Gilt's Rooftop Salute to Fashion Week

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• Photo Credit: Neil Rasmus/BFAnyc.com
• Photo Credit: Neil Rasmus/BFAnyc.com
• Photo Credit: Neil Rasmus/BFAnyc.com
• Photo Credit: Neil Rasmus/BFAnyc.com
• Photo Credit: Neil Rasmus/BFAnyc.com
• Photo Credit: Neil Rasmus/BFAnyc.com
• Photo Credit: Neil Rasmus/BFAnyc.com

On Friday evening we found ourselves at the Lincoln Center-adjacent Empire Hotel's rooftop space for Gilt Groupe and Gilt City's "In Love with Fashion" party—a sky-high celebration of all things Fashion Week. The packed, raucous event was fueled by Svedka vodka and a soundtrack of hipster Jock Jams and party hip-hop (plus, of course, Lady Gaga's new single). It was also a chance for Gilt to showcase their big trends for Fall/Winter '11 with a mini-runway show.

The show, which kicked off just early enough to clear the space afterward for some serious dancing, focused on a series of key trends the websites identified for this fall's shopping season. A few highlights: A Mad Men-inspired ladylike silhouette characterized by demure clutches, sheath dresses and chic separates; an homage to the '70s ranging from the hippie-dippy to Studio 54 glam; and all things blue. Elsewhere, projector screens flashed lookbook shots and Gilt-produced vignettes, along with a stream of appropriately-tagged party tweets.

Trends or not, the party was populated by girls who dress—four inch heels with soles of a certain color were the norm, paired with slinky little party dresses, lots of sequins, lots of studs, lots of very high-end handbags (that said, a few almost-prom dresses definitely had us a little confounded). Some were Fashion Week-weary—invited guests who work in the industry and relished the chance to check out a party and a presentation without having to be jotting-tweeting-snapping-composing; others were Gilt users who purchased tickets through one of the site's flash sales.

Despite the dance floor, the two bars, the banquettes, the roaring fireplace and the enclosed terrace, the party's hottest spot had to be an auxiliary open-to-weather terrace under the hotel's famous neon sign, with Broadway roaring below—so glamorous. Why, we felt just like Nicole Kidman in that crazy Chanel ad directed by Baz Luhrmann. Though that might just have been the Svedka.
· More Fashion Week coverage [Racked NY]
· Gilt Groupe [Official Site]
· Gilt City [Official Site]