In the show Scream Queens, The Chanels are the beautiful, wealthy, popular, and stylish clique of vainglorious girls belonging to the most sought-after sorority Kappa Kappa Tau at Wallace University. The main three members of the posse are the queen- Chanel Oberlin, Sadie Swenson or Chanel #3, and Libby Putney aka Chanel #5. With the identically named group labeled after the most admired high fashion house, they were to be dressed dripping in designer clothes while indulging in furs, diamonds, and pearls. The Chanels are both daring and bold while remaining soft and stylish, never risque but also pushing the limits of style past the 9s. The cohesive and glamorous style of the Chanels is one that has grown to be iconic and visually captivating on-screen with a great impact off.
Their distinctive and harmonious style is one that though unified, has a great range from the classic feminine with references to Marlin Monroe with Chanel #5 to the boundary-pushing and experimental with Chanel #3.
The aesthetic of the Chanels from a costume design standpoint was beyond simply tangibly capturing each character but became a sort of character in and of itself- serving the purpose of remaining prominent no matter where the moment would lead in the narrative of Scream Queens. With designer camp moments and a defined aesthetic, Scream Queens is the epitome of heightened style in designer camp moments to on-trend and elevated beyond-reality ensembles that were meant to encompass the Chanels’ spirit as a group while retaining individuality.
The costume designer explained, “These girls would watch what’s going on on Style.com. They’re up on what’s happening on the runways and then they emulate it. So I went on Style.com a lot and just really researched what’s happening in the fashion world right now — especially for the fall. Then because Ryan [Murphy] wanted everything pastel, we had to do our own interpretation.”
While many designer looks are showcased such as Christian Siriano Fall 2015, Georges Hobeika – FW 2015 Collection, and Dsquared2 for example, the main two high fashion houses that breathed life into the look of the Chanels are of course Chanel, which I have a whole video on if you’re interested in this fashion house and the work of Karl Lagerfeld,
IS IT TRUE KARL LAGERFELD IS YOUR UNCLE AND THAT HE RESTOCKS THIS CLOSET EVERY YEAR?
WELL, HE’S NOT REALLY MY UNCLE. I JUST CALL HIM UNCLE KARL BECAUSE HE IS SO CLOSE TO MY PARENTS. UNCLE KARL COMES HERE EVERY FALL WITH TRUNKS FULL OF CLOTHES FOR ME TO TRY ON.
as well as Moschino, specifically under the eye of Jeremy Scott. Costume Designer Lou Eyrich and creator Ryan Murphy agreed to give the girls a candy-colored look, especially in the image of pastel-sugared macarons. Jeremy Scott’s design approach suited this perfectly as in the words of Vogue, “If fashion were a candy store, Jeremy Scott would be the wide-eyed, gape-mouthed kid standing smack-dab in the middle of it.”
Moschino’s motto and mission as a brand is, “playing and having fun while staying on the ground” The innovative, outlandish, and eye-catching range of hues applied for the “youthful twist in combination with the fashion house of Chanel’s elegance, traditional, and prestige as the mission statement is to e the Ultimate House of Luxury, defining style and creating desire, now and forever.” produces the overall span and visual codes that the girl posse dresses by. For example, in the opening scene of the show, the girls are all sporting mini tweed sets with signature accessories to finish off the looks such as pearls or gloves- setting the tone for the rest of the show.
Key pieces of the Chanels style are hats, copious amounts of jewelry, high knee socks, heels, furs, or feathers executed within the delicate sweet color palette. To unify the ground, the costume designer made use of accents such as rhinestones on earmuffs for instance to be not only eye-catching through overall silhouette, statement pieces, or total ensembles but also in the finer unpredictable details that added more depth to each member of the Chanels.
The Chanels are a girl posse, in media and culture this refers to a group of girls who are conventionally attractive, well-dressed, and often ill-natured with a sugar-coated surface- often in the image of their leader with an individualized accent that will serve as a visual identifier.
Uniquely, this posse, while fluctuating often in members, is defined under the same name. New members are often renamed with a number added on in reference to CHANEL N°5 Eau de Parfum and give a descriptive variable to each member without ever giving them a full standout label. Each Chanel dresses in the aesthetic modeled after Chanel Oberlin’s personal style. By dressing in the image of another, in this specific case in the image of Chanel Oberlin, the group visually garners and projects her traits through enclothed cognition.
I MEAN WHY ELSE WOULD WE ALL JOIN A SORORITY IN THE FIRST PLACE? MY SENSE OF PERSONAL IDENTITY IS COMPLETELY EXTERNAL. IF I DIDN’T HAVE KAPPA TO DEFINE ME- I REALLY DON’T HAVE MUCH TO OFFER. I FIND MY PARTICULAR STYLE OF SPEAKING AND GESTICULATION IS TRULY OFF-PUTTING TO MOST BOYS AND GIRLS AND ANYONE, BUT WITH KAPPA AS MY CALLING CARD EVERYONE SEEMS TO OVERLOOK THAT. I JOINED FOR WHATEVER REASON YOU JOINED CHANEL.
One’s self-perception and behavior evolve with the clothing they wear to the point where thinking, behaviors, and mannerisms alter. This in combination with the group-think creates the dynamic of the Chanels.
In this specific case, the Chanels fall into the phenomena of Inexplicably Identical Individuals – the way they style their hair, apply accessories, carry themselves, walk, and even eat are the same. Their decision-making, lifestyles, and appearances are formed by the shared group-think. By definition, this is a psychological phenomenon where a group of people shares a deep desire for conformity or harmony within a group that results often in irrational or even dysfunctional decision-making.
NOW, IF YOU’LL FOLLOW ME I WOULD LIKE TO IMPLEMENT PHASE TWO. RIGHT? RIGHT. YEAH, OKAY I GUESS.
Within groupthink, there is a loss of boundaries to individualism, uniqueness, and independent thinking. This in combination with enclothed cognition creates the hierarchy and dynamics of the Chanels as they are channeling the look, belief systems, and status of their ruthless, beautiful, fashionable leader.
The costume designer states, “Chanel #1 is the queen, so we used feathers, fur, pearls, and big heels—always a notch above, costume-wise.” Chanel Oberlin’s style is the most luxurious, elevated, and authoritative. She also sets the tone for the dress of the rest of the Chanels while always remaining a step above and ahead. Her quintessential style is more refined with a glam, girly undertone that heightens the feminine and maturity of her looks through the contrast of essences that give her a softness while allowing her to remain sharp.
This is her armor as an insecure individual, her clothing displays the traits she deems acceptable to the world. The dainty coloring tones down the exaggerated pieces while strengthening the classic and strong motifs. The contrasting features between print play and mixing textures or fabrics to an extreme form her visual dominance that allows her to stand out as a leader amongst a group who look up to her. Even in more toned down and sophisticated ensembles, she makes a statement through pieces that capture a luxury and traditional tone with detailing of interests that differ greatly from how a piece is normally worn
Her clothing is always bright, and buoyant, and often has silhouettes that take up a lot of space around her. The coat, mini skirt, blouse, sunglasses, and jewelry are Chanel’s staple silhouettes.
This actually establishes dominance as when someone makes their body bigger and higher than others- they are sending superiority signals. Going back to our prehistoric roots, a common and critical way to show dominance is to appear large and powerful whether it be through body language or clothing/adornment.
Another staple look of Chanel is the feather dress with high embellishments. For instance, she sports the Christian Siriano – Spring 2014 feather dress that with movement catches the air and constantly moves outward- creating a larger silhouette with every movement. The base of the dress is an eye-catching fabric that makes the feathers more delicate in juxtaposition. With this, a blush Patent-leather bow and gold Chain Belt by RED Valentino is worn to bring in the waist, along with pearl jewelry and heels. This visually conveys how Chanel feels that she is powerful enough to do whatever she would like and her need to feel superior at all times- that she needs others below her in order to feel secure. Her group constantly fulfills this need.
Chanel #3 has the most camp and experimental looks. She leans more into the playful aspect of the channel aesthetic but takes risks while remaining in the group’s codes of dress. For example, during rush Chanel 1 and 5 are sporting Christian Siriano, but she opts for a New India Dress by Elizabeth and James, a Pink Leather Belt with Crystal Interlocking G Buckle by Gucci, and finishes off the look with her signatures such as ear muffs and jewelry. This hints at how she is the most sensible out of the group, as she cares for #2’s passing stating she was her friend, supports 5 when picked on, and will go behind Chanels back to form her own relationships. She pushes the limit of the color palette often with her love of prints and textures, which are played up through the application, for instance, her embellished mini dress paired with the Princeton boc jacket by Alice and Olivia.
Coming from a similar background #3 naturally has shared traits with Oberlin, but is much more comfortable in herself to the point where she often does not care to exert energy into proving herself in any manner. Her intellect is often masked in the eyes of others by her deadpan humor and sarcastic eye-rolls, but she herself has a quiet confidence and feels at peace with herself. Her looks have more personality than the other Chanels, but she desires to belong- in parallel to Oberlin her home life was not nurturing. She filters herself through the Chanel lens and though on the surface to the eye she does not care since she is not constantly acting or speaking in a manner deemed acceptable for a woman, she is very passionate and enjoys sisterhood.
Chanel #5 opts for more classic looks, pin-up, and Monroe-inspired accents. She is a conservative and sensitive girl. She often worries and clings to conformity to garner acceptance. Unlike the other girls, she sports very similar silhouettes at all times and does not often experiment or refashion her ensembles. Her base foundation look is a tight top beneath a jacket, fur coat or shaw, pencil skirt, and heels then finishes off with jewelry and a headband or cap. She goes for the exemplary look of the fashion house to the traditional root with the black and white motif in a Torn Chiffon Crystal Blazer over a ruffled collar blouse adorned with a bow at the neck along with a lightly patterned pencil skirt and heels.
This sets the foundation of how she upholds and longs for tradition, consistency, and an affinity for connection. The duality of Chanel 5’s style is her love for classics that are timeless in nature and trendier pieces. Subconsciously, those who opt for trends that do not truly align with them allow for the wearer to integrate into different situations, embody specific traits, appear comfortable or even allow the wearer to experience comfort through visual alignment.
Chanel #5 sported many trends of this time such as tees with graphic sayings or animal ears, conveying how she prefers to fit in overthinking for herself. She takes direct style cues from Oberlin, for instance wearing Christian Siriano – Resort 2015 while Chanel is in the Spring 2014 collection or also sporting fingerless gloves- Oberlin’s signature.
The Chanels overall continuously make a statement through their style and capture their one-of-a-kind group aura. The coordination of the iconic trio displays the power they hold and their place in the world together. Ever since airing in 2015, Scream Queens has made a statement on screen and off- inspiring the style or even purely the act of dressing up no matter the occasion That dominated autumn and winter fashion despite the untraditional color palette and styling. With the posse named after the most looked to the fashion house, the Chanels lived up to the legacy through their looks and impact within Scream Queens where the outfits were just as thrilling as the story.
SOURCES: Costume Designer Interview- https://fashionista.com/2015/09/screa… 10 Questions with SCREAM QUEENS Costume Designer Lou Eyrich- https://www.whowhatwear.com/scream-qu… Scream Queens and Style .com- https://fashionista.com/2015/09/screa… Scream Queens Bios/Timelines- https://scream-queens.fandom.com/wiki… TV Tropes- https://tvtropes.org/ Chanels Style- https://www.eonline.com/photos/17280/… Enclothed Cognition- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science… Mission statement – http://www.valleymagazinepsu.com/the-….
