Each spring the world’s most glamorous people descend on the South of France. From Nicole Kidman to Elle Fanning, everyone brings their fashion A-game. Beguiling the world with their beautiful dresses, the attendees of the Cannes red carpet redefined the rules of Hollywood glamour one couture dress at a time.
Rihanna in Dior Haute Couture
Only Badgalriri could turn up to La Croisette without an invitation and upstage everyone. She served up wedding vibes in a creamy silk taffeta coat, strapless dress and *Matrix-*esque shades.
Nicole Kidman in Calvin Klein by Appointment
It took 150 hours for Raf Simons’ team to create Nicole Kidman’s gown for the premiere of The Killing of a Sacred Deer. Let that soak in for a minute. That’s over six days of non-stop cutting, sewing and tailoring. It was made from circa. 180 yards of silk tulle, which is bigger than the size of most football pitches. It’s not just substantial in size but is a work of engineering as it features 70 hand-cut layers of silk tulle and 15 pads to bulk it out and create the volume of a classic couture silhouette.
Marion Cotillard in Halpern
In just a year Micahel Halpern has gone from Central Saint Martins graduate to toast of London Fashion Week, and now Couturier to a Hollywood favourite. Halpern dressed Marion Cotillard in a glittering, sequin creation from his debut autumn winter ’17 collection. He told Vogue, ‘Marion is such a phenomenal actress, so when the opportunity arose to dress her, it was just a dream’.
Elle Fanning in Vivienne Westwood
Hollywood’s favourite ingenue wore a Vivienne Westwood gown that spoke to her inner ‘unicorn flower child’. It features a 17th Century corset, bustle and exaggerated train that was hand-painted with whimsical charms, like bees, lover’s knots and a unicorn. Westwood’s team have said it took ten people and more than 300 hours to finish the frock.
Emily Ratajkowski in Brock Collection
Think South of France, and it’s hard to divorce the mental image of sun, sea and sandy beaches from that of Brigitte Bardot frolicking in the 1950s. Obviously, Emily Ratajkowski feels the same as she mirrored the blonde bombshell’s ’56 aesthetic in a Brock Collection black corseted summer dress and espadrille sandals.
Bella Hadid in Alexandre Vauthier
Last year Bella Hadid landed herself in the Cannes history book with a daringly high slit red silk dress from Alexandre Vauthier. This year she paid homage to herself by wearing a similar cream coloured gown with a mile-high split.
Aymeline Valade in Pallas
You can rely on Myeline Valade to bring the androgynous option to the table. In past years the French model and actress has worn a tuxedo on the red carpet, but this year she picked a teal suit from Parisian tailors Pallas. Founded in the 1960s, Pallas is known for creating handcrafted ‘petite couture’ tailoring.
Kristen Stewart in Chanel
Stewart told* The Hollywood Reporter* that she was 'like super stoked' about what she was wearing and that she picked it out ‘two weeks ago’. And, fair play, we would be too if we had the chance to wear a suspender dress and peach bandeau from Chanel’s Cruise collection.
Winnie Harlow in Zuhair Murad
Winnie Harlow was glamour on a plate in a royal blue Zuhair Murad dress. From a quickest of glances, it’s easy to trace the dresses inspiration, which was Dynasty. The oversized draping, duchesse satin and bold 80s colouring makes it a hero piece of the designer’s spring 17 Couture collection.
Kendall Jenner in Alexandre Vauthier
Showing off her Cali spirit, Kendall Jenner wore cut-offs on the red carpet. Sacré bleu! For the Fashion for Relief event, she wore a look from Alexandre Vauthier’s spring 17 court collection. Yes, it does include jean shorts but, they have a Swarovski crystal waistband, and it’s teamed with an exaggerated one-sleeve bustier with a flowing train.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.