The Breakdown: Ariana Madix’s ‘Revenge Style’
“That’s a revenge dress if I ever saw one,” Lisa Vanderpump said as the highly-anticipated “Vanderpump Rules” reunion got underway.
Google “revenge dress” and two people come up.
The first is Princess Diana. The second is Ariana Madix.
Following a cheating scandal that has been dubbed #Scandoval by Bravo fans, Madix has come out on top thanks to a smoldering wardrobe courtesy of stylist and fashion influencer Emily Men.
Admittedly, I had never seen “Vanderpump Rules” until it was somehow thrust into the zeitgeist. And, truthfully, even then I didn’t pay much attention until…
THAT. RED. DRESS.
(Which is actually a top and skirt as it turns out. But more on that later.)
It’s a showstopper that makes you take immediate notice. When the right person wears it.
(Case in point: My post-baby body has no business trying it on for size, but damn — I can respect and applaud those who can pull it off. And Madix certainly can.)
Courtesy of that red hot top and skirt, I — like the rest of this country — suddenly found myself watching the latest season of “Vanderpump Rules” and, eventually, backtracking and bingeing the show’s earliest seasons.
And then #Scandoval hit particularly close to home…
I discovered that a friend — unbeknownst to me — has been privately dressing Madix for press appearances since October of last year.
Known for her playful sense of style, Men is a popular fashion influencer and tastemaker in her own right whose background as a FIDM graduate and stylist (with credits that include working with Rachel Zoe, Brenda Cooper, and Joey Tierney) proved helpful when Madix enlisted Men’s help for a handful of events. Men hadn’t a clue just how important her collaborations with Madix would be when they first started fittings for upcoming post-season appearances.
“Who would have thought this would happen?” Men says, when I catch up with her over the phone in advance of the show’s reunion episode. “I got why it was big news for fans of the show. … But it’s crazy that it’s caught the attention of everybody. It’s gone past just fans of the show; it’s gone past the Bravo-verse. People who have never seen this show started to watch it. People who don’t know anything about these people or this show have become obsessed with the story.”
(It’s me, hi.)
“I could never have guessed that would happen,” Men adds. “They would never have guessed it would happen this way, too. So, it’s interesting. I don’t know how I feel about it. I feel grateful to be a part of it but I just went into it being like, ‘Okay. We need this dress for a reunion. We need a really good look.’”
Men had other strong options waiting in the wings when everything in Madix’s life changed.
“When all of this stuff happened, we were like, ‘It has to be out of this world,’” Men remembers. “The whole vibe of everything was revenge. What’s better than revenge?”
Agreed.
Whether you’re looking for #revengedress inspo or are #TeamAriana, consider this part #proudfriendpost and part behind-the-scenes scoop on Madix’s key fashion moments.
Read on for the full breakdown of Men and Madix’s revenge-fully riveting collaborations together…
WATCH WHAT HAPPENS LIVE
“Everyone was waiting for her to go on WWHL,” Men remembers. “We thought of it as ‘funeral vibes’ because it was the end of an era for her. She was with him for almost ten years. It was also the end of the season and the end of this chapter of this situation. That was how we were laughing [through a tough time]—we thought of it as funeral vibes.”
But any comparisons to Princess Diana’s infamous black revenge dress are purely coincidence. “A lot of people were comparing her to Princess Di and I didn’t get it,” Men admits. “I saw that everyone was like, ‘Oh, that was like Princess Diana’s revenge dress.’ It’s interesting because some of the Bravo fans picked up on it and I saw a couple of MEMES with the pictures side by side. I was like, ‘Why are people comparing her to Princess Diana?’ I didn’t get the reference.” Men learned retroactively by doing a quick Google search to discover the kismet coincidence. “I don’t know anything about the Royal family. I’ve never been interested in any of it. So I didn’t know about that, but the Bravo fans do a lot of research. They’re all inspectors. A bunch of the Bravo fans in comments mentioned that. That’s the only reason I knew about Princess Diana’s revenge dress.”
SHOP IT HERE:
Alessandra Rich’s web lace gown; Steve Madden’s Ari heels; David Yurman rings
THE REUNION
“I knew, ‘‘This is going to be a huge moment for her,’” Men recalls. “When I saw that look, which was a skirt and a top, I had seen it in the past in white, which was really chic, but then they came out with a red colorway and I thought it was perfect. Red is such a strong and bold color. I liked that the look was sexy, but it wasn’t trying too hard. It showed her stomach, but it was a long maxi skirt. It was structured with a long sleeve — that way she’s making a statement but it’s not over-the-top or too sexy or trying too hard. That’s how that look came about. It was such a big moment — with the momentum of the drama that was going on. I saw it and my intuition was like, ‘This is it.’”
SHOP IT HERE:
Monot top and skirt; Jessica Simpson shoes; Shay Jewelry rings
THE WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS DINNER
“Needle & Thread is a brand I’ve been working with forever in the styling world and influencer wise for myself,” Men explains. “That brand has beautiful, whimsical, dreamy, feminine pieces with tulle, sequins, ruffles. I thought, ‘We just did this bold fashion statement.’ We were joking, ‘That was devil revenge vibes. Why don’t we do the opposite because there’s so much great stuff coming along for you. Why don’t we do angel vibes?’ So that’s why we did the all white moment with the cape. It was also appropriate to go to The White House in. We only tried that brand. It wasn’t like I called a million different brands. I literally was like, ‘Why don’t we go with this vibe and we’ll do a more sweet, delicate look versus [the Monot ensemble], which was a bold, out-for-blood look.’ The tulle cape dress had a delicate, sweet, princess, angel vibe.”
SHOP IT HERE:
Needle and Thread London gown and cape; Schutz heels
THE TODAY SHOW
“We went with a business-y look, but still a fashion look,” Men says. “That full look was the French brand Jacquemus. It was a cool designer in a more business-y look. She was going to be sitting, so I figured pants would be more comfortable and it worked out because then she went on The View last minute. It worked for both of those audiences.”
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Jacquemus top and pants
THE NBC UPFRONTS
“We had a big moment when she announced the Up Fronts for NBC,” Men says. “She was in this lime green suit that a lot of people posted about. Up Fronts are where they announce all the new shows coming. Because it’s in front of the corporate NBC [executives], we were like, ‘Let’s do a suit so it’s professional,’ but then we did a fun color because it’s still Bravo. Bravo loves solid bright colors, so we went for a neon, which pops. It ended up going perfectly with the background.” Men often calls upon brands she has close ties to — in order to pay it forward. “She’s getting a really good response. In general, a lot of brands might be like, ‘She’s on a reality show versus whatever,’ so it was one of those things where I remember all the people I have relationships with—I want to show them love. One of my closest friends Tara [Rudes Dann] is the creative director of L’Agence. She’s been nothing but supportive of me forever. There have been girls that maybe other companies don’t want to send for—she always has. I remember those things when it comes to a moment, I want to make sure they [are shown the same love and support they’ve shown me].”
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THE LATEST
“She bought that on her own,” Men says. “That was something she bought a while ago because she had known she was going to this wedding. Day-to-day stuff, she usually dresses herself. She’s getting photographed a shit ton and everyone is watching what she’s doing. What I love about her is that everyone is watching her, but she’s so comfortable and grounded that it doesn’t change how she goes about [her life]. She likes to be in sweats all the time, but it’s one of those things where she didn’t ever change. Paparazzi follows her everywhere now. But she’s still [the same]. In her day-to-day, she’s not one of those that’s like, ‘I’ve worn it once. I’ll never wear it again.’”
That said, Madix and Men have retired the looks from her revenge tour.
“It wouldn’t make sense for her to wear it again,” she says. “Like The Revenge Dress—where are you going to wear that? It was already such a big moment.”
THE SEASON FINALE
“She was filming the end of season finale and we had had a fitting that day for the reunion,” Men says. “She was like, ‘We’re filming tonight. We’re getting drinks at Grandmaster [Records in Hollywood].’ So I gave her a look for that. But typically, Ariana will only text me about the big stuff. On a day to day basis, she usually dresses herself.”
MADIX & MEN
“Last week, we went to get facials together at Biologique,” Men says. “I was like, ‘We should put up a post tagging and thanking everyone who lent or sent stuff or helped us with all these looks—giving them credit including hair and make-up.’ Since we did a collaborative post, I was like, ‘It would be cute if we took a picture together…’ A lot of people already knew I’m styling her, but for my page [it made sense to intro it] and then we coordinated. The hoodie she’s wearing is her merchandise. She has her own line of merch. The ‘born fucking cool thing’ is a quote from her on the show.”
SHOP IT HERE:
HER SENSE OF STYLE
“She’s down for everything,” Men says of Madix’s sense of style. “Fashion is something that should be fun and what I like about her is that I could literally show her anything and she’s down to try it. Even if there’s something she’s [on the fence about], she’ll still put it on. She really likes fashion. For her day-to-day, she likes to be comfortable. Some people, if they’re more casual, comfortable in their day-to-day, then they’re less likely to be risk takers. She likes to be comfortable, but she loves fashion and she’ll try anything. It’s refreshing.”
WHAT’S NOW & NEXT
“They were nominated for the MTV Movie Awards,” Men remembers. “They ended up not going and it got canceled because of the writer’s strike. For the MTV look, we were going to do this really cool Paco Rabanne. It was so MTV. I like that look for something else, but we haven’t found anything else it’s good for…” (YET.) Asked if any fashion collaborations or appearances are on the horizon, Men teases, “There will be. I don’t know if I’m allowed to say though. But she has a lot of big stuff coming up… so…”