It was a year for pixie haircuts, chunky flat shoes, bangs on our first lady and bare skin — lots of it — on movie actresses and pop stars. Fashion always has its royalty, and this year, Kerry Washington was a queen. For real royalty, we had Kate Middleton, making the rest of us mortals feel a little better by flashing her mommy tummy. If Kate made us feel good, Lululemon didn’t, when its chairman appeared to blame women’s own bodies for problems with those popular yoga pants.
A look back at these and other key fashion moments of 2013:
o MICHELLE’S BANGS:
Nobody would call bangs a new trend, but when the first lady’s involved, things take on more significance. In fact, President Barack Obama actually called wife Michelle’s new hairdo the most significant event of his second inauguration. Unveiled just in time for the festivities, the new hairdo made enough news to have its own (unofficial) Twitter account, FirstLady’sBangs, which issued alerts like “Just got a text from Hillary Clinton’s side-part.”
• QUEEN OF THE RUNWAY, AIRWAVES AND EVERYWHERE ELSE:
By the time she appeared in a lovely Stella McCartney floral frock and high red leather pumps as a judge on “Project Runway,” it was clear: In the realm where Hollywood meets fashion, Kerry Washington is royalty. On her hit show, “Scandal,” playing professional fixer Olivia Pope, she was all professional Washington — Washington, D.C., that is — but on the red carpet, she was glamour personified. Case in point: that Marchesa gown she wore at the Emmys, all cream and white and flower appliques, fit for a queen.
• KATE MAKES US FEEL GREAT:
Much has been said about the fashion sense of the Duchess of Cambridge, aka Kate Middleton, but in 2013, it was something a bit different that caught our eye. Showing in her blue-and-white polka dot dress as she emerged from the hospital post-childbirth was a pronounced “mommy tummy,” a normal development but something most celebrities keep under wraps — until their personal trainers have whipped them back into magazine-cover shape. Thanks, Kate!