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We at Fashion Rules are NOT label whores.
Well, okay – maybe we are!
Look, a great dress is a great dress – but for fifteen years, we’ve heard very little on a major red carpet outside of “Valentino,” “Chanel,” and “Dior.” So it’s really nice and even refreshing to hear OTHER names, particularly those that rarely show up on a red carpet – and have beautiful things.
Hats off to Katie Holmes, who looked JUST HOT in a tight Jil Sander spring 09 dress to the knee – with her short hair, slim cut sheath, and cool label, you could tell she’d lived in New York for the last few months. Jil Sander’s spring collection is one of the hottest ones of spring 09.
January Jones’s dress was lovely – a black halter gown with a hard gold breast place that surrounded her neck and waist – it was simple and dramatic at the same time. And who’s EVER worn Paris designer Andrew Gn on the red carpet? His clothes are beautiful – and expensive – but they never get on red carpets because he has no Hollywood pr.
Kyra Sedgwick, not exactly known for her fashion forwardness – although she always looks good – donned a strapless vintage Chanel, with a white bustier top and simple black bottom. All Chanel is good – but vintage Chanel is even BETTER – because you can’t identify what collection it’s from. Plus black and white is so hot right now.
Penelope Cruz in her couture Azzedine Alaia was just scalding – have you EVER seen a dress fit like that? Not only that – this was NOT an easy dress to procure. Azzendine’s people just don’t care about red carpets.
Laura Dern wore Burberry – and we are big fans of Burberry designer Christopher Bailey. He rarely does dressy clothes, but his cocktail dresses are always first rate – this was a very interesting way to go.
And Jennifer Morrison wore Paris designer Anne Valerie Hache, who is another great designer who flies below the radar – hopefully now her name will be – maybe not household – but at least, livingroom. – Merle Ginsberg
SO – scorekeepers – what was the total tally of how it broke down on who-dressed-who at the Golden Globes? Since every designer and big fashion house was hustling nominees to dress them, who won the red carpet sweepstakes – the second biggest one outside of the Oscars?
Here’s the breakdown, according to the information received from Fashion Rules:
THE BIG WINNER OF THE NIGHT WAS: OSCAR DE LA RENTA, who dressed Kyra Sedgwick, Amy Adams, Jennifer Morrison and Marisa Tomei. He had FOUR great women in his gowns.
After that, it breaks down like this:
JOHN GALLIANO FOR CHRISTIAN DIOR: Drew Barrymore, Eva Mendes, Sandra Bullock
ROBERTO CAVALLI: Rita Wilson, Christina Applegate, Jessica Lange
J MENDEL: Taraji P. Hensen, Kate Beckinsale, Elizabeth Banks
REEM ACRA: Rumer Willis, Eva Longoria, Olivia Wilde
ARMANI PRIVE: Penelope Cruz, Anne Hathaway
ATELIER VERSACE: Angelina Jolie, January Jones
LANVIN: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Kristin Scott Thomas
ELIE SAAB: Beyonce’, Laura Linney, Evan Rachel Wood
YSL: Kate Winslet
MARCHESA: Jennifer Lopez, Miley Cyrus
VINTAGE FROM DECADES: Heidi Klum in vintage Galanos, Sophie Dahl in vintage Ceil Chapman
CHRISTIAN LACROIX: Freida Pinto
NINA RICCI: Blake Lively
CHADO RALPH RUCCI: Rachel Griffiths
BOTTEGA VENETA: Salma Hayek
HUGO BOSS: Susan Sarandon
GIANFRANCO FERRE: Hayden Panettiere
HERVE LAROUX: Anna Pacquin
LOUIS VUITTON: Laura Dern
CAROLINA HERRERA: Renee Zellwegger
VERA WANG: Debra Messing
It’s interesting to note that black was veritably missing from the Golden Globes red carpet. Sure, some women did wear it – but in its place, we saw deep blues, a lot of white, gold, champagne – which are neutrals – and then, for the brave, red, coral, mustard, purple and blue. Here are some of the rainbow coalition of the Golden Globe fashion tribe: we applaud their diversity!!
January Jones doesn’t have a stylist, believe it or not – and she always looks quite chic. She works with her publicists, Evelyn and Samantha, at WKT pr, and this weekend, they happened upon the ice blue Atelier Versace gown in satin with ribbon details – the perfect color for Ms. Jones, and a great throwback to old Hollywood. However, Versace was ALREADY dressing Angelina Jolie, and had a contract to dress ONLY Angelina Jolie. But when Donatella Versace heard that January, star of “Mad Men,” one of her favorite shows, wanted to wear her dress, she changed the rules, and let the chic “Mad Men” star obtain the dress. And we’re happy she did!!! Thank you, Donatella.
Well, it’s exciting to know the Golden Globes will go on as planned this year, on January 11, 2009 – since they were pre-empted last year by the WGA Strike. We’ll get to see everyone from film – drama and comedy, and television – drama and comedy – and made for tv network and cable films. And that’s a LOT of ladies going down the carpet all on the same night.
This is who we can expect to see in some amazing fashion creation that night, who the great designers like Armani, Versace, Dior, Chanel, Valentino, Lanvin, Givenchy, Zac Posen and Dolce & Gabbana will be pursuing to dress: Anne Hathaway (nominated for Best Actress in a Drama for “Rachel Getting Married”), Angelina Jolie (Best Actress, “The Changeling”), Kate Winslet (Best Actress in a Drama for “Revolutionary Road” and Best Supporting Actress for “The Reader”), Robin Wright Penn (who we assume will be accompanying her husband Sean Penn, nominated for Best Actor in a Drama for “Milk”), Rebecca Hall (nominated for Best Actress for a Comedy, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” – interesting because her co-star Scarlett Johanssen did NOT), Sally Hawkins for Best Actress for “Happy Go Lucky”), and Amy Adams (“Doubt”), Penelope Cruz (“Vicky Cristina Barcelona”), Marisa Tomei (“The Wrestler”) and Kate Winslet again, for Best Supporting Actress.
In the tv area, January Jones (“Mad Men”), Anna Pacquin (“True Blood”), Kyra Sedgwick (“The Closer”) and Mariska Hargitay (“SVU”) were nominated for drama; Tina Fey (“30 Rock”), Christina Applegate (“Samantha Who”), Debra Messing (“The Starter Wife”), America Ferrera (“Ugly Betty”) and Mary-Louise Parker for “Weeds” for comedy, and for tv movies, Laura Linney (“John Adams”), Catherine Keener (“An American Crime”) and Susan Sarandon (“Bernard and Doris”) are in the lead category, and Rachel Griffiths (“Btothers and Sisters”), Laura Dern (“Recount”) and Melissa George (“In Treatment”) were nominated for over all Best Supporting Actress in tv.
Scandolously missing from the nominee list: Cate Blanchett for “Benjamin Button” and Scarlett Johanssen for “Vicky Christina Barcelona.” But then again, you can’t get nominated every year.
This is NOT the full nominee list: Meryl Streep, Judi Dench, Shirley MacLaine, Sally Field, etc were all nominated for Globes: but the Fashion Rules list is the list designers will be using to see which actresses will make their gowns look good and help them with their branding. And it’s no secret anymore that many of these fashion houses will pay nominees to wear their clothes, jewelry, even shoes and bags.
The big fashion machine is already gearing up. For instance, NY reps for JP Tod’s are heading to LA the first week of January to show stylists new clutch bags specific to the Golden Globes, and new Roger Vivier shoes from spring that will be available. Let the games begin!!
Jason Wu’s Spring 2009 Collection pops off the page like a pastiche of popsicles: pink lemonade, melon, sweet lemon, and mango all mixed with each other like Jason Wu’s if she hooked up with Marni. The clothes are a little bit lady, a little preppy, and a little bit cool urban girl – it all depends on how you wear them, with motorcycle boots or with Ferragamos. While many on Seventh Avenue are calling the 26 year old Wu the heir apparent to Oscar de la Renta or Carolina Herrera in that his clothes are perfect for Park Avenue Princesses – they also work, in a more pared-down form, on actresses such as Lucy Liu, January Jones and Kate Mara, who all hosted him at an event at Satine Boutique this week. Fashion Rules got to have lunch with the man at Joans on Third, to pick his brain about style, LA and LA vs NY, our favorite subjects. Merle Ginsberg
FASHION RULES: How much time have you spent in Los Angeles?
JASON WU: I’ve been here a few times to visit friends, but this is my first work trip. I love coming here. I find it so relaxing – which sounds so weird to people who live here! But you really need a break from New York. Coming here helps me think. And of course, it’s 32 degrees in New York right now.
FASHION RULES: Your spring collection is full of cashmere t-shirts and somewhat dressy dresses – and your known for knits. How do you adjust with all that wool when the LA market is all about light clothes – particularly this fall?
JASON WU: Well, I’m doing a capsule collection of Fall 2009 for Satine, that will be exclusive to them. That’s what coming out here has done for me – I had conversations with Jeannie and Virginia of Satine and we came up with that idea. Neiman Marcus will get the regular fall 09 delivery, and I think their customer is a travelling person, so they will want the warmer pieces too.
FASHION RULES: You’ve got it down with your L.A. retail situation: Satine for the Hollywood and East Hollywood cool crowd, and Neimans for the west side soccer moms.
JASON WU: It’s much like what we have in Manhattan: we’re in Bergdorf’s uptown, and Jeffery downtown. I like having fewer stores and working very closely with them.
FASHION RULES: What have your LA activities been since you got here?
JASON WU: Jeannie from Satine is going to take me vintage shopping. But surprisingly enough, it’s not the vintage clothes I’m after. I want to buy furniture like the furniture they have in Satine. Do you know what that costs in NY? I think ABC Carpet comes out here and goes to the Rose Bowl, paints the stuff, and amps up the price five times. I want to ship some stuff back and re-do it. But also, I’m a foodie – so I’ve been eating my way through L.A. Last night, we went to Palihouse. I’m loving the Mac and Cheese here at Joan’s. The food here is more wholesome than NY, and so much less expensive. And yet, no one eats!! Look at all these skinny girls!
FASHION RULES: I guess the girls in NY are not this skinny.
JASON WU: Well, they’re covered in clothes most of the time, so you can’t tell. I’m constantly amazed at how well the magazine editors dress in NY – it’s insane!! They are ALWAYS dressed – it blows me away. But there are still some tacky people in NY – they tend to congregate around Herald Square.
FASHION RULES: Well, there are plenty of tacky people in LA – but they wear less clothes, so maybe it’s harder to tell.
JASON WU: I notice there are a lot of tatoos out here.
FASHION RULES: Did you have fun at the cocktail party Satine threw for you the other night?
JASON WU: China Chow, Lucy Liu, January Jones, Kate Mara – these girls are SO chic. It was s sweet of them to come out, and so fun to see them in my clothes. You don’t get to mix with a lot of actresses in NY, and the style of dressing is really so different there – no one ever gets that casual. All the accessories here are completely different – and the jewelry is so much funkier here. In the end, I guess LA is pretty body conscious – which must cause the not-eating. Well, I eat everything!
FASHION RULES: But you’re wildly thin, and Asian, to boot! It’s not like there are too many overweight Asians.
JASON WU: It’s actually all changing – and there are starting to be some. It’s because of the different way people in Japan and China are eating now. We’re just shipped to Satine’s new Japan store in Tokyo, and I can’t wait to spend some time there. I grew up in Taiwan, moved to Vancouver, then Massachusetts, then NY. This year, I got to go to Sydney. I’m so into travelling that now my clothes are designed with the idea that clothes need to travel easily. In fact, coming here with the spring collection, we got to test drive the clothes – and when we arrived, they hadn’t wrinkled! It’s a very good sign!
FASHION RULES: What other stores are you in outside of NY and LA in the US?
JASON WU: I’ve discovered that there is one great store in every city. I do some of my best business in Kansas City! We’re in Louis in Boston, Susan in San Francisco, and Ikram in Chicago – we’re very well represented.
FASHION RULES: Is it true that the colors of your spring collection were inspired by – COOKIES??
JASON WU: Oh, yes! I love macarons – the cookies from La Duree in Paris – well, now they have them at Payard in NY, and I am going on the hunt for them in Los Angeles – apparently, the Little Next Door has them. I love the ones like rose, lavender, pistachio – and their colors are so great. So when we shot the collection for the January Elle, I told them to pull the macarons and use them on the set – and they did!!!!!!! It’s very sweet!!!
Italian fashion designer Alberta Ferretti, internationally famous for her ethereal dresses and gowns, has been in L.A. this week, prepping for the official opening of her new Melrose Avenue store (which actually opened its doors in September) on Wednesday night, which will be packed with celebs, shoppers, editors, well-wishers, and lovers of Ferretti’s beautiful chiffon dresses, great coats, and floaty tops – both from her eponymous collection, and from the Philsophy di Alberta Ferretti line, also housed in the new L.A.flagship. Even her young girls line, for ages 5 to 11, is housed there.
While celebs like Lucy Liu, Ellen Pompeo and Marisa Tomei are hosting the party, and everybody from January Jones to Winona Ryder to Nicole Richie is expected, Fashion Rules finds Mrs. Ferretti the REAL star. Keeping a lower profile than most designers, she’s dressed Oscar contenders and presenters (Sandra Bullock, Scarlett Johanssen), and her company Aeffe also owns the Jean Paul Gaultier and Moschino labels. On the eve of her big L.A. opening, Fashion Rules sat down with her to find out more of her true philosophy.
In a black sheath dress, a black cardigan, and large glass beaded vintage necklace, her wavy bobbed shag her consistent style, she was the picture of Italian chic – and spoke through a translator, just to make sure her wording in English was fully expressive. – Merle Ginsberg
FASHION RULES: Your fall 08 Alberta Ferretti collection is particularly fabulous – all those greens and purples and chiffons and sequins. Is your latest collection always your favorite?
ALBERTA FERRETTI: No, not usually. Sometimes, when I’ve finished designing a collection, I think, “It could be better.” But sometimes, I DO love it – and I think, “I realized the vision I set out to accomplish. That’s it – that’s exactly what I envisioned.”
FASHION RULES: I remember meeting you in Los Angeles in 2001, during Oscar week, when you wanted to open a store here even then. That was seven years ago!
ALBERTA FERRETTI: Yes, I always wanted to open a store in Los Angeles – where we could house all the collections – and our shoes and eyewear and bags – in one place. This is one of the reasons we have kept our deliveries to the department small controlled – we wanted our own store. L.A. is perfect for my clothes – the climate, and the lifestyle. The way women approach dressing here: more casual for day, turning up the glamour and femininity at night – this goes with my clothes. We have great tops to pair with jeans or leggings, and of course, you know that I always make very feminine dresses. We’ve also been making more jackets and coats recently. Many of them are reversible, which gives women even more options. But the reason the store took so long was – we really wanted it to be in the right space.
FASHION RULES: And now this area of Melrose, between Robertson and San Vicente, is incredibly chic.
ALBERTA FERRETTI: Yes, now Balenciaga is here, and they opened before we did – but we actually signed out lease before they did! However, once we found this location, the entire project only took six months to complete. I was here very often to see the details – but they were all only 24 hour trips!!! It was important to me that we had an airy space with outdoor areas – and large windows. This is important for Los Angeles.
FASHION RULES: I know you have many fans in Los Angeles, among celebrities, social women, editors, models, etc. What’s been the biggest seller from the new store?
ALBERTA FERRETTI: The deep blue gown that Nicole Kidman wears on the cover of December Glamour with the jet beading – we sold out of that. Someone sent a stylist on a private plane to get the last one!
FASHION RULES: The spring 09 collection is also really a stand out – with its pale colors, bring blues and pinks, and fringe detail on top of nineteen twenties movie star looks. It’s all very silent film star – a little Louise Brooks, and a bit Martha Graham
ALBERTA FERRETTI: Yes, spring 09 is very good. But I am now working on the fall 09 pre-collection, and very soon, we start actual fall 2009, which we will show in Milan in March. Yesterday, when I was flying to L.A., I was thinking – what year are we in now – 2007? 2008? I can never remember – I’m always a year ahead in designing!
FASHION RULES: What do you think of our new First Lady Elect, Michelle Obama’s, style?
ALBERTA FERRETTI: She is very chic, and very modern. We has worn Moschino, which we own, five times – bellisima!! We hope she will wear Alberta Ferretti very soon. She is inspirational, as is her husband – people need inspirational figures now more than ever.
FASHION RULES: What’s next for Ferretti as a designer?
ALBERTA FERRETTI: I am really going for it with accessories. I think the way people like to dress now is, a dress, a good shoe, and then add or subtract jewelry for the occasion. I am working on jewels, bracelets, and belts – a new interesting way to adorn dresses and alter the way they look for each occassion.
FASHION RULES: The dress has been the big trend for the last few years – but you have always made chic dresses, as opposed to suits or skirts.
ALBERTA FERRETTI: What is good about the dress is that it does not break up the line – it makes the body look beautiful, and you only have to put on one thing. It does not break up the body proportion. But we are also seeing the resurgence of the jacket, and we are making new jackets for fall 09. But of course, I like the feminine jacket, not a masculine silhouette. We do sell quite a few jackets, that work in many climates.
FASHION RULES: What do you think of all the jeans women wear in LA?
ALBERTA FERRETTI: Well, we make great blouses and tops that work with jeans, and we sell a lot of them here. But I am not a personal fan of jeans – they are not comfortable and not flattering, unless on the very young. They are very stiff – I like more flowing clothing.
FASHION RULES: Will there ever be a free standing Moschino store in Los Angeles?
ALBERTA FERRETTI: Yes. We just opened in New York on West 14th St, and we’re looking for a proper space in L.A.
FASHION RULES: Is one of the points of the new L.A. Ferretti store to recruit celebrities for the upcoming awards season? We know the Golden Globe nominations are December 11th.
ALBERTA FERRETTI: Oh, yes. We are already evaluating who the possible nominees are, and doing outreach through our representatives already. I hope Tilda Swinton is nominated for her new movie – she is a fantastic woman! We dressed her for the Venice Film Festival this summer in a great pumpkin colored gown. And she wore a dress of ours to the Toronto Film Festival as well. Also, I cannot wait to see “Elegy,” which is not out in Italy yet – it stars Penelope Cruz and Ben Kingsley, but also, Patricia Clarkson, who is a friend of the house. We have dressed her a lot, too.
FASHION RULES: Mrs. Ferretti, what is your fashion rule?
ALBERTA FERRETTI: That’s easy for me. When I think of designing a dress, I think of rendering a great body for a woman – and never making a woman ridiculous by overdressing her. The woman’s style should speak – not her dress. I always think of a dress in movement. And it’s the woman who interprets the dress – not the dress that takes precedence.
Since Sarah Jessica Parker stopped going to the Emmys, the high fashion quotient of this particular red carpet has fallen off considerably. Watching the 60th annual Emmys on Sunday night, we wondered: where are the labels? Sure, true fashionista Heidi Klum was trend-spot-on in her metallic one shoulder tiered Armani Prive’ – but where was the Dior? (Rita Wilson WAS wearing Dior, but it was white, and didn’t fit her properly at all.) Where was the Chanel? Where was the Lanvin, the Nina Ricci, the Givenchy, the Balenciaga? The Valentino? There are so many fabulous dresses out there right now – Anna Hathaway’s Versace at the Venice Film Festival took our breath away – but the Emmy dresses were wildly typical.
True, Kyra Sedgwick DID wear L’Wren Scott, a very progressive designer – but a tight white cocktail sheath is not a huge fashion statement. The problem with the Emmys is that they hit between NY and London fashion weeks, and then Milan, which started today. Somehow, it ups the ante for Emmy visuals when fashionistas everywhere are checking out Style.com to look at the fresh looks for Europe every minute.
Since everyone is doing TOP TEN LISTS, here is Fashionrules.com’s TOP TEN LIST OF EMMY FASHION, in no particular order:
JANUARY JONES: We know a lot of critics were hoping to see Ms. Jones, a spittin’ image of Grace Kelly, channel her character Betty Draper from “Mad Men” – and we can undertand why: Betty is beyond chic in her Hermes riding looks and lovely skirts and sweaters. However, we love that January wore a white Dolce & Gabbana fishtail gown – she is one of the few women in the world who could look good in something like this. It was made for her. It’s daring, it’s tight, it’s sexy – and she rocked it. We also loved the Grecian headbands she wrapped around her, totally staying away from Betty Draper’s little wavy flip.
MARCIA CROSS: We’ve heard a lot of flack about Marcia’s pale lace and tulle couture cocktail dress by Elie Saab – but we LOVED it. So what if it’s the same color as her skin? There is no rule that says that’s a crime – as long as it looks good, and it did. (The red hair helped.) We loved the lace insets, which is a huge trend for fall –and the full tulle skirt, which is exactly what we saw on the spring runways of NY Fashion week. Nothing desperate or housewifey here at all.
HEIDI KLUM: Heidi knows how to work a look, and years of practice have taught this ex-super-model how to work it head to toe. Because her metallic one shoulder tiered Armani Prive gown was a stunner – and had a lot of fabric – she pulled back the hair, and worked a lowkey makeup look. With the wrong makeup and hair, this dress could have been a disaster – but Heidi knows the golden rule of flamboyant dresses: take everything else down a peg. It came off like a charm – and she made a major dress look almost simple – and chic. She actually looked comfortable in that dress – a hard thing to pull off. The dress NEVER wears Heidi – Heidi ALWAYS wears the dress.
MARISKA HARGITAY: There’s yellow – and then there’s marigold. Mariska’s Carolina Herrera asymmetrical gown was a bold choice, and went well with her skintone and her haircolor. We also loved her cute French twist, which was chic and made the dress look more high fashion – but not TOO high fashion. A perfect head to toe look – very now. Chic, high fashion – and a little bit casual, as her hair was loose and her makeup downplayed.
CHRISTINA APPLEGATE: The light blue sari-like Reem Acra dress is pretty, and particularly pretty on a blonde. But there’s a lot of fabric here, and it kind of took over Applegate’s look – we really couldn’t see her fabulous figure. Also, the tight high up-do and deep red lips made this dress seem much more formal than it was. Applegate did not look like she was having fun. The dress was soft and flowy – and hair and makeup, very grown up and matronly. They simply didn’t well work together. We wanted to pull her hair looser, wipe off the lipstick, and take a scissor to half the dress. Then it would have been a winner.
PERREY REEVES: Reeves donned an Alice Temperley cream strapless dress with red and black detail – and Temperley’s dresses are floaty, beautifully designed, and unique – congrats for picking a great designer who’s underused on the red carpet. Her hair was soft and pretty, and we saw a whole other side of her from Entourage’s uptight anorexic Mrs. Ari.
OLIVIA WILDE: It doesn’t hurt that “House’s” Wilde is a true exotic beauty. But instead of going for a sexy Pussycat Dolls look, she chose a demure pearl grey Reem Acra Grecian chiffon gown with small cap sleeves – and it really highlighted her beauty. She looked better than anyone – and it wasn’t all about her dress. It was all about her.
SANDRA OH: We simply LOVE this black and neutral lace Oscar de la Renta gown with a bow belt – it hits all the right trends, and even with a skirt that bells into tiers of lace, it is still shaped to Sandra’s lithe body. A winner!!! This gown manages to grab attention while remaining a bit quiet – a hard combo to come by.
CHRISTINA HENDRICKS: “Mad Men’s” busty redhead busted out of the series in her first red carpet appearance in an emerald dress Grecian gown by Tadashi that accentuates her overflowing cleavage and her creamy skintone. Again, she chose to play away from Joan Holloway, her “Mad Men” sexy secretary – and show her modernity. We love a redhead in bright green. And in this age of the 90 pound actress, we love a voluptuous goddess.
DEBRA MESSING: Messing is a fashion pro – she simply gets it, and always has. Since “Will & Grace” has gone off the air, she’s had a tendency to play it down and play it safe – but her safe is everybody else’s risk. Her wavy hair and heavy lashes did her justice, and the black strapless Monique L’hullier gown with a big lacy skirt was both dramatic and subtle at the same time. Also, she was accompanying her husband, who was nominated for writing – and didn’t want to steal his thunder. But Ms. Messing always has a little fashion thunder clapping wherever she goes.
HONORABLE MENTION:
BROOKE SHIELDS: LOVE the color of this Badgley Mischka fuscia floral lace gown, and only a woman as tall and chic as Brooke could pull this off. It took some nerve – and she’s got it.
VANESSA WILLIAMS: She looked slinky and chic in this Kevan Hall white mermaid gown with black and pink floral detail. Williams was one of the very few women to brave wearing a print – and she carried it solidly. Wisely, she toned down the hair and makeup, and looked gorgeous. A tigress in the lipstick jungle.
TINA FEY: Her deep purple strapless David Meister was very sexy for this normally underdone comedienne. But she wore it well – keeping her hair messy so that she didn’t have to look like she was trying too hard. Tina – you’re nearly at bombshell status: don’t hold back!!! She needs to get that embarrassed, “Is this really ME?” look off her face, and own it.
AMERICA FERRERA: One of the few actresses who can pull off red lipstick, she waved her hair forties style to go with it, and donned a strapless vintage ruched dress that looked really old Hollywood, but modern at the same time. How is it ugly Betty is emerging as a real fashions star? Well, if you work at a fashion magazine . . .
And, as long as we’re doing the TOP TEN LIST, we might as well do a NOT QUITE GOOD ENOUGH list, too:
KATE WALSH: Oh, Kate! You look so hot and sexy in your scrubs – why didn’t you just wear those? We’re all in favor of actresses breaking out of their tv images – in her case, “Grey’s Anatomy’s” and “Private Practice’s” Addison Montgomery – but with a blunt bob and dark red lips and in a super tight Zuhair Murad HORIZONTAL STRIPED DRESS (the ultimate no no!!! Kate Walsh looking hippie?) was SO not Addison, she was barely recognizable. Kate – fire your stylist. It ain’t workin. You can do so much better.
JULIA LOUIS-DREYFUS: We live salmon color, and we liked it on Julia. We love Narciso Rodriguez. But this dress is WAY TOO TIGHT for JLD’s body. It belongs on a runway model, not a star this fleshy. How great it might have looked if Narciso had done it in a softer, more forgiving fabric – but then, that isn’t what he does. He does skintight. That’s why his clothes don’t usually make it to awards shows, unless they’re on Rachel Weisz, who somehow pulls it off. Perhaps she should lend her set of spanx to Julia Louis-Dreyfus.
EVA LONGORIA PARKER: The silver bow and fringe flapper dress by Marchesa is super cute for a movie premier or a cocktail party – but not the Emmys. It looks wildly undignified – although to Eva’s credit, it IS fashion forward. Cute, yes – chic, no. There’s too much bust showing AND too much leg – Eva never learned you have to chose just one. Also, the flat flat bob and the heavily contoured brown blush with no lip color and what looks like an entire cake of black liner is just SO eighties, we’re having a Joan Collins moment. Eva clearly thinks she has become Victoria Beckham – but she isn’t tall enough – nor bold enough – to pull off what Posh can pull off. Who is?’’
LAUREN CONRAD: Lauren Conrad designed Lauren Conrad’s navy strapless dress with the brooch – and quite honestly, she needs a better designer. LC does fine with simple prom styles for her 16 year old fans – but for the Emmys, she could have done a lot better. We know a marketing tool when we see one. Navy is nice – but what about a full short skirt with a tight bodice, and a tulle underskirt, a la Oscar de la Renta? Lauren didn’t get that lesson in sewing class ye t- she’s still on strapless prom dress 101. Next time, Lauren, wear Nina Ricci. Honey, leave it to the experts. You can sell your dresses at Target, but not with millions watching.
TERI HATCHER: Teri’s Monique L’hullier ruffled yellow gown was pretty – but better for a summer awards show than a fall one. Maybe L.A. WAS in the eighties on Emmy day – but nowhere else was. Yellow is the hardest color of all to wear, as we know – and while it works well on brunettes, the dress just took over – and Teri’s slightly fell-out-of-bed hair and makeup made it look like she threw on her nightgown, hailed a cab, and ran over.
HAYDEN PANETTIERE: The young star looks fresh with her hair simple and pulled back, but the dress looks like it’s her mothers – it’s too long and it’s too mature. With all those fresh ballerina looks out there, it’s a shame she had to look so dour.
HOLLY HUNTER: First of all, Hunter didn’t know that the “young L.A. designer Jenny Packham” is actually a British designer. Know your designers, people!! You got the dress for free, now memorize a few lines! We liked Hunter in the lavender color, but the dress has little shape, and was built for a twenty year old. Hunter’s got a great figure, but could have used more tailoring and shape – not a halter that just hangs there. Also, her frizzy over-dyed blonde hair didn’t help matters. This is the way teenagers go to awards shows: NOT Oscar winners. Holly, fire your stylist.
