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Amal Clooney is a barrister by day and a party girl by night. The human rights lawyer, with an impeccable work wardrobe of Chanel bouclé skirt suits and Burberry macs, frequently swaps her MaxMara neutrals for sequins come evening, when she lends her signature polish to Studio 54 glamour.
This is the woman who wore a gold chainmail draped minidress to George Clooney’s Casamigos tequila launch at Ushuaïa in Ibiza circa 2015—some seven years before the liquid metallic trend took off again thanks to Y2K-leaning brands, such as Poster Girl and Fannie Schiavoni. Clooney, it must be known, was doing cowl necklines and slinky cuts way before the Blumarine revival sparked the millennium bug.
Two years later, at another Casamigos promo event, Amal channelled her inner disco diva in a strapless multi-colored sequin dress, huge tinted sunglasses and J Lo-worthy gold hoops.
When it comes to occasionwear, she does not do things by halves.
There have, of course, been nights without the influence of tequila, when Amal has acted as the supporting wife of the Hollywood movie star on the red carpet. For these high-profile moments surrounded by the upper echelons of Hollywood, Clooney looks to the masters of sparkly eveningwear.
She’s a sucker for frou-frou aficionado Giambattista Valli, old-school couturier Ralph Russo, and the bodycon sensibilities of Sergio Hudson.
But she also has her eye on emerging talent. For her hosting gig at the Met Gala 2018, she used her platform to shine a spotlight on London’s rising star and bondage lover Richard Quinn, and she has since commissioned a couple of paillette-studded, feather-laden looks by 16Arlington.
Cut to this summer, and Clooney wore her most daring dress to date in Lake Como. The short slip, peppered with the same mermaid-esque sequins we have seen her shine in before, proves that you can still wear a glittery minidress to dinner whatever your age.
Amal’s secret to making sure her partywear sits on the right side of chic and shimmering? Her confident smile, which looks the same now, at 44, as it did when she emerged on the scene as the mysterious, fiercely intelligent lawyer love interest of George in the early 2010s. Amal Clooney works hard, and she plays harder—with her wardrobe, at least.