How did CBK bag JFK jr?

[Anonymous]

Old money dudes always marry women with this look. Tall, slim, kind of horsey looking (not saying that in a mean way -CBK was prettier than I am - just don’t know how else to describe the look), elegant/classic style.

They don’t marry the hot bombshells (that’s who they cheat with).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Old money dudes always marry women with this look. Tall, slim, kind of horsey looking (not saying that in a mean way -CBK was prettier than I am - just don’t know how else to describe the look), elegant/classic style.

They don’t marry the hot bombshells (that’s who they cheat with).

Counterpoint, new-ish money marries the hot bombshell. See Jeff Bezos.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Thoughts:
- CBK is not technically beautiful if we look at nose dimensions, etc. But she has a certain presence and style that is dynamic.
- She was completely unprepared for the marriage in terms of lack of privacy and Kennedy family dynamics.
- Her old boyfriend, the CK underwear stud was her escape from marriage pressure, though he seems like an ass.
- JFK did not seem like the smartest guy around and the last minutes of that plane ride must have been sheer panic and screaming. It's an airplane, you idiot. Why would you take it up on a bad weather night when you had to make two landings and have a leg cast?

As for Meghan and Harry, she is a very good looking woman who has him totally whooped.

JFK was reckless and had a death wish. He almost died many times before. Once she CBK fully understood this, she wanted out, but she got on the stupid plane for one last Kennedy wedding against her intuition, having refused to fly with him in the past. JFK was only a surface catch. He was ultimately her death sentence. She chose wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One thing that really strikes me when I look at old photos of Carolyn, both before and after she started dating John, is what her upkeep for her appearance must have cost. Her hair alone would have been in the thousands every year -- she had one of the most perfect blondes ever, the kind that requires one of the really skilled master colorists. I bet women must have been walking into salons with her photo for years looking for that color and tone. Better than Gwyneth's and GOOP was definitely a NY blonde icon at that time.

But it's not just the hair. Obviously she worked in fashion so her clothes are impeccable but it's the details. I don't think people appreciate how hard it is to achieve that aesthetic, where it looks so basic and simple but it's perfect. Perfect red lip. Perfect accessories. Every piece of clothing tailored -- I think she likely got t shirts and jeans tailored even. For a non-celeb without a trust fund to accomplish that is frankly really impressive. And she did it while working a fairly demanding job -- fashion PR is long hours and a lot of travel.

It seems superficial, because it is, but it also demonstrates the lengths she was willing to go to in order to achieve what she wanted. It shows real discipline, eye for detail, restraint.

Based on her look alone, it doesn't surprise me she wound up marrying the most eligible bachelor of the decade.

Eh, not quite.

I had a relative who worked in fashion in the 90s before she got married.

Young, thin, and fashion savvy goes a very long way.

Like Carolyn, she had gorgeous hair, great skin, thin (but my relative has great boobs), etc. and clothes just look great on her.

When she was young and in fashion, she mixed expensive pieces with off the rack from places like Gap, JCrew, Banana, etc. And she rarely needed to tailor anything. Some people are just lucky like that.

And my relative is still very fashion savvy but it comes across as effortless. She mostly wears simple, elegant clothes that are classic and basic. Jewelry is high quality and expensive but looks very classic. I know that she needs to tailor some things now, but she says it’s because the overall quality of clothing has simply gone down.

My relative is quite affluent now (married well). She’s the person that everyone says looks effortlessly beautiful and always dresses for the event. At low key fun events, she looks cool. At dressy events, she looks the most elegant.

I don't get your point.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Old money dudes always marry women with this look. Tall, slim, kind of horsey looking (not saying that in a mean way -CBK was prettier than I am - just don’t know how else to describe the look), elegant/classic style.

They don’t marry the hot bombshells (that’s who they cheat with).

Counterpoint, new-ish money marries the hot bombshell. See Jeff Bezos.

His ex was slim and kind of horsey with more "classic style" (not classic like Carolyn but like classy/professional, not trashy and super sexy like Lauren). She was also smart and thoughtful.

I think men are often looking for a "better half" when they are younger and viewing marriage as a necessary and perhaps not totally welcome step towards "settling down." But rich, arrogant men later decide they don't actually need that. They are incorrect, but don't try to tell them that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Old money dudes always marry women with this look. Tall, slim, kind of horsey looking (not saying that in a mean way -CBK was prettier than I am - just don’t know how else to describe the look), elegant/classic style.

They don’t marry the hot bombshells (that’s who they cheat with).

Counterpoint, new-ish money marries the hot bombshell. See Jeff Bezos.

Yes, but even there, Sanchez is wife #2. Had JFK and CBK lived I think they’d have been divorced before too long (and Carolyn would have been the one to leave). Would wife #2 have been a Jackie or a Marilyn? Who knows.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One thing that really strikes me when I look at old photos of Carolyn, both before and after she started dating John, is what her upkeep for her appearance must have cost. Her hair alone would have been in the thousands every year -- she had one of the most perfect blondes ever, the kind that requires one of the really skilled master colorists. I bet women must have been walking into salons with her photo for years looking for that color and tone. Better than Gwyneth's and GOOP was definitely a NY blonde icon at that time.

But it's not just the hair. Obviously she worked in fashion so her clothes are impeccable but it's the details. I don't think people appreciate how hard it is to achieve that aesthetic, where it looks so basic and simple but it's perfect. Perfect red lip. Perfect accessories. Every piece of clothing tailored -- I think she likely got t shirts and jeans tailored even. For a non-celeb without a trust fund to accomplish that is frankly really impressive. And she did it while working a fairly demanding job -- fashion PR is long hours and a lot of travel.

It seems superficial, because it is, but it also demonstrates the lengths she was willing to go to in order to achieve what she wanted. It shows real discipline, eye for detail, restraint.

Based on her look alone, it doesn't surprise me she wound up marrying the most eligible bachelor of the decade.

Eh, not quite.

I had a relative who worked in fashion in the 90s before she got married.

Young, thin, and fashion savvy goes a very long way.

Like Carolyn, she had gorgeous hair, great skin, thin (but my relative has great boobs), etc. and clothes just look great on her.

When she was young and in fashion, she mixed expensive pieces with off the rack from places like Gap, JCrew, Banana, etc. And she rarely needed to tailor anything. Some people are just lucky like that.

And my relative is still very fashion savvy but it comes across as effortless. She mostly wears simple, elegant clothes that are classic and basic. Jewelry is high quality and expensive but looks very classic. I know that she needs to tailor some things now, but she says it’s because the overall quality of clothing has simply gone down.

My relative is quite affluent now (married well). She’s the person that everyone says looks effortlessly beautiful and always dresses for the event. At low key fun events, she looks cool. At dressy events, she looks the most elegant.

I don't get your point.

The point being that Carolyn probably wasn’t spending a fortune on clothes, certainly wasn’t paying to have them tailored, and likely wasn’t spending a lot on beauty products or hair care. We really didn’t do that in the 90s. Sure, highlights in nyc weren’t cheap, but when you have great hair the highlights could be easier and cheaper than you imagine.

I have been getting highlights for decades. While I used to spend a fortune at a high end salon, I’ve found a great colorist at Hair Cuttery by luck and like Carolyn I go months between color (the girl usually had roots showing; she wasn’t going overboard).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One thing that really strikes me when I look at old photos of Carolyn, both before and after she started dating John, is what her upkeep for her appearance must have cost. Her hair alone would have been in the thousands every year -- she had one of the most perfect blondes ever, the kind that requires one of the really skilled master colorists. I bet women must have been walking into salons with her photo for years looking for that color and tone. Better than Gwyneth's and GOOP was definitely a NY blonde icon at that time.

But it's not just the hair. Obviously she worked in fashion so her clothes are impeccable but it's the details. I don't think people appreciate how hard it is to achieve that aesthetic, where it looks so basic and simple but it's perfect. Perfect red lip. Perfect accessories. Every piece of clothing tailored -- I think she likely got t shirts and jeans tailored even. For a non-celeb without a trust fund to accomplish that is frankly really impressive. And she did it while working a fairly demanding job -- fashion PR is long hours and a lot of travel.

It seems superficial, because it is, but it also demonstrates the lengths she was willing to go to in order to achieve what she wanted. It shows real discipline, eye for detail, restraint.

Based on her look alone, it doesn't surprise me she wound up marrying the most eligible bachelor of the decade.

Eh, not quite.

I had a relative who worked in fashion in the 90s before she got married.

Young, thin, and fashion savvy goes a very long way.

Like Carolyn, she had gorgeous hair, great skin, thin (but my relative has great boobs), etc. and clothes just look great on her.

When she was young and in fashion, she mixed expensive pieces with off the rack from places like Gap, JCrew, Banana, etc. And she rarely needed to tailor anything. Some people are just lucky like that.

And my relative is still very fashion savvy but it comes across as effortless. She mostly wears simple, elegant clothes that are classic and basic. Jewelry is high quality and expensive but looks very classic. I know that she needs to tailor some things now, but she says it’s because the overall quality of clothing has simply gone down.

My relative is quite affluent now (married well). She’s the person that everyone says looks effortlessly beautiful and always dresses for the event. At low key fun events, she looks cool. At dressy events, she looks the most elegant.

I don't get your point.

The point being that Carolyn probably wasn’t spending a fortune on clothes, certainly wasn’t paying to have them tailored, and likely wasn’t spending a lot on beauty products or hair care. We really didn’t do that in the 90s. Sure, highlights in nyc weren’t cheap, but when you have great hair the highlights could be easier and cheaper than you imagine.

I have been getting highlights for decades. While I used to spend a fortune at a high end salon, I’ve found a great colorist at Hair Cuttery by luck and like Carolyn I go months between color (the girl usually had roots showing; she wasn’t going overboard).

Wrong. Immaculate tailoring was her thing. She also had brand labels removed—had lead remove the label off of her ski suit.

She likely had a tailor at Calvin that could do all this at no cost, not to mention 2 of her best friends were up and coming designers and could also help with that.

The money look is understated and about fit and tailoring.

[Anonymous]

^ had Prada removed

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One thing that really strikes me when I look at old photos of Carolyn, both before and after she started dating John, is what her upkeep for her appearance must have cost. Her hair alone would have been in the thousands every year -- she had one of the most perfect blondes ever, the kind that requires one of the really skilled master colorists. I bet women must have been walking into salons with her photo for years looking for that color and tone. Better than Gwyneth's and GOOP was definitely a NY blonde icon at that time.

But it's not just the hair. Obviously she worked in fashion so her clothes are impeccable but it's the details. I don't think people appreciate how hard it is to achieve that aesthetic, where it looks so basic and simple but it's perfect. Perfect red lip. Perfect accessories. Every piece of clothing tailored -- I think she likely got t shirts and jeans tailored even. For a non-celeb without a trust fund to accomplish that is frankly really impressive. And she did it while working a fairly demanding job -- fashion PR is long hours and a lot of travel.

It seems superficial, because it is, but it also demonstrates the lengths she was willing to go to in order to achieve what she wanted. It shows real discipline, eye for detail, restraint.

Based on her look alone, it doesn't surprise me she wound up marrying the most eligible bachelor of the decade.

Eh, not quite.

I had a relative who worked in fashion in the 90s before she got married.

Young, thin, and fashion savvy goes a very long way.

Like Carolyn, she had gorgeous hair, great skin, thin (but my relative has great boobs), etc. and clothes just look great on her.

When she was young and in fashion, she mixed expensive pieces with off the rack from places like Gap, JCrew, Banana, etc. And she rarely needed to tailor anything. Some people are just lucky like that.

And my relative is still very fashion savvy but it comes across as effortless. She mostly wears simple, elegant clothes that are classic and basic. Jewelry is high quality and expensive but looks very classic. I know that she needs to tailor some things now, but she says it’s because the overall quality of clothing has simply gone down.

My relative is quite affluent now (married well). She’s the person that everyone says looks effortlessly beautiful and always dresses for the event. At low key fun events, she looks cool. At dressy events, she looks the most elegant.

I don't get your point.

The point being that Carolyn probably wasn’t spending a fortune on clothes, certainly wasn’t paying to have them tailored, and likely wasn’t spending a lot on beauty products or hair care. We really didn’t do that in the 90s. Sure, highlights in nyc weren’t cheap, but when you have great hair the highlights could be easier and cheaper than you imagine.

I have been getting highlights for decades. While I used to spend a fortune at a high end salon, I’ve found a great colorist at Hair Cuttery by luck and like Carolyn I go months between color (the girl usually had roots showing; she wasn’t going overboard).

Wrong. Immaculate tailoring was her thing. She also had brand labels removed—had lead remove the label off of her ski suit.

She likely had a tailor at Calvin that could do all this at no cost, not to mention 2 of her best friends were up and coming designers and could also help with that.

The money look is understated and about fit and tailoring.

Sure, if she had pals tailoring things free, I guess…

But pre-JFK Jr she was like everyone else in fashion in nyc. And even if you look at polished super models in the 90s, the beauty care craze really wasn’t a thing yet…hence bad/frizzy hair and basic makeup and products.

She wasn’t tailoring t-shirts. Everything just fit well when you were skinny in the 90s. Trust me. I was there.

[Anonymous]

I feel like she was tall, thin, confident, magnetic and played hard to get which he was not used to. She was "cooler" than him and he liked that.

But in terms of hair and fashion, I had a similar aesthetic going on as did many. That hair is not so hard to achieve when you have dark blond hair, and the looks were just minimalist 90s with the black kitten heels, monochromatic looks, very little/no jewelry. She had much more going on than just that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Old money dudes always marry women with this look. Tall, slim, kind of horsey looking (not saying that in a mean way -CBK was prettier than I am - just don’t know how else to describe the look), elegant/classic style.

They don’t marry the hot bombshells (that’s who they cheat with).

Counterpoint, new-ish money marries the hot bombshell. See Jeff Bezos.

She certainly looks like she was near a bomb when it detonated, I'll give you that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One thing that really strikes me when I look at old photos of Carolyn, both before and after she started dating John, is what her upkeep for her appearance must have cost. Her hair alone would have been in the thousands every year -- she had one of the most perfect blondes ever, the kind that requires one of the really skilled master colorists. I bet women must have been walking into salons with her photo for years looking for that color and tone. Better than Gwyneth's and GOOP was definitely a NY blonde icon at that time.

But it's not just the hair. Obviously she worked in fashion so her clothes are impeccable but it's the details. I don't think people appreciate how hard it is to achieve that aesthetic, where it looks so basic and simple but it's perfect. Perfect red lip. Perfect accessories. Every piece of clothing tailored -- I think she likely got t shirts and jeans tailored even. For a non-celeb without a trust fund to accomplish that is frankly really impressive. And she did it while working a fairly demanding job -- fashion PR is long hours and a lot of travel.

It seems superficial, because it is, but it also demonstrates the lengths she was willing to go to in order to achieve what she wanted. It shows real discipline, eye for detail, restraint.

Based on her look alone, it doesn't surprise me she wound up marrying the most eligible bachelor of the decade.

Eh, not quite.

I had a relative who worked in fashion in the 90s before she got married.

Young, thin, and fashion savvy goes a very long way.

Like Carolyn, she had gorgeous hair, great skin, thin (but my relative has great boobs), etc. and clothes just look great on her.

When she was young and in fashion, she mixed expensive pieces with off the rack from places like Gap, JCrew, Banana, etc. And she rarely needed to tailor anything. Some people are just lucky like that.

And my relative is still very fashion savvy but it comes across as effortless. She mostly wears simple, elegant clothes that are classic and basic. Jewelry is high quality and expensive but looks very classic. I know that she needs to tailor some things now, but she says it’s because the overall quality of clothing has simply gone down.

My relative is quite affluent now (married well). She’s the person that everyone says looks effortlessly beautiful and always dresses for the event. At low key fun events, she looks cool. At dressy events, she looks the most elegant.

I don't get your point.

The point being that Carolyn probably wasn’t spending a fortune on clothes, certainly wasn’t paying to have them tailored, and likely wasn’t spending a lot on beauty products or hair care. We really didn’t do that in the 90s. Sure, highlights in nyc weren’t cheap, but when you have great hair the highlights could be easier and cheaper than you imagine.

I have been getting highlights for decades. While I used to spend a fortune at a high end salon, I’ve found a great colorist at Hair Cuttery by luck and like Carolyn I go months between color (the girl usually had roots showing; she wasn’t going overboard).

Sorry, you're wrong about Carolyn. She famously had her color done by Brad Johns, who was THE colorist in NYC in the 90s -- he did a lot of celebrity and socialite hair as well and was not inexpensive. She was keeping her hair up very fastidiously and not stretching it out between appointments to save money. She made good money at CK and this would have been a priority for her even before she married JFK Jr. because her industry was so competitive and image focused. And yes, other people were obsessed with her hair color and it was pretty famous in NY fashion circles.

You can read about Johns and Carolyn here (where Johns rips the hair in the Love Story show as being too "2024" and also lacking his signature depth and variation): https://www.vogue.com/article/carolyn-bessette-kennedys-colorist-on-the-totally-wrong-hair-color-in-those-ryan-murphy-images

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One thing that really strikes me when I look at old photos of Carolyn, both before and after she started dating John, is what her upkeep for her appearance must have cost. Her hair alone would have been in the thousands every year -- she had one of the most perfect blondes ever, the kind that requires one of the really skilled master colorists. I bet women must have been walking into salons with her photo for years looking for that color and tone. Better than Gwyneth's and GOOP was definitely a NY blonde icon at that time.

But it's not just the hair. Obviously she worked in fashion so her clothes are impeccable but it's the details. I don't think people appreciate how hard it is to achieve that aesthetic, where it looks so basic and simple but it's perfect. Perfect red lip. Perfect accessories. Every piece of clothing tailored -- I think she likely got t shirts and jeans tailored even. For a non-celeb without a trust fund to accomplish that is frankly really impressive. And she did it while working a fairly demanding job -- fashion PR is long hours and a lot of travel.

It seems superficial, because it is, but it also demonstrates the lengths she was willing to go to in order to achieve what she wanted. It shows real discipline, eye for detail, restraint.

Based on her look alone, it doesn't surprise me she wound up marrying the most eligible bachelor of the decade.

Eh, not quite.

I had a relative who worked in fashion in the 90s before she got married.

Young, thin, and fashion savvy goes a very long way.

Like Carolyn, she had gorgeous hair, great skin, thin (but my relative has great boobs), etc. and clothes just look great on her.

When she was young and in fashion, she mixed expensive pieces with off the rack from places like Gap, JCrew, Banana, etc. And she rarely needed to tailor anything. Some people are just lucky like that.

And my relative is still very fashion savvy but it comes across as effortless. She mostly wears simple, elegant clothes that are classic and basic. Jewelry is high quality and expensive but looks very classic. I know that she needs to tailor some things now, but she says it’s because the overall quality of clothing has simply gone down.

My relative is quite affluent now (married well). She’s the person that everyone says looks effortlessly beautiful and always dresses for the event. At low key fun events, she looks cool. At dressy events, she looks the most elegant.

I don't get your point.

The point being that Carolyn probably wasn’t spending a fortune on clothes, certainly wasn’t paying to have them tailored, and likely wasn’t spending a lot on beauty products or hair care. We really didn’t do that in the 90s. Sure, highlights in nyc weren’t cheap, but when you have great hair the highlights could be easier and cheaper than you imagine.

I have been getting highlights for decades. While I used to spend a fortune at a high end salon, I’ve found a great colorist at Hair Cuttery by luck and like Carolyn I go months between color (the girl usually had roots showing; she wasn’t going overboard).

Wrong. Immaculate tailoring was her thing. She also had brand labels removed—had lead remove the label off of her ski suit.

She likely had a tailor at Calvin that could do all this at no cost, not to mention 2 of her best friends were up and coming designers and could also help with that.

The money look is understated and about fit and tailoring.

Sure, if she had pals tailoring things free, I guess…

But pre-JFK Jr she was like everyone else in fashion in nyc. And even if you look at polished super models in the 90s, the beauty care craze really wasn’t a thing yet…hence bad/frizzy hair and basic makeup and products.

She wasn’t tailoring t-shirts. Everything just fit well when you were skinny in the 90s. Trust me. I was there.

Lol her "pal" at CK was Narciso Rodriguez, who she was close friends with and who made some of her clothes custom even before he left CK to start his own label.

Carolyn was not your run of the mill PR hack working in fashion in the 90s. She was a rising star, before she even started dating JFK Jr., who was doing a lot of stuff in a more elevated and refined way than other women working in the industry. Sure, there were hundreds of young women working in fashion in NYC in the 90s who were getting by on youth and natural good looks and took pride in making high-low fashion work and how their drug store makeup looked "just as good" as Chanel. But Carolyn was not one of them. By the early 90s she was already styling celebrity clients for CK and she was at a director level at the brand before she and JFK Jr. married. She spent like a millisecond doing the typical PR hack work before she was promoted, specifically because her style and discipline was a cut above everyone else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One thing that really strikes me when I look at old photos of Carolyn, both before and after she started dating John, is what her upkeep for her appearance must have cost. Her hair alone would have been in the thousands every year -- she had one of the most perfect blondes ever, the kind that requires one of the really skilled master colorists. I bet women must have been walking into salons with her photo for years looking for that color and tone. Better than Gwyneth's and GOOP was definitely a NY blonde icon at that time.

But it's not just the hair. Obviously she worked in fashion so her clothes are impeccable but it's the details. I don't think people appreciate how hard it is to achieve that aesthetic, where it looks so basic and simple but it's perfect. Perfect red lip. Perfect accessories. Every piece of clothing tailored -- I think she likely got t shirts and jeans tailored even. For a non-celeb without a trust fund to accomplish that is frankly really impressive. And she did it while working a fairly demanding job -- fashion PR is long hours and a lot of travel.

It seems superficial, because it is, but it also demonstrates the lengths she was willing to go to in order to achieve what she wanted. It shows real discipline, eye for detail, restraint.

Based on her look alone, it doesn't surprise me she wound up marrying the most eligible bachelor of the decade.

This is an interesting post. What do we know about CBK’a background? I don’t think she’s old money or even really new money in a significant sense. She was raised by a single mother and lived a modest life in not a very nice town until her mother married an Orthopedic Surgeon. Afterwards the family did relocate to Greenwich Connecticut. It seems her stepfather was quite rich and was able to provide them with a comfortable upper middle class lifestyle.

Carolyn’s style definitely is not stuffy or old money but rather, NYC fashion girlie cool vibes.

I do wonder if she always planned on marrying rich, even if it wasn’t America’s Prince.