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11 times celebrities talked about what it's really like to wear daring fashion

Jennifer Lopez walks the Versace runway on September 20, 2019.
Jennifer Lopez walks the Versace runway on September 20, 2019.WWD/Getty Images
  • Celebrities are always wearing bold fashion, from sheer red-carpet looks to vibrant street outfits.

  • Some stars have also talked about what it's really like to wear them.

  • Florence Pugh, for example, has repeatedly defended her choice to wear see-through gowns.

Bella Hadid cemented herself as a style icon at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. But she later admitted that she was embarrassed by the red gown she wore there.

Bella Hadid attends "The Unknown Girl" premiere at Cannes on	May 19, 2016.
Bella Hadid attends "The Unknown Girl" premiere at Cannes on May 19, 2016.Gisela Schober/Getty Images

Her Alexandre Vauthier gown was sleeveless and backless with a plunging neckline. It also had a deep slit in its skirt that reached her hip.

But as the model told Vogue during a 2021 interview, she felt "nervous" while wearing it — even if the look is now "apparently a very iconic red dress moment."

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"I look very sexual and all these things," Hadid told Vogue. "I was still nervous about cameras and nervous about having a lot of makeup on."

She went on to note that the dress didn't exactly match her style, and gave people a false perception of who she is.

"I kind of get embarrassed of this moment still, even though the dress is gorgeous," she said. "It just, again, doesn't feel so much like me, and I think that this was the start of the 'Bella' persona that everyone sees of me. That's my alter ego. That's Belinda."

"I'm just so the opposite of her," she continued. "She's very va-va-voom. You know, bless her. Love her. She was very nervous."

Kendall Jenner, on the other hand, was "pretty chill" when asked to wear a see-through shirt during her first fashion show.

Kendall Jenner walks the runway during a Marc Jacobs fashion show on February 13, 2014.
Kendall Jenner walks a Marc Jacobs runway on February 13, 2014.Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

She wore a sheer, V-neck top on a Marc Jacobs runway in 2014. The model also donned brown trousers, matching tights, and ankle boots.

Jenner reflected on the look while speaking with Vogue in 2022, saying she "actually could not believe" she was featured on the runway. Still, she said she wasn't nervous.

"I was pretty chill — even though my boobies were out," she joked.

Jenner, who had just turned 18 ahead of the show, said she remembers getting a call from her agent who relayed the message that Jacobs wanted her to wear a sheer top.

"I was like, 'I'm game. Like I don't mind. I'm all good with the nipple,'" she said. "It didn't make me any more nervous. I genuinely was just like, 'Dope. Whatever they want. It's their vision, so let's do it.' I was completely comfortable."

The green Versace dress Jennifer Lopez wore in 2000 has become iconic. But it was the version she donned in 2019 that felt empowering, she said.

jennifer lopez versace 2020.JPG
Jennifer Lopez at a Versace show in Milan, Italy, on September 20, 2019.ALESSANDRO GAROFALO/Reuters

The famous gown she wore to the Grammy Awards in 2000 had a green leaf print and a neckline that plunged to her navel. It became so iconic that the dress helped inspire the launch of Google Images.

Lopez then wore another version of the dress to close a 2019 Versace fashion show.

"The second time I wore it and walked out there, it was such an empowering thing," Lopez told  Vanity Fair.

"Twenty years had gone by, and I think for women, knowing you can put on a dress 20 years later — it resonated," she said. "It was like, 'Yes, you know, life is not over at 20!'"

Cardi B was dripping in gold and diamonds at the 2022 Met Gala, and she said the bold look made her feel like a woman.

Cardi B at the Met Gala in New York City on May 2, 2022.
Cardi B at the Met Gala in New York City on May 2, 2022.Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images

Versace designed her dress, which was sleeveless and crafted from rows of metal chains and crystals. The rapper also wore matching gloves and thick, layered necklaces.

"This is what I wanted to give: I wanted to give woman," Cardi B told Vogue on the red carpet. "And Donatella brings that woman."

"No lipo-surgery can bring this body that my son gave me," she then joked, referencing her recent pregnancy.

Emily Ratajkowski described the plunging black gown she wore in 2016 as the "most controversial" outfit she's ever worn.

Emily Ratajkowski wearing black dress to Harper's Bazaar party in 2016.
Emily Ratajkowski at a Harper's Bazaar party in New York City on September 9, 2016.Gilbert Carrasquillo/Getty Images

"I had no idea what a scene this would cause," she said of the dress while speaking to Harper's Bazaar. "Somebody called it extremely vulgar, and it became this huge controversy on the internet."

"Some of my agents were mad at me because they thought it was too sexy," she continued. "I know this sounds whatever, but I was in my 20s and I just hadn't registered that it was so sexy because there is a panel in the middle, but it looks like there isn't."

Her dress, designed by Julien Macdonald, was sleeveless with a deep-V neckline that reached her stomach. It also had wide cutouts at her sides.

Ratajkowski said she still "stands behind" the dress and thinks she looked "great" while wearing it.

"I was basically called out for wanting attention, which I think is interesting because you go to red carpets for attention basically — essentially it's part of your job as a celebrity," she said.

Megan Fox said she wasn't "afraid to be sexy" while wearing a "Dracula"-inspired gown at the 2021 Met Gala.