Alon Livne’s original design sketches.
Beyonce opened her Mrs. Carter Show World Tour in Belgrade wearing her raciest costume yet –– a bodysuit by The Blonds celebrating the female form. “Our original inspiration came from Tamara de Lempicka’s paintings of the female body. It is also meant to give the illusion of being covered in crystallized honey,” describes Phillipe Blond. “To start, Phillipe hand-painted the suit on Beyonce to achieve the correct shading. Then the piece was hand embroidered with approximately 30,000 Swarovski crystals that took over 600 hours to apply,” explained the other half of the design duo, David Blond.
Designer David Koma brought the french horn to life when he designed this gold and black silk printed bodice inspired by the musical instrument. Playing up her curves, the designer added a slick laser-cut patent peplum for a sexier flair.
David Koma’s original design sketches.
When we asked Vrettos Vrettakos to describe his costume designed for Beyoncé in three words, “All that glam!” is what he told ESSENCE.com. Live from Croatia, the diva hit the stage in his unforgettable cobalt blue catsuit adorned with Swarovski Elements while swooning the crowd with “Love on Top.”
While Vrettakos’ “Studio 54 glam” designs were the talk of the Twitterverse, he told us what really stuck with him while working with Queen Bey: “The most important experience for me was that the biggest artists of the planet can be the most humble characters with politeness and professionalism.”
The original Vrettos Vrettakos sketches.
Leave it to the Italians to design a full leather get-up for Bey from hat to heels. Designer Peter Dundas crafted a Nappa leather double breasted jacket with peak lapels, accessorized with a large brimmed felt hat and black stretch leather boots inspired by a “rock goddess” theme.
Emilio Pucci designer Peter Dundas’ original sketches.
Emilio Pucci designer Peter Dundas’ original sketches.
In the Netherlands, Queen Bey serves drama in a cat woman inspired look designed by Givenchy’s Riccardo Tisci. Her Kitty cap and bedazzled cape were complete with Stuart Weitzman military booties.
Givenchy’s original design sketches.
A close-up of Stuart Weitzman’s ankle booties paired with the Givenchy costume. The designer has customized footwear for Beyoncé’s past two tours, The Beyoncé Experience and I Am…Tour as well as other special performances.
“Creating footwear for Beyoncé’s shows has been one of my most inspiring projects. She and her entire team know exactly what they need, always focusing on the fashion and the function of the styles that will be worn,” said designer Stuart Weitzman.
“He [Stuart Weitzman] understands not only our needs artistically, but Beyoncé’s needs to perform comfortably on stage with each step she takes,” says Beyoncé’s stylist Ty Hunter.
The singer performed “Halo” in this virgin white, beaded beauty by designer’s Ralph & Russo. Military epaulets and a peplum gave this sweet look a little spice.
Ralph & Russo’s original design sketches.
The design duo created a second nude number for Mrs. Carter, that wouldn’t be complete without Swarovski crystals covering her most important parts.
Ralph & Russo’s original design sketches.
