8 Celebrities Who Couldn't Get Designers to Dress Them
Just because they’re nominated for an Oscar, Emmy, Tony, or Grammy, or they simply slay in headlines worldwide every single time they step onto a red carpet doesn’t mean celebrities don’t have a hard time finding designers to dress them. Whether due to their body shape, size, race, ethnicity, or overall supposed “image,” so many of our favorite stars have struggled in the space where fashion runway meets red carpet event. And they're taking a stand. Recently, Leslie Jones shared her grievances about getting designers to dress her on social media, and it resulted in a beautiful relationship with Christian Siriano — and quite a few standout red carpet moments. And just last weekend, Rachel Bloom revealed she had to buy her Emmys dress because designers weren't eager to dress her. From Leslie Jones to Beyoncé, Ashley Graham to Danielle Brooks, here are 8 times celebrities couldn’t get designers to dress them — and 8 times they spoke out about it.
Gregg DeGuire1/9Leslie Jones
When promoting Ghostbusters, the star tweeted, “It’s so funny how there are no designers wanting to help me with a premiere dress for movie. Hmmm that will change and I remember everything.” Christian Siriano quickly replied, suggesting they collaborate, which turned into a long-lasting match made in sartorial heaven.
Steve Granitz2/9Rachel Bloom
The star of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend had to shell out her own money for her gorgeous black Gucci gown at the 2017 Emmy Awards, saying, “It’s hard to get places to lend to me because I am not a size zero.”
ADRIAN SANCHEZ-GONZALEZ3/9Ashley Graham
When co-hosting the pre-show on E! for the 2016 Oscars, model Ashley Graham stunned in a bright red gown from Bao Tranchi. It wasn’t an easy feat to find a look quite like she did, however, as she shared with Giuliana Rancic on-air that “Trying to find a dress for the Oscars — girls my size — I mean, it has been a whole job in itself.” Later, she revealed she skipped the 2015 Met Gala because no designers would dress her.
Albert L. Ortega4/9Aidy Bryant
For the 2016 Emmy Awards, Aidy was given a custom Eloquii dress after tweeting that a cool dress in a larger size was hard to come by, adding that it “seems like a fairly basic request.”
Jim Spellman5/9Danielle Brooks
Danielle has spoken out on multiple occasions about the struggle to find designers to dress women who aren't sample size, sharing, “It makes you fell like you’re ‘less than’ when you only have four options and three of them are in black or blue. It’s really not fun.” She went on to wear a bright red gown by David Meister to the 2013 Emmy Awards.
John Shearer6/9Melissa McCarthy
The comedic actress told Redbook that, when looking for a dress for the Golden Globes, “I couldn’t find anybody to do a dress for me. I asked five or six designers — very high-level ones who make lots of dresses for people — and they all said no.” When speaking to People later, she added, “When you go above a size 12, you don’t lose your love of fashion.” As a result, she designed her own dress to the event, which led to the birth of a successful clothing line.
Noel Vasquez7/9Hayden Panettiere
It isn’t all about size — often a celebrity just doesn’t fit what a design team deems as their “image.” When Tom Ford wouldn’t lend Hayden a dress for the 2014 Golden Globe Awards, the star famously went out to buy her own. Instead of sticking to their initial stance on the young actress, however, the brand sent her a bouquet of white roses and a note that read, “You looked beautiful last night.”
New York Daily News Archive8/9Destiny's Child
Ever wonder why Destiny’s Child first began wearing designs by Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Knowles? In an interview with People, Beyoncé shared, “When we were starting out in Destiny’s Child, high-end labels didn’t want to dress black, country, curvy girls. And we couldn’t afford designer dresses and couture. My mother was rejected from every showroom in New York.”
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