When donning an eye-popping statement piece like Valentino’s sequin-bedecked, emerald-green haute couture cape, some might be tempted to balance it out with understated items — a plain blouse, say, or sensible slacks.
Jennifer Lopez had a different idea.
In InStyle’s December issue, the 49-year-old tossed the billowing cape over a pair of six-inch gilded Christian Louboutin heels . . . and nothing else.
In the buzzed-about shot, Lopez poses in profile, leaving little of her physique — and famous rear end — to the imagination. Her fans went wild.
“Flawless,” declared one on Instagram.
“I can barely function in a dress with a light breeze. How does she slay this?” wrote another.
The 5-foot-5 singer does indeed slay, and she works for it: Lopez has multiple trainers and reportedly does not consume any caffeine or alcohol. But you don’t need Jenny from the Block’s figure — or willpower — to dress as fabulously.
The Post asked four local ladies, all the same age as Lopez, to bravely recreate her risque look. NYC’s own design duo Antonio and Jesus Estrada constructed a similar cape for the shoot, which required 12 yards of fabric.
The result? When you’re confident — and dramatically draped —you really can glow like J.Lo.
Dale Noelle
As a veteran agent and the owner of True Model Management, Dale Noelle is used to watching others pose from behind the scenes. “I don’t like being in front of the camera, so for me [this is a lot],” the Upper East Sider says. “This is definitely out of my comfort zone… But I like pushing my limits.”
She wasn’t always so daring. “I was one of those little girls who … wanted to be like the girls in the magazines. I was a perfectionist,” says Noelle, who is 5-foot-8. “As I’ve aged, I’ve become more accepting and learned not to pick myself apart.”
There’s one person who’s sure to love Noelle’s photo. “I have an 8-year-old daughter, Alexis. She’ll probably look at my shoes first,” Noelle says. “She’s all about shoes — and she loves sequins.”
Kim Baker
New Jersey resident Kim Baker says her 2017 divorce left her feeling “broken” and more out of shape than ever.
“This is the first time I’ve ever been this size,” says the 6-foot-tall CEO of cosmetics brand Glamazon Beauty, which sells foundation, eye and lip products in a wide range of skin tones.
“But when I saw that picture [of Lopez] I was like, ‘Wow, kill it girl!,’ ” adds Baker.
The makeup artist, who has worked with the likes of Tom Cruise and Meg Ryan on movie sets, says being involved in this shoot for The Post was “like a sign from God.”
“I wasn’t going to do it, but you have to like yourself no matter what you look like,” she says. “At one point I also had a body like J.Lo. Doing this shoot is going to inspire me to get back into shape.”
Lisette Morales
Queens resident Lisette Morales had an immediate reaction when asked by The Post to pose: “I thought, ‘Oh s–t, I’ve gained 10 pounds and I have to wear that dress!’ ”
The bank officer, who is 5 feet tall and works in Midtown East, says she worried about “not having the figure” that J.Lo confidently flaunts. “But then I said, ‘What the hell’ and threw all caution to the wind.”
Though she laments gaining a few pounds over the past decade, due in part to a diagnosis of celiac disease, Morales has learned to accept her “curves and chunks.”
“I think my whole family will be very surprised because they wouldn’t have expected I was willing to do this,” says the mother of one.
“My husband asked me about 10 years ago to take some photos like this and I said, ‘No way.’ So when I told him about this shoot he was very supportive, but he was also like, ‘You won’t do it for me but you’ll do it for the New York Post?!’ ”
Deirdre DaCosta Rossi
Though she’s been a fit model for more than 20 years, Deirdre DaCosta Rossi still has some insecurities when it comes to doing a nearly nude photo shoot like this.
“I was excited to show off my shoulders, but my hips have always been my nemesis,” says the 5-foot-7 Rossi, a resident of Darien, Conn., and mother of one.
Rossi has loved the singer, whom she calls “an inspiration,” for years. “I was a big fan of hers when she first came out, and I met her sister at a party once,” she says.
Like Lopez, she’s a fitness fanatic: “I work out four days a week,” she says. “I do spinning, barre, pilates on the reformer and yoga.”
Rossi sees this photo shoot as a “fun celebration.” “With my 50th birthday looming, I think I’ll walk into it feeling extra-confident after this.”
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