NEW YORK — The Blonds sure know how to draw a fashion week crowd.
An eclectic group of celebrities — from Paris Hilton to Perez Hilton, along with Tyra Banks, Eve, figure skater Johnny Weir and Lady Bunny — jammed the small Milk Studios space to view Phillipe and David Blond's spring collection/performance art presentation in a festive, circus-like atmosphere that left everyone in a feel-good mood.
"It's a state of mind really. Everyone has a little bit of blonde in them."
Known for outfitting pop stars Katy Perry, Selena Gomez, Britney Spears and Beyoncé (they created the crystallized boob bustier for the singer's Mrs. Carter Show World Tour, applying 30,000 Swarovski gems), the dynamic fashion duo saluted famous blondes, from Tweety Bird to Barberella, in an out-of-this-world runway show.
"This is our fifth year and our 10th show, so it had to be bigger and better," Phillipe Blond told a select group of American Express cardholders in a private room after the show. "We want to take everyone on a journey. We needed to travel. We had to go there. It was Barbarella, it was Tweety, because he is so glamorous, those lashes. And all blondes — Madonna, Marilyn, Jayne Mansfield — all of them."
The show opened with a silver space-suited figure who was dismantled to reveal Phillipe Blond in a gold gem-encrusted majorette outfit with matching ankle booties. Blond was followed by models with bubble-headed hairdos and Dr. Spock ears wearing the duo's trademark bustiers, along with some surprisingly wearable clothing. A below-the-knee fitted dress in a subdued yellow print, body-hugging slacks with a draped sparkly top and a Mugler-like neon-yellow coat with padded shoulders were among the items that any fashion-forward women would crave.
After the show, Phillipe Blond said you don't have to have platinum hair to be a blond. "It's a state of mind really. Everyone has a little bit of blonde in them," she said.
Among those who agreed were Visong and Eleanor Tring, who had flown from their home in Pensacola, Fla., to take in the show as American Express cardholders. Both medical doctors, they said that watching Project Runway regularly had made them big fans of fashion designers. "Being in the room is so different from being on the computer (watching a fashion show)," Visong said.
The couple chose The Blonds show among the packages AmEx offers "because they are more innovative," Visong said. "We need to support the underdog."
The Blonds saluted famous blonds like Tweety Bird.
