It’s almost the 2014 Met Gala (tomorrow actually) so I thought in order to truly appreciate this years Charles James theme, lets re look at last years red carpet and reminisce on all the greatness the punk theme provided us with… (kim k’s floral couch hehehe)…so here’s my wrapup on the Met Gala 2013:
Met Ball Monday is here and from Chaos to Couture is the Punk inspired theme of this year’s Costume Institute Exhibition. As such, designers were encouraged to dress their ‘dates’ accordingly. As expected, some did, some didn’t and some say they did, but really, they didn’t. In my opinion, no one seemed to go traditional punk as we know it, so no fierce leather, no ripped tights (except for Madonna, but whats new there), no studded tees, no offensive behaviour and no nose chains. Instead, the Punk theme seemed to be embraced in a very typical high ‘fashion’ restrained way. What I mean by this was summed up perfectly by good old all American Jessica Alba when she said on the red carpet of her Tory Burch dress, ‘I feel very punk because my dress is leather’ Ummm, ok, sure, except I dont think that counts. Anyway, aside from Punk being approached with caution by everyone, the red carpet was still a sea of fashion greatness. So lets peruse…
Now I need to start with Nicole Richie’s can of silver spray paint, as it clearly got the better of her, but for some reason I still love this, (maybe cos Im having a NicoleRichie moment) but I still love this anti-hair situation she got going on and her ear cuff is the shizz, kinda like her would be bestie, my mate Gabs (you know who you are). Great safe take on modern punk, 7/10. Beyonce obviously needs an early mention, despite being one of the last to arrive. The not so single lady appeared to glide through the red carpet in her custom made Riccardo Tisci Givenchy gown, arriving at the base of the famous stairs, to the full attention of the worlds media. Watching the chaotic arrivals of the red carpet, then suddenly seeing it completely and utterly vacant (I mean not a single person was at those stairs when she was) was something of a royal moment, I mean she was there, the one person everyone was waiting for had arrived. I loved the fiery train, wild hair and matchey boots and gloves were perfecto for Beyonce, 9/10.
Nicole Richie
Beyonce clears the stairs
Beyonce in Givenchy
Kimye both in Givenchy
Co chairs, Riccardo Tisci & Rooney Mara
Now, while on the subject of the chairman himself, Riccardo Tisci (of Givenchy) lets talk Kimye as obviously he dressed the pair. Kim must have been over the moon to finally have a legitimate invite to the Met Ball, as thanks to Anna Wintour’s strict guest list in past years, she has been denied an invite. I Wonder why… Anyway, the super pregnant Kimmy embraced her bump in the high neck, floor length floral print gown, which came with built in sleeve/gloves. Now I personally would have thought black might have been a better option, but as I write that, I thought, actually, I am certainly not one to diss a pregnant woman and I actually salute her for going so far the other way. The only thing I will say, is that Im pretty sure, the floral print of her gown is identical from that of my dads couch, circa 1993. But who’d have thought! Still not my personal fav, but I think she looks great, 6/10. Rooney Mara was the other chair of the gala alongside Tisci, and obviously looked super amaze in another of his custom made Givenchy lacey ivory gown, babe and perfectly appropriate, 9/10.
Now lets talk some of my other favs. SJP. What a winner. Bringing back some of that good old fashioned Carrie Bradshaw ridiculousness. I loved that she had a Phillip Treacey headpiece and I love that she was OTT, as this is probably one of the very few red carpet occasions, where you actually can be OTT and where it really is about fashion expressionism and simply what you’re wearing. Fun as, 8/10. Joan Smalls gets my Best Dressed vote, & was accompanied and dressed by the uber man Tom Ford, and needless to say, looked like perfection on a stick. Black patterend perfection, 10/10. Cara Delevingne was a close second for me, in her studded low cut Burberry dress, looking incredible as always, 9/10. Archive Valentino looked impeccable on Anne Hathaway and I loved that she tried to be a bit more edgy, a bit more punk. Id love to see her take it further, but she definitely gets points for trying, 8/10 and on a side note, the blonde is ace! Anja Rubik looked her usual fiercely hot self in Anthony Vaccarello red leather and chain detail, winning, 9/10, very costumey, very relevant. Vaccarello’s other representative was Brazilian babe, Giselle, who’s ‘punk pose’ has now become somewhat of a banner for this years Met Gala image galleries. Perfect in black leather and chain, super similar to Anja, Giselle still gets me, every time, 9/10.
SJP in Giles Deacon, Phillip Treacey hat & Louboutin Boots
Joan Smalls & Tom Ford
Cara Delevingne in Burberry
Anne Hathaway in archive Valentino
Anja Rubik in Anthony Vaccarello
Giselle in Anthony Vaccarello
Jess Hart
The Best of the Rest…
These guys, I liked and thought they looked great, I like all of these looks for different reasons, I mean lets take Cameron D, you win most improved from last year, (however Im still surprised you stayed with Stella Mc Cartney after the gold sack she put you in last year) but hair was a bit tight and a bit unnecessarilly severe, so that lost you points, 6/10. Miranda Kerr looked like a supermodel should, shiny, skinny and smiley, so beautiful in Michael Kors, 9/10. Jlo on the other hand, was also dressed by Mr Kors, and looked bangin in her signature style dress: figure hugging nude and black stocking of a gown, 8/10. Blake, yes you looked amazing and you have done Gucci proud, but Ive seen better colours on you, 7/10. Carey Mulligan, every designer would be wanting to dress you right now and while you do look great in this simple black Balenciaga, you also could have pushed a bit further. Sorry if that sounds harsh, but one large gold safety pin stuck on your chest, just doesn’t quite cut the cheese for me, 6/10, but only for being a little dull, not for being bad. And finally, Miss Dior herself, J law, looked stunning and feminine and beautiful but just looked like J Law always does, so again loss of points for lack of originality 6/10. But technically, would have been beautiful for the Golden Globes. And finally, the youngest Cyrus, Miley just being Miley actually looked so appropriate and so good in Marc Jacobs, 8/10, next time just tone down the hair a little…
Alexa Chung in Erdem
Gwyneth Paltrow in Valentino
Kate Bosworth in Balmain
Jennifer Lopez in Michael Kors
Emma Watson
Miranda Kerr in Michael Kors
Cameron Diaz in Stella Mc Cartney
Blake Lively in Gucci
Rita Ora
Zooey Deschanel in Tommy Hilfiger
Rosie Huntington Whitely in Gucci
Carey Mulligan in Balenciaga
J Law in Dior
Christina Ricci in Vivienne Westwood
Miley Cyrus in Marc Jacobs
Lauren Santo Domingo in Dolce & Gabbana
Carine Roitfeld in Givenchy
Pixie Geldof
Lilly Aldridge & Caleb
The um, last best…
I never really like to dwell on those looks that I didnt love, but theres always a few in every red carpet. Now none of these, thankfully, were horrendous, but in my opinion, they just weren’t great either.
Oh Madge. Never one to be outdone, Madge, also wore a custom Riccardo Tisci design. But Madge, really, where do we even start with you. Yes, you are the true material girl, the original Queen of Pop, but it’s probably time to know that sometimes, ‘putting on a show’ isn’t always necessary, as it can be misconstrued as being a desperate grab for attention, which is kinda awkward when everyone is really just waiting for Beyonce! Oh cant believe I actually just said that, love Madge normally….. But what the hell, at least you committed, 5/10. Sienna Miller, Im really torn here, and its kinda love hate because throwing an incredible studded Burberry leather over an ivory gown is quite ‘punk of you and quite gorgeous but your overly calculated hair, studded hair accessory and shabby arm ‘candy’ man just make me go all grumpy cat on you, NO. 5/10. Now Julianne Moore, you are truly beautiful, but do yourself a favour and fire your hairdresser, because that quiff arrived on the red carpet about an hour before you did. And also next time, ask Mr Wang for another fitting, because an oversized il-fitting dress, Not ok. 5/10. Finally, Elle Fanning you did very well to get the Rodarte girls to hook you up, but next year, please dont do your own makeup and hey maybe even hire a makeup artist and you could split the cost with Ginnifer Goodwin! 4/10 for each of you.
Madonna in Riccardo Tisci for Givenchy
Sienna Miller in Burberry
Linda Evangelista in Marchesa
Julianne Moore in Balenciaga
Marion Cotillard in Dior
Kerry Washington & Vera Wang
Coco Rocha in Fausto Puglisi
Elle Fanning in Rodarte
Kristen Stewart in Stella Mc Cartney
Nicki Minaj in Tommy Hilfiger
Ginnifer Goodwin in Tory Burch
The rest…
So with that being said, lets now peruse the rest or the attendees. As an overall observation, what I will say is that, just doing a smokey eye doesn’t quite make you punk, although this seems to be a popular opinion amongst stylists, and overall I feel like hair and beauty could have been a lot better on most peeps, with hair letting a few leading ladies down, but thats ok, plenty of time to learn whats what for next year… And look while that sounds super picky of me, I have to say that overall this is probably one of the best red carpets for fashion in a very long time, so much to see and so much to love! Cant wait to do it all again next year…
Wes Gordon and Constance Jablonski
Abbey Lee Kershaw
Taylor Tomassi Hill
Sophia Coppola and Marc Jacobs
Dree Hemingway
Diane Von Furstenberg
Bianca Brandolini in Dolce & Gabbana
Coco Brandolini in Dolce & Gabbana
Gwen Stefani in Maison Martin Margiela
Karen Elson
Jess Biel in Giambattista Valli
Kate Upton in DVF
Florence
Amanda Seyfried in Archive Givenchy
Dakota Fanning in Rodarte
MK Olsen
MK Olsen in Chanel & vintage Balmain jacket
Alicia Keys in Jason Wu
Elizabeth Banks in Atelier Versace
Katy Perry in Dolce & Gabbana
Michelle Williams in Saint laurent
Ashley Greene in Marchesa
Maggie Gyllenhal in Calvin Klein
Kylie Minogue in Moschino
Donatella Versace
Kate Beckinsale in Alberta Ferretti
Katie Holmes in Calvin Klein
Taylor Swift
Uma Thurman and Zac Posen
Kirsten Dunst in Wes Gordon
Giovanna Battaglia in Dolce & Gabbana and 18ct gold shoes
Anna Wintour in Chanel & daughter, Bee Shaffer
Karolina Kurkova in Mary Katrantzou
Bella Heathcote in Chanel
Heidi Klum in Marchesa
Carolyn Murphy in Nina Ricci
Ashley Olsen in vintage Dior couture
Amber Heard in Emilio Pucci
Doutzen Kroes in Theyskens Theory
Chloe Sevigny in Proenza Schouler
Stacey Keibler in Rachel Roy
Solange Knowles in Kenzo
Ivanka Trump
Jaime King in Topshop
in Saint Laurent
Karlie Kloss
Aubrey Plaza in Marios Schwab
Jessica Alba in Tory Burch
Julieanne Hough in Topshop custom made
vogue.es, vogue.com, harpers bazaar.com