Parties

Dear PETA, Last night, to kick off fashion week in the best way we could have possibly imagined, Vice, whom we love for their unconventional fashion coverage, threw a party/fashion show at strip club-turned fashion hotspot Westway to celebrate the launch of their fashion issue. But not just any party/fashion show. A leather-clad man walked actual puppies dressed in actual S&M outfits down a stripper stage in the middle of the dark, packed, smoky nightclub. We can’t make this stuff up.
Read more »

Photo: Getty

To fête the launch of their ‘True Love In Pictures’ campaign with Tiffany & Co., Scott Schuman and girlfriend Garance Doré hosted a swanky shindig at the legendary jeweler’s Fifth Avenue flagship last night. DJ Solange Knowles spun old-school hip-hop tunes while models, socialites, and the who’s who of New York’s fashion crowd (those whose invites weren’t retracted) came out to celebrate the amazing alliance.

Joining forces with a brand like Tiffany & Co. is a big coup for anyone, even for the globetrotting street-style photo-blogging power couple, who collectively have collaborated with Gap, Burberry, Club Monaco, Moschino, and Kiehl’s in the past. (Both their sites have been growing–we know this because they’ve posted several jobs listings on our site.)

Regarding how they pick and choose whom they partner with, Schuman says they have to be careful, since they won’t shoot ads without their name attached to the project.

Read more »
image006

Kate Young was recently named one of “Hollywood’s Most Powerful Stylists” by the Hollywood Reporter and after one look at her celebrity clientele, it’s easy to see why. She dresses Michelle Williams, Natalie Portman and Rachel Weisz, to name a few, all people on whom we’ve come to rely for spot-on perfect red carpet looks. This also means that, considering it’s awards season and two of her clients are very much a part of that, Kate is super busy. Still, she found time for another new project.

She’s the latest INC Editor at Large for Spring/Summer 2012 at Macy’s. She follows inaugural INC Editor at Large Anna Dello Russo and her duties are a bit vague, as those of an ‘Editor at Large’ tend to be. What we know for sure is that they include styling the new INC collection, which you can peruse below, and a hip party thrown in her honor, which took place yesterday evening at Le Bain. We stopped by to chat with the super stylist about that gig, plus the attention celebrity stylists have been getting lately, dressing Natalie and Michelle for the Oscars and other upcoming projects, like Natalie’s next Dior campaign (!).

Read more »
P1050169

Despite the crisp holiday chill finally landing in New York, it was all about the warm weather days at the Ash flagship in Soho last night. The Italian contemporary shoe brand presented their spring 2012 line at a bash hosted by Kelly Framel of the Glamourai and with festive tunes provided by a smokey-eyed Becka Diamond. For those not quite ready to view shoes they can’t buy yet (the Fall 2011 styles are on sale, if you’re wondering), make-up applications, manis and braid and bang styling were also on tap for partiers. Plus in the spirit of the season, guests were encouraged to bring a toy to donate to Jessica Seinfeld’s Baby Buggy charity.

Even though we’re finally ready to settle into our winter booties, we headed upstairs to the loft area check out Ash’s spring styles.

Read more »
Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti Celebrate launch of Valentino Virtual Museum

When Franca Sozzani spoke at the press conference announcing the launch of the Valentino Garavani Vitrual Museum–a project funded entirely by Garavani and his longtime partner Giancarlo Giammetti to virtually house and showcase five decades of Valentino–she said celebrities love to wear Valentino and “not because they have been asked.” And last night, despite high winds and an icy deluge, a lot of celebrities wearing a lot of Valentino turned out to celebrate the designer’s groundbreaking new museum at a party at the IAC Building.

Read more »
Padma Lakshmi, Alice Temperley

On Wednesday night, I set foot in one of the most jealousy-inducing Manhattan lofts ever for an intimate soirée to celebrate the launch of Alice Temperley’s book True British: Alice Temperley (Rizzoli New York, 2011) and the 10 year anniversary of her label, Temperley London. Alice and friends/well-wishers like Padma Lakshmi, Derek Blasberg and Hamish Bowles were in attendance.

While a video of a hand flipping the pages of Alice’s book was projected onto a screen, we got a chance to chat with the designer about new projects and Pippa Middleton, who, as you might remember, attended only one show during London Fashion Week and that was Temperley. Even though we knew Pippa was a fan of the brand, we figured getting her to attend only your show must have taken some sort of PR magic. In fact, it was the easiest thing in the world.

Read more »

Halloween might be long gone, but Tuesday night’s fete for the launch of Pucci’s new boutique at Saks Fifth Avenue showed proved fashion folks are not tired of dress up. Emilio Pucci creative director Peter Dundas co-hosted the event with Harper’s Bazaar editor in chief Glenda Bailey.

Alexa Chung manned the DJ booth guests mingled with models (Coco Rocha, Anja Rubik and Jacquelyn Jablonski amongst them) all decked out in Dundas’ gypsy-inspired Spring 2012 collection for Pucci. Which is fitting because just the night before a good chunk of the party-goers, Dundas included, had dressed up gypsy for Anja’s themed Halloween party.

“Anja’s party last night was gypsy themed, so I went as a gypsy,” Dundas told us of his Halloween costume. “I didn’t bring anything and I was so busy I really didn’t want to think about it so in the end I went to St. Marks and let me tell you, you can find everything at St. Marks within half an hour! And that’s exactly what I did.” Note to self: Hit up St. Marks for Peter Dundas-approved gypsy fashion–apparently gypsy is very in this season.

Read more »

Last night, despite a cold, blustery rainstorm, the fashion industry elite put on their black-tie best and headed down to Cipriani Wall Street for Fashion Group International’s Annual Night of Stars Gala. The event is known for it’s glittery mix of designers, retail execs, editors and celebrities, and this year’s event was no exception. Elle’s Kate Lanphear (in an incredible YSL cape) told us, “This is one of my favorite events of the year. I’m a big fashion nerd, and I always try to come if I’m in town.” Spotted in the glamorous crowd were fashion luminaries like Proenza’s Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, Harper’s Bazaar Editor-in-Chief Glenda Bailey, Bergdorf Goodman’s Linda Fargo, model Lindsey Wixson, and style legend Lee Radziwill, who accompanied Star Honoree designer Giambattista Valli.

Many designers in attendance were excited to support Corporate Leadership Award winner Andrew Rosen, the President of Theory and an investor in young fashion brands. Stacey Bendet Eisner, founder and designer of Alice and Olivia, a company that Rosen has invested in and mentored, said, “I worship him. I talk to him every morning at 6am, or around that time. He’s the most amazing person in this industry; he’s the Godfather.” Misha Nonoo of Nonoo NY added, “Andrew Rosen is one of the most exciting people in fashion at the moment. He recognizes talent at a seedling level.”

Some highlights from the awards ceremony:

Read more »

Last night storied French footwear label Roger Vivier threw a cocktail party at their Upper East side store to celebrate their fall winter “Uptown-Downtown” collection as well as limited edition collection “Rendez-Vous.” Creative director Bruno Frisoni’s creations for the brand–particularly the “Rendez-Vous” collection which he described as “Rock! Think Keith Richards”–nearly outshone all the fashion starlets who turned out to sip champagne and shoe-drool. Leighton Meester was there, and so were industry darlings Annabelle Dexter-Jones, Marie Amelie Sauve, Hamish Bowles, Hanne Gabe Odiele, Emily Weiss and Leandra Medine. Plus Alexandra Richards was DJing. Needless to say, it was a very chic event.

We caught Meester, who looked lovely in sequined J.Mendel, Vivier accessories and Bulgari jewels, staring distractedly at some studded Vivier boots so we seized the moment to check in with the Gossip Girl star.

Read more »

Carine Roitfeld threw a launch party for her new book Irreverent in Paris last night. The theme was bal des vampires, meaning it was basically this season’s answer to last year’s French Vogue masquerade ball.

The fashion crowd went with the theme–some full on (Olivier Theyskens), some only slightly more vampiric than usual (Julia Restoin Roitfeld), some just dressed in black (Kanye West) and one guest wore a giant red Giles Deacon X Stephen Jones swan on her head (guess who!). It’s hard to tell whether or not Karl Lagerfeld dressed up and Karlie Kloss let us know that her recent penchant for near-nudity is not relegated to magazines and runways. She wore a risqué black Anthony Vaccarello gown (which she also wore on the runway) that revealed most of her torso and had a slit that went all the way to the hip.

If anything, this was a pretty awesome party idea–and just in time for Halloween. Who do you think did vampire chic best?

Read more »

PARIS–Last night at soon-to-be It-club Silencio (think Gold Bar plus Kenmare), Proenza Schouler‘s Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez along with POP magazine threw a party to celebrate the release of their new Harmony Korine-directed fashion film, Snowballs. The title is entirely misleading because not only is there nothing snowy or bally about this film, but snowballs also connote a sort of childhood cuteness (a snowball fight! fun!) and this film is not that. It’s disturbing and most of the posh fashion-y crowd (which included both Traina sisters and Lauren Santo Domingo) left the screening room feeling a bit unnerved and gripping their champagne flutes a little tighter. The creepy baby voices singing, the models dressed up like Native Americans with distorted faces and feet shod in trash bags, the not-so-sober rotund shirtless Southern preacher type character in a trailer, the part where the shirtless fat Southern guy and the two characters dressed up as Native Americans all dance together in a circle–it’s provocative to say the least.

Jack McCollough even acknowledged to WWD that the film is “not like a sales vehicle. It’s a sales deterrent if anything.” But that’s precisely why it’s awesome. Read more »

LOS ANGELES–When it comes to personal style, there’s no better embodiment of a brazen fashionista than Alexa Chung; and it’s no wonder that Madewell tapped her for a second collaborative collection (sales of her debut collection went through the roof) this fall. InStyle hosted a celebratory soiree in her honor last night, the eve before the collection hits stores, at the Chateau Marmont and packed the house with a stylish set including Amanda Seyfried, Diana Agron, Abbie Cornish, Jena Malone, Zelda Williams and more.

A pop-up shop displaying the entire line occupied guests for hours, while we made the rounds to see just what it is about Chung’s style that’s so decidedly addictive.

“She’s my favorite kind of sexy,” said Kate Bosworth, hot off her European run as the face of Vanessa Bruno. “I think Alexa is so chic and unique and playful. That tomboyish femininity…like she’s not trying too hard. You can tell she’s sharp, totally a smart girl.”

Clad in a prim ivory lace dress from the collection, Elle Fanning excitedly fawned over the fashion before embracing Alexa in a sweet hug to congratulate her. “Everything is so cute! I love Madewell and I love Alexa…having them together is like heaven!” enthused the young actress, who first met Chung at the Met Ball months ago. “She’s really, really fun. I love how she sort of wears baby doll dresses but still has the tomboy thing going on. It suits her so well.”

So what did the girl of the hour have to say about all of the fashion flattery?

Read more »