WowâŚcanât say that I really expected these costume posts to become as popular as they have! I was pleased as punch earlier today when I did a search for âWho Wore It Better?â and found many sites (even ones not related to DWTS!) linking to our posts. Glad to see everyoneâs having as much fun playing fashion critic as we are đÂ
Now I only have one concern: how long is it going to be before other not-to-be-named DWTS fan sites (that are notorious for posting content very similar to ours, ahem) start âborrowingâ our pictures and commenting on them the same way we have? HmmmâŚwell just remember, kids: you saw it here FIRST đ
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Battle of the two-piece black vinyl paso dress: Anna in the pro dance to Def Leppard in season 6 vs. Lacey in the pro dance to Kevin Rudolf in season 8
Courtney: EhâŚIâm having a hard time with this one. I think it physically looks better on Anna, but she doesnât have the personality to carry off the whole rocker persona; I think Lacey has the right attitude, but it just doesnât look as flattering on her. I have the hardest time when the girls go barefoot to do Latin â the movement just doesnât seem as dramatic & crisp, and I feel like it makes their legs look short. So I guess Iâm going with Anna on this one.
Heidi: Well, Iâm with Anna too, but itâs purely a personal preference for her as a dancer. I also donât like the barefoot ballroom deal â I think of ballroom almost always elegant (even the raunchy latin) than the contemporary stuff that the bare feet bring to mind. Personal preference, although I give Lacey props for this particular dance.
The winner: Anna, by a high heel. đ
 Battle of the white, heavily-stone ballgown with matching choker: Melissaâs Viennese waltz with Tony in season 8 vs. Annaâs waltz with Jonathan to Norah Jones in season 9
Heidi: Best couple dancing on the show, bar none, goes to Anna and Jonathan when waltzing. Makes me all schmoopy â and thatâs so not me. đ Donât like the sleeve things on Melissa â the simpler look from Anna is cleaner and prettier. Not to mention the look on her face.
Courtney: You know I love Anna to bloody bits, so this one is no-contest for me đ I think wardrobe was wise to eighty-six those weird sleeves from when Melissa wore the dress, and replace it with one simple drape across the front. And Melissa, please, donât slouch â everything looks better when you stand up straight! WowâŚI just love that picture of Jonathan & Anna. *sigh* They are just a dream to watch. BEAUTIFUL.
Heidi: Itâs so funny that you said that about Melissa. I really like Melissa now that her fans arenât being nasty all over the DWTS message boards, but my first thought on seeing that picture was âstraighten up, girly!â
The winner: Anna, by a husband.
 Battle of the black & tan, two-tone fringe Latin dress: Shawnâs cha-cha with Mark in season 8 vs. Anna in the ladiesâ pro dance opener in season 9
Courtney: Iâm probably going to incite a firestorm of debate with this one, butâŚI actually like the dress better on Anna than Shawn. *hides face in fear* Shawn is adorable, donât get me wrong â but I feel like the overall fit of the dress is better on statuesque Anna, while it seems to really shorten Shawnâs torso and hits her hips at an odd angle. And as Iâve said before, Iâm not a fan of the over-styled, severely bump-itized hairdosâŚI much prefer a more loose, carefree hairstyle, so Iâm sorry, but I have to give this one to Anna.
Heidi: Oh youâre fine. And you wonât get any argument from me. đ What the problem is, I think, is that the black/tan border hits Shawn in the wrong spot â she is so short that the dress almost works against her, shortens her frame more, whereas Anna has such a long torso that it just seems to wear better on her.
Courtney: Yeah, I think you hit the nail on the head with that one. It just seems like everyone thinks Shawn is just so adorable in everything she wears…and while Shawn is cute, I don’t think this dress was particularly flattering on her.Â
The winner: Anna by a long torso.
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Battle of the yellow-fringed, cut-out Latin dress: Jennieâs samba with Derek in season 5 vs. Kym in the pro dance to Robin Thicke in season 8 vs. Ashly & Cheryl in the pro dance to the Beach Boys in season 10
Heidi: Ashly has this weird drape of fabric right across her waist â what is up with that?? It looks horrible like that!! Jennie looks ghostly in it, so I think it comes down to Cheryl and Kym. I like it on both of them, but I think Cheryl has the edge due to the darker hair and the darker skin.
Courtney: Talk about a dress thatâs been around the block a few times-er, seasons! Yellow seems to make Jenny look a little jaundice, so sheâs out; the cut of the dress seems a bit odd on Kym, so sheâs out too – honestly, I think itâs nary impossible for blondes to wear yellow without looking pale, so poor Jennie & Kym were already at a bit of a disadvantage. That leaves Ashly & Cheryl, who got a bonus drape of fabric added to distract us from the fact that weâve already seen this dress twice before, hehe. Now while I think both carry off the color quite well, yellow just doesnât seem to strike me as a color that Ashly has a lot of in her wardrobeâŚso Iâm going to go with Cheryl. Cheryl has the personality to carry off yellow đ
The winner: Cheryl!! We found a dress for her! đ
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Battle of the white & blue, two-piece fringe Latin dress: Brookeâs jive with Derek in season 7 vs. Deniseâs preseason photo shoot in season 8
Courtney: BlechâŚtwo ladies whose personalities I donât particularly care for, in a dress that I donât particularly care for. Do I really have to pick one? Ugh, fineâŚBrooke, I guess. The color at least looks good with her hair and skin. Denise looks washed out. But at least they got rid of those suspender-like drapes for Denise and replaced it with a single, well-placed drape. Ok, thatâs itâŚnothing else better to say.
Heidi: I have to go with Brooke even though they had those two vertical drapes which were just plain weird. Youâre right, it looks better with her hair and skin than it does on Denise.
The winner: Brooke, in spite of the suspenders
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Battle of the red-fringed ballgown with draping sleeve: Julianneâs quickstep with Cody in season 7 vs. Nancyâs would-be preseason photo shoot with Tony in season 8 vs. Ashlyâs preseason photo shoot with Buzz in season 10
Heidi: HmmmmâŚ.I donât think I can see enough of the dress on Nancy, and poor Ashly seems to have a baby bump in her picture, so I go with the Hough of the bunch, despite being bitter about Footloose to this day. đ
Courtney: Ironically enough, I think Nancy actually wore this one the best â even though she never actually danced on the show! Haha. Love her hair and how the pose sheâs in really lets the fabric & fringe drape beautifully. Itâs ok on Julianne â red just doesnât seem to be the best color on her. As for Ashly, the color is nice â but the cut of the dress, coupled with the pose, just really isnât flattering on her. It kinda stinks, but I feel like wardrobe has really âmommy-izedâ her since her return to the show â poor girl has a great body and is only in her 20s, yet this season they seemed to put her in dresses better suited to a much older woman. Bring back the old Ashly costumes, PLEASE!
The winner: Tie between Jules & Nancy – because they don’t look pregnant
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Battle of the red-bodice, black-lace overlay tango dress: Kelly, Joanna, & Kym in the group tango in season 9 vs. Kathyâs tango with Tony in the season 9 finale
Courtney: It was a little surprising to me that they dittoed a dress in the same season it was originally worn, but I guess maybe they just didnât have time to make Kathy a new costume just for the finale. And maybe thatâs why she seems a bit awkward in it, too. Kelly & Joanna look nice in this dress, but I think Kymâs hair and makeup and overall expression really work this dress the best.
Heidi: Yeah, Iâm with you â Kym has the right expression for the dance AND the dress, I think. Joanna suffers from having the weird rumba hair left over from earlier in the evening and Kelly looks fish-facey. Kathy looks amazing too thoughâŚbut Iâm going with Kym.
The winner: Kym, by a fierce face
  Want more? Be sure to check out parts I, II, & III to relive the magic of our first three installments, and weâll be back again next week with a fresh batch of dittoed costumes đ
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