By Kristin Anderson 6/01/12 4:28pm

Talks

Iris Apfel and Dara Caponigro, Veranda editor-in-chief. (Photo by Annie Watt)

Iris Apfel: A 90-Year-Old Style Icon on Wearing Jeans and Being a Somewhat Reluctant Subject of a Forthcoming Maysles Doc

At 90 years old, Iris Apfel has not gone gentle, as Dylan Thomas (nearly) put it, into that good night of pastels, luxe but innocuous suits, and orthopedically correct shoes. At Sotheby’s Wednesday night for the Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club “Best Of” design lecture series, she wore a slate grey knee-length leather coat drenched in embroidery, ombre slacks, a taupe Mongolian lambskin wrap, and a froth of turquoise necklaces at her throat. But we only saw, at least initially, those glossy black fishbowl glasses and the crimson lips that have become her signature. Read More

By Velvet Roper staff 5/31/12 1:21pm

Question of the Week

6 Photos

President Obama presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Bob Dylan

Question of the Week: Alan Alda, Iris Apfel and Rose Hemingway Oblivious of Bob Dylan’s Presidential Medal of Freedom

So, what did we learn this week as we took the pulse of the partygoing public? A surprisingly large number of those we ran into while out and about apparently don’t have a “Bob Dylan” Google Alert, or possibly not even basic cable! Almost no one was aware of the major award bestowed upon Mr. Dylan by President Obama on Tuesday, the Presidential Medal of Freedom–the first rock musician to be given such an honor–an event which set the internet on fire, perhaps partially because of the crazed dictator look Mr. Dylan sported.

Click through our slideshow for expressions of surprise and ambivalence from several notables, plus comments by Patti Smith and Dylan Lauren, who, as Mr. Dylan’s namesake, bubbled over with congratulations. Read More