Barry shared a snap of herself wearing a sparkly silver gown, tiara and festive red lipstick on her social media channels encouraging Kiwis to dress up and celebrate even though we're stuck at home.
The photo shows her posing with a whisk and a bowl of lemons, leaving fans to wonder what baked delight she was whipping up in the kitchen this time.
"Happy #formalfriday darlings!" she wrote. "Hope I don't spark a fire in the kitchen this morning.
"Found my sparkle. Now it's time to find yours."
From then on, thousands of other New Zealanders responded every week with photos of their formal outfits on Fridays.
Across social media, New Zealanders thanked Barry for getting them out of their trackpants.
In August 2020, she added a baking tutorial to the mix, hosting a baking live on her Facebook page to entertain followers with her skills.
"I know it's only level 3 lockdown, but it feels like lockdown, so why not bring back formal Friday?" she said.
The dress she wore was what she had planned to wear to the Sol3 Mio concert at Spark Arena, which had been postponed.
"And you know what? It gives me something to do too."
She showed her followers how to make "the epitome of comfort eating", a version of a caramel slice. Great choice Hil Baz.
"It's going straight to the hips, but who cares, because as far as I'm concerned lockdown is all about the comfort eating."
