Day 2: May 8, 2013 Evening
For those familiar with Fashion’s Night Out, I have to say that I just used it as a title because it fits. The night was not about shopping but a true “fashion’s night out” where old friends and newly minted ones, industry peers and colleagues broke bread, drank wine and to use today’s vernacular, just hang out.
The AAU fashion’s night out began at 6:45 PM with the arrival of Ian Mackintosh and Jenny Moor at the Palace Hotel. But, it is also safe to say that the fun began earlier than that as members of our group started congregating at the lobby.
It was very easy to know who was in our group it looked like everyone was in the Best Dressed List beginning with Lubov Azria who was wearing one of her creations. And quite frankly, though the guests at The Palace Hotel were always well-dressed, the fashion piazza generated by our little group stood out.
Oh, we were not such a little group anymore by the way; Neil Gilks of the CFDA and Daniel Reynolds of Diane von Furstenberg joined us for the evening. As it turned out, Neil and Daniel were the penultimate two members that we were waiting for to complete the VIP group.
With two new members, the dynamics changed a bit as Neil and Daniel added their own brand of “fashion-misms”. Fashion people in general are easy going yet highly opinionated without being overbearing.
So, with two new personalities in the group, there were two new opinions in the conversation, which unsurprisingly made it more fun! There was always a give and take and ultimately, new bonds were made and new friendships were minted.
Of course, with all of us being in fashion, we already were kindred spirits. And that feeling together with the “bonding” that began earlier during the day was also transported by the group to the Cliff House where we would have dinner that evening.
Part of the Sutro Historic Landscape District, the Cliff House is the crown jewel of Sutro which happens to be the largest urban national park in the United States. And it lived up to all expectations!
We arrived just in time for the spectacular sunset that the Cliff House is famous for. An all glass structure, the Cliff House is the perfect place to watch a sunset.
Yet, no matter how beautiful that sunset was, it was not as beautiful as the bonds of friendship that were created that night. Sitting with Neil Gilks, Daniel Reynolds, Jennifer Sprague (VP Marketing BCBGMAXAZRIA Group) and Edith Mead Baker (Academy of Art University), our conversation touched our professional and personal lives.
From funny to serious, from the outlandish to sublime, it was “fashion’s night out” in more ways than one.
[MARI DAVIS]
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