Revenge is a dish best served with style.
Thanks to the re-emergence of '90s fashion, Season 4 of The Crown, and our mothers' (or our own!) perpetual obsession with Princess Diana, the late "people's princess" is back on our radar.
I do have a sincere question. Why are all of our moms constantly talking about Diana? One time my mon CALLED me while I was in college, sighed, and started the conversation with “she was the people’s Princess”
— broti gupta (@BrotiGupta) November 26, 2020
Cue Instagram account @ladydirevengelooks, gleefully cataloging and captioning "Lady Di’s sassiest post-divorce looks." We're no strangers to wanting to look good after a breakup, much less a very public, drawn-out separation and divorce—and Lady Di served up her revenge looks with style. While her life ended in tragedy, and she was deeply mourned in public and in private, her popularity endures. This account documenting her mid-'90s style is just one example of how her life is still celebrated and turned to—even for revenge—style.
Account creator Eloise wrote:
I started @ladydirevengelooks a year and a half ago, when I went through a terrible break up myself. I became drawn to Diana because of her courageous rebirth, and she resembled everything I was looking to find again in myself; not just her flawless sense of style but also her self-discovery of confidence and voice. The account initially started as a joke between myself and friends and every time I’d post it would bring a smile to my face #FyouMyOwnEx! It grew into something bigger, and your responses and personal revenge looks have made me laugh and smile on the daily and ultimately helped me with my own healing. This account is about reclaiming power and joking through the grief, but it’s also the birth of a movement: the revenge dressing movement. 💪
Of course, it all began with the "Revenge Dress." The night that Prince Charles confessed his infidelities to the media, Diana was scheduled to attend a Vanity Fair gala. In a last-minute decision, Diana showed up in a stunning, sexy black dress, showing Prince Charles—and the world—what she was made of. (In another very Diana move, she later put the dress up for auction, where "it sold for $65,000, with the money benefitting cancer and AIDS-related charities.")
Thanks for your courage and kindness, Lady Di—and thanks for the looks.
What's your favorite memory or story of Princess Diana? And which revenge look do you love? Let us know in the comments.