| After President Clinton was sworn into office (for the second time) on the steps of the Capitol on January 20, 1997, the festivities were only just beginning. The president and First Lady, Hillary Clinton, had a marathon evening ahead of them, with stops planned at fourteen inaugural balls. Capturing the behind the scenes leadup and profiling the women making it all happen—party Czars, if you will—was Vogue writer Eric Konigsberg.
Amid the frenzy of the night—like the chaotic “coatroom melee at the Omni Shoreham” and ticketing bottlenecks—were moments of levity: Mostly, per Konigsberg, Vice President Al Gore “repeatedly use[d] the word party as a verb.”
The Clintons managed to attend all fourteen balls, dancing briefly at each before moving on. (Hillary’s gold Oscar de la Renta gown received high praise.) For the women behind the scenes, the night was both a triumph and a relief, culminating in their own staff after-party—a well-earned moment to celebrate their hard work. |
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| January 21, 1905, marked the birth of a designer who would shape the very foundation of modern fashion: Christian Dior. In 1947, Dior unveiled his revolutionary “New Look,” with nipped-in waists and dramatic skirts that banished wartime austerity and reintroduced unapologetic elegance. His designs didn’t just turn heads—they reestablished Paris as the global capital of style. Nearly 80 years later, the House of Dior continues to carry on his legacy—and will do so next week, at the maison’s couture show in Paris. |
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