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The Daily Dish Fashion

The 18 Best Red Carpet Moments of 2016—Plus A Few That Had Us Saying "Huh?!"

From light-up gowns to sexy milkmaid.

By Adele Chapin

It’s been a really great year for red carpet fans. For proof, here are 18 stunning looks from 2016’s award shows circuit, along with one very special red carpet gown from First Lady Michelle Obama, who ended her time in the White House with maybe her best ensemble yet. And because they can’t all be hits, let's also look back at some celeb outfits that were as memorable as they were head-scratching.

The best red carpet moments

Michelle Obama’s rose-gold Versace was a mic drop of a dress for her final state dinner as First Lady.

Zac Posen’s light-up dress for Claire Danes at the Met Gala is the ultimate Cinderella moment, so it’s no wonder it has over a million views on Instagram.

This simple, streamlined Brandon Maxwell Oscars jumpsuit is a reminder that Lady Gaga doesn’t need meat dresses to make a statement.

This seafoam green Armani Privé Oscars gown with 3-D flowers is the kind of dress that could wear you—unless you’re Cate Blanchett, that is.

Alicia Vikander’s yellow Louis Vuitton Oscar dress launched Beauty and the Beast memes on Twitter. But she definitely looks like a princess, so there.

Dressing like an Oscar statuette is always a safe bet, and Margot Robbie’s sequined Tom Ford look really suits her.

The shimmery colors of Naomi Watts’s strapless Armani Privé column Oscar gown are kind of mesmerizing.

Kerry Washington should have had Brandon Maxwell make her entire pregnancy wardrobe, because this strapless black Emmys gown is that good.

Sarah Paulson’s spangled, sparkly Prada gown for the Emmys is the prettiest shade of emerald green.

Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown wore the sweetest, "put a bird on it" Red Valentino dress to the Emmys.

Jennifer Lopez’s Giambattista Valli gown for the Golden Globes is perfection, cape and all. Her 200 carats of Harry Winston diamond jewelry doesn’t hurt either.

Zendaya wore this full-length magical Marchesa dress to the Golden Globes, then tucked in the second tier so she could dance the night away at after parties.

Bella Hadid’s Cannes Alexandre Vauthier dress is all red carpet drama—actually, it’s all thigh, really. Maybe Bella wanted to one-up Kate Moss’s Cannes gown?

Does Alexandre Vauthier specialize in dresses that are constantly on the edge of a wardrobe malfunction? Although, if you’re Ciara or Bella, why not? Ciara wore this silver and black Alexandre Vauthier number to the Grammys and looked sensational.

Kirsten Dunst made a 1947-era vintage Dior dress with vintage bag and vintage Salvatore Ferragamo shoes look incredibly modern and at Cannes.

Blake Lively packed a suitcase full of old-school movie star dresses for Cannes this year, including this va-va-voom Atelier Versace.

Meanwhile, Kirsten Stewart literally wore a cropped white tee with a Chanel skirt to Cannes and somehow it really works.

Selena Gomez’s American Music Awards red Prada gown is deceptively simple, but obviously stunning.

And the dresses that made us go “Huh?”

This Taylor Swift Versace two-piece just really, really looks like Alex Mack’s prom dress from the classic teen movie 10 Things I Hate About You.

Sarah Jessica Parker showed in a Hamilton-inspired outfit to the technology-themed Met Gala, and she had a very complicated theory for the haters as to why this made sense.

Givenchy’s sexy milkmaid dress for Irina Shayk at the Met Gala raised more questions than it answers (keep in mind that the back is totally sheer).

There are so many elements to this Cassie VMA outfit (Metallic Gucci pants! Neon hair! Balmain jacket! Cute little lunch box!), you could almost overlook the missing shirt.

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