Break out the party hats -- Ann Taylor is one-year new!

Since this was as good a time as ever, the company threw a blowout bash to celebrate its fresh, kind-of-hip status.

With models sporting the Fall 2010 collection, the lobby of Manhattan's uber-cool Ace Hotel was transformed into a lounge filled with hipsters, stunning women, and a few hot celebs ("Mad Men" star Christina Hendricks, her actor husband Geoffrey Arend, and former "OC" star Rachel Bilson).

"I have a vision of the Ann Taylor woman going to Paris and being inspired and influenced by all these new buildings and the chicness of the Parisian women," the brand's head designer, Lisa Axelson, told StyleList.

"Being opened up to a new culture inspires you to think a little differently," which is not unlike the place Axelson is at with the Ann Taylor brand.

"We have one foot rooted soundly in our history, but we're starting to edge forward with fashion and modernism. I like the clash and tension in the building that's going on."

Taking a break from the film-festival circuit, where she's promoting indie flick "Waiting for Forever," Bilson drank in the fashion scene.

The actress was clad in chic fringed short-shorts with an Ann Taylor cardigan and assorted Ann Taylor accessories, including a crystal-studded belt (worn as a necklace).

"I'm a huge clothes person and I'm an even bigger accessories person," Bilson told StyleList. "The accessories are just amazing," she said, gesturing to her belt/necklace. "I'm very excited to start wearing them."

As the evening wore on, singer V.V. Brown took over the room and serenaded the crowd with her dulcet tones. It was not a bad place to be.

Meanwhile, read about how LL Bean is celebrating its 100th anniversary with a sleek new take on longstanding favorites.