After several days and nights of nonstop events, poolside cocktails, networking, and, oh yes, art to absorb, Basel frazzle was setting in as Sunday arrived. Genevieve Jones had lost her voice. Yvonne Force Villareal's schedule was all out of whack after an all-nighter at a strip club. Only André Balazs seemed to know the secret of keeping sane: "I work out at the Standard gym every morning," he said.

Back on Wednesday, though, with showgoers fresh off their private jets, the parties came fast and furious. The Whitney Contemporaries teamed up with jeweler David Yurman to show off film and video from the museum's collection; Interview and David Lauren celebrated his father's eponymous new book, Ralph Lauren; and Pucci's Matthew Williamson and Laudomia Pucci put the label's 60th anniversary festivities to bed with a sit-down dinner for the likes of Anh Duong, Delphine Arnault, and Becca Cason Thrash.

Thursday evening began calmly (although it didn't end that way) as Balazs hosted a book launch for Bob Colacello's seventies flashback book, Out. "Bob is an old friend and Warhol was a good friend as well, so it's like old home week," said Katherine Ross. Over in the Design District, Nadja Swarovski unveiled Diller Scofidio + Renfro's Light Sock as guests such as Dayssi Olarte de Kanavos, Todd Eberle, and Emma Snowdon-Jones looked on. Maybe it was the Champagne, but the provocative chandeliers produced plenty of naughty talk and giggles.

If bacchanalia has a sound, it could've been heard at Visionaire's Friday bash. "You know sometimes when you're hosting you don't really get to just let go?" asked Cecilia Dean. She didn't have to worry about that at the Delano's new Lenny Kravitz-designed Florida Room, as DJs kept the party going well past the 11 p.m. end time listed on the invite. Elsewhere that night, Tamara Mellon's dinner for Richard Phillips and the Vanity Fair/MoMA pool party vied for showgoers' attention. The former had free handbags going for it; the latter, a photo booth. Saturday was just as packed: Vogue hosted a Grey Goose-sponsored Alberta Ferretti mini-show; Y-3 curated a video installation at its store; and Julian Schnabel screened his new new film, Berlin. But none of those events were as difficult to get into as the Colette shindig at Le Baron. Revelers who tired of the velvet ropes, clipboards, and endless lines could be found at Twist, a local gay bar. There, editors, stylists, and artists sweated it out to hip-hop and dance classics until the wee hours with nary a paparazzo to pose for.

— Cator Sparks