The night I sat on the floor with Vivienne Westwood Vivienne Westwood Way back in May 2006, The Met Ball was a truly New York-centric party. The red carpet was populated by fashion stars, not influencers and reality TV provocateurs. There wasn’t a Kardashian in sight. That night I showed up in black tie and had one of the most action-packed style moments of my life: I spent almost an hour with the late, great Dame Vivienne Westwood – the outrageous, outspoken fashion designer and punk icon. As guests like Anna Wintour and Sienna Miller traipsed post-dinner through the hallowed galleries of the ..read more

Fashion designer Frederick Anderson at his new boutique in NoMad (Photo by David Warren) On Thursday night, fashion designer Frederick Anderson stood at the front door of a townhouse on East 31st Street wearing his signature blue blazer, greeting guests like “Kill Bill” star Vivica A. Fox, stylist Marcus Teo, Dayssi Olarte de Kanavos and the New York/Palm Beach social butterfly Catherine Carey as if they were arriving to a cocktail party. Air kisses and hugs filled the space. They had all come to toast Anderson’s new sleek, chic NoMad boutique. “This place is amazing. It’s like being at Halsto ..read more

Martin Parr loves books. To be clear, the famed photographer also loves photography (but we’ll get to that in a moment). But books — whether he is producing or collecting them — are a key interest. “I’m looking at the design of books all the time,” Parr says. For better or worse, he picks up on ideas and conveys them to his book designers. “I’ve done over 100 books and not all of them are very good. I’ve done well, but I’m not gonna tell you which ones they are before you ask.” If it’s not clear, the wry humor that is central to Parr’s photographs also comes out when he’s being interviewed. He ..read more

Oscar winner Julia Roberts is now a jewelry designer. As a longtime Chopard Ambassador, Roberts recently unveiled her first collaboration with the luxury brand, creating an Haute Joaillerie set: a necklace, a ring and a pair of earrings boasting stones from the Insofu Emerald. It all started when Chopard co-president and artistic director Caroline Scheufele and Roberts brainstormed a unique way to showcase the first gems from the cutting of a raw 6,225-carat stone that Chopard acquired a few years ago. Photo by Greg Williams, courtesy of Chopard Roberts was inspired by traditional Indian ..read more

I was recently walking up Central Park West on a beautiful night in New York when I suddenly started seeing people in black tie. As I got closer to West 77th Street, it became clear that the venue for this formal event was the Museum of Natural History, from which people were exiting onto the streets in exquisite gowns and handsome tuxedos. It was glorious. Wearing black tie has become increasingly rare, even on red carpets, where young celebrities and the freshly Insta-famous have abandoned classic black tie for bolder, more avant-garde ensembles. Timothée Chalamet, Riz Ahmed, and Pedro Pasca ..read more

The holiday season is in full swing, bringing with it parties, events, and occasions to give gifts. While this can be daunting, it also bring a host of exciting new products and partnerships to help find the perfect present. From artist-designed sneakers to a vase guaranteed to impress, here are some of this season’s newest, unique, and most coveted gifts for the art and design lovers on your list.  On x Pamela Rosenkranz Revealed last week at Art Basel Miami Beach, the chic sneaker company On has collaborated with leading artist Pamela Rosenkranz on a new, limited edition design guarant ..read more

The sun always shines on Worth Avenue, but it’s the jewelry shops that truly sparkle. Between the dazzle of the light, the gems, and the heat, it’s a surreal experience… Top: Fernando Jorge “Disco” diamond and gold earrings. $55,000; greenleafcrosby.com. Bottom: Verdura diamond “Sun” cuff. $77,500; greenleafcrosby.com.Van Cleef & Arpels “Jardin de la rose” ring with rubellite, colored sapphires, and diamonds in 18k rose gold. Price available upon request; vancleefarpels.com.Top: Tiffany & Co. ring in platinum and 18k yellow gold with sapphires, rubellites, and diamonds. Price available ..read more

Though there was some turbidity, creatively this was the kind of New York Fashion Week that grew on you. Designers focused on what could please the broadest possible audience while injecting some personality into their offerings. From an insider perspective, working fashion people did not like tearing around town to see collections. They had plenty to say about who showed in Brooklyn and corners of Manhattan. Where will they think of next? Staten Island? With time short and pressures high (editors are being asked to take on ever more responsibilities while AI threatens to replace them), it’s i ..read more

Beyoncé making an appearance at NYFW doesn’t happen every day, nor was the superstar dressed for the everyday — unless you count white and silver sequins from head to toe, with a matching headscarf, shades, and silver cowboy boots as everyday. I didn’t think so. Queen Bey, her mother Tina Knowles, and her sister Solange, attended the Luar show, a terrific meditation on gender dressing and gargantuan shoulders, to cheer on her nephew, Daniel Julez Smith, who walked the runway. Bey surely also knows fashion outings can be a savvy way to promote your latest project. And she has one: a new country ..read more

What is it about our current climate that has everyone taking stock? For so many designers, it’s time to take a look back at what they’ve accomplished in order to move forward in these uncertain times. Suddenly, “new-new” isn’t necessarily as magical as it was yesterday. The most resolute of us are trying to stay steady in this topsy-turvy world.  Proenza Schouler had one of their best collections, a pure play on shape and refined layers, which became clear when the duo realized they wanted to take a different approach. It was the strong opening punt (I was writing this on Superbowl ..read more