High fashion has long been fascinated by clothes that turn traditional ideas of prettiness on their head. That is why chunky trainers in shades of murky brown regularly set fashion-forward consumers back hundreds of pounds. But the latest iteration of “ugly dressing”, which sees malevolent characters from childhood fairytales – notably the ugly sisters from Cinderella – transform into style inspiration, may still have crept up on you like a pantomime villain.
You’ll know “ugly sister dressing” when you see it: it is bright, ostentatious and utterly unapologetic. It is flamboyant, over-the-top dress structures and chichi embellishments. On the catwalk, ugly sister dressing surfaced at Valentino AW19 couture, where looks included turquoise feathers (a favourite of Cinderella’s stepsister Drizella in the 1950 Walt Disney classic) and yellow tiered tassels compete with matching wigs. The Givenchy couture runway involved Kaia Gerber draped in black fabric covered with ombréd blue feathers and, at the Mary Katrantzou show, tangerine-coloured feathers and frills collided to create a garish look in a similar colour palette to that worn by the oldest of the stepsisters in the 2004 Cinderella reimagining, Ella Enchanted.
The red carpet has also attracted those embracing the ugly sister trend: see Penélope Cruz wearing ostrich feathers at the premiere of her new film, Pain & Glory, Cate Blanchett in enlarged puffy satin sleeves at the New York premiere of Where’d You Go Bernadette and a rainbow of fluorescent colours from the likes of Deepika Padukone at this year’s Cannes film festival.
Over the years, there have been numerous interpretations of Cinderella’s stepsisters and, more importantly, their fashion – this is by no means a trend restricted to the quintessential purple and green ballgowns worn by Drizella and Anastasia in Disney’s 1950 film. The pair were dressed in corseted, fluorescent, polkadot dresses in the 2015 live-action remake of Cinderella, for example, having already been seen in bejewelled purple ballgowns with feathered hair and oversized pink collars in 1997’s Cinderella (starring Whitney Houston).
Early versions of the fairytale actually featured just one stepsister, but by 1697, when Charles Perrault released his famous version, and when the Brothers Grimm published theirs in 1812, there were two. Interestingly, early depictions of the sisters describe them as having “beautiful faces” but cruel and wicked hearts, and being “always dressed fashionably”. Charles Folkard, who illustrated the Brothers Grimm tale, pictured the sisters in elegant gowns, albeit with feather headdresses, bows and fans – an understated version of the rainbow frills, feathers and puff-sleeved outfits donned by the ugly sisters in many a Christmas panto, where they are also often played by men.
“The ugly dressing trend is a trend because it jars; it attracts attention,” says the behavioural psychologist Prof Carolyn Mair. “[It] could also be interpreted as risk-taking, which may be perceived as exciting, adventurous and fun.”
Despite other undesirable qualities, the ugly sisters are no wallflowers. They are also determined – chopping off their toes and heels in order to fit their feet into the golden (not glass) slipper in the Brothers Grimm retelling. In their Disney incarnation, the ugly sisters can also be seen as a product of Dior’s 1947 New Look, which “brought back the hourglass figure, ditching shoulder pads and abbreviated hemlines in favour of cinched waists, shawl collars, and (most decadent of all) full, calf-length skirts in shimmering silks”. Cinderella herself is originally clothed in a repurposed sash and beads discarded by the ugly sisters as she dresses for the ball – proof, perhaps, of their fashion prowess.
The ugly sisters’ outfits are outlandish, a form of “look at me” dressing – and a vulgar contrast with kind-hearted Cinderella’s worn clothing. Nevertheless, it is interesting that fashion’s aesthetic is veering towards these powerful – if sometimes terrifying – antagonists and not the expected fairytale princess.
It is a look undoubtedly spurred on by the camp theme of this year’s Met Gala, during which Kendall and Kylie Jenner wore custom Versace gowns consisting of sheer fabric and puffs of gaudy-looking feathers in vibrant hues of orange and lilac. Kylie even sported a feather boa, while Vogue’s European editor at large, Hamish Bowles, appeared in a multicoloured fringed-lined cloak with a purple suit and bow tie, designed by John Galliano for Maison Margiela Artisanal.
The fashion industry has been moving away from the conventional ideals of female beauty for some time, particularly when it comes to models, and so it follows that a break away from princess-perfect traditions should ensue when it comes to clothes.
Is it also conceivable that, in the #MeToo era, women are not drawn to the aesthetics of a damsel in distress. Flawed female characters are increasingly celebrated, rather than persecuted: see the praise received by Jodie Comer’s Villanelle, the psychopathic (and stylish) assassin from thriller series Killing Eve – who memorably had her own ugly sister moment wearing a tulle pink dress by Molly Goddard – and Natasha Lyonne’s Nadia Vulvokov in Russian Doll.
“Attitudes [towards traditionally feminine dressing] are changing, albeit slowly, because women’s roles have changed,” says Mair. “Women have more choices now than ever and fashion has followed this.”
Ugly sister dressing is certainly divisive, and therein lies the appeal. After a summer of prairie dresses, evoking a wholesome innocence, fashion is heading in a more outlandish and mischievous direction. Bring on the feather boas.
