vintage eye candy

Ok so I'll be honest. 90% of the reason I wanted to start this blog was so I could profess my love for this dress. This dress.... where do I even begin???? Worn by Penelope Cruz to this years Oscars, this dress is basically the only thing memorable that happened all evening. Personally, I kept watching because I was A. sick as hell B. wanting to see amazing red carpet fashion and C. somewhat believed that the entire show would, at some point, become funnier/more entertaining. Well, it didn't. It was lame but this dress made my night- made my entire week even. So first of all, the dress is vintage Pierre Balmain, it is 60 years old and the actress admitted to having bought the dress 8 years ago for a "special occasion" but never wore it until that night. (On a side note, if you ever needed a justification for buying some amazing, extravagant vintage piece and felt like you "didn't know where you would wear it", Ms. Cruz just gave you a lifetime of justification. Of course we don't all have her wardrobe budget, but we all can relate to seeing that one piece that we know we can't live without. I think we have to embrace those sartorial moments in our lives and know that if the dress, hat, shoe is THIS amazing, it simply must be ours. Ladies please feel free to reference this post to your boyfriends/husbands who might be wondering why you need that certain vintage gem..... Because you just do. the end) Back to the dress, it is detailed with tulle and lace and actually has been criticized for looking too bridal. It is true, the strapless, princess dress does have a somewhat matrimonial flair, but what people are forgetting is that this dress is vintage!! That nipped-in waist, that amazing attention to detail and even the use of tulle and lace is representative of 1950s couture!! What we now associate with wedding day grandeur, was once just the style of the day....(see image below- they are almost identical!) Despite varying opinions, I think Penelope choose the most perfect dress to win an Oscar in. It is everything that vintage should be- it is unique, beautiful, personal- she kept it in her closet for 8 years!- and CLASSIC. And I'd sit through another boring Oscars just to see it again. Well, maybe with vodka.
By Rachel.