SPARKLES APLENTY EVEN THE LOSERS ARE WINNERS AT THE OSCARS.

Byline: Barbara De Witt Fashion Editor

NO WONDER they say it's a privilege just to be nominated.

Win or lose, Oscar nominees get showered with pricey gifts.

This year, Coach - the handbag company - has presented some of Hollywood's top directors with personalized custom-made red leather director's chairs.

The nominees for best actress really get the loot. Among their gifts: the Body by Victoria Diamond Edition by Victoria's Secret, a pair of $5,000 bra straps to hold up evening gowns. The straps, made of white gold and sparkling with 22 real diamonds, are designed to convert into a necklace when the Oscars are over.

Hush Puppies, the shoe company that started the tradition of custom-made ``Tux Pups'' for the male nominees in 1996, has now added a woman's gift called ``The Day Before the Red Carpet'' shoe.

For those hours before the Oscars when the best actress and best supporting actress nominees are primping, they can relax in their red suede Hush Puppies accented with Swarovski crystals.

Nominee Halle Berry (``Monster's Ball'') has captured a lot of attention of late, including that of local handbag designer Timmy Woods. The designer, whose clients include Leelee Sobieski and Melanie Griffith, was so inspired by Berry's performance that she created a small one-of-a-kind handbag in wood and leather with an image of Berry's face for the best actress nominee.

It's still hush-hush, but one of the stars on the red carpet will be wearing shoes of real platinum and diamonds for good luck.

Stuart Weitzman, whose acrylic ``Cinderella'' pumps have been a red carpet favorite, has teamed up with the Platinum Guild to design an open-toed stiletto shoe made of platinum that has been woven into fabric. The actress, whose name will be revealed this week during pre-Oscar celebrations at L'Ermitage Hotel in Beverly Hills, also will carry a matching purse, which ups the value of the borrowed accessories to about $1.4 million

Other perks for nominated actresses include visits from Estee Lauder's Dream Team to their homes for a day of pampering, free cosmetics, a TSE cashmere robe and a pair of Manolo Blahnik suede sandals for their pedicures.

Fashion designer Joanna Mastroianni is giving a pillow made of her latest couture fabric filled with real lavender.

Cosmetics guru Maria Magdalena is giving each female nominee her new Gemstone collection of cosmetics, valued at $1,500 each and made of ground-up rubies and other gem stones.

Finally, since red lipstick has been a favorite color of Oscar winners since Joan Crawford's era, Valerie Beverly Hills cosmetics is giving each female nominee a red leather envelope filled with her new ``Winner Wears Red'' lipstick collection.

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Photo:

(1 -- color) no caption (handbag with image of Halle Berry's face)

(2 -- color) no caption (red suede Hush Puppies with Swarovski crystals)

(3 -- color) no caption (red leather director's chairs)