• Ann Taylor replaced Heidi Klum with Katie Holmes for the spring season. The brand says it sought Holmes, who's also modeled for J. Crew and been the face of Miu Miu, for "her intellect, kindness and enduring personal style." [WWD]

• Actress/grammatically creative indie songstress Zooey Deschanel is suing footwear knocker-offer/convicted felon Steve Madden for reneging on a $2 million contract. For that sum, Deschanel would have spent 13 days "designing" and promoting a line called "Zooey's Shoes And Accessories." [NYPost]

• Stylist and sometime America's Next Top Model judge Nolé Marin has been accused of sexual misconduct by a male model, who says that Marin fondled him at two photo shoots, and offered to kick-start his career in exchange for sex.

• Giorgio Armani has dressed Lady Gaga countless times, including for the Grammy Awards, and Armani even played Gaga's "Alejandro" video at its men's show, and both artistes profit. But despite this mutual admiration society, they've never actually met. [WSJ]

• Essence editor Angela Burt Murray says the uproar about the hiring of Elianna Placas, a white woman, as fashion director is baseless. Placas, a frequent freelancer, was chosen for "her creativity, vision, [and] the positive reader response to her work."

• Not only does George Clooney not have a clothing line, he is so offended by the notion that he would have one that he's testifying against three guys who claimed that he was launching a line called "GC Exclusive."

• To promote her new accessories line for 6126 — the handbags cost $200-$600 — Lindsay Lohan plans to pose nude except for her SCRAM ankle bracelet. It might be airbrushed out, unless Lohan goes for that sexy-court-monitored-alcoholic look. [People]

• To pursue her goal of creating the world's ugliest clothing in every design category known to man, Lindsay Lohan is reportedly in talks to launch a line of handbags with Ed Hardy. [E]

• Marc Jacobs is suing Christian Audigier for trademark and trade dress infringements. The company says Ed Hardy's Extra Large Quilted Jana Tote Bag, right, is too similar to its own Marc by Marc Jacobs Pretty Nylon Tote. [IPTrademarkAttorney.com]

• There were rumors that Sarah Jessica Parker would be the face of Halston, the brand people just can't keep themselves from reviving. And she wears Halston in the poster for SATC2. But is she actually seeking a design role? [E!]

• Remember the Gap "Moose" ad full of little girls? Well, no one can object to this parody, in which "gays make their own version." Seriously, Gap needs to get on the horn! (Thanks, Lara!) [YouTube]

• Today in pointless clothing lines of the stars: Miley Cyrus and Max Azria's Wal-Mart collection! The digs look well worth every penny of their sub-$20 price point. [Lucky]
• Now, even the Kings of Leon has one. [Blackbook]

• "I've thought about clothing and jewelry lines," says Usher. "But fragrance stays on when everything else comes off." [People]
• Bottom of the barrel? For $8, American Apparel will sell you a bag of fabric scraps. [BF]

• Stella McCartney's fall ad campaign makes a Bambijoke out of all that nature imagery that suddenly became hip over the past few years. For everyone who's ever considered an ironic taxidermy at a bar and concluded, "Why?" [WWD]

[New York, July 16. Image via INF]

• Kohl's seems to think a Lauren Conrad fashion line will be a winner. And we had been so joyful when it seemed the Lauren Conrad Collection was taking a permanent vacation! [NY Times]

• American Apparel is launching a "plus-size" sister label. Called "Colossal Clothing." It's only for the menfolk. [Kempt]
• The company is also busy harassing Woody Allen. The director called the clothier "sleazy" and "adolescent." [Page Six]

• Wanna see Posh's designs, complete with lampshades and elephant-trunk headpieces? Check out the new commercial for her fashion line. [Fashionista]
• "The video sees various models taking inspiration from Posh’s own ads for Marc Jacobs last season by hiding themselves all over a large mansion – behind drawers, in carrier bags, hanging behind doors, turning themselves into lamp shades and transforming themselves into an elephant." [Sassybella]
• Says Posh: “Being in the Spice Girls, fashion-wise probably didn't open any doors. If anything it shut doors and I've had to bang them down.” [Times Online]
• A New York bridal shop is knocking off the Vivienne Westwood wedding gown in which Carrie Bradshaw was jilted. [New York Post]

• Is the search for Tim Russert's successor over?! Not-going-to-jail Naomi Campbell was recently heard holding forth on Dubya to "a rapt table of Italian men." Quoth she, "What's with all the traveling Bush has been doing? He never even had a passport before." [Style.com]
• She can hone her common touch with her next round of community service! [WWD]
• Victoria Beckham replaced in Marc Jacobs ads by man in drag. No, really. [Sassybella]
• Posh, for her part, is busy with a maybe-fashion show for her new line of gowns. "'It will be something completely different from what I've ever done. I'm just putting it together at the moment, they will be very up scale dresses and likely to start at around $1,200 retail. I'm going to be using very expensive fabrics and finishes, lots of embroideries.'" [ElleUK]
• Chloe Sevigny's $65 flip book hits shelves. [FabSugar]
• And in other breaking news: just in time for summer humidity, big hair is back! [Los Angeles Times]

• Sean Combs wants to work on a fashion line with David Beckham. But he can't. Because Becks is already working on a sneaker line with Snoop Dogg! [Fashionista]
• Diddy also harasses mom-and-pop cufflink site "Cuff Daddy" for name infringement. Busy man! [TMZ]
• Memories of fashion icon YSL. [NY Times]
• Console yourself by reading about Christian Lacroix who, as a creepy drunk at a bar recently put it, " is not half-stepping either." [WWD]
• CFDA Awards! Francisco Costa of Calvin Klein takes top honors.[WWD]

• Designer Miuccia Prada has broken her longstanding ban on black models in fashion shows! At the label's Milan show last night, British model Jourdan Dunn walked the runway and showed those white girls a thing or two. [Oh No They Didn't]

• The new Marc Jacobs ads featuring Victoria Beckham have finally been made public. And they're awesome. Also: We seem to remember a certain Glamour magazine beauty editor who took to doing this with a Gucci bag. [WWD, 1st item]

As Milan winds down, some of our favorite fashion critics [Ou est tu, Robin Givhan?] waxed not-so-poetic on what they've seen over the past few days. Gucci was universally slammed. Marni, Ferragamo, Dsquared, and Missoni got words good, bad, and ugly all thrown at them. The poison pens are out, there, and we're looking forward to the start of Paris Fashion Week on Monday - who shall be Cathy Horyn's next victim? In the meantime, we mourn those slain by Horyn this week.

• Gwen Stefani: "Someone like Marc Jacobs, I wonder how many people are working there, just feeding him ideas, feeding feeding feeding ... I have, like, maybe five people in my entire team." And then suddenly, voila, a nine figure apparel business! [Guardian]

• Model Twiggy says she now has two personas and will start tracking down and fining anyone who subjects either one of them to "overexposure" by publishing unauthorized photos of them. [Vogue UK]