Over the past two weeks, we’ve been gripped by the FX series Love Story, which brings one of America’s greatest true romances – the romance of John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy – to the small screen. Here, Contributing Fashion & Lifestyle Editor Astrid Carter talks us through the show’s incredibly authentic ’90s styling and explains why Carolyn’s real-life aesthetic feels just as fresh and relevant today as it did back then.


There has been no shortage of great fashion moments on screen lately – Wuthering Heights, we’re looking at you – but what the Emerald Fennell adaptation offers in corsetry, frills, and love-flushed cheeks, Love Story counters with the quiet luxury of sartorial storytelling.

For the uninitiated, the series follows the iconic romance between American “royalty” John F. Kennedy Jr. and then-Calvin Klein publicist Carolyn Bessette. While the drama is totally bingeable, it’s Carolyn’s incredible ’90s wardrobe (brought to life by the captivating Sarah Pidgeon) that serves as the series’ true linchpin.

Producer Ryan Murphy is no stranger to fashion-focused TV – most notably with Halston and The Assassination of Gianni Versace – but Love Story’s aesthetic is far less uptempo, more wearable, and stopped me in my tracks from the very first scene. It is a masterclass in less-is-more, a celebration of the capsule wardrobe, and an archival feast featuring the likes of vintage Prada, Calvin Klein, and the ultimate cool-girl label of the era, Agnès b.

The show’s costume designer, Rudy Mance (The Watcher, Halston), has done a stellar job, with breathtaking authenticity and fine detail. The styling, however, hasn’t been without controversy; Mance was brought in mid-production to rescue the wardrobe department after early paparazzi leaks of Pidgeon and co-star Paul Anthony Kelly were criticised for looking too modern and cheap for the real-life couple’s well-documented styles. 

With fashion’s current obsession with all things from that era, her wardrobe feels as relevant as ever.

I was a bit too young to remember Carolyn’s style in real time, but this show inspired me to dive deep, with incredible results. Carolyn was undeniably chic; she made even the simplest pieces – a crisp white shirt paired with a black pencil skirt, or a ribbed vest with straight-leg denim – feel powerful and fresh. It was the definitive ’90s look, famously championed (and arguably created) by her boss, Calvin Klein. With fashion’s current obsession with all things from that era, her wardrobe feels as relevant as ever. It’s well worth a watch, if only for the outfit inspiration alone.

It is a masterclass in less is more, a celebration of the capsule wardrobe, and an archival feast featuring the likes of vintage Prada, Calvin Klein and Agnès b.

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