The Academy Awards 2013!!

It has been a fascinating year in film! This includes this red carpet season, where I have seen some great looks and some not-so-great looks. This year's host was the adorable (I had no idea how adorable until the promos started to run) Seth Macfarlane. There have been lots of complaints about his hosting, but is that really any different than any other year? I will say the show was a bit of a snooze fest though. But let us get to what is really important... what the ladies wore!

Tonight, I start with the worst! I am doing this because I want to end on a high note!

Reem Acra is crying because they let Kristen Stewart wear one of their gowns. She always gives the "I do not give a sh&^" vibe but never more so than at the Oscars. If you are miserable and on crutches, stay home. She looked a hot mess. Poor Melissa McCarthy has gotten lost, she needs to call Octavia Spencer and learn how a plus size woman should dress. But not only is this David Meister dress a disaster, her hair is even worse! Then we have the always fun Helena Bonham Carter wearing, no, not her old shredded t-shirts, but a Vivienne Westwood creation. She has been able to pull off some quirky looks and rock the red carpet; this is not one of them!

Now, for my best looks! I was unable to pick a favorite, so you will get my top 3. They have changed order several times today. These are in no particular order!

Halle Berry called up Donatella Versace and said "I want a Bond Girl inspired dress." Bam! She got one. This dress fit her perfectly, it was unique and she is just stunning. I personally am not a fan of hers, but I could in no way fault this look! It was way more elegant than her norm (usually slutty). Charlize Theron may be one of the most beautiful women on the planet. Dior Couture for the Dior spokesmodel is a no brainer. I am an avid hater of peplums. I have often said "they rarely work and even more rare does it flatter." In this case, it is perfection! Everything here screams "IT WORKS!" Stacy Keibler not only gets the best accessory in George Clooney, but she gets to wear one of the most stunning gowns of the night. Naeem Khan gave her the perfect gown and she topped it off with perfect hair and make-up. Naeem Khan also dressed The First Lady Michelle Obama, also stunning!

Honorable Mentions:

Catherine Zeta Jones looked beautiful in this Zuhair Murad gown. Jessica Chastain in Armani Prive' seems to be the top choice of the masses. It is pretty and her hair/make-up is superb, but the dress is a bit too close to her hair and skin tone for my liking. Jennifer Hudson, who gave the best performance of any awards show in a while, looked fantastic in this blue Roberto Cavalli stunner. If she had changed shoes she might have been even higher up. The Queen in Badgley Mischka was flawless. Enough said!

I cannot leave out the more mature who stood out! Jane Fonda makes nearly everyone on Earth a bit jealous. The yellow Atelier Versace color is fantastic on her and she is fierce as they come! Miss Shirley Bassey came out looking stunning and sounded even better! One of my favorite actresses ever, the amazing Sally Field looked great in red! She has caught some flack for her choice of this Valentino Couture gown. I think she looked radiant. I do not think it was a sitting down kind of gown, but on the carpet she looked lovely.

Did I leave out your favorite? Who did you love? I was most shocked that Jennifer Lawrence was not one of my favorites. She has nailed it this red carpet season. Her dress was just a bit too puff pastry for me. I was super proud of her for the way she carried herself after her fall though. Of course, I expect nothing less from an awesome Kentuckian! 

Photos: Andrew Evans, Getty Images

Project Runway Ep4

The unconventional challenge always tends to be a favorite! This time they went back to familiar themes but combined two. They used supplies from both a flower shop and a hardware store. As Heidi says "the ultimate hard and soft." Before the challenge could begin they had to switch up the teams. We all knew this was coming since Team Keeping it Real had won every challenge. Stanley and Layana were chosen by Dream Team and Keeping it Real got Michelle. Stanley took this challenge and his new team to their first win with his direction! I enjoyed this episode and I really like all these designers.

Samantha got the win this week with the first look above. I like the dress and the way she used the metal mesh and put the leaves under it instead of over it. It has a peplum and you know how I feel about those (I know Lora) but it is good. However, I would not have given it the win. Layana was the winner for me! She did the second look above. I thought it was EXCEPTIONALLY well done and was beautiful. Benjamin did the third look above and I still do not know why he was in the consideration this week. Yes he made a loom and the idea was nice....but Tu made the final look above and was clearly better than Benjamin's. Honestly, I prefer his to even Samantha's. But props to both team turning out some fantastic looks. 

I decided against covering the bottom 3, since, well there was not a bottom 3. Amanda our Nashville girl, was tossed under the bus by her entire team for running into trouble with her concept. As you can tell in the first pic, she figured it out. It was not a winner and she was rightfully in the bottom this week. I am glad she did not go home and I think the judges made the right decision. Matthew, the other southerner, did the second look. I really like his use of material in the bodice, but the skirt was not flattering at all. Overall a solid design but not a stand out. Both southerners are gonna have to step up their game ASAP!

Photo Credit: Barbara Nitke for Lifetime

Project Runway 11 Ep 2

It was time for the teams to design for a "real" client. Their client was Susan Sarandon, owner of Spin Ping Pong Social Club. YES! You heard that right, there are Ping Pong Social Clubs! I am still not sure I get the idea, but, hey, I am up for giving it a try at some point. The challenge left the designers with very little room for creativity. Yet, some of them came up with some good ideas, even if not very fashion forward.

Here are your top three designs. The center look was this week's winner. It was designed by Daniel Esquivel and Layana Aguilar. Daniel did the vest and Layana did the skort. I was shocked that Susan made such a big deal about never hearing of a skort. I did like how they incorporated the "apron" into the design and I actually like the vest a lot. The first look pictured above was designed by Stanley Hudson. It was a very boring look, but seemed very suitable for this challenge. I was not as crazy about this shirt. I would have preferred a more fitted style. Maybe more like this third look. This one was designed by bff's Joseph Segal and Richard Hallmarq. The top was great for this challenge and fit this sexy man like a glove. The pants were not my taste but they were creative.

The bottom three were up next. The self-named Dream Team were in the bottom again. The first look I loved!! I love the idea of the kilt and did not even hate the tank. I understand having "balls are my business" on your crotch area lowers the taste level, but when you give your business a slogan like that what can you expect? So kudos to Matthew on the kilt. The BORING center look was courtesy of Cindy Marlett (the jacket) and Benjamin Mach (the short). The shorts were the worst part of this look; the jacket was fine, albeit boring. Oh, poor James. He was destined to leave this week. He refused again to really work with the team and again sent out an utterly bad design. So goodbye to him this week. 

Now, to look at the Southerner's designs. Amanda V sent out a little black dress and I do mean little. It was a very standard and okay dress. Nothing exciting, but she was going to be clearly safe this week. We have Matthew's look again. I still disagree with him being in the bottom three looks. That is all I will say about that this week.

Of course my favorite part was having male models this week! More of them, please! I am excited to see what they do next week. I am sure it is nearing time to change the teams up. They are not going to let it get too one-sided. 

Photo Credit: Barbara Nitke for Lifetime