Siren FASHION the
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College Tribune | 3rd February 2009 College Tribune | 3rd March 2009
Oscars Fashion
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Aoife Smyth points out the true importance of the Acadamy Awards The Oscars dress.... Each year we sit glued to this three and a half hour awards ceremony with one purpose in mind- to gawk at the dresses. As these preened ladies glide elegantly down the red carpet towards their possible little gold statue, us viewers sit and judge them. In the words of Courtney Love, "The Oscars isn’t about who wins, it's about who wears the best dress". The best part is when someone messes up. As bold as that sounds, we all know it is true. There is nothing better than a scantily clad lady as old as your Nana, or a kooky singer with a fake swan draped over
her torso, posing for the paparazzi. But the scary thing about the media is, a small thing like a bad fashion choice for the Oscars can actually disrupt a celebrity’s career. Photos of bad Oscar dresses follow celebrities around for more than the three week after the Oscars, to say the least. A bad fashion choice is always more memorable than any other. So there's the good. Take Audrey Hepburn who won Best Actress in 1954 for the film "Roman Holiday". She wore a silk, floral, sleeveless Givenchy dress with a belt defining her tiny little waist. It was simple, but most of all it was classic. The following year Grace Kelly wore an Edith Head, aqua-coloured, silk dress in which the material alone cost forty grand. In 1999, Sharon Stone grabbed the attention of the snappers with a simple statement involving her husband's Gap shirt, which cost a total of 20 dollars, teamed with a long floor length skirt. In 2002 after becoming the first African American woman to win best actress, Halle Berry made
the headlines with her beautiful Elie Saab dress, with strategically placed flowers on her upper half. Then there's the bad. Think Gwyneth Paltrow's sheer top by Alexander McQueen in 2002, where she revealed a lot more than we desired. The black poofy skirt she teamed it with was even more of a horrific sight. In 1999 Celine Dion shocked the public by daring to leave her house in a white John Galliano suit, WORN BACKWARDS! She teamed this with a tackalicious matching trilby. Finally, the ugly. Cher has my prize for the worst ever Oscars outfit. In 1988 she wore a black Bob Mackie number, which was really a sheer dress with sequins over her privates. Now, I don't care if it was the eighties, nobody can pull of a show girl dress at the Oscar. At this year’s Oscars we saw a lot of metallics and off the shoulder dresses. Kate Winslet was voted best dressed in an opinion poll, and she deserved the recognition as her steal grey off the shoulder dress re-
The only consistency in fashion is the knowledge that the times are changin’ says Aoife Ryan The McDonald's advertisement is right- one minute you are bang on trend and the next you are as fashion conscious as a builder on the job. That's mainstream fashion unless you decide to opt for a more personal, off the beaten track style, which should be encouraged as long as your natural senses don't have you steering towards outfits that even the elderly community or stripper community wouldn't approve of. The reason high end fashion is so mutable is because once it embraces something, it must soon commend something opposing this, to show their versatility and creativity. Everything is a rebellion of sort; season's being a turn away from last season's frills and softness in favour of edgy eighties clothes and bright make-up palettes. More and more now we are seeing unusual, striking outfits on women at red carpet events. Instead of choosing safe frocks, we are now seeing celebrities veer towards slick jumpsuits, baggy pants and
fitted tuxedos. Maggie Gyllenhaal was spotted in a backless black jumpsuit earlier this year on the red carpet, proving the cut is what is important rather than whether it is a dress or not. Femininity and sexuality do not have to be compromised by the decision to 'revolt' against the norm. This may seem slightly odd as, especially in the last two seasons, fashion has been embracing the essentials, something that doesn't scream defiant insurgency. The less than tropical weather so many of us have to endure has been recognised, allowing hats, wellies, scarves, boots, jumper dresses and wedges rather than heels to take to the fore. Deceivingly though, the bid for comfort is really a way of stating their position as the anti, and soon the cries for a more dangerous in-style will be heard. Just as what women should wear as formal dress has been questioned, what time of year we should wear something, either colour-wise or in relation to the warmth factor,
and the height of our shoes will soon be too. One great example of this is hats. Once considered as important to be worn continually as shoes, they no doubt swayed out of style for a large period of time to be seen only as practical clothing, but are now deep in the midst of their comeback as continual day wear. High street choice has evolved in this department too. The bowler, the beanie, the beret, the baker boy cap, the fedora, the panama straw hat, the porkpie (indented flat top, think blues/ jazz player) and bucket (wide and droops towards eyes) hats as well as the 1920s reminiscent cloche (bell-shaped) hat are among the many choices available. People are now asking who said hat hair was such a bad thing. Even within the favoured garment there is a clash from time to time. Take the dungaree this seasonan outfit beforehand perhaps better suited for a farmhand, sevenyear old or pregnant woman but now thrown into the spotlight.
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ally was a show stealer. Designed by Stefano Pilati for Yves Saint Laurent, and teamed with Chopard Carat diamonds, Kate's dress made her look like a real starlet. Sarah Jessica Parker gained attention with her princess like white Dior haute couture dress. The magical, strapless number was beautifully embellished with diamantes on the bodice.
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