Stella M. Electricity Free

An archway of colored balloons (acquired locally through the Village Party Store) marked the entrance to Monday evening's presentation for the Stella McCartney resort 2013 collection at the New York Marble Cemetery.

To access the main space for the event, guests had to walk through a long passageway. As a fun diversion, the producers set up a series of funhouse mirrors that hinted at the presentation's carnival motif.

Set on just over a half-acre of land, some 250 editors, retailers, and McCartney's celebrity friends enjoyed an early-evening carnival in complete privacy. The setup started the morning of the event, and everything was broken down and removed that night.

The Soul Rebels, a New Orleans-based brass band, performed live throughout the two-hour event and served as the evening's sole source of music.

At the entrance to the garden was a display showcasing Stella McCartney resort 2013 accessories. As the event was presenting new product, the designer wanted to ensure the pieces received their own distinct vignette.

As with all McCartney presentations, the models were encouraged to mingle and interact with guests. At the Monday event the models, clad in the resort 2013 collection, played games and chatted with guests. In terms of groupings, the gathering was more organic than seasons past, with models arranged together according to the patterns or colors of their garments.

The high striker, or test-your-strength game, was originally meant for young children and models to utilize, but soon found fans among the attendees.

Carnival games, such as the ring toss, were mostly positioned against one far wall in a straight line. All games featured some sort of special Stella McCartney branding, but done in a playful and casual manner.

McCartney enlisted some of her friends' children (all age 6 and up and dressed in outfits from the designer's kids' line) to man a lemonade stand. Donations were encouraged and proceeds benefited the restoration and maintenance of the venue's historic walls.

Mary Giuliani provided the evening's mostly vegan carnival treats, a menu that included black bean burgers and grilled Mexican corn skewers served from a grill station, as well as passed items like veggie tacos, grilled peaches topped with ricotta and honey, and candy and caramel lady apples.

In addition to the main food station, two dessert stands were set up featuring sweets from Coolhaus and Pie Corps (pictured). At the latter, guests could also take home prepackaged jars of fruit cobbler.

At the area for Coolhaus, attendees could customize their own ice cream sandwiches. The ice cream was kept chilled in special coolers on-site.

As a nod to McCartney's love of flowers, a large cart overflowing with roses and peonies stood near the entrance to the venue. As guests left, they were given small bouquets or single stems as a festive gift.

The mac and cheese station was set up as a two-part offering: guests could either select a mini serving placed on a spinach cone off a Ferris-wheel-shaped stand, or opt for a full cup that could be customized with toppings like veggie bacon bits, truffle oil, jalapenos, scallions, or sriracha sauce.

Among the desserts served were "big top pop rock" cake balls, orbs of vanilla buttermilk, or red velvet cake topped with red-and-white stripes or confetti sprinkles.