She is the 49-year-old, 6-foot-1 former director of special events at Vogue (a.k.a., lord chief planner of the Met Gala), former fashion director of Mercedes-Benz New York Fashion Week at Lincoln Center, executive producer and chief creative officer for the Trump inauguration, and ex-Trusted Advisor to the first lady (among other things).
Ms. Winston Wolkoff grew up in the Catskills along with two brothers (one of whom is the actor Randall Batinkoff). Her mother, Barbara Batinkoff, was a homemaker, and her father, Barry Batinkoff, was a photographer from a line of chicken farmers.
Her parents got divorced when she was in high school, and Ms. Winston Wolkoff stopped speaking to her father. Her mother later married Bruce Winston, the son of the jeweler Harry Winston. He adopted Stephanie, and she took his name — which came with all of the related associations.
She is married to David Wolkoff, a real estate developer, has three children and lives on the Upper East Side. She is also a black belt in martial arts and active on the charity circuit.
She and Mrs. Trump became friends back in 2003, and she attended the Trump wedding and Mrs. Trump’s baby shower; Mrs. Trump came to her 40th birthday celebration. They used to have monthly lunches at places like the Mark Hotel in Manhattan. Sometimes, though a lot fewer times, they met up as couples.
So what does a Trusted Advisor do and what happened with the Trumps?
Shortly after the inauguration, which Ms. Winston Wolkoff helped organize, Ms. Winston Wolkoff joined Mrs. Trump’s office — the first hire made by the first lady, even before the more official roles of chief of staff and communications director were filled. Ms. Winston Wolkoff was, however, unpaid, and for a long time her actual title was nebulous.