Celebrity Style Slam comes back with a real twist to the attitude and presentation. NY-based writer Nancy Lichtenstein who covers NYFW for me joins me in evaluating the fashion content seen on the red carpet. While we talk about the fashion winners and losers, you can weigh in with comments about our perspective.
Nancy’s comments are bolded, mine are not- just so you are clear on who’s talking.
Dress Two: While Performing
Color
NL:
Black is not Beyoncé’s best color…it clashes with the beautiful warm tones of her skin and hair. I guess she’s supposed to be color coordinated with the storm troopers but hey, she’s the star…whoever styled this performance should have let her shine.
SW: In some situations I would agree. I would prefer this dress to be bronze or gold or rust or even an unusual green but the black sets off the Sasha Fierce attitude as she struts her stuff on stage. She’s not to be messed with– Sasha gets and does what she wants. Hence basic black because that dress has a LOT going on!
Shape and Style
NL:
Apart from the color, this is a flattering dress for her. She looks a little bit like Jessica Rabbit, which I mean as a compliment, and the leather plus metal equals rock and roll, which is totally appropriate for the Grammys.
SW: This is a great shape for her. It gives her that perfect hourglass figure that she already has but puts it into a nice perspective when at other times she has worn things that emphasized the wrong parts. She has sass, style and definitely attitude with this dress. It mitigates the black color–because any other color might be overwhelming.
Hair/Makeup/Accessories
NL
The hair is still good, but for performing onstage in an all black outfit, I do not love the makeup in this context. A little color on her face would have improved the life-sucking quality of the black outfit.
SW: She did need stronger, more defined makeup. More color around the eye (here’s where gold comes in or bronze). Also a stronger lip– not too much red but something with some pop to give her a real stage presentation.
NL:
As for the shoes, they’re just horrendous. I pretty much think the sandals crossed with boots idea is the worst fashion idea since the bustle, and these cut off her legs and make her look stumpy.
SW: Actually I liked them in every photo I saw. I thought they suited her sensibility and her wanting to create an edge and toughness to balance out the girliness of the dress. I wonder if that dress was made of leather? I think it was.. but not sure.
I think the shoes were interesting.
What’s really missing is the jewelry. where are the bracelets or a more delicate necklace? SOMETHING to create some glitter or gleam?
Overall Rating; Two stars. I would have given it three if not for the horrible shoes.
SW: Three and 1/2 stars. I like the shoes. She’s missing jewelry and make-up.
Final Look: Acceptance Speech
Color
NL:
If you look at the dress up close there is gold under all the insane detailing. I think an all-out gold gown would have looked fabulous on her so I’m going to give her a point for this.
SW: Nancy and I had a long discussion about this dress and what it was. I had to go hunting online to find the designer and what it was made of. It look like pop-tops from soda cans but then again, they don’t come in gold. This is an interesting dress. I would rather have seen her in something more slinky.
Shape and Style
NL:
This may be the most insane dress I’ve ever seen that doesn’t appear to be an intentional joke ala Lady Gaga or Bjork. Leg-o-mutton sleeves like Princess Diana’s wedding gown. A deep V that falls just short of exposing her entire torso. Strings of rhinestones dangling off the dress randomly and appliqués that look like the pull tabs from old-fashioned soda cans.
This looks like a Project Runway episode where the challenge was to construct a dress out of the junk you find on the floor of your car, or–you know the part in Cinderella where the field mice and birds help her sew her gown? This dress looks like it was quite literally constructed by small animals to me. I can’t for the life of me figure out why she selected this to accept her Grammys in, unless it was to say “I’m so beautiful I can wear anything and still look good.” While that may be true, there’s nothing wrong with just plain beautiful, and this look misses the mark by a mile.
SW: This is the part where Nancy and I talked the longest about the details because it’s an “extreme” dress. Not every *body* can wear it. So that said, it’s a bit overwhelming with the details and there’s lots of details and she has a body that’s very distinctive (a delicate way of handling shape) and it’s not that flattering on her body. The color is flattering though I would have rather have it been a bit more golden. She’s got too much going on and her bustline is about to pop out and thank goodness for tape. (and I don’t mean AV tape either). Between the shortness of the dress, the excessive embellishment, the shape of the sleeves, the deep v neckline (jewelry –girl! Where’s your jewelry?). It’s too too much like a bottle of champagne that’s overflowing–meaning you are missing the best part of it.
Hair/Makeup/Accessories
NL:
The hair and makeup go with this dress better–she really is beautiful from the chin up (I’d say neck up but those giant shoulder pads ruin the landscape). I think the giant hoops are a mistake when the dress is so busy, but she wisely went light on the accessories otherwise.
SW: She’s not wearing the right jewelry. Simpler earrings, delicate necklace with pendant or lariat would help the decollette area. I don’t even remember seeing shoes. So who knows what was on her feet. No one could look that far down because they are blinded by the flash and over be-dazzled dress.
Hair– Beyonce, at least pull up the hair in a very simple, sleek and slicked back ponytail a la 1960’s. That would have rocked the look and given it some balance. Make-up..what I said about her perfomance dress still applies.
Overall Rating One and a half stars.
NL: Winner: For me, it was the red carpet look
SW: I agree with this rating but I LOVE the black dress so much more than the red carpet look. That was a bit like Heidi meets Little House on the Prairie.. but maybe that’s just because I don’t like that dress.
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Thank you to Nancy Lichtenstein for her spot-on, incisive commentary. It’s really interesting because she’s on the East Coast and I am on the West Coast and yet we come up with similar conclusiions. (PS. I don’t see her writing until she’s finished the review).
Stevie Wilson, LA-Story.com
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