Dolly Parton was sewn into her ‘Southern Living’ cover story look

Let it be Dolly Parton sift through a wardrobe malfunction without running out of time

In honor Dollywood’s The iconic Backwoods Barbie spoke for the 40th anniversary Southern life for the cover story, where she posed in a number of her signature waist-busting looks — including one so tight she had to be sewn into it.

“I unzipped and they had to stitch me up,” she told reporters Rick Bragg styling mishaps that led to last-minute sewing. “They might have to cut me out.

When she arrived on set, Parton, 78, looked as gorgeous as ever in one of her many platinum blonde wigs. “You’re so small,” Bragg reminded, to which the Grammy winner quipped, “Everything but my breasts and my hair.”

Related: Dolly Parton’s grandfather ‘whipped’ her wardrobe choices

Not everyone has always been a fan of Dolly Parton’s glamorous style. The country music icon, 77, recalled receiving both physical and verbal punishment from her grandfather for modeling his now-famous local “urban bum” look when she was growing up in Tennessee. “I’m very sensitive, I didn’t like to be disciplined,” she revealed in an interview for (…)

The queen of country music cut a glamorous figure in a denim bodycon dress adorned with rhinestone bow ties and crystal studs, which also adorned the front of her acoustic guitar. Just as eye-catching was the red, white and blue shadow that ran across her lids.

In another shot, she rocked silver glitter culottes with a studded and bleached denim jacket styled as a solo top, accentuating her world-famous waist.

It’s this commitment to aesthetics that has led some to believe (false) rumors that she had a rib removed to achieve her record-breaking size. She set the record straight in a 2014 interview women’s dayand he said, “(My) waist is small, for nothing grows in the shade!”

Perhaps her second biggest asset, um, is her wig collection, like the fluffy, curled bottle hairstyle the country music star wore on the cover of Southern Living. (Fun fact: Parton has previously said she has at least 365 wigs in her glam room — one for every day of the year, of course.)

Related: Dolly Parton’s candid quotes about plastic surgery over the years

Dolly Parton may be one of country music’s biggest stars, but it’s not just her songs that have made headlines over the years. “People say, ‘How come you look so young?'” Parton told BBC Newsnight in 2019. “I say, ‘Good lighting, good doctors and good makeup.'” The “9 to 5” singer was candid ( … )

Still, beneath the wigs, make-up and shape-shifting wardrobe, Parton revealed that every now and then she feels like she’s dressing up in someone else’s clothes.

“I think I’m a star to everyone but me,” she said. “I always wanted to be famous, but no one could imagine the extent to which it became. Somewhere I’ll see a whole wall of my pictures and wonder, ‘How did that happen?’ It’s more of a joy than a surprise.”

January/February issue Southern life hits newsstands January 17 and is available at SouthernLiving.com.