Luxury, sartorial and otherwise, at L'Wren Scott

[February 18, 2012]  NEW YORK (AP) -- New York Fashion Week has its A-list events and its B-list events. And then there was the L'Wren Scott runway show on Thursday. Do they have an A-plus category for luxury?

Dramatic setting? Check -- the wood-paneled, chandeliered banquet hall of an Edwardian building in Chelsea that now houses the Desmond Tutu Center. Perks? Well, there was the wine, and the caviar, served with a baked potato and sour cream to guests sitting at long tables -- sustenance after a long Fashion Week.

And celebrities? Nah, not unless you count Mick Jagger -- who happens to be the designer's longtime boyfriend -- and Ellen Barkin.

As for the clothes, if you could get your mind off the rock icon in your midst, they were pretty luxurious, too, a mix of velvety or satiny gowns, bolero jackets and tea-length dresses, often with a vintage feel that matched the elegant surroundings.

There was a jacquard tweed cape lined in purple feathers, for example, paired with a purple velvet high waisted pencil skirt. There was a long deep-red velvet dress with a bow at the front. Bows also appeared at the back of jackets, along the hem. One of the fancier looks was a gold "caviar beads" gown with a black satin floor-length cape, and shiny gold shoes. And what Scott calls her "headmistress gown," in black satin.

Scott said later that she had boned up on history while designing this collection -- basically the early 1900s, its architecture and its colors. Some new colors she chose this time around: Moroccan date, pomegranate, and pansy (a bluish violet.)

She also added "a new tea length for my lady," as she calls her clients, in case they wanted something new. There was a higher-waisted A-line skirt, higher-waisted pants, and the classic pencil skirts for which she is known.

Cristina Ehrlich, a celebrity stylist who has dressed Penelope Cruz, Amy Adams and Julianna Margulies for the red carpet, was full of praise for the collection.

"She takes the whole concept of lady-dressing and adds femininity, a sexiness and an edge," said Ehrlich. "It's elegant, and so super-luxe." The stylist especially admired the way Scott played with colors, as in a mix of mustard and red in one outfit.

The stylist wore a tightly fitted Scott design in bright green. Also in a body-fitting Scott number: Barkin, wearing a green pencil skirt and snug orange cardigan.

[Associated Press; By JOCELYN NOVECK]

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