“And so it ends” I said sighing dramatically and looking at my now black TV. Ok, maybe I’m being a bit of a drama queen but, according to the looks that walked this year’s Academy Awards red carpet, dramatic is the way to go. How else would you describe Lupita’s astonishing, custom-made gown? I mean, the girl was sporting a total of 6,000 pearls! If that doesn’t qualify as dramatic I don’t know what does. The truth is that it’s the Oscars, and because of that there is this sort of silent agreement going on between the audience watching them and the actresses attending them: “I sit through four long hours of speeches and performances and you show up wearing unbelievably amazing gowns”. This is the reason behind Julianne Moore’s sequined Chanel couture number, Lady Gaga’s huge custom-made Alaïa gown (ok, maybe that has less to do with the Oscars and more to do with Lady Gaga being Lady Gaga) or Rosamund Pike’s curve-hugging red Givenchy look. This year though something changed: even with a red carpet filled with unforgettable and dramatic looks – hello! Care to talk about Emma Stone’s backless chartreuse Elie Saab?-the attention was less on the gowns and more on the fantastic performances given by the actresses wearing them. This was a result of the #AskHerMore twitter campaign that encouraged interviewers to ask the actresses more than the usual “Who are you wearing?” question. The campaign found the support of many actresses - Reese Witherspoon even tweeted about it before walking down the red carpet – as well as of interviewers like Abc’s Robin Ross who never asked the infamous question. After all, the reason why those women were there was because of the amazing and challenging work they’d done both in front and behind the scenes. The dresses were just the added bonus

You know how the saying goes: better late than never! 

Even if it’s been a few days since the Grammys and the BAFTA took place last Sunday we just had to reveal our Best Dressed list for the night and gush some more about the pure and simple perfection that was Rihanna’s dress – didn’t she look so good you just wanted to eat her up in her cupcake-like dress? – or the major diva moment that French actress, Léa Seydoux had while walking the red carpet in a magical Prada gown along with her Spectre co-star Monica Bellucci. So, without further ado, here’s the best looks from both the Grammys and the BAFTAs!  

Miss Dior non plus? Not just yet! In this new film, directed by Anton Corbijn and staring Natalie Portman, we see Miss Dior, Christian Dior’s only child, about to get married but things don’t go as planned. Miss, in fact, is not quite ready to become a Madam and, instead of walking down the isle, decides to run away on a helicopter with a mystery man heading to the city of lights itself: Paris. But the story wouldn’t be complete without an iconic song for an equally iconic fragrance and what’s more iconic than Janis Joplin’s “Piece of my Heart”? The perfect love song for a heroine who’s not afraid to live her own life and remind us that “it’s Miss, actually”.

Click inside to see the making of the film! 

This year’s SAG Awards could be described using one, simple word: meh! Other than a few looks that really reached perfection, most of the outfits on this red carpet were simply - and tragically if you ask me- fine. No big missteps, no real risks, just a series of nice, fine fitting, already seen gowns – yes, I’m looking at you Lupita and at the flowy, chiffon skirts that you love so much! Luckily for me, there were a few looks that stood out like the edgy yet elegant dress (and tuxedo jacket!) that Emma Stone so gracefully wore, proving once again that she’s the true winner of this award season. Other winning looks? Julianne Moore’s sparkly, emerald gown, Felicity Jones’ delicate, blush pink dress and mom-to-be Keira Knightley’s beautiful and feminine purple Erdem look; a grand come-back from her not-so-good Chanel gown at the Globes! Now all we can do is sit back, relax and hope that the Oscars don’t disappoint, after all, you know what they say: save the best for last!

Click inside to see our complete best-dressed list!

If someone were to ask me what’s my favorite season, my immediate answer would be “award season, of course!” I love having to stay up until five in the morning – yes, I live in the “wrong” part of the world- just to see who wins, I love betting with my sister on who is going to give the most awkward yet somehow adorable speech and I love laughing at jokes that grow funnier and funnier as my sleep deprivation grows deeper. But what I love most about award season is the fashion. I mean, come on! Gorgeous people wearing gorgeous (and sometimes not so gorgeous) gowns? Who could resist! Yesterday’s Golden Globes marked the beginning of this season: all-nighters were pulled, awkward and adorable speeches were spoken and not-so-funny jokes became hysterical and then there was the main reason most people even know what the Golden Globes are: the red carpet. From the regal, fairy-tale-like ball gowns beautifully worn by Felicity Jones and Anna Kendrick (who looked like a real life, modern Cinderella) to the dazzling and shiny looks sported by Julianne Moore, Reese Witherspoon and Fifty Shades of Grey star Dakota Johnson, the fashion on last night’s red carpet was on fire! Speaking of fire, both Taylor Schilling and Allison Williams rocked one of the biggest trends of the night, the red dress, turning what could have been a safe and boring choice into a true fashion moment. Nevertheless, the true winners of the night were Lorde and Emma Stone, who both decided to ditch the traditional gowns and go for pants: they looked powerful, stylish and sensational and reminded us all of how fun breaking the rules can be!

Click inside to see the complete Best-Dressed list!

It seems like this time the rumor had it right! John Galliano is the new creative director at Maison Martin Margiela! The news was confirmed today by OTB, Margiela’s parent company. “Margiela is ready for a new charismatic creative soul,” said Renzo Rosso, president of OTB. “John Galliano is one of the greatest, undisputed talents of all time — a unique, exceptional couturier for a maison that always challenged and innovated the world of fashion. I look forward to his return to create that fashion dream that only he can create, and wish him to here find his new home.” In these last few years Galliano, who has been Dior’s creative director from 1997 up to the 2011 controversy that lead to his resignation, has been keeping a low profile and this marks his comeback to the fashion scene. And what a comeback! Galliano will be responsible for all Margiela lines including women’s ready-to-wear and couture. He’s going to make his runway debut for the house in January, during couture week and we can’t wait to see which astonishingly visionary clothes this true fashion genius is going to present!

They say Haute Couture is dead. It first died in 1957 along with Christian Dior, one of the best and brightest designers of his generation, who had single-handedly brought back to life French fashion with his “new look” after the Second World War. It died again with Yves Saint Laurent’s last show in 2002, when the designer – who had been Christian Dior’s dauphin – forever left the runway and the fashion house that he had created. The same happened in 2007 when Valentino, the last remaining designer of that generation of couturiers who had shaped and formed our idea of fashion and couture, retired after celebrating the 45^th anniversary of his label. It probably died again in 2008, when our economy was crashed by yet another financial crisis and the few people who actually bought Haute Couture became even rarer. Yet, here we are, still talking about couture, still fascinated with its beauty, its construction, its impossibly elaborated fabrics, still irremediably drawn by the unspoken promise that what we are about to witness is indeed an art form, that those walking down the runway are not just incredibly expensive clothes but art pieces. It’s this unspoken promise that has proven to be Haute Couture’s driving force, the reason why, after more than one-hundred years and countless so called “deaths”, Haute Couture still stands, why, for the extent of twenty-something minute show, we gladly forget that what is being presented doesn’t really have to do with most women’s modern life and just enjoy the spell created by the designer. Couture week it’s not the time to think how wearable that garment is or how much that other garment is going to cost, it’s a time when the best designers in the world present us with something to dream about so we should just close our eyes and start dreaming.

From left: Alberta Ferretti, Marchesa, Mary Katrantzou, Dolce&Gabbana, Giambattista Valli, Christian Dior

Flowers. Flowers in every shape, color and form. Flowers on skirts, shirts, pants, shoes, bags, hats and more. Just in case you are still wondering:  yes, one of the biggest trends this season is, indeed, floral.

There must be something about flowers in spring that really inspires designers because this trend has been going on for quite a wile now – one of the best Miranda Priestly quotes in the 2006 movie “The Devil Wears Prada” is “Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking” - and it seems like it’s here to stay. I have to admit though that, while the flower/spring combo might not be groundbreaking, it certainly does make for a great and fun trend that can be interpreted in more ways than one. Designers like Alberta Ferretti, Marchesa and Oscar de la Renta presented us with the most exquisite, romantic and charming floral dresses that ever were, making their woman look like an ethereal nymph while Mary Katrantzou, Mulberry and Collette Dinnigan were ready toshake things up with their colorful and almost cartoony take on this trend.

Marni

And if designers like Dolce&Gabbana, Giambattista Valli, Monique Lhuillier and Marni were all for the pop-up effect making it impossible for us not to notice the incredibly realistic flowers applied to their creations, others chose a more subtle way to show their appreciation for the mode. Christian Dior, Michael Van Der Ham, Preen and Stella McCartney proved to us that bigger is not necessarily better by using small patterns that gave the clothes an almost pointillist effect only in reverse: the more you got close the more you understood what you were looking at!
Miranda Priestly might not be impressed with florals for spring, but I bet she would be impressed with these interpretations of the everlasting trend…I know I am.

From left: Alexander Wang, Christopher Kane, JC de Castelbajac, Christian Dior, Kenzo, Rebecca Minkoff

Once upon a time wearing clothes that had labels or other writings on was ok, fashionable even, then, somewhere between my eleventh birthday and the movie “The Devil Wears Prada”, the fashion wind blew in another direction and this trend was soon forgotten. In the years that followed some like Moschino, Dolce&Gabbana, Maison Martin Margiela and Dsquare, tried to bring it back, but they all failed miserably  until one day, one of the brightest designers in the fashion kingdom, Alexander Wang, got everyone dangerously excited for his labeled T-shirts. Designers like Raf Simons, Jean-Charles de Castelbajac and Christopher Kane were quick to follow in his footsteps and from that glorious September day finding a simple, plain, white T-shirt became close to impossible while numbers, pictures, quotes and labels flourished on every possible fashion item. The trend, in fact, hasn’t limited itself to T-shirts, hoodies and dresses but has also taken over bags, hats and every other kind of accessory. While a quote here or there is always needed, I remember what it was like when logos where all the rage back in the days and I can assure you that it ended up not being so pretty. To those of you who are already in despair I can only say that my twenty-first birthday is not that far away and that there have been rumors about a possible sequel of “The Devil Wears Prada” movie; who knows, maybe the fashion wind will soon blow in another direction…

L'evento che tutti quanti stavamo aspettando con trepidazione è ormai giunto. La stagione delle premiazioni è ufficialmente cominciata e fino alla notte del 2 marzo, quando si svolgeranno gli Oscar, il mondo intero seguirà questi eventi chiedendosi con ansia chi vincerà cosa e soprattutto chi indosserà chi. Ok, forse sto un po' esagerando ma credo che comunque tutti noi, per passione, per noia, per curiosità e anche forse per invidia ci troveremo in uno di questi giorni davanti al computer a scorrere le immagini dei red carpet e a commentare i look scelti dalle star non riuscendo magari a trattenerci da un "ma cosa si è messa quella?" o, più spesso che non, da un  "datemi quell'abito e nessuno si farà male". Quest'ultima è stata una delle frasi da me predilette ieri sera quando, avvolta in una coperta all'una del mattino, ho seguito il red carpet dei Golden Globe Awards. Se qualcuno mi chiedesse di riassumere in tre parole il red carpet di ieri sera (cosa che nessuno fa) sicuramente direi "rosso, semplice e color-blocking". Infatti, contrariamente alle solite stravaganze, la maggior parte delle attrici ha prediletto abiti semplici, senza fronzoli inutili, audaci e raffinati abbandonando i tradizionali - e spesso esagerati- abiti a sirena o da principessa. Questo rigore nelle linee si è tradotto in un certo rigore nei colori; bianco, nero ma soprattutto rosso sono stati i colori principali anche se non sono mancate alcune eccezioni come l'abito giallo canarino di Lena Dunham. Le grandi assenti di questo primo red carpet sono state invece le stampe che hanno lasciato il loro posto al color-blocking cioè all'accostamento di due o più colori in un unico abito come hanno fatto Amy Adams, Sandra Bullock, Taylor Swift e Aubrey Plaza. Anche se ci sono stati casi di spiacevoli scelte, abbiamo avuto anche look meravigliosi e degni di nota. Eccovi quindi i migliori!