The “Crazy Tea” Behind Annie’s Chanel Dress On Sterling Point

For the most part, Sterling Point’s realistic, down-to-earth styling sets it apart from the lavish looks in other teen dramas — with one big exception. In its second episode, Muskoka transplant Annie clings to the last dregs of her New York City glamour by stepping out in an extravagant lace Chanel gown she borrows from the closet of Rory’s wealthy mom, Denise.

The dress, straight from the luxury house’s Spring/Summer 2023 Ready-to-Wear runway, typically retails for thousands of dollars. But according to Sterling Point costume designer Marissa Schwartz, the “crazy tea” behind this high-fashion moment flips the script on what you'd expect. “Because we were partnered with Chanel, it was probably the least expensive outfit. It was there on loan,” Schwartz says. That enviable collab helped elevate the fashion throughout the entire series.

And according to Schwartz, the brand's generosity didn't stop at just one dress. “They were so gracious. They even sent us a second one, because we had to have a stunt double wear it for the boat sequences,” she says. “So believe it or not, that incredible moment was a very cost-effective one for our department.”

Schwartz describes finding this exact dress a total “lightning-in-a-bottle moment,” recalling how effortlessly the partnership came together: “I started telling Chanel a bit about Episode 2, and they sent me some options for dresses. And as soon as I saw it, I was like, ‘That’s the one.’ There was no other dress that was in the running after Ella [Rubin] tried that one on.”

While the show-stopping Chanel look came together super easily, Schwartz struggled way more with Annie’s first major style statement: the oversize blue button-up shirt that the New Yorker wears throughout the pilot. “Of all the looks we did in the show, [that was] the hardest one to land on,” she says.

As the costumer explains, the premiere episode’s script originally had Annie in “a slip dress and a pair of heels,” which she felt didn’t properly convey Annie’s personality. “It was such a placeholder that I was like, ‘Are you sure we need her in a dress?’ I was actually very worried about it setting up the character incorrectly,” Schwartz says.

“It has to live in almost the entirety of the first episode, and it sets the stage for this whole fish-out-of-water story,” she continues. “So, a lot of gratitude to [creator] Megan [Park] and the team for going on that journey with me, because I’m really happy with how that look turned out. It serves its purpose well.”