The raciest red carpet dresses ever
When it comes to dressing provocatively, there's a very fine line between looking chic, not cheap. Flash a little too much flesh, in the wrong area, at a misappropriate event, and gorgeous can suddenly plummet into gaudy. From the super-sexy to the seriously not-so-stylish, enjoy our round-up of the raciest celebrity red carpet outfits ever. Then follow our top tips for doing sexy right and looking more Marilyn Monroe than Pretty Woman.
It's incredibly difficult not to look sexy when you're a Victoria's Secret model, so it's not surprising that Gisele Bundchen looked her usual flawless self at the 2013 Met Gala. The Angel donned a cut-out Anthony Vaccarello mini-dress with gold chain detailing, which fitted her amazing body like a glove. Ms Bundchen wore her statement golden locks in a wind-swept style to one side and sported a seductive smoky eye. Gorgeous.
What was she thinking? After winning the most recent series of Strictly Come Dancing, there's no doubt that Abbey Clancy has been knocking the style ball out of the court. However, her get-up at fashion designer Julien MacDonald's Fashion for the Brave event in 2013, which was designed by Julien himself, didn't score any style points here at Little Black Dress. The model wore an all-over Union Jack print dress with full-length sheer side-panelling, which revealed her legs, midriff and cleavage, leaving no room for underwear, or taste.
We love a good thigh-high split as much as the next person here at Little Black Dress, but it is possible to have too much of a good thing. Yes, we're talking to you Iggy Azalea. The controversial rapper showed a little more than she had hoped at the 2013 EMAs by wearing a double thigh-high split spring couture gown from Dilek Hanif's 2011 collection. The singer experienced a few easily avoidable wardrobe malfunctions, but take note from Iggy and opt for underwear when wearing lightweight material that may have a mind of its own!
Team LBD is all for a little leg exposure here and some cleavage there, but only one at a time please! At the 2000 Grammys, Jennifer Lopez wore a palm-printed green Versace dress, which headlined across the globe. The starlet's dress featured a seriously high thigh-split and one heck of a plunging neckline, revealing right down to her nether regions as well as her cleavage – leaving a nation thankful for tit-tape. You know the rule girls, legs or cleavage, but never both.
When it comes to true sex appeal, the common belief is that less is more, but as Lady Victoria Hervey showed at the 2014 Golden Globe's in an overtly revealing Gaurav Gupta dress, this isn't always the case. The socialite's barely-there dress featured black-sequin embellishment on the left and sheer fabric on the right, which left little to the imagination. Learn a lesson in dressing sexily from Lady Victoria: sometimes more is more, and we thought she was a lady!
Rihanna is one of those celebrities that is guaranteed column inches, but when she wore this incredible Swarovski dress to the Council of Fashion Designers of America Awards to accept her Fashion Icon Award in 2014 she was the cover of every newspaper and magazine worldwide. Made up of over 216,000 Swarovski crystals, it still gave us a good view of all of the pop star's assets, despite the fur boa. A look only Rihanna could get away with, we think!
Elizabeth Hurley wore one of the most memorable red carpet dresses ever to the 1994 Four Weddings and a Funeral film premiere, on the arm of then-boyfriend Hugh Grant. Perhaps tame by today's standards, Liz's dress was unashamedly outrageous for that time. She went from nobody to megastar overnight, showing how scandalous style can reap rewards. The stunning actress' Versace dress featured a plunging neckline and that gold safety pin detailing which appeared to hold together the front and back of her dress, whilst exposing her side and revealing her sculpted figure. Ms Hurley's LBD is now an icon piece, one which has inspired the Little Black Dress Liz dress (coming this May!), and with queen of quirk Lady Gaga stepping out in the black and gold number 16 years later. That's what we call timeless.
Gwyneth Paltrow never puts a foot wrong when it comes to fashion, and her appearance at the Iron Man 3 premiere in 2013 was no exception. The elegant fashionista proved that you can still look smoking hot in your 40s, in a multi-coloured sheer-panelled Antonio Berrardi dress that revealed her toned legs and a glimpse of buttocks. Gwyneth kept it sophisticated with subtle make-up, sleek hair and minimal jewellery.
Since ditching her Disney title and kick-starting her music career, Selena Gomez has definitely found her fashion feet. At the 2013 VMAs, the 21-year-old starlet oozed elegance and sex appeal in a ravishing Atelier Versace dress. The navy gown showed off Selena's lean legs and featured a revealing demure lingerie-style corset underneath. We love how Ms Gomez kept her look youthful by wearing her luscious locks down and adding a pop of red lipstick.
At the 2014 National Television Awards, Kelly Brook seemed to forget her underwear, and showed the public a little more than necessary! The plucky model opted for a vintage Ossie Clark dress, which featured a plunging neckline and daring thigh-high split in an extremely sheer material, which left little to be desired. Although Ms Brook's dress may not be scoring top marks here at Little Black Dress, we have to commend her side-swept classic hairstyle and pop of red lipstick. For glamorous evening dresses that leave a little more to the imagination than Kelly's, shop here.
Whether Jaimie Alexander's outfit choice for the 2013 Thor premiere was to make every other woman green with envy or because she genuinely liked the dress, either way she looked smoking. The actress took a daring risk in an Azzaro Spring 2014 dress, which exposed her stomach, legs, cleavage and buttocks with a curved sheer-panel running vertically through the middle of the dress. Not a look for the faint-hearted, but somehow Jaimie pulls it off!
Beyonce managed to look both sexy and sweet at the 2014 Grammys in a white lace Michael Costello gown – is there anything our Queen B can't do? The starlet's dress featured sheer cut-outs and hugged her curvaceous figure in all the right places. Ms Carter accessorised with deep red lips, crimped hair and a killer pose, making her the fashionista everyone was talking about that night.
At the 2014 Vanity Fair Oscars after-party, model and actress Diane Kruger showed us how to do sexy demurely. The German beauty's black Valentino dress featured layers of lace that cleverly create a bandeau and mini skirt, whilst the single layered sleeve and ankle length sheer lace skirt leave more to the imagination than some of our other stars of this feature. Diane's pared-back make-up and youthful plaited up-do keep her look stylish not sluttish.
Gisele Bundchen
Risqué rating: 3/5 (where 1 is demure and 5 is off the scale!)
It's incredibly difficult not to look sexy when you're a Victoria's Secret model, so it's not surprising that Gisele Bundchen looked her usual flawless self at the 2013 Met Gala. The Angel donned a cut-out Anthony Vaccarello mini-dress with gold chain detailing, which fitted her amazing body like a glove. Ms Bundchen wore her statement golden locks in a wind-swept style to one side and sported a seductive smoky eye. Gorgeous.
Abbey Clancy
Risqué rating: 5/5
What was she thinking? After winning the most recent series of Strictly Come Dancing, there's no doubt that Abbey Clancy has been knocking the style ball out of the court. However, her get-up at fashion designer Julien MacDonald's Fashion for the Brave event in 2013, which was designed by Julien himself, didn't score any style points here at Little Black Dress. The model wore an all-over Union Jack print dress with full-length sheer side-panelling, which revealed her legs, midriff and cleavage, leaving no room for underwear, or taste.
Iggy Azalea
Risqué rating: 5/5
We love a good thigh-high split as much as the next person here at Little Black Dress, but it is possible to have too much of a good thing. Yes, we're talking to you Iggy Azalea. The controversial rapper showed a little more than she had hoped at the 2013 EMAs by wearing a double thigh-high split spring couture gown from Dilek Hanif's 2011 collection. The singer experienced a few easily avoidable wardrobe malfunctions, but take note from Iggy and opt for underwear when wearing lightweight material that may have a mind of its own!
Jennifer Lopez
Risqué rating: 3/5
Team LBD is all for a little leg exposure here and some cleavage there, but only one at a time please! At the 2000 Grammys, Jennifer Lopez wore a palm-printed green Versace dress, which headlined across the globe. The starlet's dress featured a seriously high thigh-split and one heck of a plunging neckline, revealing right down to her nether regions as well as her cleavage – leaving a nation thankful for tit-tape. You know the rule girls, legs or cleavage, but never both.
Lady Victoria Hervey
Risqué rating: 5/5
When it comes to true sex appeal, the common belief is that less is more, but as Lady Victoria Hervey showed at the 2014 Golden Globe's in an overtly revealing Gaurav Gupta dress, this isn't always the case. The socialite's barely-there dress featured black-sequin embellishment on the left and sheer fabric on the right, which left little to the imagination. Learn a lesson in dressing sexily from Lady Victoria: sometimes more is more, and we thought she was a lady!
Rihanna
Risqué rating: 5/5Rihanna is one of those celebrities that is guaranteed column inches, but when she wore this incredible Swarovski dress to the Council of Fashion Designers of America Awards to accept her Fashion Icon Award in 2014 she was the cover of every newspaper and magazine worldwide. Made up of over 216,000 Swarovski crystals, it still gave us a good view of all of the pop star's assets, despite the fur boa. A look only Rihanna could get away with, we think!
Elizabeth Hurley
Risqué rating: 3/5
Elizabeth Hurley wore one of the most memorable red carpet dresses ever to the 1994 Four Weddings and a Funeral film premiere, on the arm of then-boyfriend Hugh Grant. Perhaps tame by today's standards, Liz's dress was unashamedly outrageous for that time. She went from nobody to megastar overnight, showing how scandalous style can reap rewards. The stunning actress' Versace dress featured a plunging neckline and that gold safety pin detailing which appeared to hold together the front and back of her dress, whilst exposing her side and revealing her sculpted figure. Ms Hurley's LBD is now an icon piece, one which has inspired the Little Black Dress Liz dress (coming this May!), and with queen of quirk Lady Gaga stepping out in the black and gold number 16 years later. That's what we call timeless.
Gwyneth Paltrow
Risqué rating: 2/5
Gwyneth Paltrow never puts a foot wrong when it comes to fashion, and her appearance at the Iron Man 3 premiere in 2013 was no exception. The elegant fashionista proved that you can still look smoking hot in your 40s, in a multi-coloured sheer-panelled Antonio Berrardi dress that revealed her toned legs and a glimpse of buttocks. Gwyneth kept it sophisticated with subtle make-up, sleek hair and minimal jewellery.
Kristen Stewart
Risqué rating: 3/5 At first glance Kristen Stewart's nude gown may not look very risqué, but look again and you'll see that the Zuhair Murad dress features intricate lace sheer-panelling in a colour almost identical to the actress' skin tone. Lingerie style dresses are the perfect way to achieve a demure yet racy look because of their guaranteed alluring vibe, and Kristen's corset and sheer-skirt overlay oozes sex appeal – perhaps not the most flattering although!Selena Gomez
Risqué rating: 2/5
Since ditching her Disney title and kick-starting her music career, Selena Gomez has definitely found her fashion feet. At the 2013 VMAs, the 21-year-old starlet oozed elegance and sex appeal in a ravishing Atelier Versace dress. The navy gown showed off Selena's lean legs and featured a revealing demure lingerie-style corset underneath. We love how Ms Gomez kept her look youthful by wearing her luscious locks down and adding a pop of red lipstick.
Kelly Brook
Risqué rating: 5/5
At the 2014 National Television Awards, Kelly Brook seemed to forget her underwear, and showed the public a little more than necessary! The plucky model opted for a vintage Ossie Clark dress, which featured a plunging neckline and daring thigh-high split in an extremely sheer material, which left little to be desired. Although Ms Brook's dress may not be scoring top marks here at Little Black Dress, we have to commend her side-swept classic hairstyle and pop of red lipstick. For glamorous evening dresses that leave a little more to the imagination than Kelly's, shop here.
Jaimie Alexander
Risqué rating: 4/5
Whether Jaimie Alexander's outfit choice for the 2013 Thor premiere was to make every other woman green with envy or because she genuinely liked the dress, either way she looked smoking. The actress took a daring risk in an Azzaro Spring 2014 dress, which exposed her stomach, legs, cleavage and buttocks with a curved sheer-panel running vertically through the middle of the dress. Not a look for the faint-hearted, but somehow Jaimie pulls it off!
Beyonce
Risqué rating: 3/5
Beyonce managed to look both sexy and sweet at the 2014 Grammys in a white lace Michael Costello gown – is there anything our Queen B can't do? The starlet's dress featured sheer cut-outs and hugged her curvaceous figure in all the right places. Ms Carter accessorised with deep red lips, crimped hair and a killer pose, making her the fashionista everyone was talking about that night.
Diane Kruger
Risqué rating: 3/5
At the 2014 Vanity Fair Oscars after-party, model and actress Diane Kruger showed us how to do sexy demurely. The German beauty's black Valentino dress featured layers of lace that cleverly create a bandeau and mini skirt, whilst the single layered sleeve and ankle length sheer lace skirt leave more to the imagination than some of our other stars of this feature. Diane's pared-back make-up and youthful plaited up-do keep her look stylish not sluttish.
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