Amy Childs at National Television Awards 2012

Amy Childs at the National Television Awards 2012, wearing our mermaid lace dress

As promised, here are the Other Golden Globes, awarded by yours truly, a snarky Zeleb blogger.

Lea Michele of ‘Glee’ fame took to the red carpet in a daring Marchesa gown. Unlike Rachel McAdams’ 2011 Marchesa look, this one was sufficiently…drafty enough to solidly land Lea the Most Likely to Show Something She’d Rather Not award.

Feast your eyes out, Gleeks

Lady Madonna wore a puzzling Reem Acra gown – don’t those green squares remind you of a puzzle that’s not quite finished? Maybe one of those 5000 piece ones that is ALL THE SAME COLOUR? Maybe not. At any rate, her breathtakingly tight and strangely also voluminous gown wins her the Most Egregiously Clashing award.

Help! I'm being fangoriously devoured by a satinous monster!

Sara Michelle Gellar looks as if she is oddly transcending a couple decades in her red carpet get-up with a high ponytail straight out of the late naughties (best name for the first decade of any century, IMHO) and a flouncy dip-dye that seems to be directly inspired by her early years on Buffy (it began in ’97, and oh, didn’t the 90s love tie dye). She therefore wins the Dress that has Clearly Time Travelled Award.

(cue Tardis noise)

Amanda Peet’s white tiered-lace gown was designed by Marc Jacobs. All layer-cake jokes aside, I’d really like to believe that this looked much better on her in person than it does in photos. She wins Dress Most Likely to be Upcycled into Curtains.

Lawd-a-mercy, Miss Scarlet, you made a dress out of curtains, we make curtains out of dresses!

Claire Danes’ deceptively modest dress-front was given the lie by the cut-out back…in a good way! J. Mendel should be proud; she was successfully bridging the sexy/classy chasm. Zeleb confers upon her the Channelling Pippa Middleton’s Derriere award.

Also I really hope it was warm in there. Backless dresses in January = ambitious.

Kelly Osbourne’s fashion choices are always irresistible matters of discussion, and her blue Zac Posen mermaid gown (& attempted matching coiffure) was no different. Just look at those shoulders, though! Let’s be glad Kelly didn’t get bored/tired enough to fall asleep whilst wearing this dress – she might have poked her eye out. Shoulders alone win her the Inspired by a Fairy Tale Villain award.

Come, let me impale you with my pointy shoulderpads!

Face it. Debra Messing is a red-headed goddess. But sometimes even red-headed goddesses have issues with their colour schemes. She looked overwhelmed by a chocolate-coloured dress and nude lipstick. Can’t help but wonder – what if her hair had been brown and her dress red? (Bring on the Photoshop.) At the very least, she wins the Your Lipstick Can’t Stand up to Your Dress award.

I'm drowning in a vat of fondue!

Dear Gucci Premiere gown worn by Evan Rachel Wood,

Both fish and birds belong to the phylum Chordata. You appear to have designed the dress that wins the award for Open And Affirming to all Chordates. But don’t worry. That is better than the Comes with a Seashell Bra award (don’t go there).

Yours truly

A puzzled biologist

Hybridization to the max, yo.

Okay, okay, Mila Kunis’ black Dior dress obviously has a nude layer under the black. But she still wins the Definitely Thought that Was Skin, not Fabric award. It’s up to you whether that was a good thing or a bad thing!

Peek-a-boo.

And finally, to end on a high note: Laura Dern! Of course you have done many, many things since Jurassic Park. But that will always be your defining role for me. Your classic, long-sleeved, v-necked and belted Andrew Gn awesomeness is what this whole red carpet thing really is about. Your award will be called: Shimmer!

Jurassic Park meets Twilight: the Tyrannosaurus Rexes SPARKLE.

And it was all yellow

Yellow wins the ‘Most Daring Colour’ award this year. From Paula Patton’s eyeball-searing mermaid dress to Maria Menonous’ clingy gown (which also garnered the ‘Most Requiring of Spanx’), yellow dresses were cropping up all over the place. This sadly neglected primary colour was taking back the stage for sure – although not always with celebs whose skin tones are suited best by it.

If you’re well suited to yellow and have the guts to wear it (especially needed in winter!) here are few styles you might want to consider.

Au natural

‘Most Ubiquitous Colour’ goes to the many nude/blush coloured dresses which continue to populate this year’s red carpets. Unfortunately, some looked rather more like faded washing than va-va-voom (or even arty-weird) gowns. We wonder whether or not stylists get together before awards season and plan trends like this one (and how on earth the celebs let them get away with it).

Thank heavens, nude-coloured gowns can be done tastefully. E.g.:

The popular kids

Angelina Jolie’s gown, a.k.a. ‘Most Likely to be Worn by a Flight Attendant’ has fashion critics divided, though no one can argue over her poise and general show-stealing ability. If you’re looking for something as smoothed down and classically chic (sans the accent collar), why not try:

Let your hair down

Reese Witherspoon’s relaxed tresses accompanied by her form-fitting, blood red gown had tongues a-wagging, indeed. We toyed with awarding her ‘Most Sexy’ or ‘Most Curvaceous’ but settled with giving her ‘Most Likely to get Attacked by a Vampire Afterwards.’

We couldn’t help but draw comparisons between a few Zeleb gowns.

What’s in a name?

Really, Octavia Spencer. Could she be anything else but an actress? Well, of course she could, but would she want to be? (See The Help if you think otherwise.) Octavia’s lavender gown was perfect, her hair was perfect, her jewellery was understated and perfect…so we’ve given her the ‘Most Likely to be Envied by all Women No Matter What their Dress Size’ award. (She was also a strong contender for ‘Best Humorous Comment’ for starting off by saying “I’m not sleeping with Brad Pitt.”)

A few dress choices after her jewelled, gathered light purple gown:

A Little Bling

Nicole Kidman wore a studded bandage-y looking dress that we’ve decided to award ‘Most Likely to Have Been Inspired by Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs.’ But she does it so well!

In honour of her, a few dresses that are positively ‘shiny.’

And that’s a wrap

Thanks for sticking with our fashion critique and shameless self-promoting. Keep your eyes posted for part 2 of our awards section in which we’ll dole out even more mock awards. ‘Tis the season!

Fashion and Cookies

Cosa Mi Metto

Keen to host a Zeleb competition or collaborate with us on other blogging projects? Leave a comment or e-mail erin@zeleb.co.uk

Although we’ve made this dress in other colours, the deep red of its original design is certainly the favourite. Birthday parties, posh weddings, even a few proms: no matter what the occasion, this dress has flair enough to made the wearer stand out.

The model in the above picture is wearing a fairly discreet necklace with a matching stone. If you are match-averse, here are a few other suggestions for delicate necklaces.

H. Samuel, £16

Fraser Hart, £150

If you’re interested in throwing discretion to the wind and finding a ‘WOW’ necklace for this ‘WOW’ dress, look long and carefully (but here are a few suggestions anyway).

Lara Bohinc 'Lunar Eclipse' - £595, Harvey Nichols

Black Chalcedony Macrame Necklace, $150 USD, GlobalGypsyJewelry on Etsy

Among the plethora of bracelets & bangles available for pretty much any price – ‘Accessorise’ and pound shops all the way up to designer pieces – there are many to be found that will complement this dress well.

Asos, £12

Oceanic, £87

The shoes that you choose to wear with this dress will depend largely on how tall you are and therefore how low the dress falls on you. Though it might be tempting to pair this dress with some plain nude pumps (see below)…

L. K. Bennett, £185

…you don’t have to be that timid! A few ideas on how to add some pizzazz to your feet without taking away from the dress:

Coast, Debenhams, £59

Miss K M, £75

Clarks, £28

You’ll notice that we’ve stayed away from hair accessories with this dress. Because of the tulle straps that make the neckline rather busy, we thought perhaps that keeping your hair on the simple side of things might be best, whether up, down or in between.

Do you have pictures of any amazing accessories that you think would go well with this dress, or ideas about how best to do your hair for a formal event? E-mail us at Zeleb or put a link to your photo in the comments.

My name’s Fabrizia and I’m 25 years old, I have always lived in Rome, the eternal city, where I studied and graduated; then I married my beloved husband Luca, and now I live with him in Napoli, always dreaming about having a family. I have a special relationship with my younger sister, Federica, my best friend, confidante and one of my biggest supporters. I love fashion (of course!), and travelling because I always love discovering new places, new cities, new cultures, meeting different people, learning new things. I enjoy watching sitcoms because they make me smile; and music puts me in a good mood. Another thing I really love is photography: I take many photos on every occasion and treasure them afterwards…of course my home is full of picture frames!!! My favourite books are psychological thrillers. I adore spending my free time with Luca and with my friends, clubbing, dining out or just chatting and laughing over a coffee.
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Q&A

Zeleb: Who are your inspirations/style icons?

Fabrizia: I admire the style of many classic it girls like Olivia Palermo and Miroslava Duma, and also of many charming stars. By the way- I take inspiration from every look that really impresses me, no matter if it’s a celebrity or the girl next door!

Zeleb: Why keep a blog about what you’re wearing? What do you hope to accomplish?

Fabrizia: You know how things go: I started it just for fun, to share my looks and to know people’s opinions and tips. I didn’t plan to accomplish anything. It was just a pastime! Fortunately the blog has been successful and now I collaborate with different online brands. I even have a little space every week on a national radio and a personal column on a newspaper. I’m so glad about this! I’ve no claims for the future of my blog – I just hope that it continues to grow up and to offer me great chances, and the opportunity to meet different, fascinating people.

Zeleb: How do you bring your love of fashion into your everyday life?

Fabrizia: I try to dress in a different style every day – matching my clothes differently, pairing different pieces together. I observe people around me and of course I love to watch fashion shows on tv, browse fashion magazines, and stroll trough the shops.

Zeleb: What type of occasion is your favourite to dress for?

Fabrizia: I don’t have a favourite occasion, I think I’m a versatile person, and I like many different situations: I love to discover new things, places, restaurants, bars, clubs and so on.

Zeleb: What is the fashion industry doing wrong? What is it doing right?

Fabrizia: In my opinion the fashion industry doesn’t consider that people usually have a normal and ordinary life, that doesn’t allow them to wear strange and extravagant clothes such as those that many fashion houses produce. On the other hand, many brands have realized that for the majority of people the high fashion is not accessible, and so it remains only a dream. Brands that have started to offer designer collections with a low cost are on to a great solution to these issues.

Zeleb: If you had your choice of Zeleb dresses & any celebrity to style, who would you pick and which dress

Fabrizia: I would love to see the Nicole Kidman wearing the light chiffon dress. I’m sure that she, with her elegant bearing, would make this fabulous and unique dress look truly wonderful.
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Thank you, Fabrizia, for sharing your thoughts with us. We will have another post soon about Fabrizia’s upcoming giveaway on her blog (and several others). In the meantime, would you like to be interviewed about your personal style and inspiration on the Zeleb blog? Leave a comment and let us know!

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Let’s start with a cute, springy one. This floral dress is made of chiffon and is floor-length without a train.

It has a very slight sweetheart neckline and flower details at the bust and just below the natural waist.

So – first off, what type of occasion are we dressing for? This gown is most popular with Zeleb customers attending birthday parties and proms, so we can easily accessorise for both of those.

If you’re a guest at the party and not the birthday girl herself, this dress is a great way to make a style statement when paired with the right accessories. A few thoughts:

1. Balance the modern style with a retro fascinator

£18, Asos

2. Minimal, tasteful jewellery so as not to overwhelm the embroidery on the bodice of the dress

£15 John Lewis

3.  Do something interesting – but not too dark or matchy – with your purse

Debenhams, £60

4. Just because the dress hides your shoes, that doesn’t mean you have to have boring ones!

£75, Schuh

So there’s one take on how to style this dress up a bit. Any thoughts? How would you do it differently?

Whilst speaking with my mum yesterday I realised that we both did the majority of our holiday shopping on Amazon or other specialised brand or shop websites. This won’t be amazing news to anyone, even given my mum’s less than shining aptitude when it comes to technology.  or what I thought was her cardinal rule: if it’s something you try on, go to the store.

And yet she, as everyone else, is turning increasingly to doing even the clothes-and-shoes shopping online. Returns are much easier these days, though sale items don’t often fall in the ‘returnable’ category, so online shopping seems to just be a way of bringing the in-store dressing room home with you…without the muzak, threatening PLEASE RESHELVE/REHANG YOUR ITEMS notices, and giggling/phone-chatting/whining people in the next stall. Pleasant, perhaps?

Yes, I suppose the answer is. But then again having to pay for 14 items just to try them on in the comfort of your own home seems a little excessive. And being able to call a sales attendant over to fetch you a different size? That tiniest bit of pampering is left over from an age of shopping long gone. Close your eyes with me for a moment, and imagine…

…you walk into a boutique, and are greeted by the staff. You confer with them about the event to which you’d like to wear their clothing, or if it’s just everyday wear. They offer their informed-if-not-professional opinion, and perhaps point you towards a few items you might not otherwise have noticed. You have time, space and attention to try on clothes, and no one rushes you or forces you to buy them afterwards.

Does that sound ridiculous? A little. But in the days where fashion was made-to-measure or make-it-yourself, shopping experiences were more in this vein. (Incidentally, trying on dresses at Zeleb has lots in common with the above paragraph, although our pieces wouldn’t be called ‘everyday’.)  Clothes were much more expensive in proportion to one’s income than they are now and they were made to last longer.

Shopping for shoes today comes with a small slice of this customer attention for the average high street shopper, though shopping centres are featuring and increasing number of shoe stores whose shelves are stocked with all sizes, again eliminating the salesperson. Pity.

For the moment I’m still attached to my in-store shopping, but realise that sometimes, especially when ordering from particular brands who may not have stores on every corner, or when buying things like electronics or media, online shopping is the way to go.  Bring on the Super Saver Shipping, Amazon.