Dolly Parton's Signature Look Was Inspired By A Surprising Woman

With her big blonde hair, heavy makeup, and form-fitting outfits, Dolly Parton's style is almost as famous as her songs, and that isn't by mistake. The "Jolene" hitmaker is well aware that her signature look is totally outrageous, proudly quipping to Playboy in 1978, "Can you imagine anybody wanting to look this way for real?" As the Grammy winner acknowledged, it's a key part of her brand, reasoning, "You've got to have a gimmick. You've got to have something that will catch the eye and hold the attention of the public." 

As for how she created it in the first place, Dolly has credited several different influences over the years, from Fredricks of Hollywood to a specific woman she would always see in town when she was young. But, like any legendary figure, Dolly may be mixing truth with fiction. There is one woman who definitely played a big role in Dolly Parton using her most memorable outfits and makeup to express herself: The country star's beloved mother, Avie Lee Parton. While Dolly wasn't allowed to wear makeup or tight clothing as a child, by the time she got to high school her mom was more lenient and even gave her some advice. 

The "9 to 5" hitmaker recalled how Avie warned her about the logistics of wearing certain clothes: "She'd say, 'Don't get them so tight you can't move in them, where they cut your wind off.'" Dolly's mother, the daughter of a preacher who wasn't allowed to wear makeup herself, saw her own search for individuality in her daughter. And, as she told her, "I swore then that when I had kids, I would not make 'em do things that they were uneasy with."

Dolly Parton has 11 siblings so, unsurprisingly, they didn't have a lot of space growing up. In fact, the family lived in extreme poverty, doing whatever they could to make ends meet. As the "I Will Always Love You" hitmaker shared with Rolling Stone in 2026, "Mama used to sew all of our quilts and curtains for the windows, remake our clothes and make clothes out of feed sacks or scraps." Those memories have shaped her music, along with, as Parton revealed to Today in 2025, one simple piece of advice her mother gave her: "To thine own self be true." The Grammy winner ultimately made the famous William Shakespeare quote her own, giving it that classic Dolly Parton touch and advising others, "Find out who you are and do it on purpose. And do it with purpose." 

Naturally, that includes how she dresses and wears her hair and makeup. As the country icon regaled Playboy, "Record companies have tried to change me. I just refused. If I am going to look like this, I must have had a reason [...] If I can't make it on my talent, then I don't want to do it." With a celebrated career spanning decades, Parton has more than proven her talent, earning 55 Grammy nominations and winning 10 to date. And, along the way, she has helped others find their true selves, serving not only as an inspiration to artists like her goddaughter Miley Cyrus and Chappell Roan, but for millions of children through her Dollywood Foundation, sending them free books every month through her Imagination Library, and offering college scholarships.