Awards season is upon us, which can only mean one thing – the chance for us to drool over designer gowns for a month. Whilst fashion editors’ attempts to let guys in on the red carpet action is touching, it’s wholly unnecessary (a suit’s a suit and the only actors that get the look wrong are invariably those that turn up sans suit or one in a ker-azy colour) – it’s all about pretty dresses, pretty hair and errr… more pretty dresses.

Each awards ceremony has a flavour of its own, getting more grandiose in tone the closer you get to The Oscars – the dresses get bigger, longer and slinkier (and often, safer) in a directly proportional gradient to the number of A-Listers that show up. Yes, there’s a reason that so many of the worst-dressed list at The Grammy’s are folk you’ve never heard of; they’re desperately trying to become people you *have* heard of, albeit not in a good way. Television actors and musicians get weeded out with each ceremony until only the crème de la crème of above-the-title stars are left (apart from the obligatory randomers nobody has heard of yet we’re obligated to invite them as they’re nominated category).

It can prove fascinating viewing (well… to girls and gays anyway), watching the stars treat each new ceremony as a sounding board to experiment with their looks in the hope of peaking come the big ‘un. The next few posts are dedicated to tracking certain actresses’ sartorial struts towards Judgement Day.

…Kicking off with Sandra Bullock, who is certainly clocking up the red-carpet hours in what could finally be her year (alas, I think “The Academy” may decide she is too lightweight an actress and figure it’s been a while since they gave Meryl Streep one) and whose outfits perfectly demonstrate the casual-to-formal formula I’ve been banging on about.

The two dresses on the right are from two of the first ceremonies out the blocks – the People’s Choice and the Critics Choice Awards. The two on the left see Sandra, having already won those awards and getting an inkling she might be headed for glory, inching closer towards having her moment in the Oscar-shaped sun. No prizes for seeing which are more dressy.

Alberta Ferretti (far right) – This dress is just ok for me. The bare shoulders, sequins, shorter length and tousled hair make it feel young and fresh which fits the occasion nicely, yet the embellishment and fringing are oddly haphazard, making it look like Sandra whipped it out from under Ferretti’s sewing machine a day too early. The shoes are those hoof-like platforms that I’m not a fan of.

Vivienne Westwood (second right) – The cut and pattern of this are unmistakably Queen Viv but it’s a case of the colour killing the ensemble. The dusky mustard not only blends in strangely with Sandra’s tan, yet makes the brocade pattern look like old curtains/carpet rescued from the attic. The ruching is ultra-flattering and I love the neckline but grey shoes?! I know there’s such a trend as contrasting colours yet this just doesn’t work.

Bottega Veneta (far left) – This was possibly my favourite dress at the Golden Globes, purely for the shot of intense colour it offered. Can’t really improve on my original thoughts – it’s purple, it’s shimmery and I think I used to own one just like it for my Barbie.

Alexander McQueen (second left) – This made for an elegant choice at the Screen Actors’ Guild Awards (SAGs) and you’ll soon see that where the Golden Globes are about glitz and glam, the SAGs tend towards a more restrained sophistication (is this just to do with it its more grand title?!). The dress is an instant classic, yet still looks fresh thanks to the cut and colour of the neckline (love the burst of electric blue).

Favourite? – My heart says Golden Globes but my head says SAGs. I guess my inner Barbie just about edges it.

At least Sandra’s choices seem to be improving in line with the highly-scientific gradient we invented… which bodes well for Oscars night. Go Miss Congeniality!