Claire Danes Puts an Elevated Twist on the Classic T-Shirt Dress in Custom GapStudio at the 2026 Golden Globes

The 2026 awards season is officially here, and with it, red carpet style is in full swing. Last night, the Golden Globes kicked off the major circuit, setting the tone for what we can expect on this year’s biggest carpets. Many guests kept things classic and refined, opting for demure silhouettes and easygoing suits. Claire Danes-who was nominated for Best Female Actor in a Limited/Anthology Series or TV Movie for The Beast in Me -embodied this laissez-faire approach, stepping out in a custom GapStudio dress designed by Gap Inc.’s executive vice president and creative director, Zac Posen . The partnership was an incredibly natural one. The two are more than industry collaborators; they’re lifelong friends who met growing up in New York City in the ’90s. They possess the kind of star power-filled working relationship that has often provided some of the red carpet’s most iconic looks -lest we forget their iconic collaboration for the 2016 Met Gala, themed “Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology,” where Danes walked the carpet in an LED-illuminated Cinderella gown. Last night’s design was no exception. The dress nodded to one of the most archetypal American sportswear silhouettes: the classic white pocket T-shirt, elevated and transformed with paillettes and sequins. Posen was drawn to a kind of American classicism-one that stepped away from Old Hollywood references and archival pulls or references to usher in a new attitude to awards-season fashion. “There is something inherently confident about that kind of casual, effortless American ease,” Posen tells ELLE. “The result is a piece that feels personal and powerful at the same time, a silhouette that skims the body, elongates the frame, and moves with quiet sensuality without ever feeling forced or over-designed.” Below, Posen gives an inside look at the design process for his take on the iconic T-shirt dress. What was the inspiration behind this look? This gown began with a very simple idea: taking an everyday American wardrobe essential, the Gap white pocket T-shirt, and translating it through a couture lens. I was interested in presenting something familiar in a new, elevated context. We asked ourselves, what happens if you elongate a classic Gap pocket T-shirt into a gown? What was the design process like? The process started by studying the original white pocket T-shirt, its proportions, its lines, and what makes it such a universal staple. I first draped the gown at the beginning of November, using that initial form to guide the balance and proportions of the final silhouette. From there, it became an exercise in precision tailoring. The front maintains the clarity and restraint of a perfect T-shirt, while the back introduces a low scoop that adds an unexpected sense of glamour and sex appeal. We then layered in craftsmanship through all-over hand embroidery, an intricate white sequin paillette and bugle-beaded treatment that adds texture and depth while preserving the purity of the original tee. It is light-catching but restrained. The goal was never excess, just elevation. How long...

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