The Critics Choose and the Earrings Shine

The Critics' Choice Awards was full of surprises last night. Slum Dog Millionaire stole the show with three big wins, and there was a tie in the Best Actress category between Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway. A tie? It seems awards shows can’t let The Meryl be in a movie without handing her a trophy (if she wins a Globe for the dreadful, Mamma Mia, I’m moving to Canada). Perhaps the biggest surprise was a scowling Angelina Jolie who couldn’t hide her disdain during Anne Hathaway’s rambling acceptance speech. Meow!









The jewelry fashion was all about the ears, as many A-listers chose the no necklace look with strapless, classic gowns. Kate Beckinsale can do no wrong in a chocolate frock with dream catcher gemstone earrings; Marisa Tomei’s fan dress was a little much, but her clover-shaped earrings made the ensemble work; and Slumdog Millionaire beauty, Freida Pinto, wore maharajah-shaped earrings with her heavenly white cap-sleeved dress. Do I see a Slumdog earring trend emerging?










I think I am officially over the metallic dress/no jewelry look that both Eva Longoria and Evan Rachel Wood sported. Yet most celebs opted for the less-is-more jewelry statement that the New York Times recently reported we will most likely see on the upcoming Award Show red carpets this year.

















While the gawker-dreamer in us wants the stars to go all out with the ice no matter what the DOW is doing, there are upsides to restraint. We mere mortals can find more and more celebrity red carpet jewelry looks for our own jewelry boxes. Jai Ho!

A similar look to Angelina Jolie’s pearl-button earrings can be found on Jewelry.com for over $200 off the original price. She can keep the scowl.












And these Penelope-inspired diamond drops could make any night on the town an award-winning affair.












Viola Davis dazzled in classic pearl-drop earrings, suitable for almost any occasion. Try these on for size for just over $100.

People's Choice Awards - A Jewelry Fashion Recap

Last night’s Queen Latifah-hosted People’s Choice Awards kicked awards season off in style, as the red carpet at LA’s Shrine Auditorium positively glittered with stars, frocks and new jewelry looks for our drooling pleasure.

Maybe it’s the economy or maybe it’s the event itself, which celebrates the power of the huddled masses yearning to breathe free, but it looks like we’re seeing an end to the bigger, bolder statement trend and the beginning of a more, shall we say, subtle era. In other words, the celebs kept the ice quotient to a minimum last night - perhaps to keep us in their good graces? And it worked. For the most part.

The World Gold Council recently reported that gold jewelry is seeing an upturn in sales even in these tough economic times, and the stylists proved their point last night. Fashion icon, Debra Messing, glowed in a sculptural Donna Karan number and H.Stern's new Hera earrings in 18K gold. House star Jennifer Morrison honored the metallic trend with a Gianfranco Frere dress and H.Stern's Zephyr earrings in 18K Noble gold; and Jewel, Chandra Wilson, Jordin Sparks and Olivia Wilde rocked their own subtle yellow gold looks.



























While there were some signs of the statement trend hanging in there, like Marissa Tomei’s stunning teardrop necklace and Kate Hudson’s oversized earrings and Jack Vartanian black and white cocktail rings, most celebs opted for understated diamond looks instead.













Dancing With the Stars host, Samantha Harris, is usually dripping in diamonds, but this time she dazzled in small chain-link diamond earrings. A nice touch. Our favorite 90210-er, Jenny Garth, wore a tasteful little boring, I mean, black dress, as did fellow blonde Reese Witherspoon – yet thankfully each of them sprinkled right hand rings and simple diamond earring styles to take things up a notch.



















The most unfortunate misstep of the evening did not go to Kathryn Heigl for the pants suit (I’ll let it pass for the Populist Choice awards), but rather to Malin Ackerman, whose sculptural, chunky accessories did nothing to make the unfortunate frock choice any less 'wrong'.




























My favorite jewelry fashion star last night, though, had to be Samantha Who?’s Christina Applegate. Again. The A-line Jenny Packham gown sparkled with just enough crystals, and her matching vintage diamond cuff was the right amount of bling to remind us that she’s a star. Who doesn't love this woman is the question? Bravo!















With the Critics Choice Awards tonight on VH1 and the Golden Globes this Sunday, the jewelry hound brigade is in for a long magic red carpet ride right up to the Inauguration - where all fashion hell will surely break loose.

What will the Divine Mrs. Obama wear for gosh sakes already? Diamonds and de la Renta? Gemstones and Gucci? A pearl strand from J. Crew and a pants suit (god forbid)? I can't wait!

A Diamond Redemption – Anne Hathaway Rules Palm Springs

What a difference a day makes. Maybe it’s the Cartier diamonds, but Anne Hathaway did a complete 180 from Monday’s fashion misstep at the Bride Wars premiere with a stunning red carpet walk at the Palm Springs International Film Festival last night. Which is a relief, honestly, because I unleashed a mean can of bad karma on the Rachel Getting Married star for her outfit choice yesterday. Yikes.

Appearing in a form-fitting Balmain black corseted number from the Spring ’09 collection, Hathaway dripped in gala presenter, Cartier’s, diamonds to accept her Palm Springs honor for the Jonathan Demme-helmed film. And her diamond right hand ring is downright drool-worthy. Thank heavens you’re back on track, sister, and just in time for the Golden Globes this Sunday.

Other diamond divas included a flirty Amy Adams in diamond drops and a flower right hand ring, and the ageless Mary Hart in a vintage Cartier ensemble.

I was hoping the A-list wattage, including Clint Eastwood, Sean Penn, and Leonardo DiCaprio, would keep a major fashion blunder from repeating itself on the West Coast, but, alas, Suzanne Somers’ ensemble happened.

A glitter hound can dream.

Click here for a complete list of the night’s honorees, and set your DVRs for the red carpet shenanigans this Sunday for the 66th Annual Golden Globes. I dare the pants suit to make an appearance. I dare it.

Bride Wars Premeire - Fashion Hits And Misses

Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway played with ‘bride and groom’ fashion at the premiere of their new movie, Bride Wars, last night, and the result was a fashion marvel and a major misstep. With not one, but two A-list beauties sharing top billing, we fashion hounds expect couture on the red carpet not a cutsie marketing ploy. Sorry, ladies.

Kate Hudson dazzled in a stunning black and white Oscar de la Renta gown, while Anne played groom with a tailored tuxedo jacket over what appeared to be black skinny jeans. Seriously. Skinny jeans. Two words I had hoped to never write again –particularly about the usually chic Hathaway.

And the misstep didn’t end there. The Hathaway hair choice conjured images of an Elvira-spawned lovechild with a profile reminiscent of an Olympic ski jump. It’s just all kinds of unfortunate.

Luckily, there were diamonds to cover for the calamity. Kate wore a cluster of diamond bangles, Anne sported a chunky diamond right hand ring, and a surprisingly svelte Kristen Johnston won the night with an icy diamond statement necklace. Well done.

The Hudson-produced Bride Wars tells the tale of two best friends turned rivals who are forced to share the same wedding date at The Plaza. Cat fights, backstabbing and crying jags ensue. The glittering New York premiere had its after party at (where else?) Tiffany’s, and the movie features a five-carat rock worth close to $400,000 from the iconic jewelry store.

I’m sure Anne and Kate look adorable in the film, which opens wide this Friday, January 9th. But a note to Anne’s stylist? Make the ski-slope hair and suit trousers stop.

Celebrity Style - Glittering Jewelry Steals from Hollywood's Hottest Moms

‘Top Ten' lists are a frequent sight as we enter the early days of 2009. One of my favorites? The list of Hollywood's hottest moms. It's as much about their achievements over the year, as it is their innate style that places these women at the top of Hollywood's hottest hotties. See how you can steal your favorite celebrity jewels for a fraction of the price via my favorite jewelry information hub, Jewelry.com.










Coming in at the top spot is Kelly Ripa, who has three children with husband Mark Consuelos. To get Kelly's look for a steal, Kay Jewelers has the perfect pair of Ripa style diamond studs that every busy mom should have.










The next hottest 'Yummy Mummy' is gorgeous Halle Berry. Halle's rarely seen without her signature oversized gold hoops - a gotta-have jewel for 2009. These dazzlers with a diamond accent win the gold hands down.













Number four on the list is our favorite young mom – Jessica Alba. There's only one thing you can count on when it comes to her style – classic glamour. Get her ravenous ruby look here from Zales.














And last - but never least - is Ms. Humanitarian and mother of... well it was six at last count - Angelina Jolie. Get Angelina's green goddess cocktail ring with a touch of bling from Macy’s and ‘rock’ your way into the New Year.

Top Yummy Mummies from Fox News.

1. Kelly Ripa
2. Halle Berry
3. Faith Hill
4. Jessica Alba
5. Demi Moore
6. Cindy Crawford
7. Heidi Klum
8. Isla Fisher
9. Nicole Ritchie
10. Gwen Stefani
11. Angelina Jolie

Famous Red Diamond Goes to Hollywood

What does the renown “Kazanjian Red” diamond have in common with Madonna’s diamond tiara and a diamond necklace from Cary Grant? They are all on display at the Natural History Museum in (where else?) Los Angeles this month.

One of only three vividly blood-hued red diamonds known to exist, the 5-carat "Kazanjian Red" has a storied and colored past. The rough gem was unearthed in 1927 in a diamond field in South Africa, but was stolen during World War II in Arnhem during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, where it was hidden for years in a salt mine among other stolen treasures.

Eventually, after first mistaking the rare diamond to be a ruby, American soldiers recovered the Kazanjian Red, but could not return it since its rightful owners did not survive the war. After being hidden away by a private collector for 37 years, it was finally purchased by Los Angeles-based Kazanjian Bros. Inc and is now on its very first exhibition in the U.S.

Also on display at the museum, is the "Hollywood Jewels Collection," which features an emerald and diamond brooch once owned by Faye Dunaway; a bejeweled compact given to Carole Lombard by Clark Gable; the Edwardian era (ca. 1910) tiara worn by Madonna in her wedding to Guy Ritchie, and a gold and diamond collar necklace given to actress Terry Moore by Cary Grant, who once said that Grant gave her the gift in appreciation for letting him cry on her shoulder during his divorce.

Celebrity marriage doesn’t always last, but diamonds always get their fifteen minutes if Hollywood is involved. The “Hollywood Jewels Collection” and the Kazanjian Red are on display in the museum's Gem and Mineral Hall until February 1st.

The Queen's Stolen Gems

Jewelry thieves found another celebrity victim this week – this time on the Caribbean Island of Tobago. E! Online reports that Queen Latifah was robbed of nearly $10,000 in jewelry while enjoying a private barbecue brunch thrown by the management of her posh resort on New Year's Eve. The missing loot included two gold rings, a gold chain, some silver jewelry and an expensive bracelet.

Like most vacationing celebs, Latifah checked in to the Stone Haven Villas resort under a pseudonym. She was there to relax with her family-member traveling companion but didn’t get a chance to unwind before the theft occurred. The local authorities believe the crime was an ‘inside job’, as there were no signs of breaking and entering.

There has been no official comment from Latifah, who is due to return to the U.S. sometime today.

"She is still here, I cannot say when she is going to check out,” a Stone Haven staffer told E!.

At least she got off easier than Paris Hilton, who lost over $2 million from her jewelry box a few days before Christmas.

While nothing can replace the emotional value of your jewelry, there are steps you can take to protect your financial investment from the sticky finger brigade that seems to be having a field day in these trying economic times.

Check out this earlier entry about jewelry certificates, appraisals and insurance, and sleep a little better than the Queen at night. Who needs an island vacation when you’ve got peace of mind, right?