It doesn’t involve Ryan Gosling, sorry.
Words by Penny Goldstone
La La Land may be getting loads of hype for its songs, dance routines, and the insane chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, but the real winner in our eyes is the fashion.
Don’t agree? Costume designer Mary Zophres has even been nominated for the Best Costume Oscar, so there.
With that in mind, we picked out some very important style rules we learned from Emma Stone’s character Mia…
1. Don’t be afraid of colour
As an ode to Technicolor and the Golden Age of Hollywood, Mia and her friends wear predominantly primary colours - think bold yellow, blue, red and green. As the girls sing on their way to the party, wearing a bold dress could mean ‘someone in the crowd could take you where you wanna go’. So, yeah, don’t be afraid to stand out.
2. The high street is king
Apart from that Jason Wu navy dress Emma Stone wore at the end of the movie, her wardrobe was exclusively high street, as costume designer Mary Zophres didn’t think it would make sense for a struggling actress to be able to afford designer. The A-line dresses favoured by Mia are proof that being stylish doesn’t have to break the budget.
3. Mix the old with the new
Rather than going full-on vintage, Mia mixes old pieces with new ones to keep the look current. Think a canary yellow dress with brogues, and a coral halter neck 50s dress with minimalist heels.
4. Suits are sometimes better than dresses
One particular scene sees Emma ditch her flirty dresses for a badass pinstripe suit and silk shirt and she owns it, channeling Ingrid Bergman with a slick of red lipstick and a chignon.
5. Always pack flats. And a spare white shirt.
If you’re wearing a white shirt, you’re probably going to spill something on it, Sod’s Law we tell you. Mia learns the hard way when someone spills their coffee down her shirt just before an audition. So pack a spare one just in case. Mia also gets stranded and has to walk for blocks in heels to get home at the end of a party. Save yourself the pain and pop some flats in your handbag.