Attracting volunteers to help organize Buy Design 54, the fifth annual fund-raiser for Windfall Clothing Service—inspired by the legendary New York nightclub Studio 54—held Saturday at the Fermenting Cellar in the Distillery District, wasn’t all that difficult, according to event manager Alessia Pugliese. “We never struggle to get volunteers,” said Pugliese, who credited the volunteer team for the event's success. About 50 volunteers, some of whom worked throughout the entire planning process (which began in July), helped pull off the fashion-conscious event, which raises money to support the award-winning charity that distributes new clothing and basic-needs items to Torontonians in need.
“For us, the biggest challenge, being a non-for-profit, is always money,” Pugliese said. “We put on this event on a very tight budget. We are very lucky because our volunteers are so young and most of them are in the media or fashion industry, so creativity is not a problem.” Adrian Mainella, the new host of CBC’s Fashion File, is one volunteer whose profile helped bring exposure to the event. Mainella, who has been involved with Buy Design since its inception, served as the evening’s host and donated a night out with him as one of the more than 150 items up for bid at silent and live auctions.
Guests dressed in decade-appropriate garb and boogied to the music of the '70s on a Saturday Night Fever-inspired dance floor, with professional dancers from the Disco Ducks dance troupe encouraging people to let loose. Stylists from Solo Bace Salon offered Farrah Fawcett touch-ups for the ladies, and the Shared T-shirt shop offered limited one-of-a-kind tees to guests.
Catering by Davids’ provided hors d’oeurves, while Casalife offered retro-style furnishings that complemented the Warhol aesthetic of paparazzi-style black-and-white photos, hanging disco balls, and big silver balloons, creatively directed by Andrew Sardone, style editor at Now magazine. As guests left the venue, they began dismantling the decor: The gift boxes, designed to look like Warhol’s Brillo boxes, were part of the displays.
