As Kristen Stewart transforms into style icon Princess Diana, a look at the actor's own fashion highs

Watch: Kristen Stewart transforms into Princess Diana in 1st Spencer Teaser

The first trailer for the upcoming Princess Diana biopic, Spencer, has dropped, making Kristen Stewart one of the most talked about actors of the moment.

On paper, the two women may not appear to have much in common but on the red carpet both have demonstrated their talent for dressing for themselves and not to appease others time and time again.

Diana was known for making trends rather than following them and Stewart's also been applauded for doing things her own way in the fashion arena, having mastered the art of blending couture with a nonchalant attitude for many years now.

Read more: Taylor Swift's TikTok Reformation dress may have sold out - but it's available in other colours

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 07: (EDITORS NOTE: Image has been digitally converted to black and white.) Kristen Stewart arrives at a special fan screening of 20th Century Fox's
Kristen Stewart has had something of a style evolution, pictured in January 07, 2020. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

While many A-listers stick rigidly to dress and high heels red carpet combo, Stewart has paired battered Converse with a designer dress a number of times. On at least one occasion, she's forgone shoes altogether.

While making her way to a screening of BlacKkKlansman at Cannes Film Festival in 2018, Stewart hit headlines when she kicked off her towering Louboutins before heading up the infamous carpeted steps barefoot.

But Stewart wasn't always so confident in her style choices. In fact, she's come a long way from her Twilight premiere days.

Read more: New M&S x Ghost collection has landed: Every single item

Panic Room premiere 2004.Kristen Stewart (Photo by Gregg DeGuire/WireImage)
Kristen Stewart shunned girly dresses and opted for all black for her red carpet debut at the Panic Room premiere in 2004. (Gregg DeGuire/WireImage) (WireImage)
WESTWOOD, CA - NOVEMBER 17:  Actress Kristen Stewart arrive at Summit Entertainment's
Her style has come a long way since her Twilight red carpet days, pictured in November 2008. (Lester Cohen/WireImage) (WireImage)

"Kristen Stewart been through very stages of experimentation, from very girly and chic with tailored jackets, long skirts and flat shoes during her teen years, to a more tomboyish and street style looks during the 2000’s Twilight’s era whilst simultaneously becoming the red carpet queen and often showcasing her love for Chanel who made her their muse in 2017," explains Karine Laudort, fashion commentator.

She has had to earn her sartorial credentials on the job, however. While most of us experimented with new fashion looks behind closed doors, often with questionable results, Stewart has developed her own sense of style on the world stage.

"Kristen is a new generation of fashionista, a style-chameleon who has literally developed her personal style in front of a global audience, having lived in the spotlight from an early age," explains TV & Celebrity Fashion Expert Miranda Holder.

Watch: The Twilight cast then and now.

Holder says Stewarts refusal to conform began even in her early red carpet days when she opted for chic black monotone over girly frills for a film premiere at the age of 12.

"Through her teens she opted for pieces that wouldn’t overpower her petite frame, pale denim, mini dresses and well-cut blazers that fell somewhere between a mod with a hint of punk and a side-order of nineties girl band," Holder adds.

TOPSHOT - US actress and member of the Feature Film Jury Kristen Stewart removes her shoes on the red carpet as she arrives on May 14, 2018 for the screening of the film
Stewart famously kicked off her heels on the red carpet at Cannes in 2018. (Getty Images) (AFP via Getty Images)

Nowadays the actor counts top designers as friends and is often spotted scouring her next look on the F-row, with her favourite labels including Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Balenciaga, but that doesn't mean she has abandoned her edgier side.

"Kristen is a sartorial trailblazer for the new-age, her irreverence for the rule book made her a natural choice for Karl Largerfeld as she became his muse and brought the design house straight back into relevance combining her trademark uber-cool with a splash of Parisian glamour," Holder adds.

Read more: Elizabeth Hurley swears by this anti-ageing skincare product

UNIVERSAL CITY, CA - MAY 31:  Actress Kristen Stewart arrives at the 2009 MTV Movie Awards Arrivals at the Gibson Amphitheatre on May 31, 2009 in Universal City, California.  (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic)
Stewart loves pairing battered trainers with a couture dress, pictured in 2009. (Getty Images) (FilmMagic)
CANNES, FRANCE - MAY 17:  Kristen Stewart departs from the 'Personal Shopper' premiere during the 69th annual Cannes Film Festival at the Palais des Festivals on May 17, 2016 in Cannes, France.  (Photo by George Pimentel/WireImage)
Wearing Chanel and converse in Cannes in 2016. (George Pimentel/WireImage) (WireImage)

But perhaps the most notable aspect of Kristen's style-over is the way she has grown more confident with her style choices.

One thing with Stewart is that she will do as she pleases and enjoy exploring fashion with no bounds," explains Laudort.

"In 2016, at Cannes Festival, she famously wore a Chanel couture gown with completely battered Converse sneakers on the red carpet. In 2018, during the same festival, she took her Christian Louboutin’s heels off and walked barefoot, simply because her feet were hurting (as she later revealed in an InStyle interview).

"Over the years, Stewart mastered the art of high and low fashion (i.e: wearing couture with sneakers) but ultimately to always wear what she feels the comfortable in, at any given time, and only adhere to her own dress code," she adds.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 11: Kristen Stewart attends the Premiere of Columbia Pictures'
Stewart does her version of edgy glam in November 2019. (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic) (FilmMagic)
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 08: Kristen Stewart attends the 33rd American Cinematheque Award Presentation Honoring Charlize Theron and The 5th Annual Sid Grauman Award Presented by Hill Valley to Adam Aron on behalf of AMC Theatres at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on November 08, 2019 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for American Cinematheque)
The actor loves a boxy suit, pictured in November 2019. (Getty Images) (Getty Images for American Cinema)

Holder believes Stewart is something of a shining example of dressing for no-one other than herself.

"She has demonstrated a rainbow of different hair colours, striking makeup and looks fabulous in a myriad of different outfits from full-on androgyny to taffeta ballgowns and everything in-between," she says.

"We love her for bringing trainers to the red carpet and removing her heels at Cannes. Kirsten reminds us that if you feel good, you look good, no matter what is expected.

"Fashion is an art form and she beautifully expresses her creativity through her clothes and inspires us to do the same.

"The world needs more role-models like Kirsten!"

Advertisement