The Queen’s Gambit in outfits

Did I take last week Patricia Field on my shoulders for a strong example of styling for Emily in Paris (because even the faux pas had a purpose), today I would like to beg for a statue for Gabriele Binder, the stylist of The Queen’s Gambit.

First of all, a bit about The Queen’s Gambit. It is a fresh pearl from Netflix, a filmed miniseries based on the book of the same name by Walter Tevis from 1983. Beth (Elizabeth Harmon) is an eight-year-old orphan who finds warmth in the orphanage with her roommate Jolene and with the concierge who secretly teaches her to play chess in the basement because girls don’t play chess. Beth turns out to be a wonder and chess is a world of 64 squares where she does have control over what happens. Beth makes an enormous coming-of-age journey through an adoption, a strong swallow and a slurp need, a number of lovers, and above all, a lot of victories. A great role is also reserved for Benny Watts, played by Thomas Brodie-Sangster, whom we all know as the little, lovesick drummer boy Sam from Love Actually. Little boys grow up and get mustaches.

But aside from the great direction, the music, and the dialogues, everyone is in love with Beth's looks. The cautious transition she undergoes from the boarding school costumes to the final Prada meets Pierre Cardin seeks Balenciaga and finds Tom Ford-kind or femininity is truly unprecedented.

Inspiration for stylist Gabriele Binder was Edie Sedgwick, the London it-girl, model and actress who suffered from anorexia nervosa and ultimately, probably by suicide, died at the age of 28.

Binder sought geometric patterns in fabrics without it becoming dull and too easy. You often see a subtle reference to the chessboard, but in no way is it comparable to Emily in Paris's Eiffel Tower blouse. Class and subtlety take precedence.

It is sixties, elegant, and feminine without being sexy. Applause also for her and makeup (especially for the low eyeliner that literally underscores Beth's junkie state) and the won-der-ful hair.

Good news is: the costumes can be seen in a virtual exhibition at the Brooklyn Museum.

The bad news (don’t blame the messenger): the outfits are all specially made for the series or dug up from an old archive and therefore not for sale.

A bit more good news: if you go to that exhibition (by here clicking, that’s the advantage of corona) you will see both an exhibition of the outfits from The Queen’s Gambit and from The Crown. Something with two flies. And win-win.

Image: Netflix