The Shopaholic Style Awards 2010

The most stylish women of 2010...





















2. Alexa Chung

The winner of the most stylish Brit at the British Fashion Awards only narrowly misses out on the top spot this year. Her not too perfect look is, well, perfection.



















3. Daisy Lowe

The British model is hot property at the moment, and it's not hard to see why. She's beautiful, stylish and not a super skinny size zero. Plus she's bagged herself Doctor Who star Matt Smith. If I sound jealous, that's 'cos I am.

4. Carey Mulligan

2010 has definitely been Carey Mulligan's year, as the Brit actress has taken both Hollywood and the fashion world by storm. We have seen a parade of Prada and Mui Mui dresses on the red carpet which have perfectly defined her quirky sense of style. Who doesn't love a dress with pockets?!

5. Dannii Minogue

Dannii won the X-Factor fashion face-off hands down - a number of the stunning dresses showcased even came from her own fashion line, Project D, which was launched earlier this year in collaboration with her friend Tabitha.

6. Emma Watson

2010 has been a momentous year for Emma Watson. She has finished filming the Harry Potter series of films which have made her a star, then went for a drastic image change by going for a cropped hair do. She has been gaining fashion plaudits for a while, but this year Emma really came into her own and has topped a number of style charts - and proved why at the penultimate Harry Potter premiere.





















7. Blake Lively

The very leggy Blake Lively just pips her Gossip Girl co-star Leighton Meester to 7th place. She certainly knows how to make an impact on the red carpet and looks fab in this VB number.




















8. Leighton Meester

My favourite gossip girl is actually a lot more daring in her real life fashion choices than as preppy Blair in the hit show - which means that hits as well as some misses are inevitable. One thing is for sure, this Elie Saab dress is beautiful, and I'm sure Miss Waldorf would heartily agree.





















9. Kelly Osbourne

Kelly Osbourne is hardly recognisable as the hell raising teen who hit our screens on her family's MTV reality show. A stint on Dancing with the Stars has left Kelly with a toned figure, combined with a new ladylike image she looks every inch the sophisticated starlet.





















10. Samantha Cameron

Not since the days of Jackie O have we been so engrossed by the attire of our leaders' wives. Now Samantha Cameron joins the ever increasing ranks of stylish first ladies, including Michelle Obama and Carla Bruni. Whether wearing M&S or Paul Smith, the former creative director of Smythson always looks the picture of dignified elegance - yet with a fashion forward twist.

Cheryl v Dannii: The Final Showdown

So this is it - after thousands upon thousands of auditions, 12 finalists (not forgetting four wildcards) and a whole lot of pretty dresses, the X-Factor 2010 has come to an end. Our weekends just won't be the same without a Cheryl v Dannii fashion face-off.

This week one had to wonder whether it was handbags at dawn as to who got to wear their scarlet stunner for the grand finale. A bit of wardrobe co-ordination later and Dannii was the first to step out in a beautiful red tiered gown by J'Aton Couture, whilst Cheryl wore a crystal encrusted Roberto Cavalli dress. However, the over-sized sleeve overpowered her small frame in my opinion, and don't get me started on the slick-backed hair do - not a good look.















But what a difference a day makes. On Sunday night Cheryl emerged in what has to be my favourite look of hers we have seen all season. I absolutely loved her red fish-tailed gown by J.Mendel. Yet we can never underestimate Ms Minogue, and Dannii had one final sparkler up her sleeve. She exuded old Hollywood glamour in a heavily beaded Jenny Packham gown.















Not only was Dannii crowned the winning judge when Matt was voted the winner (my favourite to win I might add), but she runs away with my style award.

Despite the beautiful dresses on show, it was a scantily clad Rihanna who captured the column inches when she sang What's My Name in a tribal print bikini - a performance which was deemed too suggestive for young viewers. Well we had to have one last morsel of controversy after the the series of scandals and spats which have dogged the show this time around.

Cheryl v Dannii: Bows and Belles

This week the X-Factor reached the semi-final stage; yes the final really is less than a week away! I don't know where the time has gone, but I'll miss the shocks, scandals and stylish frocks once it's all over. This week Cheryl ditched the glitz in favour of a monochrome dress by Stephane Rolland. What with all the folds and a big bow to hold it all together the look reminded me of all the wrapping-up I've still got left to do before Christmas. Meanwhile Dannii was back on winning form in a beautiful nude coloured gown with lace inserts and an over-sized corsage by Australian designer Aurelio Costarella. So, only one more Cheryl v Dannii post to go... something tells me they will have saved the best 'til last!

Cheryl v Dannii: Perfect Asymmetry

I have to say I've spotted a pattern emerging over the course of the live shows - Cheryl and Dannii seem to have developed a knack for complimentary dressing. Far from being matchy-matchy, each week they pick a trend and wear it in there own way. To what extent this is planned I couldn't say, but we've seen lace, knot detailing and now asymmetric cuts displayed side by side.






















Dannii wore a ruffled red chiffon number by Carla Zampatti whilst Cheryl stuck with the metallics she has favoured in recent weeks. I loved her Emilio Pucci bronze dress - but if it looked at all familiar, that's because she was beaten to it by another Minogue. Cheryl is on a roll at he moment and is my winner again this week if only because she has ditched the extensions - emerging with mid-length waves in her natural brunette shade.






















In the first of a double elimination Katie exited the competition with the lowest number of public votes. I have to confess that I will miss her quirky sense of style - but I doubt we've seen the last of her somehow! Katie's lace beaded dress is £85 from Miss Selfridge - but it's limited edition so you'll have to get in quick!

Cheryl v Dannii: Maxi or Mini?

It has been a week of shocks on the X-Factor. First, Aiden made a surprise (and somewhat premature) exit last Sunday, then this week Katie (love her or hate her) ditched the wild blonde curles in favour of an elfin crop in a rather drastic attempt to reinvent herself*. No sooner had we got over that, Cher found herself in the bottom two. Thankfully, there were no shocks where frocks are concerned. One thing is for certain, well two things; Cheryl always looks great in a sparkly mini dress, and Dannii has the Grecian goddess look down to a t. This week the ladies played to their strengths, Cheryl in a gold spangled mini dress by Falguni and Shane Peacock, Dannii in a chocoloate coloured Gucci gown. Cheryl just pips Dannii to the post - with just over four weeks to go until Christmas, we need a bit of festive sparkle on a Saturday night.

*I'm not sure about the haircut, but I love the Peter Pan collar lace dress which is only £35 from very!

Cheryl v Dannii: Golden Girls

It's taken a few weeks, but Cheryl is finally back in the game! She hit all the right notes in this Roberto Cavalli gold dress - which definitely deserves a gold medal in the style stakes. Dannii looked elegant as always in a Grecian style gown by Carla Zanpatti, but I hereby declare Cheryl this week's winner.

Cheryl v Dannii: All American Girls

It was American anthems week on the X-Factor, so I was half expecting to see red, white and blue or at least something star spangled. Instead, Cheryl rocked another LBD - this time an Emilio Pucci satin creation with lace inserts, meanwhile Dannii kicked-off the festive season in a gold Philip Armstrong dress topped off with a massive bow. Dannii has been dominating in the style department in recent weeks, but this week my winner is another Minogue ...


















... big sister Kylie's definitely still got it. She looked stunning in a signature Mark Fast cobweb knit dress with fringing. She even managed to stay on her feet whilst strutting her stuff in those Louboutins - and it did look dicey at one point!

Cheryl v Dannii: The Fangs are Out

It was Halloween week on X Factor and even the judges got into the spirit of things (sorry, couldn't resist that one). Simon donned some fangs especially for the occasion, although he is never afraid to bite back with a snide comment or two - fangs or no fangs. The incessant bickering on the show has been getting most of the press attention lately, so let's focus on the fashion...

I'm sorry Cheryl, but Dannii wins hands down in the style department. I wasn't keen on Cheryl's choice of Jonathan Saunders dress with mesh yoke - which looked more like a string vest, whilst Dannii unleashed the vamp in a ruffled red Marchesa number. Well, red has been proven as the colour to turn heads in a report published this week.

Cheryl v Dannii: In Knots

I love a Little Black Dress as much as the next girl, but it was a welcome change to see a much needed burst of colour on show this Saturday.
Dannii sported another stunning Victoria Beckham design - this time a royal blue fitted number with knotted shoulder detail. I also loved Cheryl's choice of a nude HMH couture gown with twist knot front, although I'm not sure that the pale pink hue particularly complimented her skin tone and hair colour.
It was not just the colour of the dresses that caught my attention - as Cheryl seemed to have been sharing out her hair dye amongst the girls in her category. Rebecca, Treyc and Cher all had a red tint to their hair which was more than a little bit reminiscent of their mentor - or maybe they were just mourning the loss of Storm Lee in last week's vote.

Cheryl v Dannii: Red Hot!

Week 2 of the live shows and Cheryl shocked us all with a hot new hair do! I love this mahogany shade and have been toying with the idea of dying my hair this colour for some time. But I have to say lose the extensions Cheryl!

Despite the new look Cheryl failed to wow in a black Azarro jumpsuit - but it would have been difficult for anyone to outshine Dannii this week. She looked oh so elegant in what has to be one of my favourite Victoria Beckham designs. Mrs Beckham herself wore the one shoulder nude dress to an Oscars party back in February - now Dannii has joined the ever increasing line of glamorous celebs to don one of the former Spice Girl's creations. I could say a whole lot more about VB - but I'll save it for another post.

Cheryl v Dannii: The Lace Wars

Week one of the live shows and Simon told us to 'embrace the madness' - but sadly the outfits weren't the showstoppers that I had been hoping for. Both Cheryl and Dannii went for lace on the night - with Dannii wearing a white lace shift with peaked shoulders by J'Aton Couture, and Cheryl showing off those fab pins in a Daniel Vosovic asymmetric black mini dress with lace trim. I think Dannii has to be my winner this week because I like the mix of contemporary shape with traditional fabric, although I wasn't too keen on the length. Had this dress been a floor length gown it would have looked amazing - especially if the lower half of the skirt was left sheer.

Image from http://xfactor.itv.com/2010/photos

X Factor: Cheryl v Dannii

Cheryl Cole and Dannii Minogue made a welcome return to prime-time Saturday night TV last night, as X Factor reached the judges houses.

Dannii looked amazing in a long Grecian dress from her Project D range, not to mention that she really does have the hair-do that just keeps on giving - this time appearing with sun-kissed blonde highlights.



















Cheryl went for a more casual look - sporting stone coloured skinnies and biker jacket. But at this stage of the competition it is Sinitta who usually causes a stir. Who could forget last year's banana leaf bikini? This time she went for an equally daring combination of silver swimsuit and OTK boots which were so far over the knee that they could have been galoshes! The whole look put me in mind of Wonder Woman.




Look out for a weekly post after the live show as the style wars commence!

Images from http://xfactor.itv.com/2010/photos