Models

Large and in Charge

It's official: Beth Ditto is to Evans what Kate Moss is to Topshop, thanks to "Uncle Phil," as Moss calls Sir Philip Green, owner of both chains. Evans is the British high street brand that used to be subtitled "The Outsize." Ditto caused a paparazzi scrum as she led a dazzling parade of big-girl pride into a party at Sketch in London last night. Daisy Lowe, Kelly Osbourne, Yasmin LeBon, and a sprinkling of young designer friends like Hannah Marshall and Julian Smith piled in after them to celebrate a facelift for a store that's labored for decades under the reputation of label-of-last-resort for U.K. sizes 14 to 32.

Not now: The party was thronged with style-leading East London plus-size clubbers deliriously glammed to the max in Ditto's sweater dresses, blue sequin shifts, and flowery strapless bustiers. They'd been cast by Richard Mortimer of Ponystep.com (the maestro behind the now defunct club Boombox) to put the clothes through their inaugural evening of cocktails, dancing, and, as it turned out, singing. The crucial moment came when Ditto led her majorly coiffed and made-up crew into an inner bar for an impromptu karaoke session. As the Gossip singer took the mic, up jumped Kate Moss to help her lead a sing-along of Bowie's "Starman."

Just as the cacophony reached its height, in walked Simon Cowell, long-standing mate and new business collaborator of Sir Philip (they are said to be cooking up an entertainment enterprise, yet to be defined). Finding himself in the middle of a room of larger-than-life lesbians making an outsize din might be Cowell's worst nightmare, but TV's most notorious savager of bad singing managed a ten-minute grin before escaping with Green and his wife, Lady Tina Green.

As for the collection? It's a mix of eighties-meets-fifties influences, spiderweb and face motif sweater dresses, domino and flower prints, leggings, and leather jackets timed to arrive in stores and online at www.evans.co.uk on July 9. And, yes, it will ship to the U.S.

A Guy Thing

Cartoon Character

Jeff Koons' work has always left its viewers amused. Who wouldn't smile at a giant dog made of flowers or a balloon cast in shiny metal? But on Tuesday night at London's Serpentine Gallery, where the artist opened a new show of Popeye paintings and sculptures, the reaction he was going for wasn't laughs, it was self-acceptance. "I think being happy with yourself, sticking up for yourself, and doing what you want to do is an idea that transcends art into many different worlds," said Koons, greeting friends and fans like Larry Gagosian, Tracey Emin, and Dasha Zhukova. Popeye, as it turns out, was created in 1929 on the eve of the Great Depression, which makes him a fitting role model for our own straitened times. Said Koons: "He's a modern hero."

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On her way into Swarovski Crystallized's new Soho concept store, Blake Lively literally stopped Broadway traffic (including two tour buses—welcome to New York, people!). Like a few other notables—the guest list for the opening night party included Lucy Liu, Chloë Sevigny, and Evan Rachel Wood—she was wearing a Divine Rock, a limited-edition Swarovski necklace the full proceeds of which will benefit Charity:Water, a nonprofit that builds wells in developing countries.

"Maybe as a kid I wore bigger crystals," Lively said of the piece. "When you're a little girl, you can get away with wearing, like, 17 sparkly pink rings and tiaras and things like that." What, Serena van der Woodsen couldn't pull it off? "I guess not, I don't know. I'm not a princess." Watching the Gossip Girl star swan through the mercilessly well-lit boutique, we're inclined to disagree.

Meanwhile, the crowd gossiped about the late Michael Jackson as "Billie Jean" pounded throughout the 5,000-square-foot flagship in tribute.

The space felt like home to model Jessica Hart. "I once did a photo shoot with Saks and I was in a bed of crystals. They gave me a whole bag of them afterwards, so I have them scattered all over my apartment," the Aussie explained. "It was painful, and I got cuts. We were in underwear. It wasn't the most glamorous thing." Maybe. But not the least glamorous thing, either.

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