Teresa Giudice was widely criticized for wearing a Balenciaga outfit amid the high-end fashion brand’s scandal. Before Thanksgiving, the brand released a new fashion campaign featuring children carrying teddy bears wearing bondage gear. Balenciaga later apologized, wiped the campaign from its social media pages, and filed a lawsuit against the production company behind the photos.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey star’s husband, Louie Ruelas, shared a photo of Giudice wearing a white sweater with the Balenciaga name printed all over it on Friday. Giudice posed for the camera, blowing a kiss to Ruelas. In another photo, the two posed in front of a mirror with Giudice in the Balenciaga sweater. The pictures were taken in Paris, where the couple is vacationing.
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Although Ruelas deleted the photos, Page Six published screenshots. Giudice, 50, and Ruelas have not commented on the Balenciaga situation. Instead, the two have continued sharing photos from their Paris trip.
Before Ruelas scrubbed the pictures, the comments section was flooded with critics wondering why she was endorsing Balenciaga. “We love you but burn that Balenciaga,” one person wrote, adding several vomiting emojis. “I love you but please do not endorse this brand. You’ll see why, it’s disturbing,” another commented. “Balenciaga…GREAT, another person to unfollow! You do realize there [is] normalizing child bondage, right? Are you ok with that? Shameful! UN FOLLOW,” another declared.
The former Dancing With the Stars contestant is not the only celebrity taking heat for wearing Balenciaga in the wake of the brand’s scandal. Kim Kardashian posted a photo of herself in Balenciaga gear the same day the brand apologized. The post was met with so much outrage that Kardashian finally broke her silence in a series of tweets on Nov. 27.
“As a mother of four, I have been shaken by the disturbing images. The safety of children must be held with the highest regard and any attempts to normalize child abuse of any kind should have no place in our society – period,” Kardashian wrote in part. “I appreciate Balenciaga’s removal of the campaigns and apology. In speaking with them, I believe they understand the seriousness of the issue and will take the necessary measures for this to never happen again.” The Kardashians star went on to say she is “re-evaluating” her relationship with Balenciaga.
The fashion label apologized for the bizarre campaign on Nov. 22 and deleted the pictures from its social media accounts. “We sincerely apologize for any offense our holiday campaign may have caused,” Balenciaga said. “Our plush bear bags should not have been featured with children in this campaign.” The company also condemned “abuse of children in any form.” Balenciaga also filed a $25 million lawsuit against North Six, Inc. and set designer Nicholas Des Jardins over the production company’s decision to include U.S. Supreme Court documents from a decision on child pornography laws in one of the pictures.
