Nordstrom gala evening a classy preview of opening day
It was a night for high heels, high society, and high hopes for a high-demand designer label.
It was a night to gush over your neighbor's shimmering black dress as you stood on the escalator.
Or the fancy hat of the woman ahead of you in the buffet line.
Yes, it was a night to enjoy two things that seem totally incongruous - rich, catered delicacies that would have put the average Versailles palace banquet to shame, and clothing that arrives after a tour on the runway, modeled on bodies with minus 10 percent body fat.
Then again, the March 26 gala opening of the new, two-story, 138,000 square-foot Nordstrom at the Burlington Mall was more than just a routine opening of an upscale hot spot for coveted sunglasses and bags and - well, pretty much everything you can pack into your closet.
It marked the expansion of the Nordstrom empire, which now boasts 158 locations in 28 states.
And among the 1,300 in attendance at the gala, no one was really complaining about the gourmet treats or worrying about how to fit into the latest spring collections after such a culinary indulgence.
The gala transformed the store into a virtual city of women, who exponentially outnumbered the smattering of men present, and who took the opportunity to bask in the rarified world of fashion, and even wax a bit philosophical.
Everyone seemed to agree - all the challenges aside, it's still fun to be female.
Besides, it's not every week you have an excuse on a Wednesday night get to parade around in your finest finery.
And it's even more rare when you can eat in a store without seeing one of those signs with a drippy ice cream cone ensconced in a circle with a line through it.
The opening was also a charity event, with the $168,000 raised from tickets at $125 each aiding three major charities - The Junior League of Boston, which trains women as volunteers and community leaders; the Signature Project of the Leonard P. Zakim Center for Interactive Therapies at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute; and the Boston and Middlesex chapters of The Links, Inc.
The organization's signature project is Dress for Success, which provides professional attire for low-income women and helps them prepare for job interviews and seek economic independence.
At the gala, as women bustled about, admiring shoes, sunglasses and pocket books, the few men at the gala mainly played the role of stalwart observer, sitting with a plate of treats, or minding bags.
Clark Grain, of Framingham, coolly sipped a glass of wine while enjoying a live jazz band.
His wife of 53 years, Elsie, a retired Framingham teacher, was nowhere in sight. She had things to do.
"My wife brought me here," said Grain, a professor of mathematics and chemistry at Roxbury Community College. "I'm enjoying the wine, the good food, and the good music."
The call of the catwalk
The gala included a fashion show revealing the new spring looks of sought-after designers, from long-standing likes of Diane Von Furstenburg and Versace to the newest sensations by Robert Rodriguez, Alice + Olivia, and many more.
The fashion show, held under a grand pavilion-style tent, featured the requisite tall, thin models, thumping music, spring designs by the upper strata of the apparel design world, and enthusiastic applause.
But, it must be said - the applause - and cheering -- got noticeably louder when the male models came out to show off the men's collections, to the prowling sounds of Guns 'N Roses' "Welcome To the Jungle."
In the shoes department, the ladies of the Itzokwitz clan of Lynnfield - Melissa, Phyllis and Pam - professed a love of all things Nordstrom.
"It's the customer service," Phyllis said.