A Bash for Barbara Bui

(NEW YORK) When children's book author Charlotte Sarkozy was looking for an intimate spot to host a reception for her old friend, designer Barbara Bui, no restaurant fit the bill. So instead she offered her home--a former Richard Avedon residence that would make even the grandest eatery look ordinary. "It's always nice to have a wonderful French friend in the city who welcomes you with open arms into a house full of art," said Bui, surveying a room of guests that included Julia Restoin-Roitfeld, Joanna Coles, Amanda Ross, and Genevieve Jones. "I love New York. It's a human town. It's like Europe and America rolled into one."

On this particular evening, it was a town full of fans. "Barbara's clothes are just everything that a woman could ask for," said Sarkozy. "They're chic, elegant, and I buy them on both continents." Of course, for Charlotte and her husband, Olivier (le president's half-brother), the party season's just begun.  "There is so much going on in my life," she said. "I'm particularly excited about the opening of the Terrence Koh exhibit in the studio downstairs on November 12."  Greeting guests as they arrived, the couple's youngest daughter, Margo, was excited, too. "I love when mom and dad host parties.That's when you see a lot of nice people. But I'm most looking forward to Halloween. I'm gonna be Tinkerbell this year!"
VALENTINE UHOVSKI