Vera Wang, 75, and Her Immortal Confidence Win the Week

Forget approachable; her style (and attitude) at a recent documentary screening screams “Don’t mess with me.”

She has always been the sparkly, girly ice princess, and she will always be the sparkly, girly ice princess; her look at the 2024 Met Gala said that’s that on that.

One elbow out and a little lean back? Ain’t broke, don’t fix. She is true to herself, pose and all.

There’s never been a reinvention. No “New Coke” of Vera Wang. The words that define her dresses—elegant, romantic, a hint of fairy tale—always have and always will. There is no heyday for the brand; a Vera Wang reference is never dated. Her work has evolved with the times but never deviated far from what we’ve come to expect, nor has what the Vera Wang gown represents in the popular imagination. The only thing that’s different, then, is that Wang herself is older. Maybe that’s why it’s what people tend to talk about.

“I’m confronted with a bit of a moment now where so much has been said about my aging. I just hope that it doesn’t supersede my work,” Wang told Elle a year ago. To be clear: It’s not anyone’s age that impresses us; in the case of Wang, it’s her perseverance. Her continual commitment to the styles she likes, even if they make her an outlier among her peer group.

Or, to just let the woman speak for herself: “I’m not an ageist—I remember mothers-of-the-bride saying they couldn’t possibly wear a sleeveless dress, or wear a tight dress. We’ve come so far and it’s not just about feminism, it’s really about freedom and creativity. Fashion should bring that to people’s lives,” she told Harper’s Bazaar. “You should be able to express yourself the way you want to. It’s your body, your life, and your world. That’s why I don’t think fashion is frivolous. It enables every single individual to express themselves—how great is that?”

Vera, it’s so great.