Wildfox knows how to party. The brand known best for its cheeky upscale tees threw a massive bash Wednesday night at Capitale, a cavernous former savings bank in Little Italy. This was hipster heaven: Dimly lit with boundless micro-brewed beer, bottomless rum-and-cokes, a late-night performance by Williamsburg darlings Chairlift, and the most time-efficient photo booth the world has ever known.

As for the crowd, let’s just say–I definitely missed the memo on the hat mandate. It was a mix of cool girls, really cool girls, a few select men wearing either fitted sweaters or flannel, and a rogue, ultra-hip nine-year-old wearing a slip dress I could never pull off. I found myself envying one girl for her fringey cowboy jacket–and no, I hadn’t taken anything. Vanessa Hudgens and her boyfriend, The Carrie Diaries‘ Austin Butler bee-lined for the VIP area with Ashlee Simpson (what do they talk about?).

Oh–and there were clothes, too–though they certainly weren’t the main event. Halfway through the night, models decked out in barely-there sequinned mini dresses and tees reading “DAISY” and “I made it through Prohibition and all I got was this lousy T shirt”–along with candy-colored Louise Brooks wigs–had a definite Great Gatsby pajama party moment as they shook and shimmied on platforms to some retro tunes. At the very least, the night was a welcome distraction from the seriousness that can sometimes overtake even the jolliest of editors this time of the season.

Photos: Getty