It all starts in May. The ultimate month of the hottest events in Monaco… well end of April/May… it begins with the Rolex Masters Tennis Tournament and continues all the way till the end of May with the big finale Formula1 – The Grand Prix de Monaco and then it is quiet again, business as usual till July. BUT, as I have mentioned on my The Rolex Masters Loge tickets: are they really worth it??? youtube video, not everyone comes to Monaco for the sport events, most of the crowd is here for networking, social climbing and just a good time, and some of course have major FOMO (fear of missing out). And then there is the Palme D’or otherwise known as the Cannes Film Festival, which takes place the same week as the Grand Prix week/weekend, so the pressure is on. At every step and turn there is a cocktail, event, gala or party both in Monaco and Cannes, the real glitterati shuffle between both and even a few events a night, so of course as you can imagine appearance is EVERYTHING. And it primarily starts with the dress…
If you are one to own many black-tie gowns, this is the time to fish them out of your wardrobe, I can imagine after the 2-year pandemic they must be well hidden away, waiting for their moment and well… here it is. Red carpets flushed with the biggest celebrities, the richest business personas and of course the greatest fashion houses are throwing dinners on beaches, auctions at hotel ballrooms, after parties at prominent villas and of course there are dedicated clubs that follow the Formula1, one such debut this year is Lily’s club, which is rumored to have taken residence at the Fairmont Hotel (where the casino used to be) for the next 5 years (unverified info) for the duration of the GP weekend. Then there is of course the pride and joy of Monaco – Jimmyz, which may have given leeway to Twiga for the last few years before the pandemic started but is likely to tower over it as the premier club in Monaco as it has been for decades. And of course, there is the one, the only Sass café, that is not one likely to be forgotten during this time in Monaco, as it is quite simply the ultimate party destination during the Grand Prix weekend, once you have finished your Pre-party dinner for Formula1.
If attending any of these places you are either a regular in which case hats off and go ahead and do your thing my friend… but if you are a first timer or have been off your game for a while, make sure you dazzle, because make no mistake, everyone else will. If you ever wanted to end up in a similar setting to an after party of the MET ball, the Grand Prix weekend would be it. Forget everything you read about understated luxury in Dailywear in Monaco, here you want to be bright, bold and sexy. Cutout jersey, crepe and silk dresses, sheer tulle gowns with crystals all over, gowns elaborate enough to compete with those worn by Blake Lively at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Gala over the years (she has been consistently the best dressed attendee). If attending a gala black-tie event in Cannes make sure to wear a dramatic gown, if attending a party in Monaco you can be as bright and creative and revealing as you like. This is the year that you can bring anything you like to the table… we have just crawled out of a two-year pandemic, there are no rules, no set ideals… just make sure your tailoring suits the event and you sparkle as bright as the Hope Diamond.
