Lifetime Moms

Oscar night.  One of my favorite nights of the entire year, and one of the few that can inspire me to turn on my television.  I have vivid childhood memories of sitting with my mom, watching the red carpet portion of events, or the evening gown portion of Miss America.  I have no doubt that countless years of watching these events shaped my love of fashion.  As a direct result however, I also suffer from what I jokingly refer to as a "princess complex" - the fairy tale life with the happily ever after that includes a wardrobe full of drop dead gorgeous ball gowns (not to mention the need to wear a different one on a daily basis!).  Yes, I will take advantage of any excuse to get dressed up.  My friends have long since given up trying to figure up why I show up in a dress and heels to a barbeque - but it's simply because I have my own dress code.  Mostly because I have a princess complex.

However, 27 years of being a princess has given me some pretty strong ideas about which gowns are a hit and which are a miss on the red carpet. So, without further ado, let's check out my Oscar favorites and then, just for fun (because people watch for the disasters just as much, right?), a couple of the not-hot looks of the night.

The Oscar Fashion Hits

Anna Kendrick, from Up In The Air and Twilight, blew me away in this gorgous Elie Saab chiffon dress - kicking off the trend of nude-colored dresses that we saw repeatedly on the red carpet.  The draping and style were the perfect cut and fit for Kendrick, who is walking the line between teenager and woman with her roles.  This was one of my top 3 looks for the night.

Cameron Diaz, always a breath of fresh air when it comes to red-carpet fashion, dazzled in this Oscar de la Renta frock that will certainly go down as one of the most memorable dresses of the evening. Continuing the trend of a neutral color palette, Diaz's look also added in a bit of sparkle, another hot red carpet (and spring!) trend.

Queen Latifah was stunning in lavender - another spring color favorite and red carpet trend from the evening.  The one-shouldered dress spoke to the continuing bare shoulder trend, and I loved how the sparkly strap wrapped it's way around the front of the dress and underneath the bustline.  The epitome of class, this is one of her best red carpet looks, ever. 

Sandra Bullock caught a bit of heat from the red carpet crowd for this Marchesa gown (comparisons were made to Olympic figure skaters) and while I can make sense of their comparison (and should point out, this is one of the difficulties in pulling off a flesh-colored gown), I don't think there was really anything icy about this look.  Bullock was stunning from head to toe, with bright pink lips, soft wavy, old-Hollywood glamour style hair, and flushed cheeks. Props to Bullock for being one of the few brave enough to buck the trend and cover her shoulders tonight - even if it was in shimmering lace.

Demi Moore continues to defy the concept of aging in this traffic-stopping chiffon Atelier Versace number.  I loved that this look was simultaneously flowing yet body conscious.  Again we see the continuation of the blush-colored frocks with this dress, as well as bared shoulders. (And did we mention, Moore is a mother to three?!  Talk about hot mama!)

Kate Winslet originally did not have my vote for one of the best dressed, even though I didn't see anything wrong with her sleek ensemble.  My first instinct was that Winslet played it safe, but the more I considered it, the more I realized that classic glamour always has it's place on the red carpet.  So, while this dress didn't stand out for anything exceptionally unique, Winslet still looked incredibly classy, chic, and glamourous in this Yves Saint Laurent dress which she paired with a $2.5 million yellow diamond necklace by Tiffany and Co.

Rachel McAdams was breathtaking in this dress by Elie Saab - I loved the sweeping layers of chiffon that created a fitted bodice yet flowed into a billowing skirt.  The sweetheart neckline drew attention to her shoulders, neck and collarbone, which were left unaccessorized.  A more structured updo and chandelier earrings balanced out the soft lines of the dress and created an effect that placed this solidly in my top 3 looks of the evening. 

The Oscar Fashion Misses

Vera Farmiga from Up In The Air wasn't flying so high in this dress, which looked like it was trying to eat her alive.  Remember, there is such a thing as having too many ruffles.  Proof that every trend should be taken with a grain of salt. 

Zoe Saldana may have starred in the highest grossing movie of all time when she made Avatar, but she had a major mess on her hands with this ensemble.  All I kept thinking was "I wonder how many muppets were harmed in the making of that dress?"  It sort of looks like one of those kindergarden art projects where you wrap the tissue paper around the pencil eraser, dip it in glue, and then push it onto the page to make it look fuzzy.  Oh, wait! Her dress was attacked by kindergardeners!  It all makes sense now.

Charlize Theron had the color all right, but the look all wrong in this frock gone awry.  This over-sexualized dress drew the wrong kind of attention, I believe.  Take one look at it and I can't imagine you would disagree.  Better luck next year Charlize!

What were your personal hits and misses from Oscar night?  Share your thoughts in the comments!

While the biggest stories surrounding Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week are most often about what is taking place on the runway, sometimes some of the more interesting events are happening behind the scenes and off of the runways.  I was fortunate enough to attend one of these events - a small gathering held backstage at the W Arrivals Lounge by Chambord to unveil what is being hailed as the most expensive beverage container ever created - and also the most breathtaking.

I was on hand with my friend and colleague, photographer Kelly N. Saunders, to cover the event from start to finish.  We were ushered into the W Arrivals Lounge shortly before 6 men suddenly poured through the doorway with a very small, important package.  Five of these men, it turns out, were there to "secure the bottle" - as one of them very gravely told me.  The sixth man was the internationally renowned jeweler Donald Edge. 

And the "bottle"? 

The bottle that these five guards were in charge of securing is called 'Chambord by Donald Edge' - a bottle of the black rasberry liqueur that was designed by Edge. The spirits bottle is adorned with the finest round pearls, hand-wrought 18-carat yellow gold, and over 60 carats of diamonds - including 1,100 brilliant round cut diamonds, pear-cut diamonds, a square cut emerald diamond.  Edge himself was a riot - very kind, friendly, and quite the character! I was able to grab a few moments with him to ask about his design journey - and he told me that it took him over 2 months of constant, grueling work to complete the bejeweled beauty. I think my eyes crossed just thinking about it!

The bottle itself was unveiled by Edge and iconic designer Betsey Johnson - a breast cancer survivor and advocate who was a part of Chambord's "Pink Your Drink" initiative.  Josh Hayes, Chambord Brand Manager, told the crowd "Our 'Pink Your Drink' program throughout the year revolves around raising funds and awareness for breast cancer, so it was natural to tie into this very fashionable occasion and very fashionable designer."

The bottle is beginning a world tour, having already made it's debut in London and Berlin, it will now travel to Orlando and then to Australia to continue to raise awareness for the campaign.  I am so thankful that I was able to witness the collaboration of three classic, powerhouse brands all coming together for a very worthy cause during my Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week experience.

Of course, after the stress of the unveiling was over - we all got to cut loose and have a little fun!  It was a small crowd - there were roughly thirty people in attendance - so we were milling out, chatting about the bottle, Johnson's wildly successful Fall 2010 Runway show, and how to make a proper French Martini.  Johnson was extremely friendly and generous with her time - she spoke with everyone as if they were old friends. 

Donald Edge was an absolute delight - one of the friendliest and most down-to-earth people I've met in a long time.  We all had a lot of laughs as you can see from the photos!  He even offered to design a ring for me - which I'm sure would be breathtakingly gorgeous but solidly out of my price range!  Oh well, a girl can dream!

A big thank you goes out to Kelly N. Saunders for the use of her photos, as well as to the Chambord team for allowing me to be a part of this amazing event!