Designers Talk Oscar Dresses

By InStyle.com
Feb 06, 2009 @ 3:55 pm
Designers Talk Oscar Dresses
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Jennifer Garner in Oscar de la Renta

Frank Micelotta/WireImage; Oscar de la Renta
DESIGNER OSCAR DE LA RENTA SAYS: "My wife and I were big fans of Alias, so we made a point to meet her and were struck by her beauty. I sent her sketches of possible dresses, something I don't normally do, and we decided on this dramatic silk taffeta gown that would show off her powerful femininity." Oscars 2008.

JENNIFER GARNER SAYS: "I loved the fit. The dress did all the work! I have a real thing for designers like Oscar who love making women look and feel like women."
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Penelope Cruz and Jennifer Hudson in Oscar de la Renta

Gilbert Flores/Celebrity Photo; Kevin Mazur/WireImage
DE LA RENTA ON CRUZ: "She radiates happiness. The dress was a variation of a runway version. It was her suggestion to do it in yellow. She is in such perfect proportion that you could barely call what we had a fitting. I could dress her every day." Oscars 2005.

DE LA RENTA ON HUDSON: "She is adorable and a great talent. The silhouette and color worked wonderfully. The jacket was controversial. It is a difficult jacket to wear, even for a woman who is small on top. By the time she received her Oscar she had taken it off and looked fine." Oscars 2007.

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Anne Hathaway in Marchesa

Jeff Vespa/WireImage; Courtesy of Marchesa
DESIGNER GEORGINA CHAPMAN SAYS: "Annie picked the dress herself. No stylists or changes later. Because we didn’t want anything to take away from the sweep of the flowers against her gorgeous skin, we selected delicate Harry Winston diamonds for her to wear. I went over to see her that morning and dressed her myself, following her out the door with the steamer!" Oscars 2008.

ANNE HATHAWAY SAYS: "My go-to color is red. It's powerful and energizing. When I saw this dress, I said, 'That's heaven.'"
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Jennifer Lopez and Jessica Alba in Marchesa

Dan MacMedan/WireImage; Steve Granitz/WireImage
CHAPMAN ON LOPEZ: "She has a keen eye for detail. This dress was in our runway show in black and without a waist. She suggested changes, like where to place the waist and raising the crystal ropes to add support. Then we made three variations of the gown. And she picked this lilac one." Oscars 2007.

CHAPMAN ON ALBA: "Jessica was pregnant, so we redid her gown to minimize the bump, but not in a way that looked like we were trying to hide it. We raised the waist, expanded the bust, took off flowers and added just enough feathers to cover the area. I was rearranging them until the night before." Oscars 2008.

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Amy Ryan in Calvin Klein Collection

Jeff Vespa/WireImage; Courtesy of Calvin Klein
DESIGNER FRANCISCO COSTA SAYS: "Amy is a New Yorker and prefers urbane elegance. Navy blue gives off great sophistication. Three layers of light georgette chiffon add floaty glamour. We had three fittings: two in New York and one in L.A. She must have been happy because we've dressed her several times since." Oscars 2008.

AMY ADAMS SAYS: "I wanted to wear a gown that would still be elegant and classic when I looked back 10, 20, or 40 years from now. Wearing this dress, I felt beautiful."

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Kate Bosworth and Emily Blunt in Calvin Klein Collection

Gilbert Flores/Celebrity Photo (2)
COSTA ON BOSWORTH: "Kate is decisive and self-assured. She saw this embroidered chiffon dress on the runway and that was it. No equivocating. That red dress had a lining, and she took it out." Oscar Party 2006.

COSTA ON EMILY BLUNT: "It's only a matter of time before Emily is a big star. Glamour suits her. So we made this just for her in hammered sequins in a color to match her eyes. Twisting the chiffon didn't occur to us until she tried it on. Special things happen at fittings." Oscars 2007.
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