Lui's: Elements of style

Column | What constitutes a 'good style'?

Rihanna at the iHeartRadio Music Awards

Have you ever wondered what you would wear on the red carpet if you were famous? I imagine it’s akin to weddings – where you already have a few dresses, make-up, and hairstyles safely tucked away in your imagination. I am unashamedly guilty of both accusations. And like the wedding day, on the red carpet all eyes are on you and it is your moment. This is where the ‘Dress to Impress’ dress code applies or else Joan Collins will verbally roast you for dinner.

It is now universally accepted that Lupita Nyong’o rained on everyone’s parade since the premiere of 12 Years A Slave in 2013, becoming an instant style favourite and the one to watch. So much so that she possessed enough grace, and charisma to steal my attention from Cate Blanchett, her majesty, the Queen of Red Carpet.

Cate Blanchett hasn’t had a ‘Worst Dressed’ moment. There just isn’t enough evidence. Yes she may have toned it down here and there (see the 2014 SAG Awards ensemble), but that’s not enough to taint her credibility, because well, her history is impeccable and makes up for that. Similar to a child who is always on his/her best behaviour and maybe just one day they step out of line – you wouldn’t give a severe punishment right? A ‘that isn’t like them’ will probably cross your mind, and a warning would suffice.

So when Rihanna turned up to the iHeartRadio Music Awards last week in a Givenchy Fall 2008 Couture lace gown, green lipstick and a ‘90’s hairdo, it sparked the typical ‘she has no style’ vs. ‘only Rihanna can pull this off’ debate that occurs whenever she changes outfits. Shocker. It wasn't that long ago either when she turned up to the MTV Movie Awards in safe for the bedroom flirtatious night gown and bodysuit. And she's been long known to constantly reinvent her image, with the word safe no longer in her vocabulary you either love it or hate it and you’d be hard pressed to sum it up in one word.

Is experimenting with your looks, like Rihanna a telltale sign of having ‘no style’ because you can’t be pigeon holed down to one aesthetic? And if like Cate Blanchett you have blunder-free style moments, does that define a ‘good style’? Or does style come with age? Or is it all a matter of perspective – but what shapes that perspective?

Perhaps like me, you may now be pondering on the conundrums of style, but I leave with you stylish moments of the past week: