Princess Charlene of Monaco headed down under on Saturday to open a special style exhibit for her late mother-in-law Grace Kelly, and she used the fancy fete to debut a sexy new look of her own.

The South Africa native, who most recently thrilled us by attending the Oscars with her husband Prince Albert, opened the "Grace Kelly: Style Icon" exhibit in Victoria, marking her first trip to Australia as a royal.

The special exhibit showcases one hundred of Kelly's most famous costumes and dresses from designers like Dior, Balenciaga, Givenchy and Yves St. Laurent.

"Her beautiful style was a reflection of her natural elegance, taste and character," Charlene told the crowd. "Her style is so gracefully unique it remains an inspiration to all across generations and cultures."

And since we've long waxed ambivalent about Charlene's sartorial tastes (she favors tan and black instead of color), we were totally stoked to see her dressed to the nines for the opening. Are those... sparkles? Yes!

They're sparkly, and they're actually Swarovski crystals: Costume designer Johanna Johnson spent hours with the princess to custom design the spangled pink frock, which Charlene paired with blinged-out strappy heels.

We're also loving Charlene's casual hairstyle, especially because this is the first time we can recall seeing her with her hair down, which really highlights her bangs and her smoky eye makeup.

Charlene married Albert II , the only son of Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier III, in July of 2011. "Grace Kelly: Style Icon" will run until June 17, 2012 at the Bendigo art gallery.

Check out photos of Charlene's sexy new look below!

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