The Who What Wear Podcast: Celebrity Stylist Petra Flannery on Emma Stone’s '90s-Inspired Press and Award Show Looks for Bugonia

14:11Petra Flannery:you know, it's darker and your client is wearing black because, you know, it's less of a silhouette,

14:17Hillary Kerr:but can't control for everything. Correct. So you try, you try, you try to do, you try to be as prepared. And then what about the off the shoulder gown for the governor's awards?

14:27Petra Flannery:That was interesting because the band around her arms and her shoulders there where it fell, it was actually made of like, it was like a metal band. So all the beading was embroidered onto this metal band and it was sort of like an orbit, you know? So it was again like kind of a little, had a little futuristic nod. I love that. So we do very subtle things. I like to do subtle things.

14:48Hillary Kerr:You want futurism, Gaskier is your first call. 100%. And then talk to me about the yellow set, because it's not revolutionary, but it felt fresh. So was it always meant to be two pieces? How did that conversation happen? Because it's like the perfect, like that pale buttery color was so flawless. And I loved the boxier top. Like the whole thing just felt really elegant and lovely.

15:16Petra Flannery:Oh, thank you. Again, she wore it beautifully. That was, yes, meant to be two different. I didn't want to have an all beaded because the idea was that it's like two separate. It's almost like from the 90s where you're just like the little t-shirt and the skirt. And it felt, I wanted it to have that effortless feel. I always love when you set out to do something like, you know, when fancy's effortless, right?

15:40Hillary Kerr:You know, because fancy's fancy and fancy can feel restricted.

15:43Petra Flannery:And, you know, it's nice when there's an ease to something. And it feels like, wow, they just kind of threw that on.

15:48Hillary Kerr:Well, it felt like she was wearing the look, not that the look was wearing her. And I think in this world of like extreme corsets, which, by the way, I love, but the dress is wearing the person. So this felt like very she she felt at ease to your point. She looked like she felt at ease, which I thought was really nice.

16:04Petra Flannery:There is an ease to her. Yeah.

16:05Hillary Kerr:You know, how did you get the tailoring right on that? Because it's just like also the right amount of skin. And how do you decide like this is the right amount of stomach to show this is where we should call it?

16:16Petra Flannery:There's obviously a comfort level. And then there's, you know, we take pictures and you make sure like, OK, that's that looks good. I think it really, you know, it I would have thought it was on this one that it was going to be all about the top. But it was more about the skirt because I I I thought the skirt was going to ride, you know, when it was designed, that it was going to ride a little higher. And then as we played around with it, it was like, you know, how things just feel good. And then as it kind of just went a little bit looser on the hips, it was like, that's it. And that's kind of like, and that's where fittings are important too, because you see how somebody moves in it and how they.

16:50Petra Flannery:Are naturally inclined to wear it. Exactly. And how, yeah, their movement gives it a whole design, you know? Oh, that's right.

16:58Hillary Kerr:Because you're like, if someone's like pulling something up or clutching something or pulling it down or like it naturally sinks, like you're right. That you can emphasize that or you can tweak that. Right. So much can be changed with the right tailoring.

17:11Petra Flannery:Yeah, absolutely. So that just kind of fell into place. But yeah, it was a beautiful color. And I did that. That was how I described it too, that buttery yellow. And again, a little bean on.

17:23Hillary Kerr:A little bean on. Let's talk about the Baptist dress because I like literally had an intake of breath when I saw the first photos come through because the fit is so perfect. Like it just looked like it was like built on her. It felt so elegant and so lovely and sculptural and strong and incredibly sexy, but without being tawdry in the slightest. Like that's a very fine line to navigate. How did you decide on this dress? What's the story behind it?

17:57Petra Flannery:At the BAFTAs and in London, you'll see a lot of like a lot of glitz and things. And it's kind of nice sometimes to go, you know, to go the opposite way. It really was about the silhouette, you know, the silhouette was very impactful in the keyhole and everything had to be placed just right. But Vuitton, you know, the atelier, like really, hands down, nailed it from the start. But then it had a lot of, you know, minor fittings along the way and refits and length and all that and a little bit, you know, here and there. So, yes, it was fit really to perfection. But that's something about minimalism, right?

18:30Petra Flannery:It has to be the fit. And it's, you know, I always say sometimes those dresses that are, you know, simpler can become the most complicated because they actually have a little bit more, you know, behind them. Maybe they're a little more intellectual. Maybe they're a little more like, you know, design based than one might think. It's like the no makeup, makeup, right? Yes. The 40 products for no makeup, makeup. I get it. I get it.

18:56Hillary Kerr:Tell me if I'm alone here, Who What Wear listeners, but shopping used to feel more fun. Before all the algorithm-fed law and the endless sea of dupes. But I have a confession. I found that fun feeling again on eBay. It's not mindless scrolling. It's a fashion pursuit. And when you score that rare Adidas collab or the Dior saddlebag you've been manifesting, it's a rush. eBay has millions of pre-love finds from hundreds of brands backed by eBay authenticity guarantee. eBay. Things. People. Love. I also want to talk about some of the times that she has not worn Vuitton when you've been able to play with some other brands.

19:41Hillary Kerr:Can we talk about the Oscars lunch and that amazing, was it a tuxedo dress, like a mini dress? It had a bottom on the runway. But no, it was short like that.

19:50Petra Flannery:But we didn't pair it with, I think, I can't remember, I think it was a skirt underneath. I was going to say it was pants, but it was a skirt, like a long, you know, kind of, which is amazing too. And I didn't, you know, but when we tried it on, it was, it looked great as a mini. And, you know, that's an event where, you know, it's the Oscars luncheon. It's one of those things that then you go, you take the big picture afterwards, you know, that's kind of like, that's going to run. It's timeless. so you know the tuxedo of it all it's classic um is classic and then it had a little bit of a twist and it had you know I loved it had this like kind of very cool leather flower which again is kind of like the flower and the bee and you know so but um but yeah it was great I mean she she's known for doing that that you know tuxedo look and she's always loved doing pant looks and suit looks she's you know kind of our generate our Catherine Hepburn generation and um so that's just kind of the evolution of it, I would say, her wearing that.

20:49Hillary Kerr:Okay, and then I also have to ask about the Colbert look, which, is that the actual Donna Karan look from Great Expectations?

20:57Petra Flannery:It's not, it wasn't archival. It was remade. Oh my goodness. I'm pretty, I would hope that Gwyneth has that.

21:04Hillary Kerr:I would hope so too. You know? So that is my favorite scene from Great Expectations and she looks phenomenal in it. And when Emma showed up and I was like, oh my God, this is crazy. The green is flawless. The green was made for her. How did you end up deciding on that moment? Because it was such a wonderful, nostalgic, but modern, like, you don't have to know the movie. You don't have to be me who saw it in the movie theaters and swooned and got the soundtrack.

21:29Petra Flannery:I was there with you.

21:30Hillary Kerr:Probably like it was maybe a CD, but it was I mean, that movie was everything. And that's the most epic look from an entirely important film. So how did you guys come up with that idea? What was the story behind it? Because I loved it.

21:44Petra Flannery:well I mean given the whole 90s nod that was you know it seemed apropos and I said you know the office we're like okay reach out to Donna Karen and in talking about redoing that look you know we sat with Emma and was like do you want to do a different color way or something and she's like no I think it has to be this and I'm like you're kind of right you know so I think it was just our fan our fan out to Gwyneth and Great Expectations which is 1998 I think so So we still hit that 90s mark. Yeah. That was an absolute dream. It was fun. It was really fun to do.

22:22Hillary Kerr:But it's crazy how modern it looks. It literally could be something that was on a runway today. It does not feel vintage or a throwback. It doesn't feel costume. It's very, very modern. Yeah. You're probably under lock and key about the SAG Awards, but this will come out after the SAG Awards. So is there anything that you can share with us ahead of time about, like, are you decided? Do you guys know for sure? Are you final? We are, we are final. And I don't know the interest of you. I'm not going to give you any hints. I want you to see it. I want you to, you can text me on Monday. Do you have a backup dress?

22:57Hillary Kerr:Do you always have a backup dress? Do you never have a backup dress?

22:59Petra Flannery:I typically have a backup dress. I mean, there's other things, but I'm not, I don't really have a backup dress on this one. Have you seen it? Yes, I have. In person? Yeah.

23:07Hillary Kerr:Earlier today? Yes. Is it what you wanted it to be? Yeah, yeah, it really is.

23:12Petra Flannery:It really is. We, you know, we tweak some things to give it like certain, you know. I just love the fact that this dress like just flew into L.A.

23:21Hillary Kerr:Hand carried, right? Hand carried. Yeah.

23:23Petra Flannery:I mean, I think that's the coolest way.

23:25Hillary Kerr:One time I had the good fortune of being at a fashion PR friend's house when a dress arrived like from the runway and to see the way like in the box.

23:37Petra Flannery:It was I mean, yeah, it is it is no joke transporting these gowns.

23:41Hillary Kerr:Oh, no.

23:41Petra Flannery:So, yeah, especially these big, big, I remember back in my day of, you know, of assisting and we, there were these dresses one time. They came in crates. Yes. It was like Dior, you know, like couture. And yeah, good fun. That's part of the, you know, that's part of the allure of this job too. You know, it's like the unpackaging of things and seeing it in person and touching things and feeling things. Okay.

24:04Hillary Kerr:I also want to talk about Zoe Saldana because she is incredible. And you guys have done such phenomenal work together over the years. Only having a presentation at the Oscars and a global tour. Is this a little bit easier? Does it feel like the same level of pressure when you have a global tour going on?

24:24Petra Flannery:Well, you know, with award season, I mean, I always really it's I'm always very heightened about all the dresses and doing a good job. And, you know, it's such a big it's such a big stage that I always want everybody to I do really do put a lot of effort into making sure that everybody feels their best and, you know, looks their best and feels their best. So, you know, it's it's a little bit of a lighter year with Zoe this year because she's just going to be coming back and, you know, passing the torch on.

24:50Hillary Kerr:what sort of look do you have in mind for something like that like how do you prepare for something because it's not it's a celebration of of you know the work the reason she's there is because she won last year and had that amazing emotional delightful speech and she was just so incredible do you think about like oh I want to nod to what she wore then or to take it in a totally different direction of what's going on now how do you put it in perspective I feel like that's kind of the hardest like it's both easier and harder if that makes sense yeah it can be I

25:20Petra Flannery:I mean, I always, you know, it's I always take different occasions and make sure that, you know, people, you know, there's an unexpectedness to think about. And then there's also the expectedness in terms of like what is what's appropriate. You know, if you're going to an arch opening, this is like you can go a little this way or that. So, yeah, she is going going back this year and celebrating, you know, somebody else's win. So, you know, we'll see.

25:44Hillary Kerr:I love that she always seems to take more risks too than like your standard actress. Like she obviously has like such a love for fashion and will do trends and take some risks. So talk to me about the Avatar 3 premiere that I believe is Deep Teal.

26:01Petra Flannery:Oh yes. From the Los Angeles gown. Yes.

26:05Hillary Kerr:And I mean, that was about as high of a slit as a dress can handle. How do you do that? And also, like, can you tell me a little bit about the Cartier jewels? Because they were kind of ridiculous.

26:16Petra Flannery:Yeah, they were spectacular. The stones were like the perfect color because they brought in a little hint of the bow. But the dress, yes, it's funny. You know, the dress came shown. The dress had like a little kind of a little striped hot pant with it. But so we got the dress sans hot pants. So we tried it on. We were like, wow, it's really high. But actually, it's very it's quite beautiful, you know, sculptural. Absolutely. And then we thought, well, why don't we try the sheer hose with it, which is very Saint Laurent, very Anthony Vaccarello. And so once we did that, it kind of everything coalesced.

26:55Petra Flannery:Yes. And so it did. It wasn't as like, oh, my gosh, it's it's leg. It's leg or but, you know, I mean, yeah. And her legs beautiful to present. But it wasn't it wasn't like a raunchy thing. You know, we took like any little like, ooh, like scandalous, like out of it. But it's funny because even if even if we didn't put that on, like no matter what Zoe puts on, it could be it could, you know, have a little like scandal to it or super sexy.

27:21Hillary Kerr:She makes it look elegant. It's so elegant.

27:22Petra Flannery:I was going to say that, too. She always has this this way about her. So posture, too. It's a posture. It's a dancer in her. It's a beautiful complexion. So we just went with it.

27:34Hillary Kerr:OK, well, I loved it. I also loved how sculptural some of the other looks were. The white gown that she wore for the premiere in China, the black Balmain peplum look that she wore at one of the European premieres. This is like a really structural look. It feels like it's pushing the envelope more, which, again, I love. How did you decide to do those two looks?

27:57Petra Flannery:Well, for one, like you said before, Zoe really is a risk taker. She's very confident with, you know, fashion. and, you know, she loves it and we ooh and ah over things and, like, she'll send me DMs and we're always like, oh, she's, like, following along. On the runway and stuff. Like, you know, like, we'll see, like, shows that just came out and she'll send me, she's like, I love that. And, you know, we had the white Erdem dress for a while. I think we tried it even when she came into town to go to the Academy Gala. I had it for so long and it was really sweet because Erdem, his team had written that the meaning behind that collection, there was like I think it was a French philosopher and she was all into kind of futuristic you know philosophy and and a little bit um almost a little sci-fi ish yeah so he was really excited that Zoe was going to be the one so I had all this you know leaning into I was like we can't we have to wear this dress it really means so much I mean it looked stunning um but that was a kind of an interesting part that Zoe having done so avatar and so many sci-fi films like that that this dress felt like it was really was her dress.

29:02Petra Flannery:But I think to speak to the silhouette, you know, when you have these structural dresses, you really have to make sure that they have some kind of element that, again, the person's not, you know, the dress isn't wearing the person because that one had like such a defined waist and then the hip pads. So, you know, your eye kind of went into that besides all the beautiful like slips of lace, as well as the Balmain that she wore in Paris, which again, kind of like we, it had a waist, but we really noticed this like extreme or exaggerated corsetry on top and neckline and then that beautiful décolletage of Zoe.

29:40Petra Flannery:So it's a fine line when you do those more interesting sculptural silhouettes. You really want to make sure that you're, you know, you're zeroing in on something to, to, um, you know, to make sure that they're the fit and make sure it feels right.

29:55Hillary Kerr:Yeah, exactly.

29:56Petra Flannery:That, that, that you really see that they're wearing that.

29:58Hillary Kerr:That makes sense. I love it. I love both of them. And I also just, I, I always get a kick out of seeing what she's wearing. It's always like she can wear anything. And so it really, like, it feels joyous because she's not repeating herself and no shade to people who repeat themselves because Lord knows I wear a uniform, but like, I don't, that's not what I love for the red carpet. And so I, you can just see the joy that she takes.

30:21Petra Flannery:Yeah. She's great with it. Great with it.

30:23Hillary Kerr:I also want to talk about Claire Danes because, um, you know, like everyone in the world, I'm a big fan of hers and I was so thrilled. I, my very first job was at the Gap when I was in high school. So I always am rooting for the Gap. And so the fact that she was wearing custom Gap studios, which makes sense because she has a longstanding relationship with Zach. I almost said Efron. That would have been hysterical. Zach Posen, who is the creative director of the brand. I had Enrique Melendez on the podcast a few months ago. We were talking about a collab that he had done for Jenna Ortega with Gap Studios and this t-shirt inspired dress and how they ended up like acid washing it and cutting it in certain places.

31:03Hillary Kerr:And I love, and that feels like such a very different look than what you created for Claire. And I love that it's authentic to both women and to Gap and so very different. And but still, I can see a little bit of a through line in the Gap orientation of it. So talk to me about how this dress came together.

31:25Petra Flannery:Well, it really was, like you said, their relationship between the relationship between Zach and Claire.

31:33Hillary Kerr:Yeah, exactly. Can you imagine? Whoops. Yeah, so the relationship between Zach Kosen and Claire. Who are like old friends, right?

31:46Petra Flannery:Yes, old friends. I think they grew up in the same area in New York. And I think you might have made her something like one of her first, you know, events she went to. And, you know, two creatives in New York. And I think it was like Soho or something. So cool. As you do. You know, Claire, again, is like she's like the epitome of the 90s.

32:03Hillary Kerr:Maybe all her cool, you know. Angela Chase for looks and everything. Exactly. Exactly.

32:09Petra Flannery:That's kind of the, you know, Zach had sent the sketches and I love the idea because this was the t-shirt dress and I thought that's so cool. And it had to have the pocket. And then when the first fitting happened, because that again is like during the time it's over the holiday, the first fitting happened in New York of the twall and I was on Zoom and then it was kind of like this, oh, let's roll the sleeve. And it was very cool to give it like that one, that one next element of, of a t-shirt. And, um, again, yeah, very nineties gap. Um, you know, I've always loved the gap too. I'm from San Francisco, so I've got a lot, I've got a lot of, yeah, emotions for that.

32:50Petra Flannery:But, um, but yeah, it just felt very cool because, okay, again, it's this effortlessly chic thing, you know, fancy becomes effortless and you marry in Zach, who is such a, you know, his workmanship and his knowledge of female body and, you know, where the lines go and the seams and the beating. It was, he does a perfect job with that. So it was really fun. That was, it fell fresh.

33:16Hillary Kerr:It felt so personal too. Yeah, and white.

33:19Petra Flannery:Yeah, I just loved it. Yeah, so that's sweet.

33:21Hillary Kerr:I was like, this is the combo that we didn't know we needed, but we absolutely did. And it felt like it landed beautifully. Before I let you go, a little lightning round, which I realize like is perhaps not what your Capricorn self would love to bring to this because Capricorns always want to have like the right answer for everything.

33:38Petra Flannery:But we're going to do our best.

33:39Hillary Kerr:So tell me one look that you've put together that felt like a risk and really paid off.

33:44Petra Flannery:You know, the one that always kind of stands out, and I mean, it doesn't even seem it now, but at the time it was, was when Emma wore the Lanvin jumpsuit to the Globes. It was beaded on top. And then not many people were wearing pants and that kind of look, that menswear, you know, now we see it a lot more. And I love it, you know, and that was kind of, again, like she's always been known for that. And Albert designed that and she tried it on. And it's not at all what we thought that she was going to, you know, we had other things in mind. And then that came along and it was like, wow, that's really like that's so cool.

34:20Petra Flannery:And she was, you know, she and Albert had such a sweet and very dear friendship. And that's the first person she went to the Met Ball with and, you know, wore a lombon. So and she went a couple of times with him. So that, you know, it just it was one of those things. It was the whole thing together is magic.

34:36Hillary Kerr:And also what a crazy world we live in. That's like, ooh, menswear. Right, right. Now everything has become more androgynous and cool and, you know, and mixing things up. So I love it. OK, favorite custom look that you've ever done.

34:50Petra Flannery:I know you love them all, but I know it's so hard. There's been so many. And, you know, working with with Vitan is has been amazing because of getting to work with Nicola. I mean, you know, Valencia was everything.

35:03Hillary Kerr:for me.

35:04Petra Flannery:It's a casual visionary. Yeah. So there's probably everything we've done, Vuitton. And, you know, I have to say, though, her dress that she won her first, that Emma wore her first Oscar in was, there was just a lot of stuff going on that year. And that was, you know, there was just a lot of steps to it. And it was beaded and it was painted. And I

35:24Hillary Kerr:remember waking up in the middle of the night and drinking as much as it like it tortured me.

35:28Petra Flannery:I'd also was like it, you know, it's it's such a big moment, you know, and yeah, beads were painted. And then I'd wake up thinking, did they paint it? Was it degraded the right way? And I would call, you know, PR. Anyway, so. Cool. I'm stressed out. Yeah, exactly. Get in the Capricorn. Go to sleep.

35:49Hillary Kerr:OK, biggest styling disaster that you've ever had to recover from. Carla told me about a dress that got thrown away. So I know you have a story like that.

35:57Petra Flannery:You know, on this one, I'm almost want to just set a lesson for anybody listening out there and especially anybody that wants to be a stylist. Learn to have thick skin because the things that you, you know, read and hear and all that, you know, somebody is going to say it's a mishap. Right. But when you did it, you didn't you weren't doing it because you wanted to mishap. You know, it's like someone's going to someone's going to take something that, you know, was some people like it. Some people don't. So it's like and I don't know. there's always that time where your assistant gets on the plane without the premier dress and is on their way to London.

36:31Petra Flannery:But fortunately you can get world net just in time.

36:35Hillary Kerr:No. To get, yeah. You had an assistant to take the dress and they forgot the dress. They forgot the dress. They got on the plane. They got on the plane and it was like, I forgot the dress. I can't remember all of those details.

36:48Petra Flannery:The stars were aligned that like, it wasn't happening right when they landed. I think there may have been like the day in between.

36:54Hillary Kerr:So it was like I was calling the designer like, hey, do we have WorldNet?

36:59Petra Flannery:Like, can they make it in time? They were like, I used to break it down, too. You know, a lot of times you're like, oh, God, what am I going to say? But I was like, this is what happened. I need help. Emergency 911. And anyway, they got it there in time. And it was.

37:10Hillary Kerr:And also just for our listeners who might not know, WorldNet is like the FedEx for the fanciest things in the world with the highest level of care. Door to door service. Yes.

37:20Petra Flannery:And you can reroute it and you can. It is bespoke FedEx. can arrive at midnight. It's not going to be like you weren't home to sign for it. Sorry. No, too bad. We'll reattempt on Monday. No. This is like, it's in your hands, ma 'am.

37:32Hillary Kerr:Lastly, who is your favorite working stylist right now? Oh gosh. Let's give someone their flowers.

37:38Petra Flannery:Oh, I mean, I love what Jason Bolden does. Then I love like you brought up Enrique Melendez because, you know, he and Jenna Ortega look like they're having so much fun. Right. And I look at that and that that's like, I just know like how when I, you know, I'm still, I still love what I do. But I know that feeling when you're just like, wow, you, you know, you just start to have so much fun. It's definitely clicking. I mean, my 13 year old son was like that dress, the silver dress with the tape measures on. He's like, that was really cool.

38:08Hillary Kerr:You know, like people are noticing. So kudos to Petra. Thank you so much for your time. This was such a pleasure. I always love talking to you. I'm always thrilled when I know one of your clients will be on a red carpet because I know it's going to be great and I am never disappointed. So thank you for taking the time. I know you're crazy busy. Thank you for having me.

38:28Petra Flannery:Exactly. Text me on Monday. Okay, fine. Fine, fine, fine.

38:31Hillary Kerr:Thank you.

38:32Petra Flannery:Thank you.

38:37Hillary Kerr:A huge thank you to celebrity stylist and Capricorn, Petra Flannery. You can now watch all episodes of The Pod on our new Who What Wear podcast YouTube channel, so please subscribe and check us out there. If you have any guest suggestions or any other feedback, find us on social at Who What Wear. See you next Wednesday on the Who What Wear podcast.

39:06Hillary Kerr:This episode was produced by Hilary Kerr, Summer Hammeris, and Natalie Thurman. Our production assistant is Raven Yamamoto. Our audio engineers are at Glen Canyon Audio, and our music is by Jonathan Leahy.