Bright and early on January 28, Olandria Carthen RSVP'd "yes" to Robert Wun's Haute Couture Week show on Instagram Stories. The caption "see you there" appeared while she opened the regal invitation. Just a few hours later, Carthen kept her promise in Robert Wun's front row.
The Love Island star was the perfect addition to Robert Wun's celebrity guest list. Like the Hong Kong-born designer, Carthen actively seeks out avant-garde silhouettes. (See her Rahul Mishra gown at the Bridgerton Season 4 premiere, in all its corseted, bubble-hem glory.) It was about time the fellow maximalists met.
Wun loaned Carthen Look 11 from his Fall 2024 Couture show: a fiery, one-shoulder bodysuit covered in a crimson red, velvet-ish sheen. Curtain-inspired drapery cascaded across the pants' bell-bottom hems—a motif that returned atop her opera length gloves.
Carthen ensured every original element—including the glove-puncturing manicure—made it into her recreation. Then, the same 3D flower went from the model's shoulder to Carthen's. She even crowned her crisp black bob with an off-kilter wide-brimmed hat.
Though she looks every bit the veteran, Carthen only made her Haute Couture Week debut during the current Spring 2026 circuit. That's right, Jan. 26's Rahul Mishra show marked her first time in a couturier's front row, but it certainly won't be the last.
The Indian designer loaned Carthen and stylists Matthew and Reginald Reisman his Fall 2025 opening look: the boatneck "Heart of Gold" dress. Yellow gold flip sequins decorated the entire thigh-grazing mini, including the wave-like sculpture surrounding her head. Not every fashion girl could pull off vein-looking embroidery atop an anatomical structure, but for Carthen, it was just another Monday.
Carthen couldn't stay away from a couture front row for too long. Two days later, she rubbed elbows with Dakota Johnson, Lily Allen, Tyla, Kirsten Dunst, and Shay Mitchell at the Valentino preview.
The Reismans did another big one with a long-sleeve, '70s-inspired gown from the Resort 2026 look book. (You know you've made it when you source the same line as Dakota Johnson.) Mismatched prints in blue, mint green, and red stretched from the high neck, past the plunging chest cutout, and down to her fur-trimmed hem. The chocolate-colored shearling reappeared in scarf form atop her décolletage.
For further proof her fashion girl transformation is complete, see her Valentino Panthea Bag. Now, she's the proud owner of the same $3,800 top-handle tote in Bella Hadid, Rihanna, Jenna Ortega, and Anne Hathaway's closets. She's come a long way from the Love Island villa.
Love Island USA Season 7 slingshotted Carthen to star status, but she made the switch to style muse all on her own. Fingers crossed she plans to return to Paris during ready-to-wear runway shows. Fashion needs her right now.
