Kaia Gerber Has a Trippy Take on the Polka Dot Trend

Kaia Gerber usually loves a prim and proper polka dot on its own, but her latest take on the pattern is mixed, matched, and all made up. At the Palme Royale season two celebration in Los Angeles last night, the model and actor updated the retro pattern with some unexpected print-mixing and a touch of menswear-inspired drama in the back. If her usual take on polka dots recalls Audrey Hepburn, this go around is more rockstar Grace Slick.

Gerber stepped out to the event in a halter neck design from Julian Klausner’s fall 2025 collection for Dries van Noten. The floor-length purple dress was designed with bias-cut strips that distorted the traditional polka dot in every way, shape, and form. To break up the trippy print, Klausner included a horizontal stripe piece placed along one side of the bust. At the back and neck was a long chevron print scarf that extended down the dress’s reverse. Reminiscent of a men’s tie, the detail featured heavily throughout Klasuner’s fall Dries van Noten collection, which also marked his debut for the Belgian brand.

Gerber accessorized with a tousled updo, pendant earrings, and a silver charm bracelet with Boho gemstones draping down from her wrist.

Gerber’s Dries dress speaks to a couple of major developments in her red carpet style: polka dots and dramatic backs. At the Academy Museum Gala in L.A. this past weekend, the actor dabbled in the latter. She wore a lace Givenchy by Sarah Burton dress that was marked by its elaborate bustle structure placed that ran down the reverse. In terms of polka dots, she’s turned to the pattern at multiple points recently, including for the Tribeca Film Festival in June where she wore a cherry red number.

Her latest outfit, however, proved that despite their round shape, polka dots can have some edge.