I watched E!’s Fashion Police last night. For you! Well, the new cast, including Christian Sirano, is nicer and less obnoxious than last year’s version.
Anyway.
January Jones was one of their best-dressed nominees (but their final best dressed winner was Penelope Cruz). They adored Christina Hendricks. (I guess I’m alone in this: I didn’t think this was her best look. She’s like the most beautiful woman born in the last 60 years or so, but I don’t think a bunch of ruffles near her neck does anything for her at all.) They showed Alison Brie, which surprised me, as she’s not all that famous. They thought Alison’s dress was meh. Pretty, they said, but neither stunning nor youthful. (It was very similar to Laura Linney’s, about which they said very similar things, although Alison’s was more fitted.)
They focused some attention on Jon Hamm and Jennifer Westfeld. They love Jon (duh!) and they loved Jennifer’s dress, but they wished Jon’s hair was more slicked-back. I think they don’t consider how sick of that he must be: That’s his “work” hair.
The things I do for you.
24 Responses to “Mad Men on Fashion Police”
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I acknowledge, and am grateful for, your supreme sacrifice! Talk about taking one for the team! When it comes to fashion, I know what I like and what I don't like, but I'm no expert. What's worse, I don't even care.
My co-workers think I am strange, but I tell them I don't focus on clothes. I focus on linens. Very nice linens. Egyptian cotton and high thread counts mean more to me than shoes!
Jules, what about when you're, y'know, vertical?
Jan has seriously reworked her eyebrows. I noticed from the Globes, or maybe even from some recent photos.
January Jones finally learned how to smile. Her dress at the Globes was awkward and didn’t fit. She seemed to have a sour puss on all night. For the SAG awards it was like a different person.
That’s it Roberta…the eyebrows. Thank you! I had been looking at these pics since yesterday trying to figure out what made her look so different!
Yeah, you could really notice that she had the eyebrows re-worked/made-up in the close-ups at the GG show. Thank goodness they don’t look like caterpillars.
And DL is not alone on the ruffles thing. I’ve never been a huge fan of ruffles, and thought CH’s dress would have looked better without them, though they were at least not as frou-frou as some of the dresses worn to these events. I’m sure she is trying to not wear the same style to these different ceremonies, but maybe she should look at the sort of stuff Salma Hayek wears.
DL @ #2,
I’m wishing I was horizontal on my nice sheets.
Also, imho, verticality is overrated.
Well, I agree about the overrated, but if one must be vertical, great shoes help.
Karl, I don’t hate all ruffles. I think if you’re long-necked and small-busted, ruffles around the top can be feminine and add curves that aren’t there. Christina doesn’t need that.
But I HATE these random structured bows, like Amy Adams’s and Marisa Tomei’s. They are total WHAT LANDED THERE?
DL: I didn’t say I hated ruffles, just not a huge fan of them. I agree with your comment about body type, though still not a fan generally. And the bows are one of the things I was getting at with “frou-frou.”
I also ‘spose you’re right about shoes, though it’s generally less of an issue for men, insofar as there’s less of a style/comfort tradeoff.
I am so glad I'm not the only one who didn't care for Christina Hendrick's dress. I didn't care for January's either but I disagree with the critic's take on Alison Brie. I liked her dress the best of the MM women. She makes me think of a porcelin doll.
Sorry I didn't get to make it for the SAG thread. I was laying on my couch watching it while suffering with my allergies. ;( I'm much better now.
Jon Hamm is the unofficial spokesman for the MM cast. Since the topic is fashion and what was worn by the actors, I feel that Jon’s Tuxedo could have been better. It did not fit well- the legs and sleeves were too long and in closeups, you could see that he was wearing a pre tied, clip on bow tie. He is a star now and his image is that of a classic Hollywood leading man. I am surprised that his managment team has not helped him upgrade his appearance attire. A real tie and a fitting with a good tailor are minor expenses in the great scheme of things but would do wonders for his official appearance. I don’t mean to be critical, but this is something that I noticed almost immediately. The hair did look a bit unkempt, but it also presents a reasonable contrast to his MM character. As always he was well spoken and a good ambassador for the show.
January was my pick for Best Dressed at the GG’s, shame she didn’t win, it was a total winner’s dress. I remember seeing it on style.com and thought it was horrid but she pulled it off and made it her own.
Christina’s best look was at last year’s Emmy’s…she looked perfect.
I must admit I didn’t scrutinize JH’s tux, but the GQ profile suggested to me that it may be hard to get him into any sort of tux. So it may not be from lack of effort by his people (or JW). As for the hair, it was pretty well-behaved, given that it has become somewhat notorious offset.
Aren’t we lucky that this incredible show not only has talented actors – but they are all BEAUTIFUL? January always looks amazing -but I thought she looked the best at last years Emmy’s – she has some kind of white dress and her hair up in a headband (you can see them win the “best show” award on you tube and see her!). I was not a fan of Cristina’s ruffles either – but her worst day beats most people’s best day.
As to Jon Hamm – I love his natural hair and his rumpled suit – he is the best looking man on earth – impossible to look bad. I think he’s got a sort of college-frat-boy thing happening that makes him all the more perfect. He’s an actor – not a model – and he’s probably one of those guys who just showers and leaves the house and looks more gorgeous than every other guy on the red carpet. In other words … a real man … not some manicure-getting, fussy, girl-man… He can do no wrong in my book.
I also thought it was cute that Jon Hamm hugged Kiernan (sp?) – little Sally Draper – on stage. She looked so adorable and excited to be dressed up! Very sweet.
I just found this blog and I am ADDICTED to it.
Honestly, stepanie, I HATED that white dress with the ripped seaming and the weird Heidi Grows Up braided updo. She has really changed her style and I love love love her Golden Globes look and the SAGs was almost as good.
Christina usually looks fab. I loved her green dress for the Emmys. She was gorgeous in black at the GG. I just don't love these ruffles at the SAGs.
And hey, welcome to the Basket!
Agree with Deborah on JJ's improved look. She and Christina are so gorgeous to begin with, the weirder dresses and dos are a distraction. JH's tux and bow tie looked like the same one he wore to the GG supposedly custom built for him by Armani, unless I'm mistaken. I like the floppy look personally and wonder if it will play into the show when we hit the later 60's – DD being hip and cool inevitably loses the helmet hair?
With all due respect to the (beloved) cast of Mad Men, I really, really feel it's time for ALL the men and women to take this to the next level and get a stylist (or better stylists), and that includes makeup and hair.
As far as the big leagues, it doesn't get bigger than this, and every single other professional actor in the room (okay, not Mickey Rourke) at any of the awards show has a top stylist and, with a few exceptions, knock it out of the park. If they really want to coordinate with each other for the red carpet, then get the SAME stylist.
January's gown at the SAG awards was a beautiful gown, but not necessarily the ideal for her. The neck detail was gorgeous, but hit her too low on the chest, and was oversized for her frame. It overwhelmed her delicate coloring and bone-structure, and the hair and jewelry were wrong for the dress. I saw that medallion thingy coming at me way before I saw January and in retrospect it's all I remember.
And that blue Versace Golden Globe gown at the Golden Globes?? It was terrible!! There's no excuse for an ill-fitting gown at that level, and that one could have been smashing on her. Her hair was glamorous and "old-Hollywood," but seemed to fall as the evening wore on, and her jewelry just didn't come across.
As to Christina's SAG gown, being already tall and busty, she definitely does not need all those ruffles to add volume above the chest. I wasn't crazy about the chiffon, although the color was great on her.
I would like to have seen Christina wear something sleek, yet bright, say, in a beautiful cerise color, like the structured red Reem Akra gown Eva Longoria wore to the Golden Globes, with some large chandelier diamond earrings……for instance.
Christina tends to go for too much detail, and there is already plenty to capture the eye where she is concerned. I’d love to see her in that strapless cerise dress, the chandelier earrings, a heavy, simple diamond cuff bracelet, with her hair in a tall, sleek, regal up-do. No necklace.
Elisabeth is clearly fond of the tea-length ballerina skirt, but the two I've seen this awards season just didn't bring out her best qualities and features. She wears a lot of silver and white, it seems, then wears too little makeup and too few accessories to offset that so it tends to wash her out. And I am ready to see her get her hair "did" for a change, also.
Allison's gown was very pretty, whether or not I'm a fan of bubble-gum coral. She usually looks pretty fabulous, so gets a thumbs-up in general so far, even if it wasn’t my favorite gown of the evening.
Okay, and the last thing I'll say about this is that Jennifer Westfeldt looked completely and totally AMAZING. Her gown was flawless (what a body!), her makeup was flawless, her jewelry was flawless and her hair was flawless. Of everyone in that party, including Jon, I would give her the Best Dressed Award.
Whereas I can see all the reasoning behind the various ladies' choices in dress, hair, makeup and jewelry, in the end they mostly don't seem to come together, at least in my opinion, which is where a professional could make a big difference.
In a word, MM ladies and gents – we love you, but please get a stylist!
I don't see Don becoming hip and cool in the late 60s and adjusting his style to compensate.
My Dad and Don are the same age, give or take a couple of years, and my Dad worked in sales. He was always impeccably dressed, but he never let his hair down, so to speak. He did grow a porn stache in the 70s, but thank God that didn't last long.
Sorry, I really like JJ, but I did not like this dress – it just seemed very costume-y to me. Kind of like a black version of the Isis dress from that 70s kids superhero show. But I always give credit for trying something different, even if it isn't great.
Given some of JJ's past choices, I think she's getting graded on a curve, not a scale.
To be fair, I like that JJ tried something different, I just didn't like the execution as a whole. Her hair, while a very attractive longer casual style, fought with the neck detail, and hid her earrings. The bodice flattened her chest and seemed to weigh her down in front, and the skirt was too voluminous (also a perplexing trend for the evening!).
It just didn't highlight her best qualities. Even just fitting the neckline better, a little higher, and sweeping the hair back or up would have made a big difference. The dress was wearing January, as opposed to the other way around, and this is not the first time I've felt that way about the women's choices.
I will also concede that I went back and checked out Jennifer's ensemble again, and while it was very "safe" and a tiny bit “matchy-matchy†as far as the gown and jewel colors, it was also clear she addressed all the relevant issues realistically, with or without a stylist. She looked finished and coordinated and appropriate, and she and Jon looked great together. It was a very harmonious presentation.
And, speaking trivially, when I mentioned the color "cerise" for Christina, I was actually envisioning a bright strawberry pink, believe it or not. No idea what you call that.
Even more trivially, the curly "dos" Christina favors are cute, but once again, too much detail detracts from the work of art that is her face. You see her hair before you see Christina.
It's a matter of "gilding the lily," as they say. Less really is more, and with a face and body like Christina's, it's a crime not to showcase them properly. She could easily have been the most sensational woman in that room.
This isn't meant to be a harsh rant, by any means, but by not addressing the contemporary standard of their industry peers, they are doing Mad Men, and their own careers, a disservice. Given the obsessive attention to fashion detail on the show, it seems a departure for it to stop there.
Mad Men is the best show on the air right now. A sharp presentation would be in line with that (think Reservoir Dogs, as one example). Instead of competing with their contemporaries for "Best Dressed," they should be competing with each other!
"If they really want to coordinate with each other for the red carpet, then get the SAME stylist."
I can't think of anything worse than them all using the same stylist. Just because they work on the same show doesn't mean that they should co-ordinate outfits. No other tv show casts do. Anyway, they look great together already; just look at the top of the site.
I loved Christina's GG look and liked her SAG one. And it would be nice to see Elisabeth glammed up for once, I agree. As for January, I couldn't disagree with you more. She's one the few actresses around who has her own sense of style and isn't afraid of it. She's one of the few I look forward to seeing on the red carpet each time. I'm glad that she regularly makes the best dressed and best hair and make up lists now.
I loved loved her bombshell look at the globes. Her glam hair and makeup and the color and shape of her gown. And then she went the absolute opposite at the SAGS with natural hair and more laid back dress. And she looked amazing at the PGA awards, too. So hot. She looks different every time. A breathe of fresh air. Love her.