Kim, What’s With The Cardigan?

When Kim Kardashian stepped onto the Met Gala steps Monday night, everyone was thinking the same thing: “Wow, she looks unreal,” closely followed by “What’s with the cardigan?”

On the most stylish night of the year, Kardashian was outfitted in a glimmering John Galliano for Maison Margiela evening gown comprising chrome-colored leaves and a matching silver corset. For a final flourish, Kardashian topped her dazzling look with... a gray cardigan sweater.

As the hours went on, even more questions began to plague me: Why did she wear it? Was it a last-minute addition? A throw-on meant to cover a wardrobe malfunction, perhaps? And why is it so pilly?

The styling choice was made even more perplexing once our newly instated knitwear queen began doing interviews. In a now-viral clip, she told Vogue she was wearing her “boyfriend’s sweater,” sending armchair Met Gala critics into a tizzy.

This came only hours after she addressed Tom Brady dating rumors during an unexpected appearance at his Netflix roast on Sunday night. “I wasn’t going to come tonight, but since I’m not here as Tom’s date, there’s still a good chance I might,” Kardashian joked. “Speaking of Tom and I dating, I know there were some rumors that we were, and I’d never say if we did or not. I’d just release the tape.”

But given that he’s 6-foot-4, it doesn’t seem plausible that what looks like a child-size cardigan would fit the former football player — nor Kardashian’s recent rumored ex Odell Beckham Jr. In fact, with its worn appearance, I’d guess the tiny sweater more likely came from one of her children’s closets.

This seems even more likely when you consider Kardashian’s full red carpet interview. Though many are focusing singularly on the word “boyfriend,” her full quote implies she probably meant it in a symbolic sense.

Speaking to the concept of her look, she said: “This is like — what did we say? — the wildest night of my life, in a garden, and I just ran out and grabbed my boyfriend's sweater and threw it on and had to get to work.” She then added, “And my hair’s all messed up,” in reference to her undone braid and textured waves.

It seems Kardashian was simply trying to explain how her ensemble fit the theme of the evening — not hard-launching her new beau. So if it wasn’t literally her boyfriend’s sweater, the question remains: Why did she wear it?

In my opinion, the answer is simple: for the sake of fashion. By all appearances, it seems Kardashian’s sweater was a last-minute throw-on, likely added when her completed look just wasn’t quite right. And its addition was the correct choice.

Through the unexpected mixture of high-glamour foliage and cozy loungewear, her outfit fell right in the sweet spot between the “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” exhibit theme and the “The Garden of Time” dress code — a near-impossible Met Gala feat.

And though we won’t know the truth until the next season of The Kardashians hits Hulu, it seems the Cardigan was just a cardigan, albeit a pilly one.