Welcome to Lux and the City, a semi-weekly newsletter about the fashion industry, the entertainment world, and all the other parts of my life I might want to let you in on. You can subscribe here and follow me on Instagram @LUXURYLAW.
Hey Tribe,
So, I’m finally coming down off the high of this chaotic awards show season. And even though it’s done for now, I can’t pull my mind away from it.
I’m thinking about Venus Williams!
To be frank, it still feels surreal to me that we’ve been working together. Because I can’t overstate how much of an icon Venus is, and what she meant to me and so many other black kids when we were in Chicago watching them play on TV.
Do you remember a few months back when I was talking about all those full-circle moments I’d been having?
This is definitely one of them.
Because I literally grew up seeing the Williams sisters change not only the entire sport of tennis, but also the world. And that meant everything to me! Because even at the time I think we all knew we were witnessing the making of two of the greatest athletes who ever lived. And of all places, they were from COMPTON, which wasn’t a place that was supposed to birth stars like her. Not to mention we always thought tennis was a rich sport, and not one for girls who looked like them.
So they were like symbols. They were more than just tennis players. That was just the thing they dominated. But for me, back then, even in my youth, it was about the story. It was about what it all meant.
That’s why whenever I style her, all of that is at the front of my mind. She’s like royalty! And because she has this incredible, dramatic backstory that feels like a hood fairy tale, there’s so much to draw from when it comes to exploring that on the red carpet today. There’s so much history.
Our style journey together started with her at the 2022 SAG Awards, when I dressed her in this really cool, futuristic Dolce & Gabbana look. It was a full silver and white moment—this chrome bustier bodysuit tucked underneath a high-slit, draped, white asymmetrical dress with this one structured sleeve, plus silver accessories…
It made her look like a total goddess on the carpet, and she said to me herself that she genuinely felt like one, which is even more important. It meant that I did my job. And she just kept saying that it was her favorite look she’d ever worn in her entire career on the red carpet.
And you know I love a theme and I love a reference, so our work together just ended up becoming this thing where I’d put her in white or silver or a combination of both to every red carpet event I dressed her for. To me, it always makes her stand out from the crowd as this poised, regal, victorious figure. That’s really a credit to who she is as a person, and how we’re able to interpret that and reflect it in our styling choices, to elevate the story.
So when it came to dressing her for the 2022 Critics’ Choice Awards, I decided to continue with that same story, and put her in this silvery Atelier Versace moment with a double split and a deep V-neckline…
Which of course led to her and Serena matching, a moment in fashion history I won’t forget anytime soon…
And then came the Oscars, which are a big deal—even for Venus! It was a really big night for her, because King Richard had a Best Picture nomination. So I called Elie Saab and we did this custom floor-length gown for her in white crepe. The coolest part of it is the metallic trim along this plunging neckline, and how we rhymed the hardware with these futuristic silver cuffs that had traces of Wonder Woman in them…
And then…SURPRISE!
Photo by Karwai Tang/Getty Images
I totally forgot to share this look with you. It’s what she wore to the VF Oscars afterparty! Custom Givenchy Haute Couture…
It’s this really major two-piece look designed by Matthew M. Williams, who’s the creative director at Givenchy. The top part is a sculpted, matte silk bustier with a sweetheart neckline and all these cool little details, like the raw-edged cutouts along the sides, the zipper at the front, and these pleats that create volume and fall into a feather trimming along the bottom of the garment.
And then it’s paired with a matching matte silk skirt that has a high slit on the left side…
Photo by Rich Fury/VF22/Getty Images for Vanity Fair
What do you think, Tribe? What’s your favorite look we’ve done together so far? Every time I dress Venus, I try to convey the full history of who she is and what she symbolized to me when I was growing up. It’s really important to me that the story comes through.
Even now, I can still remember so vividly seeing the photos of the sisters in these magazines when they were still basically kids. It was crazy, because here were these two little black girls who wore beads in their hair, just like the girls who lived on my block and the ones I went to school with. And they came from a neighborhood like mine, the kind you didn’t see in Vogue or Harper’s Bazaar.
But there they were in these really aspirational magazines where you didn’t usually find photos of black girls (or black people, period). And they were being celebrated for being at the top of their game in a way nobody could really deny. I think that’s all part of what’s made this work so exciting and secretly emotional for me. I see myself in her trajectory and in the way she came from nothing. So her wins always felt kind of like mine, too. Like ours.
And even though we all always knew how hard they had to work to get to where they’re at now, it was still incredible to watch King Richard and get this BTS look at everything they had to go through. Because they opened doors for so many people, in the same way I hope I can open doors for anyone who comes after me. Above anything, it’s been really humbling for me to have even a small role in Venus’s story.
And I can’t wait for you to see the magic we keep making together.
Until next time,
Law x
