Kate Winslet Has Mastered the Art of Classic British Fashion
If one had to come up with a word to describe Kate Winslet’s red carpet style, “consistent” comes to mind. The actress may not wear the loudest look on the red carpet, or the most eye catching, but she’s always going to look fabulous in an elegant, timeless design. Since breaking out into the spotlight thanks to her performance in the 1995 film, Sense and Sensibility, Winslet has been a red carpet mainstay, and she realized her preferences when it came to event dressing fairly quickly. Black is a go-to for Winslet, as is a one-shoulder silhouette, though when she does opt to add some color to the mix, it’s usually in the blue or red family. Of course, that also means she has found her favorite designers over the years, many of whom are English-born just like herself. Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen, and Jenny Packham are the actress’ go-tos, and they haven’t failed her thus far. Now, in honor of Winslet’s 48th birthday, we’re looking back at her best red carpet moments over the years, and while some of these looks may be from the 20th century, their timeless nature makes them relevant still to this day.
Winslet wore a dress from Australian brand Kookai to the 2023 BAFTA Television Awards.
If this Badgley Mischka fall 2015 gown looks familiar, it’s because Winslet also wore it to the premiere of The Dressmaker at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2015.
The actress went for a classic look at the 2021 Emmys, wearing a black, low-cut Armani Privé dress.
Winslet wore another simple, yet timeless dress, this time by Tom Ford, for the premiere of her film, Wonder Wheel in 2017.
This Alexander McQueen pre-fall 2017 dress is perfect for Winslet, simple but with a little something extra thanks to the embroidery on the bodice.
Winslet wore a custom Badgley Mischka dress with black lace details to the premiere of The Mountain Between Us at TIFF in 2017.
The actress’ Ralph Lauren dress looked like it was poured on to her right on the Oscars red carpet.
Winslet won the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress in a one-shoulder Antonio Berardi gown.
The actress added a bit of color to her repertoire with this forest green Armani dress at the 2016 SAG Awards.
Clearly on a color streak, Winslet attended the Golden Globes in 2016 wearing a gorgeous, blue halter neck dress from Ralph Lauren.
Winslet looked elegant in a belted, one-shoulder Alexander McQueen dress at the Steve Jobs premiere at the London Film Festival.
Seven years before Winslet wore this Badgley Mischka dress to the Avatar 2 premiere, she debuted it at the premiere of The Dressmaker at TIFF.
The electric blue of this mid-length Stella McCartney dress made it the perfect choice for Winslet.
Winslet went simple once again for the Divergent premiere in Europe, wearing custom Jenny Packham for the event.
The actress wore a red Safiyaa spring 2014 dress with shoulder cutouts to the Los Angeles premiere of Divergent.
A pregnant Winslet wore an empire waist Jenny Packham dress to the Labor Day premiere at the London Film Festival.
It makes sense that Winslet would up the glamour with this Jenny Packham fall 2012 dress for the premiere of Titanic 3D
Winslet tapped one of her favorite designers, Jenny Packham, to dress her for the 2012 Golden Globes.
The actress’ Stella McCartney, knee-length dress featured a sort of optical illusion, highlighting her body perfectly.
Winslet loves supporting British designers, so it makes sense that she would wear a Victoria Beckham dress to the premiere of Carnage in Venice.
The actress wore a black Stella McCartney gown to the 2011 Met Gala celebrating Alexander McQueen.
This Stella McCartney fall 2011 dress is the perfect balance of classic and quirky with its asymmetrical, sheer sleeve.
Winslet opted for a more Old Hollywood-style look in a custom Yves Saint Laurent by Stefano Pilati dress for the 2010 Oscars.
When in doubt, Winslet usually looks to Stella McCartney to dress her for the red carpet, which is exactly what she did for the BAFTAs in 2010.
Winslet wore a chic, one-shoulder Saint Laurent dress to the 2010 Golden Globes.
After six nominations, Winslet finally won her first Oscar in 2009 for her performance in The Reader. Luckily, the actress was ready to take the stage, wearing a custom black and gray, one shoulder dress from Yves Saint Laurent by Stefano Pilati.
Winslet wore a gorgeous Zac Posen gown featuring a halter neck and mermaid-style skirt to the BAFTAs in 2009.
Usually, on the fairly rare ocassion when Winslet opts for color, she gravitates toward blue, as was the case when she wore this Narciso Rodriguez dress to the SAG Awards in 2009.
Winslet once again wore YSL on the red carpet, this time in the form of a simple strapless dress with a velvet belt around the waist.
The actress doesn’t often wear mini dresses but she decided to go with this one-shoulder, embellished Balmain number for the premiere of Revolutionary Road in 2008.
Winslet wore a classic, knee-length Hervé Léger dress to The Reader premiere.
Believe it or not, this mint green Valentino gown is one of the most expensive Oscar dresses of all time, costing about $100,000.
Winslet wore a very typical princess gown by Ben de Lisi to the 2007 BAFTAs.
It’s not often Winslet wears white, but she embraced the color in this strapless Azzaro dress with a gathered bodice at the 2007 Golden Globes.
Winslet doesn’t usually gravitate toward embellishment, but she looked gorgeous in this black, floral dress at the premiere of her film, Little Children, at the London Film Festival.
The Best Actress nominee chose an unexpected color when she wore this periwinkle Badgley Mischka dress to the Oscars in 2005.
Clearly, Winslet was embracing color much more in the early part of the 2000s, and she wore a turquoise, satin dress to the SAG Awards in 2005.
When it came to the Golden Globes that same year, though, she returned to her tried-and-true black, wearing a halter neck Ben de Lisi design to the ceremony.
Winslet’s style has never been described as bohemian, but she did dip her toe into the aesthetic at the Venice premiere of Finding Neverland.
There was a time in the beginning of her career when Winslet loved a good pantsuit. In 2004, she wore a brown one when attending the premiere of her iconic film Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind with her then-husband, director Sam Mendes.
Winslet made all the best dressed lists when she wore this bright red Ben de Lisi dress to the 2002 Oscars.
The actress’ classic style is nothing new. In 2002, she wore this simple, yet timeless black dress to the Golden Globes.
Winslet looked extremely chic and modern in wide-leg, black pants and a white blazer (sans shirt) at the premiere of Iris in 2002.
This brown leather dress at the 2001 SAG Awards was likely a little out of the actress’ comfort zone, but she looked gorgeous in the simple, yet sultry look.
Winslet wore a black, satin mid-length dress with cool, geometric lace sleeves to the 2001 BAFTAs.
The actress went casual for the premiere of Holy Smoke, wearing a white overcoat to pose with her costar, Harvey Kietel.
When Winslet asked Lee McQueen to make her a Givenchy dress for the 1998 Oscars, she included the condition that he not dress any other nominee that year. It was a fair ask, considering the actress was nominated for her role in Titanic.
Winslet wore a black lace dress when attending the 1998 Golden Globes with her Titanic costar, Leonardo DiCaprio.
For her first Oscars (and first nomination), Winslet wore a bright pink Vivienne Westwood gown with a shawl in a slightly darker hue.
The actress stepped outside the box a bit for the Sense and Sensibility premiere, wearing a sheer, lace bodysuit to the event.
A 20-year-old Winslet attended the Golden Globes in a satin, double-breasted jacket and matching midnight blue pants.
