Mônot’s Eli Mizrahi Hosts L.A. Dinner Party at Chateau Marmont, Following Win at the Daily Front Row’s Fashion L.A. Awards
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“Have you guys seen Eli?” asked Dove Cameron.
She was seeking the man of the hour, Eli Mizrahi.
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“Oh, look at him,” she smiled, spotting the Mônot designer on a couch snuggled up with Natasha Lyonne.
“Everyone has been with me from Day One,” Mizrahi said of his intimate dinner party at the Chateau Marmont penthouse Sunday in Los Angeles.
All wearing his designs — a sea of black and white cutout dresses — his guests included Teyana Taylor, Ciara, Zoey Deutch, Demi Lovato, Normani, Christine Quinn, Elsa Hosk, Alessandra Ambrosio, Emma Myers, Tiffany Haddish, Olivia Culpo, Sami Miro, Cindy Bruna, Kat Graham, Kristina Romanova, Nausheen Shah and Rose Bertram.
“And we got a lot of requests of people that wanted to come attend,” he went on. “But, you know, it’s not about collecting credit of who’s coming to my dinner. Yes, I got the award, but it’s more about appreciation of who has been a part of it from Day One, and they’re all here with me tonight.”
Mizrahi was in town for the Daily Front Row’s seventh annual Fashion L.A. Awards, where he took home Emerging Brand of the Year. Taylor had presented the trophy earlier in the day.
“Everyone can be pretty in their own individual way, but to me, it takes a lot more than just physical aspects,” he said of his Mônot woman. The designer, who launched the brand three years ago, created 29 looks for the awards ceremony. “It’s more about personality and attitude and confidence.…But you know what’s funny? When Teyana presented the award, she said, ‘Listen, I’m a mom in my sweatpants and in my baggy clothes, but when I put on a Mônot dress, I transform into this creature. I don’t know who I am.’ This makes me happy, actually.”
Mizrahi, who’s from Lebanon, explained he originally wanted to produce his collections in the U.S. when he moved to New York.
“The factories in New York did not want to work with a young brand,” he said. “I had no choice but to look at alternative options.”
He turned to his home country, working with Syrian refugees that he trained, he explained: “They’re still part of Mônot.”
These days he’s in Lebanon once a month, more often in Paris — where he recently relocated.
“Yes, the brand is growing,” he continued. “Yes, it has a presence in Paris. Yes, it has a presence in New York. But I’m not giving up on Beirut. Beirut has been my home, will always be my home.”
In L.A., he’s testing the waters, and the city may be seeing more of him soon.
“If you look 10 years ago when you said L.A., people think Juicy Couture,” he said, when asked about the fashion scene. It’s taken more seriously now, he added. “For me, I’m loving the whole shift. There’s a big movement happening. And funnily enough, I’m talking about having a bit more of a presence in L.A., possibly doing a show in the future. We’ll see.”
For now, he planned to extend his trip: “I was meant to leave at midnight tonight. I’m probably not going to get on that flight and staying for two more days.”
New York is his next destination, for meetings and “something big, potentially, that’s still in the works, TBD.”
Also in the works? Mens, which he plans to unveil next.
“We’re launching it soon.”
An hour into the event, most guests were still mingling as they sipped Champagne and cocktails on the terrace. A few sat at the open air dinner table, ready for their first dish.
“Chop chop, I have a hard out,” announced Haddish, her finger twirling in the air.
Across from her was Lyonne. In her familiar laugh, she chimed in, “Chip Chop, OK?”
Launch Gallery: Inside the Mônot Dinner
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