The Costume Institute Gala 2010

This year at the annual Costume Institute Gala, I found myself surprised by some of attendees that looked amazing. The exhibit that opened is called American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity, obviously showcasing the work of American designers. It's always exciting to see runway looks in a real(ish) context, though red carpet is not usually my thing. This party is definitely an exception. Those pictured were picked for a variety of reasons. Not all of them are what I might call "best dressed" (I hate those lists anyway), but I applaud interesting choices.

Oscar De La Renta and Oprah Winfrey in his design



Never did I think that I would feature Oprah on this blog, but she looks the best I've ever seen her look.

Anna Wintour in Chanel Haute Couture and Bee Shaffer in Balenciaga



I find it rather odd that Anna isn't wearing an American designer, though perhaps this is an effort to not alienate the rest of the world. There's nothing wrong with a little more Chanel in the world.

Laura and Kate Mulleavy of Roadarte and Kirsten Dunst in Rodarte for Gap



This is one of my favorites of the entire night.

M.I.A., Alexander Wang, Zoë Kravitz in Alexander Wang for Gap



Straight up rock and roll.

Nicole Richie in Marc Jacobs



This isn't a surprise to see, but it does look lovely. I found this to be one of the more conventional looks at the Marc Jacobs show, but I'm still enchanted.

Vera Wang and Mila Kunis in Vera Wang



Gorgeous.

Rachel Bilson in Louis Vuitton



I'm so very happy to see some Fall 2010 Louis Vuitton and therefore, breasts. Lovely.

Sienna Miller in Emilio Pucci and Jude Law



I love this dress on Sienna. The midnight blue is beyond beautiful.

Carey Mulligan in Miu Miu



Carey is always in Prada, so some Miu Miu is no surprise. I'm not obsessed, but I like that Carey dresses unconventionally.

Chloë Sevigny in Proenza Schouler with Proenza Schouler's Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez



I have no words. I just adore all of this.

Gisele Bündchen in Alexander Wang for Gap and Tom Brady



I'm loving this dress on Gisele. I've never seen her look so edgy. You know she kicks his ass in bed.

Phillip Lim and Alexa Chung in his design



Alexa always brings me a smile. Thank god for these pants.

Liu Wen in Naeem Khan, John Demsey, and Constance Jablonski in Jason Wu



Major model love. Liu looks so killer mixing those boots and that dress. Not that Constance is an ugly duckling or anything...

Sarah Jessica Parker in Halston Heritage



I just saw a similar look on the second season of Sex and the City. Sparkle my heart.

Jamie Bochert in Rodarte for Gap



I wish there was a better picture of this dress. The bag is to die for.

Maggie Gyllenhaal in Louis Vuitton



Again, the Louis Vuitton is killing me in the best way possible. Maggie looks insane. Ok, on second thought, her boobs look a tiny bit odd, but I love this dress so much I can't breathe.

Chanel Iman in Michael Kors



I gasped when I saw this. Chanel picked something rather risky and pulled it out. I'm not a huge Michael Kors fan, but this jumpsuit is fabulous.

Charlotte Gainsbourg in Balenciaga with the designer Nicolas Ghesquière



Charlotte is one of my favorite fashion patrons. She's fiercely loyal to Balenciaga, but her style never gets boring (the house doesn't exactly either with Nicolas at the helm). She went all out with the shoes too. THE FALL SHOES.

Cassie in Versace



I've never really been interested in what Cassie was wearing, but she looks great in this sexy Versace look.

Lauren Santo Domingo in Proenza Schouler



This is a dress that I wish I had another picture of. I always love what LSD is wearing and Proenza is always an excellent choice. That bag is lovely too.

Dree Hemingway in Calvin Klein Collection



I'm not a great follower of the Calvin Klein brand, but Dress looks gorgeous in this look. The shoes are gorgeous too.

Rachel Roy and Liya Kebede in Roy's design



I love all this pant-wearing. Liya looks amazing and Rachel doesn't look too bad herself. I'm not crazy about the dress, but it's pretty.

Coco Rocha in Zac Posen



Dramatic. Stunning. I would have expected Coco to pick something more conservative and I was oh so pleasantly surprised. One of my favorites.

Blake Lively



This is much better than the Versace from last year. The Marchesa is incredible, but still young. We haven't lost her.

Alessandra Ambrosio in Versace



Lovely.

Katy Perry in CuteCircuit



I love Katy to pieces.

Our Lady performed in Giorgio Armani



An exquisite ending. All my love.

Photos via style.com

Busy.

School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week. School and Seattle Fashion Week.

The Met Ball was tonight. I WILL post tomorrow.

Writing.

I've missed my blog ever so much. I allowed myself quite a lot of downtime today, watching far too many episodes of the first season of Sex and the City. Every thought I have that does not consist of "I want Chinese food" or something related, comes to me in a profound question. Jesus, Carrie Bradshaw. You've penetrated my brain. Now if only I had a more impressive bank account I could use to spoil myself on McQueen Armadillo shoes for my collection of heels-to-walk-around-the-house-in.





style.com

Unbelievable. Now, I must return to some not so enticing writing. or editing rather, of an critical essay.

Miu Miu

After completely skipping over Miu Miu last season, I now present a belated post of my eight favorite looks.

Miuccia deserves more than this, but this is what I've decided to do.

Jacquelyn Jablonski


Sharon Kavjian


Marike Le Roux


Amanda Norgaard


Freja Beha Erichsen


Kori Richardson


Fei Fei Sun


Tati Cotliar


photos via style.com

Louis Vuitton

With a new power chord finally arriving to my dorm, I can blog again!

Marc Jacobs's most recent collection for Louis Vuitton was a dreamy journey of cinematic proportions. It seems that he has really gone soft with this season, as his collection for his namesake label was similarly wondrous. While watching it, I couldn't stop thinking of the Fifties and old movies, though I feel putting it in such a box is unfair. The collection was timelessly beautiful, bringing out a woman's body with nipped waist and breasts spilling out of corsets. As at Prada, the models came from a wide range of arenas. Having multiple Victoria Secret models on a runway always gets the lips of fashion people moving, but it did not appear gimmicky or contrived. The women were just beautiful, whether they had boobs or not. Elle Macpherson closed the show, looking impossibly ravishing. From the full skirts to the flat bows on low-heeled shoes, this show might be hard for the pretty young things of the fashion world to swallow, but I get it. Marc challenges you as a consumer, but his work is indisputably genius.

Patricia van der Vliet


Ginta Lapina


Ariel Meredith


Kasia Struss


Caroline Trentini


Magdalena Frackowiak


Lara Stone

Rianna Ten Haken

Hannah Holman


Adriana Lima


Edita Vilkeviciute


Frida Gustavsson


Noémie Lenoir


Catherine McNeil


Alessandra Ambrosio


Joan Smalls


Lily Donaldson


Karmen Pedaru


Jac


Julia Nobis


Rosie Huntington-Whiteley


Coco Rocha


Jessica Stam


Elle Macpherson



photos via style.com

LOVE.

Georgina Goodman heels.

via coco's tea party

Let us not forget it.

Amazing Anna.

Anna Dello Russo in Muse magazine.


via fashionista

I'm actually more surprised that there is only a bit of sparkle in this photo than I am to see her doing this.

I adore the woman.