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Versace Couture Spring 2012

January 27, 2012

I read a review about this collection saying that it was destined for the red carpet…..I would like to know where and who? I welcome Versace back to Paris’s couture arena but this was not a massive highlight for me. I loved some of the materials, the hints of metal and the beading, but the shapes felt a little like Armani Prive couture collection from 2010 with its elliptical shapes. I thought the greys were just as unforgiving as the citrus shades and although the cutting was designed to flatter a gym-honed body I found the effect rather hard and perhaps a little tacky? Altogether a little underwhelming.

Source: Style.com

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Golden and Tarnished Globes 2012

January 18, 2012

This year for my take on the Golden Globes I am going positive negative positive negative until the end, where I get abit undecided and into murky water.

So, first up is Angelina Jolie in Atelier Versace. This for me is vintage Jolie style and the best she has looked at a big awards ceremony in a while. Although I’m not usually crazy about cream, against her white skin and quite severe hair it softens the whole look and work. I love the slash of red high up on the shoulder replicated in the bag and lipstick. It’s a pretty simply styling technique and can look overdone and too matchy matchy but for her it works. She’s wearing this dress, not the other way around.

Michelle Williams in Jason Wu. Will this girl ever learn? Why get an elfin hair cut that suits you so well but then ruin it by going matronly? She has worn a round neck before and been panned for it and this is no better. Then the horrible insignificant hairband, which doesn’t seem to be there for any reason. The whole look seems tired and therefore so does she. She is so cute and could carry off real high fashion; where has the girl who wore that amazing yellow dress in 2006 gone?

Claire Danes in J Mendel. This is very simple at the front with an interesting back and I like the blocked black and white panels. The strong lip looks great and so does the twist of hair into a bun at the back.

Charlize Theron in Dior. This a hot mess of a dress! As you will know, I hate short at the front, long at the back dresses and this is no exception. This pale pink, beige, cream does not suit her skin tones and looks frankly a little tarty. The bodice looks like its stretched to within an inch of its life down into the waist band in order to avoid a mishap. Then there are three tiers of fabric for no good reason and finally the ankle straps on the shoes completes this mishap.

Evan Rachel Wood in Gucci. This dress is beautiful with its feather details and the lovely deep greens running through it. She’s part mermaid part bird. From the wider shoulder straps down it is super figure-flattering. Not sure about her hair colour, I prefer her darker look.

Jessica Chastain in Givenchy. A polo-neck is never acceptable for an evening dress and how old does she look? After a quick google, I find she’s 30 – she could be 50. Horrible Dallas hair and cheap looking pearl earrings don’t help, and I don’t want to bash her figure, but the cut of the dress and the high black belt widen her shoulders and does nothing to flatter her.

Zooey Deschanel in Prada. She has been known for overdoing the all out kooky look, but here she pulls off different in an interesting and chic way. I love the bright chartreuse colour in the beading on the front of this dress. Her hair looks great too, glossy and simple. She looks comfortable and confident.

Sarah Michelle Gellar in Monique Lhuillier. Wow! Unwisely she said her two year old picked this dress for her and it shows! This is so truly awful that my fingers are hovering over the keyboard trying to pick words to evoke my disgust. I love the fabric pattern which would work prettily under the summer sun, but to use it puffed out into great widening billows for a red carpet gown seems misguided. Maybe the child can make a den under it when the show’s over.

Nicole Kidman in Versace. I can’t believe I’m writing this but after several years of mistakes – and not just in her choice of plastic surgeon – she actually looks quite good. I love the pale grey with the body-shaping gold design and the simple toning accessories. It looks super luxury but not overly worked. Suprisingly impressive.

Kate Winslet in Jenny Packham. How short does this dress make her look? She normally shows off her curves to perfection but the white skirt is doing nothing for her body. I don’t like how hard the make-up is either; it’s odd because it’s so understated and yet somehow doesn’t seem very fresh. Good hair though.

Helen Mirren in Badgley Mischka. I’m a sucker for navy but how amazing does Helen Mirren look? I don’t need to say anymore; just look and pray we all look that good when we are her age.

Piper Perabo in Olivier Theyskens. I don’t understand what went through her mind, or the stylist’s? What was the message? What the genre, the reference, the mood? What was the…..? Nope, I don’t get anything from this dress except sheer volume (see what I did there)?! Although she still looks about 22 she is in fact 35 (thanks again google), and this dress is a major no no for anyone over 5years old (little Miss Gellar might like it…). It’s a bizarre colour with a nasty sheer panel down the front of the bodice, and all the photos are of her faffing around with it making random faces, which makes it even more uncomfortable. If only she could have at least worn it with laid back confidence, but it’s the childlike exuberance of ‘look mummy, I’m in a big dress’ that makes it worse.

Dianna Agron in Giles. I am impressed, I love this! It’s lazer cut, so much edgier than lace, and looks like tattooing and latticework and wrought iron but also Japanese art. It’s very cool. The upswept hair is classy and oldschool and she oozes glamour. Quinn A+.

Emma Stone in Lanvin. This is where we get onto the ‘yeah but, no but’ finalists. I love the colour: maroon, aubergine, dark purple whatever you want to call it, it’s my favourite. I like the draping, the bare panel at the side, the padded shoulders with the twist of pink detail, but I do not like the belt at all. It looks like a piece of KGB memoribilia and it totally ruins it for me. Damn you, belt!

Reese Witherspoon in Zac Posen. I don’t mean to be crude but what was she up to in the limo beforehand?! That hair is freshly mowed hair and it looks awful. Otherwise I like the tailoring along the panels of the dress, which does manage to make her look tall, but there is one strong feeling coming from this look, and I hate to say it, but it’s Country!

Natalie Portman in Lanvin. I like this, it’s cute and it’s pretty, but it’s just a little safe and perhaps a tad old for someone as stunning and fashion-capable as Natalie. But she does look stunning and as with Angelina’s dress, I love the fold of red on the top.

Heidi Klum in Calvin Klein. The one issue with loose backless dresses is that the forward silhouette is often not as form-fitting as it should be. I love the nude colour mixed with the turquoise necklace: it’s a combo that is used regularly and rarely disappoint. But it’s a shame the front isn’t more tailored as really that’s all you see in most photos and I think her hair is far too straight: step away from the straighteners, Heidi, and go for something a little more relaxed.

Tilda Swinton in Haider Ackermann. The Ice Beauty. I think this outfit is pretty amazing, it’s bold and different and sharp and no one else but Tilda could pull it off. The two heavy matching bracelets are a great touch of jewellery in an otherwise simple but beautifully tailored look. Only issue for me is I love Haider Ackermann but mainly for his lovely deep colours and wish I’d seen more people brave enough to weat them on the red carpet, including Tilda.

Kristen Wiig in Bill Blass. I like this 60s Saturday Night Fever look in the great nude colour with the long chain, it could almost be a jumpsuit from that era, but I do not like the oddly dyed, oddly large hair. Her face is pretty narrow anyway and having hair on either side of a similar size just makes it look tiny.

So, having chosen not to focus on the looks I hated, that’s about it till the BAFTAS.

Source: Zimbio

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Has SJP lost her USP?

November 10, 2011

I know that making negative comments about Sarah Jessica Parker’s style credentails is pretty close to blasphemy in some fashion corners but in my opinion the pretty minimal fashion cred she had anyway seems to have vanished over recent months. I display below some genuine shockers from a woman people call a style icon.

First up: this dress is an abomination. I think bows under the bust line should not be worn by anyone over five, the material looks heavy and over-starched, and the colour of the bodice is not at all flattering to her skintone. There is what looks like a hair twist around her wrist and the whole thing is finished off with a pair of totally unremarkable shoes.

Wow, is really all I can muster. Philip Treacy’s extravagant creation is not meant for someone so small nor for indoor wear. This is not a case of ‘oh, that’s high fashion’, or ‘oh, that’s a concept hat’, it’s just bizarre head gear for an interview where the shadow over her face is comical and distracting rather than mysterious. This is ridiculous.

Who doesn’t love a fluorescent yellow dress with dirty blonde hair? Not I. Let’s work up: yet another dull pair of shoes and made even worse by being white. Liz Hurley wears white shoes, that’s all you need to know about their fashion status. Do I need to remind SJP that any fashion designer in the world would kill to have her wear their shoes but she chose these! Then the acid colours of the dress, the drawstring waist, another hair twist bracelet and all finished off with what look like cheap plastic beads in baby blue…

This is another treat. Her make-up and hair are ok but oh, the clothes. This is jumped up nightwear. The awful frilly uneven hem looks cheap and tacky and the dress, which does nothing for her figure, is covered by an oversized dressing gown/jumper/coat thing. The jewellry is a random pick from the miscellaneous drawer, and then, hello lover, there are those shoes again.

Tacky bridesmaid? Slutty mother in law? Either way it’s awful. Just gaze in sheer amazement and ask yourself how a grown up woman could really leave the house looking like this. The dress is white lace, with both an asymmetrical neckline and an asymmetrical hem, and there is no help from the accessories either, with the little hippy wristbands, that horrible Carrie-esque flower throwback and the nasty short necklace with a beige metal trim bag. It hurts my professional stylist’s insides.

Ah, the classic combo of jumper and skirt but wait, why does she look so uncomfortable? Is it because that burnt orange colour does nothing for her, or that she matched her bra to her cuffs, or that she borrowed the skirt from a colourful libriarian, or perhaps it’s that her hair is eating her shoulders?

This season was all about mixing bright block colours and it’s not so much that I don’t like this clashing mix but that it is TOTALLY unacceptable of any stylist/assistant/SJP herself to have put white shoes with this outfit. It immediately takes it to Saturday Night Fever territory, which is not a good way to go.

I am a great believer in not being too ageist when it comes to clothing styles or lengths, but honestly, has SJP forgotten that she left pre school about forty years ago? And that in fact this really isn’t a dress for any age, because it truly is so nasty. Again she’s gone with studs and a short necklace which is boring and ageing, but hurray, at least the shoes are a little better.

We come to the end of these fashion faultlines with a truly stand out performer. We’ve already had the trampy white lace dress above; this is its ugly sister. Note the horrible uneven hemline again and the old fashioned frill across the bust line. The slit tries to make it sexy but just increases the idea that her mother made it from her lace curtains.

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The Met Ball 2011

May 3, 2011

This year’s Met Ball was an homage to Alexander McQueen, in connection with the much anticipated ‘Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty’ exhibition which opens at the MET in NYC tomorrow (until 31st July). I’m hoping to see it when I’m over there in a couple of weeks time. Some years I feel there is more to criticize than compliment at the Met Ball, but this year I’m going to overlook all the faux pas and nearly misses to concentrate on the good selection of people who got it right.

First then, Liv Tyler in Givenchy. Does anyone look bad in couture Givenchy? I’ve yet to see it. Even though this is an incredibly elegant, oragami, feathered Ricardo Tisci invention, the ultimate in design and couture, she carries it off as if this dress was custom made for her. And I love the simple uber glossy hair.

Amber Valletta in Stella McCartney. Stella dressed a surprisingly large number of the A-listers last night and I thought this stood out as one of the best. I love the peacock feather pattern framing the hem of the bodice against the plain skirt. It’s simple but super elegant and I love the big statement earrings. It’s a far cry from Stella’s last questionable lemons and oranges collection.

Beyonce, in figure hugging Emilio Pucci. Now she is all woman. It is a pretty full on look with the high collar and I think she carries it off, firstly because of her amazingly curvy body, but also because of the smile. If she’d been too pouty and with big hair it would have made it far too much. I love the extra lace on the cleavage.

Blake Lively in Chanel. She looks amazing, there really is no if, but or maybe about it. I think the darker almost strawberry blonde hair really suits her and this dress shows off her enviable figure. The draping is beautifully subtle and I love the nude bodice with the delicate silver embroidery.

Brooklyn Decker in Michael Kors. It’s bright, very bright, but she looks young and fresh . Her shorter hair suits her so much better and makes her stand out amongst the usual blonde-extensioned swim wear models. I love the fact that the shoes are nude so that they look like her legs just continue to the floor. Great cocktails rings with a good smallish bag makes the whole outfit one of my favourite; simple elegance.

Christina Ricci in Zac Posen. This dress is really quite something. It’s slightly corpse bride but at the same time delicate and intricate like a line drawing. The insane sculpting on it makes it spectacular, though it’s a shame about the jutting hip bones. It’s totally different from what I’d normally expect Posen to do, and although it does reference his more familiar pleating and homage to a woman’s figure, it’s dark beauty definitely moves it into Alexander McQueen territory.

Daphne Guinness in Alexander McQueen. Well she would, wouldn’t she? One of the few woman who doesn’t get over powered by a Big Bird’s date night outfit, although she shouldn’t have worn the tights! This really is an incredible piece of artistry, with its beautiful lilac colour and dramatic silhouette.

Diane Kruger in Jason Wu. Her eclectic style can be hit and miss for me, but this is beautiful. She looks like a sexy grown up woman, the slit is pretty damn high but with long sleeves and a high neck she can get away with it. I like the Veronica Lake hair and the red lips. It looks effortless which is one of the qualities of great style.

Doutzen Kroes in Giambattista Valli. It’s big and red and I love it. Yes, it blends a little into the carpet but I love how it relies totally on the shape and the girl inside it to carry it off. Despite its huge train this is suprisingly simple but many an actress or model would easily get swallowed up in the red mist. I love that there are no accessories and the hair and make-up are kept simple.

Ginnifer Goodwin suprisingly in Topshop. It’s quite a look but I think it works for her and, although I think this can go either way as a description but here it’s meant as a compliment, it’s because she’s kooky. I love her pixie hair cut and the super strong blue eye makeup. The dress is stunning colour and although I think the ruched sides would be widening on most people she seems to carry it well. I love the turquoise and green necklace; I think I want that more than the dress and shoes!

Karolina K in Jean Paul Gaultier. She’s a model therefore she can get away with looks like this. It’s interesting, it’s different, it requires time to take in all the details from the lace straps, the feather hand bracelet to the messy bun. Top model, top look.

Leighton Meester in Louis Vuitton. I’m on the fence but I wanted to give her some marks for trying. Although I think full length is needed for the MET ball, this is something a bit alternative. She always trys different looks out and I’ve seen photos taken from varying angles where it looks great and where it really doesn’t. Maybe if she’d gone for large coloured jewellery, bigger hair and some other shoe, but somehow the sleek hair and diamond earrings bring it away from high fashion.

Michelle Williams in custom made Miu Miu and it’s another that I love. Since Miu Miu and Erdem used lots of swallow motifs a couple of seasons ago they have become a much seen symbol. Here I love the way the birds catch the light on this grown up and sexy dress. Her hair is just right for it too, she looks so great with it short.

Rachel Wood in Gucci. Burgundy, dark purple, aubergine,whatever you want to call, it is one of my favourite colours. It looks amazing against her white skin and I love the double layers over the bust and the hint of grey sparkle. Gothic and feminine and sensuous.

Shalom Harlow in Marchesa. Only a 5’11 plus model could handle this typically Marchesa dress, with its strong silhouette and curving fabric lines. It looks both structured and fluid as water. I like the small detail of the feather covering her parting.

Sarah Jessica Parker in Alexander McQueen. The hair is a little full on, slightly too Dallas and hard. But wow, the dress is stunning, with its incredible beading detail and great body-framing seaming. Incidentally, I also love the white number with the yellow sleeves just to the side of her.

Vera Wang in, shockingly, Vera Wang. Although she is painfully thin, I love the colour and the pleating that goes all the way down the front; it looks bohemian and yet chic. I also like the grecian leafed headdress.

PictureSource: Zimbio

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THE Wedding

April 30, 2011

I’m sure you don’t need me to tell you, but the royal wedding between Prince William and Catherine Middleton happened yesterday at London’s Westminster Abbey. The much anticipated wedding and of course the extra day off work was the cause of great celebrations in London. More than a million people turned out to watch the couple get married, filling The Mall, Hyde Park and St James Park and generally enjoying the chance to take part in something genuinely carefree and communal. A couple of highlights for me were the trees in the Abbey, a coup de theatre which looked beautiful, and somehow modern as well as pastoral and the Aston Martin moment. But on to the clothes, even though there has been an avanlanche of coverage already.

The dress was Jane Burton at Alexander McQueen and overall I liked it but I wasn’t blown away. Having seen so much press specualting that McQueen might get the nod for designing the dress, I had images of something incredible and yes, probably too fashiony for a Royal Wedding, or for this particular bride, but I did hope it would be more ‘extreme’, for want of a better word. The lace was was certainly very flattering to her figure and the trademark corsetting certainly accentuated her tiny waist. As there should be on a wedding dress, there appeared to be some great detailing in the bustle at the back, but I felt this was a bit lost under the veil. One negative, she had too much hard eye make up on for the occasion and although this is her signature look, if she had done without the heavy black line under her eye it would have been great.

The second dress Kate changed into for the dinner and dancing in the evening was for me a bit of a shocker. That horrible mohair cardigan I hope is not credited to McQueen because it looked totally wrong for an April wedding and the diamante beading at the waistline looked cheap, as frankly the white satin did as well. Why pick another full skirt? I would so have gone for something still bridal but more streamlined as a great contrast to the wedding dress, (like Pippa’s bridesmaid dress, more of that later), this one made her look bizarrely old and young at the same time. Also I think she should have stuck with her hair half up half down, or twisted into a soft rope on one side; she’s clearly obsessed with her hair, but it looked so everyday and incongruous against the dress.

As for the rest of the congregation it was a mixed bag. The Queen resplendent in yellow is beyond criticism and I loved her brooch. Camilla’s outfit I quite liked, the pleats in the coat looked interesting with the beadwork hung low on the hips giving it an almost flapperesque feel. Carole Middleton (Kate’s mother) looked perfect acceptable if a little underwhelming in a rather predicatble mother-of-the-bride shade and shape.

Princess Eugenie and Princess Beatrice were probably the most disappointing. These sisters regularly take interesting fashion choices and the night before they looked great at a celebratory pre-wedding dinner. But Beatrice’s nudey/beige Valentino was a little ageing and the hat is Isabella Blow but without the authority or the attitude to carry it off, but for sure Eugenie suffered more. When you have an ample bust the last thing you want to do with it is have a square neckline, bows and contrast piping so it looks like you have been upholstered in. The skirt is totally unflattering and looked messy and not as in normal Vivienne Westwood great messy, and her hat was too heavy. To think of all the amazing options these girls could have worn! It makes my fashion blood boil.

Samantha Cameron in Burberry. Now there has been alot of fuss about the fact she had no hat or fascinator, but I think she looks great. The teal looked lovely against her colouring and the statement necklace by Erdem was a strong fashion choice. I personally think hats are not expected at weddings any more and I salute her choice not to conform. Her figure looked amazing for a women who had a baby less than a year ago and the burnt orange shawl was a relaxed splash of colour, and I loved that David and she held hands walking down the Abbey to their seats.

Sophie Windsor, the Countess of Wessex, behind Princess Anne. Sophie first: I liked the gilt brocade sleeve and belt, although the matching purse was overkill. The hat had just enough height and was at a nice angle, but I think I would have gone for a coloured shoe, nothing too garish but just to lift the look a little. Princess Anne was one of the few in a pattern, but the material was far too much like a furnishing fabric .

David and Victoria Beckham. David Beckham in Ralph Lauren looked the usual stunning man that he is. Victoria, in her own design, looked a little tense and reserved but I liked that it was a sumptuous navy and not black and I really liked the hat and the simple hair. But, as always, I felt that just a hint of a smile would have made this outfit great.

David Milliband’s partner looked a bit of state. If you are on the shorter end of the scale then wrapping yourself in heavy fabric with a neckline that shortens your neck and then adding a flattening hat, is hardly guaranteed to increase your stature . It also looks wintery, the sleeves are too long for her and the court shoes are boring.

Nick Clegg’s wife fared no better. Yes she’s Spanish, yes she can therefore be a abit of exotic but this is Evita gone wrong. The grey satin didn’t look expensive or classy, specially not wrapped in netting, and then the odd wrapped turban/flower affair wasn’t quite right either. When you first saw her at the Abbey, you had to take a moment to figure out who the hell it was and what a totally odd outfit to have worn. And guess what, Nick Clegg did wear a morning suit, although by matching the jacket and trousers in grey he managed to make it look as much like a lounge suit as possible to please his doubters.

Pippa, Pippa, Pippa, so glad you’re not my little sister! (See what I did there?) Honestly, I thought she looked amazing and if I was Kate I would have been annoyed at how demurely sexy my baby sister looked on my wedding day. The dress was Alexander McQueen and recreation of a dress Cameron Diaz wore to the Oscars last year and it looked beautiful. It skimmed her body and had just enough hint of cleavage and the buttons all down the back were beautiful. She looked at ease in it and thoroughly classy, although I do think it was an odd choice to pick white for her and the little bridesmaids, but with the simple green and white flowers in the Abbey and the bouquets it all worked surprisingly well.

Now let’s hope for Happily Ever After……….

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Oscars 2011

February 28, 2011

Well, I have to say it wasn’t a waterfall of high fashion, but there were some lovely hits and some reliable misses; you can always count on Nicole Kidman right?

Starting with Cate Blanchett in Givenchy Couture and please understand that mere mortals could not pull this off, and I have no idea why this works but it does and she looks incredible! I love all the beading and the surprising flash of yellow at the back, the pale purple colour and pleated skirt just look amazingly good on her, so hail to the stylist who thought this would work and to Cate for making it stunning.

Hailee Steinfeld in Marchesa. After the austere black she wore at the Baftas it’s nice to see her back in something lovely. I think the hairband on her looks really pretty and the dress looks light and youthful but just princessy enough for a young girl going to the Oscars and with all Marchesa’s usual stunning sophisticated bead work.

Natalie Portman in Rodarte. She looked amazing and she needed to for collecting her Oscar. It made the most of her blossoming figure, the colour is absolutely stunning and I love the one-sided hair with the tassle earrings. I wish the dress went all the way down to the floor but I understand that you need to be safe. Love the beaded trim on the neckline and the just off the shoulders look.

Michelle Williams in Chanel. She looks beautiful, effortlessly chic. This dress is just the kind of thing she should be wearing: it’s flattering to her body, feminine and yet subtle and not too in your face. I love the white blond hair too.

Sandra Bullock in Vera Wang. Ignoring the facial expresion, I think she looks pretty good. It’s a lovely red and I like the two layers on the breasts, it cinches in her waist beautifully and thank god the awful bangs are nowhere to be seen. Maybe she could have worn just a little more jewellery and definitely not a matching red bag.

Amy Adams in L’Wren. I like this look, the blue looks great with her strawberry blonde hair, it sculpts her body beautifully and although the jewellery is a bit random I honestly don’t think it would have worked without it. It also helps that it’s not just a simple diamond necklace, the big stone at the bottom is great.

Gwyneth Paltrow in Calvin Klein. I just don’t know about this dress, it has potential but I don’t like the belt which looks like an afterthought nor that the clasp on it matches her earrings; when was that ever an accepted fashion practise? Also the hair is just a bit catalogue model.

Mila Kunis in Elie Saab. Again this is another one I’m not sure about. It’s just a little to0 nightie-esque. I like the bodice but then you lose me on the semi see-through vaguely shaggy bottom half. Lovely colour but a bit disappointing.

Scarlett Johansson in Dolce & Gabanna. I don’t like this, it’s far too matronly and the two tone raspberry colour mixed with flower pattern lace just doesn’t work. Is it me or has she lost her way with her look recently? Also it seems as if she is wearing dark underclothes, although this may just be the odd placing of the lace or the colouration. In the close-up pictures you can see that she’s wearing orangey eyeshadow which is very random.

Anne Hathaway in vintage Valentino. Some of the dresses she wore during the show were good but I don’t like this one for the red carpet; the whole thing is quite oddly proportioned, I think it needs to be pulled up or have the hair down or something, it’s so bottom heavy. I think for the Oscar host something a little more dramatic or sexy would have been good. I don’t see her stylist Rachel Zoe going ‘bananas’ over it, but maybe she did.

Reese Witherspoon in Armani Prive. The awful piece of hair on the back really doesn’t work and makes her look cheap and Princess Barbie like. The dress is ok but a bit mature I think for her. She can do old Hollywood so well and I don’t understand why she settled for this.

Jennifer Lawrence in Calvin Klein. Is it me or does she look like a blow up sex doll? Way too much hair and not enough jewellery. For someone so California pretty she could easily carry a more edgy, fashion forward dress. She looks like Donald Trump’s new wife not a hot young starlet.

Florence Welch from Florence and the Machine looking awful in who knows what (actually Valentino). It looks so much like your granny’s marriage bed attire. Why the high neck? Why the long sleeves? Why wear a colour the blends into you skin tone? I’ve seen her perform and she is incredible and she can carry off something much more radical than this. Her Givenchy Couture at the Grammys was so much more haute.

And finally Nicole Kidman in Dior. Now Dior could do with some good press right now but it’s not going to get it from this dress which is just odd. It looks heavy and bizarrely brocaded, like home embroidery or an altar cloth. Maybe she got up from the table too quickly and took the cloth with her. And I’m sorry but that piece of hair on her face is so not ok; why is her hair always so bad?

Source: Zimbio

Posted in Celebrity, Fashion Commentary, Photography, Red Carpet | 2 Comments »

Screen Actors Guild 2011

January 31, 2011

The Screen Actors Guild awards took place last night and apart from being happy that ‘The King’s Speech’ did so well (if you haven’t seen it you really should, it’s amazing) it was overall a pretty poor show from a fashion point of view, yet again. I can’t believe how many outfits I’ve ignored purely for their uninspiring and non commital fashion sense.

One definite highlight was Hailee Steinfeld in Prada. I’m beginning to love her and ‘True Grit’ isn’t even out in the UK for two more weeks. Like the dress she wore for the Globes this is age appropriate, fun, fashion forward and fresh. Barely any makeup, lovely young shiny hair. She is a perfect example of style and grace – long may this continue.

Annette Bening in Tony Ward Couture. A round of applause for the 50+, damn, she looks good. No sleeves needed for this older woman, the gold colour is super flattering and the beaded details give just enough cleavage attention without being too brazen. It’s honestly one of the best I’ve seen her look. It simply says this is a great dress which hangs beautifully off my figure and I feel great in it.

January Jones in Carolina Herrera. I do like how completely different this look is from the much debated red Versace number at the Globes. This is elegant and classy and just a tantalising touch demure.

Natalie Portman in Azzaro. She’s having ‘a white moment’ as Rachel Zoe would say and it works. I like the closer fitting fabric and the way it cups the bump. We know it’s there, why hide it? The neckline is highish but I think it works here: too much cleavage would have been inappropriate and she hasn’t fussed by adding a necklace. She looks young, charming and ethereally pregnant!

Tina Fey in Oscar de la Renta. Somehow she manages to look great more often than not. This isn’t boundary-pushing fashion, not sexy kitten, but just right for her. The textured red dress gives her a great hourglass figure and she looks completely comfortable, sassy and simply groomed.

Mila Kunis in Alexander McQueen and I can’t quite decide… It’s nice but it’s not amazing. It seems almost not grecian enough and too Resort collection. I like the strong red colour but it really doesn’t do anything for her body. There’s definitely too much hair going on.

Claire Danes in Louis Vuitton. I quite like the dress but I’m never sure that flower patterns at award shows quite work unless they are very abstract. The belt is far too long and a bit ‘this is a trendy way to tie a belt’ and the make up seems a bit off too - I think it’s the eyes that don’t work for me. But she does look pretty.

Christina Hendricks in L’Wren Scott. Wow, this for me is not good. She seems to have forgotten how to dress her mighty cleavage, here her breasts look squashed and suffocated. Why not elevate them and give them a platform, rather than buttoning them up in black? It looks as though she’s wrapped a pretty expensive dressing gown around her and hoped that would do. Her stunning figure is totally lost in there. The eye make-up is way too heavy and those house slipper shoes are a total abomination.

Winona Ryder in Alberta Ferretti. She looks so confused! How old is she now? Surely not at the prom queen stage still? This white layered tulle thing is really awful and doesn’t flatter her. It makes her look much shorter and dumpier than she really is. The look is not helped by the obvious ‘up’ do hair and the rather Edwardian bag.

Nicole Kidman in Nina Ricci. I used to love this woman, so informal and amusing, but her Moulin Rouge heyday seems a long time ago and I think she’s actually lost the plot. From the waist up she looks like a Wild West barmaid and from the waist down she looks like a librarian. Why would you put a necklace on a dress which already has a ruffle collar detail? Why has she got hair all over her face?Did she think a touch of leopardskin shoe would redeem this? Why does she now look like she’d rather be anywhere but on the red carpet?

Source: Zimbio

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1 Golden Globe, 2 Golden Globes, 3 Golden Globes, 4…

January 17, 2011

The Golden Globes 2011 were a tad underwhelming for me. No one person really stood out, no picture of a dress really made me excited. There was an overuse of black and some definite misjudgements so not a great year. I’m crossing my fingers for the Oscars.

Starting with the most successful, Amy Adams in Marchesa, picture below. First off it wins for me on colour alone, teal is one of my favourite shades ever. The lovely laser cut ‘puffs’ on the shoulder and opposing hip are not too extreme but add a flourish to an otherwise classical shape.

Angelina Jolie in Atelier Versace. Lovely to see her in some colour and the bead work gives such a sparkle to this. The hair is a little too un-done for me and a couple of cocktails rings would have really finished this off beautifully. However, she has come to have such a weary, bored look at red carpet events that it’s hard to feel the wow factor.

January Jones in Versace. Wow, this is a whole lotta look, but I like it. She’s done her Mad Men hair which for me is how she looks best but added some major cleavage which makes it super sexy. It’s somewhat ‘in your face’ but because she has that ice-queen super high maintance feel I think it looks great.

Emma Stone in Calvin Klein. This so shouldn’t work yet it so does. Totally simple and grown-up, sexily understated and kept clean with simple hair and accessories. I have no idea who she is but top marks.

Mila Kunis in Vera Wang. She’s playing it pretty safe with the one shoulder dress which was a prevalent look on the red carpet, but it’s a stunning colour and I like the texture changes all over the dress. I think some amazing gold earrings would make it slightly younger and more modern.

Leighton Meester in Burberry Prorsum. It’s different, I’ll give her that, and I commend her for always picking something slightly unexpected. I like the pattern in the beige, the long sleeves and the tassle bag. She managed to make it look not too old with fresh make-up and tousled hair.

Olivia Wilde in Marchesa. Why oh why ruin it with those shoes?? Lovely fifties shape, relaxed hair and beautiful subtle sparkle….why would anyone add brittle gold spiky platform Louboutins? They look cheap and totally out of place, though clearly she’s thrilled with them.

Tilda Swinton in Jil Sander. Well, she sticks to her style and I like it. It’s suprisingly feminine for her and a good choice from a rather limited Jil Sander collection this year. I like the brushed back hair and slick white shirt, it looks British, cool and in control.

Hailey Steinfeld in Prabal Gurung. I think dressing a new young starlet for awards is a tough job: you don’t want them looking like mutton dressed as lamb (Miley Cyrus anyone??) but also you need to find something that doesn’t make them look like their mother chose it. This is perfect. It’s not too figure-hugging and still creates a nice shape, it’s not too loud and yet the white makes her look angelic, the hair’s not too done but frames her face. Lovely.

Anne Hathaway in Giorgio Armani. It’s quite different from what she normally goes for and perhaps a little too grown up for someone so fresh faced but I like the beading, it’s got a lot of texture and of course the scoop back gives it a nice sexiness. Good hair too.

Now for the so-so’s:

Sandra Bullock in Jenny Packham. Whoever did that to her hair should be ashamed! It looks SO bad. It’s very top heavy, as if she’s got a toupee in a darker colour just on the crown of her head which is such a shame because the dress is so pretty with its intricate beading and lovely understated colour. Disappointing because I love her!

Heidi Klum in Marc Jacobs. Because it’s Mark Jacobs my first thought is to rebel but I’m trying to be open-minded and she does stand out from the crowd and it does make a statement…but she does need her roots done.

And the bad:

Eva Longoria in Zac Posen. A Spanish widow in mourning? No? An opera singer in mourning? No? A Jackie Collins heroine in mourning? Still no? Well then I have no idea what this look was going for. Her breasts are bizarrely pushed up and apart and she looks like the base of a lamp waiting for its shade.

Halle Berry in Nina Ricci and Halle, it’s bad! It makes her breasts look massive (not in a good way) and her legs super short. It looks as if someone draped a little bit of black chiffon around a Victoria Secrets nightie, topped off with two Wonder Woman diamond cuffs which totally don’t work. Surely dating a Frenchman should give her more style that this? Non??

Michelle Williams in Valentino. This is probably the biggest offender of the evening. For Cannes and the premieres for her film she’s been looking great, what went wrong here? It looks as though she’s just had a baby and retired to a mountain retreat to recover. Daisies are an absolute no no for any red carpet event and the hideous straps just top off a totally matronly and frankly offensive outfit. Fire the stylist.

Lea Michele in Oscar de la Renta. Do you think people will notice me if I wear a huge pink dress? Do you think people will forget I was a total b**** for snubbing poor little True Grit’s Hailey? Do you think if I smile super big people will think I look like Penelope Cruz? What was she thinking? She’s young and massively popular right now because of Glee, why step out in something like this?

Julianne Moore in Lanvin. Ouch. Did no one tell her she’d have to sit in a car and therefore scrumple the dress before the photos? Did no one tell her that fluorescent pink really doesn’t work for her? Did no one tell her that the gold half necklace thing looks as though it’s strangling her? Isn’t this what children are for? To say, mummy, you look totally ridiculous, like a used napkin from a 5 year old’s princess party.

Jennifer Lopez in Zuhair Murad. She is way too hot for this outfit. She looks like a winter bride. Totally not her typical fashion outlook. She has come along way from Jenny from the Block so why go back to mail order fashion?

Scarlett Johansson in Elie Saab. If you’re young, newly single and world renowned for your hotness, would you pick this dress? I didn’t think so. It makes her look shorter than necessary, gives her quarterback shoulders and surely the sleeves are more typical of middle-aged women who don’t want to show their arms. Also, what colour is her hair? Is she between blonde and brown? A wasted opportunity but perhaps she doesn’t mind.

Natalie Portman in Victor&Rolf. One of my favourite designers and it’s hard to bash a pregnant woman but I’ll give it a go. Again, it’s just so middle-aged. This is a random look of pink satin all bunched up together with a too bright red rose, accessorised with a diamond necklace which really doesn’t go and makes her lose her neck and that space between neck and cleavage which adds much needed height. It just doesn’t suit a fresh-faced, young expectant mother.

Source: Zimbio

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The Skinny on the Emmys

September 4, 2010

So I’m a little late in the game on the Primetime Emmys this year but better late than never. Not a bad showing, in fact I was pretty impressed with the styling this year.

Rose Byrne in Gucci to start with: unfortunately she looks as if she’s about to break down in tears in the photo below. I love the metallic strips almost like scaffolding holding up the dress, a harder edge to a beautifully draped white dress. The back also doesn’t disappoint with the lovely cowl at the base of the spine.

Maria Menounos in a Ralph&Russo custom made dress with 15,000 swarovski crystals is beautiful. It’s the muted grey tones that make this dress seem adult and sophisticated ….. imagine it in purple, disaster! The lips are a not too trampy red and I like the combination of cut out and the high neck, subtle sexy.

Lauren Graham in Yigal Azrouel. I have a major soft stop for Lauren after coming to Gilmore Girls late in the game and I know this dress could go either way, but it works… I think. I love the black and white contrast and the different shapes across the shoulders. The messy up-do looks nice and relaxed but I have to say the multiple rings and bracelets bizarrely in gold bring it down a little. Great subtle slit as well, Liz Hurley take note!

I have to admit I had no idea who Kristin Wiig was but thanks to the wonder of the internet and a quick IMDB search I find she is a comedian on SNL. Don’t know who she’s wearing but I like it. It makes her look nice and tall and the black feathers are a nice nod to the military trend that has been all over the runways.

Jane Krakowski in Escada, lovely lovely lovely. Grown up and chic, I love the water like pattern running throughout in heavenly navy. A little heavy on the side hip but then it’s balanced with the opposing shoulder.

A quick shout out to Kiernan Shipka, one of my favourite characters in Mad Men. Often young stars looks so inappropriate on the runway but how cute does she look? I’m only sorry about the Suri Cruise heels. Great smile.

Kelly Osbourne in Tony Ward. This is how to wear black. The great draping highlights all her best features, her figure looks stunning and the young simple make-up and classic pair of earrings are just right. Top marks.

Jayma Mays in Burberry in another great navy dress. I love the texture and the gold accessories, however I don’t love the over-tousled and backcombed hair. It looks too like the teased fabric of the dress and something sleeker would have been much better. Great little clutch as well bringing the perfect amount of subtle sparkle.

Elizabeth Moss looking amazing in Donna Karan, I think this is the best I’ve ever seen her look. Great beige grey colour against her skin tone and just enough 40′s film siren about her hair. Perfect draping as always from Donna Karan, who does it better?

Claire Danes in Armani Prive, simple and stunning. The dress does all the work, looking great on her body with simple hair and bare accessories. If anything the eye make-up is a litle harsh with the very blond hair but overall this works for me.

Carrie Preston in Makoto Takada. When I first saw this dress I thought it looked like an Erdem pattern. I really like this, great colours with her red hair and nicely wrapped around the bodice. I want to crop off the bottom and wear it as a summer dress.

Anna Paquin in Alexander McQueen…and I don’t like it, which saddens me greatly. The armour style breast plates are nice but then the bottom is such a distraction and makes me wonder if she has it caught in her under garments. It makes her look about four foot short and the clunky shoes really don’t help lengthen her out. The black satin also looks bizarrely cheap.

The Glee girls seem to have shared a stylist because they all looked awful. First Dianna Agron in Carolina Herrera looking like a net curtain, a lovely dust pink net curtain but still. It’s bizarrely childlike and yet Russian doll frumpy.

Lea Michele in Oscar de la Renta, this is how not to wear black. She looks like a widowed flamenco dancer. Oddly parted fringe and a neck shortening choker. Very bottom heavy and generally a horrible mix of taffeta and tulle.

Naya Rivera in Simin looking, well, bizarre. Nasty nasty hair and again so bottom heavy, she looks as if she’s off to Prom. It is a lovely colour but honestly this is awful.

January Jones inVersace. It’s different but it’s also odd. Strange shell-like cups with a definite hint of mermaid meets peacock with some food dye thrown in. I like the simple make up and dark nails but she could do better.

Heidi Klum in Marchesa. Is big hair+big necklace+big dress the equation for a hot husband? Not sure that’s how it works, at least they definitely didn’t teach me that in maths. The dress is just a little over-embellished and would 5 cms longer have been a bad thing? The necklace is also too much with a busy neckline, it’s quite Dallas which then doesn’t go well with the black spiked Louboutins.

Emily Blunt wearing Christian Dior and I’m on the fence! I don’t like the hair but I like the colour of the dress but I do think it’s abit bridesmaid but then I really like the swirl of beading but then I don’t like the odd lip colour…so in conclusion I still don’t know!

I really don’t know anything about this girl Nina Dobrev in Zuhair Murad but I will say two things. One, this dress is hideous, like a barbie dress mixed with sofa fabric and two, she’s way too thin.

And last but not least, a true example that even if it has a designer label runway outfits can go horrible wrong. This is Rita Wilson in Prada. We’ve seen this crystal overdress thing all over editorials including on a British Vogue cover where it worked but it is so so wrong here, and I think Tom Hanks agrees. He has a total look of disbelief on this face. This is not flattering on her figure and the tight hair and those matching shoes just don’t work. Prada for Prada’s sake is not how it should be done.

Source: Zimbio.com

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Meet you at the MET

May 4, 2010

It was the MET ball last night, full name The Costume Institute Gala Benefit and this year celebrating the opening of the “American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity” exhibition in New York. All the guests are dressed by designers and it’s a real chance for the actresses and models to push the fashion boundaries and wear the most interesting and stunning clothes. Some succeed and some bomb…

Starting with my hands-down favourite, Jessica Szohr in Versace. I love the beige, the pattern is flowery but not in a floral girly way, it’s got an added harshness which I like. The downward semi circles are super flattering on her body and I love the overlays at the bottom. So beautiful, she looks sexy and relaxed.

Kate Bosworth in Valentino. I love the water patterns in beautiful peaches and pinks, the shape is classic and classy and the hair is old Hollywood.

Naomi Watts in Lanvin, stunning colour and I like the slight clash in the lip colour. The gold accessories look great too.

Emma Watson in Burberry looks sassy and totally age appropriate. The angelic white looks simple and modern.

Marion Cotillard in Christian Dior. It’s a shame that it has full length sleeves as it is now May and warm in NYC but I love the sequins and the silvery colour, so scaley and stunning on the body.

Joy Bryant in Marchesa looked different and fresh. I like the tattooed quality of the flower details with the peachy overlay.

Thandi Newton in Vivienne Westwood: an amazing British designer on a stunning British actress. I love the purple and the texture of the fabric, so different. The folds on the chest are typical Westwood and give a sharp silhouette.

Camille Belle in Jason Wu looking elegant and glamorous. The hint of pink lace around the bust in stunning.

Gwen Stefani in her own label L.A.M.B. I like the ethereal quailty, almost as though the fabric has drifted onto her body but then the black underwear gives it a harder more typically Gwen style quirk.

Lilly Donaldson looking simple and classic. Simple make-up, simple dress but pulled together well.

Kerry Washington in Thakoon. I love the colour and the way the texture changes over the body with the smooth panel at the hip and the way the bodice is half-draped and half-corseted. The sexy slit looks great, as do the dark eyes.

Changing tack here……..

Diana Kruger in Calvin Klein. Firstly it’s just too basic and it really doesn’t do anything for her amazing body. This is a winter white with the high neckline and long sleeves. It’s not flattering to her skin tone and it needs at least some statement earrings or a necklace.

Elizabeth Banks in Gucci. Talk about killing a look! Now there isn’t a sentence I like more than ‘Gucci, gucci, gucci’, but this does not apply here. I like the dress but the tights and heavy shoes completely ruin it and I hate the curtains of hair. Just too heavy and maybe because I don’t really know who she is, it’s just too random.

Kristin Stewart in Chanel and it totally swamps her. Her shoulders are disappearing into the dress and the bizarre length of the see-through material is awful with the heavy shoes. It looks like two different dresses, neither of them good.

Gisele in Alexander Wang is the first of the model offenders. Now she looked so amazing last year this is a major disappointment. It’s tacky and looks like a raffia placemat and I hate the shoes!

Model offender number two, Bar Refaeli in Rag & Bone and it’s another tacky one. This is the MET ball, it’s high fashion and this looks like a dress you’d wear to a rom com premiere. She’s breaking the god given rule that if you go short on your hemline you need a more demure bust line and vice versa.

Claire Danes in Burberry, it looks like a cheap throw and the cups don’t seem to fit her properly. The necklace seems totally at odds with the slightly rockier make-up. It’s also a very harsh metallic against her skin.

Alexa Chung in Phillip Lim and I’m seriously unimpressed. I love the make-up but wearing trousers in a Diane Keaton throwback really doesn’t work for me. The jacket draped over the shoulders is so contrived. The Ball is a moment to go into fairy tale and be sexy and feminine.

January Jones inYSL. Mad Men has just finished in the UK so I’ve got withdrawal symptoms and I was tempted to go easy on the beautiful Betty Draper but I just can’t. She looks like a wrought iron gate fixed onto hot pink satin. The above the elbow gloves seem bizarre here and what’s with the star trek make-up? It looks like blue eye shadow and I don’t understand how that references anything she’s trying to do with her look. Awful, truly awful!

Maggie Gyllenhaal in Louis Vuitton and I can’t bear it. I love her and this just doesn’t work! It just looks a little too goth bride and that’s before you get to the bin bag that appears to be attached to the skirt. I bet she would float in that dress, it definitely looks inflatable. I like the quiff in the hair though.

Malin Akerman in Temperley London is a perfect example of one thing completely throwing out the rest of your look. From the waist down the dress isn’t too bad but the thing that ruins the whole look is the hair. So messy, such a cheap blonde, the hair is pretty shameful.