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When Kelsey Randall launched her namesake fashion brand in 2015, dressing Taylor Swift was at the very top of her wish list.
Now, a decade later, her dream’s come true, with the designer’s crystal-covered creations featured throughout Swift’s new “The Life of a Showgirl” album artwork and in the music video for the record’s lead single, “The Fate of Ophelia.”
“I design for people who are looking to be center stage — whether it’s a bride on her wedding day or a pop star,” Randall tells Page Six Style.
“Most of the work I do is custom, which is really fun and exciting because you get the opportunity to tailor it to the person and what kind of message they’re trying to convey.”
But in March, when a member of Swift’s styling team sent Randall an Instagram message requesting a specific chainmail dress from her collection for an undisclosed project, she didn’t have much context to work with.
“I knew it was for Taylor, but they had to keep the theme a complete secret,” says Randall, who’s also created pieces for Beyoncé, Kacey Musgraves, Lorde, Lizzo and Swift’s friend Suki Waterhouse.
“When you’re designing for other stars, the stylist might give you a mood board or some sort of idea of the direction, but they really couldn’t say anything about what the vibes were going to be.”
Even more challenging? The particular look Swift’s team wanted wasn’t available.
“It was a dress that had been stolen on a photo shoot,” Randall recalls, adding that she was “disappointed” but “had this weird faith that something was going to work out.”
Guess it was kismet; a few weeks later, Randall learned Swift’s team had stumbled across one of her custom, never-before-worn pieces in a costume archive.
“It was a very, very similar style to what they had originally wanted,” she says. “I had no idea what they were working on, but I was convinced we were getting the ‘Reputation’ vault tracks, because the dress is gold and has green stones on it and almost has this snakeskin effect.”
Studded with peridot stones and clear rhinestones and trimmed with “real chandelier crystals” at the hem, the mesmerizing mini wound up in one of the most striking (and sensual) snaps from Swift’s “Showgirl” album shoot, lensed by renowned fashion photographers Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.
But that wasn’t all; early this summer, Swift’s longtime stylist, Joseph Cassell Falconer, invited the designer to what she describes as a “clandestine meeting,” where he asked her if she’d be able to make a second dress. Once again, it was unclear how (or even if) it would be used, but Randall excitedly prepared sketches and suggested colors she thought might work well for the superstar.
“I knew I wanted there to be a through line between the two dresses. We both got really excited about this chainmail fringe — they way it moves and sparkles,” she says.
“And we obsessed over the colorways; there was a lot of sending each other rhinestones overnight. We looked at dozens of different options in very similar tones to make the perfect combo.”
Fittingly, the winning color palette was inspired by the most memorable outfit from Swift’s Eras Tour.
“It’s all iridescent — primarily in shades of pink and purple but with undertones of peach, white and gold,” Randall says. “I loved that colorway right off the bat; it’s so dreamy. Having heard the album now, I’d say it’s very ‘Opalite!’ But it specifically reminded me of the Versace bodysuit from the Eras Tour, which is so symbolic and iconic.”
Actually making the dress to meet Team Swift’s deadline — along with a backup version in rose gold — was the real challenge.
“It was such a tight turnaround, and so much labor went into it,” Randall says, adding that the singer’s famous favorite number factored into the process.
“We literally ordered thousands of yards of the chain fringe and all the different rhinestones, and by the time the supplies actually arrived, we had 13 days to make the dress.”
To ensure she could turn around the piece in time, the female founder brought in a group of friends for assistance — along with her wife, who helped out in between teaching summer school classes.
“I was calling in all my most crafty girls. It was like a sewing circle, but a rhinestone circle,” Randall jokes, noting that she couldn’t tell anyone who the sparkling style was intended for: “They just knew it was for someone really special.”
Months after the design was delivered, Randall discovered it too was used in Swift’s album photo shoot.
“I teach at Parsons [School of Design] really early on Friday mornings, so we went to bed before ‘Showgirl’ came out,” she says. “My wife woke me up at five in the morning and was like, ‘Taylor posted your dress!'”
The shimmering look also features in the finale of Swift’s “The Fate of Ophelia” music video, which is showing exclusively in movie theaters this weekend. Randall and her wife happened to have purchased tickets to one of the first screenings on Friday afternoon, and the designer tells us she burst into tears as soon as she realized her dress had made the cut.
The response from friends, family and fans over the past few days has been “so overwhelming,” she says — as is seeing her looks showcased next to those of her all-time favorite designer in Swift’s “Showgirl” artwork.
“My absolute idol and hero is Bob Mackie. Talk about using rhinestones, honey!” Randall says of the so-called “Sultan of Sequins,” whose archival costumes and feathered headpieces can be spotted on Swift and her dancers throughout the album shoot.
“All I’ve ever wanted to do is be the next Bob Mackie, so having this opportunity to have my work shot alongside his,” she adds, choking back tears, “… it’s amazing.”
It doesn’t hurt knowing that the world’s preeminent pop star approves of your aesthetic, either.
“Taylor approves everything from the jump,” Randall says.
“And I can’t say enough good things about her styling team — how kind and communicative they are, and how hard her stylist worked to make that second look happen. It’s very rare to have someone advocate for a designer that’s certainly not a household name for an opportunity like this.”
English (US)