Judging from the number of U.S. designers thronging Paris during Fashion week, the French capital could soon become known as La Petite Pomme (The Little Apple). Zac Posen showed in the City of Light for the first time and The Row relocated its showroom presentation to Paris from New York after its samples were late.
But it was on the social scene that the Americans made the biggest splash, with Alexander Wang, Prabal Gurung, Joseph Altuzarra and Narciso Rodriguez showing up at bashes across town. Opening Ceremony teamed up with GrandLife, the Web site of New York’s Soho Grand and Tribeca Grand hotels, to host a “NY NY” party at nightclub Le Régine that drew scenesters including Paul Sevigny, Mickey Boardman, The Misshapes and Mark “The Cobra Snake” Hunter.
The love was clearly flowing both ways: The very next night, department store Printemps joined forces with Council of Fashion Designers of America president Diane von Furstenberg and V magazine editor in chief Stephen Gan to host the “Printemps Loves New York” bash, capping weeks of shopping events showcasing Stateside talent. Printemps fashion director Maria Luisa Poumaillou said the event was proof that Anna Wintour’s efforts to promote emerging American design talent were bearing fruit. “You can’t deny that there is a kind of revival over there right now,” she said. “We have to stop being ‘plus papiste que le Pape’ [holier than the Pope] and saying they are not good.”
French designers might be forgiven for wondering: “What am I, chopped liver?”