Pharrell Williams might rock The Hat, but his gorgeous wife, Helen Lasichanh, wears The Pants.
From jeans to knickerbockers to jumpsuits, Lasichanh borrows her favorite looks from the boys. What did she wear to the Oscars, where an evening gown is de rigueur? A tux, of course.
Like her hit-maker husband, Lasichanh has a daring and distinctive style. She wears European and Japanese designer brands, but picks unexpected pieces, steers clear of anything overtly sexy and appears to prize comfort over glamour. A fashion rebel, she tied the knot last fall in a navy tartan wedding dress. She’s not afraid to tower over her man at awards shows in 4-inch stilettos. And somehow, “H,” as Pharrell affectionately calls her, makes even her most challenging outfits look cool.
“I love her style!” shrieks André Leon Talley, artistic director of Zappos Couture and former contributing editor at Vogue. “They’re totally into Chanel and Louis Vuitton, but they mix it to make it their own unique style. Helen has this extraordinary quality where she can dress to the nines for the red carpet, or she can go around here with leggings,” he adds, nodding at Lasichanh at a recent Uniqlo party.
Asked how she puts together her combos, Lasichanh tells The Post, “I don’t choose, it’s just who I am.”
Pharrell is almost as prolific in fashion as he is in music, with a new Uniqlo collection as well as upcoming collaborations with G-Star, Adidas Originals and Comme des Garçons Parfums, not to mention his own brands. While his wife attends every event with him, she deliberately keeps a low profile and rarely says more than 20 words to the press. She’s been described as a model, a stylist and a designer, but for whom remains a mystery. (Pharrell’s representative did not respond to requests for comment, even to confirm how her last name is pronounced.) Even her ethnicity is the subject of speculation.
Lasichanh, 33, went to high school and college in Miami. She was a star volleyball player at St. Thomas University, earning the Florida Sun Conference’s Player of the Year award in 2001. Her coach, Hector Martinez, calls her “a quiet warrior. She was very intense, but she would not necessarily express it verbally.”
Lasichanh is said to have met Pharrell in Miami, and they were friends for 2 ½ years before they started dating. “She just reminded me so much of myself,” Pharrell, 41, told Oprah. “Different, and marches to the beat of her own drum.” Their son, Rocket, was born in 2008.
Lasichanh stays under wraps — literally. “He’s the one who shows the leg!” says Constance White, style expert and former editor-in-chief of Essence, referring to Pharrell’s ubiquitous shorts. “She’s covered up, but not in a prudish way. Part of what I think is notable is the fact that it isn’t the cookie-cutter red-carpet or wife-of-celebrity style, which tends to be very objectifying for women.”
“Modesty on the red carpet can attract more attention than the reverse,” adds Laura Brown, Harper’s Bazaar’s executive editor. “I wish more women dressed like Helen.”
Lasichanh and Pharrell favor his-and-hers evening attire from Lanvin. She has worn the influential French label to more than 10 events, and the couple frequently coordinate their outfits. “Sometimes they look like hipster pilgrims,” says Isoul Harris, editor-in-chief of Uptown magazine. “But it’s fun!”
When she’s off-duty, Lasichanh works a tomboy vibe in skinny jeans or leggings, hoodies (usually Pharrell’s brand, Billionaire Girls Club) and Uggs, Dr. Martens or platform Converse. The couple wear matching custom Chanel necklaces.
“One minute they look like a teenager skate couple on the way to the mall, and the next minute they look like adult best friends, all dolled up at the Met Gala,” says Harris.
“In the same way that most people seem to be of the opinion that Kim and Kanye are sartorial soulmates, Helen and Pharrell may be as well.”