#me and Bryn when we see leon

[rae-arts777]

@brynfelan at the end of the day, Leon is just 😫😫😫😫👌🏼👌🏼👌🏼👌🏼

#leon kuwata #it’s Bryn #me and Bryn when we see leon #👁👁 💕 #I’m looking sin-I mean respectfully

[ladystylestores]

China Chalet, Fashion’s Studio 54 of the Instagram Era, Closes – WWD

https://pmcwwd.files.wordpress.com/2020/07/china-chalet-008.jpg?w=640&h=415&crop=1

For the last decade on cold, winter Friday nights in New York City’s Financial District — long after the neighborhood’s army of suits and City Hall workers had packed up their briefcases for the weekend — a second wind would hit Lower Broadway.

In front of the second-story Chinese restaurant China Chalet, a line of partygoers snaked north for blocks — their glitter eye shadow flaking off in sub-zero temperatures; eBayed vintage Dior bags, midriff tops and chain belts cocooned deep within sleeping bag coats.

While unknown to many, China Chalet was legend to an influential few — a carpeted Chinese restaurant by day and underground nightlife space by weekend night that was frequented by the kinds of New York counterculture communities whose style of dress is observed, exploited and commercialized by the larger fashion industry. What had been founded as a Cantonese establishment and banquet hall in 1975 organically became a haven for all walks of youth culture — with its owner Keith Ng renting the space for a considerably affordable fee, welcoming party organizers from a broad spectrum of sexual identities, ethnicities and economic means.

The scene at China Chalet.  Amy Lombard/WWD

In a time pre-pandemic when people were still allowed to congregate en-masse, China Chalet was the central gathering place for New York designers, stylists, gallerists, artists and personalities. So it was a shock this past weekend when news broke that the 45-year-old institution was closing — another casualty of the coronavirus’ economic wreckage. China Chalet became a trending topic on Twitter and will, by many accounts, be remembered as the Studio 54 of the “BC” — or before coronavirus — era.

It took Ng, a Cantonese immigrant, to set the stage for a safe space party culture. “I don’t think you will find that many people out there gutsy and ballsy enough to allow their space to become what China Chalet was,” Opening Ceremony cofounder Humberto Leon said of Ng.

Boldface names were often in attendance, including Cardi B, Timothée Chalamet, Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen, Kiko Mizuhara and even disgraced heiress and accused Jeffrey Epstein co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell. Famous or not, it was the parties’ mix of crowds and sense of sanctuary — particularly for those who felt disoriented in the aftermath of Donald J. Trump’s election — that will remain in memory.

“Even though a good party at China Chalet was thrown by organizations geared toward a specific group of people, it was a mix there. It’s one of those cross-generational places that will go down in New York history as a place where everyone gathered,” said Arthur Soleimanpour, founder of community-driven media platform Parks Department.

Come nighttime, the restaurant’s cocktail lounge and pink, fluorescent-lit dining room would fill with all walks of city life and a thick cloud of cigarette smoke — sending revelers home with an ashtray stench that could only be removed by the most abrasive of shampoos. Without ventilation, the restaurant’s parquet-floor banquet hall, its makeshift dance floor, clocked August subway station temperatures and humidity in the dead of winter.

The scene at China Chalet.  Amy Lombard/WWD

“These kids put on the grandest of looks to stand in a stuffy, smoke-infested room. Not even your dry cleaner could probably take that out,” Raul Lopez, founder of Luar, said of the scene there. By 11 the next morning, the space had cleared out and China Chalet’s food was again available for order delivery platforms like Seamless, their sesame chicken reaching customers likely clueless of what had occurred there just hours before.

Ng declined multiple requests for an interview but humbly relayed through frequent party organizer Alexander Kellogg: “China Chalet is one of the many businesses affected by the national lockdown. I think we will let it go….We were just one of the many impacted.” In addition to the Financial District outpost, Ng also ran restaurants on the Upper East Side, Staten Island and was planning a jazz bar concept in Midtown — all of which have ceased operation.

Leon had held Opening Ceremony’s annual holiday parties at China Chalet since 2003 and would frequent events there as well. “I think it will go down as a space that will personify a period. It’s pretty sad because as I think about what place I would want to go right after coronavirus, China Chalet was on that list of places to have fun and see something familiar,” he said.

“The amount of people talking about it now and making memes about this Chinese restaurant in the Financial District is proof [of its longevity],” said Kellogg, who brokered party contracts on Ng’s behalf, including events for Vogue and Red Bull. “I don’t think people in the Seventies expected Studio 54 to be remembered as it was and I think China Chalet will be the same.” 

While pop-up events occurred at China Chalet throughout the year — increasingly by big-ticket hosts like Converse and Highsnobiety as the space’s reputation grew — it was Dese Escobar’s reoccurring “Glam” party, sometimes held in collaboration with Vaquera and Telfar, as well as Ty Sunderland’s monthly “Heaven on Earth” event for the LGBTQ community, that cemented China Chalet status as a counterculture Shangri-La.

The scene at China Chalet.  Amy Lombard/WWD

While acceptance was key to China Chalet’s status as a hot spot for the anti-establishment, so were the clothes worn there. Lopez labeled weekend partygoers there as “beautiful swans.”

“There was a mirrored hallway that was like a runway, people would sit down and look at each another. You had the opportunity to be seen so people saw it as an opportunity to get dressed up and keep fashion relevant,” Escobar recalled. “It’s where a lot of designers came to be inspired and cast models or take some notes. It was a place where people knew they could find young, fresh talent and inspiration.”

Communities have been pushed to mostly online-only contact during the COVID-19 crisis. But during its run, China Chalet was a sort of intermediary between social media and the real world — a common ground where virtual friends and foes could see each other in person, often meeting for the first time.

“For me, it represented a lot of Internet culture,” Sunderland said of his parties. “The parties became a meeting place for people to meet others with similar ideals and aesthetics — I heard so many cases like, ‘Oh we have followed each other on Twitter for five years and met at your party.’”

“It was very much about being seen and being seen in real life probably for the first time by a lot of people who only know you from Instagram. What you were wearing was always important,” Vaquera’s designers Patric DiCaprio, Claire Sullivan and Bryn Taubensee recalled of their time there over e-mail.

“It felt like a free space where rules didn’t apply. You could smoke inside, approach your crush, wear what you want. So in a way it was testing ground for new ideas: everyone was wasted and eager to see each other and to try something new. It was like this safe space to just go for it,” they added.

Leon summarized: “It always felt underground and somewhat gritty. Anything that comes after this would be a wannabe version.”

Source link

قالب وردپرس

from World Wide News https://ift.tt/2Ob6Zpl

#World Wide News

[harryandmeghan0-blog]

Meghan Markle's matchmaker Misha Nonoo flashes her giant diamond after getting engaged to Mikey Hess - Daily Mail

New Post has been published on https://harryandmeghan.xyz/meghan-markles-matchmaker-misha-nonoo-flashes-her-giant-diamond-after-getting-engaged-to-mikey-hess-daily-mail/

Meghan Markle's matchmaker Misha Nonoo flashes her giant diamond after getting engaged to Mikey Hess - Daily Mail

It looks like there is another wedding in Meghan Markle‘s future as her close friend Misha Nonoo is planning her walk down the aisle.

The Bahran-born designer, who claims that she set-up Markle with her now-husband Prince Harry, is engaged to millionaire entrepreneur and oil heir Michael ‘Mikey’ Hess. 

In a photo posted on social media, Hess, 32, can be seen down on one knee proposing to his future bride, 34, on a boat during what appeared to be a romantic getaway to Cabo San Lucas for Valentine’s Day.

‘Thank you for making all my dreams come true, Misha Nonoo,’ wrote Hess in the caption. 

‘I am so in love with you, and I feel so lucky I get to spend the rest of my life with you right beside me.’ 

DailyMail.com has also obtained the first photo of Nonoo’s sizable diamond ring, seen on the designer on Tuesday morning in New York.   

Scroll down for video

They do: Designer Misha Nonoo, 34, is engaged to 32-year-old oil heir Michael ‘Mikey’ Hess (pair above in Cabo San Lucas)

Wedding bells: Hess popped the question in Cabo San Lucas while the two were on a romantic getaway for Valentine’s Day (pair above on Valentine’s Day)

Matchmaker: Nonoo has claimed that she set-up Prince Harry and Meghan Markle on a blind date (Nonoo and Markler in 2015 on left, Nonoo and Hess at the royal wedding in 2018 on right)

Knock their socks off like Meghan in a metallic dress by Misha Nonoo

Misha Nonoo ‘Valerie’ dress

Take a closer look here…

Buy now

We do love looking back at the Duchess of Sussex’s old outfits. Or Meghan Markle as she was when she attended the 2015 CFDA Awards! Who knew then that in just a few short years, the Suits star would be married to Prince Harry?

She’s worn blazer dresses on several royal engagements, but this plunging metallic number is definitely a bit more daring than the styles she wears nowadays!

It’s by one of her favorite designers, Misha Nonoo. Remember THAT white ‘Husband’ shirt? Yep, that’s her! Unfortunately it’s sold out, but we have managed to track down some top notch alternatives, as well as both the Gianvito Rossi heels and Charlotte Olympia clutch bag she has accessorized with (follow the links below).

So with Meghan in mind, take a look at the metallic tux dresses we’ve found for you at Boohoo, Nasty Gal, PrettyLittleThing and Missguided. Bonus: they’re all super budget-friendly!

* PRICES MAY NOT BE AS ADVERTISED

…NOW GET ONE LIKE IT

Bling ring: Nonoo was seen wearing her new engagement ring on Tuesday morning in photos obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com (Nonoo above on Tuesday)

Iced: Nonoo’s massive diamond could be see on her hand when she arrived back in he city (above)

Heading out: Nonoo (above on Tuesday) was seen leaving her duplex in New York City a few hours after arriving home and heading to her studio to do some work

This will be the first marriage for Hess and the second for Nonoo, who was previously wed to Paddle8 founder Alexander Gilkes.

Nonoo was just 17 when she started dating the 24-year-old Gilkes,and two eventually married in 2012.

That union only lasted a few years however, and in 2017 the pair finalized their divorce, with Gilkes now dating Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova.

Nonoo is the daughter of an Iraqi businessman and English mother, and at the age of 11 moved to London with her family.

She is also Jewish, as is Hess, whose grandfather Leon founded the multi-billion-dollar Hess Corporation.

Hess’ father John is now the CEO of the company.

It dos not seem that Hess will be joining the family business any time soon though, having worked at Goldman Sachs and the Royal Hashemite Court after graduating from Harvard and Harvard Business School, where he met best friend Josh Kushner.

He is currently an associate at KKR & Co.

Paying a visit: Markle is also in New York, with DailyMail.com obtaining the first photos of her after she arrived in the States for her baby shower (Markle above on Monday)

Snaking out: She had been staying at Nonoo’s duplex while the designer was away with Hess

Paying a visit: There has not yet been any sign of Markle’s mother in th Big Apple 

Old friends: Nonoo and Hess traveled to Jordan in April on their first big outing. Pictured are: (1) rower Caspar Jopling; (2) pop star Ellie Goulding; (3) Nonoo, next to Hess (4) Karlie Kloss; (5) Nora Kirkpatrick; (6) her husband, filmmaker Bryn Mooser; (7) Joshua Kushner; (8) Princess Beatrice; (9) Hussein, Crown Prince of Jordan

David and crew: David Geffen hosted Hess and Nonoo on Rising Sun, his $200 million yacht, while sailing around Italy (clockwise left: Joshua Kushner, Karlie Kloss, Marie-Josee and Henry Kravis, Michael Kives, Hess, guest, Barry Diller, Geffen, McCartney, Nancy Shevell and Nonoo)

Past love: This will be the second wedding for Nonoo, who married Alexander Gilkes in 2012 (couple on left in 2015, Nonoo and Bella Hadid on right that same year) after she began dating the Paddle8 founder when she was 17 and he 24

Nonoo and Hess first made their relationship public at the royal wedding last year, and a few months later joined Kushner and his then-fiance Karlie Kloss for a trip down the Amalfi Coast on David Geffen’s yacht. 

The couple were back on a boat when Hess popped the question, though their location is unclear. 

There was a brief stop before the couple made their way back to New York, with the pair paying a visit to Hess’ family in Beverly Hills.

Then it was back to New York, where Nonoo was seen arriving back to the city on Tuesday morning after taking a red-eye flight. 

She popped into her apartment for just a few hours however before heading back to go do some work at her New York studio. 

Friends!: Abigail Spencer (above) was seen entering the shower for her Suits costar

Preparations are underway for Markle’s shower at The Mark in new York’s Upper East Side

Roses: A florist is seen hauling in pink roses for the afternoon luncheon at The Mark

Prep time: Two vans full of flowers were unloaded for the event, which marked Markle’s return to the States

Rolling in the gifts: A crib was seen being delivered to The Mark as well, likely for decorative purposes (above)

Nonoo will have another reason to celebrate this week as well, with her good friend Markle having returned to the States for the first time since her wedding to have her baby shower in New York. 

DailyMail.com obtained the first images  of Markle stateside on Monday, as she snuck into a waiting car with her bodyguard

Markle did her best to try and conceal her identity by wearing a newsboy cap and carrying a jacket to conceal her baby bump.

She will be feted on Tuesday with a baby shower at the very posh Mark Hotel on Manhattan’s Upper East.

Markle headed there on Monday night after spending the day at Nonoo’s duplex in Greenwich Village. 

Vans full of flowers were seen entering the hotel on Tuesday morning along with a crib.

Photographers had lined the entrance to The Mark by noon, which for years has served as base camp for the A-list crowd of stars, supermodels and fashionistas attending the Met Ball. 

Among those spotted arriving on Tuesday was Markle’s Suits costar Abigail Spencer. 

  Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6720881/Meghan-Markles-matchmaker-Misha-Nonoo-flashes-giant-diamond-getting-engaged-Mikey-Hess.html