Well, this is a first for me. I usually don’t follow red carpet style (well, I do follow it as a guilty pleasure, but I never blog about it) but after getting so many requests to cover the red carpet for the Golden Globes and the Oscars, I decided to jump on the bandwagon (plus I have to do it for my freelance work anyways).

I love gowns but I hate (HATE) fluffy princess-y crinolines and prom-like things. So if an actress wears some silly thing like that, she is automatically off the Best Dressed list. Think Gwyneth Paltrow in that horrendous Barbie Ralph Lauren. Ugh. I like modern gowns, the ones that appear effortless. Something that one can slip on and look fresh, breezy and at ease. A lot of this has to do with confidence and not being a try-hard (like Megan Fox). Some of you will hate this list. I’m not into cute or overly pretty or, on the opposite spectrum, overly sexualized. So, here are my top 5 looks in ascending order. And, yes, it’s kind of a copout because I have two ties. But if you look at the dresses that tied, they were so similar that they couldn’t be mentioned without the comparison.
5. Angelina Jolie in Versace and Anne Hathaway in Armani

Perhaps Angelina Jolie only made it on this list because I was so pleasingly surprised that I didn’t hate it. I usually think of her as an appallingly bad dresser. But here she is looking very demure but sexy in a sparkly emerald Versace number. There are numerous things that made this dress unique: the long sleeves, the amazing 80s Dynasty shoulder pads, the high neckline. A definite risk that worked.
It was a definite tie and Anne was almost eliminated due to some lumpy puckering that was going on in the front, but once I saw the back, I knew I had to keep her. I thought that Angelina’s Versace and Anne’s Armani were similar in silhouette and fabric. They both styled it in a similar manner with long, loose hair. I give Angie a bit of an edge for the colour.

4. Leighton Meester in Burberry Prorsum

Miss Meester was a breath of fresh air in this airy Burberry Prorsum. Again, the long sleeve and the shoulder padding, or in this case, ruching. So modern, yet glamorous. I’m glad Leighton didn’t play it cute.

3. Tilda Swinton in Jil Sander

Tilda Swinton is a genuine style icon (she will be featured in one of my upcoming style icon posts). She never plays it safe and is so confident that she could show up in a garbage bag (which she kind of did in that shiny, shapeless Lanvin a few years ago) and still be the most regal person there. This Jil Sander dress might as well have been designed for her: the skirt matches her golden hair perfectly! Love her.

2. Emma Stone and Claire Danes in Calvin Klein

It’s a tie, because, let’s face it: it’s kind of a same dress. Long time readers will know how much I adore Francisco Costa and his work at Calvin Klein. Both gowns are youthful, modern and an epitome of American Chic. The stying on both is just impeccable. I can’t decide which one I like better. But, notice Claire’s Honeysuckle?
1. January Jones in Versace

Yes, she always wears Versace and she always looks great. It takes a major amount of guts and a lot of class to pull off a dress like this. In anyone else’s hands (like maybe Christina Aguilera’s), this would have been a hideous disaster, but January has that icy, regal thing reminiscent of Old Hollywood that just lets her get away with stuff like this. Perfection.
Honourable Mention goes to Tina Fey in her velvet L’Wren Scott. You were so close Lemon! See you at the Oscars!

What were your favourites? Agree? Disagree?