Why hooded robes have gotten a style favorite on the pink carpet

Cardi B in customized electric-blue Gaurav Gupta sculptural hooded costume for the Grammy Awards 2023
| Photograph Credit score: Particular Association

Trend loves juxtaposition. So it’s hardly a shock that the hooded costume, nestled amid the paradox of a component designed to cover the wearer making them stand out, has risen to the highest of style’s trending lists. 

The silhouette not too long ago catapulted to fame on the Cannes Movie Competition 2023 — that concludes at present — when Aishwarya Rai Bachchan walked the carpet in a Sophie Couture robe with a large silver hood connected to the black corseted bodice. Whereas this look prompted the hooded robe to occupy mainstream Indian consciousness, it has hardly been the one one round. Mrunal Thakur walked the Cannes carpet in an ornate hooded outfit by Anamika Khanna whereas Anne Hathaway was labelled “mom” by social media feeds globally for her sequinned Versace gold hood at a latest Bulgari occasion. 

First launched by Yves Saint Laurent on the runway in 1969, the hooded costume silhouette was popularised by Azzedine Alaia’s customized Bond-girl wardrobe for Grace Jones within the 80s. The latest fashionable resurgence has seen it throughout worldwide homes like Saint Laurent, Alaia, Coperni, Halpern, and Schiaparelli to call a number of. Nearer residence, designer Gaurav Gupta’s hardened shell hooded creations have drawn consideration, particularly in an electric-blue iteration worn by Cardi B for the Grammy Awards 2023.

So what’s it concerning the silhouette that has discovered favour with celebrities throughout the globe? “I believe hooded silhouettes are gaining recognition proper now, particularly with celebrities as a result of they’re consistently making an attempt to redefine themselves,” says Lylah Shaw, founding father of the label Ituvana. “As a designer, I discover the technicality of designing and creating hooded attire thrilling as a result of it provides a component of thriller and edge to the outfit,” she provides concerning the silhouette’s private attraction to her. “I’ve experimented with incorporating hoods with conventional clothes like kaftans and kurtas as properly and it immediately gives a singular and unconventional type.”

For Gaurav Gupta, the attraction of the hooded costume lies in its drama. “Individuals are searching for one thing new, totally different, and fascinating. Numerous conventional outfits of many cultures had this silhouette because the touchstone of the drapes or hats individuals used to put on and I additionally see the hood changing that whereas including the proper of latest age drama to it. It’s a brand new silhouette that’s being broadly accepted, which is thrilling for me proper now.”

Moreover, with the fast and reliant rise of the style markets within the Center East and south-east Asia, hooded clothes are climate applicable and resonate with cultural values too.

The cultural join

“I believe hooded silhouettes present a way of nostalgia,” Lylah says. Hoods have been worn throughout cultures by the years, as markers of cultural identities and faith. This nostalgic attraction has performed an enormous function within the silhouette’s recognition. “The act of protecting one’s head with a hood carries a sure symbolism and evokes reminiscences of various instances and traditions. I believe celebrities try to consider what an outfit means to them as an individual,” she provides.

Take, for instance, mannequin Bella Hadid paying homage to her Center Japanese roots with a hooded costume at a latest look at Trend Belief Arabia Awards. This fashion-forward intersection represents a celebration and normalisation of self-expression and cultural id.

A brand new-age sensuality

In a sartorial panorama populated with skin-tight silhouettes and bare attire, the hooded costume appears antithetical. Nevertheless, regardless of the surplus cloth on a hooded robe, they often add a degree of attract to the wearer that the slinkiest of strappy attire don’t. 

A significant factor for that is the consolation a hooded costume affords the wearer. “Merely put, if you happen to really feel good in an outfit, you look good,” says Fatima Punjaabi, founding father of the label Mati. “Hooded attire have an ideal steadiness of an uncovered neckline and even shoulders whereas including thriller with the hood.”

There may be additionally the fluid ingredient of the languidly draped materials that add to the sensuality. “Materials play an important function. Top quality silks and cottons drape and circulate gracefully and improve the general sexual attraction,” says Lylah.

IRL iterations

The silhouette’s recognition seamlessly transcends into the actual world. Straddling the road between couture glamour and high-street ease, informal variations of hooded attire have the potential to be a long-lasting pattern. 

The pattern off the runways is a bit more relaxed, with shift attire and tunics adorned with a minimal hood. Mati’s breezy hooded tunics had been favoured by their clients in response to Fatima. “The hooded tunic did very properly for us. Individuals aren’t utilizing the hood like within the robes with celebrities. It’s only a cool enjoyable ingredient. With robes it’s elegant whereas with informal attire it’s extra sporty.”

The hood can also be an understated extension of self-expression, making it a fascinating alternative. “I believe it’s equally fascinating for the customers to put on this off the runway – it’s straightforward and daring on the similar time and makes a correct style assertion,” concludes Gaurav.