Carolyn Bessette Kennedy

[lunabella]

her style was a bit too plain for me, but she was very beautiful and had a fabulous figure. she reminds me of sjp in that way.

 

[eternitygoddess]

There were some beautiful pictures of her and John F. Kennedy Jr. in the current issue of People magazine.

I'm not an avid Kennedy follower, but I found those pictures touching to look at.

 

[eternitygoddess]

her style was a bit too plain for me

I think people often confuse her style, which is minimalism at it's purest, with plain, which has connotations of boring to it.

I have never seen anyone dress the way CBK does, not even those who I consider to have remarkable style (ala Daphne Guinness, Carrie Bradshaw). It's extraordinary how she chose her clothes so that they emphasized her, put the viewer's attention on her, rather than on the ensemble.

This is entirely the opposite of how the majority of women dress, which is to select the dress/accessories/shoes they think will garner the most attention.

All our comments on a celebrity's outfit in this Style thread is some version of, "That dress is amazing! Fabulous shoes! I would kill for that bag!" Ex: when discussing Lady Gaga, all people ever comment on is how off-the-wall her outfit is.

Our focus is completely on what the person is wearing; the wearer herself might as well be invisible.

CBK distilled the art of dressing to it's purest, most basic level, which ultimately is to reflect, complement, accentuate, and be secondary to the wearer.

 

[McClaire]

^ Well said. I agree.

 

[LUXXX]

Very well said, she was a total minimalist and put the focus on herself. And yet she always looked expensive and classy. For awhile, Gwyneth copied her, but it didn't work out.

 

[Working Girl]

I couldn't picture Carolyn as first lady. Poor thing hated the spotlight. I wouldn't know how she would do on the campaign trail. But JFK knew the game, he humored the media. He certainly would have been president now.

Anyways, I think Carolyn and Jennifer Aniston have similar style, I wonder why Jennifer isn't a fashion icon and Caroyln is?

 

[Ashcottmanor]

I agree with eternitygoddess too, great job expressing Carolyn's style.

Sorry but I can't compare Jennifer Aniston and Carolyn, they're on totally two different levels. Carolyn had her own sense of style that couldn't be copied because it fit her so well. Like LUXX said, some tried to copy her but it hasn't worked out.

I can imagine Carolyn as first lady, I'm sure she would have been used to the spotlight by now. I think she would have done a lot of good in the White House. So sad.

 

[loladonna]

I agree with the assessments of how well Carolyn appropriated the minimalist style. However, I disagree that her style was unique. Understated elegance has never gone away for some women. Unfortunately minimalist dressers have been chased out of the fashion scene by all the "boho" and "eclectic", "risk-takers" and bling-bling label whores. People actually say all the time on TFS- "She looks nice but she's not taking a risk." Why does a woman need to take a risk with her fashion when she knows what looks good on her?

Jennifer Anniston is understated but far more casual whereas Carolyn was more luxe with her style.

 

[iluvjeisa]

I have to agree with what everyone has said. Her style was immaculate, minimalist and memorable.

 

[Veronika C]

I agree with the assessments of how well Carolyn appropriated the minimalist style. However, I disagree that her style was unique. Understated elegance has never gone away for some women. Unfortunately minimalist dressers have been chased out of the fashion scene by all the "boho" and "eclectic", "risk-takers" and bling-bling label whores. People actually say all the time on TFS- "She looks nice but she's not taking a risk." Why does a woman need to take a risk with her fashion when she knows what looks good on her?

Jennifer Anniston is understated but far more casual whereas Carolyn was more luxe with her style.

I agree with you. Minimal style has been around long before Carolyn. Yes, she put her own stamp on it. She had great style. I love that she proved you don't have to dress to get attention or have all the latest looks. Wear what is for you and you will stand out for you.

And yes, Jennifer Anniston is very casual too. Carolyn had more class and sophistication.

 

[christina126]

Today is a sad day. I wish they were still here, more than any other famous people that have died in my lifetime.

 

[eternitygoddess]

Anyways, I think Carolyn and Jennifer Aniston have similar style, I wonder why Jennifer isn't a fashion icon and Caroyln is?

I've always thought that what sets a style icon apart from the masses is the person (ex: his/her charisma, grace, poise, confidence, elegance, personality, character etc.) A style icon can wear the exact same outfit as someone else, but ultimately ends up looking different than the other person. Don't tfs-ers always comment that only so-and-so could pull this outfit off, and that it would fail on someone else?

Jennifer Aniston doesn't have the quality necessary to elevate her person above her clothes, which is why although JA and CBK's style both veer towards the basic, people always complain that Aniston is boring.

 

[peppi]

Scans from People, whish they were bigger though..

ontd

 

[Meg]

I think it's wrong to assume that minimalism isn't risk taking. But I would assert that minimalism is truly one of the hardest looks to pull off well, which is what has made Carolyn's style stand the test of time. When you are doing eclectic/boho/whatever, you can pile lots of stuff on, try different things, and it still fits. But you have to have "the eye" to do minimalism in an excellent way. It takes a lot more work to par down an outfit, select items that are precise, that fit well. Because any mistep shines out. I don't think Jennifer Aniston has this look at all - I find her look quite common and basic. I actually think a more apt comparison might be someone like Tilda Swinton

 

[smartarse]

john and carolyn were style icons of their day....
gone too soon.

 

[eternitygoddess]

I think it's wrong to assume that minimalism isn't risk taking. But I would assert that minimalism is truly one of the hardest looks to pull off well, which is what has made Carolyn's style stand the test of time. When you are doing eclectic/boho/whatever, you can pile lots of stuff on, try different things, and it still fits. But you have to have "the eye" to do minimalism in an excellent way. It takes a lot more work to par down an outfit, select items that are precise, that fit well. Because any mistep shines out. I don't think Jennifer Aniston has this look at all - I find her look quite common and basic. I actually think a more apt comparison might be someone like Tilda Swinton

I 100% agree. Minimalism is one of the hardest, maybe the hardest, style to pull off b/c it relies so much on the wearer to carry it off, versus accessories.

I don't think Tilda Swinton has minimalist style though. I think she has...er...Tilda style...

 

[Meg]

well she favors a lot of classic minimalist designers, like Jil Sander. I'm certainly not saying all her outfits or that her style is similar to Carolyn's, but she does tend to favor monochromatic dressing, classic shapes, etc.

 

[Olimpia]

Loving it.

Carolyn definitely is the epitome of all-time American elegance.

 

[Veronika C]

I agree minimalist is hard to pull off. You have to look put together and stylish, but you can just as easy look like you didn't try. Carolyn used cut and texture to look good. Her entire look worked well together. Plus her personality played a huge part.

 

[daas]

People.