Awards season is in full swing, and the most anticipated event of the year is upon us, The Academy Awards.
For cinephiles, it’s all about the Best Picture award (we’re pulling for our cover model Samantha Bark’s flick, Les Misérables of course), but for fashion fanatics, the Oscars bring with it the added bonus of the pre-award show, and tremendous red carpet looks that are as captivating as the nominees wearing them.
In an ode to those luxurious gowns and bedazzling jewels that mesmerize us, we’ve perused the most recent runway trends and rounded up five stunning head-to-toe looks, each imagined for one of the night’s illustrious nominees.
When it comes to red carpet fashion, Amy Adams has proven that she is a fan of mixing classic shapes with a fun-loving dash of glitz. This look elevates her fancy for sparkle to the max, while also satisfying her infatuation with necklines boasting a deep-V cut.
Get the Look:
Hair & Makeup: Borrow inspiration from Donna Karan’s recent FW13 runway beauty looks and go for edgy sophisication. Wear hair pulled back into a sleek structured high ponytail, pushing makeup centre stage where soft pink lips combined with dewy skin and bold smoky eyes can shine. Try a smudgable long-wear liner like Tarte’s EmphaEYES waterproof shadow/liner in black (available at Sephora) to get the softness behind this look.
Dress & Accessories: Covered in multi-tonal metallic chevrons, this floor-grazing dress from Christian Siriano’s FW13 collection is sure to turn heads with its twinkle. Turn up the sparkle with stacked Lorraine Schwartz bracelets, bedecked with diamonds. If there is any jewelry designer that’s on celebrities’ red carpet radar these days, it’s Schwartz. From film premieres, to this year’s Grammys, to tonight’s main event, the designer is supplying the glamorous flow of jaw-dropping jewels seen as of late on celebs like Beyoncé and the Kardashians. And, the perfect final addition to tip the scales of luxury: a pair of Jimmy Choo limousine heels.
Anne Hathaway has recently been opting for more mature and elegant red carpet looks since snipping her locks into a pixie cut for her Oscar-worthy scene in Les Misérables. The majority of her choices have leaned towards clean lines and single-tone dresses that match the simplicity of her tresses, and play up her girlish charm.
Get the Look:
Hair & Makeup: As Anne doesn’t have much hair these days, her choice of hairstyles for the upcoming Oscars are limited. But, as Emma Watson, Victoria Beckham and Carey Mulligan have already proven, short hair is a sleek red carpet beauty look when worn slick. Taking our cue from the spring/summer runway trends, we suggest trying a deep side part, kept in place with a few liberal helping of Paul Mitchell’s Freeze and Shine Super Spray, perfect for taming flyaways and maintaining a smooth and shiny do. For makeup, a neutral face with an ultra-feminine pale pink lip, keeps the focus on the eyes with a tightly outline liner look, softly smudged with a muted palette of peachy browns. We like Josie Maran’s Limited Edition Argan Eyeshadow Quad for this look.
Dress & Accessories: Anne is turning into quite the Valentino muse, so in keeping with her true colours, we have chosen a white modern floral lace textured gown from the designer’s SS13 couture collection. This gown is a stunning representation of the trend towards mixing textures for the upcoming season. While jewelry trends at last year’s Oscars showed a plethora of emerald glimmer, we’re hoping diamonds and sapphires will be 2013’s choice of adorned frosting. For this look, we love the extra elegance of these beautifully intricate earrings from Chopard.
Jennifer Lawrence is becoming the actress to watch both on the big screen and on the red carpet with her second Academy Award nomination, this time for Silver Linings Playbook. Known for her playful spark, the actress isn’t afraid to slip into the daring when dressing for premieres and award shows, tending towards looks that show off her body and do a little something to convey her rocker attitude.
Get the Look:
Hair & Makeup: When your look is all about the dress, its best to tuck hair up and out of the way in order to show off dress details, or sculpted shoulders as it would be in this case. As seen on Mila Kunis at the Oz the Great and the Powerful premiere, a messy updo with a few escaping tendrils adds a lovely laxness to red carpet looks. Keeping with the simple glam feel of this look, we like the idea of trying on a healthy and natural look for makeup. Our ideal would be Oscar de la Renta’s beauty look for FW13, featuring bold lips, demure cat eyes and pretty peach cheeks. To create this look, try using Yves Saint Laurent’s Rouge Volupté Shine in Rouge In Danger on lips and Nars’ multipurpose Multiple in Orgasm on cheeks.
Dress & Accessories: When you have a figure like Jennifer’s, why hide it? This red dress from Marchesa’s Fall ready-to-wear collection gives off a Rococo vibe with its rich red and gold embroidery, yet maintains a modern edge with a draped mermaid skirt. And, what better way to complement a dress of such opulent design, than with more opulence. We swoon for the combination of this five-tiered diamond necklace from Birks and a stunning ruby ring from Harry Winston.
If there is anything that needs to be reiterated about Jessica Chastain’s red carpet style, it’s that she is not afraid of colour…and she loves her cleavage. She is a predictable risk-taker that loves to stand out, yet always remains refined.
Get the Look:
Hair & Makeup: Jessica’s copper locks and fair skin work perfectly with the beauty looks seen on Diane von Furstenberg’s runway for FW13. A bright pink hued lipstick, paired with flawless skin and nude shimmer on the eyes is a look few, besides Jessica, could pull off. For very pale skin foundations can often be hard to find; try Bare Minerals, they offer a larger spectrum of lighter shades in their Original Foundation. For a vivid pink lipstick that is sure to last, we like Dior Addict Extreme in Plaza. And lastly, for hair, you can’t go wrong with Jessica’s own go-to red carpet look: soft loose curl that flow over her shoulders. For a subtle hit of romance, we suggest adding a clip to pin back one side as seen on Gemma Arterton at the premiere of Hansel and Gretel.
Dress & Accessories: Greens and purples were made for those with copper toned hair, which is why this dress by Ulyana Sergeenko from her SS13 couture line would look incredible on Jessica. A dress with oomph, the top is body hugging and cut for sensual allure, while the bottom is full and dramatic à la Gone with the Wind. Although this dress is stunning as is, the addition of this diamond and white gold Piaget necklace (matching earrings avaialble) would make the look gloriously effervescent.
No matter what Naomi Watts wears on the red carpet, she’s always a perennial stunner. She has a keen eye for the gowns that are modernized classics, and which always highlight her model proportions. Often seen in neutrals, Naomi never strays too far into trendiness, and is a staple on “Best-Dressed” lists.
Get the Look:
Hair & Makeup: For blondes with fair complexions, we recommend the clean makeup look seen on the runway of Vera Wang’s SS13 show. This look features barely-there glossy lips, a defined (though not overly bold) brow and pale golden highlighting around the eyes. Sephora’s Ultra Shine Lip gloss in Totally Lucid or Perfect Nude would work wonderfully for the lip, while Bobbi Brown’s Long Wear Cream Shadow Stick in Vanilla would perfectly highlight the inner eye. For hair, modernize the ever-popular messy bun, and try a side-swept fringe with a low roll, that lets stray hairs hang as they may.
Dress & Accessories: This sheer pale grey dress by Marchesa seems as if it was designed for Naomi. The detail of the drapes and pleats, as well as the flower appliqués give this gown a classic feel, that is beautifully offset by its asymmetrical shape. When channeling old Hollywood as this dress does, the jewelry of Harry Winston is an obvious choice, as the antique diamond earrings above prove. And, for a timely punch of springtime colour, a coral ostrich leather clutch by designer Nancy Gonzalez finishes off the look.
Published February 24, 2013