It’s an ironic title, given the subject matter of The Handmaid’s Tale and the fact that social media keeps that dangling-cigarette-and-sunglasses shot of Peggy Olsen sharply in all our minds. But when Elisabeth Moss won last night and ran up onstage looking delighted, and then earnestly read the Margaret Atwood quote, I was having a 50s throwback.
Right? Look at the length of the dress, and that collar – it’s evocative of early Peggy and was helped by her bob and the fact that she never seems to age. Not that there would be anything wrong with it if she did – she just has that childlike thing going on, almost more so than she did when she used to be Zoey Bartlett. She looks ready to please but also very comfortable. I don’t think this is an accident.
Here’s the thing – the dress she chose is pretty firmly in her style wheelhouse. Like, she might well have worn it to an awards show when there wasn’t a dress code like this. So …did ‘Lizzie’ or her team ask designers to send over dresses that were very her? Or did she have her eye on something to begin with?
I’m bad with black. I should wear more, but I always buy the exciting patterned thing and then regret it. We don’t know if this ‘why we wear black’ initiative will continue all season, but maybe I’ll let it inspire me to fill in the gaps between my billion colourful stripes.
