Red-carpet Black Dresses for the Greater Good

Being the "official wine of the awards season" in Hollywood has got to be a good job for a winemaker. What's more fun than getting famous actresses tipsy enough to do Godfather impressions?

But I joke. The winemaker in question, Little Black Dress Wines, is actually getting serious about style — and goodness — this month. The wine company is auctioning off the red-carpet little black dresses (LBDs) of the stars and donating the proceeds to some clothing-oriented charities, according to a press release.

The auction, which takes the tagline "Giving Back is Always in Style," will benefit Dress for Success, which offers professional clothing to disadvantaged job seekers, and Clothes Off Our Back Foundation, which runs charity auctions stocked with celebs' cast-offs.

The famous ladies whose LBDs are gracing this year's auction block include Glenn Close, Mary J. Blige, Elizabeth Mitchell, Carrie Ann Inaba and Ashlee Simpson-Wentz, among others.

This is the third year for the LBD auction. Since 2007, the winery has raised over $100,000 for charity using the dresses of more than 50 Hollywood actresses, including Sharon Stone, Tina Fey, America Ferrera, Felicity Huffman, Julianne Moore, Kim Cattrall, Teri Hatcher, Lisa Kudrow, Chloe Sevigny and Laura Linney.

Photo courtesy of dancer Dallagio, via Flickr