Out in the Name of Fashion

All the FNO dish from Bergdorf to Barneys...and Carolina to Oscar...

Friday, September 11, 2009

(NEW YORK) It was the night of the cameraphone. Upon exiting the N/R at 5th Avenue around 7:30, FNO-goers noticed the flashes radiating from each floor of Bergdorf Goodman. The scene at the door was just as frenzied. A press pass was The Daily's only savior as the fleet of security guards hastened to prevent a fire hazard caused by throngs of fans desperate for a glimpse of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, who were scheduled for bartending duty.

Inside? A mob scene, of course. The cluster congregated around the usual Hermès scarf counter, where Tuleh's Bryan Bradley signed FNO t-shirts. "People should be lining up to see what Bergdorf Goodman has for Fall," declared Linda Fargo, who played Fashion Rules with Robert Verdi, Donna Karan and Gilles Mendel. (Token celeb co-host: Emmy Rossum.)

"Right now, I'm concerned about safety," confessed Jim Gold after embracing Narciso Rodriguez, who posed for photos with those fortunate enough to make it inside. "I'm lucky, because I'm driving a Mercedes tonight," said the newly-minted Mercedes-Benz Presents designer. Good thing, because in Manhattan, the once-empty taxis were suddenly legit luxuries. Good thing Zac Posen arrived dangling from the sun roof of an Escalade, à la his bestie Puffy. "Thank you for supporting our industry!" he screamed to the crowd, who drew their iPhones to attention as Posen posed beside the windows where he would, moments later, be painting dresses.

Moving on to Barneys. Waris Ahluwalia served as the unofficial welcoming committee as he showed off his baubles in front of the store's main entrance. "They are coming in...and going out. And entering...and leaving," he said existentially. "But trust me--things are selling." Elise Øverland came to greet her friend before heading off to Rose Bar. "I have 40 girls to dress, so I'm not thinking about clothing for myself," she said, clad in the Alejandro Ingelmo shoes that will debut on her runway this weekend. Eugenia Gonzalez was headed upstairs to take dance lessons with Juan Carlos Obando. The busiest woman in the joint? Behnaz Sarafpour, who was sketching looks gratis for those willing to wait in line upwards of 45 minutes. "I've been drawing for two hours, but I'm not tired," she said gamely.

Meanwhile, Carolina Herrera's store on Madison hosted an elegant cocktail affair, with a magician performing card tricks and the splendid Larry Fink playing harmonica and running a photo booth. "I'm a hunting man," said the photographer, who met Mrs. Herrera for the first time that evening (although the two became virtually acquainted through their work with the Met). "My wife is a sculptor, and she works the farm with me. But on the other hand, I'm perfectly comfortable here!"

And once again, moving on. Over at Oscar de la Renta, the promised show tunesing of ODLR, Bette Midler and Barbara Walters began nearly half an hour early...thanks to the last-minute apperance of Sarah Jessica Parker. "I came right from work," she confessed, showing off her fuschia Oscar shirt paired with a Fashion's Night Out tee. "I didn't know there would be singing! But just standing next to Mr. de la Renta can give anyone confidence." "These women are true professionals," the designer declared. "And Barbara and I only practiced one song!" But Midler, who closed the evening with a group sing-a-long of "There's No Business Like Show Business," summed up the sentiment. "It's the best night of my life," she said. "I love him, I love what we sang...the whole store burst into song. It was like, what?!"