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Black and White and Green All Over
Against the white backdrop of a very snowy February evening, all the stars of the new Matt Damon action movie Green Zone arrived at last night’s Cinema Society and Universal Pictures-sponsored screening dressed in black. “I have the same outfit for premieres and funerals,” said co-star Jason Isaacs (most recently of Harry Potter fame), who was sporting a Jaeger suit (black) and matching shirt. “You know what it is, you feel like you’ve gotta wear something close to a tux,” said British actor Khalid Abdalla when asked whether the stars had coordinated wardrobes before the premiere. Abdalla plays an Iraqi translator who works alongside Damon’s character, an American soldier on the hunt for WMDs in Iraq. The Brit’s black Gucci suit, Dolce & Gabbana shirt, and Prada shoes were a marked step up from his Green Zone wardrobe: “I was in nothing stylish for this film. The only potentially stylish thing I had was a mustache.”
After two hours of ear-battering explosions, the crowd decamped to Nobu 57, where Julia Stiles, Maria Bartiromo, and more than a few NBC execs fortified themselves against the blizzard howling outside. At the center of it all was Damon, the toast of the evening, in a natty three-piece suit—black, of course.
—D.M. Levine Continue reading
You Gotta Have Heart
The Love Ball, a fundraiser for Natalia Vodianova‘s Naked Heart Foundation, which builds playgrounds in underprivileged parts of Russia, debuted in London on Tuesday. And in a way that neither the supermodel nor her co-host, British Harper’s Bazaar editor in chief Lucy Yeomans, could quite have anticipated, it was a night that no one will likely forget. Moments after all the VIPs arrived—perhaps that should be VVIPs, as in the likes of Diane von Furstenberg, Carolina Herrera, and Kate Moss—the fire alarm went off due to an overactive smoke machine. That sent everyone (yes, even you, DVF) outside to the parking lot. “Grab that bottle of vodka,” Hilary Alexander announced to her table, not entirely in jest.
About half an hour later—and for some, after a drink across the street—everyone made it back to their seats, and the program could begin. “Is it something I said?” Ruby Wax joked to the crowd. “I came on, and you were all gone.” Her job was to announce the keynote speaker: Ms. Vodianova, who in turn introduced the former Cat Stevens, Mr. Yusuf Islam, for a performance of a song that the model said had moved her to establish her charity. And then it was back to Wax, who told the audience that every caviar egg they ate meant another kid wouldn’t have a swing. “She is my neighbor in the country,” Moss noted. “And she is just so naughty.”
Next up in the program were live performances from Leona Lewis and then Paloma Faith, both of which encouraged the attendees to make generous pledges to the Naked Heart cause. “I thought to myself, what [was it] I needed as an underprivileged Russian girl?” Vodianova explained. “Food? Toys? Clothes? All those things pass, but what I realized I lacked was playing like a normal kid. So now I am passionate about my playgrounds.”
—Derek Blasberg Continue reading
Black Tie Required
It felt like a change of seasons at the Museum of the City of New York’s Winter Ball last night, as dolled-up guests dusted off social graces and eveningwear that hadn’t, in many cases, been brought out since the holidays, and rain, not snow, made the town cars late.
Some celebrants, of course, were also transitioning out of fashion week—like designers Mark Badgley and James Mischka, who’ve lately been doing their socializing in Palm Beach (where they have a new store) and their slaving away in New York. “When they invited us to the party we were like, well, it’s exactly a week after our show—we should be recuperated by then,” Mischka recounted. Gilles Mendel—whose label, J. Mendel, was one of the evening’s sponsors—also looked to be in fine form, having dressed Melissa George and Eugenia Gonzalez Ruiz-Olloqui, in addition to a cadre of young beauties who weren’t at his table. And he was thrilled about all the fur on this season’s runways—”it just goes to show how relevant fur is in the realm of design,” Mendel said.
The dinner was spread across the downstairs galleries and the corridor atop the museum’s winding staircase—a sight to behold, although Elise Øverland was hoping she might find a bed. (Hard-partying neighbors at her new home, the Chelsea Hotel, had kept her up all night.) In her fatigue, Øverland had thrown together an outfit as only a seasoned fashion pro could: “Leftover Alejandro Ingelmo shoes from my show, stockings I had to borrow from my office girl, and then the dress was just kind of on a hanger,” she explained. Never did straight-from-the-office sound so easy.
—Darrell Hartman Continue reading
Scotch Guard
The front row at Pringle of Scotland was plenty flashbulb-worthy: Courtney Love held court after a gig in Amsterdam (she said she hadn’t washed her hair since she performed), and Janet Jackson swooped in moments before the collection began. So hopes were high for the post-show dinner. It didn’t disappoint. Artists (Ryan McGinley), stylists (Rachel Zoe), local celebrities (Peaches Geldof), and models (Trish Goff, Jacquetta Wheeler) all descended on Hix, the new Soho restaurant of celebrity chef Mark Hix, for a seafood extravaganza. (Love, forever the rock star, showed up after dessert.)
Not that anyone was surprised by the well-rounded turnout. As Tilda Swinton, one of the multitalented folks who collaborated with the Scottish brand on limited-edition pieces in honor of its 195th birthday, pointed out: “Pringle is very broad. What other brand can boast being worn by golfers, football hooligans, and grand ladies in the countryside?” Her fellow collaborator, the artist Douglas Gordon, was more specific in his passion. “What I like about Pringle is that when you put it on, even if you’re not a good golfer, you look like one.”
—Derek Blasberg Continue reading