Though the year started with the pandemic still ravaging the world, effective mass vaccinations have somewhat subdued the onslaught of Covid, and things are slowly but surely moving towards normalcy. This has lead to Hollywood and its cast of powerful, gorgeous women making their long-anticipated returns to the red carpet.
Join us as we take a look at the 10 breathtaking looks (in no particular order) that female celebrities put on this year!
Bella Hadid
One half of the Hadid Power Sisters (yes, we coined that term, thank us later), Bella Hadid took the news cycles by storm this year. Following the escalation of the Israel-Palestine conflict, Bella took to the streets with protesters to voice her opinion on the ongoing conflict, showing her support for Palestine, and subsequently winning the hearts of millions worldwide (including ours).
But that’s not the reason she makes this list. The reason she makes this list is because of her jaw-dropping, mind-blowing, and straight-up revolutionary outfit at the Cannes Film Festival. She was donning a black dress, which would already be enough to get her on this list because she’s Bella Hadid and black dresses are awesome, but that wasn’t the star of the show.No, that title goes to the golden, lungs shaped necklace she was wearing. Within moments of walking onto the red carpet, Bella Hadid had effectively broken the internet. And honestly, I do not blame the involved parties, because all you need to do is take one, solitary look at her, and you’ll get it. Absolutely stunning.
Zendaya
Everyone’s favorite iteration of MJ in the history of Spider-Man (that is an objective fact, not an opinion, go argue with yourself), Zendaya is the answer to the question “What would happen if God sat down to form the perfect human being?”. I mean for god’s sake, the girl can act, sing, dance, and is effortlessly funny and charismatic. “Is there anything she can’t do?”, we hear you ask. Fly. She can’t fly. But that is completely unrelated.
She makes this list for her outfit at the BET Awards, where she flaunts a gorgeous purple and yellow dress, paying homage to Beyonce, and murders it. We can only dream of looking like that.
Anya Taylor Joy
The undisputed Queen of chess worldwide, Anya Taylor Joy not only knows how to kick ass at chess and be a very good actor at the same time (how?), the Florida-born actress can also rock the hell out of a dress. Posted to her Instagram account, The Queen’s Gambit star was wearing a Dior gown that absolutely took our collective breaths away. It shone like a million diamonds, yet no diamond shone brighter than Anya herself. She looked mesmerizing, so much so that she stood out at a Dior event. Think about that for a second. It’s no wonder she makes the list.
Shay Mitchell
Next up on the list, we have Shay Mitchell making an otherwise ordinary outfit look way better than any right it has. Now, are we being disingenuous to the piece she’s wearing? A little bit, but you can see why; 9/10 women could not pull off this look even if they wore this same outfit.
It is the power Shay Mitchell holds that makes this outfit look as good as it does, making a not so flashy piece look like an immaculate masterpiece.
Precious Lee
Anyone familiar with Precious Lee’s work is aware that she is hellbent on breaking stereotypes regarding race, gender, and size, and has been shattering them ever since she started modeling.
Lee is known for wearing extremely extravagant and unorthodox dresses from time to time, which is a reputation she lived up to in her shoot for Vogue Arabia, where she is draped in this lavish red dress with a huge matching hat on her head. The look has literally left us at a loss for words, so we’re just adding the photo so you can get why.
Gigi Hadid
The other part of the Hadid Power Sisters, Gigi is just as stunning as her sister, if not more. They are the most powerful set of sisters in the world (eat your heart out Powerpuff Girls), and also two of the most gorgeous women on the face of the planet. So what did Gigi wear that made this list? Well, it could’ve been anything really, since we’re Gigi stans and this is our list, but we’ve decided to go for this picture she uploaded to her Instagram, where she’s wearing this tantalizing, ravishing piece by Versace. Yet, as is the case with the Hadid sisters, no one could wear this piece like Gigi; she is one of one.
Dua Lipa
The Empress of the new wave of modern synth-pop that has taken the music industry by storm (yes, The Weeknd is really good at it, but Dua did it first), Dua Lipa also has the quality of being breathtakingly, dazzlingly gorgeous.
She looks like a gem in anything she wears, that’s just how amazing she is, but we put her on here for her getup in the video of Pop Smoke’s demeanor (RIP Pop). Simply put, when she looks into the camera wearing that old-fashioned corset (which is actually a tribute to Marie Antoinette), it makes our hearts skip not just one, but multiple beats and we need to look away, lest we be subjects of cardiac arrest. It is our favorite entry on the list.
Anne Hathaway
The star of the epic Les Miserables, Anne Hathaway is one of the most versatile and gifted actresses in the world. There is literally nothing she can’t do, in terms of fulfilling the requirements of a character and delivering an awe-inspiring performance. Comedy, romance, drama, tragedy, all of it is light work for Anne.
Even in the midst of a pandemic, Anne Hathaway comes up with ways to look stunning. For the release of her latest film, she took the dresses that she would’ve normally worn for a movie premiere and just had a photoshoot in her backyard. You see what we mean when we say she’s incredible?
She wore a couple of pieces, but our favorite, by far, was the Versace dress. Such a gorgeous dress worn by such an iconic woman was always going to end up on this list.
Taylor Swift
Perhaps the most influential pop artist of her generation, Taylor Swift is almost universally beloved (maybe not by Kanye fans, but we digress). With countless timeless classics and iconic album releases over the year, it is no surprise that Taylor is one of the most iconic artists ever. This year at the Grammy’s, Taylor was at it again, winning yet another grammy. And she did it while wearing a gorgeous dress, which looks less like clothes and more like flowers put together with the help of a cloth, but in the most unique and aesthetically pleasing manner possible. And of course, since it’s Taylor, she looked beautiful.
Beyonce
The Queen of Queens. Talking about impressive women and not including the one that empowered an entire generation would be inexcusable. We could literally add Beyonce in her pajamas, she is so iconic. But for this article, we’ll just take her most recent work. The cover for the upcoming September issue of Bazaar. She’s wearing jewelry instead of a top and jeans. If that isn’t a stunning look, you must be blind.
Conclusion
Fashion. It is no longer an abstract sense of belonging to a certain group of people, as many critics of the concept of fashion have argued in the past (they all wear knock off Adidas Superstars anyways); fashion has taken a life of its own in today’s society, and rightfully so. It is an expression and a form of art that allows people to embody their creativity and uniqueness in products they don on a daily basis.
As Bill Cunningham so expertly deducted: “Fashion is the armor to survive the reality of everyday life”, and this quote has never been more relevant than in today’s world. Fashion has evolved beyond just being an exclusive commodity for the elite of Hollywood. Now, even regular people like us can access the best products from the best designer companies.
That being said, however, it’s no shock that models, actresses, singers, and people who get paid to look and be stunning can pull these looks off way better than any of us can. After all, the world’s premier designers tailor-make these stunning dresses and suits for these celebrities, after which the world’s most skilled makeup artists come in to make sure that they put the flawless in every fangirl’s: “Oh my God did you see her on the red carpet? She looked flawless!”.
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