2011 Grammy Awards

     I must admit that the 53rd annual Grammy Awards held in Los Angeles, California last night was sort of a let down. Total bummer.  From the actual performances to the red carpet fashion, I wasn't completely amazed and blown away -- we'll get to Lady Gaga's 'egg' entrance later. But for the fashion hits, there were definitely a few handful. 


     I loved Natasha Bedingfield's blue floral gown. The jewel embroidered bodice was just so beautifully constructed along with her retro inspired waves. And despite having to be "sewn" into her Catherine Malandrino dress, Julianna Hough looked great in this floor length gown with a plunging neckline, which she paired with Jimmy Choo shoes and Bochic jewelry. In addition, I thought that Ciara pulled this Emilio Pucci number really well. The bodice style and the extreme leg slit along with the long train definitely suited her. And in totality, I thought Jewel glowed in her pastel yellow, one-shoulder Pamella Roland gown [despite being 5 months pregnant!] and the intricate details of Florence Welch's haute couture Givenchy gown and Katy Perry's revealing Giorgio Armani number definitely suited their eccentric personalities and their music genre! I loved how Katy Perry wore cupid wings in honor of Valentine's Day. 


     The biggest surprise for me tonight was how gorgeous the E! correspondents Giuliana Rancic and Kelly Osbourne looked while doing interviews on the red carpet. Giuliana's first outfit was this one-shoulder Randi Rahm mini which she wore with Jimmy Choo peep toe pumps and Neil Lane diamonds. As equally beautiful was Kelly Osbourne in a lavender, ruffled infused, one-shoulder Tadashi Shoji dress with Alexander McQueen shoes! [Mmmm.. shimmery]


     As for Lady Gaga -- there are hardly words. Her music, her fashion, everything about her is a movement. There's no use in questioning it or trying to make sense of it. It's not like this is the first provocative or shocking thing she's ever done on the red carpet, remember the meat dress in last year's MTV Video Music Awards?! I say, just embrace it! Everything that she wears and does has a purpose and passion behind it, so I get it. And to be honest, her stage performance costume, which was Mugler as designed by Nicola Formichetti, was probably the most tame that I've seen her on stage. So just embrace it you little monsters and enjoy these red carpet images from the 2011 Grammy Awards! 


Natasha Bedingfield 

Julianne Hough

Catherine Malandrino

Ciara

Emilio Pucci

Jewel

Pamella Roland

Florence Welch of Florence and the Machine

Givenchy Haute Couture

Katy Perry

Armani Prive'

E! Correspondents: Giuliana Rancic & Kelly Osbourne

Randi Rahm

Tadashi Shoji

Lady Gaga

Lady Gaga in her "embryonic egg" before her performance

Lady Gaga in Mugler by Nicola Formichetti

Love, KB

Patricia Field Creations: The Devil Wears Prada

     Fashion Trivia -- what does the Devil Wears Prada, Sex and the City, and Confessions of a Shopaholic have in common? ...other than fashion, of course. Two words -- Patricia Field! Have you ever seen any of these three movies and exclaimed, "Oh, how I love the clothes!" Okay, so maybe you didn't say those exact same words, but I know that you were intrigued by the wardrobe. It's because the mastermind behind those creations is none other than the award winning costume designer and stylist, as she likes to be called, Patricia Field, or Pat Field as she is known by the people in the industry. 

     She is the classic case of don't judge a book by its cover, because upon first glance and depending on the current hue of her hair [she had it dyed pink once but she usually sticks to the blazing fiery red as featured above], you'll probably think she was either Betsey Johnson or some mad-woman who got dressed in the dark. But behind that eclectic facade, there's a creative fashion genius broiling inside. So for this first segment that I'd like to call "Patricia Field Creations," I'd like to pay homage to the 2006 movie that she had styled -- the Devil Wears Prada. 

"Chanel is one of the top labels so when Chanel wanted to dress Andie (played by Anne Hathaway), I thought “that’s perfect”. I’d put other things on her, but Chanel was like, “We’d be happy to dress Annie Hathaway in this movie” and I said “Perfect. My problems are over.”

     The way Emily Blunt and Anne Hathaway were styled in this movie was perfection, and of course Meryl Streep is a given. Patricia Field managed to put them in designer clothes and shoes to perfectly suit the characters they're playing, women who work for a fashion magazine, without hitting you over the head with it. From the hair and make up to the Chanel boots on their feet, the whole ensemble was perfect. You have to strike the right balance when dressing the actors, or in this case, the actresses, of a fashion film because you don't necessarily need to drape the women in designer logos to convey to the audience that this is a film about fashion. Someone who follows what's going in the world of fashion will immediately pick up on those cues and details and appreciate them as they are. For instance, a person who is fashion savvy will be able to pick out Dolce & Gabbana, Donna Karan, Calvin Klein, Valentino, Jimmy Choo, Hermes and of course Prada and Chanel in the scenes without exposing the tags in the clothes and shoes. 

     Even though Anne Hathaway takes the lead role in this movie as Andie Sachs, I die for Emily Blunt's, ironically enough, in more ways than one, blunt character, Emily. Her role in this movie put her on the map as a breakout star and despite her snobby character, I loved her and her wardrobe the most. When she stepped out in the scene where we first meet her character, I fell in love with her black and grey studded ensemble. The black ankle boots, the broad cropped jacket, the studded belt -- so rock n' roll and so chic for an office attire. I would love to come in to work everyday and be able to wear something like that without having people raise their eyebrows. If you haven't seen this movie already, make sure to see it immediately! It's a great story about the fabulous and sometimes harsh world of the industry and the clothes makes it so worthwhile to see -- take a look! 

Love, KB

Film Noir Obsession: Audrey Hepburn in Love in the Afternoon

     When people think of Audrey Hepburn the first image that comes to mind is the little black dress, long black gloves, pearls and tiara in Breakfast at Tiffany's. But before she was Holly Golightly, she played Ariane Chavasse in Love in the Afternoon as the imaginative cellist daughter of a private detective in Paris, who falls for the  American playboy, Frank Flannagan played by Gary Cooper. And thanks to Netflix, I was able to enjoy this film noir in it's pure black and white glory! 

     The storyline was quite funny, but when watching a movie, the first thing that I usually pick up on is the costume design -- what the actors and actresses are wearing. And I immediately fell in love with the dresses that Audrey Hepburn was wearing in this movie, three dresses in specific. But since it's kind of hard to see the details in the black and white contrast and it's such a challenge to find the right screen shot of the exact image that I want show, I've decided to sketch the front and back details of what I saw in the screen in front of me. I'm not much of an artist so bare with me and my two-dimensional translation/disaster of a fashion sketch. 

Dress #1:

Sleeveless dress with an open slit in the back and two bows. 

Sketch #1

Dress #2:

Floral, scoop neck dress, with an elongated scoop in the back. 

Sketch #2

Dress #3:

Strapless, voluminous tulle, gown with shimmery micro details in the top half of the bodice.

Sketch #3

     The costumes were so Parisian chic and this movie made me miss the finer details of how women used to dress back in those days -- the delicate waves in the hair, the gloves [oh how I loved how she wore gloves!], and the small details in the clothing that made all the difference in the world. I miss that simplistic glamour that's so lacking in today's world of bad hair, bad tan, and tasteless choice of clothes that we see so often. I'll choose a lady over a glamazon any day. 

Love, KB