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Credit: Todd Williamson/Bravo
The Real Housewives of Orange County cast weighed in on Gina Kirschenheiter’s spending after Thursday’s season 20 episode, with particular attention on the $12,000 she paid for a stylist.
Gina, 42, addressed whether she regretted the expense and said she felt insulted by her co-stars’ criticism. Meanwhile, Heather Dubrow, 57, Tamra Judge, 59, Vicki Gunvalson, 64, and Shannon Beador, 62, offered their perspectives on her finances.
“I told her that was so insane,” Heather recalled during the October 22 episode of the RHOC: After Show. Gina had explained that the stylist prepared four looks: one for the Oscars after-party, another for a magazine photoshoot, one for a gallery shoot and a fourth event. Heather also noted that Gina did not get to keep any of the dresses.
“So my question is, how much money did you make out of going to all those events?” Tamra asked. Heather and Emily Simpson, 50, confirmed that Gina earned “nothing” from them.
Heather said she understood that Gina could spend her money as she wished, but questioned whether the price had been considered carefully. “Look, I can spend whatever I want, but I still have a price in my head for what’s reasonable,” she said, adding that anyone concerned about a cost should ask about it in advance.
While Vicki said her greater concern was Shannon, who acknowledged that she likely “[had] paid $12,000 for a stylist,” Tamra argued that Gina would be better off putting the money toward savings and investments.
“Don’t wear it on your body unless you’re at a level that is way up here, not right here,” Tamra advised.
Gina admitted that although she “looked great” at the events, the experience taught her an important lesson.
“It’s our fault. We were trying to just make things easier on ourselves,” she said, referring to herself and Emily, who also contributed to the bill. Gina acknowledged that they looked “insanely amazing” but added, “Would I engage in that again? No. Probably not.”
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Even so, Gina maintained that she would “never make a mistake [she] couldn’t afford to make.”
“I don’t understand what all the concern is when I’ve only displayed solid decision-making,” she said.
Gina also rejected the idea that her RHOC castmates had a valid reason to question her financial choices.
“There’s nothing about me or my personality that has ever, I think, showed anyone that they should be concerned about the decisions that I’ve made,” she explained. Gina pointed to the difficult experiences she had navigated on the show and said she had consistently made sound choices to move forward, grow and improve her life. Now that she has achieved financial success, she said, having her spending questioned felt insulting.
During Thursday’s RHOC episode, Jennifer Pedranti, 49, said she hoped Gina’s newfound financial success would not make her less “endearing,” while also making clear that she was inspired by Gina’s accomplishments.
“The insinuation that I’m changing really is bothersome to me because I think that as women, we need to be able to allow ourselves to change and evolve and let that be OK and not an indication that we’re no longer grounded as humans,” Gina told Bravo Insider. “I’m a very grounded person; I’m just doing it in better clothes. And I deserve that because I’ve worked really hard for it. It’s the truth.”
“You work hard, you get a promotion at work, whatever it is, you want to spoil yourself a little bit,” she continued. “You know what you have in your bank account and what you don’t. I know my kids come first. I’ve been taking such a hit on this show for f*cking years, being called poor because I chose to put my money into a home, to put a roof over my kids’ heads, and to put money in the bank, to be able to build, to be able to put myself in a good financial decision. And now I’m in it. Because of that, now I’m getting questioned about it. It sucks.”
On the RHOC: After Show, Gina suggested that some of her older castmates were trying to take on a parental role. Still, she stressed that she did not believe their concerns came from a malicious place.
“I do think these women genuinely do care about me. I’m just insulted that they think they have to care about me,” Gina concluded.
The Real Housewives of Orange County season 20 airs Thursdays at 8/7c on Bravo.