And The Award Goes To...

Okay, so last night was the night fashion lovers have been waiting for! The yummy icing on the layered cake, that is award season. Every year, I get my champagne (this year lemon drop martini), my laptop and cell phone and I tune into E! Live at the Red Carpet and start my live tweeting. Last night the tweeters were out and they had LOTS to say about the red carpet fashions...here's my breakdown. This time there are no maybes. I either love it or hate it. It's either a "hit" or a "miss."

I already had in mind who was on my best dressed list and worst dressed list, but when I went online to see how the fashions photographed, I definitely made some tweaks!!

Let's start with the lady of the night. Natalie Portman in Rodarte. So, she was the last one to hit the red carpet before the show and I literally almost missed her. I was pleasantly surprised to see that she looked 100 times better than the Golden Globes, but I'm still disappointed. Pre-pregnancy she was on this fashion high and now I'm like, "womp, womp, womp." Don't get me wrong, she looked beautiful, but I just think that for the Oscars, she could have hired an amazing stylist (*cough* Rachel Zoe) and stepped it up. This look would have been perfect for the Golden Globes! Anyhow, good job Natalie...you're on my "hit" list!



Annette, Annette, Annette!! Who doesn't love her...and her husband for that matter? Here she is in Naeem Khan. I don't love how it's photographing, but she she stepped on the stage to present, she looked flawless!



Camila Alves totally got passed me last night...I didn't even notice her on the red carpet. But when I went back to look at the photographs I was like, "WOW!" I wished I had seen her live and although the deep V is a little too deep for my liking, she looks stunning! Her fabulous ball gown is Kaufman Franco.





I was surprised to see Jennifer Lawrence in Calvin Klein. This is exactly how I had hoped she would look at the Golden Globes. Simple, sleek, stunning. And I love, love, love that she only had a small bracelet! I look forward to seeing her on future red carpets.





I gotta be honest, I was a little disappointed to see Reese Witherspoon in this black and white Armani Prive dress, which everyone was comparing to a subtle version of Julia Robert's vintage Valentino (the year she won her Oscar). She looks beautiful. Her hair, makeup and jewelry is flawless, but the dress just didn't blow it out of the water for me. She always looks great, and while I know she leans towards simple looks, it's the Oscars Reese!! We want you to wow us!




Gwyneth Paltrow in Calvin Klein. She was shimmering and glowing, despite her obvious nerves over her performance. On the red carpet I did not care for the brooch added to the gown, but I am feeling it a lot more in the photograph! Her hair, makeup and jewelry bring this sleep look together and she's definitely a best dressed!

Attention, Attention!! Celine Dion hired a stylist!! At least it appears that way. She looked amazing in Armani Prive (maybe Reese should have worn this?). Celine is forever on my "miss" list, but last night she wowed me!

Jennifer Hudson looked soooo fabulous and soooo thin last night! She should be very proud of herself. This dress would have been even more amazing if the top was different. It just does NOTHING for her. If anything it takes away from the dress. I couldn't believe this was Versace either?!!! And even though the bust line and the glittery lotion she was wearing really turned me off to this, she is still on my "hit" list! Go girl!

Cate Blanchett in Givenchy was stirring up a lot on Twitter last night. You either hated it or loved it. I'm going to say love. This is Givenchy Couture people!! We're talking HIGH fashion. Not everyone can pull this off, but Cate looked amazing!

Mila Kunis in Elie Saab definitely turned heads on the red carpet. I love this color!!! I actually even love this dress, although I would never wear it. She looked beautiful as usual...

How cuand it'ste is Hailee Steinfeld?!? She is definitely on my list of best dressed. First of all, how often do we see a 14 year old who actually dressed her age?!? She looked beautiful and it was no surprise to me that this dress was Marchesa! I LOVE it! I want to see LOTS more of this little cutie pie on future red carpets.

The next ladies all win the award for BEST BEST DRESSED. My jaw dropped when I saw them hit the red carpet and they all define what I think is an Oscar Gown. Stunning!

Michelle Williams in Chanel...LOVE! This is the Michelle we know and love and it totally makes up for the "mistake" at the globes.

Hillary Swank in Gucci! I mean, Gucci?!? Who would have thought? It's gorgeous. She's gorgeous!

Anne Hathaway rocked yet another red carpet. The photograph doesn't even start to do it justice. She looked FABULOUS in Valentino.

And drum roll please!!! The red carpet winner for the night is Sandra in Vera Wang! The dress was beautiful on the red carpet, on the stage and even in photographs. Her hair, makeup and jewelry was perfect.

All of the next are on my "MISS" list. These actresses totally got it wrong. I would say it's time to hire a stylist or fire the one you have.

Sharon Stone in Dior. Her makeup was disgusting, she looks like she was run over by a truck, got up and headed to the red carpet. I read on one of the blogs "Cruella Deville" at her best....ouch. Look Sharon, you're not 30 anymore. If you keep on trying to be, you're just going to stay on the worst dressed lists and eventually just be "forgotten." Even TMZ isn't going to be interested. HIRE A STYLIST!

As long as Nicole keeps letting her toddler pick out her red carpet gowns, it's going to be hit or miss....mainly miss. This Dior gown is dreadful...not to mention Spring 2009. Nicole, get it together pleeeeease!!

Mellisa Leo is super annoying to me. From placing her own self promoting ads, to this hideous Marc Bouwer dress, to her dropping the "F" bomb while giving her speech, to just her behavior. Melissa, you're new in Hollywood, tone it down or you're going to be eaten alive quickly. Now that you have an Oscar under your belt, you can afford a stylist...and maybe a couple etiquette classes.

Amy Adams would have looked stunning in this L'Wren Scott gown had she not ruined it with all the Cartier jewels (I can't believe I'm saying this...lol) But seriously. The dress was SOOO sparkly and then she put that necklace on over it. With that, the hair, the red lipstick...just wasn't feeling this $1.3 million dollar look.

Scarlett is an epic fail. Not a fan of hers in general and this didn't help. The dress is Dolce and Gabbana....maybe on someone else?

Helen Bohnam Carter is just a permanent worst dressed and that's juts how she likes it. She could care less and that's pretty obvious. Well Helen, you get what you ask for! ps. Can't remember who she's wearing...ha.

So I said there wasn't going to be any "on the fence" pictures, but I lied....

Along with Marissa Tomei and Halle Berry, I would also add Mandy Moore (not pictured). Marissa is wearing a 1950's vintage gown, which I just can't decide on. I loved the earrings and the hair, but maybe it was that coupled with the style of the gown that didn't work. Halle Berry's hair, makeup and jewels were stunning as always, but this Marchesa gown was just okay for me. I do like the color and the sparkle, but the placement of the tulle looks like toilet paper randomly got stuck on her dress on the way out of the bathroom. I did have a great picture of Mandy Moore, but it's not here. All you have to do is google Cameron Diaz's gown from last year and Anne Hathaway's Oscar De La Renta Gown from the year before...I just get annoyed when people can't be original or just don't have stylists that know what's already been worn. She looked pretty, but I couldn't get past the repetitiveness.

Hopefully you were watching last night and enjoyed the red carpet as much as I did. If not, this should help get you caught up on what you missed! I'm sad to see awards season come to an end, but now I can get back to my family blogs AND continue my on going "favorite things" entries! Happy reading!

These are a few of my favorite things...

I've been wanting to put together a list of my favorite things (a la Oprah) for some time, but there are so many good products out there that I decided I would have to split it up based upon category. So here's my first "favorite things" post.

Today is all about cosmetics!

If you live up north, then you have been blessed with a nice change in temperature. I think it was around 70 degrees yesterday! This got me thinking about Summer and gearing up for all of the good stuff that it brings; trips to the beach, being outdoors, margaritas on the deck, longer days, summer dresses, sandals...no more layering!! Need I say more? I'm ready!

So time to get that skin looking good! Lot's of H2O, lots of moisturizer, lotion and sunscreen and possibly my next two products.

I'm all about sunless tanning and getting that sunny glow without all the direct sun exposure. Over the years I have tried many products, but last year I found this and am still hooked. Fake Bake is a great line of sunless products and it's also affordable! None of that yucky sunless smell, it's streak free, offers an immediate golden brown tan and lasts for days! Super Pale? Try this! Already have a natural tan complexion and want to play it up for summer? Try this! *like all self tanners, make sure you wear gloves when you apply.

Don't even think about applying any self tanners without making sure you exfoliate and keep that skin hydrated with lotion. True Blue Spa from Bath & Body Works is my go-to line. I'm obsessed with their "Need a Margarita?" Scrub and Shower Wash. Follow it up with Tahiti, Sweetie Lotion. The smell is what I would describe as vacation in a bottle.

If you know me, you know that I'm always in search of the next best foundation. Foundation is the most important item in your makeup bag. Right now I'm pretty obsessed with Makeup Forever HD Foundation. I love that you can dictate the coverage and I love that it is virtually undetectable to the naked eye...AND the camera! However, I do not recommend using the HD powder if you're planning on taking any pictures involving flash...just google Eva Longoria's makeup mishap!

Okay people. I am a new avon fanatic! A friend started selling it and I decided to try a couple things...gotta support your friend's business ventures, right?? Anyway, I LOVE the MARK brand by Avon, it's pretty awesome. One of my favorites, along with their customizable eyeshadow palettes, are the hook ups. The lip glosses, mascaras, highlighters, concealers can all be interchanged. All you do is snap the lip gloss into the connector and add another shade to the other side. Put a neutral shade for daytime on one side and snap on a sparkly wine color on the other side for evening! As simple as that...LOVE IT. And did I mention these are super cheap??? And not just cheap, but really good quality. I'm a M.A.C lover and I can 100% say that these lip glosses and eye shadows are JUST as pigmented and high quality.

Bobbi Brown's shimmer bricks are my everyday necessity (aside from concealer or foundation) in my makeup bag. I always use it! Bobbi offers these shimmer bricks in a wide range of colors...right now I use Nectar, it's a peachy/pink/bronzy shimmer. Don't care of shimmer? It's not at all over the top and you can dust on a small amount to the apples of your cheeks for a light glow.

BROWS!! Want to know how to get the perfect brows at home? Here's the secret! Anastasia (Beverly Hills Brow artist to the stars) has come out with a line of products to make it super easy to achieve perfect brows. The Brow Express Kit is my favorite. It comes with two shades of brow powder, setting wax, highlighter, angled brow brush and stencils. Find the stencil that you love, place it over your eyebrows, lightly fill it in with the powder (I normally combine both colors to get the perfect shade), pull the stencil away from the brow, set the brow with the wax, pluck any areas that are not filled in and brush a light sweep of the highlighter under the brow bone. I love this product...the brush alone is the BEST brow brush I've ever used!

Another Avon favorite is the Magix concealer! If you've tried or heard of YSL's amazing concealer, then you HAVE to try this. It's the same, if not better (definitely WAY cheaper)! I have dark circles under my eyes and just a little bit of this concealer takes them away!! It's unbelievable! I normally have to use a creme concealer stick, which is often times noticeable to the naked eye. The Avon Magix concealer disappears revealing no traces of dark circles!

Last, but not least, is my favorite chap stick! I can't live without it. Aquafina's Hydrating Lip Oil does exactly what it claims. It's a LARGE glass of water for your lips. I often times, especially in the winter, get really dry/chapped lips, and this is a miracle solution. Can't find it in your local drug store? Go to Aquafina's website and get a pack of 20 OR amazon.com.

All the products (minus AVON) can be found on amazon.com. The avon products can be bought online at the avon website. I didn't include prices because prices vary depending on the sellers on amazon.