Lady Gaga’s Workshop Opens at Barneys
Photo courtesy of Barneys
Scissor sister: Lady Gaga at the ribbon cutting ceremony for Gaga's Workshop at Barneys New York.
By 9:30 p.m. on November 21, the crowds were filling up 60th Street outside the Barneys New York flagship, waiting to catch a glimpse of Gaga—and for a chance to dive into her world.
The launch party celebrated the fifth floor of the famed department store’s transformation into Gaga’s Workshop, an over-the-top boutique filled with everything a little monster could want: hair bows, jewelry collaborations with the likes of Pamela Love and Erickson Beamon, tees, candy, stuffed animals and more.
“It really was an incredible labor of love between Gaga, Nicola [Formichetti], [artist] Eli Sudbrack and of course our team,” said Barneys creative director Dennis Freedman at the fete.
“Our first meeting was actually with her mother, and she told us all about Gaga’s childhood, the books she liked to read, what she ate—that was the beginning of this whole workshop. It was very touching.”
Photo: Tom Sibley for Barneys
Haus of Gaga: a larger-than-life figure makes up the center of the shopping spectacular.
Truly, between the graphic wall art, bright colors, and giant surrealist sculptures strewn about the sales floor, the performer's personal touch was impossible to miss.
“It’s amazing to step into her world. You usually get to look from afar, but you really feel like you’re in her mind tonight,” Blake Lively told FashionEtc as she shopped for Christmas presents for her nieces. (Those nieces may be fans of Gaga, but the Gossip Girl star insists that they’re far from little monsters; “they’re angels!” she laughed.)
Also spotted perusing the merchandise: designers Prabal Gurung, Alexander Wang and Christian Siriano, fashion insiders like Barneys New York's own Amanda Brooks and Giovanna Battaglia, and, of course, Gaga herself.
“I’m taking my sister shopping!” she announced as she walked the boutique's aisles—a tight fit, what with her voluminous custom Karl Lagerfeld-designed white tweed dress with black leather trim, which was accessorized by Chanel pearls, camelias, and bows.
Gaga made a full round of the shop, picking up a signature hair bow to add to her feathered fascinator.
One can never have enough headpieces ...
Gaga's Workshop is open now through January 2 during normal Barneys store hours. Twenty-five percent of sales will be donated to the Born This Way Foundation.
Photo: Tom Sibley for Barneys
Winter wonderland: Barneys New York has transformed its fifth floor into a little monsters' paradise.
