Academy Awards Red Carpet 2011

It's Oscars time! As is well known, the 83rd Academy Awards were Sunday night. Congrats to the winners, but more importantly congrats to the 11 ladies (Anne Hathaway x2) featured above, as they are Les Deux's best dressed of this year's Oscar ceremony. No time for small talk about who won what; continue on below the jump for larger pictures and critiques.

What Does A Black Swan Wear?

So I know I'm probably killing you with Black Swan posts, but I don't care. This is half my blog, I will write every single post about Black Swan if I want to.

Great, now that I'm over that power trip, here's a great video I just found about the costumes in the movie. As you may well know if you follow fashion news, there' a bit of a discrepancy over who exactly made the costumes. Was it Amy Wescott or the Rodarte girls? With both acting so insulted and offended by the others' claim as head costume designers, we may never know. However, both design teams are featured in this video, so we do hear a broad idea of what had to come together to get the costumes right. Now don't click away just yet (for those of you who already haven't), the video isn't all designing technical mumbo-jumbo; it's got a lot of great stuff about color symbolism and such. So if you're still at all interested in Black Swan, take a look (preferably in HD)

Golden Globes Red Carpet 2011

I'm a shameless sucker for celebrity-watching at awards shows. Not only is it kind of thrilling to see the biggest of stars interacting like normal people, but there's also the obvious appeal of who's wearing whom. While I wasn't completely happy with the results of the show (Black Swan should have won Best Picture and 30 Rock & its actors should have won everything), I was particularly pleased by the wardrobe choices this year. Below are some of my favorite looks:

Emma Stone in custom Calvin Klein

Stone really went out on a limb with this one. The dress is pretty similar to her skin color and her skin color is pretty similar to her new platinum locks. I was thinking that mainstream fashion critics like Yahoo! would surely berate her for this monochromatic look, but they, like me, loved it. Stone's facial features and body are striking enough to carry this look with ease and make it seem super sexy. Plus, the peachy tone of the dress combined with her sleek makeup accentuated her blue eyes to perfection.

Mila Kunis in custom Vera Wang

I always admire people who have the balls to wear jewel-toned green on the red carpet. Not only is it a pretty difficult color to pull off, but it always seems very reminiscent of Christmas to me. Mila Kunis, however, rocked this emerald hued gown like it was a piece of cake. The draped crinkle silk fabric looked like it was just flowing off of her body, which has clearly recovered from her 20-pound weight loss for her role in Black Swan. Not only was her dress fantastic, her skin was completely flawless thanks to a $7,000 diamond and ruby facial she reportedly received prior to the award show. No wonder she looked so flawless.

Robert Downey Jr. in Prada

I love this guy. His look is a little crazy, yes, but so is he! His sort of eccentric personality really showed through with the pops of red. And, despite what others may think, the hair and scruff really didn't take away from the put-togetherness of the suit; in fact, I think they kind of made the look.

Claire Danes in custom Calvin Klein

No matter what shade you call it, this highlighter/bubblegum/Barbie pink halter gown worked perfectly on Danes. I love that she chose such a daring hue with this very minimal dress. Anything less than shocking pink would have been cast aside as drab. Kudos to Claire for going all out and still hitting the nail right on the head.

Hailee Steinfeld in Prabal Gurung

I still cannot get over the fact that this True Grit star is only 14 years old. In every red carpet picture I've seen of her she looks closer to my age than middle school. Regardless of age, her look was stunning and super youthful. The racerback fit of the dress paired with her pulled back hair and simple makeup made this look very age appropriate - a refreshing change from the "less is more" mentality that so many young starlets seem to have. Hopefully we'll be seeing much more from her, because her red carpet style is inspiring.

Lea Michele in Oscar de la Renta

This muted pink gown and loose wavy updo are perfect for Michele. Because of her (stupid) show, Glee, she's become America's sweetheart. The asymmetrical top, the ruffles that run down the body, and the simple makeup and jewelry make this the perfect girl next door look for the perfect girl next door.

Natalie Portman in Viktor & Rolf Couture

I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about this dress, mostly just because I'm a little biased by my newfound love for Natalie Portman. I don't know about the rest of the world, but I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what Portman would be wearing to the Globes (and whether or not we'd see some of that second trimester bump). While I'm not insanely crazy about the rose appliqué, I think that the red/pink hued look wouldn't be complete without it. I love the Grecian draping that cascades over her baby bump, drawing attention to the fact that she's a mom-to-be. Dressing for pregnancy can be hard, but Portman does it here in a really classic and classy way.

Robert Pattinson in custom Gucci

No, I'm not a Twilight fan nor have I fallen head over heels for Pattinson like too many other American teens have; but you've got to admit it, the man looked classy as hell at the Globes. I mean, look at those lapels. He looked quite the gentleman.

Sandra Bullock in Jenny Packham

I'm going to start off on the negative side (pessimist for life) by saying that I cannot stand Bullock's hair with  this gown. It completely suffocates the dress. If Sandra wanted bangs, fine, but she should have at least pulled her hair off of her shoulders so that she could have shown off her dress' embellishments. Now onto the good: that dress. I feel dumb for not having heard of Jenny Packham before the Globes, but thanks to Bullock I'm now becoming familiar with this great designer. This beautiful gown is only one of her many intricate, red-carpet-worthy dresses. It's got a lot of elements to it (one shoulder, tulle poking out, beaded all over, draping down the bottom), but it doesn't look tacky at all, nor does it look overly ritzy. Gorgeous gown. Wish I could say the same for Bullock's hair...

Leighton Meester in Burberry Prorsum

Meester looks super classic and demure in this look from Burberry Pre-Fall. I'm used to seeing the starlets of Gossip Girl wearing a uniform of super-revealing dresses, so it's quite novel to see Leighton in such a modest look (she even had longer sleeves added to the original look). Maybe she her change of style was influenced by her role in Country Strong, but hopefully this mature, subdued style is going to show up again on Meester.

Olivia Wilde in Marchesa

Stunning, stunning, stunning. There are no other words for this fantastic, sparkly Marchesa gown. Like with Sandra Bullock, I think that Wilde should have put more focus onto the dress by pulling her hair back (especially since she has bangs), but let's get real - nothing can compete with this dress.

Any great looks that I missed?

(Images and image editing from this great tumblr)

Our Ballet Obsession Continues

If you keep up with Katie and me here at Les Deux, then you know that one of our recent inspirations has been ballet, largely due to our love for the movie Black Swan.  We've both been trying to incorporate ballerina-esque style into our wardrobes for the past month or so, and these would be the ultimate in helping us to perfect the look.  I've had practice ballet shoes for a few years now (you know, the super soft, flexible ones with the elastic strap across the top), and had momentarily considered buying pointe shoes because I think that they're so wonderful.  Alas, these J. Crew flats would probably be better alternatives; they're more practical and less costume-y, I suppose.

Jax

Cerulean

My favorite scene from The Devil Wears Prada by far.

Jax

Black Swan, Black Swan, Black Swan...

Alternate Post Title: How Sick Of Me Is It That I Want To Become A Ballerina After Seeing This Movie? (Thanks Mulleavy Sisters)

I finally had the pleasure of going to see Black Swan with Jax tonight, as it finally made its way to Nashville after about two weeks of me cursing my non-proximity to a major metropolitan area. After spending the entire car ride home trying to create a summary of just how phenomenal and powerful this movie is (the acting, the camera work, the editting, etc.), I've decided that my simple words can do it no justice. It was psychological and forceful that I don't even think any words exist for it. All I know is that it may well be the best movie I'll ever see.

On that note, I do believe I have adequate words to describe the fantastic job that the Rodarte girls did on the film's costumes. While the tutus and stage outfits were phenomenal, it was the practice gear that really excited Jax and I. I've always thought that ballet clothing was really neat - lots of great, innovative layering - but the Mulleavy sisters take what is naturally cool-looking and make it look perfect. Never in my life have I longed this greatly for ballet clothing. Some of the highlight aspects in my mind were the great leg warmers usually worn only on one leg (and one arm warmer that was a clear nod to Rodarte's signature open-weave knit), a few long sleeved shrugs that seemed impractical but added a lot of depth to the outfits, and, most notably, the woven straps at the back of every leotard or top.

The pieces were incredible, and I speak for Jax and myself when I say that it would be out of this world if the Mulleavy sisters considered releasing some of the pieces for sale. While I'm not a dancer, I would definitely invest in some Rodarte dance wear at the drop of a hat.

Kate Mulleavy's sketches of the White and Black Swans

Katie

(Images from Rag Pony and Who Is Scout?)

What a Man, What a Man, What a Mighty Fine Man.

KATIE

So I just got back from seeing Inception, which is a fantastic movie and is a great source of entertainment as well as an instigation toward questioning one's sanity/reality. While the movie truly did make me ask myself several times whether or not was currently dreaming, more than that it made me ask myself where Joseph Gordon-Levitt had been all my life.

Don't get me wrong though. This is not about to become a girlish rave on my burning love for the man; this is a fashion blog after all.

After seeing him in 500 Days of Summer, I felt that he had a certain suave-ness to him. But after seeing him again in Inception, I've determined that this man is dapper as hell. I know nothing about men's fashion (nor do I ever want to know anything about it), but I do that this guy just seems to look good all of the time. I want to make him my personal friend, just so that I can be seen hanging out with someone who is apparently always looking great. To me, it seems as though he emanates debonair coolness from head to toe.

I mean, really!? Just look at him in that suit with that car in that field and tell me he's not a badass.

Keep up the good work, JGL.

-Katie

(All images from here)

Role Models.

KATIE

So I just finished watching The September Issue (which I realize is essentially a crime to the fashion-minded, seeing as it's been out for ages now), and, like many others, now view Grace Coddington, creative editor of Vogue, as a sort of role model and Anna Wintour, the editor-in-chief, as a sort of villain who I wish would be replaced by Grace Coddington.

Okay, alright - that is considerably harsh since I don't personally know either of them and have been very swayed by the fact that the documentary was clearly much more partial toward Miss Coddington. I'm sure that she has her bad moments and that Miss Wintour has some (brief) moments of warmth.

That said, I've always found Grace to be fascinating and have become exponentially more fascinated by her after watching this movie. Not only is she surprisingly down to earth for someone with such a high position in a business that is notoriously snooty, she is kind, dreamy, and romantic. Like many others in the fashion world, she claims to have kind of stumbled into the business unwittingly, and from there worked her way into one of the most respected positions in the business. Her modest success in a generally boastful industry and quiet persistence are insanely charming.

Now, I've never had a role model in my life. I've either been inspired by celebrities who aren't quite inspirational or in awe of women who accomplish such feats that I can in no way relate to; never have I found anyone who I've looked up to as I now look up to Grace Coddington. She herself is inspirational in a realistic way, and her great tenacity in the fashion world easily gives one the determination and perseverance to attempt to follow in her footsteps.

So, thanks, Grace Coddington, for being super inspiring. You're my role model.

-Katie

jax likes...alice

tim burton's remake of the classic, alice and wonderland, is giving the fashion world a great new inspiration, influencing everything from makeup sets to dresses to shoes!  check out these killers by nicholas kirkwood.  they won't be for sale, not that most of us could have paid for them anyways.

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