No vacation destination in America evokes as much emotion as the Hamptons, whose biggest fan, Ralph Lauren, commemorated the richly fragrant resort in a Best Hits collection held on Thursday night in a magnificent horse farm.
Ralph drove 250 guests to Watermill, the Hamptons’ most exclusive spot, for an evening that began with cocktails and movie stars posing in front of Lauren’s collection of historic automobiles, including rare 50s and 60s Jaguars, Mercedes, and Ferraris. Naomi Watts joined Tom Hiddleston, Jude Law, Laura Derby, Colman Domingo, Rufus Wainwright, Usher, and H.E.R. to pose in front of painstakingly painted barns and stables.
Following that, a fairly rambling show and collection with some fantastic looks. Staged inside a clean white space with only one solid wall displaying frescoes of galloping mounts, the collection culminated with two joint passages by legendary supermodels Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington. First, two ecru and white outfits featuring a long lacy or knit skirt topped with a plain T-shirt or a gorgeous hacking jacket. Both of them are flawless.
Lauren released a terrific series of slinky screen goddess dresses in micro sequins and pearly mesh, superb linen safari jackets worn over fringed western pants, and stylish chalk-stripe suits for women, all while playing on his basic wardrobe with humor and verve. If Yves Saint Laurent freed women by wearing them in tuxedo suits, Ralph Lauren gave them mental bravado by clothing them in the slickest of blazers.
Long before it became fashionable to include people of color in fashion presentations and photos, Ralph had done so. He remembers a fantastic RL segment, which included some dashing Black young models with groovy afros and BIPOC young Latin dandies ranging in age from four to forty. Nearly a score of children appeared on the runway.
The wonderfully selected music, courtesy of youngest son Andrew Lauren, who mixed Bob Seger, Erin O’Neill, and Christopher Cross’s iconic cut ‘Sailing’, contributes to the film’s laid-back vibe.
“The Hamptons are more than just a destination. It’s a natural world with boundless blue skies, oceans, and verdant pastures. It has been my family’s home for more than 50 years and has always been an inspiration,” said Ralph, whose cliffside family house is located further west in Montauk, Long Island’s surfing paradise.
Ralph hosted a meal inside a brand-new Polo Bar, complete with racing pictures, jockey portraits, and riding photos; leather banquettes; linen-covered tables; and Art Deco lighting. Twice the size of Ralph’s Fifth Avenue Polo Bar, however, built specifically for this one night. Ralph dined with Ricky and Jill Biden, one month after the First Lady attended a stylish Lauren drink in Paris during the Olympics.
Ralph Lauren is known for his meticulous attention to detail, from butter dishes with wax tops that read Polo Bar to cocktail swizzle sticks shaped like miniature polo mallets. Even his workers, dressed in various shades of cream and white, looked exquisite, arguably the best-dressed team in fashion thus far this year.
And, while Ralph’s collection was relatively traditional, his choice of site was unique. Khalily Stables, an equestrian’s dream horse property, was purchased two years ago for $16 million.
This gorgeous 19-acre horse property, formerly known as the Campbell Stables, was known for hosting rock and roll legend Bruce Springsteen’s daughter, Jessica Springsteen, a silver medalist at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, and Jennifer Gates, the daughter of billionaire Bill Gates.
The facility is undoubtedly an equestrian’s dream. The gated property’s central courtyard is surrounded by five structures and finely kept fields. The typical facades have white clapboard, hunter-green standing seam roofs, and crimson red window muntins and mullions. A few dozen riders rode out of these stables, their horses jumping over obstacles to add to the exquisite atmosphere.
The dining club and lunch were both elegant and locally sourced, including two superb wines, a red and a white from Macari, a North Fork estate.
“I am happy to share a menu of ingredients sourced from the bounty of Hampton’s farms and waters,” says Ralph.
