While there was no disputing Chelsea and Hillary Rodham Clinton were in the Garment Center Tuesday afternoon visiting Vera Wang and Oscar de la Renta, the mother-daughter team — as well as Bill Clinton — have managed to keep a clampdown on most of the nonfashion details about Saturday’s nuptials. Caterers, floral designers, musicians and the rest of the regalia affiliated with the three-day affair are sworn to secrecy. All the vendors have signed confidentiality agreements barring them from speaking about or publicizing their involvement in any way. Aside from the threat of legal action, they stand to jeopardize future business, said one service provider who, naturally, requested anonymity. “From what I know, they want it to be a very private affair. All of the vendors involved are trying to respect those wishes,” the person said. “Even the vendors don’t know who the other vendors are. Everything is secretive.”
Having handled many Clinton events and White House ones, wedding planner Bryan Rafanelli knows the drill by now. One new name that has surfaced is Massachusetts-based photographer Genevieve de Manio, who is said to have cleared her July book for Chelsea Clinton’s wedding to Marc Mezvinsky. De Manio declined comment Wednesday. Last summer the lenswoman did the honors when Boston Red Sox owner John Henry wed Linda Pizzuti.
Images of Chelsea Clinton’s attempt at privacy Tuesday — a gigantic straw hat — were splashed all over WWD Wednesday and were picked up by scores of other media. Milliner Eric Javits couldn’t take credit for the topper, though he once designed a cloche one for the bride-to-be. “I really like that she was wearing that hat. It shows she has grown from an innocent and is assured of herself as a woman. You can tell she’s interested in fashion because she really fixes herself up,” he said.
As for the designer of the floppy straw hat with a face-shielding five-inch brim, Javits noted several companies have variations of that style this season. More important, the silhouette stays true to her generation, he said.