No vacation spot in America has as much emotion as the Hamptons, whose biggest fan Ralph Lauren celebrated the richly redolent resort in a greatest hits collection on Thursday night staged in a classy horse farm.
Ralph ferried out some 250 guests to Watermill, the most insider corner of the Hamptons for the evening, which began with cocktails, and movie stars posing before Lauren’s collection of classic cars – rare 50s and 60s Jaguars, Mercedes and Ferraris. Naomi Watts joining Tom Hiddleston, Jude Law, Laura Derby, Colman Domingo, Rufus Wainwright, Usher and H.E.R. to pose before meticulously painted barns and stables.
Followed by a somewhat rambling show and collection that nevertheless had some brilliant looks. Staged inside a pristine white space with just one solid wall featuring frescos of galloping mounts, and a collection that climaxed with two joint passages from veteran supermodels Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington. First with two ecru and white combos of long lacy or knit skirt topped with simple a T-shirt or a divine hacking jacket. Both of them impeccable.
Playing on his classic wardrobe, yet always with wit and vigor, Lauren sent out a great series of slinky screen goddess dresses in micro sequins and pearly mesh; superb linen safari jackets worn over fringed western pants and cool chalk-stripe suits for women. If Yves Saint Laurent liberated women by dressing them in tuxedo suits; Ralph Lauren granted them cerebral chutzpah by dressing them in the snappiest of blazers.
Long before inclusive became de rigueur in fashion, Ralph had been including people of color in his shows and shoots. He recalled that with a great RL section – with some dashing Black young models with funky afros mixed with BIPOC young Latin dandies – from four-year-old up to 40. Almost a score of children appeared on the runway.
An insouciant mood underlined by the perfectly judged soundtrack, courtesy of youngest son Andrew Lauren, who blended Bob Seger, Erin O’Neill and Christopher Cross’s classic cut ‘Sailing’.
“The Hamptons is more than a place. It’s a natural world of endless blue skies, ocean and green fields. It has been my family’s home for more than 50 years, and always an inspiration,” explained Ralph, whose cliff side family home is further west at Montauk, the surfing mecca of Long Island.
After taking an extended bow, and embracing his wife Ricky, Ralph hosted a dinner inside a brand-new Polo Bar, replete with racing prints, jockey portraits and riding photos; leather banquettes; linen covered tables and Art Deco lighting. Twice as large as Ralph’s Fifth Avenue Polo Bar, yet remarkably built only for this one night. Where Ralph dined between Ricky and Jill Biden, one month after the First Lady had attended a chic Lauren cocktail in Paris during the recent Olympics.
No designer insists on such attention to detail as Ralph Lauren – from the butter dishes with wax tops reading with Polo Bar, to the cocktail swizzle sticks made like miniature polo mallets. Even his staff, all dressed in multiple variations of cream and white looked impeccable, easily the best dressed equipe in fashion so far this year.
And if his collection was rather classic, Ralph’s choice of location was something else. An equestrian’s dream horse farm called Khalily Stables, acquired two years ago for $16 million.
Previously known as the Campbell Stables, this stunning 19-acre equestrian farm was known for hosting rock-n-roll legend Bruce Springsteen’s daughter, Jessica Springsteen, a silver medalist at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, and Jennifer Gates, the daughter of billionaire Bill Gates.
The facility is certainly any equestrian’s dream. Five structures surround a central courtyard on the gated property with meticulously manicured fields. The traditional facades are designed with white clapboard accented by hunter-green standing seam roofs and crimson red window muntins and mullions. From out of these stables rode a half dozen riders, taking horses jumping over obstacles to add to the elegant mood.
An elegance that extended to the dining club, and the meal – all sourced locally, including the two fine wines, a red and a white from Macari, a North Fork estate.
“I am happy to share a menu of ingredients sourced from the bounty of Hampton’s farms and waters,” concluded Ralph.
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