At MFA, beauty was in the 'dos of the ticket holders
They came in brocade capes and leopard pencil skirts, stilettos and Chanel-wannabe suits, an army of fashionistas, queuing up an hour early in the falling snow Monday night to be first through the doors at the Museum of Fine Arts.
"Van Gogh exhibit? No! 'Cocktails and Couture?' Yes!" said Janet Dracksdorf , a 46-year-old Bostonian and museum member who had coaxed five girlfriends to the soiree with the intoxicating title.
"Maybe it was the gift bag," mused MFA spokeswoman Mary Keith, on what drew 400 decked-out ladies -- and a handful of gents -- to the galleries for a gala of glitz held to hype the museum's exhibit "Fashion Show: Paris Collection 2006," which runs through March 18.
"The event sold out so fast," said Keith. "We were shocked. We haven't really done anything like this before."
No, it's certain the masterpiece- covered museum walls generally witness more demure wine-and-cheese- like chatter. "Cocktails" attendees were invited to visit stylists in the halls brandishing curling irons, manicurists painting in bright red and warm pink palettes, and a crew from shu uemura, the ultra cosmetic boutique with a new outpost on Newbury Street, gluing false eyelashes on giddy women clutching martini glasses under brightly lit photo-shoot umbrellas.
But then the exhibit itself had already veered from the norm, with mannequins clad in designs by Valentino , Viktor & Rolf and others set against runway videos. Swanky gift bags aside -- crammed with perfume samples, beauty gift cards, T-shirts and magazines -- partygoers said they found irresistible the lure of the perfect girls' night out -- and at just $50 a ticket. They were there for the lust-inspiring clothes, make-up demos, mini manicures, hair makeovers, and style experts.
In the "fashion lounge," a secretive 60-something diva was looking for Boston Magazine style doyennes Sascha De Gersdorff and Rachel Baker. What does "festive dress" mean on an invite, she wondered? "Cocktail," they guessed. And by the way, they advised, watch for little white dresses, wide-legged pants, and ultra-high wedges for spring.
Nearby, models from Newbury Street's stil showed the mortals how it's done in towering heels, complicated dresses, and appropriately blasé facial expressions. Their admirers basked in the warmth of bronzing blush, hairdryers, and bubbly.
One of Dracksdorf's friends, 55-year-old Sue Gartland , of Waltham, fluffed a new hair-do, happily kissing Christopher Kezik , a stylist with James Joseph Salon . Gartland's formerly "conservative" dark brown bob was now tousled and lifted, with longish side strands pulled flatteringly to her jawline. "I need to be shook up," she announced. "It just feels good."
Under the spell of the museum's special "Fashionista" cocktail -- a sweet, rosy blend of Grey Goose Vodka , Crème de Cassis , wild blueberry martini mix, and lime juice -- many were feeling good. Very good.
"All their cheeks were really warm because of the alcohol," confided make-up artist Jeannie Vincent , assistant manager of fresh . "But they were well-behaved. They giggled a little bit."
The bar line formed quickly and remained long. "The liquor -- you couldn't get near it!" exclaimed 67-year-old Flo Shulman , who schlepped in from Wayland and also enjoyed an amped-up do.
Laura Dauban , a 23-year-old Harvard law student, admitted she too enjoyed the spirits. "I liked the alcohol flavoring, which I needed because I've been writing a paper on torture," she explained.
She exited the party with a towering model-esque updo, created by self-described "hair dork" Kezik, that lifted her somber mood.
"I really love it," she gushed. "It's really unusual."
With their fresh makeup and new dos, she and two fellow law students looked too good to turn in. They left contemplating their next move. "Where are all the men to come hither to?" queried 31-year-old Rebecca Wright , after leaving Vincent's chair with a fetching rosy lip gloss.
By 9 p.m. -- a half-hour after the party was officially over -- the bar was closed, but lines still stretched to the makeover chairs. "Ladies, the museum is closing," announced a hopeful security guard.
Downstairs, as the women gathered their goodie bags and raffle prizes and braved Boston's first real snow, Keith proclaimed the unusual bash a success.
"It was fun," she said, laughing. "And I actually saw a woman toasting her friend to 'our transformation.' People were letting loose a little."
Paysha Stockton Rhone can be reached at ciweekglobe.com. 
