On most of us: a hippie curtain. On Natalia Vodianova? Sophisticated perfection.


Not sure if Amber Le Bon is channeling her mother...or Duran-Duran's "Rio" period.


Dancer Kristina Rihanoff channels the pompom, which is either always - or never - perfectly appropriate.


It's like 100% of the time, Jerry Hall's wearing an awesome neon sign proclaiming, "you can take the girl our of Texas..."


Throw in a little London, and apparently you get Georgia May Hall!


Here's the question: are Eva Herzigova ...


...and Daisy Lowe wearing very similar dresses? Okay, only sort of.


Do we love Claudia Schiffer's vaguely festive psychedelia? No. Can we admit she looks amazing it it? Yes.


It's really hard to look at Jonathan Rhys Meyers the same way after seeing The Tudors, so let's focus on Reena Hammer's "Flaming June" instead.


Pixie Geldof , or Morticia Sedgwick?


There we go! Myleene Klass is like the only one working the sequins trend - at the only time of year when it's actually festive!


Why didn't Twiggy whip out this bitch face - or these White Snake leggings - during ANTM?!


Ben Grimes sports the controversial Double Purse.


I'll admit to loving anyone who played Fanny so well in Love in a Cold Climate, but come on: Rosamund Pike's hon boho on a bender is pretty bewitching!


How much do you love Victoria Beckham's Nancy-Reagan-goes-ice-skating/goes-to-a-benefit?


The craziest thing? You know this entire ensemble will sell out at Top Shop in like five minutes. And no one is going to look remotely as crazy-cool.

[London, November 16. Image via Splash.]

Things start out innocently enough: This little plaid dress is actually wearable! Of course, she has a frog on her head.

A cute polka-dot dress is saved from being too safe with quirky bodice, pockets, fabric folds and interesting hem.

These ladies are from the country, but they're worldly, see?

Then there's this: Punky black with a voodoo doll or something hanging from her neck.

This is a jumper or a diaper or something. With a stuffed frog. The model is Pixie Geldof. I don't know what any of it means.

Once she lost her job as an extra for Newsies, she also lost her mind and started wearing her underwear on the outside.

Fingerpainting as a nostalgic nod to misspent youth? Or a pattern made by people crying out for help? You decide.

No bank teller is going to hand over the cash if you're wearing diapers. It's just not going to happen.

Perfect for work, if your job involves spanking businessmen with a paddle.

Remember Pound Puppies? They came from the "pound," and you saved them by adopting them. This is Pants Puppy, whose only home is a pocket in Daisy Lowe's pants.

Won't you please help?

Well, at least the 68-year-old mother of punk looks pleased!

[Images via Getty.]

This event kinda felt like some kind of hideous Nero-fiddling end of days scenario worthy of Hieronymous Bosch. (And yes, that's mixing metaphors.) I mean, wouldn't Daisy Lowe's cut-offs have been bad enough in their long incarnation?


Everyone knows Adam Green is whimsical. But just in case you didn't, here he is making deer antlers while wearing skin-tight sky-blue skinny jeans and a pair of pointy-toed Oxfords.


Even Karolina Kurkova has adopted the "hellish" dress code: she apparently skinned Snuffaluffagus to make her coat.


Richie Rich, at least, is true to "sinister mime" form.


Micah Jesse says "fuck you" to L.A. but he's saying "Peace" to L.A., too. I'm confused.


Look, I like Peter, Bjorn and John too, but is Michelle Edgar weirded out by Peter Moren's sweaty shirt? And is he weirded out by the fact that he shares a name with one of the founders of the Catholic Worker? Not that I'm saying he should be.


Aaaaaand...here it is. Mischa Barton's DIY Spider Woman.


I thought you needed to see that again.


[Images via Getty]

• Christian Siriano is collaborating secretly with Starbucks. He won't say on what, but isn't speculation fun? Maybe he's changing the uniform to something fierce, with ruffles. [The Cut]

• Christian Lacroix might have found a buyer. The firm Bernard Krief Consultants has announced its intention to bid for the bankrupt French fashion house. Krief has apparently been treating the recession as a chance to buy up properties on the cheap: it recently bid for the distressed French fast fashion chain Morgan, and successfully took over the textiles company DMC. No dollar value for Krief's proposed bid was mentioned, and Christian Lacroix had no comment. [WWD]
• Marc Jacobs' menswear division publicist Tim Mark Garcia is wearing an ankle bracelet and facing extradition to the Philippines on charges of "plunder." Garcia's father, former major general Carlos F. Garcia, allegedly stole $6.2 million from the Filipino people, and then used it to buy New York real estate — like the publicist's Trump Park Avenue condo — in his children's names. [P6]
• Three of the six nominees for this year's Swiss Textile Awards are Americans: Alexander Wang, Thakoon Panichgul, and Ohne Titel. Also in the running are Erdem, Alexis Mabille, and Peter Pilotto. Kate and Laura Mulleavy of Rodarte, who won last year, were the first U.S. designers to ever nab the prestigious award. [FWD]
• The Guardian compiled some of Vivienne Westwood's wisest words from over the years, including, "Fashion is about eventually becoming naked." Makes for an interesting read. [Guardian]
• Photos of Betsey Johnson's reissued vintage collection for boutique Opening Ceremony show it to be dark and punky and '80s, not pink and frilly and '80s. Johnson says, "There was always this harder side to me but it was hard to see it through the prints and ruffles." [Racked]
• Charlotte Gainsbourg says she wasn't much of a perfume wearer, you know, before she became the face of Balenciaga's new scent. [Style.com]
• Erin Wasson will be showing her Rvca collection at New York Fashion Week in September. [UK Elle]
• Kat Von D has created a line of tattoo concealers for her Sephora line, because she's realized that some people don't want all their tattoos to be visible all of the time. (Maybe a conservative cousin's wedding isn't the best time to show off your ink Barbarella.) She says the concealer is waterproof and won't smudge or transfer to clothing, and it is kind of strange seeing her entire torso without any tattoos for the ad shoot. [People]
• British tabloid the Sun is reporting that model Daisy Lowe fell into a month-long depression after surgery to remove a pre-cancerous growth from her cervix in May. [The Sun]
• Lowe's first campaign for Anna Sui just leaked to the Internet. [Sassybella]
• Chris Benz, Alex Wang, Maria Pinto, and Jason Wu are all newly minted members of the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Oh, and Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen of The Row got in, too. [WWD]
• Model Sigrid Agren — face of the Stella McCartney campaign we posted yesterday — has summer plans that include fishing in a lake and looking for berries with her brother, Quentin, in Sweden. [W]
• Wow, Avril Lavigne really hasn't changed her makeup since 2002. (This story is about her kids' line, which includes, wait for it...hoodies.) [Budget Fashionista]
• Hermès' sales grew by 12% in the second quarter. As had been previously reported, the super-expensive leather goods division led the increase. Its sales were up by 33.4%. [WWD]

• Lindsay Lohan channels Marilyn Monroe on the August cover of Spanish Vogue. [ONTD]
• Fornarina also decided to go another round with the actress — but in these fall ads, they Photoshopped the Lohan to look like Heather Graham. [Sun]

• Lara Stone, who looks like nobody so much as herself, says she wasn't interested in fashion before she started modeling. "I thought modeling was a big joke because I was just a funny-looking teenager." Also, she has no hobbies: "What qualifies as a hobby, anyway? I don't collect stamps." [W]
• Pixie Geldof, Alice Dellal, and Daisy Lowe all left their London agency, Select — possibly because Select closed its celebrity division, possibly because their booker, Sarah Leon, left the company. The trio were snapped up by Next. [Grazia]
• It's fairly obvious why Madonna would begin filming her new music video, "Celebrate," in Milan with her friends Domenico Dolce, Stefano Gabbana, and Jesus Luz. Less clear is why WWD would put in scare quotes what they drank on the set, "limoncello." Don't they know that's a real thing? Danny DeVito advertises it! [WWD]
• Danica Patrick is to be the next face of the watch brand Tissot. The race car driver was photographed in the rooftop swimming pool of the Soho House, and the campaign will hit men's magazines, like Details and GQ in September. Patrick's Twitter page is also sponsored by Tissot, an arrangement she says is "a great way to show my personality, unfiltered and on my terms." Presumably terms that involve lots and lots of money. [WWD]
• André Leon Talley wears monogrammed shirts and alligator loafers without socks — and his new obsession is gardening. "I don't plant. I go to auctions at Doyle and buy gardening ornaments or furniture. That's my idea of planting, it's arranging!" The occasion for this revelation was the book release party for Gloria Vanderbilt's Obsession, an erotic novel which Diane von Furstenberg compared to The Story of O. Fellow guest Salman Rushdie expressed his amazement that the 85-year-old Vanderbilt could even stomach writing an entire novel of sex scenes, which he called "very difficult" and said he used to avoid in his novels. Rushdie also hopes that "when I get around to being 85 that I'm A, able to write anything and B, that I'm still interested in sex." [NYObs]
• If you've ever wondered why there couldn't be a "natural" product for treating pimples — something with willow bark extract, say, instead of the lab-synthesized form of salicylic acid — then the new Burt's Bees acne skincare line is for you. If you grumble more at the idea of "natural" being used as if it had some kind of absolute, timeless, positive meaning than you do at the thought of spots, carry on. [WWD]
• Kylie Minogue is launching her first fragrance for men, and it's called "Inverse." [WWD]
• Pictures of Urban Outfitters' collaborations with milliner Eugenia Kim and jeweler Annie Costello Brown are out — the collections themselves will hit stores this fall. [Blackbook]
• Rumor has it that makeup artist Tom Pechaux, who frequently works his magic for the top magazines and brands, is launching his own namesake makeup line with a cosmetics company partner. [Fashionista]
• There is a picture of Catherine McNeil in a cone bra at the end of this link. Also: Bunny ears are happening. Prepare. (Link potentially NSFW) [Models.com]
• Jon Gosselin and Christian Audigier are in the throes of a full-on international bromance. (Hailey Glassman is now the former's "stylist.") [LATimes]
• Tweets from Forever 21 indicate that a magazine for the brand is in the works. [Racked]
• L'Oreal has added actress Kate del Castillo to its roster of pretty makeup-selling ladies. [UPI]
• The possible bankruptcy of lender CIT Group, which provides financing to many apparel vendors to cover their accounts receivable during the period between when they ship orders to retailers, and when the retailers pay for the goods, has many in the fashion industry alarmed. Nearly 60% of U.S. apparel and footwear makers use CIT, and squeezing out that liquidity will almost certainly drive some of them out of business. CIT owes over $1 billion and has another $10 billion coming due; a bail-out is apparently not an option. [Crain's]
• Nanette Lepore is one of those upset. "They are the only bank that still lends money to small businesses. There is no one else to take CIT's place." [HuffPo]
• Steve Madden's Australian division has gone into voluntary bankruptcy administration. [News.com.au]
• Bankrupt Eddie Bauer was bought by Golden Gate Capital for $286 million. [NYTimes]
• Joshua Walter, a 20-year-old model from Queens who walked for Hugo Boss, was arrested for his role in an alleged robbery ring. The armed five-man gang would target delis and gas stations, rob the register, and then rob all the patrons. Walter allegedly pistol-whipped one patron during a robbery at a Dunkin' Donuts. [NYP]

• Posters The Last International Playboy, featuring Lydia Hearst in a state of undress have been banned in major cities. We just hope all this publicity right ahead of the June 12 release won't harm its box-office! [Observer]

• Karl Lagerfeld, Olivier Theyskens, and Alber Elbaz are rumored to be doing a grand fashion switcheroo. According to fashion writer Diane Pernet, Lagerfeld hasn't renewed his contract at Chanel, and Elbaz, of Lanvin, is going to take his place. Theyskens won't go to Schiaparelli, as previously thought, and instead will take the reins at Lanvin. Just wrap your head around that for a minute. [ASVOF]
• Proctor & Gamble is ending distribution of Max Factor makeup in the United States. [WWD]
• A nude photo of Carla Bruni-Sarkozy auctioned in Berlin sold for $19,600. It had been estimated to fetch $3,568-$4,997. [AP]
• André Leon Talley says that Anna Wintour was "thrilled" with Morley Safer's softly-lit, mostly softball 60 Minutes profile — this despite the fact that Safer essentially called Wintour a "bitch" to her face. Talley did puzzle at some of Safer's takes on the various designers and models he met in the course of his research — he memorably said Karl Lagerfeld "this season favors a Dracula look." "He's had that look for eight years!" laughed Talley. [Mediabistro]
• Model Daisy Lowe: "I'm going to get old and wrinkly, and when I'm older I'm going to put on loads of weight, and I'm excited about it. I think it's just really important to remember that you aren't your face." [Telegraph]
• Designer Charlotte Ronson: "i lost my favorite black vintage sweatshirt at Avenue in ny last night. Please if anyone finds it contact me. there will be a reward." [CJRonson's Twitter]
• Linda Evangelista says that lip liner and a slick of gloss is a much more "modern" look than lipstick. Okay. [MSN]
• Creative director Esteban Cortazar is said to be on his way out at the troubled house of Ungaro. Although Lindsay Lohan is not, as had been rumored, in the running for any kind of creative position, C.E.O. Mounir Moufarrige favors her, or another celebrity, as a face of the brand. This marketing strategy was not to the 25-year-old Columbian designer's liking. [WWD]
• Jason Wu showed his resort collection yesterday in New York, and some of the editors who came to watch it did not eat any of the hors d'oeuvres. Shocking fashion behavior, that! [P6]
• Banana Republic is going to launch a men's and women's fragrance duo, to be called Republic Collection. [WWD]
• Pictures of the Hotel Missoni in Edinburgh, the first of three currently planned Missoni-designed hotels, are now available. It looks nice. Single rooms start around $289 per night. [Hotel Missoni]
• For those of you who appreciate good design, have several homes, and enjoy the sun (but not the surf), Rosa Cha has a line of beach wear that can't get wet. Although Raquel Welch has already bought up all their $1,200 leather bikinis (joke), and a $1,900 caftan also already sold out, the designer's Swarovski-studded bathers are still available, at $3,200 for a maillot and $1,200 for a bikini. "The people that buy the pieces are people who, well, can definitely afford these kinds of items," said store manager Christina Delice. Indeed. [UPI]
• First order of business for Roberto Cavalli and Clessidra SpA, the private equity fund he just agreed (in a non-binding way) to sell 30% of his business to, is finding a C.E.O. Apparently, they already have a shortlist, although we don't know who's on it. Versace, whose C.E.O Giancarlo di Risio is expected to tender his resignation to the board at its meeting in Milan today, isn't in any such hurry. The company is understood to be still drafting its list of potential leaders. [WWD]
• Abercrombie & Fitch experienced a 28% drop in same-store sales for the month of May. Stock fell by 13% after the announcement. [The Street]
• Madewell, the slightly-less-expensive J. Crew outpost, is going to launch an e-commerce site in its name by the first quarter of next year, said C.E.O. Mickey Drexler. Let's hope it works a little better than the regular J. Crew site. [WWD]
• Although Orla Kiely's privately held company is not obligated to disclose its sales and revenue figures publicly, the designer says her business is going gangbusters, recession be damned. Her housewares line for Target is especially successful. [NY Times]
• A Pennsylvania woman who patented her design for a bra that would provide uplift and a smooth silhouette, and then sought out Victoria's Secret as a potential manufacturing partner, says that the company instead consulted with her long enough to steal the idea. She is suing. [UPI]

• Gwyneth Paltrow has tired of the cosmetics contract gravy train; no longer shall the actress concentrate on embodying the qualities of the Estée Lauder brand. Instead, she'll be the new, white Oprah! [Daily Mail]

• Nanette Lepore has added her voice to the save the garment center chorus. [HuffPo]
• According to Jesus Luz's Brazilian agent, Sergio Mattos, Luz was paid $100 for the two-day Steven Klein shoot with Madonna that ended up in W. Let me say this one more time: that kind of pay is entirely standard for an editorial shoot, no matter one's modeling experience or industry status. [NY Post]
• Christina Aguilera looks, um, Photoshopped to high hell in the new Stephen Webster jewelry campaign. [Sun]
• Jerry Hall got a $750,000 advance from HarperCollins to write a memoir that would include full details on her life with Mick Jagger. But the manuscript Hall rendered proved too tame and cagey on the subject of Jagger for the publisher's taste; the supermodel has agreed to return the advance. (Side note: how many times do you get to read a word like "priapic" in the Daily Mail?) [Daily Mail]
• Terry Richardson just shot next year's Pirelli calendar in Trancoso, Bahia, Brazil. Georgina Stojiljkovic, Catherine McNeil, Abbey Lee Kershaw, and Daisy Lowe are purported to be featured, along with actual Brazilians Gracie Carvalho and Ana Beatriz Barros. Glamurama got a NSFW snap of Richardson in action, shooting a topless McNeil on a white horse. [Glamurama via Fashionologie]
• Supposedly, Zac Posen is in the early stages of producing a scripted series for the CW network about the equestrian world. Might be a wise move to diversify, as we keep hearing wild rumors that his label is in trouble. [The Cut]
• Erin Fetherston is also shooting a short film this week, starring Juliette Lewis, and her fall collection. Music is by Damon Dash. Her husband also confirmed that the designer will launch a line for home-shopping giant QVC this fall, probably during fashion week. [WWD]
• Stacey Bendet Eisner — yes, last year she married the son of that Eisner — is the designer behind Alice + Olivia. And she says there are exciting things to come for the brand, including an expanded line of embellished t-shirts, a jewelry line with Erickson Beamon coming out this November, and a possible cosmetics deal. [Blackbook]
• Macy's says not to expect deep markdowns this season — but it does want a lower-priced outlet store bearing its name, since Saks and Nordstrom both have them. [WWD]
• Douglas Reker, one of the bracingly new designers I'm personally most excited about, has just been picked up for fall by Barneys Coop. [Crain's]
• Now that Lakshmi Menon — two-time Indian Vogue covergirl — has had her only-girl editorial debut in American Vogue, industry commentators wonder aloud: Why has it taken so long for a South Asian supermodel to emerge? Sarah Doukas of London mega-agency Storm says it's because Indians are culturally conservative and don't want their daughters modeling; Menon says agencies don't have scouting networks on the subcontinent, and if you don't look for something, of course you won't find it. [Independent]
• England's National Trust is in talks to buy the home of the late designer Laura Ashley. [Telegraph]
• Leigh Lezark, who is a member of this preposterous thing called the MisShapes, but who nonetheless finds time in her busy schedule to "model", might be Matthew Williamson's new muse. Because a perpetually black-clad stony-stared New Yorker would be the perfect match for his exuberant tastes. [Fashionista]
• Rosa Chá, which is just about the best-looking and best-fitting swimwear out there, barring perhaps Norma Kamali, and therefore heartbreaking for its extravagant price, is losing its founding designer, Amir Slama. Slama, who launched Rosa Chá over two decades ago, is going to start a namesake swim collection. Brazilian Alexandre Herchcovitz will take over at Rosa Chá. [WWD]
• Diego Della Valle, the head of Italian leather goods brand Tod's, has doubled his investment stake in Saks Fifth Avenue, to 5.9%. [WWD]
• Alberta Ferretti, Moschino, and Pollini are all lowering their prices. Their parent company, Italy's Aeffe SpA, experienced steep losses in the first quarter of this year, and has thus formulated a cost-cutting plan that is intended to save $13.6 million over the course of 2010. In addition to lowering prices, Aeffe is shrinking its collections and planning layoffs. [WWD]

• 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]

• Marc Jacobs: "If Naomi [Campbell] were very well behaved and always on time, and didn't have her little tantrums, I don't know that she'd still be around and traveling like Elizabeth Taylor with an entourage." I suppose you just have to find what works for you, and do it. [Style.com]
• Interesting tidbit from the set of the Prada fall campaign shoot: Steven Meisel worked for four days at Pier 59 studios in New York City — last season, the campaign was shot by Meisel in Los Angeles, but then a studio's a studio, more or less. And this season's undertaking involved an actual live horse. Can't wait to see how that turns out. [FWD]
• The New York Times finally got its Critical Shopper, Cintra Wilson, into Topshop (which, weeks after opening, still has a line outside and "bouncers" at the door — whether or not the shop is close to capacity). Wilson's take? "Everything looks so sarcastic and right-this-second trendy as to be planning for a near-immediate obsolescence." [NY Times]
• As had long been expected, Peter Copping was officially named Olivier Theyskens' successor at Nina Ricci in Paris. [WWD]
• New York asked Liya "Kibede" — May American Vogue cover girl, and the third black woman on the cover in as many months — to talk about fashion's cautiously increasing diversity, which the Ethiopian supermodel attributes in main to Barack and Michelle Obama. "I think there's a lot more black models working and I think that's because of having Michelle and Barack out there," says Kebede. "I mean there's been this issue, raised last year — how there wasn't enough black models on the runways — but I think Barack and Michelle have really helped us, hopefully forever, to get over this hurdle for black models." Three covers with black women in a row for Vogue is better than the one cover every 2-3 years that had been the norm for the twenty years of Anna Wintour's tenure at the magazine — but Vogue's 117-year history still counts only a mere 16 covers with black women featured solo, and 5 covers where a black woman was pictured as part of a group. We hate to say it, but Kebede's optimism may be premature. [The Cut]
• Tyra Banks announced that this season she was taking contestants on her watch-pretty-girls-cry TV show to Brazil by having a male model come on the set and offer her Brazil nuts in Portuguese. Unfortunately, that model's name was Hugo Vieira. Vieira is from Portugal. Not Brazil. [MadeInBrazil]
• Meanwhile, in the upcoming season of Australia's Next Top Model, a 16-year-old contestant, who took the preparatory step of dropping out of high school to jump-start her modeling career, is ordered into anger management counseling after threatening to assault another contestant. Seriously, where do they find these people? [News.com.au]
• Polymath (ADD?) designer Isaac Mizrahi was happy to be a judge on Bravo's Project Runway replacement, The Fashion Show (which premieres May 7). But not because it would lift his personal brand: "I respect people for doing that," Mizrahi said, tactfully, "but I'm doing it because it's really fun." [Variety]
• Jason Wu, despite his quick rise to household name status after it became known that he designed Michelle Obama's inaugural ball dress, is nevertheless still doing his quirky bread-and-butter sideline project: designing dolls. His latest is inspired by Lana Turner. It's for sale at FAO Schwartz, for $180. [FWD]
• Model-slash Daisy Lowe: "When I think of 'It Girl,' I think of someone who is privileged, someone who has everything given to them. My parents don't have loads of money. I've been looking after myself, paying my own way since I was 17." [Daily Beast]
• Patrick Robinson's quest to make the Gap cool (again? for the first time? can anyone remember? or is the Gap's alleged hip is beyond a sartorial event horizon: no information about it can reach the wider world?) takes on the jeans. Robinson and his design team have spent two years rethinking the chain's denim offerings, and come August there'll be new offerings like boyfriend jeans, well-fitted drainpipes, and bell bottoms in a variety of lengths. All for $69. [Style.com]
• Penelope Cruz's Mango line's summer collection looks pretty damn cute. As does Ms. Cruz herself. [Fabsugar]
• Yesterday, If we were to have ranked designers by their relative likelihood to launch homewares lines, Martin Margiela's name would have been near the bottom. Shows how much we know! [WWD]
• Quoth the artistic director of Shu Uemura: "I have so many ideas that it can be overwhelming." [The Cut]
• Four images from Shipley & Halmos' Uniqlo line, launching May 7, have leaked. The clothes look a little...boring. [Nylon]
• Matthew Williamson for H&M launches tomorrow in select stores. [Times of London]
• Could a Missoni for H&M line be on the horizon? Angela Missoni, creative director of the venerable Italian knitwear house, says in a recent profile, "I would like to do something with H&M because I think it is a very powerful way to reach younger girls now." Missoni is also frustrated by the format of modern runway shows, which she finds "cold and distant" and a distraction from the clothes. And she hates that more established models can command high runway fees: "I prefer to show my collections on fresh, young girls to capture that spirit. Having Naomi or Gisele in your show is really just about saying that you were able to get her." But girls like Nimue Smit — who is in the spring Prada campaign — and Sara Blomqvist — who was launched to fame by a Prada exclusive in 2007 — both of whom walked in Missoni's last show, aren't exactly "unknowns". [Telegraph]
• M by Missoni, the company's diffusion line, experienced 25% annual growth last year — so it's launching new accessories and denim collections. [WWD]
• H&M says it's strongly positioned, despite the troubled economy and its recent lackluster sales figures. The company plans to open 225 more stores than it will have to close this year. [WSJ]
• Here is your fashion inanity of the day: "Designers always say, 'Gray is the new black,' and the next season say, 'I can't do one more gray piece.' Where does it go? How come the loyalty vanishes? Why don't you love gray every season?" Stephanie Seymour — never afraid to ask the tough questions. [Fashionista]

• House of Style is coming back on MTV! Israeli model Bar Refaeli or L.A.'s own Chanel Iman are rumored to be in the running to fill Cindy Crawford's old hosting slot. [Page Six]

• Isaac Mizrahi's first collection for Liz Claiborne just went online, in an annoying Flash animation you have to flick through with your mouse. No pricing info is included, but the line will be in stores and online next month. [Liz Claiborne]
• That Brooks Brothers Black Fleece store on Bleecker St. that's been "opening in Fall 08" for freaking ever is finally throwing wide its doors today. [WWD]
• Stella McCartney opened a new boutique in Paris, her first in that city. Old friends like Marianne Faithful and Catherine Deneuve duly turned up. On staying slim with Madonna's trainer, McCartney said, "I've had a few sessions with her, but she's always off on tour with Madonna, so now I just go round to Gwyneth's and we dance about together." Fun. [Style.com]
• If you can't share a personal trainer with Madge, you can see an exhibition of her stage costumes. "Simply Madonna, Materials of the Girl" opens in London on February 21. [Independent]
• Pierre Bergé, Yves Saint Laurent's business and romantic partner of 50 years, is talking to the media for the first time about the designer's struggles with depression. A shy, nervous young man, Saint Laurent was conscripted into France's war with Algeria in 1960, where he was brutalized. Upon his return to France, he was committed and given shock treatments and high doses of drugs. Says Bergé: "Sadly, Yves was not built for joy. He was an unhappy person who didn’t have a taste for life. Occasionally, he was happy, but life was difficult for him. The depression ran deep." On his aesthetic, Bergé notes: "Saint Laurent detested fashion. Style is what he liked...Chanel may have given women liberty but Saint Laurent gave them power." [Telegraph]
• Interesting: Bloomingdale's is holding an open call for new designers. That's gotta be better than Project Runway! [WWD]
• Dazed and Confused shot a black-lit video to celebrate DKNY's 20th anniversary. It maybe looks a little like Liquid Sky. [Fashionista]
• For the DKNY Jeans spring campaign, Sartorialist Scott Schuman shot British model Daisy Lowe. [The Sun]
• Today's bankruptcy: Unthinkable, Inc., owner of the label Claude Brown. Owing between $1 and $100 million, with between $100,000 and $1 million on its books, Unthinkable filed for Chapter 11 protection from 50 creditors. [Crain's]
• Imagine an event that would bring together Ivanka Trump, Philip Lim, Tory Burch, and Barbara Hulanicki (who founded the Biba boutique in London where Anna Wintour got her first fashion job), and you have the Fashion Group International's Rising Star awards. Lim gushes all over Hulanicki, who gushes all over Lim, and meanwhile none of the MCs can pronounce "Burch" or "Ivanka." Must've been a hell of a luncheon. [Observer]
• McQ Alexander McQueen for Target's campaign will be modeled by a creepy blonde doll with eyes that change color. What, they couldn't get a Russian to put in contacts? [Fashionista]
• Karl Lagerfeld, compelling, chilly fashion mastermind, is the subject of an excellent Rodolphe Marconi documentary called Lagerfeld Confidential. We get a peek at the Kaiser's home, Nietzchean morality, and lecherous habits with male models. Also, I'm pretty sure I remember at one point he says, "People who live alone and spend a long time on the telephone are romantic freelancers." It screens February 9 on Sundance and you should watch it. [Fashion Week Daily]
• If you give supermodel Angela Lindvall directions on a shoot like "Crawl around like an animal! Rrowr!", she will raise one eyebrow at your dumb concept and do something better instead. [The Cut]
• Jean Paul Gaultier model Ines de la Fressange: 51, gorgeous, and dubious about black nail polish. "I like the fact that [Gaultier] didn't try to disguise me or make fun of me in some way, by making me wear black nail polish like the other models." How does she stay in shape? "Winston Churchill always said the best exercise is no exercise so let me put it this way; I do as much exercise as Churchill! And I never do Botox or plastic surgery either." She sounds like a riot in this interview. [Time]
• Then, de la Fressange found time to go to the Elysée Palace and congratulate Sonia Rykiel and Jean-Louis Scherrer at the formal ceremony where President Sarkozy made each of them commanders of the Legion of Honor. [WWD]
• Ever wanted to learn how to make shoes? Jimmy Choo wants to teach you. [Telegraph]
• Natascha McElhone, of Californication fame, will be the new face of Neutrogena. [WWD]
• There WILL be Steven Allan for Uniqlo! [WWD]
• Plan for a Gisele-heavy future. The Brazilian beauty has bagged spring campaigns for, at last count: Versace, Dior, True Religion denim, and Rampage. Oh, and she'll totally be the North American face of Max Factor for years to come. Resistance is futile! Clearly being a safe bet as one of the few models the proverbial man on the street could immediately recognize has its ups in an economic climate like this. [WWD]

• Moddle Erin Wasson declares that in '09, "I'm definitely devoting myself to saving and adopting more animals... Yes, I can only imagine how crowded my house will be by 2010!" [Refinery29]

• Abigail Lorick's '09 plans are closer to home: "My New Year's resolution is to get health insurance. And to be more selfless." [Refinery29]
• Daisy Lowe, Gwen-Stefani's sorta-stepdaughter and Mark Ronson's sorta-girlfriend, looks appropriately It-Girly in her new Marc by Marc Jacobs ads. [Sassybella]
• Anthropologie, in a continuing bid to pretend not to be a major conglomerate, launches in-store craft workshops. Says the chief merchandising officer (CMO?), they “aren’t designed to sell anything...We wanted to share something really personal, which is our creative side, on a one-on-one level,” and it's not their fault that they're surrounded by stuff people can buy! [WWD]
• I know everyone's saying "Mimosa" is the new black for '09...but what no one seems to get? People like black because we can actually wear it. [BoingBoing]
• Things have gotten so bad that the Liz Claiborne CEO is flying coach. Not being sarcastic; it's bad enough without knowing what you're missing. [WSJ]
• Thakoon is pleased about Michelle Obama sporting his resortwear: “A print dress? On TV?” Panichgul notes puckishly. “There’s change you can believe in.” [Style.com]
• Amid turmoil, American Apparel names new CFO. Worse still, the Wall Street Journal refers to them as "a teen retailer." [WSJ]
• Slate's "Explainer" tells us what to do if our synthetic clothing melts to our body. Having read it, we'd rather just avoid having it happen. [Slate]
• Clothing manufacturers want stores to absorb the losses caused by slashed holiday prices. This is a no-win, fellas. [Reuters]
• We're all for Phil Collins' daughter starting an accessories line for a good cause, but when we were 19? We did a lot with volunteering. [WWD]
• Dame Edna is digging her gig as a MAC face. Quoth the drag diva: "I'm very lucky, because I do have fantastic skin...I'm sure Liz Hurley is a very nice girl, but it's time for her, Isabella Rossellini and Nicole Kidman to move over. Those girls are all passé now – tragically for them." [Telegraph]
• Bar Rafaeli, moddle and DiCaprio squeeze, draws shoot out, makes photographer miss dinner. [Fox News]

• Word is, Mrs. Ryan Reynolds née maybe-alien Scarlett Johansson will be fronting Dolce and Gabbana's latest campaign. For what? Um, no one knows. [Style.com]

• Carolina Herrera: "There's no need to be ashamed of trying to keep looking good. I even tell my doorman when I've been to have a little filler injected." Not that he asked. [Independent]
• Oh dear. Is the head of L'Oreal being manipulated by a gigolo? Her daughter says yes. But then, we've heard that before... [Independent]
• Designer Gai Mattiolo is not really feeling his house arrest for fraud. Says one friend, "creative geniuses are often naive about business." Besides the genius part, us too! [UPI]
• Helena Christensen: “I’m not really into exercising, to be quite honest, but I realize that you have to do something to stay in shape, so I box. I’ve boxed for almost two and a half years.” If you take out the boxing part, us too! [NY Mag]
• Zac Posen: do not tease us with these promises of "lower priced collections" if you cannot deliver! [Fashion Week Daily]
• Speaking of fast fashion, H&M took a November hit. [WSJ]
• And. Fast fashion has meant a drop in the quality of thrift shop clothes. [Times of London]
• Coco Rocha unveils mannequin of herself; it doesn't look that much like her when she stands right next to it. [ElleUK]
• Women's Professional Soccer's teamed up with Puma. [WSJ]
• D&G, for their part, are outfitting the Giro d'Italia bike race. [VogueUk>]
• Daisy Lowe to be in annoying-sounding DKNY ad with Sean Lennon and Kelly Osborne's boyfriend, shot by The Sartorialist. [ElleUK]
• Speaking of slash/slash types! The Sisters Miller (Sienna and Savannah) will be showing their first Twenty8Twelve fashion show come Feb! [Grazia]
• YSL paper dolls. As close as many of us will come! Also: more fun. [Fashionista]
• Speaking of YSL! The company's making a generous donation to the United Nations Development Fund for Women. [WWD]

• Sam Ronson is mad at the animal-rights protester who threw flour on LiLo's fur stole! Blogged the DJ, "the girl who threw [the flour] acted like an animal herself...I take that back, it's an insult to animals to group her in with them, my dog is FAR more civilized than that person." [ElleUK]
• Meanwhile, Natalie Imbruglia is not "torn" about fur! In a new ad for PETA, the Aussie "is seen covering her breasts with a live rabbit, called Topsy." Of course she is! [Daily Express]
• "'Please don't write that I'm eccentric,' says Vivienne Westwood, who is dressed in a holey black dress with what looks like bits of flesh-coloured tights woven in and out of it, a pair of scruffy old trainers and a knitted hat pulled over her hair, which is the colour of clementines. She has drawn her eyebrows on in red pencil." [Guardian]
• Just in time for the recession! Gaultier launches a line of children's wear! [WWD]
• "Karl is hilarious. As serious and scary as he looks, he tells the best jokes." We'll take your word for it, Talluleh Harlech. [WWD]

• Oy. The October sales drop was the worst in 16 years. [WWD]
• Even Target is down! [WWD]
• Kai Milla, Stevie Wonder's designer wife, wants to make the inaugural gown for Michelle Obama. If wishes were trees... [Washington Post]
• The Michelle bump is still buoying J. Crew. [NY Times]
• Meanwhile, a bag favored by Carla Bruni is being sold to benefit Cape Town slums. [Times of India]
• Model Carol Alt starts a raw-food beauty line. Good for her! [WWD]
• Ford Models goes all digital. [AdAge]
• Sonia Rykiel hosts retrospective of, um, herself in "her spunky and insouciant style." It'll feature 200 ensembles. [WWD]
• More Vivienne Westwood: the designer opens "Anglomania" boutique in Manchester, for her younger, "marginally less expensive" Anglomania line. [Daily Mail]
• "Art of Dior" show in Beijing brought together "fashion luminaries and executives mingled with Chinese celebrities and stars of the art world." No, we weren't there. [WWD]
• The Bangladeshi garment industry is stronger than ever. [Global Voices]
• In deference to economic climes, Prada's new bag line is under a grand. [Nylon]
• Moschino designs truly grotesque dress for Barney's "Hippie Holiday"/EarthPledge. [VogueUK]
• Daisy Lowe will indeed be frontin' Marc by Marc Jacobs. [ElleUK]
• Fast fashion's courting the men's market now. [DNR]
• Family birthday parties, Roitfeld-style: "Among the 30 guests at the intimate dinner were Stavros Niarchos, model Lara Stone and Genevieve Jones." [WWD]

• People are desperate to buy Malia Obama's Biscotti Inc. frock; sadly, it's sold out. [WSJ]
• The same weirdos can probably still find Sasha's black Gerson & Gerson Inc. babydoll, however. [WSJ]
• Dsquared2's costumes for Usher's tour kinda make him look like Carlton Banks. [FashionWeekDaily]
• Playboy kicks off its fragrance collection. “We launched four fragrances because we wanted to capture the multiplicity of the Playboy guy.” The colognes are meant to be “emblematic of four American cities where the playboy lifestyle is played to its fullest.” That is: Hollywood; Las Vegas; Malibu, Calif., and Miami." Retirement communities, presumably. [WWD]
• Katy Perry, the newest fashion icon? Please, no. [VogueUK]

• Marc Jacobs taps "adorable" It Girl Daisy Lowe for Marc by Marc Jacobs. [WWD]
• Sneak peek at Stella McCartney's Spring '09! [BlackBook]
• Breaking: Valentino enjoys Rio. [Style.com]
• Beyonce takes a risk in Gareth Hugh at MTV Europe Awards; looks bizarre. [Telegraph]
• Based on this one still, the new Chanel movie is obviously going to be awesome. [Fashionologie]
• Speaking of cinema: Nick Knight's "Fantasia" is described as "a mesmerising, full-throttle trip around the most sensational sartorial propositions of the past ten years." Yeah, my boyfriend wasn't enticed either. [BoingBoing]
• Uniqlo gives away a bunch of thermal shirts. They'd probably put it more elegantly. [ElleUK]
• Allegedly, punters are already lining up for the debut of H&M's Comme des Garcons collaboration. I smell H&M's PR department! [JC Report]
• Although who knows? Apparently the first Tokyo H&M's opening was a really big deal! [Time]
• Ann Taylor cuts 260 jobs. [WSJ]
• The ever-tactful British press declares that student life is giving moddle Lily Cole "spots." Bad moddle, neglecting your looks for education! [Daily Mail]
• For her new Dior handbag campaign, Marion Cotillard is literally perched on the Eiffel Tower. We get it, Dior: You're French. [WWD]
• Architect Elena Manferdini is inspired by gowns. "I like to show that there's a correlation between the human body scale and the architectural scale." [LA Times]

• Miley Cyrus, 15 and Justin Gaston, 20, were "all over each other" backstage at the Christian Audigier show at LA Fashion Week. Justin walked in the show, and everytime he passed, he would blow a kiss and wink at his teenage girlfriend, and she, witnesses say, "licked her lips seductively as he passed her." A source heard Miley saying she was going to skip the after party to stay at Justin's and have a party of her own. [Page Six]
• Britney's dad testified in her misdemeanor driving-without-a-license trial Thursday that California is not her permanent residence. "Her home is Louisiana," he said. Um, perjury? Anyone? [People]
• Oh, Britney is building a house in Louisiana. This much is true. [TMZ]
• Look for Britney on the January cover of Glamour magazine. Shot by freakin' Patrick Demarchelier. [NY Mag]
• Yeah, so John Mayer spent his birthday with Jennifer Aniston. He had a party at the Grand Havana Room, a members-only restaurant and cigar club in L.A. They totally sat next to each other and "seemed happy." [People]
• In Angelina Jolie's interview with the New York Times, she says she wants her kids to see Mr. And Mrs. Smith someday: "Not a lot of people get to see a movie where their parents fell in love." Team Aniston peeps think that she's admitting Brad cheated on Jen with her. But Team Jolie folks are like, hey, it is when they met, and they denied they were together physically. The threads over on this posting are crazytown. [ONTD]

• Surprise, surprise: Amy Winehouse didn't show up for her DJing gig at that pub in London. She was "bedridden." [Mirror]
• Katherine Heigl: Adopting a Korean baby. So says the National Enquirer. Katherine's big sister Meg was adopted from Korea more than 30 years ago and has had a "profound impact" on Katherine's life. [ONTD]
• Awesome pix of Justin Timberlake and Ellen Degeneres playing golf. [ET]
• Madonna and Guy have not been speaking to each other for a while, because they allegedly "cannot be in a room together for more than a few minutes without having a shouting match." Think of the children! [Perez Hilton]
• Um, this report says Madonna's marriage began sliding towards divorce after her hubby’s "unsympathetic" reaction when she fell off a horse and broke eight bones. [The Sun]
• A source close to Guy says "It wasn't just one thing. They just lost their connection." [People]
• Madge and Guy won't battle over money, but they will fight over custody of the kids. They both hired high-powered lawyers. [Daily Mail, Telegraph]
• Madonna's brother Christopher Ciccone says Kabbalah killed the marriage. [The Sun]
• Maggie and Jake Gyllenhaal's parents: Officially filed for divorce. Naomi and Stephen Gyllenhaal were married in 1977. Is it too early to start drinking? [TMZ]
• DJ AM has actually escaped death twice: "In the burn center, they did a scan and found that I had a blood clot that in this flight could have traveled to my heart and I could have died," he says. While still at the burn center in Georgia, he was put on blood-thinning medication. [People]
• Contrary to earlier reports, Steve Wonder's house did not burn down in the L.A. fires. Overjoyed? [TMZ]
• Tea Leoni in More magazine, talking about her new movie, Manure: "But at the same time, we have this incredible cast with Billy Bob Thornton, who is maybe my new favorite person in the world." [ONTD]
• Billy Bob Thornton swears he is not the reason David Duchovny and Tea Leoni split: His publicist issued a statement which reads: "Billy Bob Thornton and Téa Leoni are just friends." Strong words! [E!]
• Kathy Griffin's says Bravo claims she's signed on for another season of My Life On The D-List — but she hasn't, and she's "trying to extract tens more dollars from Bravo." [Perez Hilton]
• Is Bruce Willis getting married? He took his model girlfriend Emma Heming to Cartier in Beverly Hills and they totally looked at rings. [Daily Express]
• Mena Suvari's engaged and wants a "fairy-tale wedding." [Yahoo News]
• Actress and Brooklynite Hope Davis on the recession: "Even the little spa on my corner is advertising 50 percent off facials. Everybody’s suffering; it’s going to affect everybody." [NY Mag]
• Are you ready for an Eminem comeback? He's releasing a book on October 21 and an album later in the year. Here are some personal pictures that will be in the book, including snaps of Em as a kid, a picture of his first mix tape and shots of him with his daughter. [EW]
• Susan Sarandon: Guest of honor at the second annual Middle East International Film Festival in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. She said: "In the US we don't have the opportunity to see these films; even English(-language) documentaries are hard to find. Festivals are a wonderful opportunity for people to see documentaries they might not normally see." Plus, the formation of a Middle Eastern chapter of Women in Film and Television was announced. [Reuters]
• Daisy Lowe broke up with her boyfriend Will Blondelle because records by her ex, Mark Ronson were being played in a club. Yeah, I dunno. [Mirror]
• Hadn't heard this, but Kenneth Branagh will not direct Jude Law in Hamlet as planned. Branagh dropped out due to a scheduling conflict. [UPI]
• Headline of the day: Phil Spector "Used Obscene Language About Women And Stated They Should Be Shot." [Daily Mail]
• James Taylor's playing five free concerts for Obama in the election battleground state of North Carolina. "It's a great relief to see someone running who believes government can do good things for people," he says. He adds, "I've seen fire and I've seen rain." [AP]
• The Supreme Court says Survivor champ Richard Hatch must serve out the rest of his four-year, three-month prison sentence for failing to pay the IRS taxes on the million bucks he won. [E!]
• Chris Kattan and Sunshine Tutt officially divorced, after two months of wedded bliss. What's up with SNL alums and short (heh) marriages? [E!]
• Stephen Baldwin on Barack Obama: "If he wins the election, he'll hurt me. He's a cultural terrorist." [Perez Hilton]
• "I lie all the time. The last lie I told was the last time someone invited me to a wedding, or a christening, or a party. I can't say, 'I don't really like you that much, I'm worried about the other people you'd invite; a wedding bores me stupid, I think it's ridiculous and pointless and I'd rather sit at home in my [underwear] drinking wine." —Ricky Gervais. [Guardian]
• "I strongly feel there needs to be a new way forward. Barack Obama is pushing things in the right direction. I’m excited about the election. Unfortunately, things will probably get dirty. I hope Obama can stay above the fray … I’m hopeful for the first time in a long, long while. It’s one of the most exciting elections in my lifetime." — Daniel Craig, who knows he can't vote, but is watching US politics very closely. [MSNBC]
• "I don't like guns much, and the reason I don't like them is because I do like them. If you put one in my hand, I feel incredibly omnipotent. And I hate that truth." — Colin Farrell. [Rush & Molloy]
• "I’m never at home and every woman gets sick of it. If I was them, I wouldn’t put up with me for too long, and they don’t. I wonder if I’m going to be relegated to three-year relationships for the rest of my life." — George Clooney. [Mirror]

• Apparently emboldened by last week's success in Milan, Bruno — aka Sacha Baron Cohen — crashed Stella McCartney today. "With his red thong clearly visible above his jeans, the comedian — who was virtually unrecognisable in a flamboyant leather gilet, with his slicked-down hair dyed blonde and brown — sucked Tampax, clapped along to the music and generally disgruntled the front row by continually pushing aside those sitting in front of him for a better look at the models." He then delivered a "lone standing ovation." [VogueUK]
• In total radness: DVF to design a comic book in connection with her Wonder Woman-inspired collection. Really hoping she has to make the rounds of the comics conventions. [Fashionista]
• Chloe Sevigny gets into menswear. Well, Gallo will wear it. [Nylon]

• Andre Benjamin's clothing line is for the modern fop. "To create a persona for his fashion line, Mr. Benjamin combined his surname with that of Bill Bixby. The character is a world traveler whose wardrobe includes things like a $995 cotton corduroy blazer, a $350 felted waistcoat and a $95 newsboy cap." [NY Times]
• Whoever wears that will surely be the intended demographic for "J. Crew's first book." "Written by Max Blagg and illustrated by Hugo Guinness, What a Man Should Know is a collection of 50 (very) whimsical tips for the modern male. So what should you know? Chess, wine, and figure-drawing." [Men.Style]
• Some people claimed Heidi stole the Project Runway premise — aka the same setup every single competition reality show has ever had ever. A judge, not surprisingly, dismissed it. [wwltv]
• Michelle Obama sports H&M on the campaign trail. [BlackBook]
• Lagerfeld video. Nuff said. [NY Mag]
• Scary Spice Mel B wants a Project Runway-style reality show. Get in line, kid. [E]
• Rather than going bargain basement, Target courts recessionistas. [Business Week]
• More on Miss Sixty's woes. [BBC]
• Sorta It-Girl Cory Kennedy to replace Kinda It-Girl Daisy Lowe as the face of Docs. [Fashionista]
• Levi's tries way, way too hard: "The San Francisco company has launched a new viral effort it hopes will attract young men to pass along videos of customized "beasts" emerging from the button-fly of Levi's jeans. At Unbuttonyourbeast.com, visitors can choose from nine different animated characters with names like Trout Troutman, Paul the Pincher and Sock Nasty, then customize the beast's message by calling a toll-free number. The effort, unsurprisingly, is geared to young men just out of college." The emails are titled, "Do you dare to unbutton my beast?" [AdWeek]
• India eases the way for the burgeoning luxury market. [IHT]
• Guy Ritchie's first hit since hooking up with Madge: a Nike ad gets big on YouTube. [Telegraph]
• Naomi Campbell's gonna walk for Hermes; everybody flips out. [Fashion Week Daily]
• I wish these celebs would stop calling their mix tapes "albums." Anyhoo, Heatherette designer Richie Rich's, "Celebutante," is about to drop. [Fashionista]
• "If there were a gold medal for marathon modeling, Shalom Harlow would surely win it for the Viktor & Rolf fashion film that will begin today on the Dutch duo’s Web site. 'It was like the fashion Olympics,' said Rolf Snoeren, who, with Viktor Horsting, reenacted a high-tech version of 'Funny Face' to showcase their spring collection. 'It was 14 hours a day on high heels, but she was a champion.'” [WWD]
• 80's power shoulders are big (sorry) on the Paris runways. [WSJ]
• That gold statue of Kate Moss was just unveiled. [Mirror]
• UGGS are like cockroaches: all that will be left after a nuclear holocaust. While everything else is foundering, UGGs is way up! [WSJ]
• The Lauren Conrad line forlorn and unbought. [Page Six]
• Bossy new bikini has "decorative beads" that change color when UV rays grow dangerously high. [Telegraph]
• Screw Jimmy Choos. Cheap shoes make more sense for actual walking. [Daily News]
• "Margherita Missoni, meanwhile, has experienced some teasing for wearing vintage sparkling Harper’s Bazaar frames — due to an eye problem. 'Suzy Menkes says it’s my Sarah Palin look,' she laughed. 'It is definitely not inspired by her.'" [WWD]

[London, September 17. Image via Splash.]

• "If I were writing a letter to Sarah Palin it would be a lot of whys and hows. Who are you? Do you know? Why do you hate animals? Please point out Iraq on a map… This woman hates women. She is not a feminist. She is not the woman that's going to come behind Hillary Clinton and do anything that Hillary Clinton would've been capable of … I can't imagine overturning Roe vs. Wade. She's not of this time. The woman terrifies me." — Pink. [Perez Hilton]
• Lindsay Lohan on Sarah Palin: "Is our country so divided that the Republicans best hope is a narrow minded, media obsessed homophobe? Oh, and...Hint Hint Pali Pal- Don't pose for anymore tabloid covers, you're not a celebrity, you're running for office to represent our, your, my COUNTRY!" [TMZ]
• Lindsay and Samantha Ronson: Seen in an "intense liplock" for "at least half an hour" at NYC's trendy Beatrice Inn. [Page Six]
• Lindsay punched a paparazzo because she thought he tripped her, but actually, she tripped on a metal barricade. Whoops. [TMZ]
• Jennifer Lopez completed her first-ever triathlon on Sunday in Malibu and raised $127,000 for the Children's Hospital of L.A. in the process. A very quick "recovery" from the "foot injury" she had that prevented her from judging the Project Runway fashion show on Friday. Could it be that she wanted a part in a Harvey Weinstein film, and found out she wasn't getting it, so pulled out? [MSNBC]

• Has being Woody Allen's muse turned Scarlett Johansson into a bitch? [Page Six]
• Liz Taylor went to her favorite gay bar on Thursday night! She was out at The Abbey in West Hollywood. Says a witness: "She was lively. She was laughing and she was smiling." Apparently she "held court" in a back corner, holding a martini while a friend held her Maltese, Daisy. [People]
• Five Leaves, the Brooklyn bar owned in part by Heath Ledger's estate, has opened. The decor is '20s-era industrial steel. Mary-Kate Olsen and Michelle Williams maybe attended the unofficial opening. [Gothamist]
• Frances Bean Cobain's 16th birthday party was a "suicidal 16" bash in which guests were awarded prizes if they dressed the "most dead." Girl, where is your mother? Oh yeah. [E!]
• Producer Swizz Beatz is getting divorced and Alicia Keys could be "the other woman." [Rush & Molloy]
• Carla Bruni's ex, Jean-Paul Enthoven (she left him for his son, with whom she had a kid before marrying President Nicolas Sarkozy) is getting "revenge" with a novel. The main character is a cold, wealthy, shopping-obsessed woman. [Times of London]
• Amy Winehouse didn't show up to her own birthday party. She missed a guitar-shaped birthday cake! [The Sun, Mirror]
• Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have made a $2 million donation to create a health center for AIDS and tuberculosis affected children in Ethiopia. The center will be named after daughter Zahara. [E!]
• Guinness World Records says that Brad and Angelina are the world's Most Powerful Actor and Actress. But we all know Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, Knox and Vivienne are actually in control. [UPI]
• Daniel Dae Kim of Lost pleaded no contest to drunk driving charges (from Oct. 25) and paid a $500 fine. [Breitbart]
• The Promises Foundation received an autographed oil painting of Britney Spears from Britney Spears, which they're going to sell on eBay with a starting bid of $10,000. Good luck with that! [UPI]
• See the painting here. She's not wearing a top. [TMZ]
• Is manager Larry Rudolph to thank for Britney's epic turn around? [Daily Mail]
• Brit threw her boys a truck-themed birthday party on Saturday. Jamie Lynn brought daughter Maddie. The kids drove around in toy cars with personalized license plates. There were no DUIs. That we know of. [Yahoo News]
• Naomi Campbell is in love, and after having surgery on her ladyparts, thinks she would like to have a baby. [Daily Mail]
• George Takei and Brad Altman were married Sunday in a multicultural ceremony at the Japanese American National Museum that featured a Buddhist priest, Native American wedding bands, a Japanese Koto harp and a bagpipe procession. [Yahoo News]
• "I did not set out to make a controversial film or a social commentary. If Dakota Fanning is so shamed for telling that story, what message does that give victims? I did not set out to make a statement, but in the 12-year process of trying to get this film made I have been unable to avoid facing the politics of being a woman filmmaker and telling women stories…" — Deborah Kampmeier, director of Hounddog, the film often called the "Dakota Fanning rape movie." [NY Times]
• Maryline Blackburn, who won the 1984 Miss Alaska pageant — when Sarah Palin came in second — is now a singer living in Atlanta. Blackburn, who is African-American, says, "Sarah was kinda in my top five. You're kind of looking at all the girls and when I first saw her I thought, 'Oh my goodness, she's absolutely beautiful.' She's a gorgeous woman." But! On November 4? "It's all about Obama, Obama," Blackburn says. [WSBTV]
• Jennifer Hudson: Engaged to boyfriend David Otunga. [People]
• Peaches Geldof and husband Max Drummey now have matching tattoos. [Mirror]
• Spike Lee is ending his feud with Clint Eastwood and maybe starting one with Judd Apapoe [sic]. [Deadline Hollywood]
• Kylie Minogue will perform on the artificial Palm Island in Dubai at the opening ceremony of a 5-star hotel… Ending speculation that Madonna was gonna do the gig. [Mirror]
• John Mayer did a striptease for Heidi Klum. Yeah. [Rush & Molloy]
• Check out Beyoncé playing a hot cop in her new video. [Concrete Loop]
• Damon Dash indeed has sole custody of his son, Damon Jr. His ex girlfriend enrolled the 16-year-old in school in Long Island when he went to visit her, but a judge was like: No. [UPI]
• The only Sienna Miller fansite online might be shutting down! Says the webmistress: "I cannot get past the fact that to me she has completely changed from the Sienna I became a fan of back in 2004." [ONTD]
• This picture shows Sienna walking while Balthazar Getty drives alongside her, in an effort not to be photographed together. [The Sun]
• Contrary to earlier reports, Holly Madison did not dump Hef for Criss Angel! [E!]
• While accepting her award at the Creative Arts Emmys for the video "I'm Fucking Matt Damon," Sarah Silverman said: "Thanks to the person for whom this whole video was made: Jimmy Kimmel, who broke my heart – ohh, who'll always have a place in my heart." [People]
• Matt Damon and Wyclef Jean distributed rice, beans and oil to residents of Haiti, where hundreds of people are homeless and hungry after four devastating hurricanes have hit since mid-August. [Yahoo News]
• Shannen Doherty has shot four episodes of the new 90210, which is all she signed up for. Will she do more? Does the CW want her to? [Yahoo News]
• Shenae Grimes has been "tormenting everyone on set" of the new 90210. [Page Six]
• Mark Ronson and Daisy Lowe: Splitsville. [Mirror]
• A bunch of teachers spill about what stars Amy Winehouse, Jude Law, Simon Cowell and Lily Allen were like as kids. Guess who was an arrogant, "polished character" and popular with the girls? [Guardian]
• Short on cash, Pete Doherty paid for a taxi with paintings he'd done. [The Sun]
• Queen Latifah was going to call her new album The L Word "just for fun" to mess with people who think she is gay. (But, um, isn't she?) [Daily Express]
• Cyndi Lauper to mentor contestants on Australian Idol! [News.com.au]
• Sir Paul McCartney will be guarded by armed secret agents during his gig in Israel — he's apparently the "enemy of Muslims." [The Sun]
• Richard Gere and Debra Winger: Acting together again for the first time since An Officer and a Gentleman? [Fox 411]
• David Beckham: Booed, after his soccer football team lost. [Independent]
• Steve Irwin's 4-year-old son wants his own TV show. [Independent]
• "There is such a great lesson to learn in having your children in the kitchen with you. Children can smell the smells and watch all that goes into the preparation of the food. It’s a five-sense experience for them." — Rachael Ray. [NY Times]
• "I feel there must be an enormous amount of really talented songwriters out there who can't sing. So, please, send me your songs." — Roger Daltrey of The Who. [Daily Express]

• Poor Rachel Zoe! "I thought: I've done blood, sweat and tears for 15 years — why am I the victim here? I have had the nastiest things said about me! I don't understand." [NY Post]
• Shockingly, the CFDA's "Health Booth" (which educates fashionistas about eating) is deserted. [NY Mag]
• You already knew Sean Lennon was an ass: Spotted at Fashion Week, the modelizer "wore a magisterial women's coat with gold buttons and a top hat decorated with Native American bands. His girlfriend, Charlotte Kemp Muhl, wore a coyote headdress." [NY Mag]
• Justin Timberlake brings pissy back at his William Rast show. [WWD]
• Punk legend Malcolm McLaren accuses son and Agent Provocateur founder Joe Corre of counterfeiting punk duds. "I think my son actually used – maybe – the original labels, because we didn't use them all up...There'd be a roll of ribbon around in the workroom and maybe my son got a hold of those. I think he did this before he set up Agent Provocateur. Or in order to set up Agent Provocateur and fund it, he made a number of these fake clothes and sold them to dealers in Japan." [Independent]

• Speaking of Agent Provocateur: there's a new ad campaign! "Chanelling the gothic decadence of Hogarth, Caravaggio, Rubens and Delaroche’s Execution of Lady Jane Grey, it is a seething orgiastic scene of girls on top, girls on girls and boys and beasts. Peaches (Geldof) and Daisy Lowe, the bad girls du jour, both star, as does the flame-haired American actress Paz de la Huerta, who holds court over a sacrifice of a topless virgin, accompanied by two male cohorts — David Bailey’s Byronesque son, Fenton, and a 21-year-old albino boy named Alex." [Times of London]
• Intrepid fashionistas weather the storm at Fashion Week; Tory Burch even went barefoot! [NY Mag]
• Um, ex-squeeze us? Lifetime, the Project Runway-stealer, is delaying the premiere of the show's sixth season until January 2009. Resentment mounting. [Yahoo]
• Are we the only ones who are totally sick of hockey player/budding fashionista Sean Avery? Now he's decorated some booth at hot spot Beatrice Inn with sunflowers. [Style.com]
• Apparently lacking creativity, designers start predicting trends via computer programs. [NY Times]
• Knockoff jeans even bigger than knockoff bags! [UPI]
• The political tee market is also booming. Yes, Obama's outselling Mac. [NPR]
• The Mulleavy sisters keep their Rodarte label personal and awesome. "In 2005, to introduce themselves to the fashion world, the Mulleavy sisters sent out 30 handmade paper dolls, each with a paper armoire containing seven paper dresses. 'I was inspired by Zelda Fitzgerald’s paper dolls,' explains Kate, who, like Fitzgerald, drew extensively accessorized wardrobes." [NY Times]
• Dolce and Gabbana take their inspiration from Queen Elizabeth: "In place of riotous floral and animal prints, hour-glass corsetry and itsy-bitsy skirts came Argyle knits, oversized kilts that fall to mid-calf, printed silk headscarves and sensible footwear." We are not amused. [The Independent]
• Almost all the shoes we wear are imported, "yet the U.S. still imposes a tax on imported shoes that can reach as high as 67%." [WSJ]
• More PR for Ivory Coast fashion, as Patricia De Medeiros reinvents traditional motifs in her line, Tradition Mode. [Reuters]
• Pat Field's collaboration with British frump-monger Marks and Spencer is a gamble. [Independent]
• Iconic model Veruschka releases coffee table tome: “'I can’t say that I have any favorite photographs,' she said. 'Though I do have some favorite memories of the days they were taken. Working with Avedon, for example, was always a joy. But then it was all joy because that was a joyous time.'” [Style.com]
• Scandal-plagued model Jodie Kidd comes by it naturally: her grandfather tried to bribe Winston Churchill. [This Is London]
• PETA crashes DKNY, does nothing. [NY Mag]
• Following a lackluster start, Halston feels the heat. [WSJ]
• YSL has reformulated (we're guessing this means butch packaging) its Touche Eclat concealer for the metrosexual set. Zac Efron rejoices! [Telegraph]
• The fashionistas heave a sigh of relief that both potential first ladies dig clothes. [Reuters]
• DKNY, CK, battle it out at their runway shows for "most New York" designer. Doesn't Karan automatically win by having "New York" in her name? [Guardian]
• Struggling to define itself, Old Navy shops ad agencies. Remember how cool it was when it opened? Can't they just rehire whoever did that? [AdWeek]

• In weird/amazing news: Christian Siriano is doing a maternity line. "Siriano teamed up with his two friends Marta Abrams and Elise Rosemarin, founders of Moody Mamas maternity clothes, to create a collection called Fierce for Moody Mamas by Christian Siriano." Apparently he liked the idea of a gay man doing maternity - and a 22-year-old, less! [NY Mag]
• Isn't it nice when celebrity lines actually make sense, like Dita Von Teese for Wonderbra? [The Life Files]
• What will Stella say? Gwyneth Paltrow wears fur, creates ruckus. "The actress, who along with her husband, Chris Martin, supports a raft of ethical causes, is pictured draped in fox fur and wearing fur-lined boots for the Italian luxury goods company Tod’s." And this after PETA wrote her "many times" and "sent her videos showing how animals suffer for fur." [First Post]

• Does anyone else find this description of the costumes from Madonna's upcoming "Sweet and Sticky" tour really, really depressing? "Costume designer Arianne Phillips took inspiration from the Material Girl's early years in the city to create "nostalgic and fun" looks that "take Madonna back to her roots." Designer Jeremy Scott contributed '80s-inspired pieces with prints from the late artist Keith Haring, who was a close friend of Madonna's and would also have turned 50 this year. Madonna – who will celebrate her 50th birthday on Aug. 16 – is even getting custom sneakers with Haring's art on them." [People]
• "Christian Dior has unveiled its new Luxury Mobile Phone, My Dior, specifically for the China and Russia marketplace." It has crystals on its face and for no very clear reason comes with an additional, miniature phone. It's also five grand. [Inventor Spot]
• After a decade and despite a fanatical fashionista following, Jane Mayle closes her boutique, line. [WWD]
• Miu Miu's jockey-inspired line: "To drive the athletic message home, for the show, each model had her initials embossed in leather on her jacket – how cute is that? – and, for good measure, also wore a close-fitting interpretation of a riding hat." Um, sort of cute, we guess. [Independent]
• Kiehl's, Brad Pitt team up for green charity. [WWD]
• Ospop canvas sneakers take inspiration from Chinese workers. "Specifically, Ospop sneakers are based on a design widely worn by such laborers, but with higher-quality materials and structural improvements meant to appeal to a Western audience — one that is, not incidentally, willing to pay $75 for a pair of sneakers. Since forming last October, Ospop has sold more than 7,500 pairs." By the way, they're very cool - like a streamlined, old-school Ked. [NYT]
• Slate's rundown of fashion books and sites; few surprises, good refresher - although we feel Genevieve Antoine Dariaux should really head any such compendium. [Slate]
• Daphne Guinness on street style: "Celebrities almost never look good unless they are 'out' at something or other, while real fashion animals always look a little interesting, even if they are only going to Starbucks. Individuality will always exist," she asserts. "It's more that it has become very underground and doesn't infiltrate the mainstream as much as it should, so you have to search it out, which is getting more difficult, but also more rewarding." Well, if "more difficult" means a hundred "Satrorialist/Bill Cunningham/street-peeper"-style hipster street fashion blogs, then yes. [VogueUK]
• In "stuff you probably weren't wondering": what did Madonna wear to her 50th bash at London's Volstead nightclub? "The material girl donned Givenchy's catwalk layered gold chains and crusifixes, defying her half-century to look younger than ever. She teamed the necklaces...with a micro mini playsuit, sheer, puff sleeved overcoat and thigh high Stella McCartney boots - and a clutch bag baring her name in diamonds and studs." [ElleUK]
• Belgian Peter Philips takes over as global creative director of Chanel make-up: "A softly-spoken Belgian with dark blond hair and a calm demeanour...Philips has inherited a legacy of luxurious packaging and technical innovation." His first move: gold nail polish. [Independent]
• The Guardian runs down the tactics of the most successful retailers: keeping it in the family, "shock tactics" and, you know, good business. [Guardian]
• Saks way down. So at least the recession's democratic... [WSJ]
• The Duh Files: Sunglasses are no substitute for prescription specs. Why can't people just wear prescription shades like we do? Then, apparently, they wouldn't be getting in car accidents. [Daily Mail]
• Forever21 bulldozes L.A. garden, draws protests, makes shlocky clothes. [LA Times]
• John Varvatos used Gwen Stefani sorta-step-daughter and self-described "dirty fairy" Daisy Lowe in his latest campaign because she's "cute, sexy but not overly beautiful...the kids in the ads look pretty real, we were not looking for glamour." [WWD]
• Venerable label Pringle of Scotland collaborate for their latest window with artist Deborah Bowness, who created a book-print wallpaper for the display using the Autumn collection's color scheme. "The wallpaper was then mounted on large leather-bound books to create the background for the collection. To finish, I used smaller versions of the books embossed with "Pringle of Scotland: The Collection". Each window is arranged differently, bringing style and humour." [VogueUK]
• We're on record in our belief that jean-buying and the internets don't mix, but couturecloset.us does sound pretty cool: "Basically, it's a denim haven, built to bring all the coolest jeans to your fingertips. From the left hand side, choose the denim brand you prefer, and it'll provide links of online retailers that sell its jeans. Also, scroll down and you'll find a bunch of eBay denim auctions." [FabSugar]
• The "candycast": in which a cartoon lady lectures you on fashion. And it's not even Smurfette! [Style.com]