The lights dimmed roughly 20 minutes later than scheduled yesterday at Sophie Theallet's runway show. Given her pedigree and her recent CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Award, it's no surprise that the front row was teeming with Condé Nasties like Anna Wintour, Carine Roitfeld (opposite side of the runway, of course), Amy Astley, André Leon Talley and Hamish Bowles. The first model out of the gates was the lovely Coco Rocha, wearing an equally lovely shoulder-baring, subtly patterned charmeuse dress. And while the focus was on the Theallet's eagerly anticipated, post-award collection, I couldn't help wondering, "How in the hell is this supermodel too fat for the runway?"

After quite a bit of speculation, the winner of this year's CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund has been announced. And it's none other than Brooklyn-based designer Sophie Theallet. She follows in the footsteps of last year's winner, Alexander Wang, and will walk away with $200,000 and a year's worth of mentoring. Although Theallet has been involved in the industry for a number of seasons, her big break was no doubt First Lady Michelle Obama donning a number of her dresses during post-election press ops.

New Regime fashion designer Sophie Theallet may be breaking out from the shadows of her mentors Jean Paul Gaultier and Azzedine Alaïa with her own line, but she still has time to appreciate a good nosh. Her favorite tapas bar is Brooklyn's La Mancha, known for paella Valenciana among other savories. See our review.

The New Bohemian Couturier: She spent a decade working under Azzedine Alaïa, and now, French fashion designer Sophie Theallet steps out on her own with a delicate, colorful line.