Triumph for British fashion at Baftas
Posted by Lucky on Feb 22, 2010
The Baftas turned into a triumph for British fashion designers tonight, with the red carpet becoming an extension of the London catwalk. A buoyant British fashion scene, and a desire to pay red carpet tribute to combined to make the Baftas a near-landslide for British fashion.
who on Tuesday stage their second catwalk show in London since returning from Milan, underscored their pole position as the most powerful luxury British fashion brand of the moment by dressing nominee Saiorse Ronan as well as A-lister Claire Danes.
A pregnant Sam Taylor-Wood chose McQueen – not previously considered as a go-to choice for maternity wear – as did Jaime Winstone, in a long gown which combined a flowing, Grecian goddess silhouette with harness-style strapping.
Kate Winslet, who when up for gongs last year played it safe by channelling old school Hollywood glamour, this year kicked back with a laid-back-but-sexy Stella McCartney black-and-lace number. Vanessa Redgrave and Joely Richardson both chose gowns by the classic British eveningwear designer Catherine Walker, while Victoria Beckham – who dressed Courtney Cox at the Golden Globes – notched up another red carpet credit when Trudie Styler appeared in a fitted cocktail dress with graphic peplum at the hip.
Compared to the floorlength-and-diamonds, serious-glamour lockdown that is the Oscars, the Baftas is practically a pyjama party. Knee-length dresses work well here, because the Baftas are not quite so far removed from reality as the Oscars – and knee-length cocktail dresses are, after all, what black tie means in real life. The breakout stars of the red carpet last night were Saiorse Ronan, who radiated an Alice in Wonderland freshness in her creamcake Burberry ruffles, and Romola Garai, who scored fashion points by backing hot London Fashion Week designer Erdem (also a favourite of Sarah Brown), whose catwalk show takes place tomorrow.
Carey Mulligan, who was being heavily wooed by several designers and has been much photographed in Prada, made a surprise choice with Vionnet, although fashion anoraks noted that the French label is now designed by Rodolfo Paglialunga, Miuccia Prada’s assistant for 15 years. Also flying the flag for Parisian fashion were the British expat Kristin Scott Thomas, in Louis Vuitton, and Audrey Tautou, who, despite being nominated for her role as Coco Chanel, wore a dress by rival label Lanvin.
source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/feb/21/triumph-british-fashion-baftas
