Great Outfits in Fashion History: Jennifer Lopez Wearing a Chainmail Mini Dress While Out With Donatella Versace

Lopez fell in love with Versace before Ben Affleck.

Donatella Versace and Jennifer Lopez during Notorious Magazine Launch at The Limelight in New York City in 1999.
Photo: Ke.Mazur/WireImage

There are perfectly good celebrity style moments, and then there are the looks that really stick with you, the ones you try desperately to recreate at home. In ‘Great Outfits in Fashion History,’ Fashionista editors are revisiting their all-time favorite lewks.

Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck gave us the summer romance we needed. And while we’re transfixed by the rom-com reality of Bennifer, let us not forget who stole Lopez’s heart first: Donatella Versace. The pair have a relationship that predates the meeting of Lopez and Affleck in 2000; in fact, a year earlier Lopez and Versace were already twinning at parties together in shimmering dresses. It’s also important to note that their relationship is more than that of a working one between a fashion house and its muse; Lopez and Versace have a full-on friendship, which Lopez revealed in an interview with Vogue in 2018.

The pair met at the 1999 Met Gala and were spotted later that year at The Limelight in New York City looking attached at the hip in complimentary Versace looks. Donatella sported a sheer, intricately beaded nude gown, while Lopez wore a silver mini chainmail dress. This night out, which Lopez accessorized with strappy heels and genuine smiles, would become the first of many memorable night outs and award shows that the two collaborated on — one being so memorable that it created Google images.

The takeaway from this great Lopez outfit is that slinky chainmail and good friends never go out of style. Ahead, shop some chainmail pieces that will help you channel the J.Lo effect; i.e. defy every human standard.