Rihanna Declares That Leopard Print Is Definitely Back
Leave it to Rihanna to make a bleach blonde ’do and clashing animal prints fashionable. Yesterday, the Bad Gal signaled that leopard print is decidedly back in style for a night out. No she wasn’t in Staten Island (rather Los Angeles), but this look was full on Mob Wife.
Rihanna kicked off her latest street style moment with a plunging leopard mini dress that featured a low-cut bustier and a teensy Y2K skirt. If that wasn’t enough leopard action, the mogul packed on more prints. She layered a custom Dolce & Gabbana leopard duster coat, designed with a tailing train and black fur trim, on top of her mini dress. Accessories were print-heavy also in the form of a limited-edition Louis Vuitton mini bag. The piece, which Rihanna clutched in her hand, arrived in a monogram fur fabric which appeared to imitate the look of, you guessed it: leopard print!
From there, Rihanna styled the rest of her look with megawatt diamond necklaces, Tom Ford aviator shades, and black stilettos that matched with sheer tights. Her honey blonde hair—which we’ve caught glimpses of over the past few weeks—was kept in tousled, messy waves. The perfect bombshell beauty accent to some equally as bombshell fashion.
Rihanna has been ramping up her street style appearances as of late in everything from archival runway grails to ladlylike pearls paired with manly exposed boxers. But there’s also been an unexpected through-line of bold animal prints—a throwback trend which has been picking up major steam amongst fashion’s in-crowd.
Earlier this month, Rihanna showed off even more leopard print. She paired this one, a plush coat from Bottega Veneta, with some edgy, high-impact pieces: tear-away pants, a vintage tee, some black stomper boots, and a pair of shield sunglasses. She’s even fashioned leopard outerwear into a statement plane look during an afternoon of travel back in January.
There’s no denying the impact that the Mob Wife trend has had on celebrity fashion. But, of all the signifiers of the style, it looks as though animal print is leading the way. Leopard, in specific, has been sported by a stylish bunch lately, everyone from Emily Ratajkowski to Chrissy Teigen. And now, with her latest night out moment, Rihanna is here to reiterate: leopard print is a neutral.
