Armani racks up early fashion wins at Oscars

Actress Naomi Watts arrives at the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre on Sunday Feb. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP)

Giorgio Armani could claim some big wins at the Oscars on Sunday night: The designer dressed Jessica Chastain and Quvenzhane Wallis.

Chastain, in a glistening copper-tone strapless gown with mermaid hem, looked like an old-world glamorous movie star, especially with her oversized vintage Harry Winston diamond earrings and bright red lipstick. “I chose it because to me it was a throwback to old Hollywood,” she said.

Meanwhile, she told E!: “It’s a very ‘Happy birthday, Mr. President’ dress.”

Naomi Watts was expected to wear a gunmetal beaded gown with a geometric cutout on the bodice, also by Armani. She and Chastain were both considered fashion “gets” for the Academy Awards in Los Angeles.

Quvenzhane, with a silver headband in her hair and carrying her puppy purse, wore an Armani Junior navy-blue dress with black, navy and silver jewels scattered on the skirt and a big bow on the back. She apparently has another Armani dress, a pink one, ready for the afterparty. “I liked it because it was sparkly and puffy.”

Jennifer Lawrence was in a white strapless gown by Dior Haute Couture with sophisticated pulled-back hair, diamond-ball earrings and a delicate long necklace that hung down in the back.
Amy Adams wore a dove-gray Oscar de la Renta gown with a sweetheart neckline and tiers of frayed chiffon and tulle on the ballskirt, and Zoe Saldana wore a strapless gray gown with floral appliques. Reese Witherspoon’s modern gown by Louis Vuitton was mostly electric blue with a strip of black at the bustline.

Kerry Washington wore a Miu Miu gown with a chunky beaded bodice and orange-red skirt with a delicate bow at the waist.

Other expected designer moments to unfold at the Dolby Theatre include Barbra Streisand in a black, bias-cut, asymmetrical Donna Karan gown that the designer dubbed “City Lights.” Renee Zellweger was expected to wear a Carolina Herrera gown.

Headed to the Oscars herself, Nadja Swarovski, the head of corporate communications for the crystal company Swarovski that makes the beadwork for the majority of the red-carpet gowns, expected the collective fashion picture to be fairly minimalist looks in monochromatic colors.

Still, she said, there’ll be sparkle. “It’s more of a dot on the ‘I’ or cross on the ‘T,’ more than a whole of sparkle, but it makes a great palette for jewelry.”