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Fug Girls: Lauren Conrad Breaks the Cool Barrier at Nanette Lepore

The first familiar face we saw at Nanette Lepore was not a celebrity. It was a dude who’d plonked down next to us at Diesel, complained about all the gay dudes who’d been hitting on him this week, and then explained that he’d spent the last twenty years becoming a seriously sensitive man. If you say so, buddy. Then he asked where to buy a new tux — making it clear that money was no object! — before moving to the row above us to start all over again on another group of girls. But this time, he had his eye on bigger fish, and Perrey Reeves’s habit of showing up first for maximum photo time (or just because she’s just super punctual) bit her on the ass. Mr. Sensitive slid into the space by Perrey, who was all alone, nary a PR girl in sight. He was chatting her up, and she looked freaked out. We were weighing how best to rescue her when Lauren Conrad showed up and distracted us.

L.C. looked very pretty in a silvery dress and nude shoes and was accompanied by her usual sidekick, Lauren “Lo” Bosworth, in fuchsia. It may just be the topography of her face, but Lo spent the entire show looking as though she were mere moments away from saying something patronizing. Maybe she thought Audrina was going to be there and wanted to be prepared.

As for L.C., she seemed charming and polite, posing for hundreds of photos during a bizarre moment when many guests at the show popped out of their seats and bum-rushed her with camera phones. We’d expect that if she’d emerged in front of a tourist bus, but it was surreal in Bryant Park, where you’re supposed to look blasé and only freak out internally. Lo was less popular with the crowd and with reporters, and killed time before the show began by playing with her phone and looking annoyed while Lauren gave interviews. L.C. claims she’s working on her own spring collection, and we are truly interested in seeing it.

Right across the runway from Lo and L.C. sat their polar opposites: Mad Men’s silver fox John Slattery and his wife on- and offscreen, Talia Balsam. They politely chatted to reporters about the challenges of being bi-coastal, posed for a few photos, and seemed generally to be having a lovely, low-key outing. Nice work if you can get it. L.C., take note.

View a slideshow of the Nanette Lepore collection.

Fug Girls: Lauren Conrad Breaks the Cool Barrier at Nanette Lepore