OH YEAH!

It was brought to my attention

that I did not mention the lovely Natalie Portman in my Oscars post...

something that is totally not ok.

SOOOOO

First of all, a story:

I was at St. Vincent Depaul the other day looking through the old magazines,

and I found a 1995 Seventeen magazine with Natalie on the cover.

She was fourteen at the time and the interview started out

"have you heard of her? probably not..."

and went on to say "she just might be the next winona"

which, if you have seen black swan, DE JA WHAAAAAT??!!

Anywhooo fast forward to now,

where she showed up to the Oscars looking like a sweet little grape.

I totally love pregnancy and her gigantic belly and delightful basoomas

complemented her beautiful mommy-to-be smile,

and all of this was accessorized by a lovely plum Rodarte dress.

Everything about her is awesome.

<3

Claire

2011 Oscar Jewelry Roundup: The Trends & Top Ten from Tinseltown

Oscar jewelry fashion at the 2011 Academy Awards was a smattering of surprises paired with the usual classic diamond deluge. Fasten your seatbelts, jewelry hounds. Here's my glittering recap to the red carpet Super Bowl. 

Red-hued frocks with elegant diamond looks were a big trend (Anne Hathaway, Sandra Bullock, Jennifer Hudson), along with emerald jewels (Amy Adams, Reese Witherspoon, Annette Bening), knock-out necklaces (Nicole Kidman, Helen Mirren), and colorful earrings in surprising silhouettes (Marisa Tomei, Gwyneth Paltrow, Natalie Portman).

While there was a very real fear that the 'less is more' trend would dominate the night - (Michelle Williams, Mandy Moore and Jennifer Lawrence all opted for minimal jewels - among many others), Oscar always brings out the best in some of our go-to fashion divas.

Here are my top ten looks of the night, but be sure to visit Jewelry.com on Facebook for my complete album with rants and raves capturing all the Oscar looks. And better yet? Check in with JewelClub Monday morning to get all the hot 2011 Oscar jewels at prices that don't need their own body guard.


1. Anne Hathaway Oscar Jewelry

Some might say Tiffany diamonds and a red dress are safe Oscar bets. I say - that's the kind of red carpet fashion we jewelry hounds are looking for (and dare I say) expect from the A-list. And Annie's jewelry looks just kept on coming throughout the show (I'll be tracking down pics and credits for all - so stay tuned!)

2. Nicole Kidman Oscar Jewelry

How can you make a stunning 150-carat Fred Leighton diamond necklace look even more beautiful? Put it on Nicole Kidman and have it DRAPE DOWN HER BACK! Win!

3. Marisa Tomei Oscar Jewelry

Van Cleef & Arpels is responsible for these sapphire, diamond and emerald statement stunners. And her Charles James dress from 1950 almost made Tim Gunn hyperventilate, bless his heart. She's never looked better.

4. Natalie Portman Oscar Jewelry

The sensational Live Twitter Chat gang (some of the best minds in jewelry and fashion participated - click here for more!) were either in LOVE with these Tiffany ruby tassels or thought them to be, um, pedestrian. I love the pomegranate color - not the silhouette so much. It just wasn't the knock-out moment the belle of the Oscar ball needed to bring (a la Gwyneth in Cathy Waterman and Ralph Lauren when she won back in the day).

5. Gwyneth Paltrow Oscar Jewelry

Speaking of G-Pal - only she could pull off this Calvin Klein silvery sensation of a dress paired with these unique Louis Vuitton gemstone (bird?) earrings from their L’Ame du Voyage collection. A bold choice and a big win!

6. Helen Mirren Oscar Jewelry

Dame Mirren reigned over the red carpet in a pearl, diamond and platinum necklace from 1907 and a diamond bracelet from Cartier’s Archive Museum Collection. This woman always looks lovely - although the length of her necklace is a bit long here for my taste.

7. Reese Witherspoon Oscar Jewelry

This year's Angelina Jolie-emerald-earring copycat award goes to...Reese Witherspoon, who looked lovely in 35-carat emerald drops by Neil Lane (her jewelry totaled $1 million). Annette Bening? You come in second place...

8. Jennifer Hudson Oscar Jewelry

Jaws dropped when this dream girl stepped on the red carpet in a 'tangerine/red' Versace number and Neil Lane diamonds. And I am telling you. You don't have to go anywhere, sister.

9. Mandy Moore Oscar Jewelry

The 'less is more' win of the night for me went to this pretty diamond cluster earring on Mandy Moore. The overall look is the perfect example of how to wear jewelry with a sparkly dress. Just lovely.

10. Amy Adams Oscar Jewelry
 

Such a bold choice to wear navy, no neck line and this Cartier emerald and diamond wrap necklace and a 30.75-carat carved emerald and diamond bracelet-watch worth $1.025 million. Everyone is talking about her jewelry - despite the fact that it belonged with a different ensemble.

Whew! So what do you guys think of my Top Ten Oscar jewels for 2011? Who did I miss? Weigh in - and be sure to double back tomorrow for my 'after party' jewelry gawk-fest. Hoping for an Angelina sighting at the Vanity Fair party. Stay tuned!

(By request, a close-up of Amy Adams' Cartier wrist bling. Wow!)

AWARDS SHOW MANIA: SCREEN ACTORS GUILD

ALOOOOOHA

The SAG Awards happened,

which means THE OSCARS ARE GETTING CLOSER!!

And geez hooliah, most everyone looked incredible!

Way better than the Critics Choice!

Here are my thoughts:

The Good:

Amber Riley in Ann Barge

SO PERFECT

diva-esque, and body conscious!

Julia Stiles in Monique Lhuiller

LOVE!

January Jones in Carolina Herrera

Different, but it totally works

Natalie Portman in Azzaro

BABY BELLY!

fertility goddess!

Mila Kunis in Alexander McQueen

BAAAAAAAH

<3>

like she popped on a beautiful white dress,

went all Lady McBeth on someone,

and instead of being like "out out damn spot!!"

she just ROCKED IT and was like,

BLACK SWAN BITCHES.

So long that 70s show!

The Bad:

Amy Adams in Herve Ledger

TOTALLY washes her out

Nicole Kidman in Nina Ricci

something about this look just creeps me out.

she looks like an orphaned teenager from a tim burton movie

who gains strength from burning dolls and eats spiderwebs

or something.

The Beauty:

Natalie Portman

Makeup by Eileen Kastner-Delago

Hair by Orlando Pita

her signature shimmery smokey eye, this makeup is stunning,

(but the hair is strange, aging, and flat)

Lea Michele

Makeup by Melanie Inglessis

Hair by Mark Townsend for Dove

beyond simple, minimal but so lovely.

check those lashes!

Tina Fey

Makeup by Gita Bass

Hair by Richard Marin

Classy, Classy, Classy.

and my favorite of the night:

Helena Bonham Carter, looking adorable!

still her kookywooky self, but tucked in and toned down.

her shoes match, the dress is fun, and her hair

-still big and random-

has been brushed and styled.

thoughts?

<3

Claire

SAG Awards Jewelry Roundup 2011

Juliana Margulies in Bavna jewelry

The 17th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards brought us a red carpet full of diamond dangle earrings, icy cuffs, a few scary statement necklaces and a splash of color for good measure.

If this sounds familiar, it's because all the big red carpet events lately have followed the same 'play it safe' pattern when it comes to bedazzling our favorite Hollywood beauties.

I'm not complaining, really. The SAG Awards are known as a more low-key carpet than the Globes and the Oscars. I just miss the smack-your-face, lower-jaw-drop jewelry moments from years' past. It just ain't happening much in 2011, I'm afraid.

That said, here's a roundup of last night's jewelry trends for your drooling pleasure.

Diamond Divas:

SAG winner, Natalie Portman, and Glee diva, Lea Michele, stunned in millions worth of Tiffany diamond dazzle. You have my permission to hate them.

Natalie Portman in $2 million Tiffany 27.95-carat yellow diamond earrings

Lea Michele in $300,000 worth of Tiffany diamond jewels

Drops and Dangles:

The ubiquitous diamond dangle earring category made a strong showing - with a few standouts like Julianna Margulies in Bavna statement stunners and the always-gorg Kim Kardashian in her go-to jewelry favorite, Lorraine Schwartz.

Heather Morris in Martin Katz

Eva Longoria in Neil Lane

Tina Fey in Lorraine Schwartz leaf earrings

Kim Kardashian in Lorraine Schwartz

Black and White:

Amy Adams has never looked this good, in my humble opinion - thanks to the year's standout red carpet jewelry designer, Kimberly McDonald. While Christina Hendricks got too close to Elvira chic with her dress choice, I love the black teardrop earrings by Sutra (which she didn't lose this time!).

Winona Ryder in Gray jewelry

Christina Hendricks in Sutra earrings

January Jones in Lorraine Schwartz

Amy Adams in Kimberly McDonald

Amy Adams in Kimberly McDonald

Diamond Cleavage...Um, I Mean, Cuffs:

Sofia Vergara continues to wow in a plunging blue Roberto Cavalli with a sparkling Chopard diamond cuff.

Sofia Vergara in Chopard diamond cuff

Claire Danes in Fred Leighton diamond bangles

Natalie Portman in Tiffany diamond bangles

Mila Kunis in $270,000 Cartier tiger cuff. Meow!

Color Queens:

While previous awards shows gave us a definite color trend to squawk about (emeralds for the Globes), the SAGs gave us just a varied smattering of gemstone hues.

Rosario Dawson in Susie Fox

Jane Krakowski in Lorraine Schwartz

Mariska Hargitay in David Webb turquoise earring

Necklace No-Nos:

So far, 2011 is NOT the year of the necklace. I'm on the fence about Nicole Kidman's Fred Leighton flower piece - but Jenna Ushkowitz's gold bib number has to go.

Nicole Kidman in Fred Leighton

Our fun-filled SAG Twitter chat (#SAGjewelry) led by the all-knowing Cindy Edelstein (aka JewelryBizGuru), was the usual snark-fest with the occasional gasp. But we all agreed we were missing a stand-out jewelry star - and that Guiliana Rancic needs to stop speaking English.

Check out all the fun here - and weigh in with your thoughts!

Next up? The Grammy Awards on February 13th!