Top 5 Gowns at the 2012 Oscars

Yipee more frocks! Here are my top 5 gowns at todays Academy Awards. What are yours?

Milla Jovovich wears an Elie Saab dress, Jacob & Co jewelry and an Edie Parker clutch.
Source: hollywoodreporter.com via Suellen on Pinterest

Rose Byrne wears a black sequined Vivienne Westwood gown with Chanel Fine Jewelry and Jimmy Choo shoes.
Source: hollywoodreporter.com via Suellen on Pinterest

Emma Stone hits the Oscar carpet in Giambattista Valli gown, complete with a large bow and Louis Vuitton jewels.
Source: hollywoodreporter.com via Suellen on Pinterest

Jessica Chastain wears a hand-embroidered black-and-gold gown from Alexander McQueen. 
Source: hollywoodreporter.com via Suellen on Pinterest

The Descendants star Judy Greer, wearing a Monique Lhuillier gown
Source: hollywoodreporter.com via Suellen on Pinterest

And Honourable Mention...for the dress (not the hair)..

Kelly Osbourne wears a Georges Hobeika gown and Montblanc jewellerySource: hollywoodreporter.com via Suellen on Pinterest

Inspiration Board: Cowl neck cocktail dress

You may remember my post about inspiration boards on some of my vintage patterns. I started this because...well...Polyvore is just plain fun and often it helps to see the potential in a pattern, especially a vintage one where we would prefer a contemporary look.

Cowl neck cocktail dress by sewindigo featuring a silk dress

What I like about this pattern is it looks comfortable, elegant and effortless to wear. Depending on fabric and accessories it can be dressed up or dressed down. It's also flexible - waist tie, neck tie or no tie. It can be worn short or long with a side slit.

In a pretty floral print it could be a sweet summer dress, gorgeous in a vivid silk or perhaps a show stopper in sequins.

Costumes - Games of Thrones

One of my favourite programs at the moment is Game of Thrones. It's based on a series of novels called "A Song of Ice and Fire" by George RR Martin. Set in the the mythical Seven Kingdoms of the Westeros, it chronicles the violent struggles of the kingdom's noble families to gain control over the Iron Throne. Its brutal, complex and fascinating. You can read and see more about it here.

What I think is fascinating from a costume point of view, is that although the series has a medieval flavour to it, it also has a key fantasy element which allows the clothing to be less about period costume and more about the story and the characters. It's a blend of styles from many countries and period making it a fantastic looking series.

Costume Designer: Michele Clapton

Here's a fabulous video with Michele discussing the costume design detail for the series including the though process behind the colours, textiles and styles selected for the characters.

I really enjoyed it, I hope you do to.

Grace Kelly was fashion thrifty

Grace Kelly was thrifty with her approach to her clothes - apparently. She's also a huge movie style icon of mine. I have written about her previously here and her modern influence here.

In a recent newspaper article, her wardrobe mistress from Monaco, Maryel Giraden speaks of her as beautiful and stylish but frugal with her fashion. She would often re-wear favourites, get them altered or get a Ms Giraden to whip up a Vogue pattern she fancied. On the day she tragically plunged off the cliff on the Cote D'Azur, she was taking clothes to be altered and reworked for the next season's wardrobe.

One piece of Kelly fashion history that has captured my imagination was the dress she wore to her first meeting with her future husband, the Prince. It was 1955, Kelly was in the middle of a hectic trip to the Cannes Film Festival and the hotel electricity had gone out. With no way to iron an outfit, she pulled out the least crushed dress, a long sleeved floral silk taffeta dress inspired by a "easy to sew" McCall pattern from a pattern book. The fabric featured splashes of pink, yellow and white flowers on a black background.

Excerpt from "Grace Kelly Style"

Her hair was pulled back (no blow dry possible) and finished with a  floral headpiece. The effect was stunning and and the rest (as they say) is history....

Do you have any style or fashion icons? What do you think of the dress?