Crazy Ex-Girlfriend star Rachel Bloom made a stunning appearance on the red carpet at this year’s Primetime Emmys, however unlike many of the stars attending the event, the 30-year-old wasn’t wearing a loaned designer gown.
In fact, the TV star revealed that she was forced to buy her plunging $3,500 Gucci gown, because the pricey label wouldn’t lend to someone of her size.
‘I bought this dress because Gucci is not lending me a dress,’ she admitted to E! during a red carpet interview.
Making a statement: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend star Rachel Bloom revealed on the Emmys red carpet that she had to buy her $3,500 Gucci dress because the brand wouldn’t lend to her
Controversial: The 30-year-old has previously admitted that she struggles to find brands to lend clothing to her because she is not a size zero or a size two – typical sample sizes
However, far from moaning about her rather pricey purchase, Rachel was full of praise for the beautiful black dress, which she joked she may one day ‘resell’.
‘I love it [and] I can resell it,’ she noted. ‘I said in an interview before it is hard to get places to lend to me because I’m not a size zero, but also I can afford it, so it’s OK.
‘We’re all playing dress up [and] this is the best dress up. I fee like a pretty, pretty princess.’
But although she is a big fan of the beautiful black gown, which featured a lacy bodice, ribbon tie at the waist, and a long black skirt, she knows she probably won’t have cause to wear it again, and therefore may well offer it up online for another eager fashion fan to buy.
‘I do have an account on The Real Real [a consignment website],’ she explained, before adding: ‘My writing partner sells all of her clothes there.
‘Take a look on The Real Real for this dress tomorrow.’
Perfect fit: Despite Gucci refusing to lend to Rachel, it’s clear that the brand does make dresses in her size, and her black Emmys dress clung to her body perfectly
Natural beauty: The actress looked stunning as she made her way down the red carpet, pausing to laugh and smile at the cameras
It is not the first time that Rachel has spoken out about the unfair practice of fashion labels lending gowns only to stars of certain sizes.
It’s no secret that most stars don’t buy the designer dresses they wear to award shows and movie premieres, but are rather lent them by the design houses for the day. However, according to Rachel that sweet deal is almost exclusively available to celebrities who can squeeze into a tiny sample size.
And since she doesn’t wear a size zero, or even a size 2, that means she is often left pulling from her own bank account to dress for big events — and, as she told Wealthsimple, that can mean spending up to $3,000 to go to an event, or in the case of the Emmys, a whopping $3,500.
While Rachel didn’t reveal what size she wears, she did note that her figure is more ‘normal’ than supermodel.
‘What also has become apparent when I have to get clothes for these events is that I have a normal body,’ she said.
Unfortunately, the big design houses sew sample sizes meant to fit stick-thin models, and aren’t always accommodating when it comes to lending out pieces to anyone who can’t wear those samples.
Pricey: Earlier this year, Rachel spoke out about having to buy outfits for red carpet appearances because she is not a typical sample size
Yikes: The Crazy Ex-Girlfriend star said that fashion houses are often reluctant to lend out dresses bigger than a size two
‘A lot of fashion houses are reluctant to lend clothes that aren’t in the sample sizes of 0 and 2, so it’s getting harder and harder for me to find clothes without buying them,’ she said. ‘That’s the whole problem with the fashion industry: My body size is literally normal and healthy, but when you put me next to a model, I look obese.’
Since her options are so limited, Rachel — who won the 2016 Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Television Series Musical or Comedy — has resorted to following the masses and buying her dresses off the rack.
‘I have occasionally bought designer dresses and designer shoes,’ she went on.
‘Your typical nice designer dresses, at least the kind of stuff that I wear for events, can range from $500 to $3,000, and you want to wear a different outfit for every event because it’s a whole red carpet thing. It’s a lot of dresses.’
That isn’t to say she is complaining, even if her plight might seem unfair. ‘I guess it’s all part of the job. I guess if everything changes, I can always resell them,’ she added.
She’s not exactly hurting for cash these days — her show has been picked up for a third season — but she’s not making Emma Stone money, either. In fact, she revealed she makes about $50,000 to $60,000 per episode — or 650,000 to 780,000 for season two.
Comfortable: Rachel makes about $50,000 to $60,000 per episode of her show
Fancy: She was lucky enough to have a dress custom-made for her at the 2016 Golden Globes
For comparison, Kaley Cuoco is estimated to have made 1 million per episode of the Big Bang Theory in 2016, Sofia Vergara and Julie Bowen each took home $250,000 per episode of Modern Family, and Kristen Bell earned $125,000 per episode of The Good Place.
And even though she buys some of her dresses, she doesn’t have to head to the shops to try them on if she doesn’t want to. Rachel has a stylist, Annabelle Harron, who’ll pull things for her to wear.
‘I like to defer to smarter people who are experts in their field to give me stuff to put on,’ she told People in December.
Sometimes, too, she does get lucky. At BAFTA’s pre-Golden Globes tea last year, the actress wore a custom Black Halo dress, which she layered up with Spanx.
‘Here’s the thing: I’m wearing a corset and two pairs of Spanx over it under my dress,’ she told Elle at the time.
‘Because the Spanx cover up the lumps of the corset. That’s what busty girls have to do! I basically look like a pirate wench in my undergarments. But my dress was designed for me, which was so amazing.
Wow! Hayden Panettiere spent $10,000 on this Tom Ford dress when the exclusive designer chose another star to dress for the event
Bryce Dallas Howard has bought several dresses for events, including a Jenny Packham number at the 2016 Golden Globes and a Topshop maxi at the 2016 Critics’ Choice Awards
‘Curvier ladies can’t just throw on the runway look,’ she added. ‘It just isn’t made for boobies and butts and stuff like that.’
At the Golden Globes that same year, she wore a custom dress by Christian Siriano — one of only a few designers known for creating custom gowns for stars with curves (or a dress size above a two).
Rachel isn’t the first star to buy her own clothes for the red carpet. In 2014, Hayden Panettiere dropped a whopping $10,000 on a Tom Ford dress for the Golden Globes, explaining to interviewers that the designer will only lend a dress to one star per awards show — and she was dying for one of his designs.
Others have purchased gowns for size reasons like Rachel. Kelly Ripa revealed in 2014 that she bought the Roland Mouret dress she wore to the Oscars because the gowns designers lend out can’t be tailored — and the petite star likely wanted to shorten it.
Bryce Dallas Howard has also been known to buy her own dresses — including a Jenny Packham number at the 2016 Golden Globes and a Topshop maxi at the 2016 Critics’ Choice Awards.
Melissa McCarthy, Ashley Graham, Octavia Spencer, and several other celebrities have spoken out about similar issues.