Off the Rack

For Christina Aguilera’s Grammy look, makeup artist Kristofer Buckle was inspired by her pale peachy-pink Ungaro gown. “I wanted her makeup to be peaches-and-cream soft so that it didn’t upstage the pale, pretty shade of her dress,” says Buckle, who created the singer’s look in 20 minutes backstage at the Staples Center. On her eyes, he brushed Laura Mercier Mineral Eye Powder in Eclipse, a sparkly black powder, across her upper lids for a soft but still dramatic effect. He added three pairs of false lashes to further emphasize her eyes. (”Any drugstore brand works,” adds Buckler. Try Ardell, the inexpensive brand of choice for the pros.) “The idea was to give a Jayne Mansfield look to her eyes–sexy and strong, but a bit understated,” he says. On her lips, “I wanted a creamsicle color, but beigier and more monochromatic, so it wasn’t too attention-getting,” says Buckle. He mixed bright coral lipstick with creamy beige, and added a layer of MAC Lipglass in Clear on top. “Everyone is so sexed up at the Grammys, so I definitely wanted her look to make a big statement; but I did that by pulling way back. That makes a major statement, too.”

Click here for all the award show scoop on the Red Carpet Confidential blog.

Photo: hector mata/afp/getty

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When the Simpson girls turned up at the Sony/BMG post-Grammy party, a few things became apparent — Jessica and John Mayer are definitely a couple, Ashlee is now the blonde in the family, and the girls share a taste for wearing little black dresses on the red carpet. Newly brunette Jessica turned up in a super-slinky vintage minidress with a crystal halter, while little sis Ashlee went for a swingier D&G chiffon frock with crystal accents. Two sisters, two black dresses that sparkle — and two totally different looks. Tell us: Whose little black dress do you prefer? Jessica or Ashlee?

Click here for more photos and the full scoop on the Grammys party scene in our Red Carpet Confidential blog.

Photo: Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic; NPX/starmax

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Sometimes we feel like a broken record talking about Mary-Kate Olsen, but once again we find ourselves totally confused by her outfit and asking ourselves “What was she thinking?” From her super-minidress to her towering platforms to her oversize shades, the tiny star’s outfit looks more like a grandmother who forgot to put her pants on than a stylish star! Not to mention the fact that it was well below freezing in New York this weekend, so we can’t imagine why she wasn’t more bundled up for shopping in the frigid streets of SoHo. Tell us: What do you think of Mary-Kate’s latest look? Would you wear it?

Click here to read more about Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in Off the Rack.

Photo: hector vallenilla/ pacific coast news

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When Maria Bello attended the Critic’s Choice Awards a few weeks ago, she made more than a fashion statement, wearing a vintage Galanos dress that she had emblazoned with the words “Peace in Darfur.” At the time, she told PEOPLE that she would auction off the dress to benefit Save the Children, an organization that aids disadvantaged children in 42 countries. But it turns out, she hadn’t secured a way of auctioning it off, and Clothes Off Our Back stepped in to help. You can now find Maria’s dress up for auction on their site (click here to go directly to her page), along with thirty other award show gowns from actresses like Meryl Streep, Maggie Gyllenhaal and America Ferrera. Click here to view the entire 2007 Spring Award Show Auction.

To get the scoop on who’s wearing what to all the award shows, see our Red Carpet section.

Photo: Michael Germana/Everett Collection; Russell Einhorn/Splash News

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Designer Ben de Lisi kick-started London Fashion Week yesterday with his lovely Autumn/Winter 2007 collection. After the show, I worked my way backstage only to find the designer in a state of panic! De Lisi revealed he was dressing BAFTA nominee Kate Winslet that evening (note: It was 3.45 p.m. and red carpet arrivals started at 4 p.m.!) “I have to go dress her now, right now.” he said running towards the door. “She’s going to be Hollywood glamour.” Only minutes later, I’m standing in line to get a taxi to get to the next show, when I see a small, suited man sprinting into oncoming traffic to hail a taxi. Looks like all of his hustling was worth it — Kate hit the red carpet in a glamorous black gown, courtesy (of course) of Ben de Lisi. Tell us: What do you think of Kate’s gown? — Monique Jessen

Get more scoops on award show looks at in our Red Carpet section.

Photo: marc larkin/lfi

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