Casting an L.A. Spell on Washington

Military escorts in starched uniforms escorted models in Old Glory shades of red, white and blue outfits in a salute to California style at an inaugural lunch here. But it was the show-stopping finale of outfits created by former students of Los Angeles’ Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising--Randolph Duke, David Cardona, Estevan Ramos, Alan Del Rosario, Sonia Kim and David Rodriguez--that brought the crowd of 600 to its feet.

“Boy, I’m beginning to feel very frumpy now,” said the conservatively dressed Carolyn Deaver, whose husband, Michael, was Ronald Reagan’s deputy chief of staff some 20 years ago.

The fashion show, emceed at the Mayflower Hotel by the venerable honorary mayor of Hollywood, Johnny Grant, was attended by mostly politicos and local fashionistas. The guests included actors Bill Conrad and Connie Stevens, Australian Ambassador Michael Thawley, Agriculture Secretary-designate Ann Veneman and Oregon Sen. Gordon Smith.

Also there: California congresswoman Ellen Tauscher as well as California congressmen Buck McKeon, Ken Calvert, David Dreier, John Doolittle, Jerry Lewis and Gary Miller. Others included California Assemblymen Bill Campbell, Bob Pacheco, Sam Aanestad and Bill Leonard.

The event was hosted by the California State Society to celebrate President-elect George W. Bush’s inauguration as well as “give Washington some L.A. style magic,” said Toni Hohberg, FIDM president and founder.

The sold-out show--a stunning display of creative designs and sex-appeal style--featured creations by the school’s recent advanced fashion graduates Jenny Lee, Mariana Barutti, Eun Woo Lee, Jasmine Kay Koo, Valentino Mitsui, Camilla Toft, Dena Burton and Arnel San Diego.

Even the “suits” enjoyed the show, giving the thumbs-up as several models floated by. They slapped each other on the back when student Mitsui’s menswear collection of innovative suits with wide stripes, collarless jackets, chevrons on a coat and a leopard print lining on a purple overcoat with a matching suit hit the runway.

“Leave it to California to do it right,” said Smith after the show, giving kudos to the students’ creativity and the show’s producers who worked in a tribute to Hollywood and Broadway.

“The show was absolutely wonderful, fantastic,” he said, pleased that the crowd stayed to the very end “because in this town, audiences are like escape artists--they disappear even before the guest speaker is introduced.”