Strutting into Fashion History: Rita Ora’s Medieval-Meets-Modern Moment
Darlings, let me spill the haute tea on our favorite British songstress’s latest sartorial spectacle. Rita Ora, ever the fashion risk-taker, just served us a masterclass in festive dressing that’s making this fashion blogger’s heart skip a beat in her Louboutins.
At Monday’s press event for “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve With Ryan Seacrest,” Ora didn’t just show up – she showed OUT. The second-time cohost channeled medieval royalty through a thoroughly modern lens, wearing a piece that’s straight from Antonio Marras’s fall 2024 runway that had us all clutching our Birkins in delight.
Let’s dive into the delicious details, shall we? The star of the show was undoubtedly the Pascale Coat – a piece so divine it deserves its own Instagram account. Picture this: a red and black checkered pattern (très chess queen meets Highland princess) elevated by the most sumptuous Kalgan shearling fur sleeves that would make even the Game of Thrones costume department weep with envy. But here’s where it gets interesting, mes amis – the floral embellishments scattered across the coat tell a story rooted in medieval Sardinian history.
The collection, as Marras revealed, pays homage to Princess Eleonora d’Arborea, a medieval Sardinian ruler who was basically the original girlboss. We’re talking about a woman who wrote the Carta de Logu to protect women’s rights – talk about fashion with a message!
Ora, proving she’s mastered the art of balanced styling (take notes, darlings), paired this statement piece with a sleek black turtleneck and chunky, buckled boots that gave just the right amount of edge. In a move that had this blogger slow-clapping, she skipped the jewelry altogether – because when your coat is serving this much drama, why compete?
Standing alongside Ryan Seacrest (who looked dapper in his charcoal gray, double-breasted number with that sharp black collar – we see you, Ryan!), Ora embodied exactly what the Marras collection aimed to achieve: that sweet spot between historical grandeur and contemporary cool.
As WWD’s Luisa Zargani noted in her review, while some pieces in Marras’s collection might have tipped into costume territory, this coat represents the designer at his most refined – striking that perfect balance between drama and wearability that we’re all desperately seeking in our wardrobes.
