The Most Glamorous Oscar Jewels

EditorsFeb 25, 2019

The Most Glamorous Oscar Jewels

Lady Gaga and Tiffany & Co. rounded out a stellar awards season with their most dramatic jewelry look yet.

Ashley Davis Ashley.Davis@nationaljeweler.com

Lady Gaga and Tiffany & Co. rounded out a stellar awards season with their most dramatic jewelry look yet.

Statement necklaces and colorful gowns at the 91st Academy Awards held Sunday night topped off a sartorially dramatic 2019 awards season.

Last year, Hollywood restrained itself on the red carpet in a show of solidarity for the Time’s Up movement. This year, the mood was different, as if bedecking oneself in joyful fashion expressions was an assertion of each actress’ personal power.

And what a treat that was for viewers, as resplendent as each woman (and several dapper men) was in risk-taking gowns and bold jewelry not for wallflowers.

The boldest of them all was, naturally, Lady Gaga, who saved her best Tiffany & Co. look for last.

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The actress and singer donned the Tiffany Diamond, last worn by Audrey Hepburn in promotional images for “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”

The 128.54-carat cushion-cut stone is said to be one of the largest yellow diamonds on record. It was discovered in 1877 in South Africa as a 287.42-carat rough, and acquired by Tiffany & Co. in 1878.

The stone was set into the style Gaga sported, a platinum necklace with more than 95 carats of cushion-cut and round brilliant white diamonds, in 2012 to mark Tiffany’s 175th anniversary.

The pop star paired the stunner with yellow and white diamond drop earrings from the 2019 “Extraordinary Tiffany” collection, and a black Alexander McQueen dress and gloves that felt like an ode to Hepburn’s iconic Holly Golightly character.

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Rachel Weisz wore my personal favorite look of the night, a platinum and diamond headband that wasn’t a headband at all.

It was actually a pair of artfully placed Cartier brooches from 1903, their leaf design an elegant representation of the Art Nouveau period and its utter timelessness. The dress might have garnered mixed opinions but the jewelry is an example of collaboration between fashion stylist and hair stylist gone right.

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Also in Cartier was the ever-chic Amy Adams, who wore a generous helping of the jeweler.

The most dazzling was the high jewelry tennis necklace, strung with an exquisite clip brooch circa 1935. Both were made of platinum and diamonds, as were the star’s earrings, circa 1934, and bracelet, circa 1937. The Cartier ring Adams wore was made of 18-karat white gold and diamonds, from 2005.

Gone are the days of wearing one statement piece, and I can’t get enough of it.

Banner will be right here …

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While platinum and white gold were the favored metals at this year’s Oscars (something about the grandness of the occasion seems to make stylists revert to these metals, which feel very classic, Old Hollywood), Glenn Close’s yellow gold Cartier look provided a much-needed shot of warmth.

The best part was the yellow gold and diamond cascading earrings, which perfectly accented her gold gown. The actress wore them with two Cartier diamond rings, one set in 18-karat yellow gold, platinum and diamonds, and the other in 18-karat yellow gold and diamonds.

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Oscar winner Regina King was angelic in all white courtesy of white diamond Chopard jewels and a white Oscar de la Renta gown.

All from the high jewelry collection, King wore romantic, curving earrings featuring pear-shaped and round brilliant diamonds in 18-karat white gold, plus a whopping 10.51-carat round brilliant diamond ring.

Her cuff featured the most bling yet, with 53.43 carats of white diamonds in white gold.

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Laura Harrier gave a master class in combining colors, courtesy of Bulgari jewels and a Louis Vuitton gown.

The Bulgari baubles—a necklace and a bracelet—are from the brand’s 2019 high jewelry collection, set to debut this summer at haute joaillerie week.

Each combines emeralds, rubellite, and diamonds. The necklace is composed of 10 “antique-cut” emeralds totaling 33 carats, eight cushion-cut rubellites totaling more than 18 carats, plus hundreds of diamonds. The bracelet features 13.45 carats of five step-cut emeralds, five cushion-cut rubellites totaling 7.32 carats and 90 step-cut and round brilliant white diamonds.

The colorful suite was worn with baby blue Louis Vuitton gown adorned with Swarovski crystals.

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If Charlize Theron is any indication, brunettes might just have more jewelry fun. The newly dark-haired actress and Oscar award presenter wore one of the best jewelry looks I’ve seen on a red carpet, or anywhere else for that matter.

She wore over 300 carats of diamonds and nearly 30 carats of sapphires, all set in exquisite Bulgari jewels.

A white gold double wrap Serpenti high jewelry necklace was amplified with a diamond necklace and perfectly contrasted with diamond, emerald and sapphire earrings that featured 25 carats of octagonal, step-cut sapphires.

Not stopping there, the actress also wore a matching Serpenti high jewelry diamond bracelet, an articulated mixed fancy-cut diamond bracelet plus three diamond rings, two of which featured spectacular sapphires center stones.

It was all worn against the backdrop of a lovely light blue Dior haute couture gown, if one could even notice it behind all that bling.

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Harry Winston provided three fantastic necklace moments, marking the jewelry trend of the night.

The first was on the neck (and ears) of Helen Mirren, who led the way in what I’ll call “happy dresses” with a tulle coral and hot pink number.

White diamonds were the right choice to adorn a dress so bright and Mirren didn’t skimp on the jewels. She wore a mega-watt diamond collar from the jewelry house as well as large diamond earrings.

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Actress Sarah Paulson opted for a just-as-joyful pink Brandon Maxwell gown with a floral diamond Harry Winston collar peeking out from the neckline. She paired it with diamond stud earrings.

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Laura Dern, meanwhile, wore a deep mauve gown with a sweetheart neckline that was expertly complemented with cascading Harry Winston diamond bib necklace, plus a bracelet and stud earrings.

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Allison Janney is a red carpet jewelry favorite. She opted for a black, tuxedo-inspired gown that was the perfect opportunity to add a little jewelry color.

She did so with Chopard ruby and diamond collar, plus round brilliant diamond stud earrings.

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Though necklaces have clearly usurped earrings as the jewelry focal point of current red carpet fashion, Best Actress winner Olivia Colman didn’t get the memo.

Instead, she made a case for just how much fun avant-garde earrings can be with a smattering of Chopard diamond drop styles worn as a pair, plus with a third version adorning an upper ear piercing.

The multiple-ear piercing trend has now truly spread everywhere, even to the biggest stage in Hollywood.

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I’ll assume that, for once, actress Michelle Yeoh took the opportunity to wear some jewels that aren’t from her personal collection.

Yeoh sported a lovely pair of Chopard diamond drop earrings, plus an elaborate diamond wrap bracelet.

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Her “Crazy Rich Asians” co-star, Constance Wu, also opted for a diamond drop style. Hers were from Atelier Swarovski’s fine jewelry collection.

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A vision in lavender, actress Emilia Clarke wore a white diamond suite from Niwaka, and, unlike the rest of the crowd, her elaborate diamond bracelet was the jewelry highlight of her look.

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Maya Rudolph was a member of the pink dress brigade in an ethereal, floral number that she paired with equally, if not more, whimsical mobile-like earrings from Irene Neuwirth.

The 18-karat white and yellow gold one-of-a-kind pair feature South Sea pearls, green opals carved into the shape of frogs, pink opal carved flowers and spheres, blue chalcedony, pink tourmaline, green tourmaline, turquoise, sapphires, Akoya pearls and diamonds.

They were joined by a very sweet carved pink opal ring with pearl and diamond pave set in 18-karat rose gold.

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Fernando Jorge, Jacquie Aiche and Mattia Cielo were all stars of Lisa Bonet’s red carpet look.

Bonet was, as always, a bohemian vision in a mix of jewels from the designers, including Jorge’s oft-photographed diamond and yellow gold “Clarity” earrings.

Ashley Davisis the senior editor, fashion at National Jeweler, covering all things related to design, style and trends.

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