Kate Beckinsale's stylist must really hate her...

Three things go towards making a successful red carpet look: the dress, the actress and the stylist who oversees to the total look.
Continuing with my bad styling theme for this year's Oscars, I present Kate Beckinsale:
1)beautiful actress, 2)interesting dress, 3) appalling styling.
Pic: Style.com

Why Oscar red carpet fashion went low key in 2008

This was a year of understated glamour, subtle embellishments and low key dresses at the Oscars. If there were trains, they floated rather than swooshed, colours were muted and breasts were contained. These were dresses for actresses rather than models, and what a refreshing change this made.

Sure, some commentators called this year’s red carpet ‘safe’ and ‘boring’, but we are in danger of forgetting one salient fact: these are professional woman who earn their living from acting rather than fashion, a truth that tends to get forgotten in today’s celebrity saturated culture.

As the fiscal aftermath of the writer’s strike continues to hit home for many in the industry, provocative fashion choices would have been in bad taste, and most of the red carpet attendees seemed to have taken this on board. That is if they walked the red carpet. This was the year when eschewing the crowds seemed cooler than ever, with several presenters, including Penelope Cruz only appearing in front of the cameras for the first time when they arrived on stage.

Several key styling truths seemed to have been ignored. Take Anne Hathaway in one of the only statement dresses on the red carpet, a somewhat over the top scarlet Marchesa creation: her stylist seemed to have forgotten that when putting a celebrity’s look together, it’s vital to shoot her before the event from every angle, including from the ground up. In several shots she looked almost pregnant, with billowy arms and rather too much blousiness going on.

Cameron Diaz needs to buy a hair brush, and engage the services of a make up artist: over the age of thirty acting all breathless and deshabillé at a red carpet event is no longer charming, it just looks kinda slutty. It would also have helped to have had her pale pink Dior frock fitted properly. The rolls of back fat squeezed over the bodice (on a slim woman) were an appalling slip up.

The Oscars: Red Carpet Fashion 2008

This is the first time that I’ve been in the US for the Oscars, and I’m amazed by the levels of excitement. I guess the time difference in England means it’s difficult for people to get worked up about a show that happens in the middle of the night.

Back in London, I’m one of the only two people I know who actually stays up all night to watch it, usually snuggled under a duvet in my nightie and bedsocks, with lots of chocolate & popcorn supplies. The other is my film director friend, but she has a daughter now, and sleep is precious.

Until this year, I've always been a guest on BBC network radio the next morning to discuss the red carpet fashion, so I’m rather looking forward to not having to pay such close attention this time. And, even though I do have some copy to file for Monday morning, at least I have ten hours to do so, rather than the five I get in England because of the time difference.

There are so many Oscar parties here in Manhattan, but I’ve plumped for the Soho House one, darling. They are putting up screens on the sixth floor clubhouse, and running a red carpet viewing from 6pm. It’s member’s only, but two of my friends are members too so, between us, we have nine guests. The plan is to bags a corner where we can ensconce ourselves and do eating and gossiping.

I’m hoping that there will be something as beautiful as Reese Witherspoon's friled silk jacquard Nina Ricci dress this year.Apparently Olivier Theyskens actually made two similar versions of this dress to take to Los Angeles, each one with those intricate hand tucked frills. The hours of workmanship for each dress must have been quite extraordinary. (There’s a frilled dress with a similar technique, if you want to get up close to one, on show at The Met’s Costume Institute show on now.)

Image: OSCAR.com

Giorgio Armani Privé show this evening

It's a sign of the times that when a fashion house shows a new collection, the first act of the in-house press office is to email journalists images of the celebrity attendees in hope of making the next day's papers. Forget the clothes, or the models in the clothes. Those pictures are no longer enough to sell newspapers. Mr Armani showed his Privé Collection as part of the Paris Couture this evening, with a celeb filled front row to ensure him some press coverage. Armani stalwarts Claudia Cardinale & Sophia Lauren were joined by Hilary Swank, Ellen Pompeo and Dita von Teese. Given that the Golden Globes were cancelled, and award season has been somewhat muted so far due to the writers' strike, I would have expected a higher celeb count. So often, Armani's ladies look somewhat trussed up in over elaborate, over embroidered, over brocaded numbers, which are often far too old for them (Katie Holmes springs to mind), but when these pictures from the Armani press office in Milan tipped up in my inbox this evening, I was struck by the relative elegance & simplicity of the outfits. I think I am going to pin up this picture of Mss Loren & Cardinale as an expemplar of soignée aging. Bellissima. (Britney et al take note.)

Photos: Courtesy of Armani Press Office, Milano

I love Cate Blanchett

I have to thank the heavenly Fug girls for alerting me to this ravishing photograph of Cate Blanchett at the premiere of Elizabeth: The Golden Age in Los Angeles on Monday. I know this sari/toga hybrid would look utterly ludicrous on anyone else, but Christ she works it with panache. The simplicity. The clear colour. Perfection. But no one has identified it anywhere on-line: I'm presuming it is Dior - remarkably similar to a mustard dress in Resort 07/08, and the yellow dress Kate Hudson wore to Dior Couture in July - and she has a long-standing relationship with the house. But: Valentino did a red carpet sari-esque dress for J-Lo, Cavalli has been known to do them to, and Cate pretty much wears Armani to everything at the moment. Anyone?

Perhaps she isn't 'a talentless German sausage' after all....

I know I don't normally do celebrities, but I LOVE Heidi Klum's Edwardian updo at the Prime Time Emmys last night. And I never thought I'd be using the words Klum & love in the same sentence. Maybe it's because she looks completely unrecognisable in this shot...

What not to wear: Sienna demonstrates the concept with élan

Now I generally try not to get stuck into the whole bash a celebrity's frock routine as a) the Fug girls do it better than I can and b) there's generally more exciting things to talk about, like, well, men and pretty summer frocks, and, um, cookies.

But oh my goodness gracious me, look what Sienna got up to in Rome. She's been in town to shoot a Vogue story with Mario Testino, and to attend the 45th anniversary celebration of the House. But none of that was reason to choose this asthma sufferer's worst nightmare, especially when she had access to the entire Valentino archive. Granted, she's been looking pretty ropey since the youth of today stole her boho style and left her sartorially naked, but that is NO excuse for sporting Big Bird's cousin's prom outfit. And I'm not even going to get started on the make-up. I can only assume she had kept on the photographic make up from shooting earlier in the day in a misguided attemt to save time in the stylist's chair.

The Met's Costume Institute Benefit Gala - Christopher Kane & Givenchy

I've avoided commenting on The Met's Costume Ball as I am sure any fashion minded person is thoroughly sick of the pics by now. However, whilst I was on the 'phone last night, I did scroll through the 156, yes you read that right, 156 pics on style.com to see what all the non A list were wearing too, and the two following pics struck me as worthy of comment.

First up: Christopher Kane's work partner & sister Tammy, looking utterly splendid in Christopher Kane AW07. And proving that you don't need to be a teeny tiny stick to wear his designs, just sexy, grown up and glamorous.



And then this:




I've been thinking hard how best to describe this. A classic case of the dress wearing her, rather than the other way around. It's reminiscent of my grandmother's old loo roll cover, but then there's also a hint of those ruched curtains that everyone had back in the '80's. Most of all it reminds me of those balls of fur around a shaved French poodle's legs.

The woman wearing this Givenchy Haute Couture frock is a celebutard* called Fabiola Beracasa who is known here in NY for being rich and social. Beyond that I have failed to discover a reason for her existence. I am at a loss as to why Givenchy could have possibly thought putting this dress on a woman who is not the shape for which it was designed was a good idea. I am sure she could have looked charming in something a little less frou frou. Bottom line: this is a runway look, designed to show off the talent of both the designer & les petits mains, not a real life look. It was borderline ludicrous on Natasha Poly (see below), it does not work on Fabiola who, bless her, will not be gracing a runway any time soon (unless at some celebutard benefit).



* Celebutard: Celebrity/debutante=celebritante. Celebrity/debutante/very stupid person = celebutard

Photos via style.com