Courtesy of @ladydirevengelooks.
As we hurtle our way through peak ‘90s nostalgia, Princess Diana—as it has been noted—has emerged as a somewhat unexpected style icon for the millennial gen. One such fan revisiting her legendary ensembles, is New York-based fashion writer Eloise Moran, whose Instagram account @ladydirevengelooks catalogues—as per its bio— the late Princess’s “sassiest post-divorce looks”—from the iconic off-shoulder LBD worn on the evening of Charles’ admission of his affair, to her androgynous tailoring and sportswear. Moran’s captions document the pictures as various “revenge looks:”, such as ‘The talk of the town revenge look’, or ‘The movin’ on up (nothin’ can stop me) revenge look’. And frankly, we can’t get enough.
Inspired by Lady Di’s post-Charles story whilst struggling through a break up of her own the year before last, Moran began the account as a way to “relay a message of female strength” and empowerment. “The strongest women I have ever met are the ones who’ve been through very hard times, and then used their grief as a conscious journey of inner discovery and healing,” says Moran. “I knew this was the most neglected story, and one which needed to be told,” Moran explains in relation to Diana’s post-split reincarnation. “I started the account to tell that story, but in many ways I pseudonymously told my own story too.” After watching a documentary about the Princess, Moran saw some of herself in her: “I wasn’t a princess (haha!), but like Diana, I also got married very young, and felt very inspired by her.” So, what started as “a joke among friends,” according to Moran, now boasts an impressive 26k following, chronicling Diana’s journey of self discovery and healing through the clothes she wore post-split.
Moran credits the account’s success to Diana’s relatability. “Princess Di is so relatable to women everywhere. If she were alive today, I’m sure she would be a major figure in the #MeToo movement.” As the most photographed woman in the world at the time, the public was privy to every detail of her life “in the most bizarre, ‘Truman-show’-like way,” says Moran. “We saw everything, her pain and her struggles.” Dedicated to telling the story of Diana’s rebirth after her marriage, Moran repurposes old paparazzi images, allowing the Princess to “reclaim her power through them, by telling the most interesting story of her life—her journey to freedom post-Charles and post-royal family life.”
For Moran, “revenge dressing” is an exercise in self-care. More than just a statement of ‘look at what you’re missing,’ it is an embodiment of freedom, confidence, sexiness and individuality. By trying to express her own creativity after her break-up, Moran says that she developed not only a better understanding of who she was as a person, but “began to dress better and look after myself better.” Diana’s story is inspiring in many ways, not least for her charity work and self-reinvention, but also because of her reemergence as a constant source of style—and attitude— inspiration over 20 years after her death. As Moran says, “She was ahead of her time.”