The 2020 CFDA Fashion Awards, held at the Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City, celebrated some of the biggest names in American fashion, but the red carpet was less impressive than it could have been.
Pharrell Williams, honored as “Fashion Icon” by the Council of Fashion Designers of America, could easily make the CFDA Awards 2020 best or worst dressed lists, since he showed up in jeans and a blue leather jacket. However, plenty of other celebrities tried to bring a more sophisticated or fashion-forward look to the red carpet. Here are the most memorable fashion triumphs and fails at the CFDA Awards.
Best: Chrissy Teigen
Even though she suffered a wardrobe malfunction, when the center slit of her dress was torn a bit higher than intended, the model easily made the best dressed list at the 2020 CFDA Awards.
Crissy Teigen wore a strapless white Solace London gown that was the perfect mix of sophistication and edge.
Worst: Kim Kardashian
Wearing custom Proenza Schouler, Kim Kardashian was among the worst dressed celebrities on the red carpet at the CFDA Awards. Her embroidered black chiffon dress was inspired by a similar design from Proenza Schouler’s Fall 2020 collection, but it failed to make the same impact and was considerably over the top, even for Kim.
Best: Diane Kruger
Proving that you can bring elegance and edge to the red carpet in the same look, German actress Diane Kruger made the best dressed list thanks to her red and black Prabal Gurung gown featuring just the right amount of Swarovski crystals. Keeping her look simple and letting the dress shine was definitely the right choice.
Best: Nina Dobrev
Feathers made a strong showing on the 2020 CFDA Awards red carpet, and the most exciting look was Nina Dobrev’s Lela Rose outfit. “The Vampire Diaries” star wore a dress that featured a feathered ball skirt and accessorized her look with a silver Lee Savage clutch, for a simple, yet sophisticated finish.
Best: Janelle Monáe
The singer made the best dressed list at the CDFA awards thanks to her custom white and gold Tadashi Shoji cape dress. Described as “classically futuristic, unique, powerful, mysterious, and fun” by Monáe, the dress was certainly one of the most memorably looks, and perfectly suited for celebrating high fashion.
Worst: Julianna Margulies
In one of her very rare fashion faux pas, Julianna Margulies might have suffered a wardrobe malfunction herself. Her semi-transparent Michael Kors gown revealed her black underwear on the CFDA red carpet, unlike the original on the runway. Even without the flash photography reveal, the look was drab, and the actress’ simple hairstyle didn’t add anything to it.
Best: Gigi Hadid
At the opposite end of the spectrum, Michael Kors scored a win thanks to model Gigi Hadid. Wearing a gold jumpsuit, Hadid was definitely one of the best dressed celebrities at the 2020 CFDA Awards. The 20 year old completed her look with a gold clutch and beachy waves.
Worst: Amanda Seyfried
Coming from a fashion risk-taker, Amanda Seyfried’s Rodarte dress might have worked. However, the Fall 2020 dress had a lot going on, and the actress didn’t exactly show the personality to pull it off. Mixing beaded lace, sequins, tulle, Swarovski crystals, and a feather trim, Seyfried’s look ended up as too much, even for the CFDA Awards red carpet.
Best: Emmy Rossum
Wearing a Dion Lee Spring 2020 dress, Emmy Rossum was definitely one of the best dressed celebrities on the 2020 CFDA Awards red carpet. Reinterpreting the little black dress in a glamorous way without being boring, the black dress looked airy, yet still retained the elegance needed for the occasion.
Worst: Ashley Judd
While Janelle Monáe and Gigi Hadid proved that you can do an extravagant gold look and have it be both sophisticated and high fashion, Ashley Judd failed to rise to the challenge in her Badgley Mischka dress. The over the top beading and cape/train hybrid definitely held her back. In the end, the ornate gold detailing just felt too over the top, despite Judd’s restraint when accessorizing.
