FASHION

Beyoncé’s Oscar Party Gown Paid Homage to a Dress She Wore 16 Years Ago


Beyonce
Instagram/@beyonce

You may be over awards content, fatigued by the months of red carpets and nominations chatter, and ready to put it all to bed. Well, it’s time to wake up people because Beyoncé just got around to posting two dresses from Oscars night. The singer shared her looks on Thursday, four days after the Oscars, likely to ensure conversation surrounding the red carpets from the evening were sufficiently over and all attention would be on her. It was a correct calculation because when that Instagram came in, conversation quickly moved on from Law Roach’s retirement to Beyoncé’s Oscars look.

While the singer didn’t actually attend the ceremony on Sunday (or the Vanity Fair Oscar party for that matter), she and Jay-Z hosted their own after-after bash. Her first look was a completely sheer, long-sleeved dress with a high neckline, covered in gold crystals, a look from Dolce & Gabbana’s fall/winter 2023 collection. Beyoncé wore pasties in the form of golden Xs to cover up on top, which matched the gold corset that cinched her waist and provided shape to the dress. The singer then accessorized with gold platform heels, Lorraine Schwartz earrings, a Gismondi 1754 yellow diamond ring, a golden Carolina Herrera clutch, and rectangular sunglasses.

If the look seemed familiar, that’s because we’ve kind of seen it on Beyoncé before. And no, I’m not talking a Cate Blanchett rewear situation. For their most recent collection, Dolce & Gabbana continued the project they began with Kim Kardashian for spring/summer 2023, taking pieces from their archive and updating them with a modern twist. This dress was an update on one from the brand’s fall/winter 2007 collection, which Beyoncé actually wore herself to the BET Awards that same year. The 16-year-old version, however, was rendered in silver, with more of a boat neckline and three quarter sleeves, both of which were embellished with white sequins.

It seems that Beyoncé’s stylist, KJ Moody, was a big fan of the original look, and was excited to get the opportunity to recreate it over a decade and a half later. “One of my all time favorite fashion moments,” he posted about the original dress on Instagram, tagging Beyoncé’s then-stylist, Ty Hunter.

Instagram/@kjmoody

But that wasn’t even the only dress Beyoncé wore on Sunday night. It seems that, at one point, the singer changed into something a little more comfortable—a strapless mini dress covered in silver paillettes from Retrofete. Beyoncé shared this look on Instagram as well, in photos alongside Jay-Z who wore a white tuxedo jacket with black pants to the fête.

Instagram/@beyonce

So, it was a very metallic night for Beyoncé on Sunday (and into Monday, as many of the couple’s guests didn’t leave the party venue until well into the morning). Unfortunately, we won’t get to see either of these dresses in action as the party had a strict no social media rule and it seems like everyone obliged.

Victor VIRGILE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images