It Girl Afternoon

Yes, New York Fashion Week is about the freshest clothes storming down the runways (or on an operatic stage or, holographically, across Central Park). But it’s also equally about the fresh faces watching from the front row. With that in mind, W Magazine’s Lynn Hirschberg hosted a luncheon, sponsored by Coach and The Peninsula Hotels, celebrating the It Girls of W Magazine. On an almost-fall-like Wednesday afternoon, a stream of glowing young women streamed into the hotel’s Clement restaurant. Not all of them, however, seemed convinced of their own undeniable charms.

Model Amber Le Bon was savvy enough to note the potential pitfalls of being deemed an It Girl. “It’s a double-edged sword isn’t it? You meet fun people but then there’s also a stigma that comes with it. I think most of us want to be seen as more than just It Girls.”

A few steps away was the actress Dakota Fanning, who certainly qualifies as more than just It. What does the label mean to her? “I think of somebody who’s not me! When you hear that, you think of someone who’s very chic and cool. And it’s exciting to be in a room with all these chic, cool girls.”

But no one, it seems, is truly immune to the allure of It status. As the young ladies took their seats at long flower and candle bedecked tables, Hirschberg noted in her brief toast, “When I first came to New York, I dreamed of being an It Girl, just like all of you.”