Now that LA Fashion Week has come to a close and the parties are over, it’s time to mention the week’s launch event Monday night at the Fenix restaurant in the Argyle hotel on Sunset. The party began with a sit-down dinner for, oh, let’s say 40, and ended with a mob that included only a few fashion types but many interesting celebrities like Lisa Rinna and Harry Hamlin (kind of the old-school Jennifer and Brad), Nikki Haskell (who actually had free samples of her fat-busting Star Caps), Paris and Nicky Hilton’s parents (who should have known better than to show up without the kids), hot Desperate Housewives gardener Jesse Metcalf, and Warhol superstar Holly Woodlawn (who was actually at the dinner) – not to mention a number of WOW staffers. It was one of those events that featured a red carpet outside with a phalanx of photographers and a backdrop with the names of the host sponsors (Mercedes Benz, Details, McMullan’s backstage-at-the-fashion-shows book, In Tents) in a repeat pattern, like you see stars standing in front of on ET or Access.

At dinner, we sat between artist Kenny Scharf and event planner/club hottie Bryan Rabin. Across from me, sitting next to each other, were Bob Colacello, whose Ronnie and Nancy book has just been published; socialite Cornelia Guest and Dolce & Gabbana’s Angela Janklow Harrington, feeling good and looking gorgeous; and novelist Bret Easton Ellis, who grew up in Sherman Oaks, became famous in New York, and has moved back to Sherman Oaks – and on and off during dinner, we thought we were back at Area. Details founder Annie Flanders was there (though it’s a radically different mag now), as was 7th on Sixth’s director Fern Mallis, actresses Sela Ward and Fairuza Balk, last year’s Next Top Model Yoanna House, lacomfidential‘s Laurie Pike with LAist contributor Adam Jacobson, and did we mention the gardener from Desperate Housewives? Dancing ensued and smoking commenced out on the terrace by the pool and cement palm trees.

All the while, Patrick McMullan – whose photos appear here – was a charming, genial host as always, bringing people together in a way we imagine Pearl Mesta (who?) must have done back in the day.

Photos by Patrick McMullan. Clockwise from upper right: Cornelia Guest, Jeff Klein, Angela Janklow, Bret Easton Ellis; Kenny Scharf; Harry Hamlin and Lisa Rinna; Constance and Holly Woodlawn; Annie Flanders, Fern Mallis, Stephen Saban.