Fashion Icons: Princess Diana

Going through the fashion archives of fashion icon Princess Diana from the lens of a college student in Paris.

Photo by Today

My mother was fascinated by the British monarchy all my life, but I never cared for it. However, with the recent death of the Queen and living so close to England, my interests have peaked. Especially when I saw the memorial for Princess Diana in Paris. Thus, I went deep into her fashion, and now I am a huge fan. She knew how to make the classy look casual and connect with people through fashion.

Connecting through fashion

During my deep dive into Princess Diana, a prevalent pattern in her fashion was how she could alter it to connect with the people.

While traveling to other countries, Diana made conscious decisions to adapt and incorporate the culture into her wardrobe. In Japan, she wore a dress featuring sizeable red polka dots, referencing the red circle on the flag of Japan. Then in Thailand, she wore a vibrant pink and purple asymmetric, draped sari-style dress with a lotus flower. The dress was inspired by the traditional clothing worn in Thailand, and the lotus is the national flower.

Diana had her "caring wardrobe," which consisted of cheerful colors and soft fabrics. She did not wear gloves so that when she shook the hands of people, they felt more connected with her. This was against the British fashion rules. She would also take off her hat to cuddle children and wear big chunky jewelry so that the kids could play with it.

I love that she did not just use fashion for its surface-level value of showing class and style. Her way of using it to connect to people around the world shows just how caring she was.

Iconic fashion moments

Other than connecting to people through fashion, Diana had a natural way of styling herself in a classy and effortless way, which is hard to achieve. Below are some of my favorite outfits.

I am obsessed with her evening wear, but this navy blue Dior slip dress is my favorite. She wore it to the 1996 Met Gala. It is sleek and sexy but effortless as if she rolled out of bed. The pearl choker is the perfect choice of necklace and elevates the look from sleepwear to evening wear.

The middle two outfits are my favorite outfits of her casual looks. I love the juxtaposition of a fitted blazer with a slouchy sweatshirt and pants. I really want to remake this look for a cold day in Paris. The use of white in the third outfit elevates the outfit from athleisure to classy casual.

The fourth outfit was my favorite of her workwear outfits. The choice of baby blue brings a sense of playfulness and youth. I would love a tweed set exactly like this for work one day.

I am a huge fan of her style now and I hope this blog generates more fans of her!

Aloha,

Zoe Fernandes