ETERNAL SUNSHINE

Shiny, happy yellow is lighting up this season’s party and award circuit, showing up in sexy little dresses and in splashes of color in accessories.

“The right celebrities are wearing it, and there are a lot of standout items from the latest collections that are yellow, so it’s very much at the forefront,” says Monica Gonzalez, buyer of the serendipitously named Yellow boutique on La Brea Avenue (Christina Ricci, Cameron Diaz and super-stylist Rachel Zoe are regulars).

Among those items from the spring 2007 collections are Diane von Furstenberg’s crisp shirtdress, Calvin Klein’s chiffon-y mini and Peter Som’s crinkled short-sleeved frock. Marc Jacobs, Zac Posen and Proenza Schouler have also incorporated splashes of yellow into their looks.

Luminous lemon tones have become nearly as pervasive as Hollywood award season trophies, with Reese Witherspoon in Nina Ricci leading the way at the Golden Globes and Jessica Biel in Ferragamo at the Critics Choice Awards. Other canary-wearing celebs include America Ferrera at CosmoGirl!’s luncheon honoring “Ugly Betty,” Monet Mazur at W’s pre-Golden Globes bash, Bridget Moynahan at Art Basel Miami and Iman at the Cinema Society’s “Children of Men” screening.

But the sprightly shade hasn’t always enjoyed so much prominence. When Michelle Williams attended last year’s Oscars in a Vera Wang gown the color of a perfectly poached egg yolk, yellow was still a novelty, relegated mostly to plastic “Livestrong” bracelets and soccer referee uniforms.

“It’s a really bold color, and it can draw a lot of attention, which I guess is never a bad thing in Hollywood or in fashion,” says “Little Miss Sunshine” costume designer and local style scenester Nancy Steiner, who, ironically, hardly used the color in the film.