The return of The Little Curly Girl...

Hold on to your hats, kids, because I'm back, ready to take on 2010 and all of its sartorial delights with gusto, panache and a hell of a lot of curly hair!

Hang on Franki, you can't just burst in here, acting like nothing's happened, expecting us to welcome you back with open arms, you've been gone for six months, where the chocolate-covered-spider-monkeys have you been?!

...ah, right, yes, I see your disapproving looks there... well the thing is, it's a long story and quite frankly I don't have the time to tell it and you probably don't have the time to listen, but needless to say I was doing lots of important stuff, you know, saving lives, rescuing kittens, teaching small, misguided children valuable life lessons and just generally being brilliant.

And there was an unfortunate situation with a goose.

But I'm not allowed to talk about that for legal reasons. Anyway, Beanie Baby Council, I'm back now, and I promise I will more than make it up to you, for I have so much to talk about on this here thing you crazy kids like to call a 'blog'!

Alright, alright, we are appeased, for now. But no more tomfoolery, we're watching you.

You know, the great thing about toys is that they're quick to forgive and they don't ask too many questions. And, you know, they're not actually alive so I can pretty much make them do and say whatever I want.

See?

Now that that's all over and done with, I figured I'd kick off my return to the blogosphere with a good old-fashioned dose of red carpet glamour. Last night was the 67th Annual Golden Globes, which saw Drew Barrymore pick up a Best Actress award for "Grey Gardens", while "Glee" (the best TV show EVER... fact) scooped the award for Best Comedy TV Series (rightly so). However, here at The Little Curly Girl HQ (otherwise known as my bedroom), we are WAY more interested in who WORE what rather than who WON what. In my eyes it should be called the Golden Globe Haute Couture Fashion Show of Dreams and Simultaneous Horror. As always with these events, some celebs got it very, very right, while others, sadly (for them, amusing for me) got it so desperately wrong. I've put together a few lists to sum up the night;

First off, let's take a look at the good stuff;

As you may already know, I'm a sucker for ruffles and frills and layers etc and the red carpet had no shortage of them, with Emily Blunt looking gorgeous in this amazing soft pink Dolce & Gabbana gown. Jennifer Morrison (from "Ugly Betty") also looked amazing, although I've read mixed reviews of her Luis Antonio gown. Whatever, I think it's fabulous. Ruffles galore! "Mad Men's" Christina Hendricks channelled her inner Hollywood bombshell, wearing an amazing, peach-coloured, figure-hugging Christian Siriano number, seriously I love her; it's so refreshing to see an actress who actually looks like a real person. (albeit a ridiculously hot one...) Also going for a nude/peach colour was Drew Barrymore in a bejewelled Atelier Versace design - this is another one that's made both the best and worst dressed lists today. Maybe the big sparkly cluster things on the shoulder and hip might have put people off this one, but they probably just fear that which they don't understand, the fools. Drew is HOT. End of.

Flying the flag for simple but sexy black was Courteney Cox Arquette who wore a Victoria Beckham design. I know, I know, what kind of freak buys anything that Mantis Face has put her name to, but as much as I hate to say it, it's a good dress. Plus Courteney is a fittie - I love her elegant hair and makeup, plus, see the arm holding up her umbrella? That's David Arquette! Cute! Courteney's FRIEND Jennifer Aniston (get it? Friend?! Hahaha!) also wore black, but she went for an uber sexy Valentino dress, with a cool asymmetric neckline and cheeky thigh high split. Team Jennifer forever.

Also opting for black but going for all-out drama was "Glee's" Lea Michele in an Oscar de la Renta gown that I'd imagine you would never ever want to take off once you'd put it on (well I wouldn't; I'd live in that dress, people would call me "the girl in the Oscar de la Renta dress" and then years later, they'd call me "the girl in the Oscar de la Renta rags") This was my favourite of the night, but then I love "Glee", I've loved Lea since she was in "Spring Awakening" and I love de la Renta, so really, it's no contest.

Adding a bit of colour to the night was Cameron Diaz, wearing Alexander McQueen. Love the colour, love the shape (slightly padded shoulders - yes indeedy!), love the minimal accessories. Gold star for Cameron!
Marion Cotillard also went for a bold colour choice in a deep green Dior gown. I think green is one of the hardest colours to pull off, but Miss Cotillard wore it well - love the little cheeky flash of lace too (that's not an accident, I think it's part of the dress as that's exactly how it looked on the catwalks). I have a bit of a girl-crush on Marion Cotillard; she is so incredibly beautiful and adorable and lovely! Watch this New York Times interview with her if you don't believe me.

Last on my good list is Avatar's Zoe Saldana in Louis Vuitton. This is genius - such an unusual colour choice but I think it really works. Some people might think the skirt is a bit weird, but I like that 'raggedy' look (I'm not sure it's correct to describe a Vuitton gown as looking 'raggedy' but you know what I mean, don't you???). Plus Zoe's makeup looks so fresh and beautiful; she clearly understands the concept of less is more. I like how she's become a bit of a Sci-Fi starlet; first Star Trek, now Avatar. It's funny to think that once, many moons ago, she was the bitchy one in that awful Britney Spears movie, "Crossroads"...

Anyway my little pumpkins, that's all for now - come back tomorrow for more Golden Globes shenanigans when we take a look at those who got it a bit wrong, those who got it VERY wrong and those who shouldn't have bothered leaving the house...

"Did you see my party dress?"

So I logged onto style.com yesterday to find the Resort 2010 page literally bursting with new collections for me to ogle. Last week there was three shows listed. This week there is maybe twenty. This suggests that this week may be the official week for Resort 2010 collections and that those other three shows were just being cheeky little early birds. I have no idea if this is really the case; is there an official fashion week for the Resort shows? I could probably quite easily find out if I just Googled it, but, well, I'm not going to.

As I said, there are a lot of new shows to talk about. But sadly I just don't have the time to go into detail about them all (the New York Fashion Week post I wrote back in February very nearly killed me, so I vowed not to do anything like that again. I made a vow. That's serious) So I'm going to feature two today and then maybe, if you're all good little puppies, I'll post some more later in the week.

First up - Donna Karan, whose collection, entitled "Manhattan Tango", was full of floaty feminine pieces in black, white and neutrals, with the occasional juicy pinks and reds thrown in for a laugh. As you may know, I love me a designer who knows how to drape, and in this collection, Karan showed herself to be a woman after my own heart by doing complex things with fabric but still keeping the pieces wearable and elegant. For me, (as it quite often is) it was all about the dresses, the favourite being the black one, third picture down.

Anyone else think there's a bit of an oriental theme here? The round shouldered jacket above and the billowing tunics below remind me of kimonos...

LOVE that black dress!!!

Oscar de la Renta continued on from the super glamourous looks of his Fall collection but added a distinctly Parisian twist, with berets a plenty and sweet little black dresses. (is anyone starting to get the feeling that I'm obsessed with LBDs?!) He also went all out with embellishment, with dresses trimmed in an assortment of ruffles, lace, silks and sparkles. Delightful.

When I first saw the third dress in the picture above, I whimpered a little bit - SO PRETTY!!!

And of course no de la Renta collection would be complete without a few fancy schmancy gowns - Cecilia Mendez (the dark haired one) looks stunning.

This is all getting a bit too much, just went back to style.com and more collections have been added!!! I will return with another load of pictures very soon.

(all images from style.com, obviously)

This is going to be very long...

So I basically got a bit carried away when deciding on my favourite collections from NYFW and have ended up with a stupid amount of pictures. But hey, what's blogging for if not posting photographs of beautiful people wearing beautiful things?!

What I find so amazing about Fashion Week is that it never gets old or boring. I always expect that eventually, the designers are just going to run out of ideas and send their models down the runway naked, carrying signs that say "sorry, there is nothing left - we're done." Fortunately, this never happens; fashion is constantly evolving and designers continue, season after season, to be inspired by anything and everything. I imagine that the thought process of a designer goes something like this - "hmmm Fall RTW...what shall we do? Ummm...oooh! Look at that pigeon outside! Hmmm...I'm thinking pigeons, I'm thinking feathers, I'm thinking the splatter effect that bird poo has...yes yes! I've got it!" And thus a collection consisting of grey feathers, bat wing tops and paint splashed jeans is formed (if, next season I see this look on the catwalk, I am SO going to track down the designer and demand royalties...)

Anyway, from what I've read on other blogs which have reviewed NYFW, one of the most popular shows was Rodarte and understandably so. Apparently taking their inspiration from Frankenstein, the Mulleavy sisters presented a collection that made me think "urban warrior", with jackets, dresses and skirts seemingly covered in bits and pieces of...well...anything. I imagine that the Mulleavys are a bit like magpies building a nest, wanting to include as many pretty, shiny, soft and fluffy things as possible. The Frankenstein reference was very clear, with the chopped up, pieced together clothing and those killer leather boots, which looked all bind-y and constricting - ladies, you have my approval!

Although it's called Ready-to-Wear, a lot of the stuff you see on the catwalks is only really 'ready' to be worn by people like Roisin Murphy or Lady Gaga, and quite frankly, I'm neither of those people, so it was nice to see some shows that featured strong, yet simple pieces. ADAM, a designer I'd not really come across before, featured a collection of straight-forward outerwear and then some colourful, sparkly pieces. Hardly life-changing stuff but I could actually see real people wearing his designs, rather than just the filthy rich and quirky...

Miss Sixty is a label I've not paid attention to in a long time as I've always seen it as trying a bit too hard and coming off as trashy. I was, therefore, pleasantly surprised by this collection, which looked like it might have been inspired by the type of people you'd see coming out of a biker bar at 3 in the morning. With lashings of leather and acid washed denim, the models looked trashy yet fabulous - like Mimi from RENT.

How many photos of Sasha can you find in this post?

Badgley Mischka went for straight-up, smart glamour, but in a minimalist way. There was a lot of simple black pieces, with a few brighter colours thrown in for good measure. What I like about this label is the clever twists they put on an otherwise typical garment, for example, there were several LBDs where fabric had been draped or gathered to create something unusual. There was also something very "liquid" about the collection, with dresses made in the most fluid, silky fabrics imaginable. When I first looked at that blue dress, I thought 'mermaids'.

I think it's safe to say that Derek Lam is no animal lover. His collection featured fur, leather, suede and possibly snakeskin (though I can't tell, what do those gloves look like to you?) by the bucketful. Even so, I have to say, this was one of my favourites. Despite using an almost completely neutral pallet of camel, baige, grey and cream, the pieces were dramatic and sexy. I LOVE that dress on Gracie Carvalho!

When I first looked at Oscar de la Renta's collection, I wasn't overly impressed, not because it wasn't beautiful, but because it all seemed a bit samey. Then I got to the dresses and silently scolded myself for ever doubting him. Apparently all this talk of recession and the economy and all that boring stuff doesn't worry our Oscar; like Derek Lam, he made use of fur, but also went crazy for embellishment and fancy, fancy accessories. Silhouettes were mainly kept sleek, with cinched in waists and narrow skirts. (how stunning is that black, off the shoulder dress?!) He also provided us with a much needed injection of colour, with dresses in jewel-bright shades of red, cerise and yellow.

Another designer really embracing colour was Matthew Williamson, whose show featured prints aplenty and lots and lots of very bright shades of blue and turquoise (lovely). Obviously not a lover of wallflowers, Williamson was all about rich detail; dresses were made of the most incredible mosaic and tribal printed fabric, while accessories included zebra print shoes, gem stone bib necklaces and chunky fur stoles.

Another of my favourites was Anna Sui, who basically went mental. Her collection can only be described as "Gothic-Victoriana meets Woodstock meets 1920s flappers meets the countryside". In addition to all the black lace, high Victorian collars and brooches, Sui used bright paisley and floral prints in purples, blues and oranges, as well as loads of feathered headwear, patterned tights and a selection of leather biker boots and embroidered suede ones. AMAZING!

Competing with Sui for the award for most outrageous headwear, was Diane Von Furtsenberg, whose main concern is clearly that people wrap up warm this Fall. Describing the collection as "nomad", Von Furstenberg sent her models down the runway in an array of colours and prints. Layering was the key here, with massive cardigans, thick leggings, chunky socks under strappy heels and of course, hats.

My two absolute favourite shows were Zac Posen and Marchesa - I'll admit it, I'm a girlie girl at heart. Posen did Victoriana with 1940s structure and lots of shimmery, shiny fabric. As I mentioned in my last post, I adore the jewelled tights and, paired with the ribbon tie shoes, they remind me of a high fashion ballerina. Another fan of embellishment, Posen's designs sparkled with sequins galore and everything was kept super feminine with billowing sleeves and plenty of ruffles.

And finally, Marchesa. Ah, Marchesa. It was just...magical! Designer Georgina Chapman said she wanted to create a fantasy feel to the whole collection, and she definitely succeeded. With a selection of feathers, smokey tulle and ribbons, the dresses were fairytale without being too fairytale - the shapes were unusual to say the least and the colours were either very pale or very dark. The overall effect was dreamlike and ethereal and reminded me of the Childlike Empress from The Neverending Story.

So there you have it - my picks from New York. The incredible thing is that this is just a handful of the shows and if I had days to spare, I'd write about so many more! Unfortunately there is just no time because London Fashion Week is happening right now! RIGHT NOW!

Oh dear...

(all photographs from style.com)