Everything
A$AP Rocky and Rihanna were undoubtedly the heroes of the 2021 Met Gala red carpet. The couple arrived fashionably late – like, really late – in coordinating looks. The beauty mogul wore a puffer jacket-esque gown – Look Number 53 from Demna Gvasalia’s debut Balenciaga Couture collection – while the rapper wore a patchwork coat by Venice Beach-based designer ERL, Eli Russell Linnetz.
To be completely honest, it looked like Rocky threw a vintage quilt over an expensive tuxedo and called it a day. Well in fact, it really was a quilt in a former life.
Last week an Instagram user, known only as Sarah, published a photo of her great grandmother’s quilt noting that it was donated to charity years ago. While the patchwork cape was in fact from the label’s Spring 2022 collection, it appears the designer pulled direct inspiration from the thrift store find.
“So my great grandmothers quilt was donated to an antique/thrift store a while back,” the woman wrote on Instagram. “When I saw the Met Gala photo I realised instantly that it had to be the same quilt. I read the Vogue article about the designer finding the quilt in Southern California and with his office not that far from us in Venice California, I demanded that my mom go look for the photos of it on our old bed. Looks like great grandma Mary went to the Met Gala with A$AP Rocky and @erl__________.”
Sarah later clarified that she was not after money or credit for the cape and did not intend to accuse ERL of stealing. “I posted this because I found it amazing that something that my great grandmother made out of love for my mother, to be used to keep her warm, and was donated so that it might keep somebody else warm or sold to raise funds for a lovely charity, ended up being used for an amazing statement art piece by amazingly talented people who took it to the next level.”
She continued, “I have talked to the designer and the quilter @zakfoster.quilts who worked so hard on the pieces. They’re both lovely people.”
This is one of those perfect “life imitating art” kind of situations and we love it! Apparently A$AP Rocky and Rihanna didn’t plan their looks together which makes the whole situation that much more amazing.
“We weren’t even sure if we were going to go, so separately we were planning our looks just to be prepared,” Rihanna told E! News (per Complex). “We ended up getting ready together and going and I didn’t even realise we were on a carpet together until somebody said, ‘You’re making your debut,’ and I was like, ‘Oh, shit.’”
Rihanna also liked Sarah’s post.
