Style Evolution: Kelly Ripa
Kelly Ripa -- whose résumé runs from "All My Children" to pitching for a major appliance manufacturer -- sure has hit her fashion stride. In her eight years as co-host of "Live With Regis and Kelly," Ripa hasn't just transformed her career, she's also morphed herself from pretty-young-thing to fab fashionista, taming the tease in her hair, winnowing even the slightest trace of pudge from her bod, and upping her wardrobe from racy to refined. Sure, it's a joke that the 5-foot-3 star loves to strut her model walk on-air, but there's also no doubt that she's become one of the most stylish fixtures on TV. Click on to see how Kelly has gone from ho-hum to hip.
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Ripa landed on TV in 1991, playing Hayley Vaughn, "All My Children's" favorite Goth-girl, with Elvira hair, Morticia makeup and enough black leather to outfit a Hell's Angels convention. Off-screen, Ripa was just another fresh-faced Jersey Girl. At a 1991 Juvenile Diabetes benefit at the West Side Tennis Club in New York, she paired crisp white shorts with a Pop-Art cropped top.
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Lady in Red: No, this isn't Ripa's prom photo (although it could be). This was taken in 1991 - three years after the future talk show queen attended her high school dance - at a Citigroup event in New York. Clearly she was still in the frilly "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" fashion mentality.
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Is it any wonder that Ripa would one day get married in Las Vegas? From the beginning, she's loved to let her inner show girl shine through. An early sighting: this spangled gold halter dress for the 1993 People's Choice Awards.
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In 1993, the Daytime Emmy Awards moved to night time, and Ripa, who snagged her first nomination for "outstanding younger actress in a drama series," decided to glam it up. Or, should we say, over-glam it up. She didn't win -- and neither, we suspect, did her sequined teal gown and cascading hair.
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No, these aren't their wedding clothes, but they could have been. Ripa and her (momentarily-not-so-gorgeous) castmate Mark Consuelos eloped to Las Vegas in May 1996, marrying in a chapel that she's said was so "cheesy" that she can't even remember its name. (They never bothered taking wedding pictures either.) Nine months later, the pregnant star wore a boudoir look to pick up her first Soap Opera Digest Award for outstanding younger leading actress. Style note: Ripa's marriage to Consuelos and her eight-year stint as Hayley weren't the only things to endure. Watch how she clutches that silver purse for years to come.
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Stunningly back in shape less than a year after the birth of son Michael, Ripa wore a clingy white dress and chic slicked-back hair to the 1998 Daytime Emmy Awards. Her best accessories: hubby Mark Consuelos -- and her little silver purse.
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Oh no she(er) didn't! Ripa's see-through number for the 1999 Daytime Emmy Awards was a little too shower curtain chic for our tastes. Understandably the new mom (and Best Supporting Actress nominee) wanted to show off her increasingly buff bod, but sheer bottoms are always a dicey call. (Plaudits for sticking with the silver clutch, though.)
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Is that Kelly Ripa or Debra Messing? Her Grace-like hair was of-the-moment but the spangly pink jumpsuit (sadly) was not - especially for the 2000 Daytime Emmy Awards! Then there's the matter of that sparkly star at the base of Ripa's back -- is this what a Goth-girl would do? (We doubt it, even if it does match her trusty silver purse.)
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For her "Live With Regis and Kelly" debut on Feb. 5, 2001, the exuberant young star struck just the right Every-Mom note for her Every Woman audience: high boots, long skirt and a simple sleeveless turtleneck. The perfect addition: the next edition. Ripa was pregnant with daughter Lola.
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