Best Trends Of 2008 (SLIDESHOW)

Ah, 2008. What can we say? It was like 2007, except maybe a little bit worse. Minus Obama winning, naturally.

We would like to remind our readers that, in the words of Tim Gunn, "We need clothes, do we need fashion? No. And fashion, when it's good, comes out of a context that's societal and cultural and historic and economic and political -- so it's of a time and a place."

In other words, fashion is like every other art -- if it's good, it describes the sociopolitical and economic hodgepodge from whence it came.

But also, it lets us post pictures of Twilight's freakish yet fetching actor Robert Pattinson, so really it's a win/win for us.

Please join us for a highly subjective, totally biased walk down memory lane for the Naughty and Nice fashion and fads of 2008!

Check back tomorrow for Trends of 2008: The Naughty List.

• • • • • • • • Candidates' Wives If it weren’t for the fabulous tailoring, bright colors and smart shopping choices of the candidates' wives, none of us would have made it till November.

See what made the Nice List in 2007.

Comments

[screamingbanshee]

05:30 PM on 01/05/2009

has posh spice been corsett training with dita von teese?

[wembakoy]

02:40 PM on 12/31/2008

Happy New Year 2009 to all and peace to you where you are.

Please let us work with President Obama to fix this country there is a lot work to do.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a08L8fcNZLk

Thanks.

[Vixter]

10:11 AM on 12/31/2008

I seem to be in the minority here, but...I LOVED the dress that Michelle Obama wore Nov. 4th in Grant Park. The pictures of her and her man each holding one of their children's hands were knockout. I loved that the black & red combo in Michelle's dress was picked up with a solid red/solid black dress for each of their girls. Apologies in advance for using a much overused expression but the photo's POPPED out at the reader (or TV watcher).

It goes without saying that Dr. Jill Biden looked her fantastic self, as she always seems able to pull off - without $200,000. worth of clothes. Which would be shopping on a budget for repub women.

Speaking of repub women, did anyone else notice that Mrs. McCain finally got the cast off of her wrist? I guess that since hubby isn't running anymore, she doesn't have to worry about dem. cooties!!

[Coopforobama]

02:49 PM on 12/31/2008

I TOTALLY AGREE with you Vixter

[Forest]

03:43 AM on 01/01/2009

I liked Michelle Obama's black and red dress too. This first lady has an independent streak which is admirable.

[oscartucker]

10:39 PM on 12/30/2008

"We say we wish more people dressed like her (and were as smart as her, and funny as her, but single)". This needs to be corrected because of the grammar---"were as smart as SHE (is smart), and funny as SHE (is funny)

[annis]

11:50 PM on 12/31/2008

Thank you Thank you Thank you

[CeeCee]

10:02 PM on 12/30/2008

Victoria Beckam's obsession with skinny is over the top. She looks reed thin and scary. Someone should tell her.

[Vixter]

10:13 AM on 12/31/2008

I thought the same thing. Wonder if she has an eating disorder, or is that just Hollywood's idea of the perfect female physique?

[hellboundtrain]

06:06 AM on 01/01/2009

You are getting Victoria Beckham and Cindy McCain mixed up!

[ReesieKitty]

03:27 PM on 12/30/2008

I think Michelle Obama wore the shrug on election night because she was standing outside, next to Lake Michigan in Chicago in November! It gets pretty breezy out there, even when the weather is warm. For the inauguration, we probably won't see much of what she's wearing besides her coat and scarf, but I am sure she will look stylish and classy as always.

[violimo]

01:40 PM on 12/30/2008

I hope Michelle wears that lovely purple magenta on inauguration day. It's going to be very cold and a little royal colour will look great. Maybe offset it with a slate grey. She does wear heels. Sensible low ones. I hope she starts a trend there and saves womens legs and backs from the stiletto monster. Where are all the medium heels in fashion shoes?.

[Aesthete]

02:35 PM on 12/30/2008

I hope so, too. The heights of women's shoes have gotten out of control and are ridiculously unrealistic. Besides, when I consider the origin of high heels in the first place, I find them less desirable. Their sole purpose was to hobble the female so that she would be unable to walk ahead of the male.

[peithecelt]

09:35 PM on 12/30/2008

Except that the earliest heels were worn by men as much as they were by women. Things like foot binding? Absolutely about hobbling the female.. Heels only became a gender-biased torture device centuries after their creation. :)

[gerimd]

10:20 PM on 12/30/2008

I always thought the purpose was to enhance a woman's calf muscles. Besides, there have been periods when men wore high heels.

[rhettisha]

02:44 PM on 12/30/2008

I hope she wears something new. I don't want any repeats at the inauguration. Change, remember.

[ArmyCentrist]

11:00 AM on 12/30/2008

One thing we can all breathe easy about: like it or not, Michelle Obama has her own style and, unlike Hillary in her First Lady days, she's not changing it for anyone!

[montecarlo408]

10:29 AM on 12/30/2008

I absolutely love Jill Biden. She and Joe are just the cutest. Even their dog is cute.

I got into an argument a few months ago at my old job, where a friend of mine who happens to be old, white, southern and Republican, told me that neither Michelle Obama nor Jill Biden could hold a candle to Cindy McCain. She was adamant about it, even though we don't really know what Cindy looks like, because she wears so much make-up. She reminds me of Crystal Carrington. I do like Michelle's style, but I think she should wear heels. It does wonders for any outfit, and as a fellow tall, curvy, Amazonian, I understand that need we tall women have to not tower over our man. It's okay Michelle, you got him now, he's not going anywhere! Break out the stilettos, even if just for a few minutes. Not too long, though; if worn too much they give you the worst veins.

[mzwednesday]

10:19 AM on 12/30/2008

The problem with America is that it is obsessed with appearances.
lets take Bernie Madoff as an example...

[hipsterama]

08:02 AM on 12/30/2008

i love ms obama and, although i wouldn't have chosen that dress, who is to say that it was the wrong choice? would you want her to choose your dress the night your husband (or even you, yourself) were elected president? i mean really - this is much bigger than a dress. let's not reduce it to a level we can pick apart...

julie

[yearlin]

07:59 AM on 12/30/2008

i want to see a slideshow with all the candidates' clothes

[fromsa]

03:05 AM on 12/30/2008

I truly do not understand the negativity concerning the election night outfit: If you look at all the photo's of that night (front page in South Africa as well) the whole family looked wonderful (Dr Biden's green outfit was out of place) - Amazing/Stunning/Dramatic photos to keep for ever

[argon20]

01:34 AM on 12/30/2008

The Narciso Rodriguez dress looked like a way-too-small garment that had been clumsily altered to fit Mrs. O's statuesque figure. Or, perhaps some disaster occurred backstage that significantly damaged the dress and a resourceful personal assistant ran to Hancock Fabrics and purchased a couple yards of black satin to repair the problem.

"Top it off with the black shrug and no one will be the wiser."

Hard to believe the otherwise elegant Michelle Obama planned to wear such an awkward, cobbled together outfit. Must have been a last-minute fix.

[Eyewideopen]

02:23 PM on 12/30/2008

No...that dress was off the rack. No excuses. She wore it and that's that.

[NotMcCain]

12:25 AM on 12/30/2008

I didn't like the election dress and think most of Michelle's one-color dresses are too tight (in a bad way) and don't have the right neckline or detailing.

But everyone's a fashion critic. Even when I don't actually LIKE what she wears, I -do- always like that she goes with what SHE likes, rather than "pantsuit by number" or color-coordinated "safe" skirts and jackets, etc.

Her taste isn't mine, but it's fresh and individual--clearly her own. That's what makes her so great.