Oscars red-carpet happy ending?

There was a fairytale feeling sweeping Tinsletown on Sunday, as all of Hollywoods’ leading ladies lived out the Cinderella dream through their dresses!

Big, bold and beautiful seemed to be the recurring theme for the night, with most actresses being a little more daring with their choice of attire! Sarah Jessica Parker drew inspiration from her tutu in the opening credits of Sex and the City and donned a ‘barely mint’, Dior Couture gown with a huge tulle meringue skirt.

Penelope Cruz dazzled in a white Vintage Pierre Balmain dress with brocade detailing and sheer touches while Jennifer Aniston showed the world just how she bagged her toyboy prince John Mayer, in a figure-hugging, strapless, white Valentino gown.

The two Disney starlets who surely should have the princess look down to a tee got it all wrong on the night. Vanessa Hudgens wore a black Marchesa dress with a fishtail, aging her by at least 30years and making me wonder if she’s auditioning for a new role as Mortisha Adams.

Miley Cyrus (right) also dared to be different in a stunning Zuhair Murad dress with scalloped layers. On anyone else this dress could have worked perfectly, but on a sixteen year old pop singer just screamed "I borrowed this from my mum’s wardrobe".

Freida Pinto may play a rags to riches orphan in Slumdog Millionaire, but she looked nothing less than regal in a royal blue, Galliano, one-sleeved dress with intricate embellishments!

On-screen queen in Starwars and off-screen, queen of the red carpet, Natalie Portman (below) wins my vote for best dressed of the night! She shone in a stunning, lilac-pink, Rodarte, strapless gown with Swarovski detailing and was certainly the belle of the ball!

So Hollywood proves, that when it comes to fashion, there can always be… a happily ever after! Pity the Disney Girls got it SOOOOOO WRONG!!

The IFTAs Red Carpet

The IFTAs, otherwise known to me as the Irish Fashion Trauma Awards, had their 6th annual ceremony on Valentine’s night and the crème de la crème of Irish stars turned up in their glad-rags for the evening’s festivities.

It’s about as close as we get to the BAFTAS or Oscars and although Ireland has its fair share of film and television stars, many of them are still miles behind in the style stakes!

The Good…

An array of blush tones in keeping with the romantic mood swept the red carpet;

My favourite of the night was Caroline Morahan in a iced pink, bustier, strapless, tiered number, with a chunky diamond cuff and swept-back simplistic updo and neutral make-up…she managed to look fashionable and youthful, clearly those years on ‘Off the Rails’ have paid off.

Another winner of the night… Amy Huberman shunned the glitzy over-the-top evening dresses and opted for a quirky, pink, embellished, shift dress. With a messy updo and smokey eyes, she would have stood her own against any of the cool, style icon Brits, aka Alexa Chung and Ferne Cotton.

The Bad…
There were a few on the night who almost had it, but just didn’t quite get there…

The beautiful Seoige sisters, usually look perfect on their daytime TV show, couldn’t relate this approach to their red carpet look. There was nothing overly-wrong with their dresses, they were just a bit predictable and boring…empire line, silk chiffon-layered, bust-enhancing, broach detailed and deep purple and teal green complementing colours…did anyone tell them that dressing the same as your sister is only cute up until the age of six???

Rachel Kavanagh, former ‘Fair City’ actress, is a regular at these star-studded bashes, so she should have the style thing down to a tee; however, she opted for boring black, high neckline with an awful chiffon fishtail with a sneak of hot pink coming through. The dress made her look bigger than she is - it needed to be more body-con for a va-va voom effect. She’s young and beautiful, so if she was sticking to this classic shape, she should have been more adventurous with the colour.

The Ugly…

Take a few hints from Dame Helen Mirren or Michelle Obama on the art of how to dress an older woman beautifully and elegantly without the element of mutton dressed as lamb!

Red was a fantastic choice of colour by Jackie Lavin of ‘The Apprentice’. However, red satin on anyone over the age of 40 can look cheap and she teamed it with over the elbow matching gloves, a la Moulin Rouge. Not only that but the dress had a plunging neck-line and diamonte detailing. How much is too much? Check out Susan Sarandon, she’s 62, still has red-hot sex appeal but manages to do it with a bit more class.

Finally we have Fionnula Flanagan, currently starring in hit American series ‘Lost’. She tried to play it safe in black…however, the diamonte polka dot bustier that is at least 2 sizes to small for her, makes me want to scream..put em away love!!! Take a hint from Helen Mirren…equally blessed with blossoming assets; the difference being she knows how to dress them!