Nail Trends at the 2012 Academy Awards
This past Sunday when the 84th Academy Awards aired, I was there. Well, not in the literal sense (someday…), but I was all over my tv screen, avidly checking out (and dissecting) the red carpet appearances of the stars, paying particular attention to their nails, of course. The past few seasons of awards shows have proven that the ‘bare nail‘ is still the most requested – and copied – look, and yet I was hoping for some risk takers … hats off to the ladies who gave us some colour!
I want to begin by congratulating fellow Canadian, Christopher Plummer for winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. Ladies, at 82, this man has some serious sexy still going on! No wonder I had a crush on him back when he played Captain Von Trapp in ‘The Sound of Music’!
The “natural/bare” nail look:
Glenn Close in a Zac Posen silk faille green gown and matching blazer
Rooney Mara in a Givenchy Haute Couture by Riccardo Tisci gown
Emma Stone in a Giambattista Valli spring/summer 2012 red gown with bow detailing
Emma Stone attending the Vanity Fair after party in a black CHANEL Couture number
Angelina Jolie in a black velvet Atelier Versace gown
*Angelina and that unfortunate awkward right-leg pose, certainly garnered more than its share of attention, and I personally hope she has now fired whichever stylist advised her to stand that way.
Penelope Cruz in an Armani Privé lavender gown
Gwyneth Paltrow in a white Tom Ford dress and cape
A closeup look at her killer jewelry – just look at that cuff & ring!
Cameron Diaz in a strapless Gucci Première nude gown
Cameron Diaz attending the Vanity Fair after party in an orange Victoria Beckham gown
*NOTE: BFF’s Gwyneth and Cameron even got dressed together! Awww……
Viola Davis in a custom-made Vera Wang emerald green gown with crystal appliqué
Amy Adams attending the Vanity Fair after party in a silver Vivienne Westwood dress
Stacy Keibler in a Marchesa gold strapless dress (image)
*OPI’s ‘Samoan Sand’ used on both Stacy Keibler and Amy Adams
Neutral nails – with a kick:
Michelle Williams in a red Louis Vuitton peplum gown
Oscar winner for Best Actress, Meryl Streep in a bespoke Lanvin gown
Jennifer Lopez in a plunging Zuhair Murad nude dress
Jennifer Lopez attending the Vanity Fair after party in a 2nd plunging Zuhair Murad dress
*The incredibly lovely Ms. Lopez, should have been awarded an Oscar for her trend-setting & leading edge manicure; a unique take on a classic French tip, using a pale gold as the base, banded with a garnet edge….stunning!
Bérénice Bejo in an Elie Saab mint green beaded gown
Milla Jovovich in an Elie Saab Couture asymmetric white beaded gown
Leslie Mann in a midnight blue Roberto Cavalli gown
Shailene Woodley in a Valentino Couture white floor-length gown
We have Colours!
Li Bingbing in a white strapless Georges Chakra gown
Penelope Ann Miller in a nude embellished gown
Melissa McCarthy in a Melina Rinaldi rose gown
Jessica Chastain in a bespoke Alexander McQueen hand-embroidered gown
Natalie Portman in a vintage Christian Dior dress from 1954
Sandra Bullock in a Marchesa gown
Oscar winner for Best Supporting Actress, Octavia Spencer in a Tadashi Shoji nude embellished gown
Victoria Beckham attending the Vanity Fair after party in a dress from her own collection
(*just barely noticed Posh’s nails … my eyes were too busy covering Becks …)
Kristen Wiig in a J. Mendel nude gown
Final thoughts: Well, it’s not like I didn’t expect the majority of celebrities to NOT be sporting neutral nail shades, but I was still looking forward to some new & exciting looks and it was nice to see some deeper hues pop up. As a whole, I found this year’s Oscars presentation to be witty (thank you for returning, Billy Crystal), fast paced (I stayed up for the entire show this year!), and rather entertaining (the Cirque du Soleil number was spectacular *ahem – Canadian invention*). The gowns were (mostly) absolutely stunning, with top honours going to Stacy Keibler who looked like a living Oscar statuette, Jessica Chastain embodying regal elegance, and Gwyneth Paltrow the most sublimely sophisticated of them all. For those who are interested, the term “bespoke” actually means “made-to-order” … in case you were wondering! Congratulations to all the winners and here’s to looking forward to next year’s show!
Jennifer Lopez & Cameron Diaz striking a pose – looking as good going, as coming!
I leave you with the Oscar winner for Best Actor, Jean Dujardin and Uggie - how wonderful that Uggie ends his career (he’s officially retiring this year) by sharing the stage with his “people” co-star!
*Image credits
I mean the beige one, on picture no 7:-)
*All swatches with the paler shade are Essie’s ‘Brooch the Subject’.
What nailpolish do you have here: http://ommorphiabeautybar.com/2011/11/12/essie-luxe-effects-collection-for-holiday-2011-swatches-review/
… on the picture nr6? Looks gourgeous!
Hi Zana….glad you liked it! For all the swatches in that review, I mentioned in my opening paragraph that the darker shade I used was ‘Bobbing for Baubles’ and the lighter/beige shade was ‘Brooch the Subject’, both colours from Essie’s holiday 2011 collection…you should still be able to find both at stores.
I watched the show, but I really enjoyed looking at all gowns again in your post, and reading your comments. Thank you!
Thanks Moxie….it’s always fun putting a post like this together and getting more in-depth with some details we wouldn’t ordinarily pay attention to…plus, this way, I get to see who’s following the herd & who’s leading the pack!
I love that the dog’s name is Uggie!! Love your breakdown Big Sis! And I agree-Stacy was my favourite dress too!
Thanks Lil Sis! That dress! It did everything right for her! I think I may have found the look I want for my nephew’s wedding, lol! And that pooch (saw him on Ellen today!)….he’s the true star!!!
Is it just me or did everyone look much better for the after-parties than the actual award show? I can’t blame them for going with nudes when their dresses are so glittery and formal. Easier to deal with too when they switch outfits from one event to another!
You know, I hadn’t thought about the “switch”; it’s not like they all have their personal manicurist trailing them all night, ready to switch polish colours at the speed of light, so I guess it makes sense to be wearing a “one-colour-fits-all” kind of shade…just in case! As to the after party outfits, I think they looked more fun as well; the uber-formal gown for the awards ceremony, gets trading in for the whooping the night away outfit!
I get it – they want to make the dress the focus of the look – but gosh, I am SO with you that I’d love to see a pop of color or something a little fun with the ensemble – I love a stand-out nail! I guess if I were in the same position as them though I may do the same…thankfully I am not famous nor in the spotlight, so I can play with my polish colors (or remain neutral!) to my heart’s content without any backlash from the public
You’re right; it’s all fine & dandy for us regular folks to sit around critiquing, seeing as how we’re not in the spotlight — and thankfully so: we get to play!!! At least there were a few pockets of colour here and there – basically something for everyone!
Hey:) The Oscar nails were a bit on the boring side for me…I was wishing for more of the Adele look at the Grammys. But then I suppose you could say the subtle nude look was quite fitting ‘a la francaise’ considering the amount of Oscars going the French way! And as for gowns- Absolutely my most favourite was Gwyneth’s. And-of course-gold for golden Oscar was almost a self-fulfilling prophecy for the very classy Meryl. I loved the Oscars this year!
Like I said, a lot of celebrities opted to play it safe (again!) with the nails (and makeup too, come to think of it), but every so often there were little “colourful” breaks! Hahaha — good one about the “French Connection” (didn’t that win an Oscar too, back in the day?!)…and what can we say about Meryl, that hasn’t already been said? The woman is sublime! Love her!
LOLOLOL… I thought I was the only one that thought Angelina was trying way too hard. She really doesn’t have to, but maybe she was feeling extra sassy that night! P.S. I like my legs more meaty, so I would like to throw bacon at her.
All of the gowns were really beautiful this year. Most every single one I would love to at least do a twirl test and a butt check. >.<
HAHAHAHA! “Bacon-legs”!!! I actually felt so sorry for Angelina, especially when she was made fun of like that on stage – so not cool. And her arms? We need to fatten her up, that’s for sure – she’s too beautiful to be allowed to slip away. Speaking of “butt checks”, did you notice J-Lo’s when she was camping it up with Cameron? Now THAT’s a healthy female (and darn proud of it!!)
I actually stayed up for the entire show too! It seems like if the nails weren’t nude, they were some form of maroon/wine. I thought Natalie Portman’s dress was so *her* and I loved that it was vintage. Gwyneth looked stunning. I LOVE Emma Stone, but I didn’t love either of her dresses
J-Lo was WOW! I’m quite smitten with Berenice Bejo (and equally with Jean Dujardin-mmmmmm) I CANNOT wait to see “The Artist”!
I didn’t see The Artist either (and I should have — just for Uggie alone!), and I agree: Jean Dujardin has that certain “je ne sais quois” going on! Loved that vintage Dior on Natalie Portman, too – reminds me of some dresses/gowns I’ve seen my mom wear in old family photos. Yeah, Emma Stone had way too much going on, I agree (I’ve never been a bow fan), but what can you do?! Did you catch J-Lo’s “wardrobe malfunction”? As though we haven’t seen it all already, right?!
The dog is so adorable
Neutral nails – I never realized how common they were! Boring!
I like the vampies! 
As with the other award shows I’ve posted about, I’m guessing the main reason most stars stick with neutrals, is so that the nails don’t subtract from the gown. At least we had some that braved colour, right?! Yeah…that Uggie! I want to squish him!!