And The Oscar Goes To...

Well well well! Another bunch of award shows are done and dusted, all capped off by the ultimate ceremony, The Academy Awards. These days, we tend to look at who is best dressed rather than who won best actor, but we're all magpies! I just cannot help looking at all those sparkly dresses and glamourous jewellery - though Daniel Day Lewis' triple whammy had to at least get a nod from us - bravo!

So I thought I'd bring you  a selection of vintage and not so vintage Oscar outfits. Mainly so we can all swoon and sigh over those couture gowns, whether it's on 1950s Grace Kelly or this years Best Actress winner, Jennifer Lawrence. She may have taken a wee tumble, but in that Dior dress, who could blame her, how much fabric?!

We go back to the 1954 Academy Awards to Best Actress winner Audrey Hepburn for her role in Roman Holiday. This Givenchy gown completely defines the era with it's nipped in waist, full skirt and sheer lace overlay. Absolutely Stunning.

Sticking to Best Actresses, this 90s baby pink spaghetti strap Ralph Lauren gown worn by Gwyneth Paltrow became iconic overnight after she won her award for Shakespeare In Love in 1999. Oh spaghetti straps. Oh the 90s!

Strappy dresses weren't the new kid on the block by any means, Grace Kelly who won also won Best Actress in 1955 for her role in Country Girl donned them in this Edith Head dress. The mint green colour is slightly unusual for the era but it compliments her trademark blonde locks perfectly. The elbow length white satin gloves scream Hollywood Glamour.

Best Supporting Actress Anne Hathaway was championing this seasons' pastel trend in a simple satin column dress by Prada with Tiffany jewellery. Her newly cropped hair compliments this dress beautifully, making it more edgy than girly princess.

As far as memorable Oscar dresses go, we cannot write this blog post without putting the spotlight back on 2002's Best Actress Halle Berry. This Ellie Saab gown, with strategically placed embroidery, caught the attention of the fashion world instantly. All hail Halle.

OK. So we're still in the 21st Century here at The Vintage Fair, but Reese Witherspoon wasn't. In 2006 she won Best Actress for Walk The Line and all eyes were on her and this 1955 Christian Dior gown proving that classic shapes and fabrics will never, ever date. 

I found this photo of the 1948 Best Actress Loretta Young really interesting. I've never seen such a huge, flouncy dress on a 40s celebrity, or at all. I'd love to know what colour it is and I suspect the fabric may be taffeta? If anyone knows anymore about this dress I'd love to know. 

We can safely say that we are looking into the future of fashion with this fuschia Marchesa gown on Fan Bingbing. It is from Marchesa's A/W 13-14 collection and it is no surprise that this ever fashionably forward Chinese actress gets to be seen in it before anybody else. Personally I see a bit of Vivienne Westwood in this dress...anybody else?

From the future to one of the first. Mary Pickford won Best Actress in 1929 for her role in Coquette (though there is scandal surrounding this supposed fixed win - ooh err). The finger waves are typical of the era, in fact, this haircut made front page news! The dress is just beautiful, with a wealth of detail. 

The best dressed from this years awards has to go to Jessica Chastain. Tumbling Vivien Leigh style waves and red lipstick transformed her into a real life Jessica Rabbit. The embellished custom made Armani rose gown was accompanied by vintage Harry Winston diamonds. 

This years red carpet was awash with bling, embellishment, sequins, beads, metallics. But nobody will ever, ever get one up on Grace Kelly from the 1954 Awards accompanied by Clarke Gable. Complete with fur stole, elbow length satin gloves, pearl necklace and a flawless hairdo this is a picture of what the Oscars is all about. Showstopping elegance. Now, just because I can, I'm going finish this post with a few very special vintage Oscars' photos for you to nose at, I found many on the blog Vintage Everyday.

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The Pixie Crop

With the Les Mis premiere last night, I couldn't help but think about Anne Hathaway and having her hair well and truly chopped off for the role of Fantaine, a factory worker who gives birth to an illegitimate child. The movie version of the musical is raw, with live vocals throughout the film and Hathaway's performance of I Dreamed A Dream should rain all over Susan Boyle's parade.

Looking back over the past century a famous female face cutting all of her hair off is nothing new to us. Women with strong, striking features benefited from the chop as it highlighted the face so beautifully. Whether actresses cut their hair off for acting roles, models to stand out from the crowd or celebrities just wanting a change, I feel the crop is always worn by confident, brave women who make statements.

Screen icon Audrey Hepburn is a fantastic early example as she sported the pixie in the early 50s and has been much copied ever since. Similarly to Anne Hathaway, the crop haircut shows off her stunning features and enviable cheekbones.

In 1966 Twiggy had her hair cut short by celebrity hair stylist Leonard as a hair model to test out the "new" crop hairstyle. After a few head shots were taken, the images circulated until she was named The Face of 66 in the Daily Express. The swept crop framed her trade mark eye make up with all of the painted under eye lashes.  It is still said that this haircut landed her the lifelong career she continues to enjoy.

As Anne Hathaway lost her locks for the role of Fantaine, Mia Farrow lost her long blonde locks for her role in Polanski's Rosemary's Baby. Cut in 1967 as a publicity stunt in a boxing ring, Vidal Sassoon worked his magic on Farrow making the transformation even more famous. It is said that her then husband, Frank Sinatra, was drastically opposed to the hair cut and issued divorce papers soon after her new hairdo was revealed!

One of my favourite vintage icons has to be Edie Sedgwick. Her tragic tale is glamorised by her fast paced, whimsical life with Andy Warhol as she frittered away her inheritance on clothes, booze and drugs. Though she wasn't here as long as we would have loved her to be, she left a big dent in the art and fashion world. Her pixie crop allowed her to amp up her 60s makeup as well as her elaborate dangly earrings.

Bringing things back to the modern day, the latest "shock crop" had to be from Harry Potter star Emma Watson. As the epic film series came to an end so did her long hair and apparently it was one of the best things she'd ever done, in an interview for US Glamour she claimed she'd never felt as confident as when she did with that sleek Farrow-esque crop.

So would you take the plunge and get rid of your long hair to make a statement? Maybe one for the New Year? One thing I know is that this style isn't for the wallflower or the particularly round faced...! If you've got killer cheekbones then go get the scissors pronto.

Gina x