Julia Restoin Roitfeld and jewelry designer Delphine-Charlotte Parmentier may not have met before Thursday night, but in addition to both hailing from France, the women share a similar sense of style: bold, Gothic and a touch rock ’n’ roll. Thus it made perfect sense that Swarovski joined the two Parisians together at a dinner at Lafayette in Manhattan’s NoHo on Thursday night to mark the 20th anniversary of Parmentier’s namesake jewelry line — and a capsule collection, called Métis, that she created especially for Swarovski.
Elettra Wiedemann, Olivier Theyskens, Sarah Sophie Flicker, Wes Gordon, Charlotte Ronson, Claire Courtin-Clarins, Genevieve Jones and Victoria Bartlett toured the restaurant’s lower-level Cafe du Vin room, where Parmentier’s new Métis collection, as well as an impressive selection of archival pieces spanning her career, were displayed on busts.
“I’m happy because Julia loves all the pieces I love, too,” said Parmentier, who, in addition to a tenure at Chanel under Karl Lagerfeld, has designed costume jewelry for Lanvin, Balenciaga and Christian Lacroix. “Julia pointed out her favorites and I was like, ‘Yes, you have good taste.’ It was a perfect match.”
Restoin Roitfeld’s favorite piece of Parmentier’s, by the way, was a two-piece bodysuit used in Le Crazy Horse de Paris, the famous cabaret. She was keen to talk about her new adventures in motherhood. “I have my first baby keeping me very busy, and then my Web site, [Romy and the Bunnies], is baby number two,” she said. “Those are my two priorities right now. It [features] people I admire for different reasons. It’s women that inspire me. I interview models or famous people who are mothers, who also have a business. Or people who have kids and travel all the time. I want to know how they organize and balance. By interviewing them, I’m actually learning a lot. I’m like, ‘How did they get in shape so quickly?’ I want to know.”
Speaking of getting into shape, one wondered if Restoin Roitfeld, donning a two-piece Alessandra Rich ensemble, had any particular strategies herself. “I didn’t even stress about [the post-baby weight] at first; I couldn’t have cared less,” she said. “It really happened by itself and you know what, a toddler is a lot of work to run after. When I’m home, I eat her leftovers and then I’m too tired to cook anything for myself.”
DJ Hannah Bronfman caught up with Chelsea Leyland and Leandra Medine, who made their arrival just before dinner, which included an onslaught of roasted chicken, fish filets and steak. Natalie Joos reapplied her lipstick using the mirror of her steak knife. Theyskens stood up to make a brief toast, and Parmentier followed, expressing gratitude. “I want to say that I’m very proud and happy to celebrate my 20th anniversary. Thank you to Swarovski to be a partner for a long, long time [sic]. And thank you for all of us to come,” she said, in a bit of broken franglais.
“Thanks to all of you,” corrected a native English-speaking friend at her side.
“To all of you. Sorry guys,” Parmentier laughed.