style // Styling Made Easy :: learning from the stars

Hi everyone and welcome to Styling Made Easy, a guide to help you develop and strengthen your own unique style. 

Today I want to show you my fav and least fav looks of this year's Met Gala. There are so many things to learn from the way celebrities dress; there are both dos and don'ts (no matter how bright they shine). 

Let's start with the don'ts:

 

Unless you have looooooong (and I mean, Elle MacPherson long) legs, you should avoid short hems and ankle strap shoes or you'll just make them look shorter. Even if you have long legs, avoid it… you might be able to pull it off with a mid-calf length (like Diane Kruger and Hailee Steinfeld) or a mini dress/skirt (like Stacy Keibler and Gisele Bundchen), but it is still a might.  

 

Stacy's look is great and overall, her figure looks very proportional. I really love the studded dress… she got the "Chaos to Couture" night theme without over doing it. Gisele is hot, hot, HOT… nothing to discuss about that, but maybe the pic taken slightly from above and her pose don't do justice to her gorgeous legs (see? it isn't easy!). However… Gisele's look reminds me of another don't: too much skin is just tacky (even for a beautiful top model). Her dress looks incomplete; don't really understand why she chose such dress for such chic event. It might be appropriate as a swimsuit coverup in Rio and Miami, but certainly not for the year's most important NY event. 

  

I LOVE prints, but you have to know how to wear them. Animal prints are a classic, but unless you want to end up looking like a walking safari, you have to dose them. I prefer wearing animal patterned accessories and keeping everything else very simple (click here for some ideas). 

Florals are another big trend this summer (remember last week's shoes?), but again… you don't want to end up looking like a huge old lady's couch. Kim Kardashian just looks awful with her floral gown (no wonder Anna Wintour didn't want to invite her to the Gala). The pattern scale is wrong: larger scale patterns look better (and hide volumes), just look at Sarah J. Parker's gorgeous abstract floral gown. Kim is also too covered… she should have at least showed some hand skin… I bet Anna Wintour was really upset when she saw her fashion archenemy had also chosen a floral print too for the evening :S 

  

No one looks nice with bulky hips (not even the skinniest girls), so why would you choose clothes that add volume where there isn't any? Ashley Greene looks like a plus-size girl with Marchesa's gown (I love Marchesa but this dress is just not good for anyone's shape). And what about Kirsten Stewart and her weird looking crotch and thighs? Again… love Stella McCartney, but as designers we have to really consider how garment will look on real bodies, not hangers.)

Finally… what's with the Olsen twins? They have millions of dollars and always show up looking like homeless girls. Enough with the hobo chic style… it might have been on trend about 10 years ago, but please… it was just a baaaad one: there's nothing chic nor pretty in a hobo. Plus… Mary-Kate (right) really looks like an over 60 wearing a weird-looking night robe, while Ashely (left) looks like she's dressed for Halloween (add a magic wand and and you'll get a Fairy Godmother). 

Let's move on to the positive examples, hehehe… the dos: 

These girls just look stunning! and they definitely know how to keep things balanced. The Golden Rule to elegance is to decide whether to show some cleavage or legs… never both! (kind of, either the eyes or the lips in makeup, hehehe). 

 

If you want a dramatic look, keep the silhouette simple and prefer textile effects to get it (instead of voluminous dresses.  

If you are more of a classic girl, you can choose classic cuts and fabrics but modernise them with subtle details: an unexpected cutout (Gwyneth Paltrow), a long (but controlled) train (Katie Holmes), or a flashy make-up and/or hairstyle (Nicole Richie). Maybe Richie's hair and makeup are a bit too much, but you can tone it down and still keep it fresh and modern :)

*all pictures courtesy of People