Munaluchi Red Carpet Style Report – Oscars 2012

The red carpet style at the 84th Annual Academy Awards offered stunning custom floor-length gowns and statement-making hairstyles. There was a little of everything on the legendary red carpet for womenswear and menswear. Shades of beige and splashes of red and green were the ideal color choices of the night.  Sit back and enjoy Munaluchi’s Oscar 2012 Red Carpet Style Report!

Natural Hair Beauty

Viola Davis looked stunning in a emerald green strapless corset fitted Vera Wang gown, Judith Leiber clutch and matching Lorraine Schwartz emerald earrings. Her dress color was one of the few and outshined many in the seas of beige and winter winter. Viola’s confidence and glowing skin is what makes her look completely stunning. The Oscar nominee’s easily my pick for best dressed of the night.

Esperanza Spalding’s gravity defying Afro and vocals were instant crowd pleasers for her heavenly rendition of the Louis Armstrong classic, What A Wonderful World.

Beige

Champagne, beige and winter white were the ideal color choices of the evening. My personal standout favorite picks went to Rooney’s structured Givenchy, Oscar Best Supporting Actress winner Octavia’s loyalty to Tadashi Shoji and the ruffled, sequin train on Cameron’s Gucci gown.

first row – Rooney Mara in Givenchy, Octavia Spencer in Tadashi Shoji and Robin Roberts
second row – Louise Roe in Black Halo,  Cameron Diaz in Gucci, and BingBing Li in Georges Chakra Couture

Gold

Instead of sticking with the night’s color, gold was the perfect accessory choice to compliment the golden statue – Oscar. George Clooney’s girlfriend Stacy Keiber radiated in a strapless liquid gold Marchesa down. Access Hollywood anchor Shaun Robinson also stuck with this color in a low-cut Romona Keveza dynamic number. Oscar winner Meryl Steep stepped out in a gold  Lanvin eco-friendly wrap dress.

Plum/Purple

Bridesmaids actress Maya Rudolph and 30 Rock star Tina Fey worked the red carpet in plum dresses. At first glance one would think Tina’s custom peplum Carolina Herrera is black but it’s actually midnight purple. Maya’s embellished Johanna Johnson dress was a knockout.

Hairstyle of the night

The bun returned for Jennifer Lopez, who many criticized for her sheer, low-cut Zuhair Murad custom-made dress. Her hairstyle not only took me back to her Bennifer days and to that heavily critized Oscar night ‘do. The dress served her curvy figure well in true J.Lo fashion and for that she’s one of my best dressed picks of the night.

The Statement Dress

Angelina Jolie prompted The Descendants screenwriter winners to mimic her one leg stance which she flaunted in that amazing thigh-high slit velvet Versace dress. Her pose inspired a Twitter account AND a Tumblr page which I think is all a part of Oscar magic!

Beading & Embroidery

Intricate beading ruled for Kelly Osbourne’s Badgley Mischka dress and Nancy O’Dell’s yellow and black Chagoury Couture gown. Jessica Chastain’s regal Alexander McQueen black and gold hand-embroidered turned heads on the red carpet.

Red

Emma Stone, Natalie Portman and Michelle Williams took to heart the age-old phrase “painting the town red” in their gowns. Emma’s big bow Giambattista Valli took fashion fans back to Nicole Kidman’s Valnetino moment while Michelle’s Louis Vuitton ignited peplum fever. Natalie’s vintage polka dot Dior was an unexpected fashion moment that I loved.

Men Fashion

Men’s fashion at this year’s Oscar had plenty of “Did That Just Happened” Moments thanks to Ryan Seacrest, Brad Pitt, Chris Rock, Pharrell, and Diddy.

Sasha Baron Cohen may have to pay Ryan Seacrest for messing up his Burberry tux but it still didn’t prevent him from being my best dressed male of the night. Diddy made sure to have his stylist peel off lint before he made his red carpet appearance. Pharrell shared drum duty with Shelia E. in a traditional black tux. (Sheila E and Oscars in the same sentence = legendary)!

Showstopper

Gwyneth Paltrow’s winter white Tom Ford column dress with a floor-length cape was definitely the night’s showstopper.

Polka Dots

Tory Burch and Elizabeth Banks joined Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman in the fun polka dot trend of the night.

Heavy Hitters

Best Dressed Couples

first row – Paula Patton in Naeem Khan & Robin Thicke // Victoria Beckam in Victoria Beckham & David Beckham

second row – Katie Holmes in Elie Saab & Tom Cruise // Taye Diggs & Idina Menzel

BEST OF THE REST

first row – Venus & Serena Williams, Kim Kardashian in Alaia, Jennifer Lopez in Zuhair Murad, Katy Perry & Dita Von Tesse in  Jenny Packham

Who were your best and worst dressed picks?

image credits- getty