After a Fashion
By Stephen MacMillan Moser, Fri., Nov. 1, 2002
photo courtesy of Cathie Parssinen of Waterways Magazine
BIRTHDAY PRESENCE Having turned 45 last week, I am obsessed with the signs of aging. I love where I am at this point in my life, and there is one indisputable fact: I am blessed with some amazing, deeply talented, dear friends. So it seemed like a birthday party was in order, thrown by several of my closest, including the luscious Amy Weaver and darling Christina Klisanin of Vylette; my personal Jesus, Gail Chovan of Blackmail, and her multitalented husband, Evan Voyles; my devoted social secretary and dear friend, Neil Diaz; the brilliant and beautiful David Nakard Armstrong of Anthony-Nak Jewelers; and the over-the-top Nick Day of Vën Shoe Salon. I was picked up in a limousine, and we proceeded to Starlite for dinner. The ever-gracious Michael Terrazas hosted the event, which was complete with magnificent food and service. At 10pm the guests started flowing into Lounge (Fourth & Colorado) for a larger event in my honor. I was in heaven, surrounded by 50 of Austin's best of the best paying me tribute ... well, what queen wouldn't be in heaven? As the glitterati arrived, so did the gifts. The one I'll tell you about is a stunning 4-foot-by-4-foot print of Jackie Kennedy in 1964 by Andy Warhol given to me by my beloved sister, Margaret Moser. While I won't kiss and tell about the rest, I will let you in on the guest list, which included: Maris Stella Ostrewich of Jose Eber Salon and her husband Jay Schutawie; Laura Maxwell and her husband Cory White, owners of Creatures Boutique; the fabulous Matthew and Katie Culmo of By George; Barbara Frisbie of Frisbie Design Concern; the marvelous Mark Ashby and his beautiful sweetheart, Tony Senecal of Mecca; Claudia Voyles; Deborah Carter of Pink Salon; and Christina and Nick (who came bearing the naughtiest!). Among the too-fabulous-not-to-mention guests were my editor and her son; Bryan Ockert from ChaosInAustin. com; the totally fab Miss Kitty from Mega 93.3; Tarek Morshed of the stylish club Texture; the brilliant and hysterical Margaret Shaw; John and April Loese of Gomi, as well as Gomi manager Astro; Brooke Carter of Vylette; one my of oldest and dearest friends Dale Newberger; J.D. DiFabio of Plan B; and the angelic graphic designer Jennifer Braham and her hot date, attorney Gary Grey. Lounge was great, and the evening would not have been nearly as fab without the good work of bartender Toby and servers Myung and Loriann. Afterward, a handful of us retired to the Boyz Cellar and then on to my house where we yakked up a storm until 5:30am. What a night to remember!
FURTHERMORE ... The very next night was the fab A Look for Love benefit from Tomas Esteban and Riley Silva (and their beautiful new baby Niko) of St. Thomas. Held at the Four Seasons, it was a benefit for the Austin Children's Shelter, a very worthy cause for an organization that does incredible community work. Master of ceremonies, E! Television's Leon Hall was a riot, as usual. Spying me in the hallway, he screamed, "Darling!" and we heartily embraced, while secretly, I was drooling over the diamond-and-platinum Maltese cross he was wearing on the lapel of his gorgeous tuxedo. I always love seeing him: He's smart and funny and extremely direct, but always with gentle humor. I especially laughed when he talked about the jewels on the women present. "And the rocks!" he said. "This event makes the Academy Awards look crummy -- after all, you ladies don't have to return your jewels in the morning!" The fashion show itself was truly beautiful. Showing three different collections from the House of Moschino, the show proved that the spirit of founder Franco Moschino lives on. There were beautiful models, of course, but why bring them in from Dallas? We have spectacular women right here in Austin. The hair, by Salon 505, was incredible, the clothes and shoes were spectacular, and St. Thomas selected a beautiful collection. Lovely Texas first lady Anita Perry was in attendance, as were so many privileged women and accomplished men. My good friend from News 8, Cheryl Bishop, was there, as well as attorney Vinnie Ray and his exquisitely beautiful wife, Joanna, one of the most magnificent creatures in Austin -- she takes my breath away every time I see her. I got to have a breathless little chat with Jennifer Bailey, manager of St. Thomas, who did a spectacular job of coordinating this huge event. She had plenty to say, and she was very funny, but I suspect she'll be grateful if I don't repeat it all here. Victoria Reed and Julia Burch of the Children's Shelter were gorgeous in their gowns, and I spent a good portion of the evening yakking out back with Cathie Parssinen of the swank Waterways magazine, the delightful yet raucous event sponsor, Janis Maund (of the Maunds), and the amazing crew of Salon 505: General Manager Trudy Yates, Artistic Director Jeffrey Compton, and stylist extraordinaire Deidre Herrera. We'll bring you more about this wild crew another time. It was a pretty stellar evening, I must say ... beautiful women, handsome men, gorgeous jewels, stunning gowns, and faaabulous gossip. Let's have lunch, shall we? Just you and I; I'll tell you all about it.
