Peter Lamas is one of the leading make-up artists and beauty experts in the world. His clients read like a Who's Who of Hollywood -- Jackie Onassis, Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, Faye Dunaway, Diana Ross, Sharon Stone, Cindy Crawford and Kate Winslet, to name but a few. Peter's film credits include the gorgeous make-up design seen in James Cameron's Titanic. Peter regularly appears on television and in the media in North/South America, Europe and Asia. He travels extensively across the globe, speaking to women of many different cultures, about how they can realize their potential to be beautiful both inside and out. Peter is founder and Chairman of Lamas Beauty.

And the blush, please...!

Like a billion other human beings on this planet, I love to watch the Academy Awards, and probably for the same three reasons as everyone else -- to see who is wearing what, who is with whom, and how ticky tacky the production numbers will be (and of course who wins what is secondary). This year Oscar was hosted by the wonderful comedian/writer/and-a-dozen-other- appellations-Steve Martin, and the fashion parade was not disappointing. And thankfully, the production numbers were minimized and fairly tasteful.

I have warm memories of the Oscars, having through the years performed my own brand of make-up and hair magic on several lovely ladies. I'm particularly fond of Goldie Hawn, who I was fortunate enough to work on for the 71st annual Academy Awards, held in 1999. Goldie has lustrous hair, and spends a lot of money on hair coloring. She likes to showcase her hair, as she considers it to be her best feature. Goldie tends to wear dresses that are very form fitting, but she has the body to carry it off. If you've got it, flaunt it -- and Goldie's definitely got it!

Goldie 1997

Goldie 2001

Overall, 2001 was a good year for fashion and make-up at the King of all awards shows, although there were some faux pas here and there...

Best Actress winner Julia Roberts, who chose a stunning black and white vintage Valentino, was certainly a nominee in the Worst Hair For The Evening category. That incredible hairdo really weighed her down in the back. I kept thinking her neck was going to snap back from the bulk, and that she'd need a visit to the chiropractor the next day. The style makes her slender face look much wider than it is. There are ways of adding hair as a filler to an updo without making it appear lumpy, like a glob of hair stuck to the back of her head. An updo with an illusion of a weaving is much more elegant, and would have been a more appropriate look for her. The mink color hair piece didn't even blend with her real hair, which is more of a chestnut brown. I did like her make-up and dress, however; it was very stylish, especially for such an occasion. The Valentino was exquisite, and she wore it well. And of course no stylist on the planet could produce such a beautiful smile.

Maybe Boys Don't Cry, but 1999's Best Actress winner Hilary Swank's hair and dress nearly brought me to tears. This style is too flat to her, and needed a lot more volume. Thank God for the dramatic make-up, because the plain hair, just hanging there like it's bored with life, didn't do anything for her face. That uncouth Donatella Versace dress, which is showing everything that can be shown, didn't flatter her at all. It exposed way too much, and revealed body parts which I would preferred to have left to my imagination. Bear in mind that I don't mind exposure at all, but it has to be flattering. She looks like she has gained a little weight, however, which is a plus. She looked too drawn last year, and this year looked more voluptous, which is exciting.

Hilary 2000

Hilary 2001

Praise be to the Fashion Gods that Best Supporting actress winner Angelina Jolie junked her hideous Elvira, Mistress of the Night look. This year her slicked back hair into a chignon really worked well with her sleek, white pant suit, and the simple (yet still elegant) make-up was a real thumbs-up. The suit was wonderful, and the tailoring perfect. I didn't care much for the pockets, as the flaps were a little too large, but I'm being picky. The color of the suit is ideal for her skin, it really does a lot for her.

Angelina 2000

Angelina 2001

Catherine Zeta Jones could stop Traffic in that dress, or anything else she wears, for that matter. Catherine is voluptous with a natural sophistication, whether dressed up or dressed down. She is a bit of a throwback to another era, and distinctly resembles the luscious pin-up girls of the 40's and early 50's. Have you ever noticed how strongly she favors Ava Gardner? With her dark wavy hair and sensational eyebrows, she's a dead ringer for Sinatra's favorite fling. I adore Catherine's updo, which has a version of the "Marcel wave" (named after French hairdresser Marcel Grateau, who invented the waving iron in the 1870's). Her make-up was also flawless, she did just what she needed to do with her eyes and lips. With a black dress like that is so formal and full, you need to wear a lot of eye make-up, otherwise when you look at her you won't see her face, you'll just see the dress. When you wear a lot of material on you, like a big dress or evening gown, you need to focus on the eyes, or the weight on the bottom draws you to look from the neck down. The only way you can compensate for that is with showy evening make-up. The empire-corset style dress was magnificent. It made her look older, and I mean that as a compliment. She has the poise, grace and confidence of a much more experienced woman. She walks into a room, and she has a certain presence. At 30 she is very young, but carries herself like a much older woman.

Ava Gardner

Catherine Zeta Jones

Frances McDormand and Kate Hudson, both nominated for Best Supporting Actress for Almost Famous, are incredibly talented actresses. It's too bad Frances didn't seem to notice she was attending the Oscars, though -- her hair looked like she'd just stepped out of the shower, and just towel dried it and left it alone. "Oh, and let me throw on a little lip-stick and mascara. That'll do it!" I thought, "Oh my God, who put this girl together!" She's so blonde and fair, and the bright colors make her look washed out. I also had a problem with Frances' dress, it was way too tight. It looked more like an outfit you'd wear to exercise in, or a uniform in a bad science fiction movie. Some people have no taste. I loved Frances in Fargo, but she is far gone in that get-up. Kate, on the other hand, is adorable. Her hair is sublime -- all tossled and pulled up without being too structured, soft looseness to soften curls. The make-up is dazzling, just enough blush on the cheeks, and the eyes are nicely done without being overpowering. That beaded lilac gown, which has a very vintage, very romantic, turn of the century look, is perfect for her. I'm afraid we're talking Beast and the Beauty in this photo.

I'm getting a bit annoyed with actress and model Halle Berry, a presenter at Oscar 2001. She's lovely to look at, but her one-note performances are simply deadly dull. This is a girl that works at looking her best, but I find people that try so hard boring. On the screen she does nothing for me, I don't even remember her. As pretty as she is, she's very forgettable. She has very little personality. Her dress was very contemporary, shows off her great figure, but it's not all that exciting. I hated the scooping top, she didn't need that. It's very distracting, and kind've weighs her down. I kept expecting her to fall forward. Halle's hair was very pretty, she has a beautiful smile, beautiful hair, perfect make-up, but I just want to say, "Next!"

Presenter Jennifer Lopez looked astonishing. She really pulled it off. Her one-shoulder blouse is very revealing, but without being vulgar. Of course some people, especially men, might feel uncomfortable and have a hard time focusing on her face, but I enjoy her boldness. I love the effect of the full length skirt. Jennifer's hair was very classic, pulled back with gel into a little chignon that was tucked into a French twist. Her make-up was impeccable, she actually wore very little. Jennifer usually doesn't wear much make-up, as she has such great bone structure. Normally she just emphasizes her lips and cheeks, and does not do much to the eyes. The simplicity is very elegant.

Winona Ryder is the female Keanu Reeves, her acting ability can only go so far. The word "wooden" comes to mind. Her blonde frizz of an updo doesn't fit her at all. That color makes her look too sallow. She looks great as a brunette, why put a square peg in a round hole? Her make-up was good, if a little overdone. The dress worked for me, she has nice shoulders, very smooth skin, very pretty. But that bleached blonde blech has got to go...

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon star Chow Fat and wife Jasmin are a stunning, very striking couple. They look so happy! They both have a lot of flare. I love the matching tuxes on this good looking, handsome couple.

Best Actress Nominee Laura Linney, with her strawberry blonde hair swept back and that ravishing dress, was breathtaking. I mean, she left me breathless! The deep coral lipstick is the perfect shade with the coral dress. She was wearing lots of eye make-up which I like, and if she hadn't worn this eye make-up with that dress, she would just disappear. You see her and go, "Wow!" I couldn't even tell it was her, it was such a transformation. Unfortunately coral lipstick doesn't work for everyone, you have to what I call the Northern Ireland look -- fair skin with reddish/ strawberry blonde hair. It was fun to see her look so fabulous.

With much love,

Peter Lamas

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