SCHMOOZE : A FASHION AFFAIR TO REMEMBER.

Red roses, an Oscar de la Renta fashion show; a chance to meet TV anchorwoman Diane Sawyer and her Tony Award-winning husband, Mike Nichols; and chocolate. The Colleagues outdid themselves at their annual Valentine's Day luncheon, netting more than $200,000 for Children's Institute International, a Los Angeles-based organization that assists abused children.

About 800 guests, dressed to the nines in red and pink suits and swinging Chanel and Ferragamo handbags, attended Friday's gala sponsored by Saks Fifth Avenue at the Regent Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills, where guests oohed and ahhed over de la Renta's feminine fashions on the runway.

``My friends and I loved the fashion show. The colors and fabrics were very exotic, but Oscar's yellow jacket with the white pants was a classic - you could wear that forever,'' said Barbara Reilly of Sherman Oaks who was attending for the first time.

Judith Frankl of North Hollywood isn't a member of the club, but she has attended the awards luncheon for the past six years. ``I like the guests they have, like Margaret Thatcher and Sophia Loren. It's a real treat, and there aren't many opportunities in Los Angeles to get dressed up.''

Sawyer and her husband accepted the club's Champion of the Children Award from former first lady Nancy Reagan. Chairwomen for the Colleagues event were Marion Jorgensen, Betsy Bloomingdale and Erlenne Sprague, all of Los Angeles.

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5 Photos

Photo: (1) Oscar de la Renta and his glamour gowns wowed the Colleagues crowd at their luncheon.

(2) Guests lined up for a chance to shake hands with TV anchorwoman Diane Sawyer, center, and her husband, Mike Nichols, who received an award from Children's Institute International, an L.A.-based group benefiting abused children.

(3) Nancy Reagan, left, and Colleagues chairwoman Erlenne Sprague of Los Angeles do the meet-and-greet scene at the charity fund-raiser.

(4) Patsy Stecher of Woodland Hills chats up actress Dina Merrill.

(5) The catwalk was filled with fashion ideas for the ladies-who-lunch bunch.