Inside Roland Mouret’s Fall 2016 bash at The Room

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If there was a spike in Google searches yesterday for “Roland Mouret,” here’s why: almost nobody at the party for the French designer knew what he looked like. In a world where designers strive to become Instagram stars, that’s a rarity.

“I prefer my dresses to be famous,” Mouret explained surrounded by fans at The Room at The Bay Queen Street. And they sure are. His most recent headliner: a red jumpsuit worn by Kelly Ripa the day she returned to work after Michael Strahan’s defection.

While his body con dresses with origami-like folds hug every A-lister from Victoria Beckham to Lupita Nyong’o, Mouret shuns the spotlight. He shows in Paris, but lives in a “cottage” outside London with his partner, sculptor James Webster, and Jack Russell, Dave.

Still, he gets a kick out of his anonymity, often using it to surprise customers such as Suits actress Meghan Markle. “I was in an hotel elevator in Istanbul, and this man in a bathrobe said, ‘I love to dress you,’ ” Markle said at an after-party dinner at the Jane Corkin Gallery. “I thought, ‘Whaaat?’ Then he told me who he was and we’ve been friends ever since.”

“I love doing that to women,” Mouret laughed. “Especially actresses. Amy Adams was having a meeting at the Chateau Marmont in L.A. I kept looking over at her table and smiling at her. I could see she was thinking, ‘Who is this weirdo?’ Then when she got up to leave I walked over to her and she took a step back. I said, ‘I’m Roland Mouret.’ And she started jumping up and down, so excited. I love that!”

Browse the gallery below for party pics from last night’s bash.

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Photography by George Pimentel

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