Monday 22 February 2010

THE COCKTAIL PARTY: BAZAAR & LANCOME FETE KATE WINSLET

On Friday, I had the good fortune to go to a cocktail party thrown by Lancôme and Harper's Bazaar to celebrate the BAFTA's and British fashion talent. Hosted by star guest, and face of Lancôme, Kate Winslet, and packed full of the great and the good of fashion and film, plus a lot of rising British talent, it was as glamorous an invitation as one could wish for.

I arrived seconds before Kate Winslet, and I was right next to the logo-board as she did her obligatory five minutes posing for the cameras - I took it as a perfect opportunity to have a really good stare at her, safe in the knowledge that she was too busy being photographed to notice me gawping like a star-struck teenager, something that I knew I'd be far too well-brought up to do when in the throes of the cocktail party itself. The photograph below is taken on my iPhone - hence the appalling quality.

I confess I scrutinised her very carefully -I don't know whether I've been corrupted by a lifetime of reading gossip magazines, but now find I can't look at a celebrity without thinking 'has she had work done?' or 'bonkers food regime, or nutty workout schedule?'. Kate Winslet has always come out strongly in favour of women accepting the way they look - she spoke out in 2003 against GQ's heavy handed retouching of hercover image, and last year successfully sued the Daily Mail for alleging that she'd, ahem, underplayed her exercise regime: having now seen her at close quarters, she's as much a poster girl for 'normality' as one could hope from an international film star. She's neither too thin, nor too worked out - I'd put her at a UK size ten, certainly no smaller: She obviously takes care of herself, but her slender shapeliness has a refreshing touch of achievability about it. I don't know why I'd expected her to be less luminously beautiful in the flesh - perhaps one's expectation is that Hollywood glamour owes an awful lot to good lighting and the art of the re-toucher - but she was utterly gorgeous. Her skin, particularly, could have sonnets written about it, and she's a wonderful asset for Lancôme. Mr Trefusis has always maintained she has fat ankles: I spent quite a lot of time at the party trying to take a surreptitious pic of her feet on the iPhone so I could prove him wrong, but failed miserably. He'll just have to take my word - and the images here - that her ankles are every bit as perfect as the rest of her.

Of course, film and fashion is an irresistible combination: the BAFTA's run slap in the middle of London Fashion Week and the combination of the two simply piles glamour upon glamour. It was a heady, scented mix of beautiful actresses in exquisite outfits, from Westwood to Temperley and Berardi to Christopher Kane, cheek by jowl with scions of fashion, from Testino to Bazaar's Lucy Yeomans.
Sam Taylor-Wood was a little more dressed down than most, but beautiful in a way that doesn't quite come over in photographs - in the flesh she looks at least ten years younger, and he a good five years older - and she and Aaron Johnson are so clearly wild about each other that only the most stony-hearted could fail to be moved by it or wish them every happiness.


There are much better pictures, particularly of the frocks, on the Harper's Bazaar website - I was struck by what a riot of colour it was - for a fashion party, very few people were wearing black, other than Kate Winslet, in Alexander McQueen, and Emilia Fox - reds, corals, purples, and golds were very much in play. I'm afraid I couldn't get my head round the dress code - 'cocktails and canapés' can mean anything from smart workwear to full on party frocks - I was too broke to buy anything new, and borrowing something was out, being too much on the wrong side of cake and chocolate for a sample size, so ended up in an unobtrusive black silk chiffon empire line dress that has nothing to commend it other than the way it allowed me to blend into the background so I could observe the beautiful people unobserved, and tweet away to my heart's content.



Bazaar's Lucy Yeomans wearing Berardi, with Kate Winslet and Harold Tillmans, Chairman of the British Fashion Council.

12 comments:

Unknown said...

A great report and bless Mr T for finding fault with Kate Winslet.

Helena xx

Style At Every Age said...

I would be more than happy to have "fat ankles" if the rest of me looked like that - Sob..

The Vets Wife said...

What a wonderful piece Mrs T. You should seriously consider taking up his writing business professionally.

TheOnlineStylist said...

Although I am positive you looked stunning and in no way blended into the background, I'm glad you tweeted and photographed your way through it! Kate has always had a kind of ethereal beauty to me.. and I haven't seen her in the flesh. But also she looks so approachable with it - a rare combination. Sounds like you had a wonderful evening!

Rose said...

Enjoyed this very much- it's very nice of you to share with us- I do confess I get stupidly excited around this time of year with all the London glamour.

I have been up close to Kate Winslet, some time ago now and in different circumstances- when I was at University lowly serving and she a film star post Titanic and post baby so not as svelte. She was extremely nice in the minute or so and yes everyone commented on her skin- including the men. I didn't notice her ankles though!

S said...

Thanks for sharing, darling. am sure you looked as- if not more- beautiful than Kate. as far as skin goes- yours is gorgeous- with and without make-up. x shayma

Cherished By Me said...

Sounds fab...and fat ankles? I couldn't see any hint of that in the pictures, hehe.
I love the way you describe dressing to blend in...;0)

awhirlinlondon said...

Mrs Trefusis-- what fun!

My mournful hope that it was all mirrors, airbrushing and lighting were destroyed when I saw Linda Evangelista in the flesh. I have never seen anyone so utterly, deeply, perfectly beautiful.

She was doing a promo appearance for Mac cosmetics at the time and what astonishes me still is that people were lined up to have their photograph taken next to her. I would rather drop bowling balls on my feet than know irrevocably what exactly I look like standing next to Linda Evangelista. A sallow troglodyte, doubtlessly.

Ditto Naomi Campbell at the opening of an art show last year. My first and last experience of incandescence in the flesh.

Anonymous said...

I do like Kate Winslet - I actually don't think she has fat ankles but rather fat calves - the muscle sort of goes down a bit too far, so sort of agree with Mr. T!

Miss Welcome said...

No, no - let's go with the "Down with the lollipop heads!!" consensus from the Beauty Through a Lens post and declare that Kate looks perfectly (humanly) divine. :o)

nappy valley girl said...

I have always thought Kate was extremely gorgeous and could never quite understand the slight carping in the press about her.

Thanks for the party reportage - it almost felt like I was there myself, instead of sitting in my study looking out at the snow....

sanjeet said...

What a wonderful piece Mrs T. You should seriously consider taking up his writing business professionally.
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