Diamonds Drip, Necklines Drop
It was a night of lots of jewelry and very little underwear.
Diamonds dripped off collarbones, and celebrity backs went bare under dresses with draping cowl backs.
Vanessa Williams was encased in a brown metallic Versace, its sides in sheer mesh strewn with tiny beads.
There wasn’t much in the way of outerwear, either. Shoulders went mostly bare, with token stoles of satin or tulle threaded through arms. Oh, there was Meryl Streep with a voluminous black satin coat, but as the afternoon sun faded, stars suffered (to the extent one can suffer in designer gowns and jewels) through the chill. “It’s cold,” Goldie Hawn winced to photographers who begged her to pause in her strapless pale green gown. Kurt Russell solicitously placed a velvet cape around her.
This year, the sartorial mood at the Oscars--the world’s biggest fashion show--was a bit more glamorous. Gone were the austere crepe columns in somber colors of the recent past. Not that stars went back to some spangle-and-glitter retro-Bob Mackie thing.
Stars sheathed themselves in yards of mostly pale satin, though Mare Winningham wore chartreuse satin, close cut, designed a mere week ago by Vera Wang.
Exceptions to the slippery satin included Patricia Arquette, who stood out in body-wrapping turquoise Herve Leger, her pale cheekbones highlighted with a sprinkle of gold dust. Halle Berry chose a beautiful Valentino in lilac.
Cleavage was abundantly evident--the better to show off diamonds. Laura Dern wore a low-cut Richard Tyler dress in sage satin with a simple diamond cross. Elisabeth Shue wafted by in a pale, almost blush-colored satin dress brimming with bosom. She said she actually bought the dress in a store. (These days, most Oscar-nominated actresses are besieged by Fed Exes from designers.)
Giorgio Armani invited best supporting actress winner Mira Sorvino to Milan, where she picked a gown with a silver-beaded bustier and silk organza full skirt. “I love Mr. Armani’s clothes,” she said as she passed into the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on Monday. “I love Mr. Armani’s clothes too,” said her proud father, Paul Sorvino, tugging on his tux.
From the look of it, most of the jewelry at Harry Winston on Rodeo Drive spent the night out. Angela Bassett wore a virtual mantle of diamonds, a necklace dripping with rectangular cut gems. Oprah Winfrey also dripped in diamonds. “I only wear my own jewelry,” she said, ears, neck and wrists sparkling.
There were few fashion gaffes. Emma Thompson looked very blond and tan but a tad sedate in cream Armani. Nicole Kidman wore Prada, but the purple chiffon gown hung limp.
Biggest surprise: Sharon Stone in a Gap mock turtleneck under a black velvet jacket and skirt.
Best dress: Claudia Schiffer’s side-draped pale ecru Valentino.
Handbags ranged from whopping envelope bags to tiny jeweled bags. Christine Cavanaugh, the voice of Babe, carried--what else?--a sparkling pink jeweled minaudiere in the shape of a pig.
