The red dress I’m wearing here (by a former Estonian beauty queen Diana Arno) could easily be mistaken for a Dolce & Gabbana creation. I generally don’t like items that are obviously ‘inspired by’ someone else’s work*, but after the recent pronouncements by the Italian design duo – and their attitude towards paying taxes – I have decided never to buy anything from them again. So I am happy to own this dress and if you feel like copying D&G, I don’t mind.

The reason I like this dress so much is that it puts glamour before sex. Not that it couldn’t be sexy on the right person, of course it can, but this is not what the dress is about. It’s properly, unapologetically, dolce vita-style glamorous: deep red lace, bows, exaggerated hips, the length (I especially like the strange length). It is a dress that should be worn in Rome or Milan, but as these two are currently not available to me, Barcelona must do.

While it’s often a good idea to balance a statement dress with simple hair and make-up, I don’t think it would work in this case. It’s no use pretending this dress is modern in any way, so I suggest going all out with matching lips and nails and Marilyn Monroe-ish hair. The thing is of course that if you decide to coordinate, everything really has to match: clashing reds is a very challenging look.

I have taken the matching to extremes here: the soles of my shoes also match my nail polish. Heels are another thing that are pretty much necessary with a dress like this, although if you’re able to make it work with flats, I salute you.

Pictured:
– Dress by Diana Arno.
– Shoes by Christian Louboutin.
– Lips by Giorgio Armani: Lip Maestro in 400. This is a perfect colour match for this dress and the pigment and texture of this velvety matte lip product are incredible. But be warned, it transfers like hell, so no kissing and preferably no eating. It also needs a steady hand when applying.
– Nails by Christian Louboutin. Again, the colour of this Louboutin signature nail polish is amazing and is designed to match the soles of his shoes. It isn’t that easy to apply, however, and takes quite a while to dry.
– Perfume by Serge Lutens: A la Nuit. Robin of Now Smell This once memorably called it ‘death by jasmine’. It is absolutely beautiful, but yes, pretty full-on. Perfect for this mood.
– Sunglasses by Zara.
– Magazine by Vogue España.

I never said it was a low maintenance look, did I?

* To be fair, Diana of course has a wide selection of dresses in different styles.