Blue Prada dress of Lupita Nyong'o

Lupita Nyong'o wore a blue dress on March 2, 2014 to the 86th Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre, at which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in 12 Years a Slave (2013).^[1] In collaboration with Nyong'o, the gown was designed by Prada and styled by Micaela Erlanger. After the ceremony, the dress garnered critical praise from fashion blogs and publications, being cited on several 'best dressed' lists and considered one of the most significant gowns in Hollywood history.

Blue Prada dress of Lupita Nyong'o

Designer	Prada
Year	2014
Type	Powder blue dress
Material	Silk

Background and design

Nyong'o fashion and Erlanger's styling after the release of her film, 12 Years a Slave, had been praised by media publications during awards season.^[2][3][4][5] After her nomination at the 86th Academy Awards for her performance in the film, designers Stella McCartney and Alexander McQueen had reportedly vied for Nyong'o's collaboration, but her stylist ultimately chose Prada to work with.^[4] The dress was custom designed.^[6][7][8] It went through five designs before determining the final look.^[9] Erlanger and Nyong'o worked with the brand on the sketch designs and inspirations used, including the essence of Old Hollywood, and the celebratory night of the Oscars.^[8] The shade of the gown, which Nyong'o referred to as "Nairobi blue", was inspired by her hometown in Kenya.^[6][10]

The dress is a powder blue georgette soleil silk ballgown with a plunging v-neckline, a low-cut back, a blue belt, and an empire, flowing pleated skirt with subtle crystal trim.^{[11][8][6][12][7][10][13]} Design elements of pastel hues and pleats in the skirt were consistent with trends shown on the Oscars red carpet as well as New York Fashion Week.^[14][15] The beaded trimming of the gown was designed to resemble champagne bubbles.^[6][8] The dress's neckline and silhouette was influenced by Elizabeth Taylor's 1969 dress to the Oscars, and the matching jewellery "a nod to Hollywood glamour".^[8][1] Her short hair was put into a cropped updo with added height.^[5] Nyong'o accessorized the gown with a matching manicure, complimentary Prada sandal pumps and a clutch, as well as accessories from Fred Leighton, including a gold and diamond headband and a gold and rose-cut spiked diamond crescent earrings.^[7][6][15] She also wore a gold ring with a frog emblem, which is her family totem.^[2] The emblem was also sewn into a hidden tag in the gown.^[8] The 2014 ceremony was both Nyong'o's and Erlanger's first time in attendance at the Academy Awards.^[2][8][1] In the evening, Nyong'o won the accolade for the Best Supporting Actress category, and was photographed with the statuette alongside the ensemble.^{[7] [16]}

Reception

After Nyong'o was photographed in the gown, it gained widespread commentary and praise across fashion blogs and social media.^[17] The Washington Post's Cara Kelly acclaimed the gown as "a glorious cap" to an "impressive" award shows run.^[18] Booth Moore, a fashion critic of the Los Angeles Times, framed Nyong'o's gown as "sweet and striking", praising her "individual style statement".^[3] Allie Jones of The Atlantic asserted that Nyong'o's gown "murdered the Oscars fashion game" and was the best look of the night, while the New Yorker wrote that it was a "lightly more daring J. Crew wedding dress in its insistent breeziness".^[19][11] The Seattle Times described the gown as "ethereal" and "voluminous yet utterly simple."^[12] Stephanie Cary for the Los Angeles Daily News stated that Nyong'o "hit a grand slam" with the dress.^[6]

The gown featured on the best dressed lists of Vogue, MTV E!, HuffPost and the Standard for the award ceremony.^{[20][21][10][2][22]} Writing for The Telegraph, Bibby Sowray expressed that the dress had "now well and truly cemented itself in Hollywood history."^[8] The Seattle Times dubbed it a "standout among the stars" and one of the publication's favorite red carpet gowns from the past decade.^[12] Fashionista wrote that the ensemble would "go down as one of the all-time Hollywood classics."^[7] The Washington Post and Fashionista compared the dress to the previous looks of Elizabeth Taylor and Grace Kelly at previous Oscar ceremonies.^[7][18] Glamour magazine compared Nyong'o's dress to Cinderella's ballgown, while the New York Daily News stated that her acceptance speech was "heartwarming" and drew parallels to the character's story.^[23][24] Elle declared that the look "cemented Nyong'o as a style star."^[25]

See also

• List of individual dresses

References

1. "Lupita Nyong'o and her colorful wardrobe". Today. 22 April 2014. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
2. Burton, Cinya (3 March 2014). "Lupita Nyong'o Wears Prada to the 2014 Oscars: "It's A Blue That Reminds Me of Nairobi"". E! Online. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
3. Moore, Beth (3 March 2014). "Academy Awards 2014: Lupita Nyong'o keeps it personal in Prada". Los Angeles Times.
4. Brett, Hattie (3 March 2014). "Meet Micaela Erlanger: The Stylist Behind Luptia Nyong'o's Prada Oscar Dress". Grazia Daily. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
5. Ravitz, Justin (3 March 2014). "Lupita Nyong'o Wears Blue Prada With Plunging Neckline, Headband at 2014 Oscars". Us Magazine. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
6. Cary, Stephanie (2 March 2014). "Oscars 2014: Lupita Nyong'o's dress color inspired by her hometown in Kenya". Los Angeles Daily News. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
7. McCal, Tyler (14 August 2020). "Great Outfits in Fashion History: Lupita Nyong'o in Princess-Worthy Prada". Fashionista. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
8. Soway, Bibbi. "Oscars 2014: Lupita Nyong'o's stylist on her winning Oscars look". The Telegraph. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
9. Wischhover, Cheyrl (3 March 2014). "Q&A: Lupita Nyong'o's Hair Stylist on That Oscars Headband and Her Double Hair Mountains". The Cut. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
10. "Lupita Nyong'o Oscars 2014: Prada Gown Gets Our Best Dressed Vote". HuffPost. 2 March 2014. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
11. Weiss, Sasha. "An Oscar-Fashion Report Card". The New Yorker.
12. MacDonald, Moira (26 April 2020). "Sunday Best: A standout among the stars — Lupita Nyong'o at the 2014 Academy Awards red carpet". Seattle Times. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
13. Khederian, Robert (5 March 2014). "18 Pictures of Lupita Nyong'o Loving Life in Her Prada Dress". PopSugar. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
14. Raphel, Isabella (2 March 2014). "From Lupita Nyong'o to Amy Adams: Oscars 2014 Red Carpet Best Dressed". Parade. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
15. Chan, Stephanie (2 March 2014). "Oscars Fashion: Lupita Nyong'o Wears Sky Blue Prada". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
16. "Oscars 2014: Lupita Nyong'o gives emotional acceptance speecha Nyong'o gives emotional acceptance speech". CBS News. 3 March 2014. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
17. Kameir, Rawyia (29 May 2014). "Lupita Nyong'o's 'Acceptable Blackness' and the Myth of a Post-Racial Hollywood". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
18. Kelly, Cara. "Lupita Nyong'o and Jennifer Lawrence continue their red carpet sweep at the Oscars". The Washington Post. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
19. Jones, Allie (3 March 2014). "Lupita Nyong'o Already Murdered the Oscars Fashion Game". The Atlantic. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
20. "The 10 Best Dresses of the 2014 Academy Awards". MTV. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
21. Malle, Chloe (2 March 2014). "Oscars 2014: The Ten Best Dressed Celebrities on the Red Carpet". Vogue. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
22. Lough, Kate (5 March 2014). "Oscars 2014 best dressed stars: Lupita Nyong'o, Cate Blanchett and Jennifer Lawrence battle it out on the red carpet". The Standard. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
23. Clinton, Leah Melby (5 November 2014). "Let's Make It Official: Lupita Nyong'o Is a Red Carpet Style Star". Glamour. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
24. Monde, Chiderah. "Oscars 2014: Lupita Nyong'o's powder blue princess gown draws comparison to Cinderella". New York Daily News. Retrieved 25 October 2021.
25. Natalie Matthews, Savannah Waslh (23 February 2020). "Lupita Nyong'o's Style Evolution". Elle. Retrieved 25 October 2021.