Red Carpet Recap: Requirements Were Met.

By Kirsten|May 7th, 2013|Celebrity Style, Red Carpet Recap|

Julie Macklowe in Zang Toi, Zandra Rhodes, Madonna in Givenchy, Sarah Jessica Parker in Giles Deacon

Since 1948 the Metropolitan Museum of Art has hosted the Met Ball (also known as the Costume Institute Ball) to fete the opening of the fashion exhibit at the Costume Institute. Every year, the event has a theme that attendees are encouraged to channel with their chosen attire. This year’s theme was deemed Punk: Chaos to Couture and that got the fashion world in a bit of a tizzy. A stripped down rock starting between 1974 and 1976 characterized by DIY principles and sub-culture rooted in anti-establishment and rebellious youth, would fashion’s elite really relate to the theme seeing as some of them hadn’t even been conceived when punk was present? The red carpet proved to be a bit of a crap shoot, which was made especially apparent when Hailee Steinfeld referenced Avril Lavigne as “punk.”

Some ladies played it subtle by simply accessorizing with studded jewelery or faux-hawk coifs. Dramatic dark smokey eyes and deep berry lips were also favored on the red carpet. But the real stars of the red carpet were the women who really went for it. Anne Hathaway went full blown blonde, SJP sported an exquisite mohawk headpiece by Philip Treacy, and Madonna said, “to hell with pants!” in Givenchy. Rooney Mara, Nina Dobrev, and Minka Kelly were the perfect mesh of modern and punk embracing the look in sexy lace and smoldering makeup. While Blake Lively, Taylor Swift, and Amanda Seyfried were stunning, they veered to the side of safe. Which can’t be said for some like Coco in Emanuel Ungaro, a tie dyed Elle Fanning, and a seemingly confused Olsen twin. And I’m left wondering if some of these ladies didn’t get the memo or are just party poopers who simply ignored the theme altogether.

So, who got punk and who got punk’d?

Perfectly Punk:

Donatella Versace, Anne Hathaway in Valentino, Rooney Mara in Givenchy, Lauren Santo Domingo in Dolce & Gabbana, Minka Kelly in Carolina Herrera

Miranda Kerr in Michael Kors, Emma Watson in Prabal Gurung, Dakota Fanning in Rodarte, Carolyn Murphy in Nina Ricci, Allison Williams in Altuzarra

Punky Pants:

Kristen Stewart in Stella McCartney, Nina Dobrev in Monique Lhuillier, Jaime King in TopShop, Jessica Biel in Giambattista Valli

How Supermodels Do Punk:

Karolina Kurkova in Mary Katrantzou, Gisele Bundchen in Anthony Vaccarello, Anja Rubik in Anthony Vaccarello, Cara Delevigne in Burberry, Brooklyn Decker in Peter Pilotto

Punk Princesses:

Julianne Hough in TopShop, Taylor Swift in J. Mendel, Blake Lively in Gucci, Gwen Stefani in Maison Martin Margiela, Amanda Seyfried in vintage Givenchy

Pretty, but not Punk:

Gwyneth Paltrow in Valentino, Anna Wintour in Chanel, Kate Upton in Diane von Furstenberg, Kate Beckinsdale in Alberta Ferretti, Heidi Klum in Marchesa

Pieces of Punk:

Jaime King, Ginnifer Goodwin, Jennifer Lawrence

Emmy Rossum, Sienna Miller, Jessica Alba

You’ve Been Punk’d:

Ashley Olsen in Dior, Elle Fanning in Rodarte, Miley Cyrus in Marc Jacobs, Nicole Richie in TopShop, Nora Zehetner in Marchesa

Coco Rocha in Emanuel Ungaro, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley in Gucci, Christina Ricci in Vivienne Westwood, Beyonce in Givenchy

Who were your favorites?

xx,

WhyDid

Why Did or Why Don’t?: An Overall Bad Idea

By Kirsten|October 17th, 2012|Why Did or Why Don't?, Why Did You Wear That?|

They were bad the first go ’round, and yet, here they are again trying to make a comeback (if we can even call it that). Just like the eighties (as a decade), it seems we’re always trying to “bring back” some of the worst trends. Didn’t we learn our lesson the first time? It’s like needing to touch the stove just to make sure it’s hot.

Which trend is being rehashed this time? Overalls or bibs or dungarees or hogwashers. Call them what you will, but they can only be categorized under, “Bad.” While they made appearances on runways from Altuzarra, Phillip Lim, and Rebecca Minkoff, I don’t think even designers can make this outdated style seem fresh, let alone chic.

Some famous wearers of overalls circa 1990: T-Boz, ‘Nsync, Old MacDonald. And where are they now? Let’s learn from our mistakes, ladies, and leave the overalls to the farmer in the dell.

Ya’ll don’t come back now, ya hear?

xx,

WhyDid

image via

Smart Is the New Pretty: Socially Acceptable

By Kirsten|April 18th, 2012|Smart Is the New Pretty, WhyDid Wisdom|

It’s funny, one of the first things I do in the morning (other than open my eyes) is look at my phone. I mean, I need to see what I missed during those seven to eight hours of sleep. Is the internet still there? Are you still out there, world??

It seems that social media is overtaking the traditional news industry (which shouldn’t surprise you… since you’re reading this). [Mashable]
For instance, you probably first heard about the Secret Service scandal involving prostitutes on Twitter, right? [WSJ]
I wonder if any of them were wearing Altuzarra for J.Crew? [Fashionista]
Or maybe some Alexander McQueen? I mean, designer Sarah Burton did make Time’s 100 Most Influential People. [TIME]
Also on the list is Jack Dorsey (founder of Twitter and Square), which is no surprise because mobile payments are predicted to replace cash and credit by 2020. [Consumer Reports]
Do you think Facebook paid for Instagram with a mobile payment? More details emerge from the deal. [Vanity Fair]
As it turns out, you’ll be able to communicate with your favorite Olympians this year via social media as well. [Mashable]
You can already do so with some of your favorite movie stars. By the way, here are the five “buzzworthy” movies from Tribeca Film Festival. [E! News]
All of this is great news for you fine internet ad people. Internet ad revenue has reached $31 billion! [TechCrunch]
What do you think about that, Captain Jack Sparrow? [Mashable]

xx,

WhyDid

image via Tsunami Publicity

Beauty Buzz: Brow Down

By Kirsten|March 22nd, 2012|Beauty Buzz|

Long gone are the days of over tweezed and drawn on eyebrows. The full brow is back and better than ever as seen on the Spring 2012 runways. Everyone from Naeem Khan to Derek Lam channeled their Brooke Shields a la The Blue Lagoon. In seasons past, the bleached brow had made an appearance, but this spring, it’s all about the statement making power brow.

I suffer from having fairly light and fairly thin eyebrows naturally, so I have to fill them in just to make ’em look normal using Tarte’s EmphasEYES brow pencil in Taupe on a day to day basis. Rosie Huntington Whitely swears by Laura Mercier’s Brow Powder. It’s time to find your power tool for banging brows. The look is full, groomed, and face framing. It is also important to find the right shape for your face as well. I have found that just having a groomed brow makes me immediately appear more polished and adds an extra impact to my eyes.