Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in NY was sooooo incredibly exciting! It seemed like everyone in the world was there! We were invited to preview Pamella Roland’s Spring 2010
Collection in Bryant Park and my new friend, NY Housewife, Alex McCord, also invited us to attend Walter Baker’s show at Style 360. He is a dear friend of hers and we were in the front row with lots of paparazzi! It was a blast! Even Chuck had a great time! Walter’s fashions were chic, youthful and oh-so
stylish! The first model on the runway was Somalian supermodel Ubah Hassan. She also appeared in the Oscar de la Renta show and was featured in the first all-black issue of Italian Vogue shot by Steven Meisel. She
was one of the best looking (and sweetest) models we saw all week! For the finale, all of the models came out blowing bubbles out of Swarovski crystal-encrusted bottles. It was adorable!
From the Walter Baker show, we went to Bryant Park to wait for the Pamella Roland show to begin at 1 p.m. While we waited, we saw Carine Roitfeld (editor-in-chief of French Vogue) and Ken Downing (Fashion Director of Neiman Marcus) along with LOTS of very well-dressed fashionistas and zillions of photogs rushing through the tents including
Patrick Cunningham of the New York Time’s weekly “On the Street” pictorial. These shows are everything you’ve heard about and more and I was so thrilled to be there! The hottest looks I saw were strappy booties and platform shoes without heels!
How can they even walk on their toes like this?! I’ll never know! As we lined up for Pamella’s show, there were throngs of people going to the line marked “Standing Room Only.” We felt very grateful to
have our tickets in hand. We had to wait while the photographers all got their pre-event photos and then we were allowed in. I’ve never seen so much press in my life! It was surreal…everywhere you looked, there were celebrities! Lisa Rinna was there in a
hot, short red dress with a great haircut. Nicky Hilton was there but didn’t want to sit next to anyone who wasn’t famous so there was a bit of juggling in the front row until Abby Manning (Eli Manning’s wife) agreed to sit next to her. Nigel Barker, famous judge/photographer on "America’s Next Top Model," was there looking very handsome and very TALL! We also saw J.
Alexander who is the quirky runway coach on "America’s Next Top Model." I was also told that Toni Braxton, Amanda Bynes and Paris Hilton were there (I didn’t see them)
and that Courtney Love showed up for the Narciso Rodriguez show in a very sorry state. And it seems like everywhere I go, I run into one or more of the NY Housewives! (Maybe this is a good omen for me!) Seated across from us were Bethany Frankel, the
Countess (LuAnn de Lesseps) and Kelly Bensimon. The first thing I noticed was how tallllllll they all were too! (As you can see from the photo, I look like I’m standing in a hole next to them….) Then the lights went
out and Pamella’s show began. I have four words for the fashions shown: I WANT THEM ALL!! It seemed like every look brought the crowd to their feet—it was beyond thrilling! From daytime to evening, there was some sense of drama in every outfit…very, very chic and very wearable at the same time with luscious colors and florals inspired by the paintings of Georgia O’Keeffe. There were beaded gowns, chiffons, metallics and pale tweeds—
all simply chic and elegant. At the end of the show Pamella brought her darling children, Cassandra, Sydney and Cole De Vos, up on stage for the runway walk…it was magic time! (Cassandra and Sydney appear in all of her ads that are out now looking
very high fashion and gorgeous). Later that evening, we were all invited to the after-party on Pamella’s family yacht, the Seaquest. This ship – and I do mean SHIP – is 164 feet long with three decks. For this evening, her fashion show was being projected onto the stern of the boat. It was so cool and such an unexpected touch. The party was small and intimate and we felt privileged to have been invited. Chuck and I went to NY with Helen Melchior and
the Executive Director of the Joffrey Ballet, Christopher Clinton Conway and we had such a great time. This after-party really capped off a whirlwind of activities. Pamella
and her family couldn’t have been more gracious and I am so happy to see a woman who is not only successful and talented but so down to earth as well. I am thrilled she will be the main feature for our Couture & Cocktails
event for the Joffrey this Friday evening at the Palmer House. Pamella and Neiman Marcus will be bringing this same show to Chicago that we saw in NY for Fashion Week and it is not to be missed! If you haven’t bought a ticket yet, there is still time! Tickets start at
$250 and include the fashion show, live and silent auctions, after- party with world famous DJ Donna D’Cruz (who just played at
Diddy’s party in St. Tropez) and LOTS of fun food! The VIP ticket is $500 and includes the celeb-filled pre-party in Lockwood starting at 6:30 p.m. Giuliana and Bill Rancic will be there along with many other surprise guests. Call 312-386-8921 for tickets or you can buy them at the door. I hope to see you all there!!!
The rest of the week in NY wasn’t too shabby either! We went to the Waverly Inn for dinner (Graydon Carter’s charming West
Village restaurant) and Elle MacPherson was there (again VERY tall with LOTS of hair!) and at Cipriani Downtown, LeBron James (the massive forward for the Cleveland Cavaliers) was there. His bodyguard was a pitbull so I wasn’t able to bring back a pic of him. Let’s just say, next to Shaq, he’s the biggest man I’ve ever seen.
We were also lucky enough to catch Maria Pinto’s dramatic installation at Banchet in the Meat Packing District. As we pulled up, the entire building was bathed in a deep purple glow
with people milling about inside and out. There were lots of press and Katie Couric had just given Maria a great plug on CBS so everyone was very happy! Adding even more drama to her already gorgeous clothes were Charles Lord,
her longtime hair stylist, along with Riccardo Santiago, Nikia Smith, Nelson Serrano and Eneida Bailey (Gayle King’s hairstylist) who did the hair so dramatically and creative it made you gasp! Maria’s sponsors on the invite included Aandrea Carter, Kath Carter, Les Coney (who was there with his handsome buddy Marc
Brooks), Pam Crutchfield, Barbara Franke, Barbara Levy Kipper, Rose Lizarraga, Noelle Nikpour, Julie and Randy Richardson, Gail Waller and Tim Schwertfeger and Susan and Robert Wislow. I was so happy to see Maria showing in NY! Congrats and good luck Maria!! The designs were gorgeous and Lisa Marie McComb, her stylist, looked as chic as the models! Guests in attendance from Chicago included Les Coney, Donna Thompson, Stacey Jones and Emmanuel Nony. For more photos from this amazing trip, click here!
On Thursday, September 24th, come celebrate Blogapalooza from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the 900 Shops and presented by Chicago Now. There will be complimentary spirits, food and wine and you will get a chance to meet the Chicago Now bloggers stationed throughout 900 N. Michigan’s
selected retailers and restaurants. There will be how-to advice, a DJ, food samples, special values and raffle prizes. I will be at Montblanc and would love to meet all of the Chicago Now fans!! Ashley Bond of “Body by Bond” and David Wallach of “Pace of Chicago” will be giving tips on working
out and staying healthy at Equinox and Matt Lo Cascio of “Jay Cutler Superstar” and Julie DiCaro of “A League of Her Own” will meet, greet and talk Chicago sports with special treats for guests. For more info and to check out all of the bloggers who will be there, click here. As you can see, there will be something for everyone!
What a time we had in the city that never sleeps! I hope you all felt like you were there with me! Stay tuned for next week's Candid Candace when I take you to an exclusive VIP party in
the Peninsula Suite celebrating the genius of Annie Leibovitz, Francine Turk's one-woman show, Common Threads' recent fun-filled party, opening night of "Zero" at the Victory Gardens, CS's 15-year anniversary party, Chicago Now's Blogapalooza AND Couture & Cocktails coverage. Whew...I'm tired already!
Thanks for tuning in!
Love,
Candace :)
(If you would like to contact me or be added to my blog alert list, please e-mail me at c[email protected].)
one of the best looking and sweetest models we saw all week! For the finale, all of the models came out blowing bubbles out of Swarovski crystal-encrusted bottles. It was adorable.
Posted by: Term papers | February 11, 2010 at 12:00 AM