If you've ever seen celebrities on the red carpet at one of the major awards shows you've probably seen Fred Leighton jewels. The estate jeweler routinely outfits many top stars with glittering jewelry for special occasions. It's been a tough year for the jeweler, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April 2008 but now rescue comes from diamond jewelry brand Kwiat. National Jeweler reports that Kwiat Enterprises, LLC and two other partners have purchased the assets of Fred Leighton in a $25.8 million deal.

Kwiat will take over the Fred Leighton business, including its boutiques in New York City and Las Vegas, continuing to run them under the Fred Leighton name. Kwiat's other partners are Och-Ziff Capital Management Group LLC--partnering as FL Acquisitions LLC and FOF Inventory Holding, which consists of four estate and jewelry dealers including Windsor Jewelers, Robert Sadian and Mark Emanuel of European Arts and Antiques, Sima Ghadamian of Sima G. Ltd., and Moonbeam Consulting, whose principal is the company's original founder Fred Leighton.

Greg Kwiat, who will be chief executive officer of Fred Leighton, told National Jeweler that he see Fred Leighton as a "very complementary acquisition for Kwiat." After all both brands court the favor of Hollywood stars and both have retail stores on Madison Avenue in New York City and in Las Vegas. Kwiat hopes to boost Fred Leighton's retail presence and its wholesale presence in fine department stores and independent jewelers.

Jewelry collector and Fred Leighton owner Ralph Esmerian who filed the bankruptcy petition, bought Fred Leighton for $100 million in 2006 using a $178 million loan from Merrill Lynch and Co. Last year he planned a Christie's auction to recoup some of the brand's outstanding debt claims. Esmerian relinquished control of the company to a restructuring officer in January 2009 and earlier this month a bankruptcy judge signed an order that authorized the sale to Kwiat and the other two companies of Fred Leighton's assets, free and clear of all liens, claims, interests and encumbrances. The company's main creditor, Merrill Lynch will be the first beneficiary of the proceeds of the sale. In a press release issued by the company, Fred Leighton himself expressed enthusiasm that the Fred Leighton Madison Avenue store will continue to remain a New York landmark and that the brand "will continue to be the preeminent antique jeweler in the world."

The upcoming 60th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards are always a place to check out diamonds on display. Keep your eyes on the red carpet on September 21 to spot the Platinum Clutch, a new design by Cate Adair, costume designer for Desperate Housewives and Kwiat. The one-of-a-kind purse is valued at more than $500,000, and will debut at the Platinum Guild International Red Carpet Jewelry Preview, September 18-20, in Beverly Hills. The bag features genuine platinum design elements set with 60 carats of Kwiat diamonds, The bag will be on the arm of a celebrity on the red carpet and then on display at Kwiat's new store on Madison Avenue in New York. Not quite as pricey as the $1.9 million diamond bag but still pretty impressive.

This week Kwiat brought some more sparkle to Madison Avenue with the opening of their 1,000-square-foot boutique at 725 Madison near other high-end diamond jewelry brands including Graff and Leviev. The flagship store celebrated their grand opening with a party hosted by Jennifer Hudson who tried on Kwiat designs for the press. Actress Eva Amurri and editors from various consumer fashion magazines were also in attendance. The company is dipping their toes into the retail business and is looking at shopping spots known for big spenders such as Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Russia.

It's rare that the celebs are given the fake and the public is given the real thing but that's the case with the L'Oréal Paris Red Carpet Compact designed by Kwiat Diamonds. Female Golden Globes nominees were given a Swarovski crystal and gold-plated version of this compact but the real gold and diamond version is being auctioned off to the public. Five compacts will be auctioned off on eBay starting on February 17. Each compact is 18K yellow gold with 90 brilliant-cut Kwiat diamonds set in a white gold ribbon design. The clasp features a small ruby and the compact has two mirrors inside. The compacts have a value of $6,900 and proceeds will benefit the Motion Picture & Television Fund and the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund.

It's not quite as pricey as the diamond bikini but Kwiat has created a $1 million tennis racket as part of the Tennis Channel Open being held at the Mirage in Las Vegas February 27-March 25. The "The Tennis Channel Kwiat Million Dollar Swinger" is a Wilson racket that includes 180 carats and over 3,041 individual brilliant cut Kwiat diamonds set in an 18K white gold base. The racket will be on display the Mirage during tournament week. The event is part of Tennispalooza, a festival of racket sports that includes the Open as well as the Wilson World Stringing Championships, a USTA Juniors Championship, A Paddle Tennis World Championships and the Stiga Table Tennis Championships.

As the Oscars approach, jewelers get ready for the big red carpet moments. National Jeweler reports on some of the plans for local jewelers. Kwiat has announced that they will be holding an Oscar suite in conjunction with Kodak from Feb. 27 to March 2. Those who visit the suite will get a look at Kwiat's newest red-carpet designs, including the new collection of one-of-a-kind diamond jewelry inspired by this year's nominees for best actress. Nominees get gift packages that feature a Kodak EasyShare camera with their initials done up in Kwiat diamonds. Erica Courtney also has big plans for the night including a $50,000 red-carpet gown made with Ali Rahimi of Mon Atelier and featuring 100 baroque Tahitian pearls and platinum.