And The Oscar Goes To...

As every red carpet darling knows, the culmination of a successful awards season is the Academy Awards - more commonly known as the Oscars - and every style savvy starlet is desperate to turn heads with her choice of gown for the evening.

While the hues of choice at the Golden Globes were nude and emerald, the favourable colours at the Oscars seemed to be red and plum. I actually lost count of the number of red gowns I saw but for me the most memorable - and ironically the simplest dress of the bunch - was worn by Oscar newcomer, and best actress nominee, Jennifer Lawrence. She went for old school, minimalist Calvin Klein and looked incredible. Normally I'm not a great fan of red - particularly when it looks like the wearer is channelling Pamela Anderson's Baywatch years circa 1993 - but Jennifer Lawrence is just so fresh-faced and beautiful that she pulled it off with gusto. Had that been Pammy herself she would have looked cheap and tarty, but J Lawrence was a picture of sexy elegance.

Another winner for me was Hailee Steinfeld. She disappointed me at the Baftas after a spectacular debut at the Golden Globes so I was interested to see what she would rock the red carpet in at the Oscars. And she definitely came up trumps. Her princess-goes-to-prom Marchesa gown was absolutely beautiful on her. She went for a simplistic pale pink hue which suited her skin tone and dark hair perfectly. She was definitely the belle of the ball.

Natalie Portman has upped her game after, what I viewed to be, a disappointing frock at the Globes. Every gown has gotten better and better as the awards season has progressed and on Sunday night the Swan Queen took to the stage to collect her much deserved statuette looking every inch the Hollywood megastar. I found it quite fitting that her plum off-shoulder gown was designed by Rodarte who had a hand in the costume design for Black Swan. In my opinion it showed that Portman was there to celebrate the movie - and film itself in general - and not just fashion. She looked beautiful and has that lovely pregnant glow about her now. Her hair was fabulous and I am in love with those earrings.

I'm a big fan of Michelle Williams' look so I was pleased to see that she had gone for a more red-carpet appropriate dress on Sunday night - and one that was 100 times more flattering on her than her previous effort at the Golden Globes. As much as I liked her Valentino gown (and was probably one of the few who did like it) it wasn't the most flattering garmet the Dawson's Creek survivor has ever donned. She rocked the red carpet in Chanel Haute Couture and Harry Winston jewels. Her make-up was impeccable and she is stunning with that perfect pixie-cut blonde hair.

One star who has done well this awards season is Mila Kunis. But I have to say I'm unsure of her lilac Elie Saab gown. The colour itself looked wonderful on her because of her dark skin tone but the overall style of the dress isn't really pulling me in. The more I look at it, the more I think the skirt looks like ripped lace curtains and she's only pulling off that very low-cut round neckline because she has such a small bust. I do love the nipped in waist though which creates a lovely hourglass shape for the slender starlet.

Jennifer Lawrence

Hailee Steinfeld

Yummy Mummy Natalie Portman

Michelle Williams

Mila Kunis

Host for the evening Anne Hathaway - who apparently paid stylist Rachel Zoe a six-figure sum to dress her for the night. I think she ended up looking like...Anne Hathaway at every other award show. But skinnier. Somebody get this girl a cheeseburger.

I've heard a lot of people say they don't like Florence Welch's choice of frock for the evening but I love it. I think she rocks it and it's her style. She looked odd at last year's Brit awards in that fancy gown she wore - this is much more her and I think she got it spot on.

Gwyneth Paltrow actually looks amazing. I never thought I'd see the day I liked a metallic silver dress that actually has the ability to double up as a jumpsuit but she pulls this off magnificently.

This is how older women should do understated sexy elegance. Every woman over the age of 50 should take notes from Dame Helen Mirren.

There's been a bit of debate over Marisa Tomei's 1950 Charles James gown - she's been included in both the best dressed and worst dressed lists. Personally I think it's fabulous. Very goth chic, very stand-out. I think she made a statement with this gown and she looks gorgeous.

This on the other hand made a statement for all the wrong reasons. I did wonder where my granny's old Christmas tablecloth from 1990 had disappeared to and now the mystery is solved. Shame on you Melissa Leo - good job it wasn't raining or your doily might have melted.

Doesn't Reese Witherspoon make a lovely looking pint of Guiness? Just look at the head on that... Also - big shout out to her Legally Blonde days - that's what that ponytail is for right? Erin Brockovich springs to mind here as well...

Last but not least, Scarlett Johansson, looking hot-to-trott in Dolce & Gabbana. Sexy, simple, tousled dirty blonde bob, great make-up - wowsers. Ryan Reynolds is missing out.



-PS - I also have to pass a quick comment on how amazing the men looked at Sunday's ceremony. It's a lot harder for them than the women to 'stand-out' with their suits but kudos go to Iron Man Robert Downey Jnr, Russell Brand and Mark Wahlberg who looked effortless, cool and hot. Sizzling.

-PPS - Mark Ruffalo's wife is called Sunrise. That is all.

Golden Globes - Style Heaven or Fashion Faux Pas?

Sunday night in LA kicked off one of my favourite seasons of the entire year - Awards Season. And the stars were definitely shining as the women sashayed up the red carpet, desperate to be crowned the numero uno fashionista at the first awards ceremony of 2011.

My eyes were practically popping out of my head at the sheer elegance oozing out of some of Hollywood's biggest players - there were so many hits in the style stakes this year I had a hard time choosing my favourite one.

But here she is - the absolute stand-out for me at this year's Golden Globes was the elegant, classic and timeless beauty Anne Hathaway. She simply took my breath away in this incredible backless creation by Armani. I adored the high neckline and long sleeves which to me made way for a bit of old Hollywood glamour, but she still ensured she showed off just the right amount of flesh by daring to bare at the back. The puff sleeves give her some much needed width to her narrow shoulders and the slinky cut of the dress clings to her slender frame perfectly. Her hair, make-up and accessories were subtle and minimal, creating the perfect balance between them and the uber-fabulous dress. Hats off to Miss Hathaway, simply sensational. I can't wait to see what she'll wear next.

Giving Anne a run for her money in the style stakes was red-carpet newcomer Olivia Wilde. The House star looked beautiful in this stunning Marchesa gown. She looked every inch the modern-day princess in this dress, which looks like it was made specifically for her. Her casual untouched hair gave her overall look a slightly more understated twist - personally I would have preferred to have seen her do a little bit more with her hair, but that asides her look was to die for. Especially when she lifted up the skirt of her dress and gave the world a peek of those sensational gold peep-toe Louboutins! Ah I die.

Next in the fashion-fabulous line up is (and it pains me to admit this because I'm not her biggest fan...but this is all in the name of style) the one and only Angelina Jolie. Like Hathaway she chose to cover up her best assets and still looked incredible in this amazing emerald green Versace number. Check out those Swarovski crystals! Ange normally sticks to black or white on the red carpet so it was refreshing to see her go against the grain and splash some colour around for a change. And didn't it work well. She looks fabulous.

It seemed the emerald hue was the colour of choice for many of the stars at this year's ceremony. Among others, the ever-stylish Catherine Zeta-Jones and red-carpet newbie Mila Kunis also rocked this gorgeous shade. CZJ was stunning as ever in this fabulous Monique Lhuiller strapless creation, while Kunis was cute as a button in Vera Wang.

Another frock highlight for me was Scarlett Johansson's breathtaking Elie Saab gown. The nude hue is sensational on her, the floaty sleeves are to die for and the plunging neckline is, in a word, fabulous. It's just a shame the once curvy glamour-puss's cleavage seems to have made a run for the hills and all we're left with is a sadly Skinny Scar.

Gossip Girl's Leighton Meester is certainly cementing her place among Hollywood's best dressed and she was a hit again last night in this beautiful long-sleeved creation by Zac Posen. She looks like a porceilan doll and her hair, make-up and accessories are perfect. And, just like Hathaway, although she's covered up from head-to-toe, she still manages to show off a little bit of flesh with the thigh high split in the skirt. Gorgeous.

I am definitely a fan of Michelle Williams' gorgeous Valentino daisy dress but on reflection I don't know if it was 100% appropriate for the red carpet. I can almost picture her wearing this to go shopping on a hot summer's day in LA. It's very boho chic and I love it but I think she could have done more to give it a real glamorous edge for the red carpet. It perfectly matches her skin tone, her make up and her hair - which sadly gives her a very washed out look. I think Michelle Williams is stunning, she's such a cutie, but unfortunately she didn't do herself justice last night.



I love Christina Hendricks - I love her bootylicious curves, I love her hair, I love her style - but I do not love this dress. It's not that Romona Keveza's one-shouldered creation offends me, it's just that, for starters I'm not the biggest fan of red and I'm never going to be. And unfortunately there's just too much going on up top in this number - Christina is fortunate enough to have been blessed with the sort of rack that most women would be willing to pay big bucks for and as a result she really doesn't need all this extra froufy material across her bust. If you were to take that away we'd be looking at a pretty impressive red-carpet gown, but sadly this one just isn't for me.

Next up is another red no-no. I don't know what it is I have against the colour red when it comes to clothes but I just can't stand it. Especially when it looks like this Versace number that the usually stylish January Jones chose to shimy herself into. I think it's not in the least  bit glamorous and to be quite honest it's actually borderline tacky. I'm sure there's plenty of men out there who will disagree with me but I've said it. The only thing that saves the Mad Men star from looking "cheap" is her stunning old Hollywood hair and the fact that she is truly, truly beautiful.

Glee star Lea Michele rocked up in what had the potential to be an amazing Oscar De La Renta frock. Sadly, for me, it wasn't. For a start the colour is far too sugary for my liking. I will admit that the hue does suit her skin tone but it's not enough to make me swoon over it. Secondly, the overall style of the dress is pretty wonderful but on Michele I don't think it works. It swamps her tiny frame and I think she looks a bit lost in all the material. Give me this dress, in dark blue, on Amy Adams and I'll be loving it.

It's  very uncommon for Heidi Klum not to hit the right button in the style stakes, but last night - for me anyway - she was SO wrong. It's not all her fault, I'd also like to wag my finger at her stylist AND Marc Jacobs who designed this dress. The colours, the cut, the shoes - they all scream footballer's wife to me. And that's simply not the Heidi Klum we know and love.

Finally...the last offender on my list was, ironically, the big winner on the night. Luckily for Natalie Portman the real awards are for acting abilities and not how good you looked on the red carpet. I know she's several months pregnant and she's probably at that stage where she doesn't feel completely comfortable in pretty much everything she puts on but I do think she could have done better than this sickly sweet pink Viktor & Rolf maxi dress. I don't like the colour, I don't like the material and I think it makes her look quite frumpy which she is anything but. I was really disappointed about Portman's dress because she was one of my high hopes for the night, I had really been looking forward to seeing her gown but I was left feeling sadly uninspired.

It's the Baftas next...who'll come out tops in the style stakes in London? I await with baited breath.