Dan's Papers - August 3, 2007

Last Saturday, while the polo ponies were going for goals in Bridgehampton and dads played on the beach with their kids, the fashion-conscious ladies of the Hamptons and a few fashion-forward gentlemen were snapping up designer duds as fast as they could at Super Saturday located at Nova's Ark Project in Water Mill. Since the proceeds support The Ovarian Cancer Research Fund and everything was priced at 75-percent less than retail, Hamptonites shopped with abandon, grabbing anything that looked like it might fit, and even some that didn't, in order to get the best deals.

As one of the biggest fundraising events of the summer, Super Saturday also boasts one of the longest lists of celebrity attendees. Guests who were milling around might have spotted special guest Kelly Ripa, Donna Karan, the designer hostess of the event, or InStyle Magazine's Editor-in-Chief, Charla Lawhon, who also hosted the day's festivities. Other guests included Russian heiress Anna Anisimova, Tichina Arnold, Fabiola Beracasa, Diem Brown, Lorraine Bracco, Christy Turlington Burns, Edie Falco, Bethenny Frankel, Judith and Rudy Giuliani, Shoshanna Lonstein Gruss (who had some of her famous swimsuits up for grabs), Dayle Haddon, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Clinton Kelly, Mandy Moore, Tinsley Mortimer, Petra Nemcova, Beth Ostrosky, Bernadette Peters Hal Rubenstein, Reverend Run, Russell Simmons, Hana Soukupova, Carmen Marc Valvo and Rachel Zoe.

Although the event lasted until six p.m., vendors started taking an additional 25- percent off of the already discounted duds and accessories by four p.m. and by five, they were closing up shop. For those of us who stayed until the bitter end, the closings meant $10 Bill Blass dresses, free modal shirts and $10 Marc Jacobs bags. Even though the prices seem too good to be true, the event grossed $3 million for the charity, making it a win-win situation for everyone involved. And there were many, many designers involved. Some of the best included Carolina Herrera (her fabulous black and white lace trench was still $600 after the 75-percent price reduction), Zac Posen (the current designer darling who never sends his clothes to the outlets), Betsey Johnson (who sold all of her dresses for $50 apiece), Bill Blass (whose iconic fashions were shipped straight from the runways), Donna Karan (the event's sponsor), Council of Fashion Designers of America's Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award winner Robert Lee Morris, Helmut Lang, Marc Jacobs, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Gucci, Vera Wang, Theory, Marc Jacobs, Hugo Boss, Diane Von Furstenberg, Michael Kors and Salvatore Ferragamo. At the accessories salon, sunglasses, shoes and other sundries from Coach, Fendi, Hogan, Louis Vuitton, Prada, Thomas Pink, See and Swarovski Eyewear showcased. Each of these designers had stars in the sale -- whispered items shoppers coveted and traded throughout the show.

When shoppers were tired, they could put their feet up and relax at the Fortunoff and Stirrings Summer Lounge and enjoy manicures and pedicures courtesy of Essie and Buff Spa under the Schick Intuition Plus Feet Treat Tent. There were also bars galore and plenty of volunteers to answer questions and help you find any bags you were too late to pick up. The only glitch in the process is that, instead of paying for items when you found them and carrying them with you, Super Saturday shoppers choose their goodies and then had their name written on a shopping bag, which they picked up later, once they paid for their items in full. But since the shops continued to sell until the six p.m. closing date, many vendors left before people could pick up their bags, leaving many shoppers clamoring at the Unclaimed Items tent long after the event was over. Luckily, there were plenty of volunteers who diligently searched for everyone's bags and when they had to go home, anyone who didn't receive their items wrote their names and what they purchased on a legal pad so their items could be sent to them after the event. I am still waiting for two bags with my fingers crossed...

So, what did I end up with after it was all said and done? My most cherished buys were the most expensive, of course, as both came from the booth filled with glittering designs from Zac Posen -- a blue and black beaded tuxedo jacket with gathered sleeves and a black cashmere sweater with pleated chiffon gussets and a beaded tassel belt. I also managed to squeeze into a suede pencil skirt covered in hand embroidery and two runway-sized dresses from Bill Blass that I'm hoping to fit into by next season. I picked up some odds and ends from Betsey Johnson, Alice + Olivia, Alice + Trixie, Rock & Republic, Tommy Hilfiger and some others I fell in love with at the sale. Out of my price range but still worth mentioning were Carolina Hererra's sumptuous dresses and the coveted Zac Posen bags, which were all snatched up long before I could catch a glimpse.

If you missed Super Saturday, don't worry. Everything that didn't sell is now being sold at rock-bottom prices at the Bluefly.com Super Saturday Aftersale. It's like a shopping afterparty -- not quite as much fun as the party that came before it, but a way to extend the fun. And although the event seemed like a celebration of splurging, the true success of the event will be measured in the millions of lives that will eventually be saved by the important research Super Saturday helps to fund, proving that on this day in July, splurging on designer duds is the most responsible, world-conscious thing to do in the Hamptons.