Daily Front Row

2010 July 28

Aussie Love

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Melissa George in Georgia Lazzaro, Francisco Costa, Georgia Lazzaro
PATRICK MCMULLAN/PatrickMcMullan View Gallery

(NEW YORK) “I’ve never met an Australian I didn’t like,” declared Karlie Kloss at last night's The Australians in New York Fashion Foundation’s second annual cocktail party at the Crosby Street Hotel. Loyal expats like Melissa George and Richard Christiansen (and assorted Yanks who love them) decamped to SoHo for a laid-back celebration of all things Oz, with proceeds benefitting the Global Poverty Project.

Some attendees had never even been: “I have to make it over there soon to see what I’m missing out on,” Kloss confided. “It’s just the twenty hour flight that scares me!” And the supe wasn’t alone: “I’ve never been, but I know that it is a great country and the people are very nice,” admitted Italo Zucchelli. Thakoon (his puppy, Stevie, in tow) was similarly apologetic: “Tonight is a perfect introductory experience. I’m dipping my feet into the water!”

Elsewhere, founding members Malcolm Carfrae and Julie Anne Quay dipped into mini quiches and spring rolls alongside Oz-loving mates Francisco Costa and Stefano Tonchi. Even the decor had an Aussie touch, courtesy of Antony Todd. Phil Scanlan, General Consulate of Australia in New York, felt right at home. "It might not look like it, but I have fashion show experience," he explained. “My daughter is a model, so between her and my lovely wife, you could say I’m runway fluent.”

Another founding member, Bazaar's Laura Brown, was also in her element. Or close to it. “I miss the air in Australia—the feeling of the air on your face. You don’t get that in New York very much. Whenever I go home, I take a deep breath and hold it in until I leave!”
EMILY POPP and VALENTINE UHOVSKI