These Stylist-Designed Jeans Are Destined To Take Over Street Style

Molly Dickson based her new Madewell collection on her clients' best looks

By HALIE LESAVAGE - published 10 Aug 2023

Working hand-in-hand with designers on custom looks is one of stylist Molly Dickson's favorite parts of the job. Only celebrity stylists can know the special feeling of accomplishment that comes with dressing Sydney Sweeney in a tailor-made Miu Miu set or securing Katherine Langford a glittering bespoke Prada gown. At the same time, custom red carpet styling's baked-in limitations encouraged Dickson to try designing in a different format.

"Let's say they're going to a big award show," Dickson explained on a recent call. "We're collaborating with the designers at Prada, Oscar de La Renta, these high luxury brands, and those are amazing moments. But we have to make sure we're staying in that aesthetic with that designer."

To explore what her clients could wear without traditional house codes to consider—and to dress them for their everyday lives—Dickson has partnered with Madewell on a different kind of custom collection: a 12-piece denim capsule influenced by her celebrity styling work. Ranging from straight-leg jeans with a crossover waistband to an extra-baggy set of overalls, each piece was entirely conceptualised by the stylist and comes with Madewell's affordability and size range. All styles retail between $82 and $178, and will become available on August 11.

Speaking with Bazaar over Zoom, print-outs from fittings for past events hanging behind her, Dickson made it clear that this collaboration came with the attention afforded to a luxury atelier despite its focus on the most democratic fabric. She recalled texting ideas to the team at 2 A.M. Los Angeles-time—and belatedly realizing her thoughts were reaching the Madewell team in New York at five in the morning. Her 24/7 dedication to getting a cutout on one pair perfectly placed by a centimeter, or achieving the just-right level of rigidity in her jeans, was welcomed.

"When I first started working with them, I was a little scared that they were going to kind of reel me in and make it more like...their staple pieces," Dickson recalled. Instead, "Madewell gave me full creative control. They were like, take what you think is cool and go with it—which I appreciate so much, because stylists don't really ever get that much creative freedom."

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Photo: TOM NEAL

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Photo: TOM NEAL

Dickson used this liberty to make denim based on her clients' favorite fits. One extra-oversized pair of baggy jeans is directly inspired from an outfit Dickson pulled together on a whim for Sydney Sweeney after a fitting, using jeans that were two sizes above her usual and rolled at the waistband.

A straight-leg pair with hip cut-outs was inspired by Kelsey Ballerini, who Dickson says is a devotee of waist-accentuating denim. The client love goes all the way to the campaign, where Dickson models her designs alongside client Camila Mendes. (Mendes' preferred denim, according to the campaign: an oversized jacket and a micro miniskirt.)

Make no mistake: This collection is as infused with Dickson's personal style as her clients'. Denim is practically ingrained in her DNA. "I grew up on a farm in North Dakota so I was raised wearing denim," the stylist said. Working between Los Angeles and New York, she wears crop tops more than any other type of shirt—and often with baggy jeans—so a coordinating three-pack was essential to include.

Aesthetically speaking, the capsule is more trend-driven than Madewell capsules of the past. Still, Dickson had a design goal in common with the label's tried-and-true straight-leg pairs: "All you can really ask for in a good pair of jeans is one that you want to wear again." From the sound of it, her clients will have that exact reaction.

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