Some things in life are worth remembering. What makes a look memorable is the impression it leaves on you. How long does it last? What does it inspire you to do? How does it make you feel? As life gets a little bit tougher on us all, all over the world, I’m starting this series to highlight moments that were, to me, very memorable, inspiring, and iconic courtesy of Princess Charlene.
Today, I’m taking you to rediscover the ensemble HSH wore on 29 May 2016 to the 74th Grand Prix. Now, this look was edgy, modern, tongue-in-cheek, and on-theme. But most importantly, it was really simple. The jumpsuit was a collaboration between Princess Charlene, the incomparable Haider Ackermann, and Princess Charlene’s then-stylist Valerie B. For Princess Charlene this was a special look, but for Valerie, this was a vision come true. Haider’s designs were on the very first inspiration board Valerie created for Her Serene Highness “I thought his designs fitted perfectly to my vision of her style and body shape,” Valerie told me. Valerie, Haider and Charlene met three times to decide on the outfit. And the result is one of my favourites.
This jumpsuit is a great example of why Haider is a genius. You could overlook the outfit at first glance, after all, it’s just a demure, long-sleeved white jumpsuit, isn’t t? But if you look at it for just over a second, you can see the pockets on the bust and powder pink satin peeking from the sides, then you realize that it resembles what race drivers wear. And there’s something really sexy about the tailoring despite it not being tight.
It actually makes Charlene, a fairly tall woman at 1.77m, look even more statuesque. The boss-lady look is then relaxed with a dropped waistline that makes it look a lot more nonchalant.
Valerie is a romantic at heart (she’d probably say that she’s more “ladylike”), and so she styled the jumpsuit with ginormous pearl earrings and a pearl ring that lent the look a certain softness mixed with the light pink (shiny this to match the satin) that made Charlene look lovely. Charlene carried the look with attitude, her hand was in her pocket, she looked confident, but that didn’t stop her from flashing a smile here and there, maybe it was the pearls?
The shoes were a last-minute choice. Haider had suggested white shoes with the outfit, but somehow Charlene had none so Valerie chose these slingbacks from Mercedeh Shoes in Monte-Carlo. The interesting thing is that Charlene had worn several white pumps before then… where did they go? š¤
The makeup was what you’d expect of Valerie, subtle and natural with the lips always being the focus with a slightly shiny pink hue. My only reservation is the material. I shared this photo on Instagram last week and that’s when I really saw it, the entire jumpsuit creased out completely halfway into the event.
Over the years, Princess Charlene’s style has puzzled me sometimes, but not has ever been as puzzling as to why Haider Ackermann hasn’t become her go-to designer, yet. I mean, look at this outfit, it reflects who she is 100%, and in reality, it’s a slightly modified version of what Haider has on his runway!
Thank you Akram! What a great article! Iām honored to appear in it. Thank you! šā„ļø