Nov 5, 2007

For Bloomingdale's shoppers, charity's in style

By Adria Murray / Society Columnist

Ladies are no strangers to the practice of shopping as therapy. But some women on the Peninsula have taken to the idea of shopping as charity, preferring not just to better themselves, but also to better the community at large.

At the annual Bloomingdale's Shopping Benefit at Stanford Shopping Center on Oct. 25, guests had a chance to give back during a full day of shopping that benefited their favorite local charities (each of which hosted its own mini-event/table in-store). In conjunction with San Francisco's Bloomingdale's, Bay Area fashion slaves had the chance to raise funds (and their wardrobe profiles) for 14 nonprofits, including Family Service Agency of San Mateo County, Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula, TheatreWorks, Peninsula Volunteers, Palo Alto Art Center Foundation, and the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA.

At the "Give a Little, Get a Lot"-themed event, ladies from the Hillsborough Auxiliary to Family Service Agency modeled the top trends for fall in the New View department during a private fashion show. Featuring collections from the women's wear section, auxiliary members helped attendees get attuned to the season's hottest fashions before they were let loose to maximize their purchasing power.

The show began with an introduction by co-chairwomen Barbara Frank and Aris Markoulis and models hitting the runway - while twirling umbrellas and sashaying to the music of Rihanna's "Umbrella" - in fuchsia, black and white pieces by DKNY, Elie Tahari, Ellen Tracy and Eileen Fisher.

Displayed in color-coordinated mini-collections, show producer Kim Selby assembled brown, rust and ivory colored coats and pants to create quintessential fall looks, as well as sequined and metallic evening gowns of marine blue and gray and several casual fashions with animal kingdom flair.

Auxiliary members taking to the catwalk with particular grace included Judi Hinkle, Sue Merrill, Carole Middleton, and mother-daughter duo Gussie and Kelly Wilson, while models Sibylle Whittam and Freda Scott put a little sass in their strut.

Also modeling that afternoon were the elegant Patti Dillingham, Judi Littell, Paula Gilmartin, Crickette Brown-Glad and show co-chairwoman Lia Turk Kheirolomoom.
Offering fashion advice after the show were representatives Barri Haines and Kim Baptist, of Elie Tahari and DKNY respectively, who circled the crowd answering questions from attendees.

Between the two Bloomingdale's locations, more than $56,000 was raised for charity, with $4,000 going to Family Service Agency. Bloomingdale's has already invited the agency and Hillsborough Auxiliary to be a part of next year's event.

For nearly 40 years, Hillsborough Auxiliary has supported Family Service Agency in its effort to provide programs and services to aid children, families and seniors in building positive relationships and improving their quality of life.

E-mail Adria Murray at amurray@dailynews group.com.