Thoroughly modern millennial

Author: Ria

  • BRIT Awards 2012 – red carpet round up

    A belated post but here it is, my round up of the best and worst of the red carpet fashion at the BRIT Awards held last Tuesday in London. It was an all round mixed affair when it came to fashion with the artists out to wow and showcase their personalities on the night.

    First and foremost my favourite from this event was Jessie J. I’ve been so impressed by her run at these events lately and her Falguni & Shane Peacock dress was no exception. There is a lot of skin on show here and I think the look is definitely gonna divide opinions, she really wowed me on the night. I don’t even mind her styling, the outrageous hair only adds to outfit and give the whole look a little personality.

    Also donning lace was the ever gorgeous Florence Welch of Florence + the Machine. She looked ethreal as ever in an incredible Alexander McQueen gown and I love her styling, from the gorgeous shoes to the really beautiful bejewelled hands. If I could fault anything about this look it’s that the pale pink of the gown almost completely washes her out. What I was really impressed by was her choice of stage outfit. She really took my breath away in  an other stunning Alexander McQueen gown that just glittered in the stage lights. And 2 McQueen looks in the space of about 1 hour?! Ah living the dream Flo!


    The BRITs wouldn’t be complete without a few faces from the X Factor, but unfortunately (and quite shockingly) I really felt the absence of glamour in the form of Cheryl Cole and had to settle for these ladies. 
    Can I just start this by saying that I loved Little Mix when they were on the show. But blame it on years of seeing the perfectly matched faces of the Spice Girls, Girls Aloud and The Saturdays; when I say I’m really irritated by the lack of cohesion in terms of style between the girls. As amazing as they look here as individuals I’m left wishing there was a threaded theme of either pattern, colour or even style between the four of them. Even the Spice Girls, who all owned and worked their personal identities, had their moments where they looked like a band. 
    Xtra Factor presenter Caroline Flack also attended the event and I feel like I’m getting deja vu. She played it safe once again in a tailored shorts and jacket combo with the ombred hair and bright lips. Next!
    My relationship with Alexandra Burke‘s style is very much like being on a  roller-coaster. On one hand she has the ability to look incredible and work her body, other times like this she really falls flat for me. The fit of her Alpana Neeraj gown makes her whole body look 10 times bigger than it is and it’s not helped by her scraped back hair do. 
    On the whole, a let down from the X Factor attendees.

    Two ladies who know how to showcase some serious personality in their red carpet fashion is Paloma Faith and Nicole Scherzinger. Paloma show up as eccentric as ever in a Dolce & Gabbanna gown, some may hate on this look but I really admire Paloma for her confidence to really stand out from the crowd. Nicole moved in the opposite direction in a slinky pale yellow gown that pretty much screamed classic Versace in my face. It’s a simple look but works well on her. 

    Two very vampish looks next with relative newcomer Lana Del Ray and Pixie Lott. Lana kept it simple in a Vivienne Westwood gown as she glided along the red carpet, she should be one to watch this year so keep an eye out. Pixie Lott’s look was a complete departure from her usual style in a glamorous floor length black gown with a hint of Hollywood glamour with her styling.  

    Two more looks here from Kylie Minogue and Fearne Cotton. Kylie looked amazing as ever, but her whole YSL look was a little dull for my liking. 
    Fearne on the other hand holds my heart with her look, mainly because this is exactly the kind of outfit I’d wear anyway. This is unfortunately the best shot I could get of it, but how adorable is her flippy skirt and collared blouse? Love it Fearne!

    Beating Pixie and Lana out of the ball park in terms of hottest look from the BRITs was Rihanna. Fresh from her impressive Grammy’s red carpet look, Rihanna worked the BRITs in a Givenchy Couture gown. Her look fell a bit flat on the red carpet but on stage she really shone. I don’t even mind the leather gloves here. 

    Finally the woman of the evening (and pretty much the year if I’m honest) was the every glowing and gorgeous Adele. Yes like Caroline Flack she stuck to her comfort zone, but the difference with Adele is that the look suits her, both in terms of age and style. Her Burberry dress was as sophisticated as ever and her performance? Well YouTube it, it’s incredible. 

  • The Grammy Awards 2012 – red carpet fashion round up

    As well as the BAFTAs in London, L.A. played host to the biggest night for the music industry; The Grammy Awards. The Grammy’s are always interesting when it comes to the red carpet and I was expecting many O.M.G moments…let’s just say it didn’t disappoint.

    Hands down the best dressed of the whole evening for me was Taylor Swift and I’m not talking as a fangirl here. There’s a photo set floating around on Tumblr of all of her Grammy looks for the past 4 years and it really puts into perspective just how much she’s grown into her style. She was seriously breathtaking in her Zuhair Murad Couture gown and was the only celeb that really made me go ‘Wow’ at this event. I love the styling and I’m so happy she pinned her hair back to let the dress do the talking, just look at the detailing on the train! Bravo Taylor!

    Two ladies who also sparkled on the red carpet were Katy Perry and Carrie Underwood. Usually one to go all out with eccentricity, I was surprised by Katy’s rather demure choice in a Elie Saab gown but I’m certainly not going to complain about her looking elegant. My one gripe is her hair. I know it’s dyed blue and cropped into a bob but please Katy do your roots before hitting an award show like this. Carrie on the other hand was stunning from top to toe in Gomez-Garcia keeping it simple with her styling, much like Taylor Swift, and let her dress do the talking.

    Woman of the hour and winner of 6 Grammy Awards on the night was Adele. After being in hospital for a couple of months I wasn’t surprised to see her look a little thinner, she simply glowed in her Giorgio Armani dress. I love the retro feel to her styling and her lighter hair colour too, and if you get time head on over to YouTube and look for her performance on the night. Seriously, standing ovation deserved. 

    Two looks I’m um-ing and ah-ing about are from Alicia Keys and Fergie. Alicia’s look was a mix of styles, with a minimalistic Alexandre Vauthier dress, futuristic collar and rock-a-billy hair-do. The only thing that sat well with me were her shoes and if I was being completely honest, blended into the background at the Grammy’s. 
    Fergie’s Jean Paul Gaultier gown was the complete opposite. On one hand, it’s Grammy night and you can get away with most couture looks at this event, but I’m seriously banging my head at why she’s decided to go for black underwear underneath, especially those pants! If she really wanted to impress me with this dress she should’ve either used a nude slip under the whole gown or nude underwear for a more daring look. The black under lace is fine for the runway look but it just looks tacky on her.  

    Should we go from bad to just…bad bad bad? Here’s an open letter to Nicki Minaj…What are you doing? Yes this is Versace but really? Please find some individuality, I swear Lady Gaga’s pulled this look off on the red carpet already! *le sigh*

    Now for something nicer. Jessie J, much like Katy Perry, definitely toned down the crazy for this year’s event. But true to style, Jessie was not going to shy away in a pretty little princess gown. Not only repping the Brits musically but flying the flag wearing Julien Macdonald gown. You need a lot of personality to work this look, Jessie definitely owned it. 

    And finally we’ll end this round up with Rihanna. If Taylor wins the best dressed of the night for most sophisticated, Rihanna’s a close second for just looking the way she looks. I know I’m not usually a fan of flashing to much flesh but Rihanna brought out a triple threat of sexy in her custom Giorgio Armani dress, showing off cleavage, a thigh high split and a plunging back. I’m even warming to her hair with this look. Hey if you got it flaunt it!

    [Images via Zimbio]

  • BAFTAs 2012 – red carpet fashion round up

    The first round up of the double awards ceremony weekend. The BAFTAs were held in London this Sunday with many a Hollywood starlet flying from across the pond to brave the cold British weather. If I was completely honest, the red carpet looks for this event didn’t blow me away as much as they did last year, I definitely felt a lack of female attendees at the awards this year, but hey ho! There was still plenty to look at…

    There was no competition with who my favourite was this year. There are two actresses in the world that have just keep looking more vibrant the older they get, one is Helen Mirren, the other is Meryl Streep. Tonight she proved to me that you don’t have to be 21 with a size 0 body and flashing your privates here, there and everywhere to get my attention. She flaunted it on the red carpet in a gorgeous Vivienne Westwood gown. Also congratulations to her for winning the Best Actress Award too, looks like an Oscar might be in the bag for her too!
    Another great look from the night came from Michelle Williams. The gown is gorgeous and so is her styling, plus I love her clutch too. But the most surprising thing of all is that the dress is H&M…yes H&M. Granted it’s H&M Bespoke but still…wow.

    Christina Ricci and Emilia Fox both glittered in gold ensembles. I’m on the fence about Christina’s look, her Givenchy Couture gown looked great when she was presenting on stage but looks an awful lot like gold tinfoil in the red carpet photos. I much prefer Emilia’s Luisa Beccaria gown, it’s wonderfully elegant and the detailing is beautiful. 

    In contrast we have Kristin Wiig and Tilda Swinton. The last time we saw these two on the red carpet was at the SAG’s and I was hoping for little more from both of them. Well…they’re certainly on their way up. I loved Kristin’s Alberta Ferretti gown and her styling looked extremely elegant. Tilda was back on form after a ‘meh’ look at the SAG’s, going back to her minimalistic roots in Celine. 

    It’s almost like the gowns came two by two on Sunday because both Fearne Cotton and Viola Davis were both sporting coral looks on the red carpet. I love Fearne’s Moschino dress. And true to Fearne’s style she has accessorised and styled this look in her own unique way. Viola look equally as amazing in a Valentino gown and with more classic silver accents added to her look.

     One lady who brought the va va voom to the red carpet in the absence of such stars as Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lawrence or even Scarlett Johansen was Melissa George. Melissa wore a sleek black Victoria Beckham gown, with side swept hair and bold pink lips. 

    The two most dissappointing looks actually came from two of the youngest attendees. I’m a huge Potter fan so when one of the actors hits the red carpet I keep everything crossed in the hope that they look great. With Emma absent from the awards tonight I was hoping Bonnie Wright would do me proud but oh no. She wore a vintage dress with Prada accessories and I felt like she was trying too hard to be different. It just doesn’t work. Sorry Bonnie!
    Shailene Woodley’s look has a lot of potential but it just fell a little flat for me and I have no I idea why. Her Dolce and Gabbana gown is beautiful, but the hair doesn’t sit right with the styling and the look itself feels a little void of some sort of jewellery or accessories. 

    Not wanting to end on a low point, we have two very elegant looking ladies in the form of Penelope Cruz and Holliday Grainger. Penelope sported a sophisticated Armani Prive gown, whereas Holliday chose a stunning Valentino dress. 
    [Images via Digital Spy and The Fashion Court]