By Donna Freydkin and Andrea Mandell, USA TODAY
NEW YORK — Gorgeous garb — and Lady Gaga— rocked Lincoln Center Monday night.
The occasion: the annual Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) awards, honoring today's style stars with the fashion version of the Oscars.
It's a glittery night when designers and their arm candy —Kanye West, Kirsten Dunst, Kerry Washington and Liv Tyler, to name a few — converge to toast one another.
Lady Gaga, in a teal pageboy wig and Mugler ensemble, took a break from her whirlwind tour promoting her new album to drop by and collect the Fashion Icon award.
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"I can't believe I'm allowed in here," Gaga said in a heartfelt acceptance speech. "My sister is here with me tonight. I told her I was very nervous."
She continued: "I used to save up my money to buy Mugler vintage archive. I used to save up all my money. I had to have it. That's really what fashion is all about for me. I already felt like I had made it before I had made it. All of you made me feel like a star before I was. Thank you for believing in me."
The star, known for outrageous outfits such as the raw-meat dress she wore at the MTV Video Music Awards in September, said she tried to bring a rat with her to the awards "as a tribute to New York City" but wasn't allowed.
Designer Vera Wang described Gaga's style as "eclectic, original and fearless. I think she's her own person in terms of her style. She marches to her own drum."
Celebrity favorite Marc Jacobs picked up the Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award.
CNN's Anderson Cooper hosted Seventh Avenue's bold-faced names, including CFDA president Diane von Furstenberg, Derek Lam, Francisco Costa, Oscar de la Renta and Zac Posen.
"I'm not sure I'm qualified," Cooper, in Ralph Lauren Black Label, said before the event. "I'm completely unfashionable."
Designer Prabal Gurung, who won the Swarovski Award for women's wear, was amazed at his win backstage.
"It's been a great start, but to quote my favorite poet, Robert Frost, I have miles to go before I sleep."
The young designer said he likes to decompress between collections with his family — "long hours of Skype conversations with my brother and sister, who live in India and Nepal."
Dunst, who accompanied nominated designer Patrik Ervell, sported a trendy tuxedo, the lapels trimmed in an aqua that matched her eyes.
How big is the fashionista's closet? "A decent size for New York," she said. And her biggest fashion splurge if money were no object? "I'd buy myself lots of antique jewelry."
Washington, in a swingy Calvin Klein number, joked about her awards-show preparation routine, saying it takes her "just a second or two" to get ready: "I do a countdown with hair and makeup. I do have a cutoff."
Washington's fashion mantra? "I believe in no regrets."
Model Miranda Kerr, who accompanied designer Michael Kors, said the awards were "easy" compared with childbirth. (She welcomed a son with actor Orlando Bloom in January.)
"I didn't weigh myself, but I know (I gained) over 30 pounds," she said. "He was almost 10 pounds. I was in labor 27 hours. No drugs."
Brad Goreski, the former right-hand man of star stylist Rachel Zoe and upcoming star of Bravo's It's a Brad Brad World, said fans can expect to see "everything" on his new show — even his love life.
His biggest fashion faux pas? "Most of my teen years."
Von Furstenberg, elegant in a glittery silver sheath dress, had some simple style advice: "Accept your age."
