Posen on the runway

It was a Tupperware party on steroids, with the mostly female guests sipping chocolate milk out of shot glasses.

Fashion royalty took Newport Beach by storm Tuesday.

Designer darling Zac Posen debuted his spring/summer 2010 collection with a private runway show at Fashion Island’s Neiman Marcus.

It was the first time that the clothing designer, whose clients include Hollywood starlets, has shown his full line outside New York, America’s fashion capital.

He’ll be following up today with a public appearance at Neiman Marcus from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“Zac Posen is probably the youngest established American designer, and we are especially proud that this collection has not been shown anywhere outside of New York City, so O.C. rocks!” Neiman Marcus Store Manager Ariela Shani said as the fashion show began.

Within minutes of the pink-carpeted show’s ending, many women placed orders for Posen’s creations.

Their purchases won’t be available for pickup until early next year, but those at the fashion show were more than willing to wait. Posen’s clothes can fetch anywhere from $790 for a knit dress to $15,000 for one of his gowns.

“His designs have a lot of details right now,” said Susan Morehead, a guest at the invitation-only show. “They’re very unique.”

“They’re edgy; young; fresh; modern,” said Simara Nahabedian of Neiman Marcus. “I’ve followed his career since before he was sold in department stores.”

Posen’s new collection received nods at New York Fashion Week last month for its bold color combinations, dazzling prints and exquisite draping; he said the colors were inspired by the mid-1970s, as well as colors popular in 1850s England.

“For me, it’s geometric color blocks balanced with an expressive, painterly hand,” said Posen, 28, who burst onto the scene when he made his Fashion Week debut at age 21.

At that first, now-famous show, Manolo Blahnik designed the shoes and First Daughter Barbara Bush sat in the front row.

Posen wore a blue shirt with red piping, a khaki jacket, faded black straight jeans and well-loved black boots to the Newport Beach show.

Posen’s color blocks on display Tuesday came in sky and plum and green apple and raspberry. The entire collection featured his trademark pleats, tucks and draping.

“They feel very current to me,” Posen said.

Posen said he seeks to make “real clothes,” based on growing up in a world of trunk shows and retail, with “delicious” colors and cuts that can flatter any body.

A beautifully sculpted and pleated black jersey dress could easily become a wardrobe staple for local women, as could a long, gladiola-print green halter gown with a keyhole neck. A series of sheer gowns saved for the end of the runway show were bedecked with sprays of colored floral paillettes and sequins. Maxi-dresses were a consistent theme, as were marabou jackets, translucent neon raincoats and latticed strips of fabric.

Posen said the economy has changed the perspective of many designers.

“Building a fashion brand and being an artist right now is challenging, because you have to think about both your meaning and your customer,” Posen said. “There’s a reevaluation of goals, and really asking yourself what drives you.”

The designer has planned other engagements while in California, such as a stop at the Beverly Hills Neiman Marcus and a visit at the legendary Chateau Marmont. But nothing on the scale of the Fashion Island show.