Dress of the Week

Imagine my disappointment when I realised I had missed a whole day's worth of fashion in my final Cannes wrap-up and that it included French actress Isabelle Huppert in this Chanel couture dress.

This was from the same collection (S/S 09) as the dress Diane Kruger wore to the AMFAR benefit and I've got to say that so far Karl's last effort has translated even better into the "real world" than I thought it would.

Isabelle was the head of the jury at Cannes this year and really pulled out all the stops in terms of style. Are French women seriously born chic? I love that they don't overdo the hair and make-up and let the artistry of their clothing shine through.

Being naturally beautiful like Isabelle probably helps too.

The best of the rest of Cannes

Zhang Ziyi was as pretty as a picture in this dusty pink one-shouldered dress.

This Christian Dior dress looks like lollies i.e. good enough to eat. The embellished bodice is gorgeous. This is Chinese actress 'Vicky' Zhao Wei .

Beautiful Taiwanese actress Qi Shu was all over the red-carpet at Cannes generally looking gorgeous, but this is my favourite of all her outfits. Another dress that works the lolly look, I could eat this one up too. The big bow on the side just adds to the overdose of pretty. It looks like Qi is just about to break in to Hollywood (according to IMDB she is 33, who would have thunk it!) so we should be seeing a whole lot more of her.

Rachel Weisz was voted Best Dressed of the Week over at RedCarpet-Fashion Awards as a result of this chic and sexy Valentino number that has fashion commentators the world over claiming that green is the new black. Rachel's appearance at the Met Ball proved that despite her beauty she can look bad (hard to believe, I know), but she is most definitely back on form in this number. The 2009 Valentino Haute Couture collection is thus far translating really well off the runway.

Michelle Yeoh was another star to opt for green and her Versace dress screams Hollywood glamour (or South of France glamour, as the case may be).

My Marion Cotillard looked as pretty as ever at the AMFAR Ball in Dior (of course). Love the cute clutch too and her bob suits her so well. I deliberately included a photo of her with her boyfriend Giulliame as they make such a cute couple.

Love Kerry Washington in this black and white vintage inspired dress. Along with her hairstyle and clutch, this look is very early 60's evening-wear.

Dita von Teese seems to be on virtually ever red-carpet these days (why was she at Cannes anyone?). Unlike Paris Hilton, who also shows up to the opening of an envelope, Dita actually has style and clearly either a lot of money or big fans amongst the world's top fashion designers. Dita is one of the only people I know who can get away with wearing a completely see-through Jean Paul Gaultier dress on the red-carpet and manage to still look chic. I was also very pleased to see her wearing a Dior Haute Couture dress from the S/S 2009 collection. I LOVE the stiffened rippled skirts from this collection and I'm so happy to see somewhere wearing one in the "real world".

The strapless blue dress with the bows on the pockets is cute too.

And finally my favourite Diane capped off an awesome week by wearing a white Chanel dress to the AMFAR Ball. This dress is distinctly inspired by the classic Chanel suit and up close the sequin bodice on this dress is divine.

Also included is a lovely vintage Chanel that Diane wore to a photo-call.

Will I go see the new Quention Tarantino flick she is in? Probably not. If I could even let myself get past the atrocious grammar contained in the title (according to Christian Lander - see previous post - white people love grammar), I honestly believe Quentin's best work is well and truly behind him. For Diane's sake, I hope I'm wrong.

The best of Cannes so far

After Natalie Portman and Cate B wowed me with their red-carpet outfits at Cannes last year, I had been enthusiastic to see the ensembles that 2009 would produce. Thankfully I haven't been disappointed.

The great thing about Cannes is that it isn't just Hollywood actresses in attendance but stylish (and stylishly rich) ladies from all over Asia, Europe and beyond (including Australia ... but more on that later). These actresses - like Isabelle Huppert and Asia Argento, above - are more willing to take risks with their dress and the result is a stimulating parade of the best of current haute couture.

I loved this Armani Prive dress when I saw it on the runway and I was so hoping I'd see someone wearing it this year. The print is wild and I love a bell shape and - how useful - it has pockets too! The only thing is I think this dress is a little too long for Asia and it might have suited a more dramatic hairstyle. Thoughts?

Isabelle Huppert is wearing Armani too and looks ravishing. Featuring two of my current fancies - lace and scalloping - what is there not to love about this frock?

You know how there are some celebrities who, even though you've never met them and barely know anything about them, just grate on you? Well Eva Longoria is one of those for me. Could it be because she is friends with Posh and Katie Holmes and her style is usually yawnworthy? Quite possibly. But despite my completely unfounded dislike, I'm including Eva this time around because her Atelier Versace gown is that amazing. I'd love to see this one up close and touch it. And that silvery blue is such a flattering colour.

Elizabeth Banks has been wowing the crowds and funnily I don't really remember her red-carpet appearances ever making an impression on me previously. The girl must have hired a new stylist or something or perhaps she's just about to hit the big-time. The black Andrew Gn is va va voom sexy and and the red Armani Prive (Armani has been super popular thus far) is outstanding.

Robin Wright Penn is stunning in Elie Saab. This dress is from 2007 and some sites are referring to it as "vintage" which grates on me no-end. Since when is a two-year old dress vintage? I abide by the old adage that anything older than 25 years (which is up to the early 80's) is "vintage" and anything post that is "second-hand". However, as far as I'm concerned, a dress from 2007 is just something I've still got in my closet that I bought a litle while ago. I'm still wearing some pieces I bought eight or nine years ago and I certainly wouldn't consider them vintage.

Grumble grumble and groan.

Anyway enough of my ranting and lets get back to the beautiful frocks. Model/actress Devon Aoki hasn't put a foot wrong so far. The blue dress is Alberta Ferretti and the yellow is Cavalli and they are both superbly elegant. Love the draping on the Ferretti.

And lastly I couldn't not mention Aussie actress Abbie Cornish who is - snaps to her - wearing Aussie designer Toni Maticevski. I love the colour on this dress and although there is a bit too much going on for my liking - hard to believe, coming from me - she does look beautiful. It is a bit of a pity she got slightly upstaged at her own premiere by Eva's arresting Versace vision.

I had to include her with her co-star Ben Whishaw as I thought he was fab as Sebastian in the latest adaptation of Brideshead Revisited. I was a big fan of the book and the original series with Anthony Andrews and went to watch the new flick with some hesitation, but I absolutely loved it, and was particularly blown away by Ben and Emma Thompson.

Ben and Abbie's new film is called Bright Star and is about John Keats' romance with a woman called Fanny (Cornish) prior to his early death and is directed by Jane Campion. The planets are all aligning there for me, so I can't wait to see it.