Truly divine!
Christina Hendricks may be the super sexy siren of red-hot retro series “Mad Men,” but even her lovely curves had to compete with the beeline for fabulous shopping at this year’s Divine Design. The Project Angel Food benefit defied the gloomy economy, bringing in $20,000 more in opening night sales compared to last year.
The A-list evening kicked off with a fabulous fashion fete in Bev Hills, complete with a gala dinner and flashy runway show.
Hendricks, who plays flame-haired vixen Joan Holloway and makes heads turn in her award-winning smash hit, joined fellow fashionistas like celeb stylist Rachel Zoe and hip desert designer Trina Turk for an evening of style, champagne and sales.
The old Robinsons May department store was decked out in its festive best with an outdoor tent complete with a makeshift catwalk to show off the latest in cutting edge design. Zoe introduced a Barbie extravaganza sponsored by Mattel and celebrating the iconic doll’s 50-year anniversary. Catwalk creations included a neon pink strapless mini with signature pearls the size of golf balls. There were also jaw-dropping pink confections conjured up by students of the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising as well as L.A.-based designers like BCBG Max Azria and Juicy Couture. Barbie, by the way, was crowned the year’s fashion icon. Other honorees included heavenly Ms. Hendricks, Council of Fashion Designers of America honcho Steven Kolb and a famed interior designer, the late Dorothy Kneedler Lawenda.
After dinner and a show, it was off to the main event: a fabulous evening of bagging big deals.
Revelers enjoyed a special “Barbitini” and a slider or two, before making a mad dash to part with their cash. There was no shortage of selection, with holiday dresses by Milly, classic ‘50s cuts from Trina Turk and Polo shirts galore. Reem Acra offered a to-die-for chocolate brown tulle gown embellished with three feet of beading that would make you look like a million bucks. Better yet? At $7,000 it was 50 percent off. From python bags to pencil holders-you name it, they had it.
Divine Design boasts some of the world’s most sought after merchandise, with 387 companies donating to its annual marketplace. VIP attendees shopped until midnight and rang in a record number of sales. It capped off an incredible start to the four-day shopping fundraiser that Project Angel Food counts on to raise much needed funds for hundreds of thousands of meals. PAF is the only free meal-delivery program serving all of Los Angeles County. More than 13,000 meals are cooked and delivered each week and you can always count on Divine Design to make you feel great about a good cause when they put the “fun” into “fundraising.”
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