Simon Doonan, Barneys’ creative ambassador-at-large, and Amanda Brooks, the company’s newly appointed fashion director, took some time away from the Narciso Rodriguez show to talk about the Lincoln Center facilities and Brooks’s unfortunate first day at work.
You’ve been making the rounds this week. Have you witnessed any major mishaps?
Doonan: I’ve had a lot of mishaps in the bathroom here at the tent, which are quite squalid compared to the ones last year. Squalid, but fun.
Squalid but fun. Can you elaborate on that?
Doonan: Given that there’s 8 bajillion people here, there’s only two urinals. There’s some potential disaster
They’re proffering Fiji water at you every 30 seconds.
And wine.
Doonan: Fiji and wine. Fiji, Fiji, Fiji. In the unlikely event that you need to actually have a widdle, you might have a considerable wait. Other than that, it’s very glamorous.
Brooks: I was holding a coffee in my hand, and I went to hug Simon, and …
Doonan: She unloaded half a gallon of boiling hot lava down my couture jacket.
Brooks: It was like three trickles. And I said, “How do you know that I spilled it on you?” Because he was wearing such a thick jacket, I knew he couldn’t feel it.
Doonan: It was searing agony.
Brooks: The girl standing next to me, her face went into complete shock and horror. I could tell by her face that I had spilled the coffee down his back. That was my first ten minutes working at Barneys. I spilled coffee down Simon’s back … Needless to say, I just got out of the car, and I had a latte, a fresh one, and I thought, “I better not carry this around with me.” I’ve learned my lesson.
