Fashion’s Night Out #FNO09: Tory Burch, Catherine Malandrino and more

Fashion. Shopping. Celebrities. Entertainment. Cocktails. Giveaways. Those are just some of the words to describe Fashion’s Night Out #FNO09! I ventured out to visit a few of my favorite shops as well as some pop-up stores tonight and had a blast. Check out my coverage below:

My first stop was at Tory Burch (Meatpacking). I went over to pick up a pair of Reva flats - my hands-down FAVORITE piece of footwear - along with my free camouflage bag. The scene outside of the store was crazy! There was a vendor giving out seasoned corn on the cob to the fashionistas mixing and mingling. The atmosphere inside the store was just as vibrant; the water, wine and Corona’s were flowing, hors d’oeuvres from La Esquina were being served and DJ Cassidy was on the turntables in the center of the store. I also spotted Tory’s main squeeze - Def Jam exec Lyor Cohen. It was more of a social scene than a shopping scene - fashionably haute dressed men and women showed up to hang out but there were a few shoppers in the mix, myself included. I browsed the fall shoes and bags which I first saw at her fall presentation last spring. Fell in love again with the Tory Burch Studded Satchel - it looks great online but even more amazing in person.

I snagged a pair of black Tory Burch Leather Logo Reva Flats (while trying to control my urge to splurge on a few spring bags on sale and some full-priced fall bags too). I also got my complimentary camouflage tote, which is super cute, and was the theme of the night. Waiters and waitresses were dressed in camouflage tops; and even the designer herself wore a sequined top with camouflage leggings.

Next, I cruised through the Meatpacking district, stopping briefly to enjoy a five-piece band outside of Ports 1961 and then onto Catherine Malandrino. There I sipped ‘Lady Liberty’ cocktails consisting of Cointreau, champagne and juice. Yummy! I also grabbed some grapeseed-infused skincare goodies from Caudalie Paris and haute haircare products by Carita Paris. MarieBelle fine chocolates were on the scene too.

Next stop: RACHEL Rachel Roy pop-up shop in SoHo.

Stay tuned to What’s Haute for New York Fashion Week coverage!

Le Whif makes it ok to inhale…chocolate, that is

There are three things that I just can’t get enough of. Shopping is one of them. Chocolate is another. The third? Well, let’s just leave that up to the imagination…

But back to chocolate…I’m an absolute chocoholic so it’s the ultimate in guilty pleasures for me, though not necessarily the best dietary option. Especially if you’re on a diet, although there are all sorts of diet-friendly chocolate products on the market to satisfy those cravings, including low-fat chocolate cakes and sugar-free chocolate candies, along with chocolate-flavored appetite-curbing drinks and supplements. But did you ever think you could inhale chocolate to get your low-fat fix? A new product called Le Whif offers a revolutionary new way to have your proverbial (chocolate) cake, without actually eating it. And without the calories too. What looks like a colorful asthma inhaler is actually a chocolate-sniffing apparatus priced at €9.95 each, that comes in four flavors: mint chocolate, raspberry chocolate, mango chocolate, and plain chocolate.

 

 

 

Harvard professor David Edwards, lead inventor of Le Whif, says:
“Over the centuries we’ve been eating smaller and smaller quantities at shorter and shorter intervals. It seemed to us that eating was tending toward breathing, so, with a mix of culinary art and aerosol science, we’ve helped move eating habits to their logical conclusion. We call it whiffing.”

Edwards went on to say that inhaled chocolate is just the start – he and his team at Foodlab at Le Laboratoire in Paris are also developing other “culinary innovations that let you eat while breathing.” So you can skip the candy bar and have a whiff of chocolate.

What do you think of Le Whif? Would you have a puff or two?

Haute Topic: Haute Halloween

Halloween might be a scary holiday but that doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your style. Rock a black ruffled dress, carry a bat as a bag, and sport skull couture while wearing witch-inspired boots. Then treat yourself to some ‘Hallowed’ chocolate treats! Shop the look:

1. Moschino Upside down ruffle dress, Net-a-Porter

2. Day of the Dead Blanca Skulls, Vosges Chocolate
Special offer from Vosges: Take 10% off all website purchases from Nov. 1st to Nov. 30th. At checkout, enter promo code 2810WB1.

3. Skull Cotton Lycra Ankle Length Leggings, Betsey Johnson

4. Bat X-Body Bag, Topshop

5. Loree Rodkin Diamond Skull Ring, BlueBee

6. Steven by Steve Madden ‘Insayne’ Boot, Nordstrom

Vosges Haut Chocolat

You consider yourself a chocolate snob so you prefer something a bit more haute than Hershey’s. Why not indulge in some haute chocolate?

Vosges Haut Chocolat is the luxury brand for chocolate lovers; the Louis Vuitton for chocoholics. The chocolates are designed to stimulate your senses and create a cultural experience “through the exploration of spices, herbs, roots, flowers, fruits, nuts, chocolate and the obscure”. Founder Katrina Markoff personally selects each ingredient to bring you chocolate as you’ve never tasted it.

The taste infusions will delight your senses with unexpected flavor combinations and hearty ingredients. Indulge in international truffles from Europe, South America and the Caribbean, infused with exotic ingredients like Ancho chili, Ceylon cinnamon, Taleggio cheese and Sicilian sea salt. Eat exotic candy bars from the pleasant - Barcelona Bar with hickory smoked almonds, grey sea salt and deep milk chocolate - to the perplexing - Bacon Exotic Candy Bar with Applewood smoked bacon, smoked salt and deep milk chocolate. And if that wasn’t enough, treat yourself to Vosges’ gourmet chocolate collection, filled with dainty Mini Party Cakes, Couture Cocoas, Exotic Ice Creams and Chocolate-Covered Organic Tortilla Chips.

Get your high-class chocolate fix at Vosges.

*For the month of February, Vosges is hosting Valentine’s Day Chocolate + Henna Soirées in New York, Chicago and Las Vegas! The events will feature “custom henna painting by Stephanie Rudloe, savory Indian munchies, Vosges Haut-Chocolat’s signature confections infused with aphrodisiac spices, chocolate-filled goodie bags and bubbly to make your heart flutter.” Check out Vosges events for more details.

Laura Mercier Chocolate Truffle Duo

Indulge yourself in chocolate (without the calories).

The Laura Mercier Chocolate Truffle Duo combines the decadence of chocolate and the silkiness of body treatments. Luxuriate in the almond-espresso-Frangelico scented honey bath. Use the dipper to slather it onto your skin and then envelop your body in the chocolate-vanilla-maple-honey Soufflé Body Crème.

It’s the sweetest treat (that you don’t even have to eat)!

$50, NORDSTROM.com