subscribe to style file blog via RSSSelma Blair, Woman of Simple Tastes?
November 20, 2009 5:41 pm
It was a reunion of sorts: Ginnifer Goodwin, Selma Blair, a host of fabulous Bulgari jewels, and me. The occasion was Bulgari’s dinner at L.A.’s Sunset Tower last night, in honor of the upcoming Christie’s auction of the Italian jewelry house’s 125th Anniversary Collection. It was just six months ago that we’d all celebrated Bulgari’s milestone birthday in Rome. Any favorite pieces? Of course. “I’m just a simple girl—I’ll go for the rubellite tourmaline and diamond ring, 37 carats,” Blair deadpanned. (It certainly wouldn’t have been out of place in more-is-more Houston, where she just finished a run in the new play Gruesome Playground Injuries; we hear its next stop is Broadway.) Goodwin, in a Rebecca Minkoff blouse and Antonio Berardi skirt, made sure to tell her boyfriend, Joey Kern, “I would bid on any and all of the Serpent bracelets.” They won’t be cheap, but at least they’ll be virtuous: The auction profits go to benefit Save the Children’s Rewrite the Future campaign, providing funds for the education of children living in war zones and other areas of conflict.
tags: Bulgari, Ginnifer Goodwin, Rebecca Minkoff, Selma Blair
Forty and Fabulous
November 20, 2009 3:51 pm
If Interview’s now officially middle-aged—the Warhol-founded mag celebrated at its 40th at Indochine last night—it’s wearing it well. Editor Fabien Baron and publishing honcho Peter Brant had no trouble rounding up a crew of admirers to toast it—most of them younger than the thing itself. “I was 15 when I used to go to Studio 54,” hair stylist Orlando Pita remembered of the headier days. Model and musician Jamie Bochert post-dated disco (in its first incarnation, at least), but she did remind Pita that she met him on her first-ever photo shoot. Meanwhile, guests like Calvin Klein’s Francisco Costa, Narciso Rodriguez, and Nate Lowman caught up over Chilean sea bass, duck confit, and hanger steak (not to mention more than a few cigarette breaks); Mary-Kate Olsen stopped to say hello to Daphne Guinness; and Cynthia Rowley and Bill Powers chatted with Rachel Feinstein Currin and John Currin. Yes, it was an anniversary party, but Calvin Klein menswear designer and longtime NYC resident Italo Zucchelli was preparing to celebrate a new beginning. “I’m becoming an American citizen tomorrow,” Zucchelli said, pointing to his American flag tee. “It’s at 8:30 in the morning. After that, I’m going to celebrate!”
tags: Calvin Klein, Francisco Costa, Narciso Rodriguez, Nate Lowman, Orlando Pita
Cotton’s Candy
November 19, 2009 5:55 pm
The It accessory for Spring 2010 just might be the cupcake headband, if Will Cotton has anything to do with it. The confection-loving artist—whose burlesque-ish ladies-in-Candy Land paintings have made him a hot commodity on the young art scene—created sugary headpieces and candy-covered PJs for Creative Time’s fundraiser-cum-slumber party last night at (where else?) the Ace Hotel. “Cotton’s paintings are so delicious, it’s just the kind of thing I want to go to bed in,” CT’s Anne Pasternak said. The whole party, in fact, was a Cotton painting come to life, with fantastical spreads of macaroons, meringue, and a whole lot of Campari. The dress code for this dessert buffet: despite all those calories, quite a bit of skin. Ruffian’s Brian Wolk showed off his skivvies (topped with a Schnabel-worthy silk smoking jacket) while partner-in-crime Claude Morais cozied up in some plaid flannels. Everyone congregated downstairs for sets by Fischerspooner and DJ-about-town Matt Creed. As bedtime approached, Luke Wilson popped in, but according to our sources, the real action was upstairs, where Jack White and Karen Elson were having a private slumber party of their own. Pillow fight, anyone?
Cotton’s limited-edition pajamas will be available at Barneys New York just in time for Valentine’s Day.
tags: Anne Pasternak, Brian Wolk, Creative Time, FischerSpooner, Will Cotton
Thierry Mugler Says “No Sparkles”
November 19, 2009 5:17 pm
Cross-dressing chanteuse Joey Arias has been a fixture on New York’s performance art scene since the late 1970’s, but he doesn’t look a day past fabulous. In his latest dramatic offering, Arias With a Twist, which opened to a packed house at Los Angeles’ RedCat theater last night, the star took to the stage in teetering stilettos and a custom Thierry Mugler thong that would make Sisqo blush. Before joining pals like Rosanna Arquette, Katy Rodriguez, and Lisa Edelstein at the after-party, Mr. Arias slipped into something more comfortable: a black cashmere pantsuit. But that’s not to say he left his sense of style at the green room door. “This is glamorous!” said Arias when we suggested that the pantsuit might be otherwise. “What did you expect, sequins? My dear friend Mr. Mugler would murder me if he saw me in anything that sparkled.”
Arias With a Twist, a phantasmagoric drag show co-starring X-rated marionettes, was the brainchild of Arias and his longtime friend, the famed puppeteer Basil Twist. Having enjoyed a successful run in New York, Arias has brought it to Los Angeles for a limited engagement ending on December 13.
tags: Joey Arias, Katy Rodriguez, Rosanna Arquette, Thierry Mugler
The Prada Book Tour, London Edition
November 19, 2009 5:05 pm
Swedish fragrance kingpin Ben Gorham, in town for 24 hours, looked around him at the Prada book launch last night and wondered, “Is everyone always this happy at parties in London? It’s like they’ve just been let out of a cage.” It wasn’t quite that wild, but the crowd of attractive young creatures was doing its best to make up for Miuccia’s no-show (she headed straight back to Milan after the MOCA gala in L.A. on Saturday night). Inevitably, she was on partygoers’ minds. Marc Quinn was remembering her extraordinary generosity when he showed at the Fondazione Prada. “Antagonism…and her childlike quality” were two qualities Russell Marsh said he loved most about the designer. “I couldn’t pinpoint one thing,” added Christopher Kane. “She’s everything.” Her guest list had a bit of everything, too: artist Barry Kamen, Judy Blame channeling Crocodile Dundee, a fresh-from-the-pampas Astrid Muñoz (in Pucci, not Prada), a rare sighting of Suede’s Brett Anderson (aging well), an Erdem Moralioglu/Trish Goff date, a couple of Kennedys (OK, it was Jan and Lulu, not The Other Kind), plus Assisi Jackson with her grandmother Bianca Jagger. And yes, Ben, everyone is always this happy at parties in London…as long as the Billecart-Salmon is flowing.
tags: Astrid Munoz, Ben Gorham, Brett Anderson, Christopher Kane, Crocodile Dundee, Prada, Russell Marsh
Art Appreciation Night At Fendi
November 19, 2009 2:36 pm
Fendi’s Fifth Avenue boutique served as a virtual melting pot of the arts last night, hosting a launch party for a book about artist John Baldessari and a piano performance by rock-and-jazz fusionist Eric Lewis.
No mere coffee-table volume, Sharon Coplan Hurowitz’s The Prints of John Baldessari: A Catalogue Raisonne 1971-2007 is a definitive treatment, ten years in the making, of one of the last century’s most influential artists. “Making photographs part of art-making, John made that commonplace,” Hurowitz explained. “Now we take it for granted.” The L.A.-based Baldessari did a major collaboration with Mario Sorrenti two years ago, and a retrospective currently up at London’s Tate Modern is recognizing his lifetime contribution to the dialogue between creative forms.
On a similar note, so to speak, Lewis banged out “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and other rock tunes during the party for an audience that included Brooke Shields, Prince Pavlos of Greece, and Linda Fargo—on a piano wrapped in pages from Hurowitz’s book. It wasn’t his first time playing for the fashion crowd: Donna Karan had him perform on the runway in February. “She likes my way of approaching the music,” Lewis (who has also played the Obama White House) said. “I stand, I have poses. I’m known for the faces I make.” No wonder he feels at home on the catwalk.
tags: Eric Lewis, Fendi, John Baldessari
The Eagle Has Landed In Times Square
November 18, 2009 4:16 pm
We can almost hear Gossip Girl’s announcement now: “B. spotted checking out trucker hats at American Eagle in Times Square last night.” Not to worry, obsessed fans: Blair isn’t losing her trademark headbands—it was just actress Leighton Meester, at the shop’s opening party to belt her new single “Good Girls Go Bad.” (Onstage, she opted for a not-very-Waldorf outfit of black bra, open vest, streaked tights, and studded black Beatle boots.) It’s a new side to Meester, but one that found plenty of famous fans. “I actually really love it, don’t judge me!” Christian Siriano confessed. “I was just watching her video before I came.” AE’s new four-floor flagship, meanwhile, had plenty to interest shoppers, from stations to personalize sweatshirts and hats to an instant photo booth to great people-watching, with Adrian Grenier, models Hyoni Kang and Tiiu Kuik, and the evening’s DJ, Pete Wentz, all in attendance. Michelle Trachtenberg and Jessica Szohr also stopped by to support their cast mate but preferred to leave the pop-star moonlighting to Meester. “I would probably go more into movies that have musical elements in it as opposed to an album,” Trachtenberg said. “But I’d be too scared to do it all on my own.” Szohr was more doubtful. “If I started to sing or tried to do a music career, they would stop all music, all labels, all everything,” she said with a laugh. “I can’t sing to save my life.”
tags: Adrian Grenier, Leighton Meester
Found In Translation
November 18, 2009 1:24 pm
Fashion and art may spawn some serious enfants terribles, but Zorya Fine Art founder Zorianna L. Altomaro had a different creative type in mind. “We were looking for somebody both internationally sophisticated and genuine,” the art entrepreneur explained on tapping designer Brian Reyes for a cross-cultural fashion-meets-art mash-up. The Colombian designer worked with Altomaro to curate an exhibition of works by the Ukrainian artist Oksana Mas. “I thought about curating in colors because that’s how I think about my collections,” Reyes said at the exhibit’s celebratory cocktail fête at the Ukrainian Museum last night.
In return, Mas got to try her hand at fashion. A major player in Russia’s booming art scene, the Ukrainian artist has been working with Reyes through a translator on prints for his Fall 2010 collection that will include a pattern inspired by her shadow paintings. With Spanish, English, and Ukrainian floating around the design studio, was it a case of lost in translation? “We actually understood each other pretty well,” Reyes said. “Plus, I signal with my hands a lot. You’d be surprised on how much you can convey just using your body.”
tags: Zorianna L. Altomaro
Simon Doonan, Conehead To Be?
November 17, 2009 11:29 am
The holidays are fast approaching, so ’tis the season…to dread the throngs of holiday shoppers in midtown. But a quick visit to Barneys should set even the grumpiest gifter to rights. The store’s holiday windows, unveiled last night at a party hosted by creative director Simon Doonan, Vanity Fair’s Graydon Carter, and Saturday Night Live honcho Lorne Michaels, are a riot: They celebrate 35 years of SNL.
Papier-mâché tributes to the iconic characters of days past and present line the windows, from Gilda Radner’s Roseanne Roseannadanna to Kristen Wiig’s accidentally fashion-forward Gilly (that hair, so Louis Vuiton Spring ‘10!) to Mike Myers’ Coffee Talk host Linda Richman. (Funny, we’d have thought she’d prefer Loehmann’s.) Current cast members Andy Samberg, Seth Meyers, and Abby Elliott milled around the party, joined by upcoming host Joseph Gordon-Levitt, alum Rachel Dratch, and new SNL in-law Elisabeth Moss of Mad Men (she married cast member Fred Armisen last month). Host Doonan gushed about his love for the show, which he’s followed ever since the late seventies. Were his windows a fan letter-cum-audition tape, we wondered? Certainly he wouldn’t turn a cameo down. “Absolutely, I’d do it in a heartbeat!” he said. “Being on the show is the ultimate honor.” Well, a Barneys homage ain’t so bad either.
tags: Gilda Radner, Lorne Michaels, Simon Doonan
Quoted And Noted: Tavi On The Perils Of Team Sports
November 16, 2009 4:35 pm
“I got a black eye playing volleyball in gym class. It’s a good thing I have bangs.” —Tavi, blogger, magazine cover girl, and eighth grader, at the Pop magazine party in L.A. For more on the bash, including which movie stars shared a Porta-Potty moment, read on.
tags: Tavi
