Flashbulbs pop, cameras pan, and there it is again on a couture gown: the unmistakable Y string. After years in the archives, the lingerie line once reserved for backstage has returned to center stage on the world’s most watched red carpets.
The timeline tells a clear story. Rihanna’s sheer Adam Selman look at the CFDA Fashion Awards on 2 June 2014 made headlines worldwide. Kendall Jenner pushed the conversation at the Cannes Film Festival in 2017 with a La Perla design that revealed a thong detail on the Croisette. Hailey Bieber walked the Met Gala on 6 May 2019 in an Alexander Wang dress built around a visible G string back. Then came Megan Fox at the MTV Video Music Awards on 12 September 2021 in a sheer Mugler dress that left no doubt: the Y string had fully re-entered the red carpet vocabulary.
Red Carpet Comeback: From Rihanna to Megan Fox
What felt like a one night shock in 2014 became a steady fashion motif across major events. The CFDA moment set the precedent, but Cannes 2017 stretched it over 12 days of premieres and photocalls, cementing the look in the glare of international media. By the 2019 Met Gala, the detail had moved from provocation to precision tailoring, with designers integrating the Y line as a structural element rather than a last second reveal.
By 2021, the VMAs image cycle turned the Y string into a viral talking point. The Mugler atelier has worked for decades with sheer engineering, and that dress showed how couture construction can support a look that reads daring yet controlled under hundreds of cameras. The dates matter because they track a shift: from isolated controversy to repeated, deliberate styling on the most scrutinized carpets.
What Exactly Is a Y String, and Why Stylists Reach For It
Technically, a Y string is a thong where the straps converge into a Y shape above the lower back, often extending along the waistline. On a gown, that line can be built into the dress through an internal harness, or shown as a separate lingerie element framed by cutouts. The visual outcome is a vertical axis that lengthens the silhouette while focusing the eye on curve and line rather than skin alone.
The pull is cultural as much as visual. Y2K codes returned to runways in the early 2020s, with low waists and razor sharp cutouts resurfacing at brands such as Miu Miu and Blumarine. Lyst’s Year in Fashion in 2022 named the Miu Miu micro mini as the hottest product in the first quarter of that year, a sign that the appetite for early 2000s proportions had real momentum on the consumer side. Red carpets followed suit, reframing the once taboo visible thong as an intentional design line.
How To Wear the Y String Without a Red Carpet Team
Not every wardrobe has a couture atelier on speed dial. And yet, the idea scales down elegantly with the right steps. Stylists consistently focus on fit, fabric, and lighting.
One recurring pitfall is fabric shine. Under strong flash, synthetic blends can flare. In backstage tests, many stylists pair matte jersey with mesh panels to keep the line readable without glare. Another common misstep appears at the waist: too tight, and the strap cuts. Too loose, and the line collapses. Tailoring matters more than trend.
When the event is a wedding guest dress or a gala on a budget, the easiest route is a dress with a built in Y system rather than a separate thong. That prevents shifting through the night and makes photos cleaner, especially under LED lighting that many venues adopted in the last few years.
Here is a compact checklist the pros share off record, simple and workable for special occasions:
- Opt for integrated construction: a dress with an internal Y strap keeps lines aligned in movement.
- Choose matte fabrics near the strap line to avoid flash blowouts in photos.
- Color match closely: nude, caramel, or deep mocha depending on skin tone to make the Y look intentional.
- Test under phone flash before leaving, not just bathroom lights. Different bulbs lie.
- Carry fashion tape and a spare strap. A tiny fix can save the whole look when a clasp decides to misbehave.
What Comes Next: Designers, Retail Signals, and Sustainability Questions
Designers that lean into lingerie logic have already mapped the next steps. Nensi Dojaka and Mônot play with fine elastic architecture that sketches a Y line while keeping coverage. Gucci’s archival revivals have also touched low rises and exposed straps in recent seasons, showing how luxury houses translate nostalgia into modern tailoring.
Retail signals support the runway cues. When Miu Miu’s low rise set took the top Lyst product slot in early 2022, it signaled a broader swing back to hipbone framing. That data arrived alongside a rise in sheer eveningwear across awards seasons in 2022 and 2023, visible from the Golden Globes red carpet to Oscars after parties. Consumers did not just scroll. They bought cutouts, and they booked gowns with visible structure.
One last piece often left out of the glossy photos: longevity. A well made Y string dress uses multi layer construction and stronger elastic, which extends wear over seasons. That matters when building a party wardrobe with fewer pieces. On rentals, check measurements in centimeters and the strap attachment points inside the dress. If those are stitched, not glued, the garment survives transport and cleaning far better. A tiny detail, yet it avoids the dreaded strap snap that has ended more than one night before a single photo could be taken. And yes, someone always forgets that extra fashion tape in their evening bag. It has happend to stylists too.