s left breast was almost entirely revealed by an asymmetrical cut — a mirror image of Jenner’s neckline — save for a matching purple nipple pasty.
Jenner’s Mugler moment was just the latest example of a resurging tendency for underwear as outerwear. At the Nensi Dojaka runway show in London earlier this month, boxy blazers were shrugged over strappy bras while paneled bustiers in sheer fabric were paired with capri trousers and reimagined as going out tops. Brasseries were even left exposed to the elements at Erdem — a departure for a house beloved by both British acting royalty (Kristen Scott Thomas) and actual royalty (the Duchess of Cambridge). Dolce & Gabbana got the memo, too, showing satin corsets, garter belts and Madonna-esque cone bras at Milan Fashion Week on Saturday. Florence Pugh even wore one of the label’s risqué designs in her first British Vogue cover last week — the circle neckline of her puff-shouldered black dress scooping just above the belly button, acting as a full-frontal frame for her bra.
But the trend extends beyond just the runways. During the first performance of her “Short n’ Sweet” tour on Monday, singer Sabrina Carpenter took to the stage in a custom Victoria’s Secret bodysuit and stockings. Hand-adorned with over 150,000 crystals, the strapless pink lace-trimmed leotard took over 140 hours to make. On Monday,YouTube star and singer Jojo Siwa inverted the fad by donning a codpiece for a headline-grabbing cover shoot with LadyGunn magazine. The 15th century undergarment was bedazzled with flesh-colored gemstones.
While it may seem that everywhere you turn, A-listers appear to be on the final rounds of strip poker, the idea of wearing your unmentionables out in the world is nothing new. Marie Antoinette was a pioneer of this sartorial transgression, opting to pose for a portrait dressed in a white muslin chemise-like gown — essentially, her underwear — in 1783. The style exploded in the 1980s, thanks to runway shows by Anna Sui (who transformed the babydoll slip dress from 1950s pajamas to ‘80s party wear) and Jean-Paul Gautier, with his seminal cone-bra.
Jenner has already proved herself a leader in the underwear as ready-to-wear space, forgoing trousers in favor of a pair of tights in 2022. As the trend gains momentum, who knows what she will expose next.
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