A Few (Hundred) ‘New Guard’ Get Decked Out for the Party

The young and the restless turned out in force when L.A. fashion designer Marina Spadafora and her husband, Sean Ferrer, tossed a Christmas ball for what they called “a few of our friends.”

Three-hundred fifty invitations went out, but 600 guests arrived for the midnight blast-off in Spadafora’s Hollywood Boulevard design studio. The revelry lasted past 5 a.m.

“It’s an eclectic group,” said Ferrer (son of Audrey Hepburn and Mel Ferrer) of the swelling crowd, which included some of this city’s peppiest architects, doctors, models, fashion illustrators, photographers, makeup artists, music and movie folk--along with designers such as Leon Max, Michelle Lamy, Emil Rutenberg, Hilary Bean, John Murrough and co-host Abel Villarreal.

The group was definitely New Guard--awash in a wild array of minis, maxis, denims, taffetas, silks, petticoats, bare chests (on some men) and bare midriffs (on some women).

Spotted in the milling mass were Catherine Oxenberg and Michael Nader of “Dynasty” fame, the singer Donovan, actress Kate Dornan, daughter of Congressman Robert Dornan, Adnan Khashoggi’s two oldest offspring, Mohamed and Nabila, and Maxfield architect Larry Totah, who’ll design the new Comme des Garcon boutique.

Many guests were members of the Los Angeles Fashion Alliance, an organization formed to dispel old stereotypes of L.A. style and to promote the growing pool of young, creative talent now emerging in this city.