Golden Globe Awards 2012

Posted: January 16, 2012 | Author: Verena Hafner - musings of a fashion stylist | Filed under: red carpet style | Tags: Chanel Haute Couture, Emilio Pucci, Emma Stone, fashion, Golden Globes, Haider Ackermann, Julianne Moore, Lanvin, Nicole Kidman, Octavia Spencer, Piper Perabo, red carpet, Sofia Vergara, Tadashi Shoji, Theyskens' Theory, Tilda Swinton, Vera Wang, Versace, Viola Davis | 6 Comments »

Boy, this was one boring Red Carpet! I really hope that’s because everyone is saving their A-game for the Oscars. But unfortunately I have a feeling that won’t happen either. For years now (this is not even an exaggeration) we’ve been stuck in a nude dress and platform peep-toes rut and going by the choices we saw last night, this trend won’t die any time soon. There were some successful outfits, though – and one really, really bad one that actually had little to do with the dress itself.

Best dressed – Emma Stone in Lanvin

Emma was my Best Dressed last night. She was not a nominee but was there as a cast member for The Help so it was appropriate for her not to wear the biggest princess gown she could possibly find. The colours compliment her skin tone and hair beautifully and her eagle belt adds just the right amount of edge. Perfection!

Sofia Vergara in Vera Wang

Yes, it’s another strapless mermaid gown but Sofia seems to know how to dress for her shape and I can’t argue with that. She looks nothing short of amazing. I also love the detailing which could have been overwhelming or tacky on the wrong girl but Sofia pulls it off.

Tilda Swinton in Haider Ackermann

On the other end of the spectrum, there is Tilda. She can do no wrong in my book. Tilda wears her clothes, not the other way around, and she has a style that’s so intrinsically hers, nobody else could ever copy her.

Octavia Spencer in Tadashi Shoji

Octavia looked lovely. The dress really accentuated her shape and the colour let her face glow. This really is the blueprint of how to dress girls who don’t fit into the size 0 mould.

Viola Davis in Pucci

The hair, the make-up, the slightly unusual colour (for a red carpet gown), the silhouette – they all suited Viola to a T. I’m not entirely convinced of the accessories but somehow that doesn’t really take away from the look for me. She’s radiant.

Nicole Kidman in Versace

Has Miss Kidman finally chilled on the Botox and the lip plumpers? It’s the best she has looked in a while. I really love how all the colours in this look harmonise, down to how her hair matches the gold studs on her dress.

Julianne Moore in Chanel Haute Couture

Now this is how you make a black dress interesting on the red carpet! Would I suggest a nominee wear this dress? No. But Julianne was a presenter, not a nominee, so a beautiful black dress is the perfect choice. Flawless make-up and the most beautiful, almost natural, waves – swept to one side – completed her look.

So, that’s the love list done. Usually I try to stay away from a Worst Dressed list but this one bugged me on so many levels, I decided to go ahead with it.

Piper Perabo in Theyskens’ Theory

This is frankly ridiculous! Why choose one of the coolest labels around and then behave like this? I absolutely loved this dress on the runway (and surprisingly, I still do) but Piper is doing it no justice here. I wonder how panicked the people at Theyskens’ Theory were when they saw the telecast last night. To my knowledge it’s the first time they managed to get a gown on the red carpet of a major awards show and I bet they had a different idea of how that would go down. Obviously, in real life you are allowed to take clothes from any designer and do whatever the hell you want with them but red carpet styling is more of a give-and-take situation. The PR lends the actress a dress, the actress directs PR back to the label. I will leave it up to you to decide how exactly this kind of presentation reflects back on the label (see more silly poses on gofugyourself.com) and if the label could possibly be happy with the outcome. But TT’s PR woes aside, the look is still badly styled. There’s also a black version of the gown which I feel would have been the better choice. This particular shade blends in with Piper’s skin and hair too much. Also, to work with the dress’ edginess, not against it, a less matronly hair style would have been a good idea. Silver peep toes weren’t an ideal choice of shoe either.

I feel a bit bad for going against my principle of not naming and shaming the bad looks but this one just got my goat. Moving on from my rant, I’m very curious to hear who your favourites were! Which looks did you love? Altogether this was a rather boring red carpet, most people played it safe – agree or disagree? Will the Oscars (and the SAGs and all the others) be any better?

(image of Piper Perabo via gofugyourself.com, all other images via style.com)

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