Princess Diana Ripped Out Part of Her Famous Met Gala Look
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."
In 1996, shortly after her divorce from Prince Charles, Princess Diana made her first and only appearance at the Met Gala. For the event, she wore custom, couture Dior, but the design ended up veering from what the brand envisioned.
John Galliano, who was then the creative director at Dior, went to Kensington Palace to discuss options for the princess’s eventual look. From the outset, Diana had strong opinions on what she’d eventually wear.
“I was trying to push for pink, but she was not having it. 'No, not the pink!’” Galliano said in the Hulu docuseries In Vogue: The 90s.
Instead, the pair opted for a midnight blue gown, with black lace straps and trim. However, the initial design included a corset. It wasn’t until Diana arrived at the Met Gala in a corset-less dress that Galliano learned she had personally taken it out before the event.
"Fast-forward to the event, and I just remember her getting out of the car," Galliano said. "I couldn't believe it. She'd ripped the corset out."
He continued, "She felt so liberated. She'd torn the corset out. The dress was much more… sensuous.”
The princess paired her newfangled gown with a matching dressing-gown style jacket (which she later removed), and navy Lady Dior purse (of course, at the time it was not called the ‘Lady’ but rather the Chouchou).
For jewelry, Diana wore a sapphire and pearl choker that she donned multiple times throughout her life, including to a visit to Ottawa, Canada in 1991. Then and at the Met Gala, Diana paired the choker with double sapphire and diamond drop earrings—all of which perfectly matched the hue of Diana’s Dior gown. Perhaps she chose the blue over pink in order to match her beloved sapphires.
"I mean, wow! Diana was my first couture client," Galliano said. He was since fired from Dior in 2011 after making antisemitic and racist comments. In 2014, he returned to fashion to design for Maison Margiela.
Diana’s change turned the gown into a lingerie-inspired slip dress that was both on trend for the time yet makes the gown look like something that could have been made today. The jewelry, too, still looks modern. In fact, the new Princess of Wales, Catherine, has worn the same earrings many times—at the annual Commonwealth Day Service and on a visit to the Prince’s Foundation in London, both in 2022, and to the Shaping Us National Symposium at The Design Museum in London last year.
We’ve yet to see Kate pull out the sapphire and pearl choker, but perhaps the time will eventually come. After all, it matches her (and Diana’s) engagement ring perfectly.
You Might Also Like
