Fashion Rules’ Take on the Met Ball

Okay, here at FR, we aren’t going to go on at giant length on the all the looks of the models and the celebs at the Met Ball in NYC – it’s a New York-centric event. But we do think it’s interesting to go over the trends and how they might affect real life and what this do to trends in evening looks overall.  Here’s what we noted:

MINI’S AT NIGHT ARE HOT: Gwyneth started this trend, and now it’s everyone – mini for black tie events. Anne Hathaway did a Marc Jacobs purple poufy mini, and while she was ever so slightly Minnie Mouse with her big hair, it got looks – and was cute and young. Kate Moss also did a short metallic Marc Jacobs with an assymetrical cape, Jessica Alba did a blue crystal short dress, January Jones did a gold Michael Kors long sleeved mini, and Giselle wore a very tiny blue Versace dress in crystals that made everyone else nearly irrelevant. And of course, Madonna’s LV mini and headdress made a statement – and not necessarily a good one. What does all this shortness mean? If you want to turn heads at a dressy event – and you have great legs – AND you’re under 50 – or even 40 – go for a colorful or metallic mini. And have good legs.

COLOR IS THE STATEMENT: No one who wore a black dress – and there weren’t many women who did – got that much attention, except for Rihanna in a Dolce & Gabbana sleek tux (the boy look is always a grabber.) Jessica Biel’s orange long tiered Versace gown was vibrant, so was Kate Hudson’ s backless Stella McCartney gold dress – a bit of a body-conscious cliche, but pretty. We also loved Marion Cottilard in her pale peach Dior , and Cindy Crawford and Blake Lively both wore bright Versace blue. As did Donatella – at least you never forgot whose dresses were hers. However, neither Cindy nor Blake look like their dresses fit them well. Sample sizes aren’t always flattering on real bodies.

BIG BIG DRESSES: Heidi Klum stole the night in her deep blue strapless J. Mendel dress, that needed a whole city block to walk on. This woman knows how to grab the eye. Elizabeth Hurley’s ecru Elie Saab confection and Kate Beckinsale’s giant Marchesa also were impossible to avoid. Jessica Biel’s orange Versace was pretty big, too. So that’s another option – if you’re going to wear a gown, were a gown with a LOT of fabric!!