Bling, bling, bling
Houston's Fashion Icon headlines a swank Manhattan dinner: It's black leather, Bulgari & maybe a little S&M
When looking for a modern day fashion icon to headline its 130th anniversary dinner in New York, Bulgari turned to none other than Houston's International Hall of Fame honoree and social swan Lynn Wyatt. She and Barney's creative ambassador and self-proclaimed bon vivant Simon Doonan were guests of honor at the swank soirée held in Bulgari's divine flagship store on Fifth Avenue.
Bulgari North America president Alberto Festa hosted the evening for which both Wyatt and Doonan dressed in black leather and Bulgari, La Wyatt in Ralph Rucci leather and lace and Doonan in Saint Laurent leather jacket. The Daily Frontrow reported that Doonan quipped, “I’m interviewing Lynn, so we thought we would do a little S&M thing in all-leather.”
Guests crafted personal birthday wishes to the brand with individual birthday cakes served alongside tiny pots of kiwi, mango, raspberry and chocolate edible paints.
Doonan borrowed the iconic coin necklace from Bulgari while Wyatt was draped in Bulgari goodies from her bank vault. You might recall that back in May Wyatt loaned pieces from her personal archive of Bulgari jewelry for the brand’s 130th anniversary exhibition at the Houston Museum of Natural Science.
Tuesday night's crowd was peppered with media stars including New York Times fashion photographer Bill Cunningham, W Magazine's editor in chief Stefano Tonchi, Marie Claire editor in chief Anne Fulenwider, Elle magazine fashion news editor Anne Slowey and Wall Street Journal fashion editor David Thielebeule.
The brand flew in executive chef Roberto di Pinto from the Bulgari Hotel Milan to prepare the dinner that featured risotto and Mediterranean sea bass. But perhaps the most delicious part of the evening was the repartee between Wyatt and Doonan, the former recounting haute couture snafus and the latter recalling the night that he dressed in drag as Queen Elizabeth for a Barney's special event.
Guests are still talking about the anniversary cake, laden with 130 gold candles and fondant recreations of the brand's most iconic jewelry. Houston's Mark Sullivan who was in the mix noted, "The grand finale? Guests crafted personal birthday wishes to the brand with individual birthday cakes served alongside tiny pots of kiwi, mango, raspberry and chocolate edible paints — culminating in thousands of unforgettable #Bulgari130yearsNYC social media moments."
