globe-y styles

i'm not sure if i'm jaded... perhaps i am. but the award shows are just not the glam-slam they used to be... maybe they'll bump it up a notch at the SAG awards or the Oscars. i spent the larger portion of my time saying "meh" watching the rainy red carpet parade at the Golden Globes. (and i am pretty much certain that i have become at LEAST 30% more stupid having had to withstand that much drivel from Ryan Seacrest and Guiliani what-ever. (ps - EAT).

AAAAAAAAANYHOO. let's discuss what there was to be salvaged from the puddles, shall we?

in no particular order - the dresses that floated my rainy day LA boat...

Halle Berry in Kaufman Franco. UN... BE...LIEVABLE. this woman could not possibly be more gorgeous. her skin is the prettiest thing i have ever seen. it's flawless. and quite frankly - her boobs are so perfect that i would like to thank them. just for existing. in addition, i would like to thank HER for putting her rockin' body into that dress. she is perfection.

Jennifer Garner in Versace. pretty pretty girl in a pretty pretty dress. stunning dress actually. i'm not always the biggest Versace fan - but this is a killer number. and she is doing it justice. well played lovely, well played.

Olivia Wilde in Gucci. me thinks it might be a bit hard to make this woman look bad. this dress is bad ass - and somehow she pulls it off without looking slutty. and in addition - she's auctioning off the dress to benefit a charity for Haiti. so what we have here is an all around beauty.

Emily Blunt in Dolce & Gabanna. i'm a teeny bit torn on this one - but i'm leaning on the i love it side, so i'm just going to roll with that... some people hated this dress. but there is something juuussst sassy enough about her to pull it off without it being too coy.

Marion Cotillard in Christian Dior. there is not too much to say. except GORGEOUS. woman, dress, color, it's the whole package. avec je ne sais quoi. oui. oui. oui!!

lastly - and SOOOOO not leastly(i think i'm developing a bit of a girl crush) Zoe Soldana in Louis Vuitton. i LOVE this dress. yes, i love the girl, but the dress stands up as an equal to her - and she to it. that is style in a nutshell. the color is amazing and the dress itself is gorgeous. simplicity and intricacy wrapped up into one lovely package.

the rest of the dresses were, for my tastes, too ruffle-y or pouffy or "oh my god what landed on your shoulder-y". and so my fashion court rests. consider the gavel banged. case closed dolls.

tres jolie

when i lived in Paris, i taught English to business men and women. it was rather insane - it allowed me some glimpses into amazing Parisian worlds. one of my students was the head of LVMH - oui cheries, that is Louis Vuitton and its other companies. i had to go to their headquarters to teach him and i was always in awe. (he was a bit hopeless at learning it but he did try) another, i had to go to the home of the students - an elderly couple who lived in the nicest city home i have ever seen. it was a proper mansion, a butler answered the door and a maid served us tea. madame took her class in head to toe Chanel. i loved being there. i don't think the couple learned a thing, aside from "hello". they just wanted someone to talk to.

anyhoo - rather than wander down memory lane, let's get to the point. i had one student, a younger woman, who was beyond fabulous. i was obsessed with her. every class, as she studied away (she was a good student) i studied her. she was a Parisian girl to perfection. i loved everything she wore. i loved how she carried herself, did her hair, her makeup. she was amazing to me.

i'm feeling a bit this way about Marion Cotillard these days. she never totally grabbed me initially - but i am starting to become a bit obsessed. for all the Parisian reasons. case in point, mlle Cotillard at the NYC premiere of "Nine" last night. GORGEOUS. totally understated white gown by Dior. understated, until you begin to look at the stunning detailing. hair down, my favorite thing with an evening gown, playing against the convention of "done" hair. and a little nod to bohemian flair with the simple long necklaces. LOVES it. (i must admit that i would have thrown on a few bracelets... can't help myself...) and the face - just beautiful. made up but not overly so - allowing her beauty to be its own center of attention.

it's true what they say - the French ladies have a certain je ne sais quoi. et voila! this is exactly what they mean.