The Oscars Red Carpet Fashion Recap
I’m back with my annual Oscars Red Carpet fashion picks and pans. The 88th Annual Academy Awards were full of fashion high points…and….definitely some low points. These are just my humble opinions and I realize my idea of fashion may not coincide with everyone’s . I am just taking this moment to tell you what I liked. I will be taking a few moments to poke some fun at what I didn’t like too.
Let’s start with the good stuff…
Red Carpet Picks
My pick of the night is actually shared between two different ladies because I just could not decide between the two who pulled it off the best.
Charlize Theron in custom Dior…again….and we love it….again.
Head to toe chic. I wonder whether a choker would have worked on this look. The long pendant works well but I wonder if a choker would have worked better…not sure. I love that they went minimal and didn’t over stack this gown with jewelry. Clean, simple, elegant and so very chic. Brava!!
A little look inside the Dior workroom (Instagram) on this one. It was a custom order folks. It’s pays to be a couture house’s muse.
Cate Blanchett in Armani Privé
Stunning!!! From the color to the delicate floral embellishment I adored this look. Her Tiffany jewelry brought it to another level. Everything just sings for me on this one. All the girly princess pressure points in my system sang to this Ave Maria of a gown.
Illustration from Megan Hess Instagram
Those were my two favorite looks of the evening but there were a number of looks that made me nod my head in approval to the wearer and stylist.
Alicia Virkander in custom Louis Vuitton
Glorious in whipped butter yellow!! All you bakers out there know the color I reference. When was the last time we saw yellow rock the red carpet? I’m thinking never! Michelle Williams did orange in Vera Wang beautifully one year but I’m not sure this shade of yellow has made an appearance lately. Again minimal jewelry, soft hair and softer makeup palette brings forth a win on this one. And congrats to Ms. Virkender on her Oscar win and….managing to bring Michael Fassbender as her date! Cuuuuuuute.
Ms. Virkander also rocked a LV for the after parties too…
Giuliana Rancic in George Chakra
I loved the clean elegant lines of this gown and the party that was the back. Nice. Giuliana still needs a few cheeseburgers though to fill out those arms.
Olivia Munn in Stella McCartney
Loved this bold deep orange/red on her. I also loved the bold clean lines of this design and the strong clean jewelry she ( or her stylist) paired with it. Nice!
Honerable Mention
First off “Cutest reveal of a baby bump” has to go to Emily Blunt in Prada
I was not on social media for the days leading up to the Oscars so I missed the announcement that she was expecting. I took one look at her empire waist gown and said to my daughter “Is Emily Blunt preggers?” Guess I should have read the news feed before the event. She glowed in this and I liked it.
Next up is “Person most likely to feel a draft the WHOLE evening”. This goes to Rachel McAdams in August Getty.
Why the “feel the draft” comment? This is why….
Ohhhhh my. There had to have been some industrial tapping going on when she got dressed. There was simply no room for “gap issues” in that gown. Tape all the way. Can’t imagine what it was like to undress from that one. Ouuuuuuch. She looked gorgeous in it though. I wonder how many times people stepped on the train.
“Best revenge on a cheating ex-husband” has to go to Jennifer Garner in Atelier Versace
She looked regal and elegant in this all black power house of a gown. Take that one to the nanny Ben. Seriously.
“Best way to support a friend” goes to Lady Gaga in Brandon Maxwell
The designer is a friend of hers and he is trying to make his way in this shark tank of a fashion industry. Lady Gaga showed his work to perfection on the red carpet. She also performed a powerful rendition of her best song nomination from a documentary showcasing the alarming epidemic of college campus rape. Nicely done my Lady.
“The woman who most embodied a gladiator” award goes to Kerry Washington in Atelier Versace
The leather breastplate top just didn’t do it for me. It was a strong bold look for sure…just wasn’t feeling it. I kept thinking…”she needs the helmet thing with the brush broom on top..and a sword”
Red Carpet Pans
My pans for the evening were few actually. First up has to be Sandy Powell in…well..don’t know the designer but the look sadly came across as a catastrophic ode to David Bowie. The woman is an amazing costume designer (hello!! she has multiple Oscars to prove it) but her style fell very short on the red carpet last night. Poor woman…E! Online kept calling her Tilda Swinton during their red carpet segment. I nearly made myself hoarse screaming at the TV “ It’s NOT Tilda Swinton…it’s Sandy Powel!!” Get it together E! !!
Olivia Wilde in Valentino
Ummmmm. no! I am all for architectural design in clothing but this just felt wrong to me. WAY too many pleats for my taste. Olivia Wilde is an amazingly beautiful woman. This fashion on her did not showcase that at all. Yes, she sure has the body to wear it but this one just left me…well….de pleated LOL!
It didn’t work any better on the Spring 2016 Couture runway either
Mara Rooney in Givenchy
Oh I know I will get hate mail for this one. I can hear the comments now…”But Rebecca…it’s Givenchy!!” The gown is stunning…just not on this albino skinned actress. I have to admit, part of my negative review of this look had to do with Mara Rooney and her none too happy face every time the camera landed on her. It came across as petulance. I would love to see the amazing Ms. Rooney in some kind of color not this gothic pasty white/cream. She just blended into the background here.
Lastly, and it pains me to do this….I give you Kate Winslet in Ralph Lauren
My first thought…honest to God…was, who put Kate in a hefty bag? Was that sequins, metallic sheen or just plain plastic sheeting? Have no idea. Normally she nocks it out of the park. This year, she stayed in the park and was rummaging around in the garbage cans. Sadly Kate, not the king of the world with this one. It was honestly adorable though that you walked in with Leo DiCaprio à la Titanic from years ago. Very cute.
Lastly we have Heidi Klum in Marchesa
Ok, the color is not bad but please, oh please lose the puff sleeve!! And the Pom-Pom fleurettes need to go…like right now. This dress has garden party gone amuck all over it. No disrespect to the talented ladies of Marchesa but…was Heidi looking for funding from Harvey Weinstein and was just sucking up by buying the last dress on the rack from his wife? Ouch Rebecca!
After Party
As an added item for this years tome on Oscar night fashions, I would like to add a few snaps on who ruled at the after parties. Vanity Fair had quite a few winners as well as Elton John’s big party.
Taylor Swift in Alexandre Vauthier
Rachel McAdams in Naeem Khan
Maggie Grace in Galia Lahav
And…how cute is this couple?!! Gwen Stefani in Yanina and Blake Shelton. His expression is priceless. It says “ I’m just happy to be here y’all”. I love how she is decked out sexy gorgeous and he looks like he’s going to a neighborhood association meeting.
And that’s a wrap for this years award season fashion reviews.
-Rebecca
2016 Golden Globes: Pass the Ketchup and the Mustard
Weird title right? Let me explain.. While there were many colors on the red carpet last night, I was surprised at the number of ketchup reds ( almost orange ) and mustard yellows. Some of my favorite looks of the evening fell into these two favorite American condiment colors so I decided to go with it in the title. It was quirky and fun.
Pass the ketchup please!:
Jennifer Lawrence in a fabulous Dior with a stunning diamond choker. Loved the cutouts in this gown. One of my favorite looks of the night.
source: www.eonline.com
Amy Adams in Versace. Loved the detailing around the waist and down the side.
source: www.eonline.com
Emmy Rossum in Armani Prive. Elegant and accessorized to perfection.
source: www.eonline.com
Ketchup has expired!! :
Natalie Dormer in J. Mendel. Ummmmm… time to lose the oxen like yoke around the throat. Wrong, just plain wrong.
source: www.eonline.com
A little Mustard goes a long way:
Jennifer Lopez in Giambattista Valli. This was the only mustard I was satisfied with last night. Ms. Lopez rocked this one. Let’s face it folks, not everyone can wear this color and you need a certain amount of attitude to do it. She can and did it.
source: www.popsugar.com.au
And…extra snaps to Ms. Lopez as she managed to make this dress look WAY better than it did on the runway for 2015 Fall Couture.
source: www.vogue.com
Too much mustard!!!
America Ferrera in Jenny Packham. First of all, if the sales lady said this color looked good on you Ferrera…she was on commission. Secondly, if you wanted to pull off matronly, this cut and style nailed it. Not sure that was what she was going for.
source: www.eonline.com
Lola Kirke in Marchesa. Does Grecian draping ever work in mustard yellow? I’m not sure it does. I love Lola Kirke and I adore the show Mozart in the Jungle ( my favorite new show and so happy they won last night!!!) but this color and styling fell short on her. Also, the shoes with pearl ankle straps does NOT belong in this picture. 
source: www.eonline.com
Leaving the condiments behind, lets talk about the sequin love affair going on at last nights Golden Globes.
Brie Larson in Calvin Klein. Congrats to Ms. Larson on her win for best actress last night. She was Miss Golden Globe embodied in this gown. If I had abs like her, I would want to show them off in a dress like this too. I loved that she kept the hair and jewelry to a minimum. The dress is bling enough..she didn’t need anything more.
source: www.eonline.com
Portia Doubleday in Naeem Khan. Forget having to go to the disco, this lady brought the disco ball with her…in fact…she wore it to the party. The cut was ok on this one but the overall shiny ( as in…can be seen from space) effect of the gown turned me off.
source: Jason Merritt/Getty Images
Kate Bosworth in Dolce and Gabbanna. I like pink…but pink sequins?…to this extent?…not so much. There is just way too much going on with this dress. And let’s just state the obvious here people, this woman NEEDS a cheeseburger.
source: www.eonline.com
Julianne Moore in Tom Ford. Can sequins look matronly? Apparently Tom Ford can make that happen. Was not feeling this look at all.
source: www.eonline.com
Bryce Dylan Howard in Jenny Packham. And….apparently Jenny Packham can make sequins look matronly too!! Tom, meet Jenny….Jenny, meet Tom. Bryce is not 50 but she is kind of channeling it here.
source: www.eonline.com
Regina King in Krikor Jabotain. I give you “Panic at the Disco”!! They may be a band but this picture embodies that phrase. What on earth?!! Is she channeling a super hero with the cape? To the designer: Did you feel the cape would somehow elevate this sequined gone amuck sheath? To the stylist: What did Regina ever do to you to have you do this to her? To Regina: Did you at least get to feel like a superhero in this getup? In the indomitable words of one of my mentors…Edna Mode…”NO CAPES!”
source: www.eonline.com
While sequins and plunging necklines were prevalent on the red carpet last night, The remainder of my picks and pans fell into the more understated category. For example
When YSL works…
Saorise Ronan in Yves Saint Laurent Couture. Stunning on her! She looked so elegant and regal compared to the disco walking down the carpet. I loved that the hair, makeup and jewelry were very simple and elegant as well. Nice work stylist!!
source: www.vogue.com
When YSL doesn’t work….
Jane Fonda in Yves Saint Laurent . And the cape/founce/16th century ruff/ ode to Mexican tile roofing around her neck was a good idea?? I believe the queens bed skirt that Helena Bonham Carter usually wears to awards shows was repurposed for this ensemble last night. I refer to a comment made earlier…”NO CAPES!”
source: www.eonline.com
Jada Pinkett Smith in Versace. LOVED this look on her from head to toe. Gorgeous!
source: www.eonline.com
Laverne Cox in Elizabeth Kennedy. New Designer Alert!!! Elizabeth Kennedy folks. She had two very strong looks walking the red carpet last night. We will be seeing this woman’s work again on the red carpet I am sure.
source: www.eonline.com
Lady Gaga in Versace. Well hello Ms. Monroe!! Didn’t think the hips needed to be exaggerated that much but a small negative in the overall beauty of this look. Beautifully styled and worn by the talented Ms. Gaga.
source: www.eonline.com
Lily James in Marchesa. A lovely ode to a Grecian urn and another example of how less is definitely more sometimes. The stylist showed restraint and the overall look is better for it .
source: www.eonline.com
Can’t wait to see what the rest of awards season with bring down the carpet. 
Inside the Fashion Doll Studio 