Last night, the fashion elite -- Amber Rose not included -- attended the annual Costume Institute Gala Benefit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City to celebrate the opening of the "Model is Muse: Embodying Fashion" exhibit. Stylistas braved the rain sans coats and umbrellas, risking the flu in the name of fashion to walk down the zebra-print carpet to attend what the industry considers the Oscars of fashion events. Marc Jacobs was the man of the night. Not only was he was the Honorary Chairman, he had several A-listers wearing his designs. Kate Moss, who co-chaired, wore a gold one-shoulder dress by him with a matching turban by Stephen Jones. Victoria Beckham, who ruled last year's event, fell points below her usual top spot as best-dressed in a questionable polka-dotted number, and actress Anne Hathaway ('The Devil Wears Prada') rose to the top of the charts in a strapless purple number of his. Madonna wore a "look at me!" attention-grabbing custom Louis Vuitton (where Jacobs is Creative Director) get-up appropriate for women half her age. The Material Girl had exactly that -- too much material on top of her head. And Kerry Washington donned a funky black short number by Vuitton.
Tyra Banks in Badgley Mischka
Rihanna in Dolce & Gabbana
The College Survival Guide
A Fridge
Regardless of whether you have a wonderful sized meal plan, your fridge may come in handy with leftovers or when you feel like stocking it with bottled drinks.
Computer
The convenience of a computer is essential when sending your kids off to college. Forget the hike to the computer lab across campus students need a computer in the comfort of their room. A printer comes in handy as well. Depending on whether your child plans to carry his laptop around campus, you might opt for a desk top since they're lighter on the pockets.
Snacks
You will surely survive with off of a meal plan but it doesn't hurt to stock up on snacks when you don't feel like leaving your dorm room. Bottled water, pop corn, cereal and Ramen noodles are all low budget snacks to stock up on. Just be weary of the freshman 15.
Things from home
Some college students suffer from homesickness the first year. It's best to surround yourself with things like photos of the family, pillows or even stuffed animals. Anything that reminds your child of home.
MP3 Player
With all the stress that comes from school and exams, sometimes it's nice to block out the chaos in your life and even your roommate with music. It's nearly impossible to find students walking to class who aren't jamming to tunes.
Budget
Students who enter college often come in at the ripening age of 18. A great time for credit cards. Parents beware, your child may end up ruining their credit at a young age
Alarm Clock
When you're in college you don't have the luxury of getting awaken by your parents. It's now your responsibility to get to class on time so alarm clocks are a must. But keep your roommate in mind. You shouldn't wake him up ever morning with a blow horn alarm.
Cleaning supplies
Now you don't necessarily need to bring in the rubber gloves, mop and gas mask but it doesn't hurt to bring along Clorox all purpose wipes for spills or dust. Vacuums and brooms come in handy too depending if you have a carpeted dorm.
Bedding
What most parents aren't aware of is that most college beds are twin sized but extra long and require special sheets. When shopping keep your eye open for sheets that clearly state 'extra long' or else your child may come up short.
Shower shoes
You really don't know what some people do in the shower these days. College showers are known to be creeping with germs so spare yourself the fungus and purchase flip flops for the shower. You'll thank us later!
Markedly absent were three majors of the 80s supermodel era, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Linda Evangelista. Campbell was slated to attend wearing Azzedine Alaia, but the French designer Alaia told the girls not to attend after he was not invited. You can count on the French to feel confident enough to snub Vogue editrix Anna Wintour, who also co-chaired the event.
Kerry Washington in Louis Vuitton
Ciara in Emilio Pucci
Iman
Chanel Iman
Amber Rose in Carolina Herrera & Kanye West
Andre Leon Talley in Isabel Toledo
Eva Mendes in Calvin Klein
Jessica Alba in Jason Wu
The exhibit opens to the public tomorrow, May 6th through August 9th, on the second floor at the Tisch Galleries. It explores the roles of models and their relationships with designers and fashion overall through works dating from 1947 to 1997. It features approximately 80 works of haute couture and ready-to-wear and includes fashion editorial, advertising, and runway photography from top photographers, plus large-scale projections from feature films. The featured designs are by Giorgio Armani, Balenciaga, Pierre Cardin, Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel, André Courrèges, Christian Dior, John Galliano for Christian Dior, Halston, Marc Jacobs for Perry Ellis and Louis Vuitton, Donna Karan, Calvin Klein, Helmut Lang, Ralph Lauren, Prada, Paco Rabanne, Yves Saint Laurent, Gianni Versace and more. Iconic models featured include Naomi Campbell, Janice Dickinson, Linda Evangelista, Jerry Hall, Shalom Harlow, Sunny Harnett, Lauren Hutton, Iman, Kate Moss, Christy Turlington, Twiggy, Amber Valletta, to name a few .This fundraising event is the Costume Institute's main source of annual funding for its exhibitions. Ticket prices to attend ranged from $7,500 to $250,000!
For those who can't catch the exhibit you can show you're a fan by getting a T-shirt designed by Marc Jacobs in red or fuchsia for $35 through the museum's website and see a video of the exhibit at www.metmuseum.org
