The Oscars!

First, let me begin by saying that I hope this post turns out okay due to all of the technical difficulties I've been having with Blogger lately (that's why I have been very quiet lately!).  Okay, so let's move on to the good stuff... the 84th Acadamey Awards!

I thought last night's red carpet was a lot better than what we've seen lately, so I was happy about that.  I wasn't too happy that none of the starlets were wearing STACY LOMMAN : NEW YORK or Wendy Brandes fine jewelry!  Whatever were they thinking?  Well, there's always next year!

Photo Credit : Getty Images

Obviously, Angelina Jolie (well, her right leg to be more specific) caused quite a stir and I'm still trying to figure out why.  Why shouldn't she show some leg?  First of all, her legs are fantastic and secondly, Donatella created an absolutely gorgeous dress that has a high slit in order to show off a leg!  As far as I'm concerned, Angie was doing the dress justice.  She was doing her job.  From a designer's point of view, I would be furious if I had a piece on the runway that wasn't shown off properly.  We put so much time and effort into these pieces and it would be a travesty if nobody got to see all of the details that make a dress so special and beautiful.  So, I'm going out on a limb and defending Angie, her leg and her gorgeous dress -- YES, even though it was black.  The Versace gown had a lovely proportion which not only featured Ms. Jolie's gams, but her tiny little waist as well.  My only issue with this overall look was that Angie needs to eat.  When she turned sideways, she disappeared and then nobody got to enjoy the gown anyway.

Okay, let's talk about the girls who "did it right" -- obviously, I'm including Angelina on that list, so who else "made it work," as Tim Gunn would say?  Here's my top 5 below...

1. Gwenyth Paltrow in Tom Ford: Flawless.  I'm a fan of clean, streamline, no fuss and this coat/cape and dress combo was perfection.  It certainly doesn't hurt that Ms. Paltrow spends her days exercising so that her body is just as sleek and streamlined as the dress.  My only issue was her hair.  I would have preferred a tied, twisted chignon rather than her low-slung pony that suggested "soccer mom," but I'm willing to forgive her hair faux pas because her dress was amazing.  Glam.  Slam dunk.

Gwenyth Paltrow in Tom Ford

Photo Credit : Getty

2. My second choice was the beautiful, Rose Byrne who looked (to me) very modern.  And in my opinion, she got the hair right!  Even though black is usually a difficult choice on the red carpet because the details don't show up very well, the sequins solved that problem.

Rose Byrne in Vivenne Westwood

Photo Credit: Getty

3. Milla Jovovich snagged my third spot.  Another girl in white!  I love this trend.  But, I'm also loving that she kept it pretty clean and fuss free like Gwen did.  I'm a fan of asymmetry, so I totally approve of the one shoulder silhouette.  Her hair and makeup were lovely -- very old Hollywood. 

Milla Jovovich in Elie Saab

Photo Credit: Getty

4. Since this seems to be the "Year of the Redheads," I felt that I needed to include one in my top five.  So, I was a little torn between Emma Stone (whom I adore and 99% of the time nails it with fashion) and Jessica Chastain.  I went with Jessica partly because it was definitely her year, partly because she brought her mom as her date and partly because she chose to wear McQueen.



Jessica Chastain in Alexander McQueen

Photo Credit: Getty

5. Angelina Jolie (see above)

I realize that I just selected three black gowns and two white.  I'm a little suprised because I am usually such a fan of color on the red carpet.  That said, there were some stunning red dresses that were worth mentioning...

Michelle Williams in Louis Vuitton: The color is gorgeous, the fit is perfection, the peplum is on trend, the style is so Michelle and the little brooch seems very "Audrey."  Beautiful.  And Michelle is so pretty -- hair and makeup, flawless.  She has the face to pull off a pixie cut and I, for one, am glad she does it!



And finallly, a redhead in red!  What?  Yes, it CAN be done!  Emma Stone nails it in Giambatista Valli...

Since my formatting has been disabled, I fear this blog post is all over the place.  Therefore, I'll have to post my top five (or maybe even ten!) disasters another day!  One last note before I wrap up:  I know that Rooney Mara is supposed to be a "designers dream" and I can assure you, I'd love to be dressing her, but I was underwhelmed.  From the neck up, she was spot on.  But, the Givenchy dress didn't fit her.  Sadly, it just hung there like a sheet.  Too bad.