Every Outfit Olivia Has Worn on Scandal Season 3
Olivia Pope is many things. Now that Barbara Walters is retired, she’s probably America’s Most Powerful Lisper. She’s also a dangerous person to associate with (RIP, Harrison) and a tough person to love. She always answers her phone, even if polite company would consider it a rude moment to do so, and apparently, she drinks wine wrong. She’s also, notably, a fashion icon, thanks to costume designer Lyn Paolo, who dresses Liv in a combination of ultraluxe textures and precision tailoring. Even in her pj’s, Olivia is elegant, precise — and maybe a little closed off. Here’s everything she wore in season three of Scandal. (And previously, everything she wore in season two.)
Olivia works out in dress whites. Meanwhile, I had to throw away an ecru scarf because even after multiple washings, it was still too filthy-looking f...
Olivia works out in dress whites. Meanwhile, I had to throw away an ecru scarf because even after multiple washings, it was still too filthy-looking for this world.
Photo: ABC
Classic Olivia: contrasting textures.
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White outerwear, for the executive who has never carried a cup of coffee on public transit.
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Dark thoughts = dark suits.
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Even in flashbacks, Olivia was into sculptural jackets. Scupltural bangs, too.
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What would it be like to live in a world where sweat stains don't exist, even on workout wear? Perhaps that is the most unrealistic aspect of this sho...
What would it be like to live in a world where sweat stains don't exist, even on workout wear? Perhaps that is the most unrealistic aspect of this show.
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Well ... that, and all these people working together. And every story.
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This is so ordinary compared to what Olivia would wear in the present day. This is like, intern-wear. (That most of us would kill for, obviously.)
Ph...This is so ordinary compared to what Olivia would wear in the present day. This is like, intern-wear. (That most of us would kill for, obviously.)
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Again, contrasting textures.
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You can't see it here, but David Rosen is sporting a really bad goatee in this flashback.
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Detailed jacket! Another Olivia go-to.
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The return of the wine clothes! Those candles need to go, though. That is some Pier 1–reject decor.
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Sweater looks comfy, though.
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For someone who wears such distinctve clothing, Olivia's jewelry choices can seem awfully generic. She's no Diane Lockhart, at least in the necklace d...
For someone who wears such distinctve clothing, Olivia's jewelry choices can seem awfully generic. She's no Diane Lockhart, at least in the necklace department.
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Bonus points for that offset button.
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More wine clothes. Olivia's basically Mr. Rogers when she gets home, except her mom has not knit her all those sweaters.
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Another white outer layer! Apparently D.C. has no schmutz that would instantly ruin a bright white coat.
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One of the more adventurous patterns in the Olivia Pope textile universe.
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Sorry, that wide belt is not doing anyone any favors.
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Wine clothes, with bonus wine blanket! Mere mortals probably shouldn't have white throw blankets, though.
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Another gray jacket. So many gray jackets this season.
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This jacket is fuzzy, which demonstrates yet again that Olivia Pope can have a secret soft side. It's just kept very, very secret.
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Gray jacket. Everybody, drink.
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It's the gown that landed Olivia on last season's best-dressed list. Total knockout.
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Baby Liv wore brights! When did this stop, one wonders.
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It's a gray jacket, sure, but the detailing on the bottom is a bit snazzier than usual.
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Man, in real life, white coats always look a little lab-coat-y, but not here. Unfair.
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Her love of knits goes way back.
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Do you think she bought those candles herself? Probably not, right? A decorator put them there?
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Oh, a twofer, with the interesting texture and the architectural anti-lapels.
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Bo-ring.
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When it's lounge time, you can feel free to take off your earrings, Liv.
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Major coat alert.
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This is right around the time that Scandal stopped showing Olivia in full-body shots in an attempt to disguise Kerry Washington's pregnancy. It only s...
This is right around the time that Scandal stopped showing Olivia in full-body shots in an attempt to disguise Kerry Washington's pregnancy. It only sort of worked.
Photo: ABC
Again with the blah jewelry choices.
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When the sweater wars begin, I'm joining up with whichever sweater army this sweater is leading. This sweater is not screwing around.
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I spy a conspicuously giant purse.
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That is a sharp coat.
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"Let's stop having sex, I need to put on this necklace I got at Payless. Yeah, the shoe store. They have one rack of jewelry by the checkout line...
"Let's stop having sex, I need to put on this necklace I got at Payless. Yeah, the shoe store. They have one rack of jewelry by the checkout lines."
Photo: ABC
Gray blazer, part 900.
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What is Olivia's average dry-cleaning bill each month?
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Boxy clothing disguises pregnancy! Use it wisely, friends.
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Drink.
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Drink again. It counts.
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Lace detailing, something you don't see too often in Popewear.
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See, she's showing you how to drink.
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I like a blazer that zips. Functional and unexpected.
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Olivia has more coats than Quinn has ideas.
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So glam.
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Don't be distracted by all the jackets, coats, and blazers: Olivia's blouse game is still notable, too.
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More wine sweaters.
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Sorry, Liv, but black dress-pants are no one's friend. Waitresses and orchestra conductors sometimes have to wear them, but the rest of us can make ot...
Sorry, Liv, but black dress-pants are no one's friend. Waitresses and orchestra conductors sometimes have to wear them, but the rest of us can make other choices.
Photo: ABC
Hello, yes, I am a fancy human, and this is what we wear.
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YOU NEED BETTER NECKLACES, OLIVIA.
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It looks like a shadow, but actually this wine sweater has lacy epaulets. The sweater wars are coming, and this sweater wants to be a colonel.
Photo:...It looks like a shadow, but actually this wine sweater has lacy epaulets. The sweater wars are coming, and this sweater wants to be a colonel.
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Hi again, outfit from "Ride, Sally, Ride."
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Boring.
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Ooooooh, not boring! More prints!
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Olivia isn't even that into gray coats, but she got this punch card, and if you wear nine gray coats, the tenth gray coat is free, so it's like, you k...
Olivia isn't even that into gray coats, but she got this punch card, and if you wear nine gray coats, the tenth gray coat is free, so it's like, you know, you might as well. Free coat.
Photo: ABC
What is this? This is the only time anything Pope-adjacent was even a little bit schmata-y.
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Okay, that's more like it.
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Even her pajamas have a collar.
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Oh, this is so gorgeous, it makes you wish Olivia wore powder-pink all the time. Or at least a little more often.
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Prints prints prints prints.
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Prints and a white coat! Peak Olivia-ness.
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Um, is that just a long-sleeve T-shirt? You're better than that, Olivia.
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Sleek.
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She should wear more capes. She's a real cape kind of person.
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Wouldn't a jazzy necklace be appropriate here? Indeed, it would.
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Of course she has a fancy robe.
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This is the Platonic ideal of Olivia.
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Points for collar details, but minus points for the flat back texture.
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Chug, chug, chug, chug.
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Cheer up, Liv. There are people lining up to commit murders on your behalf. Now's your chance to get back at those people you hated in middle school.
...Cheer up, Liv. There are people lining up to commit murders on your behalf. Now's your chance to get back at those people you hated in middle school.
Photo: ABC
Unlike many other TV (anti)heroines, Olivia usually wears neutral or no nail polish. Perhaps because she, uh, gets her hands dirty?
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Lots of round necklines this season.
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That's out there, Liv.
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That's the kind of heavy-knit sweater that would make you feel like you'd really accomplished something.
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Somehow, the super-pedestrian travel mug seems really off. Wouldn't she have something more elegant?
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Another good blouse.
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Another print.
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How sharply tailored is this jacket? Well, those shoulder pads could cut a man ...
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A rare moment of diaphanous scarving.
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Have a safe trip, Liv.
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