The American Set Tips
Who Wore What When

Hussein Chalayan Made Olivia Rodrigo a Dress Built to Disappear

· 1 min read
Group of diverse fashion models posing in elegant evening gowns on luxurious staircase indoors.
Photo by Felix Young on Pexels

Some dresses are made to be photographed; this one was made to vanish. Hussein Chalayan designed the short dress Olivia Rodrigo wore as it came apart, and he has now explained how the moment everyone replayed was put together. He names "The Cure" as the starting point. He says vulnerability guided how the reveal unfolded, so the garment's disappearance was a deliberate choice about what to show and when. He also describes what it took to make the change happen live, where a dress gets one chance to do its trick with no second take. For an archive that logs who wore what and when, this is a rare entry: a look whose defining moment is the one in which it stops being itself. Whether readers caught the clip in Los Angeles or New York, the craft is the story here, not just the spectacle.

With reporting from WWD.

More from Who Wore What When

  1. Second Acts, Worn Well: The Women Who Walked Away and Won

  2. Paul McCartney Has Thoughts on the Music for Taylor Swift's Wedding

  3. Stevie Nicks and Sarah Jessica Parker Take the Night at the New York City Ballet's Fall Fashion Gala

  4. Jennifer Lawrence Keeps Her Toes Out as the Leaves Turn

The American Set

The group

Eight local titles, each belonging to its place and keeping its own voice, its own look and its own readers.
About · Standards

Work with us

Brands & companies
Writers & photographers
Creators

Contact

Press, partnerships and corrections
[email protected]
Palm Beach · · 85° · Clear · No.6Beverly Hills · · 90° · Clear · No.3Nashville · · 68° · Overcast · No.1The Hamptons · · 63° · Overcast · No.4Aspen · · 61° · Clear · No.7Miami · · 85° · Fair · No.2Montecito · · 77° · Clear · No.5Nantucket · · 62° · OvercastMalibu · · 92° · Clear · No.8Jackson Hole · · 43° · ClearPalm Beach · · 85° · Clear · No.6Beverly Hills · · 90° · Clear · No.3Nashville · · 68° · Overcast · No.1The Hamptons · · 63° · Overcast · No.4Aspen · · 61° · Clear · No.7Miami · · 85° · Fair · No.2Montecito · · 77° · Clear · No.5Nantucket · · 62° · OvercastMalibu · · 92° · Clear · No.8Jackson Hole · · 43° · Clear