Oscars fashion: How designers can win big, too

NEW YORK CITY -- When Regina King took home the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress last year, she wasn't the only winner.

"I was in the lobby of a hotel in L.A.," said designer Fernando Garcia. "And everybody was watching on a big screen, and nobody knew who I was, obviously. But I was screaming at the screen, 'That's my dress!'"

The idea is to be so timeless the dress will never look dated when the photos are seen in years to come, says Alex Badia from WWD.

"It was perfect, because it's going to go down in history as a beautiful dress," he said. "She won fashion. She won an Academy Award."

A year later Badia talks about the 'Regina King effect' as more stars are wearing white.

"Something that worked for someone, you're going to see it next year on someone else," he said.

King's dress bore the label of Oscar de la Renta, where designers Fernando Garcia and Laura Kim share the title of Creative Director.

But they also have their own company called Monse.

"Everybody's different," said Garcia. "And you have to make sure you're addressing that person's personality in your design."

But even the designers don't know who will wear what on Oscar night.

"When they change their mind, it's normal," said Kim.

Even if a celebrity doesn't wear a designer's dress to the red carpet, there's another way to win.

"After the ceremony, the actresses go back to their room, get changed and go back to the after-party, the Vanity Fair party," said Kim.

That's where Brie Larsen wore a Monse design after winning an Oscar four years ago.

"And we had no idea how much attention that would get!" Garcia told me.