Party Raises $4,000 for Muckenthaler : The Scene

Luncheon/fashion show at the Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton. The annual fund-raiser, sponsored by the Center Circle guild, drew 238 guests at $20 a pop, raising an estimated $4,000 for the museum, according to board member Carolyn Loe. Tuesday’s hazy skies and high humidity made the lawn party something of a shade hunt, with guests dipping their heads under table umbrellas and chitchatting under leafy trellises. The benefit started shortly before high (murky?) noon, with white wine, fruit punch and folksy standards (“Oh Suzanna,” “Hello, Dolly”) played by a solo keyboardist whose electric piano was programmed to sound like a harpsichord. Guild President Pem Slack said the group hoped the music would complement the carousel-themed party (which complemented the carousel-themed exhibit in the museum galleries).

Fashion Statements

Guests wore print dresses and summer-weight knits--casual “but not too casual,” as Loe put it. The show, billed as “wearable art and jewelry,” consisted of 30 ensembles, each featuring several one-of-a-kind pieces by local artisans. The handmade clothes and jewelry, priced from $50 to $1,500, ranged from a tie-dyed poncho and funky jade and brass necklace to an elegant satin, hand-painted tunic dress with matching kimono jacket. “Considering all the work that goes into (the pieces), they really aren’t that expensive,” mused guest Joanne Rogers, browsing a program with table-mates Evelyn Schirmer and Grace Hibbard.

Who Was There

Guild members Joanie SteinCQ and Betty Chapin, co-chairwomen of the event. Also members Sandy Smith, Mildred Bert, Jeanette Miller, Veda Chapel, Gladys Baker, Peggy Lake and Janet Krabbenhoft. “Guild daughters” (as they called themselves) Lisa Fiege-Kollmann and Kristin Casparie tagged along with moms Gloria Bagwell and Ruth Johnson, respectively. Fiege-Kollmann said she had been to the fashion show four or five times before. “I never buy any of the stuff, but I like to come because it’s really fun, good food and nice women.”

Lunch

Plates were handed outside at the museum’s kitchen door and carried by each guest to her place at one of the tables centered with hand-painted paper carousel horses. Ultra-light helpings included salmon mousse, cold lemon soup, salad Nicoise and croissants. Dessert plates loaded with cookies and brownies waited at each table.

Overheard

“Oh,this reminds me,” said one guest, as the show began, “I need some new clothes.”