Paper dress fashion in the D causes a stir
Unique design captures iconic Detroit. Who is this designer?
Imagine walking through an enormous room packed with guests wearing designer tuxedos and long gowns made of silk and leather and lace and satin and chiffon and velvet, while dripping in diamonds and fur — sipping from stemless champagne flutes.
At every turn, compliments wash over guests of every age and ethnicity covered in bright colors and elegant designs.
But this night featured something a little different.
I witnessed fashion disruption.
When Marrisa Bennett walked by, heads turned.
She wore a paper dress that screamed vintage Detroit.
It wasn’t the Oscar red carpet in Los Angeles.
It wasn’t the Met Gala stairs in New York.
But, honest to God, it could have been either one.
Her stunning, unique wearable art offered a creative nod to history.
The knee-length dress featured iconic images inspired by brands and landmarks that generations of Detroiters associate with childhood — Faygo pop, Vernors ginger ale, Better Made chips, The Supremes album covers, Michigan Central station, Ford Model T, Pistons basketball, Red Wings hockey, Tigers baseball, Lions football.
Once a year in mid-January, global executives and engineers and designers and artists from throughout the Motor City and beyond come together at Huntington Place.
Bennett was invited to the Detroit Auto Show charity preview, the auto prom, which raises millions of dollars for charity. Tickets cost $400 apiece. And Bennett wanted to do something completely different than anyone expected on this Jan. 16.
So she reached out to designer Matthew Richmond, 46, a mixed-media designer based in Pontiac who specializes in custom paper and plastic bag dresses, and left partygoers speechless.
“We’ve known each other for years but this is the first time Marrisa contacted me for a dress,” Richmond said. “It was definitely a showstopper.”
(I witnessed the impact firsthand. I only wish I had photographed the people surrounding Bennett instead of just staring in awe.)
Cherishing the past
Richmond’s work is powerful and unique.
It plays on emotion and connection and nostalgia.
One of his dress creations is displayed in the lobby of the new Hudson’s Detroit, installed for the re-opening on Woodward Avenue in late 2025. The dress is made of original J.L. Hudson department store bags discovered in an unopened box a decade ago. Soon the dress will be put away and preserved, then brought out for special occasions.
Generations of Detroiters hold memories of J.L. Hudson, which thrived for 90 years on Woodward Avenue before closing in 1983. Boxes of the vintage bags were discovered during an auction years ago at a metro Detroit mall, said Richmond, who is often on the hunt for interesting props and art materials.
“It was like opening a time capsule,” he said.
The idea for the dress came with news that Dan Gilbert planned to break ground on the old Hudson’s site. Richmond made the dress a decade ago, did a photo shoot on Woodward, Bedrock contacted him and the rest is history.
For more than two decades, Richmond has designed dresses for clients. The one-of-a-kind designs often start around $650. His company: The Paper Dress Code.
How a designer found his path
Before social media was a thing, before students spent hours doom scrolling images of other people’s lives, young adults found themselves with nothing to do.
“During the summers, we used to do this thing, we’d get bored,” Richmond said, laughing. “I don’t think people get bored anymore. But we’d fill our time with things, and I thought I would build a dress. I pulled a bust out of my parents’ basement and put it in my first apartment in Ann Arbor as a fun decoration. I let boredom create.”
Growing up the son of a florist and a factory worker in Port Huron, Richmond was one of four kids encouraged to be creative, especially with mom, he said. “That inspired me.”
Richmond studied at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor and never stopped pursuing his dream. He still has a side hustle as a clothing shop manager in Novi. But word-of-mouth buzz leads to more and more dress projects.
“My parents are thrilled. I just got off the phone with my father,” Richmond said. “They’re surprised and shocked with how far I’ve gotten with it.”
His eye for flair is sought after by fashion junkies for runway shows and pop-up in and around metro Detroit. He has also done window design and interior design for Zehnders of Frankenmuth over the past 15 years.
More: Watch Matthew Richmond in a TEDxUMDearborn talk about up-cycling newspaper, plastic and VHS tape here. View more of his work on Instagram here.
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Terrific avante-grade cover of the Detroit fashion scene‼️
Poppy is smiling😊
Edith Head is alive and well in Detroit? Goodness gracious, fashion maven has now been added to your ever growing list of accomplishments Phoebe.