Would you Dare to Wear Punk on Fifth Avenue? The Met Ball 2013

On May 6th, celebrities, designers, politicians gathered for the 2013 Costume Institute Gala at the Met in New York. The event is known for attracting some of the most fashionable guests each year in beautiful, over-the-top outfits. This year at the Met Ball, party goers donned safety pins, leather, spiked hair, and fishnets to celebrate the opening of the new exhibit, “Punk: Chaos to Couture.” This exhibition showcases punk from its birth in the 1970s to its influence on today’s fashions. The guests this year decided to truly take a risk; some were more rewarding than others. Here are some of the outfits that I thought were able to honor the “punk” theme while still looking chic! Which outfit would you dare to wear?

Anna Wintour in Chanel. I'm not sure this is Punk but as the Editor of Vogue and Chair of the Ball, her outfit is very important!

Kirsten Dunst in Louis Vuitton

Hailee Steinfeld in Donna Karan decorated with safety pins

Cara Delevingne in a studded Burberry gown

Giovanna Battaglia in Dolce & Gabbana accessorized with safety pins and fishnet stockings

Sienna Miller in a studded Burberry leather jacket. Love the spiked barrette in her hair!

Christina Ricci in Vivienne Westwood, the designer who created the punk movement in the 70s.

Sarah Jessica Parker in Giles Deacon with a mohawk headdress designed by Philip Treacy. Underneath her gown, she wore Christian Louboutin thigh-high plaid boots!

Cameron Diaz in Stella McCartney with a gold studded belt

Anne Hathaway in a sheer vintage Valentino gown. By the way, I take offense to this gown being called vintage as I was in high school when it came out.

Nicki Minaj in Tommy Hilfiger

Jennifer Lawrence in an embroidered leather Miss Dior 1949 dress

Taylor Swift in J. Mendel

Beyoncé in a Givenchy gown with matching printed boots

And finally, the most talked about outfit of the night, Ricardo Tisci's "maternity" gown for Kim Kardashian. What do you think?

What Do You Dare?

Go ahead, I dare you. Are you going to mix stripes and florals this spring or don head to toe orange sherbert? We all get stuck in a style rut at times, having decided long ago which silhouettes and colors work for us. This season, I dare you to try something new!

This is why I love trends. You aren't just discovering a new color or silhouette, you are discovering a new aspect of your personality. Bridget Foley had a great post-mortem on Golden Globes style in Women's Wear Daily (THE fashion industry newspaper for those of you who don't know) this week. She pointed out that stars (and their stylists) go for the same looks again and again: the skintight mermaid, strapless, red, blush, lace, etc. It is as if "sexy" and "skinny" were the only adjectives the stars wanted attached to their outfits. Oh wait, I forgot "glamourous"! And what is with the cleavage?!

What about interesting, intellectual, charting new territory in a very un-Bjork swan dress sort of way?Apparently only Tilda Swinton has the stomach to try truly new looks on the red carpet and accept the backlash that could come with the exercise. Ms. Foley offered some suggested looks for the next red carpet. We'll see if any of them take her up on it the next go round, The Oscars on February 24th. In the meantime, here is the look I hope someone, anyone, adopts for the red carpet.

Dior RTW Spring 2013