BETHLEHEM, Pa. — They came, they saw and they bedazzled.
And soon, the original "Fab Five" will do it again.
The stars of Bravo TV's "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy," will hold "An Evening with the Fab Five — 20 Years Later" on Dec. 16. And it's only happening in Bethlehem.
"Queer Eye for the Straight Guy," a makeover show/cultural phenomenon ran on Bravo from 2003-07.
The cast of experts included Carson Kressley as the "Fashion Savant," along with “Food and Wine Connoisseur," Ted Allen, "Grooming Guru," Kyan Douglas, "Design Doctor," Thom Filicia, and “Culture Vulture," Jai Rodriguez."
A 'love letter' to fans
"I'm calling the evening a love letter to our fans. We really wanted to do something special for them and commemorate the 20th anniversary," Carson Kressley, who lives in New Tripoli part-time, said via phone earlier this week.
While the "Fab Five" have remained "great friends," they haven't appeared together since 2013 during a special with Bravo chief Andy Cohen.
"Every fan has a favorite from the show and perhaps a favorite category, so we'll be doing some entertaining tips and sharing recipes with Ted [Allen], I'll do a fashion segment with lucky audience members," Kressley said of the upcoming show.
"Thom is going to do some design magic onstage, and Jai our 'Culture Vulture' will perform a song or two — that will be really sweet because he's so good at performing and didn't get to do a lot of that on the show."
Youth advocate
Kressley, who came out to his family the same year "Queer Eye" first aired, is a strong supporter of LGBTQ rights and works with organizations such as True Colors United and the Trevor Project.
"I don't say I'm an activist, but an advocate, especially for young queer people. I know how hard that is personally — to have this secret that we are afraid to share with our closest friends and family for fear of rejection," he said.
"So I try to help kids' groups as much as possible because that is what really resonates with me and that is when I had the hardest time dealing with my sexuality."
Kressley, 54, graduated from Northwestern Lehigh High School in 1987 and Gettysburg College in 1991.
"By the time I got to high school and realized that I could make people laugh, and that was one of my gifts that became a saving grace because if I was getting people to laugh and they weren’t bullying me or picking on me that became a great defense mechanism," he explained.
"It also became a great skill that I used in my showbiz career — certainly those first seasons of ‘Queer Eye’ I was relying on those comedy chops that I learned as a method of survival."
'I never met an outlet mall I didn't like'
An avid equestrian and author of books, "Does This Book Make My Butt Look Big?: A Cheeky Guide to Feeling Sexier in Your Own Skin & Unleashing Your Personal Style," and "Off the Cuff: The Essential Style Guide for Men and the Women Who Love Them," Kressley's style tips are about as fierce as his dress code.
But how does one look good on the cheap?
"The mantra is you either have time or money if you need something in a pinch you’re going to have to pay top dollar for it — but if you have a little bit of time and you can do some hunting you can find great things for less money," he noted.
"I love secondhand websites like the RealReal and I love thrifting — you can find some amazing one-of-a-kind pieces."
And don't be afraid of a little bargain hunting.
"I never met an outlet mall I didn’t like. We have fabulous ones pretty close to the Lehigh Valley there’s one in Woodbury, New York called the Woodbury Commons; it’s about a two-hour drive," he said. "You can’t go there expecting the exact item that you are dying for but you will find something amazing and it will be a great deal."
Lastly, find a good tailor.
"Everything is going to look better when it fits properly. Spend $25 to $40 and get it tailored," Kressley said. "Those little off-the-rack tweaks can make your outfit look more expensive."
Together again
So will the "Fab Five," — not to be confused with the stars of the "Queer Eye" Netflix reboot (the ninth season airs in January), ever reunite for a part two?
Possibly, Kressley says.
"I think we've all had such a great experience with the original iteration of the show I don't know if we'd ever do the same thing again... maybe a cameo on the Netflix version or a different show together with the five of us," he said.
"I think it would need to be something that is updated and feel current based of all the experiences we've had since then."
If you go: "An Evening with the Fab Five — 20 Years Later" begins at 6 p.m. Dec. 16 at the Wind Creek Event Center, 77 Wind Creek Blvd.
Tickets cost $49.50, $69.50, $79.50 and $99.50.
For info, click here.
