STYLE ICON: CAROLYN BESSETTE-KENNEDY

STYLE ICON: CAROLYN BESSETTE-KENNEDY

By Laura Martínez

Calvin Klein offices, 1992. A blonde girl from Connecticut is in charge of welcoming VIP clients into the brand’s New York showroom—names like Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Gwyneth Paltrow… and John F. Kennedy Jr. The latter came in to try on a suit and was instantly captivated by the fashion PR who would later become—without ever intending to—America’s princess. Her minimalist, timeless style remains a staple on fashion magazine moodboards and Pinterest boards for millennial women around the world. What are the keys to her style, and why is it still so widely replicated? Sit back, I’ll tell you.

The ’90s were the golden era of the famous “less is more.” A white shirt, a stiletto or thong sandal, and a pair of mid-to-high-rise dark Levi’s were enough to make a statement look. It was the decade of the little black dress and the naked dress worn by Sarah Jessica Parker at that iconic Sex and the City premiere. Of Cameron Diaz’s short, side-swept hair. The ’90s belonged to minimalism and femininity—and if anyone embodied these principles like no other, it was Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy.

But her style was already turning heads before marrying JFK Jr. and becoming part of the Kennedy clan. During her years at Calvin Klein, Carolyn was known for her understated approach to dressing, perfectly aligned with her personality: discreet and deeply feminine. Bessette wore jeans, simple white T-shirts, loafers, and cashmere sweaters. Her color palette revolved around black (her signature shade), white, beige tones, and subtle pops of color—like that green checked Valentino coat she wore when photographed with her then future sister-in-law, Caroline Kennedy.

Bessette didn’t need much to stand out. Perhaps that’s why she favored versatile pieces that worked at any time of day. Her blonde hair, blue eyes, and 1.75m height did the rest. Carolyn often mixed affordable basics with carefully chosen designer pieces, like a black ’90s Prada bag, crocodile leather loafers—also Prada, one of her favorite brands—or her black Selima Optique sunglasses. The Parisian brand would later rename that model after her death, using her initials: CBK (Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy).

You could say her pre-Kennedy style reflected that of a working girl in New York’s fashion scene: sexy, effortless, and comfortable. However, her wardrobe became more structured, studied, and sophisticated—almost armored—once she became Mrs. Kennedy. Her wedding dress, a silk slip dress designed by her close friend Narciso Rodriguez—whom she met while both worked at Calvin Klein—marked a turning point in bridal fashion and is arguably one of the most copied dresses in history.

Carolyn’s relationship with the press was always tense. She struggled to accept her new identity as a “wife of,” a role she never felt comfortable with and which cost her both her anonymity and her most prized possession: independence. Bessette was forced to leave her job at Calvin Klein due to relentless media pressure and retreated to the Tribeca loft she shared with John. She would spend days without leaving the house to avoid the paparazzi waiting outside around the clock. When she refused to play along, the media began to paint an unfair, negative portrait of a woman no one truly knew.

That aura of mystery she built through silence gave us, in my opinion, some of her best looks. Who could forget the buttoned-up Yohji Yamamoto jacket with its perfectly symmetrical hem—one of her designers of choice in this later period—or the pinstripe suit (also Yamamoto) she wore to Gianni Versace’s funeral in 1997, shortly before the tragic plane crash that took her life, along with John and her sister Lauren Bessette.

Nearly 30 years later, we’re still obsessed with her camel Prada coat, her impeccable collection of knee-high, block-heel boots, and her sleek headbands worn with pulled-back hair. You could argue that, creatively speaking, she played it safe—that her sophisticated, cool timelessness aligned perfectly with the trends of the ’90s we still wear today. Maybe she didn’t invent anything new, but no one has ever worn a white shirt, jeans, and loafers quite like she did. And that is the mark of a true style icon.