Skip to content
  • About us
  • Music
  • Celebrities
  • TV and Movies
  • Fashion
  • Entertaiment
  • Life Style
  • Travel and Health
Style Focus

Style Focus

  • About us
  • Music
  • Celebrities
  • TV and Movies
  • Fashion
  • Entertaiment
  • Life Style
  • Travel and Health
  • Toggle search form
  • Amanda Seyfried Models Dress Made By Her 6-Year-Old Daughter While Celebrating 2023 Emmys at Home Uncategorised
  • Diddy faces more than two dozen lawsuits as he sits in jail Uncategorised
  • Celebrity-Loved Sunglasses Brand VEHLA Expands Into Activewear With a Chic Collection Uncategorised
  • Boy grapples with tradition in Spanish bullfighting town Uncategorised
  • Jonathan Majors: What now for the Marvel universe and his career? Uncategorised
  • Courteney Cox, Malin Akerman and More Celebs Attend a Chic SPRWMN Dinner at Chateau Marmont in L.A. Uncategorised
  • Critics praise Sally Rooney’s ‘utterly perfect’ Intermezzo Uncategorised
  • Zendaya Stuns in ‘Challengers’-Inspired Corset Gown at Los Angeles Premiere Uncategorised

Not so demure any more: The rise of ‘free the nipple’ fashion

Posted on 9 March 2025 By Admin No Comments on Not so demure any more: The rise of ‘free the nipple’ fashion
Charli XCX in her sheer dress holding a Brit Award in front of a Brits-branded backdrop
Charli XCX told viewers that ITV had complained about her outfit at the Brit Awards

Six months ago, a viral TikTok trend made us obsessed with being very demure and very mindful – but now, modesty has taken a back seat among celebrities who have made see-through outfits all the rage on red carpets and catwalks.

At the Brit Awards last week, big winner Charli XCX went full brat as she wore a sheer black dress, prompting hundreds of complaints to media watchdog Ofcom.

She used one of her acceptance speeches to address the controversy of her outfit. “I heard that ITV were complaining about my nipples,” she said. “I feel like we’re in the era of ‘free the nipple’ though, right?”

The nearly naked look has been a talking point at other award ceremonies – including last Sunday’s Oscars and the Grammys in February, when Kanye West’s girlfriend Bianca Censori dropped her coat on the red carpet to reveal an almost entirely invisible dress.

The love for transparent textiles has continued at London and Paris fashion weeks, with many of the celebrities watching on also getting the memo.

Side view of Paris Jackson walking and looking behind her in a sheer black dress
Paris Jackson’s translucent dress left little to the imagination at Paris Fashion Week

At Stella McCartney’s Paris show, US actress and Michael Jackson’s daughter Paris Jackson wore a translucent black off-the-shoulder maxi dress with only a nude-coloured thong underneath.

Rapper Ice Spice sported a black lace catsuit with a feathered coat at the show.

Naked dressing was a key trend in some designers’ spring/summer collections, and the theme has continued in autumn/winter looks too.

As Vogue wrote in January: “For a period of time, sheerness was few and far between, but nowadays, ‘naked dressing’ is commonplace every season.”

Dior’s latest collection embraced see-through material and presented it in an ethereal way, with intricate detailing and gender-fluid silhouettes.

Creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri described her collection as “demonstrating how clothing is a receptacle that affirms cultural, aesthetic and social codes”.

A model walks the runway during the Dior Ready to Wear Fall/Winter 2025-2026 fashion show as part of the Paris Fashion Week on March 4, 2025 in Paris, France
Dresses with intricate detailing and patterns on were a part of Dior’s Autumn/Winter collection

The trend divides opinion but is certainly part of a wider movement – last summer Charli XCX’s definition of being a brat included wearing “a strappy white top with no bra”.

Sheer dressing is a nod to the minimalist looks of the 1990s – think transparent blouses and Kate Moss wearing a thin slip dress – and with our love for nostalgia fashion, it’s no wonder it is taking off again.

The trend also had a resurgence a decade ago. The “free the nipple” movement was everywhere in the early 2010s, with Rihanna stirring up headlines with her sheer crystal-embellished dress at the CFDA awards in 2014.

Charli XCX’s Brits outfit was praised by some on social media. “Stop policing women’s bodies,” one person wrote, while another said she looked comfortable in her outfit so “why is society judging?”

But many found it too risque for prime-time TV. Ofcom received 825 complaints about the Brits ceremony, the majority relating to Charli’s outfit and Sabrina Carpenter’s eye-opening pre-watershed performance.

“Maybe think about putting this on at a time when kids ain’t gonna be watching,” one person wrote on social media.

‘Challenging fashion norms’

Fashion stylist and CEO of clothing brand Mermaid Way, Julia Pukhalskaia, calls the choice to wear revealing dresses a “provocative statement”, but says it’s a “way to reclaim the right to govern one’s body”.

The controversy around it feeds into a wider dialogue about women’s rights and double standards when it comes to dress codes, she adds.

Abhi Madan, creative director of fashion brand Amarra, believes the trend “is about embracing freedom and boldness in fashion”.

The idea of freeing the nipple “isn’t just about exposure – it’s a movement towards body positivity and challenging conventional fashion norms”, she argues.

“Designers are now integrating sheer elements not just for shock value but to create a refined and elegant silhouette that empowers wearers.”

 Rihanna attends the CFDA Awards at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center on June 2, 2014 in New York City.
In 2014, Rihanna wore a sheer dress embellished with diamonds at the CFDA Awards

It seems many Hollywood stars this year were feeling empowered as chiffon, lace and tulle were in plentiful supply at the Oscars.

Shock value is surely a factor for some, too, though.

At Vanity Fair’s Oscars afterparty, Julia Fox wore a mesh dress with only long wavy hair to cover some of her modesty.

There were other interpretations of the naked dress – Megan Thee Stallion wore a green dress with strategically placed foliage and nipple coverings, while Zoe Kravitz opted to cover up the front but expose the back as a beaded mesh panel revealed her buttocks in her Saint Laurent dress.

“This year, naked dressing seemed to particularly thrive at the event,” the New York Times noted.

However, not everyone is on board. The Times fashion director Anna Murphy wrote that she’s over the trend because “it’s only women who do this”.

“It is not an equal opportunities endeavour. It is, rather, a manifestation of the kind of thing that keeps this world unequal. That women’s bodies are for public consumption and men’s, usually, aren’t,” she wrote.

Some men have been embracing the nearly naked trend, though. In 2022, Timothée Chalamet wore striking a backless red top at Venice Film Festival, and at the 2023 Grammys Harry Styles freed the nipple in a plunge harlequin jumpsuit.

It’s the women who will continue to cause more of a stir on runways and red carpets – and society will still be split on whether it’s redefining conventional notions of modesty in fashion, a product of misogyny, or simply seeking attention.

Adblock test (Why?)

Uncategorised

Post navigation

Previous Post: Justyna Steczkowska: 10 Facts about Poland’s Eurovision 2025 singer
Next Post: Erika Vikman: 10 Facts about Finland’s Eurovision 2025 singer

Related Posts

  • Latin Grammys warm up: Benidorm Fest 2024 artists to be revealed ahead of awards show in Sevilla Uncategorised
  • Nicki Minaj fans fume as gig is axed after arrest Uncategorised
  • Taylor Swift Has a Stylish Night Out in NYC With Brittany Mahomes, Cara Delevingne After Attending Chiefs Game Uncategorised
  • Poll: Who is your favourite Nordic act of Eurovision 2025? Uncategorised
  • Claude Kiambe is The Netherlands’ Eurovision 2025 singer Uncategorised
  • “I surrender to the light” — Raiven showcases a woman’s strength and resilience in the “Veronika” lyrics Uncategorised

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

  • Glastonbury begins and Squid Game ends: What’s coming up this week
  • New music this week: Songs from BLANCO, Stefania, Princ and more
  • Kneecap performing at Glastonbury ‘not appropriate’, PM says
  • Dua Lipa brings out Jamiroquai at emotional Wembley debut
  • Social Media Star Tezza Barton Reveals the Exact Method She Uses to Take Perfect Photos

Recent Comments

No comments to show.

Archives

  • June 2025
  • May 2025
  • April 2025
  • March 2025
  • February 2025
  • January 2025
  • December 2024
  • November 2024
  • October 2024
  • September 2024
  • August 2024
  • July 2024
  • June 2024
  • May 2024
  • April 2024
  • March 2024
  • February 2024
  • January 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • October 2023
  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • March 2022

Categories

  • announcements
  • Events
  • Fashion
  • music
  • Persons
  • Uncategorised
  • Salman Rushdie: Losing an eye upsets me every day Uncategorised
  • Music that penetrates the soul: the premiere of "The Source of Hope" by SVOYA
    Music that penetrates the soul: the premiere of “The Source of Hope” by Marichka Bodnar SVOYA music music
  • DDEVA - "The Sea" (Hali REMIX): The best vibes of the 80s that conquer the charts
    DDEVA – “The Sea” (Hali REMIX): The best vibes of the 80s that conquer the charts Uncategorised
  • Inside the Co-op Live arena – was it worth the wait? Uncategorised
  • The Wanted’s Max George ‘wrote will from hospital’ Uncategorised
  • Beyoncé passes Jay-Z in all-time Grammy nominations Uncategorised
  • Sienna Miller condemns age gap ‘double standards’ Uncategorised
  • Neil Young reverses his Glastonbury ‘boycott’ Uncategorised

Copyright © Style Focus

Powered by PressBook News WordPress theme