Now more than ever, it seems, the line between the worlds of fashion and tennis is becoming blurred. New York’s fashion elite, in town preparing for the city's famed Fashion Week in Bryant Park were frequntly sighted at Flushing Meadows. Among those mingling with the pros and taking in some tennis were designers Ralph Lauren and Oscar de a la Renta; models Christie Brinkley, Melania Trump, Lauren Bush and Whitney Cunningham (America’s Next Top Model); and fashion icon Anna Wintour of Vogue fame.
Top seed Roger Federer led the fashion buzz as well as the men's draw. Although he admits he's a Prada man, he had other company in his guest box during his opening round match at the US Open. De a la Renta sat beside Federer’s girlfriend, Mirka Vavrinec, for the Swiss world No. 1's 2007 tournament debut and Federer returned the favor by attending the Dominican designer's fashion show the Monday after his US Open triumph.
He sat in the front row next to Wintour, the editor-in-chief of American Vogue, who attended several of Federer's match at the Open and Wimbledon. The two have developed quite a friendship over the last year. Federer appeared on the cover of Men's Vogue and was featured in 12-page glossy spread inside the magazine in May. Last year, Wintour invited Federer and his girlfriend to the Oscar de a la Renta and Marc Jacobs fashion shows, where they again sat in the exclusive front row. This year, Wintour and Vogue threw the Swiss a party honoring him at the Gramercy Park Hotel, where notable guests included the aforementioned designers as well as Vera Wang and Diane von Furstenberg.
Maria Sharapova, whose favorite designer is Marc Jacobs, has also been in attendance at Fashion Week and Wintour has been friendly with her as well. The Russian was featured in American Vogue in January and on the cover of Teen Vogue the following month (she has also appeared in Italian Vogue in the past). The magazine threw her a cover girl party where she posed with Wintour and Teen Vogue editor-in-chief Amy Aster. That guest list was also impressive, with attendees ranging from industry insiders to top designers such as Wang and Rachel Roy.
Serena Williams has also been sighted at Bryant Park – no surprise given her well-known interest in fashion. In the past, she's attended the shows of Luca Luca, Calvin Klein, Kai Milla, Marc Jacobs, and Oscar de a la Renta – where she too was snapped sitting next to Wintour.
Grab Bag
With the last major of the year hitting New York at about the same time as Fashion Week, the players felt compelled to make a worthy showing with their looks as well as their game.
With all the other top contenders in the other half of the draw, Maria Sharapova looked like she had a trip to the US Open final in the bag – until she was upset in the third round. But hey, at least she still had her bag. To set off her attention-grabbing red seamless dress with crystals, Sharapova carried a shiny black and red Prince bag that paid homage to the biggest fashion trend of the year, patent leather.
The Russian was also styling off the court as she picked up her US Open Series winner’s trophy, wearing a beret and black tunic over black leggings. beige Michael Kors’ Rehearsal Python Drawstring Satchel, whom she thanked for the “hottest bag of the season.” Hot is right, at a retail price of $2495.
Daniela Hantuchova wasn’t skimping on the accessories either as she paraded to the Prince player party in a short strap dress, long curly locks, and stilettos. On her arm was a handsome mystery man, with whom she was spotted returning back late to her hotel the following evening, but also a beige Sweet Trotter Boston bag with pink accents by Christian Dior ($725).
Roger Federer’s girlfriend, Mirka Vavrinec, was not to be outdone. By all accounts a huge Louis Vuitton fan, she came to Flushing Meadows from Cincinnati with her Louis Vuitton Denim Neo Cabby tote, priced modestly at $1720. And at a Vogue dinner honoring Roger at the Gramercy Park Hotel, she carried Vuitton’s Sunset Boulevard ($750) clutch in the new fall shade “amarante,” a deep purple that to go with her lavender dress. In Paris, she was toting the new cream version of the Monogram Mini Lin design in Paris, and in London, she attended the Wimbledon Champions Dinner holding a small Monogram Dantelle purse, the limited edition lace version of Louis Vuitton’s traditional monogram.
Other fans of the bags include Tatiana Golovin, whose sister Olga took a liking to the shiny Vernis line (starting at $655); the Bondarenko sisters, Alona and Kateryna; and Vera Zvonareva, who carried her multicolored small pochette ($620) in her tennis bag.
And how did Sharapova’s conqueror, Agniezska Radwanska, plan to celebrate after she upset the second seed? By taking sister Ursula for a little bag shopping at Louis Vuitton, of course.