I should have known Jodie Turner-Smith would push the fashion envelope for the Glenn Martens x H&M collab launch party. Every time I've seen her at an event, she's defied expectations. She makes a neon orange Jean Paul Gaultier bodysuit with oblong padded cups look as easy to wear as a trench coat. At the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, her vintage Georges Chakra dress embodied the evening's sensual dress code without a hint of actual lingerie—just archival lace and boho flared sleeves. Her Tron: Ares press tour has been a feat of on-theme pulls, from off-the-runway Lanvin and Sportmax to custom Burberry.
And still, I did a triple-take at Turner-Smith's double denim outfit for her stop by the October 22 H&M red carpet.
Every guest attending the Glenn Martens x H&M event at London's Skinner Hall, a seventeenth century guild house refabbed as a house party space, had twisted, pulled, and stacked selects from the 56-piece collection. Martens built the line around hero silhouettes from his tenures at Y/Project and Diesel, from intentionally crinkly bomber jackets to tank tops that appear to levitate with partially clear straps. They're pieces that are supposed to incite a reaction along the lines of, "What is that?" Turner's denim-on-denim combination earned a slightly different response from an editor I stood by: "I need that."
As she walked to the step-and-repeat, I could see the spaghetti straps and acid-washed denim of the Glenn Martens x H&M jean dress: a piece that would look right at home in an early-2000s Britney Spears music video. It fit tight to her torso before two parallel front slits split the skirt into thirds. Then she stepped up in front of the cameras, revealing the second half of her double denim outfit.
Calling her footwear "thigh-high boots" feels like an understatement. The shafts of her boots were three times wider than her legs, jutting out from beneath her dress like wings. Adjustable rods within the sides allowed her to artfully scrunch the lower portion just over her heels.
Stopping by where I stood with other fashion editors, Turner-Smith playfully kicked out her legs, showing off her hip-high boots exaggerated proportions. Sure, this take on double denim is more adventurous than the average Canadian tuxedo. But Jodie-Turner Smith made wearing it look easy—and like a lot of fun.
Glenn Martens x H&M arrives in stores and online October 30.
