Diane von Furstenberg, Olivia Palermo, and More Celebrate Sofía Sanchez de Betak’s New Japan-Inspired Collection

For artists, writers, and designers, travel has long served as inspiration for the creative process: think Jacquemus’s Fall 2018 collection, which was an ode to Morocco. Likewise, for Sofía Sanchez de Betak, it was a trip abroad to Japan with the Luxury Collection that drove her new collection for Chufy, her lifestyle brand.

Make that many trips to Japan. At a two-part fête to celebrate the launch, which includes clothing and accessories like eye masks and lunch boxes, De Betak tells Vogue: “I’ve been at least five times, and my husband has been at least 20. We fell in love with the country—we have a tatami room in our house, and our daughter is named Sakura, which means cherry blossom in Japanese.”

The night kicked off with a cocktail party at the Webster, where glamorous guests like Diane von Furstenberg and Sophie Auster perused the new line while listening to Tokyo tunes and snacking on tempura shrimp. Afterward, De Betak hosted an intimate dinner, which included Jessica Hart, Olivia Palermo, and Vogue’s Sally Singer, Lynn Yaeger, and Nicole Phelps, at a surprise location. After a quick drive, some in a white Hummer stretch-limo, the attendees arrived at Ninja, a restaurant in Tribeca where the waiters dress like (you guessed it) ninjas and diners eat underneath Japanese lanterns.

De Betak curated her own sushi omakase menu for the occasion, which had kanpachi usuzukuri from Blue Ribbon Sushi Izakaya, spicy tuna maki from Sushi Azabu, and green tea ice cream from Omen Azen. The mood was playful as guests donned their custom hachimaki headbands throughout dinner.

Even after all the plates were cleared, rounds of saki were still being served aplenty, and the conversation went late into the night.