Last night we spied Tamsin Lonsdale, Reeve Collins, Carly Steel, Tracy Bjelland, Alex Hitz, Adolfo Suaya and Walter Canas on the Food Network’s Private Chefs of  Beverly Hills special Supper Club event!

The show featured two chefs who cooked a roaring 20s themed dinner party for the Supper Club Los Angeles, a traveling dinner party club owned by friend of the Truffle, Tamsin Lonsdale. The chefs were asked to make changes to the menu like “his and her” sized bites for the deviled eggs which offends the chefs but is really just good thinking.

So who is in the Supper Club fold? Tamsin’s assistant Walter Canas as well as her membership director Tracy Bjelland, an heiress to a Norwegian food export empire and Harvard grad who has been spotted doing a modeling job or two as favors to friends (like us! last year Tracy modeled for our Church Boutique shoot, she is also a guest contributer to the DT). These are the ones you’ll have to get through in order to make headway into the club.

Other guest on the episode last night were Coca Cola heir Alex Hitz, also a friend of the Truffle and a haute cuisine comfort food chef who is indeed Cordon Bleu trained, Reeve Collins, owner of an online ad agency whom I first met in Coachella last year when we stayed at his house and he was driving a Maserati dirty from the dessert sand and 15 freeway drive from L.A. (we at the DT love a man who is willing to get his super car dirty – rugged yet fancy), and Los Angeles restaurateur Adolfo Suaya who has had a hand in opening Gaucho Grill, Dolce, Lodge, Boho, Surly Goat and soon to come Osaka.

Read more about Cordon Bleu trained chef Alex Hitz:
Comfort Food Haute Cuisine from Alex Hitz

Read more about Tamsin’s parties:
Supper Club Mad Hatter’s Easter Tea at The Charlie hotel
Wildlife Waystation Safari

Some recent posts from guest contributor Tracy Bjelland:
Harvard Yale Game 2010
Casino Jack Premiere at the Toronto Film Festival

Tracy Bjelland and Kitson Barry at Tamsin's Wildlife Waystation Safari

Well, you all how we feel about Los Angeles here at The Daily Truffle so when our toast of town all gets together, we semi pop a cord! We have about 40 truffle hunters on the ground last night at the gala and after party … reports coming in now from Christina’s performance, beautiful gowns on attendees and on exhibit inside the Pavilion and what happened inside those gala tents! xoxo

Attendees include: Jordan Bratman and Christina Aguilera, Barbara Davis, Eli and Edythe Broad, Michael Govan with Katherine Ross Govan (LACMA director) and Ariana Govan, Stewart and Lynda Resnick, Glenn Frey (from the Eagles), Bob Iger and Willow Bay, Brian Grazer and Chau-Giang Thi Nguyen, Shelli Azoff and Irving Azoff, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa with Lu Parker, James Franco, Colleen Bell, Bridgid Coulter and Don Cheadle, Suzanne Deal Booth and David Booth, Julie Chen and Les Moonves, Janet Dreisdin Rappaport (LA Conservation Corps Board Director), Carole Bayer Sager and Robert Daly (formerly Chairman of the L.A. Dodgers and Warner Bros), Kaye Spilker (LACMA currator), Jane and Terry Semel, artist John Baldessari, Marc & Jane (LACMA board member) Nathanson with children Adam Nathanson and his wife Lauren Waisbren and Dave Nathanson and his wife Sabina Spigel, Elsa Pataky and Chris Hemsworth, Yolanda Hadid and David Foster, Mike Medavoy (producer), Jaclyn Smith, David Geffen, Wendy Goldberg (wife of film and television producer Leonard Goldberg) and Amanda Goldberg, Lisa Love, Mark Burnett, Kathryn Bigelow (director, “Hurt Locker”), Ann Philbin (Hammer Museum director), Cynthia Wornham, Bill Bell and Maria Bell, Laura Ziffren and L.A. native Casey Wasserman (son of Lew Wasserman), Danna Ruscha and Ed Ruscha, Eva Chow (LACMA board member) and Michael Chow, David Bohnett, Tom Gregory, Carly Steel, Kelly Lynch, Joan Collins, Kim Kardashian,  Molly Sims, L.A. native Monet Mazur (wearing fellow L.A. native Irene Neuwirth earrings), Kathy and Rick Hilton and Nicky Hilton, Nicole Richie, Olivia Wilde, Rosanna Arquette, Teri Hatcher, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Kenneth ‘Babyface’ Edmonds and Nicole Pantenberg, Lori and Michael Milken, Suzanne (LACMA trustee) and Ric Kayne and daughter Maggie Kayne with friend Hayden Slater, Lyn and Norman Lear, Herb Rappaport, Gelila Assefa (wife of Wolfgang Puck), Mitch Glazer, Arianna Huffington, Mandy Einstein and Cliff Einstein, Joe Wender, Dona Kendall (LACMA Life Trustee), Gary Mansour (VIP travel agent), Jeanne Greenberg (from Bravo’s Work of Art), Miety Heidin (Sotheby’s), Blake Koh (Sotheby’s), Thelma Golden (Studio Museum in Harlem director), Rosette Delug (contemporary art collector), Alex Westerman (Mattel), Matt Bangser (Blum & Poe) and Abby Bangser (LACMA major gifts coordinator), Lawrence Bender, Brooke Davenport, Tracee Ellis Ross, Beth DeWoody, Cameron Silver, Patricia McCallum and Michael York, Isabel Wilkinson (The Daily Beast), Brandon Davis, Renzo Piano (Resnick Pavilion architect), Jamie McCourt, Sherry Lansing, Marisa Tomei, Ghada Irani (Board of Overseers, Keck School of Medicine, USC), Tracee Ellis Ross, Jessica de Ruiter, Jonathon Craven, Chapin Sisters, Magda Berliner, George Kotisioupolis, Andrew Durham, Melissa Coker (Wren), Celine Khavarani (Prada), Jenni Kayne, Jordan Bratman & Christina Aguilera, Nicole Richie, Brent Bolthouse, Tracy Ellis Ross, Bettina Korek, Avant Garde co-chair Chris Hopkins & Iran Hopkins, Brooke Davenport, Lawrence Bender, PC Valmorbida, Jesse Ehrman, Degen Pener, Giovanni Ribisi, Jessica Trent and more. Scroll for Pics!!

Photos from Patrick McMullen, Andrew Berliner, LACMA, Huffinton Post, Wireimage, Carly Steel and more friends

Weekend report …

It’s been a slow couple weeks with lots of people on va-ca but went to Kevin Parker (Rain Management Group) and Billy Park’s bash on the Palihouse rooftop last week – where I was late in discovering Walter (who was the host at the Chateau for 12 years) has now taken up residency at the Palihouse. He tells me he is still performing every now and then on a music night he runs in the courtyard on Tuesdays. I also saw Chris Huvane (Management 360 new hire / former GQ Senior West Coast Editor), Marc Mitchell (Harvard Westlake ’95 and founder of Urban Daddy) and Matt Waldstein (Crossroad ’95, Attorney at Law - Abrams & Waldstein LLP).

Willem Broad (Buckley, Mont Clare, Hollywood High) and his band mates Nick Biddle (Buckley) and Brandon Rauch of FIM has an “Almost Famous” party that I almost went to – which he told me involved lots of pool toys.

I hate to mention the wedding of a certain former first daughter but DJ Mia Moretti and violinist Caitlin Moe were the entertainment which is pretty cool since that is who plays about half the good parties in L.A. – including the recent Carrera party at the Chateau – so it makes me wonder if Chelsea Clinton knows what shes doing or if they somehow found themselves a very cool event planner – I need to contact BMF Media about that.

This week …

We got an invite from to a private preview of the new mall in SM called Santa Monica Place. The preview will benefit PS Arts and features the new restaurant Xino located on the “dining deck” with an after-event at the new Bloomingdale’s.

Louis Vuitton also told me a NEW LOUIS VUTTION store is also opening Friday in Santa Monica Place!!

Also got an email from Carrie Wick over at Greg Link’s new company Brand Link telling me there will be two new restaurants in the mall opening Friday as well – Richard Sandoval’s Zengo and La Sandia – Zengo is Chinese-Mexican (think duck tacos) and La Sandia is ”homespun Meixcan cooking” with a “tequilla library.”

RJ Williams’ (Crossroads) Young Hollywood studios located in side the Four Seasons hotel, which is still so amazing/cool/weird to me, has been getting a lot of heat lately – in a good way! That Bachelor girl who laughs too much went in yesterday – which was a good day to get her because of the finale last night. Also in the studio yesterday were Chris Angel and Giovanni Ribisi promoting his new film Middle Men - premiere is thursday at the Archlight, movie comes out Friday.

Kiehl’s is sponsoring a motorcycle ride with Fred Durst & Alain de Cadenet up the coast in the different Kielhs locations with well know biker names from around L.A. See separate post for more.

Looks like Avalon Hotel in Beverly Hills is about to become cool – Ashlee Margolis is hosting a night there – co-hosts include jeweler Anita Ko, Jimmy Choo publicist Sara Riff, Ian Edelman Writer (“How to Make It in America”), and director/photographer Patrick Hoelck (who directed Scott Caan’s last film). UPDATE FROM THE EVENT: Cabanas, rustic pizzas, Prosecco surround the cute pool with an easy exit valet pick up in the back. I saw LA NATIVES  Cliff Cantor (Beverly, former pro poker player / aspiring recluse), Jesse Erhman (Crossroads, Warner Bros), Laura and brother David Katzenberg (Harvard-Westlake, “Hard Times of RJ Berger”), and Louise Roe (from The City who now has a reality show called “Plain Jane” on the CW at 9pm where she helps blah girls get not so blah guys).

Carly Steel invited me to a party for Coco Cola heir Alex Hitz – he is hosting a soiree for his friend Susan Fales-Hills to celebrate her new book “One Flight Up”. UPDATE FROM THE EVENT: Guests included Rochelle Gores Fredston (daughter of Alec Gores and owner of Arcade boutique), Wendy Stark (former editor of Vanity Fair, daughter of Ray Stark), Nikki Haskell, Barbara Davis, Marilyn Heston, Degen Pener, Pauletta Washington (Mrs. Denzel), Dale Mason Cochran (Mrs. Johnnie), Alfre Woodard, Bravo director of development Christy Dees, and Cory & Colet from ITV … Alex, who caters all his own events, has a gift for world class southern comfort cooking, had tea sandwiches & champagne; the hit hors d’oeuvre of the evening was his signature bacon wrappd dates. Alex’s family friend and guest of honor, Susan Fales-Hills, a beautiful author, Harvard grad and contributer for Vogue, Travel and Leisure and Town& Country, was on hand at the base of Alex’s outdoor infinity staircase to greet guests, graciously signing and giving away copies of her book “One Flight Up” about “a pack of feisty thirty-somethings, all friends since grade school at Sibley Academy, an Upper East Side institution for sophisticated ladies-in-training”. http://susanfales-hill.com/one-flight-up.html

Tamsin Lonsdale is having a Super Club at the Hollywood Tower – a historic landmark and residential building on Frankin and Gower. UPDATE FROM THE EVENT: Overheard among cute 1930′s striped bathing suit models, news that Richard Branson’s new production company is about to open offices in Santa Monica in his deal with Relativity Media’s Rogue Pictures. Marika Krissman tells me she has done a board over-haul as the recently inducted MOCA Contemporaries board President. Attendees include Adam Divello (creator of The Hills and The City), Sarah Weidman, VP of Development at Style Network, Tatiana Kelly & Jim Young – producers around town.

Also on for this week, Angeleno Magazine is hosting a beauty day at the new JW Marriot pool I have yet to see – but is really cool because it looks over the Staples Center downtown at the which is sort of nestled next to the towering new Ritz Carlton where Wolfgang’s new restaurant WP360 is located.

Film Fashion is having a walk-in for a new designer they rep named Gustavo Cadile this week – which is cool because you get to go in showroom which is in the bottom floor of the Pacific Design Center and they have racks and racks of samples and all the celebrities come in there to be fit. I think Film Fashion had more updates of celebs in their client’s gowns during the Oscars than any other single fashion PR.

In news from Prada, T.I. wore Prada to his wedding to Tameka this past weekend in Miami. And then again at the premiere of “Takers” held at the Arclight Cinerama Dome thursday this week (Aug 04).

Rachel Krupa sent over an invite for her movie night at The London this Friday … “Love Actually” is the film.

Jessica Meisels is overseeing the opening 25 Park in the Malibu Lumber Yard this weekend. Jessica tells me the new boutique will carry cool brands like – Antik Batik, by Malene Birger, Elizabeth and James, Haute Hippie, Gryphon, Vanessa Bruno, Hanii Y, Megan Park, Sachin and Babi, Rick Owens Lillies and Duarte. They also carry baby/childrens clothes like Cacharel, Stella Cove and Eberjay. Right is Brooke Burke shopping with her little one there this week.

The Malibu Lumber Yard – owned by Richard Weintraub and Richard Sperber – are seeking an additional partner to support their investment in the mall according to the Malibu Times.

Coming up …

And Michael Rosenberg (aka Rosie) my former boss while at Maverick Films (now no longer) and producer of”Hung” has a birthday coming up …  Emmy’s, Emmy’s, Emmy’s, but not before Teen Choice monday. The Resnick Pavillion at LACMA will be complete soon with lots of parties coming in September to open the new wing.

*Every week at The Daily Truffle we highlight the invitations we receive in order to include our plans, plans of our friends and plans we wish had time for! Invitations are for editorial purposes and are not meant as announcements or open parties.

What is The Charlie? One block North of Phillipe restaurant on Sweetzer and Melrose (formerly Dolce and Le Chardoney for our serious old timers) you will find a series of Carmel style chalets called The Charlie made for long term stays and named after Charlie Chaplin who once lived there. A network of bungalows with names like Valentino, Monroe and Gable (all named for once upon a time guests) are covered with little blue flowers, tall pine trees, and lined by cobble stones and flower boxes spilling down sometimes three stories to paths and brick and fountains below. The incredibly beautiful and quintessentially retro Noelle Cichon is hotel manager and Israeli born hotelier Menachem Treivush is the owner, and  has a pretty home on the property.

Tamsin Lonsdale, owner of the Supper Club in NY, London and LA is a friend, and darling designer of charming invitates, cute themes and plenty of food, food, food.

And more food.

Tamsin’s first and foremost concern as Supper Club mistro is to bring her guests to new restaurants and good food, to which everything else about each party is themed.

She has had parties, upon their opening, at places like East in Hollywood, The Hudson on Crescent Heights Blvd, which looks pre-Prohibition Chicago banker bar, SOI 56 Bangkok, Agura on La Cienega Blvd (Japanese), Mark Gold’s Eva on Beverly Boulevard, Boho in Hollywood, Cecconi’s in WeHo and The Roger Room (Sean McPherson and Jared Meisler). Most recently she had a dinner for guests at just opened Trousdale on Monday night (one of the nights Darren Dzienciol, Brent Bolthouse, Guy Oseary & Jen Rosero keep it closed for private affairs). She also does old favorites like Domniques, Chateau, The Peninsula, and places you really couldn’t get to that are members only like The Doheny downtown, owned by Cedd Moses.

She also does cool collaborations with Degen Pener’s Angeleno magazine, Barney’s and the exotic animal rescue park, the Wildlife Waystation (in the valley) to see lions, yellow pythons and white tigers. She has cute themed occasion events like Oscars screening parties and Super Bowl Sunday parties at members’ private homes. She does festive holiday parties for Halloween, Valentines Day and Christmas … but at the moment it’s her Mad Hater’s Easter Tea Party that I am focused on!

I love all things Easter, it’s a great holiday that brings out the best in men’s clothes and where, for no reason at all, we all decorate, hide and then gather eggs, staging elaborate hunts, we tie in bunnies, have massive brunches and say “Happy Easter” even though that’s not even a tradition!

Guests at the tea include: Emily Bracken (Huff post columnist) and Lucy Punch (amazingly dressed actress – see photos), Karla Braun (crafty branding expert) and Annie Hendy (screenwriter adapting her sucessful play “The Catholic Girl’s Guide to Losing your Virginity“), Lauder Robinson (film producer/director, latest movie he’s working on is called Car Jack) and fiancée Tava Smiley (TV host), Carly Steel (also a TV host who I know and love from our E! News days together) and Alex Demyanenko (Carly’s first boss at VH1 who now works at reality TV company Shed that does Jerry Sienfeld’s “The Marriage Ref” and “Real Housewives of New York”), Nico Golfar, Daniela Villegas there with and Sami Hayek (brother of Salma, who rocked a crazy Che Guevera red cashmere sweater), Kevin Parker (or Six Degrees of Kevin Parker, as we call him), Sharlto Copley (District 9), Alex Purcell, Mona Lisa Farrokhnia, Pauli Orchon (marketing guru), and MOI!

One of the many cool things about Tam’s parties is that she sets up a fun little chat room with photos after each event where guests can re-connect … thus eliminating the need to bring your business cards … Members can check them out on her website here www.thesupperclubinc.com/Events/ViewAlbum?EventID=272 and members can get in touch with fellow tea party guests, via her Guest List feature here www.thesupperclubinc.com/Events/GuestList?EventID=272

If you would like to have Tamsin prepare your meals 4 times a month for really not that much a year (for the annual membership), you can ask her for an invite on her website and say The Daily Truffle sent you! xoxo

Vist The Charlie ~ cutest hotel in Hollywood at 819 N. Sweetzer Ave, West Hollywood http://thecharliehotel.com/

Thanks to the lovely sponsors who make Tamsin’s parties always delightful ~ 45 Three Modern Vintage, Pimms Cups, Blueberry Banzai Sake and Jack Wines, and food (sandwich & quiches) from Chef Ameera and Buttercake did all the sweets, Arizona Ice Tea and of course Budwieser.

SEE ALL PHOTOS ON THE DAILY TRUFFLE FACEBOOK PAGE!

I go to parties with mermaids – that basically makes me better than you. But don’t get too riled up – as of last week – I had never been to a mermaid party either!! Last Thursday, Scarlett Taylor and I rolled up to Tamsin Lonsdale’s “Secret Garden” party held at the home of Young, Fabulous & Broke creator, Heidi Cornell. The Tarot readers, Meg’s BBQ, Jack Wines and (ri)1 whiskey, guitar players and pretty people could not distract me from the pool. “Scarlett,” I said, “there is a mermaid in the pool.” Scarlett looks at the girl swimming around half naked and said “I want to go in. How cool. Wait, what is she wearing? What’s that in the water with her?!” And with that, we had our first mermaid sighting. She jumped up and dove backwards into the water, showing off her seashell brasserie. In dove the arms and head, followed by her bare midriff and sexy butt, and then we saw it – the long, muscular, golden tail of mermaid flipped up splashing water on the guests like a fish and then sank back down under the surface! Scarlett and I starred in shock and both agreed that mermaids are WAY cooler than vampires. Like a scene out of Peter Pan, the crowd watched mesmerized as the pretty mermaid tossed smiles at the guests, splashed around and let all the boys touch her tail!

Mermaid Mesha Kussman, creator of the Aqualillies

We were finally ushered away to have our Tarot Cards read and met the rest of the party guests which included friend, LA Native, and creator of YoungHollywood.com, RJ Williams, my good friend Carly Steel (pictured right) who you may have seen this weekend hosting the Emmys for CW and making cameos at the ET, People and HBO parties, Alexandra Lynn Gaudiani, the former power publicist from 42 West, PMK and Paramount Pictures, Nzinga Blake, a Current TV host and Sierra Leonean native, and Alexander Purcell (pictured left) owner of design firm APRRO, in Los Angeles.

Other interesting Supper Club members include Sebastian Mathews, Cori Diamond, Monika Jakisic (pictured left), a Croatian model who use to date George Clooney, and my latest favorite transplant you will be hearing a lot about from now on – Tracy Bjelland (pictured right). Tracy refers to herself as an “Ice-Cube” – half Norwegian, half Cuban, she hails from Olso, via London and Harvard University in Boston where she was a member of “The Hasty Pudding Club.” The newly launch Supper Club website allows members to view photos from the events and reconnect with guests they met at the parties. http://www.thesupperclubinc.com/

Zachary Serebrenik and friend, Miles Fisher, Tamsin Lonsdale with Alex Purcell

About The Aqualillies:
The synchronized swim troop books private parties all over LA. They told me over the holidays they we will be creating a cute new red and white themed costume for their shows. They train at various Olympic pools in Orange County and starting in November – they are going to be holding workshops! Information about the workshops will be on their website soon! www.Aqualillies.com.

Related Stories on Daily Truffle: Supper Club hosts “Black Dahliance” party for Carly Steel
Related Stories on Daily Truffle: Aqualillies Live at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel Thursdays

Over the weekend, Supper Club host, Tamsin Lonsdale, put on a “Black Dahliance” themed party for Carly Steel. The evening’s festivities kicked off with a cocktail party featuring fabulous mini bottles of Moet and Chandon bottle chamgane … An eclectic mix turned out – Amanda Bynes, Izabella Miko, Edi Gathegi and Christian Serratos (Twilight, New Moon), Lady Victoria Hervey, Liane and Richard Weintraub, Peter Bacanovic, Julia Verdin, Nathalie Walker, Stephen Levinson (Exec Producer, Entourage), Sean Stone, Evan Hainey, Bryan Burk (Exec Producer Lost, Star Trek), Jane Lipstiz (CEO, Magical Elves), Roberto de Villacis, Xorin Balbes, Carter and Courtney Reum, Lesa Amoore and many more …

Photo (left): Carly Steel with Supper Club creator, Tamsin Lonsdale

I know Carly from our days working together at E! News … being one to prefer a worldly mentality, I was instantly drawn to the Scottish-born and English-educated beauty. We were also together at Sundance one year too – I was working for Spin Shoppe PR on the Hard Rock Hotel’s pop-up club on Main Street and Carly was hosting for Young Hollwood, the new celeb-website started by child actor and L.A. Native RJ Williams’s (Crossroads ’95). Brittany Murphy was our official in-house VIP representative all week, as her husband, acclaimed fashion photographer Simon Monjack, was taking celebrities mugshots for charity sponsor, Rock the Vote! Brittany put on the hat of “woman behind the man”, acting as a camera assistant and general PA, and as a show of support to allow the spotlight to remain on hubby, Brittany retained a hard and fast rule not be giving any interviews or taking any photos while she was working for Simon … Enter Miss Steel and after the 3 of us had a little tête-à-tête, Carly had not only interviewed the “Clueless” and “8 Mile” star, she’d also had her photos taken by Simon Monjack, who is best known for his work in Vogue, and was designing sneakers with Brittany over at the Puma booth.

Photos: Above is Brittany and husband and Vogue photographer Simon Monjack at the Hard Rock Hotel’s pop-up club at Sundance, along with his portraits of his wife and Carly. Below is Brittany at the Puma booth – also called “Puma’s Mongolian Shoe BBQ” where you can design your own Pumas with initials and even fur! You can watch Carly’s interview with Brittany here.

Here are some photos from Carly’s birthday last Friday …

Left: Izabella Miko (Coyote Ugly, Clash of the Titans). Center: Beau Swayze and Mona Lisa Farrokhnia. Right: Saira Mehar, Kaya Johnson who is my cousin and co-founder of clothing line Literature Noir

Ambiance at The Sowden House, Lady Victoria Hervey (right), Carly Steel with Nathalie Walker

Roberto de Villacis (left), Edi Gathegi (Twilight) and Christian Serratos (Twilight)

Buck Jensen, Richard Weintraub, Liane Weintraub and Peter Bacanovic

Long shot of the table with Amanda Bynes

DT: The Dress? What is it!!

CS: One of a kind Roberto de Villacis Haute Couture which he named ‘The Black Dahlia.’ He designed my dress for the Oscars this year which I

wore to host part of TV Guide’s Live From The Academy Awards Red Carpet pre-show and it was a hit at Elton John’s after the awards so he was my first port of call. Roberto designs unique, showstopping numbers and he draws a lot of inspiration from old Hollywood so I knew he’d have the perfect piece for this event and he did! He is my favorite designer and one of my dearest friends.

Photo shoot with Carly Steel and Lady Victoria Hervery for designer Roberto de Villacis

DT: How did the idea of “Black Dahliance” come to be?

CS: I met Tamsin Lonsdale who runs The Supper Club about a year ago and we have so many mutual friends from London and instantly hit it off and she asked me to become an ambassador for The Supper Club (which is essentially an international private members dining club – like a Soho House on wheels). Tamsin suggested hosting my birthday and originally we were planning to do it in the Hamptons but I’ve met so many wonderful people in LA I wanted to celebrate with them and I’ve always wanted to host an Old Hollywood themed party. I’m obsessed with the Hollywood Golden Age and wanted to bring that back for an evening. Tamsin also loves themed parties as they are such fun and she does them so incredibly well. Her attention to detail and creativity is second to none. The idea for the specific Black Dahliance theme came about when we scouted locations. I had attended a fashion show with my mother at The Sowden House a few years ago and it has stayed in my mind ever since because its so unique and special with an air of hidden mystery and history. What sealed the deal was after doing some research I learned that not only had Lloyd Wright designed The Sowden House, and it was the location for Kate Beckinsale’s scene as Ava Gardener in The Aviator, but it is widely thought to be where the Black Dahlia murder took place in the 1940s and thus The Black Dahliance came about. The incredibly talented Xorin Balbes who not only owns the property but also renovated it in a spectacular fashion generously let us host the party there and it was the star of the evening.

DT: Who catered?

CS: Our chef was the infamous Marcel Vigneron from Top Chef fame (currently at the Bazaar at the SLS hotel). He is so creative and such a character that he really added to the evening in every way. And Suzy Cakes did the gorgeous white cake with black trim and lining.

http://www.thesupperclubnewyork.com/

DT: What are your CURRENT or UPCOMING projects?

CS: I currently do a lot of correspondent work for TV Guide Network, The Inside Film Show and just did a piece for 20/20 on Adam Lambert. I am also executive producing a new talk show with ITV Studios (who produced Hell’s Kitchen and I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here) and a show with Magical Elves (who are currently nominated for Emmys for producing Top Chef and Project Runway). This year is hopefully shaping up to be quite exciting!

DT: What has been your biggest break?

CS: My biggest break was recently being part of TV Guide’s Live From the Academy Awards Red Carpet Show in February – one of the most amazing and exciting experiences I have ever had and it was the first time I have ever hosted live TV. I thought I’d be terrified as there is no safety net but I ended up loving it. It has also opened the door for so many more TV hosting opportunities. My first big break was my first job out of University – working in editorial at Vogue magazine in New York which was an incredible experience. I learned so much from Laurie Jones, the managing editor, who taught me everything I know about interviewing and writing.

DT: Are those your parents I see in the photos? My parents are my besties so I love seeing family!

CS: Both my parents are Scottish and are based in the UK although because of the grim weather there they do love coming to LA. Being an only child I love it when they are here. My mother is my best friend and the most stylish (and wise) person I know. The reason I got the job at Vogue was a lot to do with her. My father is an award winning architect and is currently doing a project in San Diego so he has been here more often too which is really nice and he likes the sailing.

Photo (left): Carly Steel with her parents, Morag and Robert Steel

DT: What is the difference between living here vs Edinburgh vs London?

CS: The weather! Even though I have only lived in LA for a few years I love it and really feel like its home. I think LA is such an exciting and diverse city with wonderful people – I love the different terrains – the mountains, the beach, the city. There’s a perception on the east coast that LA is a heathen wilderness full of vapid people with dyed blonde hair (which ironically I now have), a mystic tan (ok I only do that for shoots) and Ugg boots (so I may have one pair…) who pepper “like” in every sentence (ok, fine, I confess I may have also started to do that…) but I promise its not really like that here. There’s an amazing art and culture scene and I’ve met some of the most creative and brilliant people. There are also a lot of expats – especially the Brits. What I do miss about New York is the energy and excitement – everything moves so quickly whereas LA can be a little more lethargic. And what I miss most about the UK (aside from the amazing chocolate snacks) is the dry, self deprecating sense of humor and silly, witty banter. Sometimes when I crack a sarcastic or ironic remark here its taken at face value and misinterpreted which has led to some interesting ‘lost in translation’ situations… There really is a culture difference is so many ways even though its two English speaking western cultures.

Photo: Me and Carly last year at an Oscar party

Photos from Wireimage, Patrick McMullen and The Supper Club

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