Last night (April 25), the 93rd Academy Awards ceremony took place at Union Station in Los Angeles (instead of the usual Dolby Theater in Hollywood), still going strong despite a now year-long pandemic. Celebrities were dressed to impressed on the socially-distanced red carpet, from designers like Gucci and Valentino to Versace and Dundas, making the stars shine. The Oscars, streamed on ABC, honored films from 2020 and early 2021 and mark the culmination of a very interesting Awards Season. Let’s see some of our favorite looks from the night!
1. Regina King
Regina King came and absolutely slayed in this icy-blue fit and flare gown at this year’s awards. The shoulder detail along with the deep v-neck, embroidered all over with glitzy silver details, made for a complete show-stopper (not to mention the debut of her hair in a bob!). The dress was a custom Louis Vuitton gown by Nicholas Ghesquiere, and, quite honestly, it’s the dress of our dreams!
2. Halle Berry
Halle Berry (emphasis on the "berry") came to the Oscars with this absolutely whimsical purple dress with a shoulder-baring sweetheart neckline and almost flower-like pouf at the waist. The fabric shines in an array of sweet purple-magenta hues depending on the light – the perfect dress for a twirl to show off the stunning, lightweight Dolce Gabbana masterpiece.
3. Celeste
Celeste, nominated for Best Original Song for "Hear My Voice", wore this incredible Gucci silk-crepe dress, featuring red and black fringe beads on the top as well as a crystal snake head detail at the collar. This custom embroidered gown was accessorized with a anatomic heart-shaped clutch, also by Gucci, from their new collection Aria by Alessandro Michele. This look definitely had our hearts fluttering.
4. Colman Domingo
Anyone who can pull off a monochrome fuchsia suit is certainly doing something right – and this bold choice paid off so nicely for the Oscars red carpet. A custom Versace set, Colman Domingo, who starred as Cutler in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (which was nominated for five Oscars and took home two), took to his Instagram to talk about the details on the suit. Along with the matching color of the shirt, vest, jacket, and trousers, the details are stunning. 150 hours of embroidery work covered the jacket with liquid-effect sequins (4,500 Swarovski crystals!), and it looks absolutely incredible.
5. Riz Ahmed and Fatima Farheen Mirza
Individually and as a pair, Riz Ahmed and Fatima Farheen Mirza looked absolutely incredible on the red carpet. Mirza, author of NYT bestseller A Place for Us, wore a stunning mint-cape detail dress, a very chic moment from Valentino paired beautifully with red rose heels – a color combination we didn’t know we needed! Her husband, Riz Ahmed, who was nominated for Best Actor for his role in Sound of Metal, wore an all-black suit ensemble from Prada that beautifully complimented his wife. One of the most stunning couples of the Oscars, if I do say so myself.
6. H.E.R.
H.E.R. is an award show show-stopper every single time she steps on the red carpet, so it’s honestly just about waiting for the photos of her looks to come out after she makes her debut. This Oscars look was an absolute work of art; made by Dundas, the pantsuit with a cape, stunningly embellished blue detail throughout, and semi-sheer material, H.E.R. always looks absolutely beautiful.
7. Andra Day
We are letting the metallic trend continue if it keeps looking like Andra Day’s Oscars look! This incredible gold Vera Wang dress featured a strappy top, with a cutout on the abdomen, and an incredible, delicate chain-mail fabric that made Day shine – literally. Nominated for Best Actress for The United States vs. Billie Holliday, she topped off this show-stopping gown with Tiffany and Co. diamonds to complete the sparkle of this look.
It seems that the pandemic has had no impact on the incredible style of the award shows, including the longtime influence of the Oscars. In fact, it's almost as though designers are getting more creative with their custom creations (I mean, for all of us wearing sweatpants almost every day, we might as well go all out whenever we have the chance), and we are absolutely living for it.