Oh, Oscar!

I've been behind on my posting, thanks to the academy awards. You know, any designer worth his (or her) salt follows the activities with great passion, in order to spot trends and see what the celebs are wearing. Like everyone else, I sat down in front of my TV to watch the academy awards, but as a designer I have my sketchpad, my computer, and my remote control all in front of me. When a star walked down the red carpet, or came up for an award, or was just photographed in the crowd, I look at their jewelry.

Do I have something in my collection that looks like what a movie star has on? Can I produce something to complement one of the many beautiful gowns I saw? Once I fix on a superstar look, i hit the pause button and draw. Then I try to take a snapshot of my TV screen, and make my husband search online to see who made the gown or the jewelry. Only then can I let go of the pause button. So, if you think the oscars were a long show, I can assure you it was a lot longer in the Chiarella household!

Of course, the thing I really wanted was a repeat of the fantastic luck I had at the Golden Globes, and I was not disappointed. When I saw Angelina Jolie come out with those emeralds, I almost fell off the couch. These 2.5 million dollar earrings were nearly identical to a set of beautiful Swarovski crystal earrings I was still in the process of manufacturing. So, faster than you could imagine, I sent off an email to Elizabeth so she could christen these "angie's earrings" and write some copy to put on the website.

We had to stop and repeat the moment a few more times on Oscar night, as out comes Kate Winslet in another pair of earrings that were nearly identical to ones I sell. If anyone reading actually knows Kate, please tell her about me, after all it seems she loves designs just like mine, having won her golden globe wearing another earring almost identical to my "baby a's jewel earrings". When we saw Penelope Cruz come out with a necklace that is really similar to my true passion necklace, I almost had a dizzy spell!

I felt so unbelievably excited, knowing that hollywood stars (or their stylists) choose baubles from places like Harry Winston that I sell every day in stores and on my website. If that wasn't enough excitement, the Today Show ran a segment on the "oscar knockoffs" and showed the stars on Oscar night paired with designer knock off gowns that will give you the look for much, much less. When it came to accessories, thanks to Jill Martin from Us Weekly Magazine, who wore both the Angelina Jolie gown and my emerald earrings. On the segment, anchor Natalie Morales noted that my jewelry was a similar look but cost a lot less than 2.5 million! If you want to see the clip, head over to youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UL40pgt2AQ and take a look.

Believe me, it is so amazing to get publicity like that, and we were all ready for the orders to come in due to everybody loving my jewelry enough to even compare to the million dollar jewels the stars were wearing. And it looked great! You know, even in a recession girls want to look good, and when you see what we have to offer (made right here in the USA) in an affordable price range, you might find a way to squeeze the budget to get yourself an earring or necklace. We shipped the jewelry out to the customers who ordered right away, and the feedback is fabulous. People really love the jewelry, and we're thrilled that the pieces are so popular.

Us Weekly did it's post-academy-awards issue noting the same thing, that there are american designers who make affordable, high quality versions of the couture gowns and precious stone accessories you saw on oscar night. It is such a thrill to get recognized by Hannah Deely, the Us Weekly accessories editor who was responsible for the today show segment featuring 'oscar looks for less' and the coverage in the magazine itself.

The response has been incredible, and has kept me busy in the studio, answering questions, reading emails and filling orders! It's so inspirational, I have a dozen new designs in my head and on paper, which will be made into prototypes to show around and see if I've captured the look people want. Maybe I'll send some to Kate and Angelina, to see what they think. Ciao!