Oscars 2016 Red Carpet Round-Up!

So here we are, the last stop on the Awards Season train - the Academy Awards!  All season we've been doing an award post-mortem on the fashion that made our knees weak and our hearts flutter, so please enjoy our last fashion roundup! And right off the bat - my Best Dressed! No surprise here Cate Blanchett was my pick....

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....along with Mindy Kaling

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.....and Mark Ruffalo!

Mark Ruffalo + Sunrise Coigney: Super-stylish x 2
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A three-way tie, three amazing people. Queen Cate is a sublime actor and I'm always on-side with her fashion game; Mark Ruffalo is probably the most under-rated actor in Hollywood, and is regarded as one of the genuinely nicest people around. And confession time: I love Mindy Kaling.  Amazing writer, funny as balls as an actress, and a fierce fashionista.  My three loves!

Here were some highlights from the carpet that we're lovely, sexy, classic and everything in-between!

Sequins!

Saoirse Ronan

The devil's in the details and this back was sinfully good!

This was a whole new look, and one of my favourites!
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Pleating!

Olivia Wilde

I wasn't a huge fan of this dress.....

....and then I saw the back with the pleated shoulder details and promptly changes my tune!
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Brie Larson

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Vintage Glamour!

Priyanka Chopra

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Daisy Ridley

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Alicia Vikander

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Chris Rock, Common and John Legend

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Colour!

Olivia Munn

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Tina Fey

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Metallics!

Margot Robbie

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Sharp-Dressed Men!

The Weeknd

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Jacob Trembley and Abraham Attah

With The Man, Morgan Freeman

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Back To Black!
Jennifer Garner

Proof positive that looking good is the best revenge. She is not the ashes!
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Jennifer Lawrence

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So, that's it for Awards Season 2015/16! It's been a blast doing a fashion roundup of all the looks that graced the carpets, and showcasing the trends, styles and fashion cues for the year that will make the leap from award show to wedding reception!  We hope you enjoyed the post-award roundups and until the next cycle starts, we really hope you found inspiration and ideas that spoke to you!
Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

PS - When I saw Jennifer Lawrence's Dior, I did a double-take and felt a hint o' déjà-vu. Did it remind you of anyone else's Oscar dress from a few years ago?

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I mean, it was completely a coincident, riiiiight? Sure thing!

BAFTA 2016 Red Carpet Best-Dressed x 2

Valentine's Day 2016 shared the spotlight with the BAFTA's in England yesterday,  and this is one of the last stops on Awards Season. So you'd figure that as we got closer to The Big Show (Hollywood's biggest night, aka the Oscars) with the fashion stakes getting higher the closer we get, we have seen a carpet full of win, right? The looks last night were .... solid. Nothing was really off-side or horrible, but the fashion was safe, save for two looks that were my two best-dressed ladies of the night.

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I loved the Cate Blanchett McQueen because it was a throwback to the late designer's experimentation with texture, mixed textiles and intricate detailing. Sarah Burton also captured the McQueen-esque Classic bodice that is strong yet feminine, in a mixed-media of contrasting sequins and embroidery that blends into a skirt of soft feathers. [Side note: if you ever get your hands in the book, "Savage Beauty", you will see the background and the fertile soul where this dress would have taken root. A stunning, beautifully heartbreaking, and bittersweet collection of Alexander McQueen's works during his all-too-brief life.]

A look at McQueen's fashion legacy, from the "Savage Beauty" exhibit in England
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 Blanchett's dress is sure to be panned and maybe even considered a not-best-dressed front runner on the inevitable fashion best-and-worst lists, but this dress was true to Cate's fashion aesthetic of unconvential-meets-classic-meets-fashion-forward. Loved!

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Alicia Vikander stole my fashion heart in her awesome metallic-sequinned Louis Vuitton dress a few weeks ago at the SAG awards, and at the time I said that dress was my favourite - hands down favourite - of awards season. She set the bar high with that one, and I was nervous about what she'd wear this time around.  Her dress last night was, for me, a solid follow up to that dress, and kept true to her fashion game all year, which was strong choices, flawless face, unfussy hair and surprise va-va voom. The SAGS gave is that thigh-high slit; the BAFTA's gave us moto-chic medieval warrior queen. The leather dress weighed 35 pounds, and featured silver studding in the bodice that led to silver tinsel-like embellishments down the length of the dress, complemented with interwoven leather braiding throughout.  The makeup and hair were intentionally understated - to do a heavy face with a dark or bold eye and stronger lip would have turned a fashion moment into a caricature of goth/moto chic. The simplicity of the details - black peep-toe shoe, drop earrings, hair braided in the back leading to waves over her shoulder - contributed to a look that was impactful without hitting you over the head. 

My two favourite looks did have a really good style lesson for brides-to-be and their wedding party fashionistas that is worth repeating, over and over again: go forth and be fearless. Toss the expectation look-book over your shoulder and march straight ahead. Be unafraid to follow your own fashion desires, no matter how uncommon they might be. If your dream dress or attire doesn't look like everything you've seen on the road to bridehood, don't file it away - find ways to bring the look you love to life. Be yourself - you will love the girl you see in your pictures, if you can recognize her. Be kind to her and give her an ear, hey?

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~

Lisa and April

Wedding Day Style P0rn: SAG Awards Edition

SAG today, Oscar tomorrow?
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Awards season is chugging along on its way to the Oscars and this weekend, the fashion train pulled up at the Screen Actors Guild station and unloaded some stunning looks that are note-worthy and instantly enviable.  The red carpet showcased the best of colour, style and elements of the season for everything from dress styles and detailing and accents...... Enjoy!

Heavy Metals:  Alicia Vikander SLAYED in mixed metallic; the lights hit the sequins on this dress and the overall effect was stunning, Plus, that slit in the leg!!! The first hint that the thigh-high slit is going to make its presence known.  This dress quickly became my favourite dress of the night, possibly for the whole season!

THE look of the night: the gold and metallic sequins reflected off her face and the effects were gorgeous!
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Pantone colours of the year Rose Quartz......

The dress was simple and sweet,but the colour and beauty styling = FLAWLESS
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....
and Serenity

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The thigh's the limit! Legs rival cleavage for instant wow factor!

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And bold colours banished the January blahs and set the tones for spring and summer!

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Vintage dress styles have never looked this modern and fresh.....

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And every year someone rocks a great pair of pants on the red carpet!

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So what does this means for your wedding?  You can steal any of the elements of the night and incorporate them in either subtle ways or for big impact! A few notes from the night:

1) Incorporate a metallic tone to add visual punch and sheen to your decor. This isn't a 'go-big-or-go-home' proposition, you can infuse metallic accents at your discretion to make your event figuratively and literally shine. Think.....

Blush pink+navy+rose gold

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Or teal+copper

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Shades of blue+ivory+gold

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Still not convinced? Well, maybe the groundwork was laid by Mother Nature herself. Proof: the Peacock.  Here we have a riot of colour - shades of blue, turquoise, purple and olive green - complemented by a swath of gold. It's perfect!

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2) Strapless dresses are sexy AF. But, if you're say, 'generous' on top, it can feel like you're walking a fine line between  being Jessica Rabbit and being an unexpected FB topless star (and potentially banned from Instagram and their naked breast policies). I can't tell you how many times April and I have had bridesmaids doing the tug-shimmy with their strapless dresses repeatedly from sun-up to sundown, never raising their arms higher than their shoulders to avoid a wardrobe malfunction. Enter the leg-slit dresses we saw at the SAGS: all the sex appeal, zero nipple infractions. Also, unlimited over-the-head arm movement!!!

#raisetheroofalldamnnight2016
#armsintheairlikeyoujustdontcare

3) Let your personal style shine bright like a diamond. Whether you love a good pattern,  the tactile appeal of textures, or a pop of colour, be fearless -limitless, even! - and bring on your fuschias or berries or jewel tones!  Welcome your polka dots and paisleys with open arms! If feathers make your heart flutter, let 'em fly!!!

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Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April