2010: Nicole Kidman in Oscar de la Renta
I NEVER would have guessed that designer. The necklace might be one drop too long with it, but who cares. This is so funky. Also, oh, her HAIR. COME BACK, RED NICOLE
2010: Diane Kruger in Jason Wu
This is absolutely stunning, and also to ME clearly an homage to the Michelle Williams mustard Vera Wang.
Anna Kendrick in Alberta Ferretti
This was the year she got nominated for Up In The Air, and everyone was like, "Is it a SURPRISE that she's the first person from Twilight to get an Oscar nom, or actually NOT a surprise?" I vote not, and I say that as someone who's a fan of some of Kristen Stewart's later work.
2011: Hailee Steinfeld in Prada
This is wonderful. It was her first year on the scene AND she was a nominee, and to have the guts to deploy that on a major red carpet is a real credit to her self-assurance.
2011: Jennifer Lawrence in Oscar de la Renta
AND 2011 was the year Jennifer Lawrence burst on the scene with Winter's Bone. Crazy to think these two, but especially Jennifer, are actually still relatively new to the game. That's only seven years. Anyway, I still love this bold color, but the shoes are still a thud. Overall, though, the same principle as with Hailee applies: It's gutsy and I love that.
2011: Lea Michele in OdlR
That's ALSO Oscar, and wow, is that gentleman missed.
2011: Mila Kunis in Alexander McQueen
That this was a pattern felt SO revolutionary at the time.
2011: Mindy Kaling in Tadashi Shoji
Grecian loveliness.
2011: Claire Danes in Louis Vuitton
I miss this iteration of Vuitton.
2012: Melissa McCarthy in Badgley Mischka
This was one of her bests.
2012: Emily Blunt in Oscar de la Renta
Wow, another OdlR. You definitely can't accuse us of having bias, because I had to look all these credits up. It's such a standout color and she looks amazing.
2012: Viola Davis in Marchesa
Okay, well. This was bound to happen. We can't pretend Marchesa didn't exist. However complicated your feelings about Georgina Chapman may or may not be, let's not take away from Viola how FANTASTIC she looked on this night. (She won Best Actress for The Help, which I THINK means this is the year she lost to Meryl "Iron Lady" Streep unexpectedly at the Oscars and even Meryl seemed kind of like, "What?!?")
2012: Shailene Woodley in L'Wren Scott
This was somewhat divisive at the time, but I think it stands the test of time really well. She's young, and it's so lively. L'Wren Scott is another talent that has been missed.
2012: Allison Janney
I sadly don't have a credit on this, but it's a great color AND it coordinates with the turquoise earrings which themselves match the statuette. Well done, milady.
2012: Sofia Vergara in Marchesa
This is also Marchesa, and it's one of Sofia's slinky best.
2012: Rose Byrne in Elie Saab
This made a HUGE splash because a jumpsuit at the time was so unexpected. (I wish this were a better photo, but it's so lively that I kept it.) OBVIOUSLY, we hated it, because we're Those People. But we've also come around on it in the intervening years. It was a very GOOD jumpsuit -- we saw so many, many awful ones -- and we had to give it to her for the moxie.
2013: Alexis Bledel in Rena Lange
This was the year we all learned Alexis Bledel and Vincent Kartheiser were secret-dating. Then they got secret-married and secret-birthed a secret-child. I'm now concerned they're secret-split, because although he is a wee reclusive-seeming, they did hit the big red carpets together occasionally and thus I was very sad he didn't accompany her when she was up for (and won!) her first Emmy last fall. It was even at the technical Emmys! Much smaller, AND he could've made up for it by going with her to the main ceremony the next weekend! IS EVERYTHING OKAY. (Hopefully they just couldn't get a babysitter.)
2013: Claire Danes in Givenchy
Rare is the day that I love a Givenchy, but this one is really striking.
2013: Jane Krakowski in Kaufmanfranco
Perhaps a slightly redder lip? But the dress is so pretty on her, and an unusual color.
2013: Kate Flannery
This was the ceremony at which we were all like, " YOU GUYS. Meredith from The Office IS A TOTAL FOX."
2013: Marion Cotillard in Dior
I feel like this was JUST before we all started to wonder what they were piping in through the a/c at Dior. It's neat.
2013: Nina Dobrev in Elie Saab
This was right in the middle of her ascent as a style star, and it's so flawlessly fit on her. It was a Take Me Seriously; I'm A Good Actress, So Don't Be Snobs About The CW kind of look.
2013: Sarah Hyland in Dolce & Gabbana
Many of you weren't not for the neck frill on this, but I remember it being a real style highlight for her -- as if she'd just started working with someone new, perhaps? Anyway, it's a great color, and so grown-up.
2014: Rita Wilson
Dazzling.
Rita Moreno with Morgan Freeman
AND THERE'S THE JACKET. Someone in the comments on this entry from the Globes said she wears it a lot, and they were NOT JOKING. I love this.
2014: Amy Adams in Antonio Berardi
I'm getting better at this, SLIGHTLY, because I remembered that credit. She also had hired someone new and this was a very different silhouette for her; it's amazing.
2014: Betsy Brandy in Alice + Olivia
An unsual and cool dress, to be sure, but also a photo that makes me laugh.
2014: Jennifer Garner in MaxMara
Simple and elegant. (This was a very good year for her, other than the whole thing where Ben Affleck told everyone while accepting an award that their marriage was work.)
2014: Lupita in Gucci
She won best-dressed amongst Fug Nationals, I believe.
2014: Malin Akerman In Naeem Khan
Lots of people hated this, but I think it's unusual and funky. It's also making me realize we haven't seen nearly as much Naeem Kham on the red carpets lately, which troubles me. Let's get that going again.
2015: Julianne Moore in Givenchy
My favorite color on her.
2015: Camila Alves (in Donna Karan) and husband
That's a spectacular rich purple, and a SUPER heinous beard.
2015: Tatiana Maslany (in OdlR) and Tom "Tony Gillingham" Cullen
STRIPES. I've decided she's been a Fug National all along.
2015: Lupita in Elie Saab
Just a freaking delight.
2015: Rashida Jones in Emanuel Ungaro
This is a personal best, I think.
2016: Helen Mirren in Jenny Packham
A goddess then and now. (Of course, "then" was only two years ago, but whatever.)
2016: Phyllis Logan
Mrs. Hughes, I miss you.
2016: Kiernan Shipka in Erdem
An Erdem I like and would also accept as a bedspread.
2016: Emma Myles in Parker New York
I quit watching Orange Is The New Black, and I miss seeing her on it; she was SO good. This dress is a real find.
2016: Kate Winslet in Armani
This is very standard Winslet fare, but it's also near the top of that scale. She is very GOOD at being Kate Winslet, it's true.
2016: Naomi Watts in Burberry
She had a really good run around this time. I LOVE this gown.
2016: Queen Latifah
All hail.
2017: Nicole Kidman in Gucci
This was, again, so divisive. I'm coming down on the positive side because a) hindsight is helpful, and so much worse Gucci has been churned out since; b) the sequins are really gorgeous; c) the macaws make me laugh, and d) look at the FACE she is serving.
2017: Elizabeth Rodriguez
CAPELET ALERT.
2017: Michelle Williams in Louis Vuitton
A big NO on the leash; a big YES on the stripes.
2017: Michelle Dockery in Elie Saab
This is glorious and might have been best-dressed last year...
2017: Yara Shahidi in Naeem Kham
... except for THIS amazing confection. Naeem, seriously, where HAVE you been? We need a sequel.
