Key Takeaways
- Olandria Carthen’s rise from reality TV to fashion force reflects a new kind of style influence.
- Her looks span red carpets, magazine covers, and NYFW runways — often styled by The Reismans.
- From UGG campaigns to CFDA carpets, Carthen is redefining what fashion can look like for reality TV stars.
“Love Island USA” has captured the eyes and ears of many. Beyond its rotating door of romances, drama, and swimsuits galore, the show has launched plenty of stunning 20-somethings into social media fame. One of those is Olandria Carthen, who parlayed her weeks-long reality TV spotlight into someone we all love and respect for both her personality and fashion sense.
Whether she’s gracing red carpets or taking on NYFW with help from stylist duo The Reismans, Carthen has earned her place as the internet’s newest It-girl. “You see confidence, you wear it. You’ve got to look confident. And know your angles,” she told Interview Magazine when asked about the secret to taking good photos. “Between confidence and knowing your angles, those are the key to good-looking pictures.”
Below, REVOLT picked out 13 of Olandria Carthen’s best fashion moments.
1. Leopard print at New York Fashion Week
Starting off with a more out-there look — maybe even for Carthen’s own standards — the “Love Island USA” star attended NYFW in full leopard. She committed to the animal print on her coat and shorts, down to the sheer tights. We especially love the visible bra under her sheer top — it’s a bold move that works. Carthen really is every bit the fashion It-girl people say she is.
2. “One of none”
You just had to be on the timeline when these photos first dropped. The internet was calling Carthen (and Quenlin Blackwell, in a separate shoot) Naomi Campbell’s daughter — a compliment she definitely earned. Photographed by Jacob Webster, the social media influencer posed in a halter bodysuit and sunglasses.
3. The 2025 MTV Video Music Awards
Give it up for the lady in red. For the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards, Carthen stepped onto the carpet in a corset bodysuit that flowed into a sheer gown designed by Cheney Chan. Between the sweetheart neckline and matching red heels, the self-proclaimed Bama Barbie had us obsessed all over again.
4. The 2025 US Open
This look was simple by Carthen’s standards, but she obviously wore it well. At the 2025 US Open, she popped out in a matching tweed set featuring a button-down shirt and micro shorts. Carthen rounded out the outfit with blue heels and a matching blue bag from Brandon Blackwood.
5. Her striped bikini moment on “Love Island USA” Season 7
Of course, we couldn’t talk about Carthen’s best fashion moments and skip over Season 7 of “Love Island USA,” where so many people first discovered her. She wore a chocolate-toned striped bikini that complemented her complexion perfectly. Her body? Tea, as the kids would say.
6. The 2025 CFDA Fashion Awards
Blackwood dressed Carthen in nothing but the best at the 2025 CFDA Fashion Awards. The two twinned in brown, with Carthen in a strapless gown featuring a sculpted bust and a thigh-high slit. “We wanted something that was really bold, glamorous, fun, and obviously sexy, but it looks really refined,” Blackwood told ExtraTV on the carpet. Whatever the goal was, they delivered.
7. Her Harper’s Bazaar Vietnam cover
Carthen was already taking over fashion week and red carpets, so it was only a matter of time before her first magazine cover. In November 2025, she graced the cover of Harper’s Bazaar Vietnam in a voluminous red dress. It featured a draped top and dramatic sleeves, made even better by the cinched waist.
“Southern fashion is beautiful — it’s clean, sophisticated, yet still has personality. I love clothes that have a defined silhouette and a statement piece,” she told the publication.
8. Off-White’s SS26 show at New York Fashion Week
Carthen’s look at Off-White’s SS26 show during New York Fashion Week might be one of her best ever, and that’s saying something. “The deep cut is definitely my favorite part,” she told Vanity Fair. The outfit was pulled from the Virgil Abloh-founded label’s spring collection from the year before. “It’s so young, so sexy. It speaks to me.”
9. Her serving looks in a cutout dress
When your waist looks like Olandria’s, of course you’ll take every chance to show it off. She wore this stunning asymmetrical dress from PatBO, complete with a side slit that rose to her hip on one side and a dramatic cutout at the waist on the other. The Reismans, earned their check that day.
10. Walking Sergio Hudson’s runway at NYFW
Our jaw was on the floor watching Carthen make her NYFW runway debut at Sergio Hudson’s show. In September 2025, the “Love Island USA” star walked in an animal-print jacket cinched at the waist with a black-and-gold belt. She completed the look with black shorts and strappy sandals.
11. Starring in UGG’s Fluff Momma campaign
Just in time for the holidays, UGG tapped Carthen for the return of its Fluff Momma boot — originally released in 1999. The reality TV fan favorite recreated the après-ski–inspired ad from back then, minus the actual trip to the slopes. A little commotion for Ugglandria is deserved.
12. Her pinstripe dress during her trip to New York
There arguably isn’t a color that doesn’t work on Carthen. During her trip to New York, the social media star stepped out in a navy pinstripe dress, paired with sheer tights and sleek heels. Classic and clean — just like her Southern fashion ethos. We wouldn’t expect her in anything else.
13. Repping Tuskegee University at homecoming
Tuskegee University is truly lucky to count Carthen as one of its alumni. Before becoming one of the best-dressed islanders on “Love Island USA,” she was at the HBCU completing her bachelor’s in logistics, materials, and supply chain management. During homecoming, she repped her alma mater in crimson leather, a Skegee crop top, and asymmetrical jeans.
“I wanted to see how it felt to be the majority when I walk around and wake up and everybody looks like me,” Carthen told HBCU Buzz regarding her decision to attend TU. “You know, the rest of my life, I have to be a minority. But it truly felt good to be a part of the majority.”