Kate Beckinsale is probably one of the best dressed actresses in Hollywood, and often overlooked because she’s so chic always that she doesn’t get that sudden “wow” from the media – the media is spoiled by her always looking great. For instance, Kate turned up to the premier of the new Drew Barrymore rom com, “Going the Distance” at the Chinese theater last night (she and Drew made a movie with Robert DeNiro a few years ago) in what might be late summer’s chicest and most fashion-forward look: a white leather Versace resort 2011 shift dress with black dotted pocket details. Her high platform black silk pumps were by Ferragamo. Isn’t it interesting that you could get so much more mileage out of a short white leather dress than a crazy long busy gown? Meanwhile, you can tell the status of an actress right now by what season they’re wearing: anyone still wearing fall 2010 is not an A lister. A listers are onto resort, and in a few weeks, the brand new spring 2011 collections. And of course, Hollywood fashion has its own pecking order. It’s determined by looks and taste – NOT box office.

It was a fashion free-for-all at the Hotels du Cap at Cannes: with Karl Lagerfeld, Giorgio Armani, and Roberto Cavalli in tow- not to mention Mick Jagger, Patti Smith, Kirsten Dunst, Gerard Butler, Jennifer Lopez on the guest list of the annual AMFAR Aids benefit ball.. So when it came to choosing gowns or dresses for this event, the actresses at Cannes had a daunting challenge ahead of them. They HAD to save their best for last, as this is THE red carpet Cannes events with the biggest guest list – asif the other ones were small time! What were some of the highlights? Kate Beckinsale’s pale pale blue one shoulder Armani is quite lovely – and dramatically different than every other gown she’s worn, as a jury member for the festival. We’re not sure about the poufy hair – but it IS one way of looking very dressed up. Kate certainly is not afraid of real fashion – and for plain old going for it! Michelle Williams loves a mini – and why not? She’s a petite girl with gamine short hair, and she seems like she’s channeling the London sixties in all her little beaded mini’s at Cannes – this one in particular is tres tres chic, and was the only mini at the ball. Talk about a way to get fashion attention. L’Wren Scott – designer, and girlfriend of Mick Jagger – always goes her own way, and we love that about her. Shown her with Naomi Campbell, L’Wren’s wearing one of her own very snug black cocktail dresses (of course)with great neck detail – and lower heels than usual. She was only towering over Mick by a foot this time. And Mary J. Blige’s Gucci one of a kind silk georgette embroidered nude pearl micro beaded one-shouldered gown managed to be sexy and chic at the same time. Gucci turned up at many a Cannes event, and they didn’t show a bad look in the bunch.

We in Hollywood know that for an actress at a major event/photo opp, two dresses are always better than one. Oscar attendees who change for the Vanity Fair after party are our heroes – it’s not easy switching dresses and keeping your hair and makeup in tact, let alone staying composed and having the right undergarments for each specific dress. This little maneuver has to be worked out in advance. One has to be a very savvy stylist to pull this off. But Kate Beckinsale pulled it off without a hitch at Cannes, where she’s on the jury, deciding which films are worthy of awards. She arrived opening night in a pale blue Marchesa ruffle tulle gown, then went to the “Robin Hood” premiere after party in a Gianfrance Ferre nude strapless dress, short, from spring/summer 2010, designed by the Milanese team of Aquilano Rimondi. The Ferre line is now so strong, we wonder why more celebs don’t wear it. She went from lady of the manor to hot mama in a few hours, and a good image change is what acting is all about. BUT – the big questions is – did Kate sit through all of “Robin Hood” (2 and a half hours), or did she slip out to change?

Just when you thought old Hollywood-style gowns with serious trains, fishtails, and just general poufiness below the waist were OUT OUT OUT, the Cannes Film Festival opens in the south of France, and all manner of chiffon and organza are simply poufing out from the knees all over the Croisette’s red carpet. Even the men were looking very very sharp. Russell Crowe, star of “Robin Hood” – the opening night premier – wore Armani, as he usually does, accompanied by his wife Danielle Spencer – and Benecio del Toro, was likewise clad in Armani, as a member of the film festival’s jury this year. Kate Beckinsale, another Cannes jury member from the U.S., donned a very pale blue or lilac cloud-like Marchesa, which nearly overwhelms her. It’s stunning – but it’s a wonder she didn’t fall over. Some fashion critics in Europe already trounced it, although we think it’s a lot of fun. And not to be outdone, Eva Longoria Parker walked the Cannes Croisette in a white Pucci gown with another outsized ruffled tiered train. Hope that carpet wasn’t too dusty. Longoria Parker was there as a guest of L’Oreal, for whom she’s a spokeswoman.

The Cannes Film Festival in the South of France will kickoff on May 12th, Wednesday, and the first screening is that of Ridley Scott’s “Robin Hood,” which opens in the U.S. this weekend. Its stars, Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett will be there – and we bet Cate will have some very good clothes. The question about all the female stars going to Cannes: will they wear clothes from spring 2010 collections? Or winter 2011 collections? Stars love to wear the next season, and nothing in the stores currently, just in case someone else wears it, too. But the fall collections may be too hot for Cannes. Kate Beckinsale is on the jury, along with jury head Tim Burton, who will bring wife Helena Bonham Carter. There’s some glamour quotient right there. Naomi Watts will be in Cannes, as will Josh Brolin (with wife Diane Lane), Antonio Banderas and Anthony Hopkins, for the debut of the new Woody Allen movie “You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger.” Since the last Woody film – “Whatever Works” with Larry David – was a huge flop, we’re expecting this to be one of the good ones. But perhaps the girl who gets the most attention this go round will be lovely but little known British actress
Gemma Arterton. She was a redheaded bond girl in the last Bond – a small role, as she gets murdered fast -\ but she stars in Stephen Frears’ new film “Tamara Drewe” – and his films always get a lot of attention. The last one was “The Queen” with Helen Mirren. And she also stars in “The Prince of Persia” with Jake Gyllenhaal, a summer blockbuster in the making. Gemma’s got a lot of looks, and in “Prince” she’s a warrior woman with fabulous metal shields that look like bras. But we’ll get to see how she really looks as herself on the Cannes red carpet in a few days – as the pictures will fly around the world more times than these actors will.

Art and fashion go very well together, and they always have. Fashion designers are influenced by famous works of art and artists – and contemporary artists are often the most interestingly dressed people around, with unique sense of aesthetics. So the crowd on the three spacious floors of the Tod’s boutique on Rodeo in Beverly Hills on Thursday night was of the highest calibre. Sure, there was some killer people (i.e., CELEBRITY) watching: Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale, Halle Berry, Jessica Alba, Kate Beckinsale, Marisa Tomei, Kate Bosworth, Pierce Brosnan, Neil Patrick Harris – but there was also an aesthetic vibe of a higher order. The clothes were more interesting than the average store party – the champagne was better – the nibbles were by chef Akasha Richmond – and the men in the crowd looked like brainy art world professionals. That’s probably because of lot of them were: the party hosted by Tod’s maestro Diega Della Valle was to welcome the new director for MOCA (the Museum of Contemporary Art), Jeffrey Deitch, to Los Angeles and to his post. Even Anjelica Huston, who’s late husband Robert Graham was a major artist and reknown sculptor, popped in from Venice, and L.A. art world figures like Laddie John Dill and Charlie Fine, who don’t often attend fashion events, checked it out. The evening was a benefit to MOCA.
Mr. Della Valle – who owns Tod’s and also the fabulous French brand Roger Vivier – is not in Los Angeles often, so people were very excited to see him. After all, the brand is VERY famous for courting celebrities for the Oscars and the Globes, and for making custom bags and shoes for celebs. They go all out, and are very generous. Only Kate Beckinsale, in a purple ruched chemise, wore a rival Italian brand: she donned black satin Sergio Rossi peep toe pumps, and we can’t imagine why. Jessica Alba was looking super chic in a leather vest, black skirt, and Tod’s fall 2010/2011 grey booties lined in brown. “When you’re a mom, you want to be comfortable,” she laughed. “You can’t chase a baby around in high heels, so I forget what it’s like.”
“I do enjoy coming to L.A. and I should come more often,” Mr. Della Valle told us. “But we don’t do a ton of events here, we like to keep it special. I wanted to do with this with MOCA to show that while we love leather goods and crocodile at Tod’s – we love shoes and bags, and the ladies look magnificent here tonight – there are other things in the world other than fashion. There is art, and we must help keep art and culture alive.
Gwen Stefani had her hair pompadored up, wore a silver satin dress, and caused quite a stir, she looked so awesome. She wore it all with white footless leggings and a Tod’s cage strappy high shoe – amazing. Halle Berry did black leggings with a big shouldered top and vest, and came with her stylist of several years, Deb Wachnin.
We noticed our favorite locals were dressed to kill for this event – the first REAL major fashion event since the Oscars, really. Stylist Elizabeth Stewart wore an accordian pleat Ferretti dress with a big full skirt, and metallic lace Ferragamo shoes that were very high – but she managed. Magda Berliner’s usually dark hair was long and VERY blonde – and looked terrific with her white lace short outfit. Fashionista Maria Bell was wearing a brand new sienna colored coat and a cream dress by Celine that was our favorite look of the night. “I’m glad you appreciate it!” she laughed. “One of my friends asked me if I was going to wear my ugly coat! But I love it! I love the new spring Celine collection by Phoebe Phylo and I’m buying a lot of it.”
Afterwards, many in the crowd – stylist George Kotsiopolous, designer Jasmine Shokrian, actress Jordana Brewster (in green Lanvin ruffles), and many more were all headed over to the Beverly Hills Margiela store to check out the launch of Maison Martin Margiela’s new fragrance. – Merle Ginsberg

Conde Nast Traveler had a Vegas party over the weekend at the Aria Resort and Casino in their Haze nightclub. Both Kate Beckinsale and Gwen Stefani turned up – that’s the power of Conde Nast, people! – these ladies will turn up in Vogue soon, for sure! This is hot it works in the magazine world, let’s not be innocent. In any case, Kate donned a black keyhole halter “LBD” dress by Zac Posen, in hand draped jersey from spring summer. VERY summery looking, while it was a chilly weekend at home in Los Angeles. Gwen wore denim shorts covered in black chiffon with tights – a very creative and interesting look. We’re loving her smooth hair – it’s usually set and waved and very retro. Maybe having kids means there’s no time for that amount of hair styling! In any case, it’s nice to see a little movie star/pop star chic in Vegas, right? Conde Nast is not going to go for your typical Vegas attire. Not a white pump or fringe in sight.

Tod’s – the great bags and shoes, from the store at 333 North Rodeo (also sold in major department stores), was formerly J.P. Tod’s driving shoes and leathergoods, and they are of course based in Italy. They also own the brand Roger Vivier, considered the world’s greatest shoes and evening bags – both brands have been red carpet staples for years. But Mr. Della Valle has not been to Hollywood in ten years – since the fabulous opening of the store on N. Rodeo. Now he’s hosting a very posh event with a very posh committee, in honor of an L.A. cultural shift: Jeffrey Deitch is moving into his position at the New Director of the Museum of Contemporary Art in downtown L.A. (MOCA). So you can bet major art patrons will be on hand, as well as fashionistas, at this private event on Thursday April 15th from 6:30 to 8pm. There will be special projects by Oscar winning production designers Milena Canonero and Dante Ferretti, and this is a benefit for MOCA. In fact, they’ve hired major NY publicist Nadine Johnson to put the list together – so you know they mean business. The host committee is Kate Beckinsale, Maria Bell, Pierce and Keely Brosnan, Liz Goldwyn, director Michel Gondry (“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind“), Vogue’s Lisa Love, Kelly Lynch and Mitch Glazer, artist Ed Ruscha, and stylist Elizabeth Stewart.
Expect good clothes, good shoes, good bags, and a very arty crowd. Serious. – Merle Ginsberg

The MOCA thirtieth anniversary gala held this weekend at the L.A. based museum not only raised $4 million for the financially ailing art institution – with gallerist Larry Gagosian ponying up half a million dollars at auction for the pink Damien Hirst piano that Lady Gaga played (with the Bolshoi Ballet dancing)- it had a wide spectrum of fashion, from gowns to corsets to cocktail to mini’s. It just shows you that anything goes with creative black tie these days. If you’re Kate Bosworth, you can wear a tiny print Proenza Schoulder mini dress. Chloe Sevigny wore a white Miu Miu embellished mini. Jessica Alba wore a more demure black cocktail dress, thatwas actually knee-length – but paired it with red shoes. Eva Mendes was somewhat demure as well, in a black and tan kneelength Miu Miu cocktail dress. Why so much Miu Miu? (more…)