Whenever anyone asks us whose wardrobe we actually LIKE, we frequently laud Rachel Bilson’s, because by and large she finds ways to look both cute and interesting at the same time. Unfortunately, given that, our Fashion Week sighting of her was underwhelming at best; the actress arrived at Max Azria on Tuesday night in a gnarled ponytail that looked as if it hadn’t met a friendly brush in a month, plus a rust-colored (or so it seemed in the lighting) one-sleeve shift that felt like little more than a caftan-toga hybrid. And while we long for the day that someone throws a toga-party-style fashion show, that time has not yet come.
But at least her lingerie wasn’t showing. Keisha Whitaker’s brown dress and Aisha Tyler’s yellow one had plunging backs that exposed all their bra hooks and, in Tyler’s case, both straps. (Guess she shouldn’t have ditched her jacket.) We’re torn between applauding their respect for gravity and lamenting that no one helped them find a better way to fight it.
Bryant Park staples Joy Bryant and Alison Brie joined singer Alicia Keys, Coco Rocha, Rob Thomas (posing for fan pics) and his wife Marisol, and Leigh Lezark in fleshing out Celebrity Row. Ugly Betty’s Mark Indelicato wandered up to the fourth row with an escort, as if he were stuck with us in the peanut gallery, but we’re not sure if he stayed there or if someone found him a better berth. Surely the latter, or else the Fashion Week pecking order has crumbled like the economy, and the end really IS nigh.
Speaking of pecking orders, we thought socialite queen bee Tinsley Mortimer had skipped out on the whole affair, until we realized her kicky new bangs make her look like a completely different person — especially when her stick-straight hair is slicked back in a quasi-topknot. Okay, she still kind of resembles a Barbie — it’s not like she showed up in leather leggings — but she’s certainly looking like a slightly edgier one. Indeed, when a model walked past in black leather gloves that ran almost all the way up her arms (creating essentially a giant sleeve with fingers), Tinz murmured her approval. Maybe all this rumored marital strife is morphing her from girlish to grown-up. Hey, everything’s got a silver lining.
Watch a slideshow of the Max Azria collection.
Watch a video of the Max Azria show.
