Janine Teagues of “Abbott Elementary” is no stranger to indirect comments about her clothes. Quinta Brunson, writer and star of the show, has written those same jokes about her television character. But on Monday, Brunson was on the receiving end of sartorial jokes after wearing what appeared to be a wrinkled dress to the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards.
Her stylist Jessica Paster came to her defense after hearing the comments about Brunson's tea-length Dior dress, responding to keyboard critics who were obsessed with the unfinished look of the Emmy winner's muted, rosy pink look. Some followers of the popular Instagram account Check the Tag said Brunson's dress needed to be ironed or “completely wrinkled,” perhaps even more intentionally wrinkled. Others were surprised Brunson was allowed to leave and said she deserved better. Another called the wrinkled Dior blasphemous.
“Whoever did [this] HE HATES HER 😭 justice for Quinta!” wrote one Instagram user, to which Paster responded: “I adore her so much!!! 😍”
“Sorry but this is a big mistake,” another user wrote. “I love her and her stylist, but wrinkled fabric on the red carpet will never look anything more than a mess.”
And that's when Paster set the record straight. It wasn't wrinkled fabric.
“Guys, guys, guys… it's crushed satin… I knew you were going to say something!!” Paster wrote in the responses. “It's a beautiful silhouette. [sic] on her and the fabric… and the color looks beautiful on her”
Additionally, the French fashion house described the fabric as “crushed silk satin” in a statement to the Times.
Paster anticipated the storm of missteps the couture garment could generate, especially when the texture was magnified by the bright lights that hit Brunson on the red carpet and during Monday's broadcast, during which she took the stage twice. . The look was clearly visible as Brunson picked up his second Emmy Award winner, this time as a lead actress in a comedy series, and later appeared as a host alongside television legend Marla Gibbs, 92.
“Look at this fabric. It's supposed to be wrinkled. That's the beauty of this dress,” Paster said in Brunson's GRWM video for Vogue that was released Tuesday.
Quinta Brunson arrives at the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Monday.
(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
“You know some people, the haters, will say, 'Oh my God, why didn't she get mad?' We have steamed. This is the beauty of the fabric, as well as the draping. …Christian Dior does it beautifully. That's an art. The interior is absolutely beautiful,” Paster added, noting that Brunson's unique dress had three corsets inside.
The celebrity stylist dressed several other nominees on Monday, including “Better Call Saul” star Rhea Seehorn and “The White Lotus” star Aubrey Plaza.
Meanwhile, Brunson, a two-time Emmy winner, felt pretty in pink.
“I really love it,” the “Abbott Elementary” creator, 34, told Laverne Cox during E!'s live red carpet broadcast. “I don't know. Sometimes I like old school glamour. And when I saw this, it made me feel like I was in the '50s. Very simply… 'Okay, classy. It's supposed to be here, I'll be here for a time'”.
In her Vogue video, Brunson said she started getting ready several hours before the show and that she and her hair and makeup stylists were trying to achieve a signature look that was both effortless and timeless. She also took solace that Monday was her second time at the Emmys after taking home her first statuette of 2022, for writing in “Abbott Elementary.” (It should be noted that, like her textured dress, TV host Jimmy Kimmel's ill-received joke subverted Brunson's historic victory at the time.)
“There's a beauty in the relaxation of saying, 'Okay, I'm here again,'” Brunson told Vogue. The unique Dior Haute Couture piece, she said, was also an expression of the artistic side of him.
“I think I always look good, old Hollywood style. And I loved Eartha Kitt. I love Judith Jamison. I love Betty Boop, I know she is a cartoon: big eyes, big head, and I always felt very inspired by [them]. And then I honestly felt more inspired when we got to this Dior dress. For me it has that classic feel, but it's very modern at the same time, which is what I like to bring to the table. “I think I like to bring that to the table through my art.”
When she first saw the dress, Brunson said she didn't immediately think, “Oh, that one.” She was attracted by the pretty color, but when she put it on, she thought it was perfect.
On her way out the door, Brunson added, “I feel elegant and classic, and I have a second Emmy and I feel like a little princess.”
