• One of Annie Leibovitz's Louis Vuitton ads with astronauts Sally Ride, Buzz Aldrin, and Jim Lovell is out. (Gorby was busy that weekend.) [WWD]
• Karl Lagerfeld: "Ballet is an extraordinary art: this torture of the body to make something so graceful. All this hard work, to look effortless."

• "Swans, they are the meanest animals in the world, you know. I had problems with them as a child. They hate children. I was caught by one, so I know. The idea of swans is lovely, and they have a beautiful shape, but they seem more romantic than they in fact are. I don't think really they die like this. They just drop dead, hmm? But who wants to see that?"[Guardian]
• Christian Lacroix has vowed to keep his 22-year-old label alive even as it has declared bankruptcy, but its July couture presentation is in doubt. [WWD]
• Miranda Kerr is nude on the cover of the June Rolling Stone — in Australia. Because she cares about the environment. [News.com.au]
• Whichever "fellow student" told the Daily Mail "The end of year exams are a big deal at Cambridge University and we've all spent weeks revising. I don't know how she has managed to fit any revision into her busy social life," is certainly no "friend" to model/student Lily Cole. But then, if Lily Cole didn't want tabloid attention, she might not walk around London with her boyfriend wearing a gold ring on the ring finger of her left hand. [Daily Mail]
• Everybody you might care slightly about is getting a new fragrance this year. Kate Moss is naming hers "Vintage." [WWD]
• Kind of like the departed Mr. Blackwell — or Republican trickster Roger Stone — but only for hats, Luton, England milliner Philip Wright releases an annual list of the best celebrity hat-wearers. This year, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy topped it, for her "neat, chic, pill box hat" which "was a supreme example of classic simplicity at its best - a stylish understatement which captured the attention of the world's media." She beat the Queen. [Times of London]
• I've always thought that custom-made clothing, at the right price point, could and should be a bigger part of the apparel market than it is. Because all of us have issues with the fit of standardized sizes — who doesn't have a wardrobe half full of shirts that are tight in the shoulders but loose at the waist, pants with the wrong crotch depth, and skirts that don't move quite right when you walk. But all I want to know about this Ryan Taylor, aka "Taylor the Tailor", of Los Angeles, who supposedly takes his clients' measurements and turns out custom-fitted clothing in a couple days at prices "competitive with brand name department stores" is: where does he manufacture? (A question which, funnily enough, CNN seems to have no interest in.) Because everything I know about fashion leads me to suspect that level of service is only possible if you're e-mailing those customer measurements to a guy in Malaysia. Or Hong Kong. [CNN]
• A lone man pulled off an $8.5 million jewelry heist at Chopard in the Place Vendôme in Paris. [CBS]
• A study in the U.K. found that while women make up 52% of the fashion industry's workforce, they are paid 15% less than their male counterparts, and have only 37% of the top jobs. In New York, anecdotally, I've heard from many a design assistant toiling in the trenches of a major brand that, even though here as there the industry is largely female, things like on-site daycare are nonexistent. [Independent]
• Gilt Groupe, the members-only sample sale site, sponsored Zac Posen's resort show, which is happening tonight. Interesting. [WWD]
• Shares in the national mall chain Wet Seal fell 17% in Friday's trading, following the announcement of poor first quarterly results. Same-store sales fell by 7.3%, and even though it beat analysts' expectations by turning a $5 million profit during the quarter, news that the company does not expect to meet profit forecasts in the next quarter was enough to set the stock price sliding. [The Street]
• Lord & Taylor is closing one of its 47 stores nationwide. The Landmark Mall in Alexandria, Virginia, will no longer boast a Lord & Taylor as an anchor tenant after July 12. Both Landmark Mall and its parent company, General Growth Properties, have filed for bankruptcy protection. [WSJ]
• The U.S. division of Dutch brand Oilily filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and closed its Madison Avenue store. This follows the bankruptcy of its parent company in Hollard nearly two months ago. [Crain's]
• A statement from Wells Fargo, the principal creditor of the bankrupt Hartmarx company, which owns the menswear brands Hickey Freeman and Hart Schaffner Marx, has put Hartmarx's potential deal with private equity firm Emerisque in doubt. Emerisque's bid of $119 million for the business had been accepted by Hartmarx last week, but Wells Fargo, which is owed $114 million, said that with only $70 million of the bid being cash it "fails to provide adequate value to Hartmarx lenders." Wells Fargo also objects to the bid on the grounds that the offer "does not even ensure that Emerisque will continue running Hartmarx's business operations after the acquisition," something which Emerisque had pledged to do. The bankruptcy court is scheduled to hear objections to the bid today. [Chicago Tribune]
• Mango might do most of its business in Spain, but that won't prevent it from opening a store this September in Irbil, the capital of the Kurdish region of Iraq and the country's third-largest city. [Times of London]
• Benetton's seven stores in Georgia closed in protest and Georgian politicians voiced thunderous objections to the chain's decision to open an outpost in Sukhumi, the capital of the disputed Black Sea region of Abkhazia. Tbilisi regards Abkhazia as a breakaway province; the EU and NATO concur; Russia recognizes its independence; 1.5 million Russian tourists visit Sukhumi every year. No doubt lured as much by the thought of all those rubles as by the international goodwill it advertises, Benetton has nonetheless been forced to abandon its plans to open the store. [WSJ]

• In your daily back-to-bed moment of despair for Western culture, Heidi Montag has become a bathing suit designer. [E! Online]
• Elle MacPherson reportedly shops at Toys in Babeland. Unless there's some other "toy" store near Schiller's. [FWD]

• Claire Robinson, a former model and Canadian beauty queen, is suing her former acting agent, Jack Gilardi, and management company, Los Angeles's ICM. Robinson alleges that Gilardi's friend John Rockwell raped her in 2008, and that Gilardi himself touched her inappropriately in the back of a limousine. Robinson's class-action suit also will challenge the legality of an entertainment industry practice known as hip-pocketing — which I actually had to Google, because as it turns out there is an indignity that models are not subjected to — and will seek to designate ICM, one of the world's biggest talent agencies, under the RICO statute. Robinson claims that being hip-pocketed left her and others sexually vulnerable to their agents. She also says Gilardi and ICM sent her on fake auditions, or auditions for jobs for which they knew she was not qualified. In addition to actual damages for what she says is her ruined career, Robinson and any women who join her class action are seeking punitive damages to the tune of 10% of ICM's gross earnings for one year. ICM denied any and all wrongdoing through a spokeswoman. [AP]
• Calvin Klein finally won approval to tear down his 50,000 square foot castle in the Hamptons. The $5 million beach behemoth was originally built as a much smaller structure in the 1920s, and then renovated and expanded into something that looks like a Disneyland ride you'd take on shrooms by an eccentric junk-bonds billionaire in the 80s. Klein's new home will be a comparatively modest 17,000 square feet. [Newsday]
• Blind items: "Which unhinged, avant-garde downtown NYC designer is rumored to be in the running for a top job at Escada? Talk about non-traditional casting." And: "Which super-famous European supermodel fired her NYC apartment-sitter when she came home after an international job and found a condom at the foot of her bed?" [Stylelist]
• Whoa. Marvel Comics is creating a series called Models Inc., featuring some of their more fashionable superheroes — plus a cartoon Tim Gunn. He saves fashion from evildoers. [NY Times]
• Aboriginal artist Gloria Petyarr has designed a scarf for Hermès. Petyarr, who lives in a remote community 250 km from Alice Springs and has no access to a telephone, was paid a "substantial fee" according to an Australian gallerist known to the artist, and would earn royalties from sales of the scarf for 75 years. Her design features medicinal plants used by Aboriginal peoples. [Reuters]
• The bankrupt men's wear giant Hartmarx, which owns the brands Hickey Freeman and Hart Schaffner Marx (Barack Obama's suit brand), may have found a savior in the London-based private investment firm Emerisque. Emerisque is said to be offering to keep the chain in operation and give 80 cents on the dollar to Wells Fargo, Hartmarx's $100 million-plus creditor. Union leaders at Hartmarx's Chicago factory have threatened to sit in if Wells Fargo accepts a buyer who will liquidate the business. Negotiations are ongoing. [NY Times]
• Ann Taylor is dabbling in a little self-blame for poor sales results. CEO Kay Krill described some of the chain's troubles as "self-inflicted," saying "the product assortment was not compelling or relevant." Beats the old "it's the economy" excuse. And they're revamping their product lines to address it. [WSJ]
• Limited Brands suffered a 92% plunge in first-quarter earnings. Sales dropped 10% overall, and same-store sales fell 7%, which means that new stores opened in the past year actually did worse than their established counterparts. The company offered little explanation for the disastrous results in its one-page quarterly statement. [The Street]
• Andreas Ortiz, the man who runs Technical Garment USA, a small garment factory in the fashion district which was raided by the New York State Department of Labor last month, denies his business is a sweatshop. Ortiz is accused of failing to pay overtime and violating legal employee rest times. Two employees interviewed in Ortiz's presence claimed to earn $10 an hour, and to be paid on time. [NY Times]
• Agyness Deyn, new face of Uniqlo, is in this cute ad spot for the Japanese brand. [Grazia]

• Carine Roitfeld: "You know it's easier to look great in a dress when you are skinny. But I like a bit of curves and I like to do stories with different kinds of women...

• ... Because I see beauty in everyone." Can anyone remember the last time a French Vogue spread used a plus-size model? Because I cannot. [Fashionologie]
• Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd allegedly "chucked a wobbly" — in the native patois — when, while visiting Afghanistan, he wasn't able to blow-dry his hair prior to a photo op. [Times of London]

• Meanwhile, Gordon Brown wears four different kinds of foundation and bronzer, according to a step-by-step makeup guide left in the back of a taxi by an aide. [Daily Beast]
• Michelle Obama wore Michael Kors to the White House Correspondents Dinner, in case anyone is interested. Christian Slater, also in attendance, brushed up on his U.S. history: "I learned that John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died on the same day within hours of each other 50 years from signing the Declaration of Independence." [WWD]
• Business Week found the factory in China that makes a shoe Michelle Obama wore once last fall — the Bandolino "Berry" pump — and the management there reports that its U.S. shipments have increased by 50% this year on last. Imagine this woman's effects scaled industry-wide. [BusinessWeek]
• Speaking of which, the First Lady's de facto stylist, Ikram Goldman, is reported to have ordered a white tuxedo from Martin Margiela. Michelle's probably steering clear of the Belgian designer's human-hair coats and comb minidresses, however. [Metro]
• To heighten excitement for its resort collection, which will be presented in no doubt lavish circumstances in Venice this Thursday, Chanel uploaded a video of Lara Stone and Baptiste Giabiconi trying on the collection while Karl Lagerfeld directs and Miles Davis plays. (Moderately NSFW.) [Fashionologie]
• Kylie Minogue is doing a guest spot on next week's Britain's Next Top Model. [Mirror]
• Adriana Lima recommends boxing for health. Insert your own knock-out pun here. [People]
• Forever 21 knocked off Lanvin. Given the original t-shirt cost somewhere north of $600 US — it was 3% silk! — and given Alber Elbaz's firm position against doing a diffusion line of his own, it's hard to raise much ire about this. But has anyone at this chain ever had an idea of their own? [Fashionista]
• There was another high-end robbery in London's West End last night. This time, thieves targeted the Harvey Nichols, and stole hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of Garrard jewelry. An Anya Hindmarch store in the same neighborhood was burglarized last week, to the tune of £45,000. [UK Vogue]
• Union employees at Hart Schaffner Marx's Chicago factory are threatening a sit-in if the new owners of their bankrupt parent company, Hartmarx, move towards liquidation. [WWD]

• Diane von Furstenberg attended the inauguration with her oldest African-American friend, André Leon Talley. She hobnobbed with Oprah and David Axelrod, then dressed up in, um, a ski suit to watch the swearing-in. [Financial Times]

• Poor Peter Som sounds like he's having a hell of a time. He left Bill Blass to focus on his eponymous line, only for his financial backers to, well, back swiftly away. The Cut asked how he was doing, and he told them, "Shit happens. Sometimes it's a lot, sometimes it's a little. So I think everyone's going through some tough times...Why don't you ask me some questions about Michelle Obama's dress?" Turns out he submitted sketches of a long, white gown — "I guess I was in the ballpark, right?" — but obviously wasn't Michelle Obama's final choice. The way I see it, while a Google bump and a Good Morning America interview might have given him some press, the fundamentals are still what counts. And his ability to design beautiful clothes women want to wear is, at least, recession-proof. [The Cut]
• Clearly Som is not the only one in fashion hurting. Abercrombie & Fitch, which had extremely poor fourth quarter sales, laid off 50 workers at their Ohio headquarters. The mall store sees itself as an aspirational brand, so it refuses to discount its wares to move units during any downturn — their sale-happy competitors have no such compunction, which is part of the reason for Abercrombie's double-digit slide in same-store sales since August of last year. Further layoffs have not been ruled out. [Reuters]
• For another view on the recession, check out this interview with Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce, conducted back in September, just as the financial news was going from bad to awful. It's a snapshot of two men who, like we all were back then, are still grappling with the daily news of a world economy in a slow-motion crash. Says Gabbana, "The money hasn’t changed, it’s the mentality." Dolce offers, "Maybe we go well with crisis?" before pointing out a trend piece in Corriere della Serra about the financial crisis bringing people together. Gabbana shoots back, "Yes, but I’m also tired of reading this stupid stuff. I’m sick of it. We said the same thing after September 11. We just continue to do our job in the same way, maybe putting more energy, more fantasia, more creativity into it." As worthwhile a strategy as any. [Interview]
• Other designers plowing resolutely ahead without saying 'boo': Brioni, which introduced a made-to-measure suit that can cost up to $43,000 in October, and Hermès, whose limited-edition silk Josef Albers scarves of last fall cost $2800 each. The "elite of the elite" have bought 30 of the suits, astonishingly. [WSJ]
• Supposedly, LVMH's Bernard Arnault and PPR's François Pinault have buried the hatchet. What kind of world is it where two French luxury-industry billionaires who share a last-name syllable can't get along? [Financial Times]
• Iman compared herself to a duck in an interview with E! Canada. Because ducks look calm and collected, but are paddling furiously beneath the surface. A writer for the National Post, apparently unable to grasp why a supermodel would find an animal metaphor useful in describing her personality as opposed to her looks, takes this to mean Iman has body-image issues. [National Post]
• A stage manager who worked on the set of "Lipstick Jungle" is being charged with the theft of almost $30,000 worth of costumes. Designers who had lent the production their clothing and accessories noticed unreturned items going up on eBay. [CNN]
• Jason Wu is feeling the love this week. The 26-year-old designer of that one-shouldered white gown got his very own profile in the Times' "Sunday Styles" section, right ahead of fashion week. Reporter Eric Wilson mentions Wu was taking interviews in between working on his fall collection, but offers no further details of the intriguing fur-fest. (Wu told Fashion Week Daily fall would be all about fur. And "luxury.") [NY Times]
• Inaugural fashion coverage would not be complete without a lengthy, considered piece by Robin Givhan all about the styles of dress of the attendees not named Obama. [Washington Post]
• For reasons unclear, Spanish feminists protested a Zara store in Madrid. [The F Word]
• J Peterman, the company best known for "Seinfeld" gags and a real-life 1999 bankruptcy, is back. [MSNBC]
• Awesome lady Jane Birkin watched the Hermès men's show in Paris wearing an Obama pin. [WWD]
• Chloe Sevigny talks to the Times about her style, but gives no information about that unisex collection she's presenting this week in Paris. She does, however, shop for hosiery from a guy who is "like the Soup Nazi, but he sells socks." [NY Times]
• Meanwhile, Padma Lakshmi has a line of fine jewelry she'd like very much to sell you. [WWD]
• The Fashion Design Council of India has a new program: model rehab. It's like industry exit counseling, to get you a new job when the clients stop booking you. [Hindustan Times]
• Jim Horne, male model of the 40s and 50s, and first cover subject of the newly renamed Gentleman's Quarterly, died at age 91 in New York. The business certainly was different then. [NY Times]
• Women shoppers are increasingly angered by the poor construction of budget fashion items. Complaints because of unwarned shrinkage, fading, breaking zippers, running dyes, and embellishments that fall off at the first wear are up 22%. Let's not take it anymore! Until there is another sale at H&M. [Independent]
• Marc Jacobs has palatial new digs in someAndre Balazs-developed condo building in SoHo. It's 2,500-square-feet, presumably expensive. [New York Post]
• Pam Anderson's Vivienne Westwood campaign is out. Shockingly, the pairing results in a less than demure aesthetic...let's just say Pamela Anderson's breasts are prominently displayed. Which is more subtle than the pics themselves! [Fashionista]
• At least they're going out with a bang: Hartmarx Corp., the Chicago company that owns Obama Inaugural tux-maker Hart Schaffner Marx, has filed for bankruptcy. [WSJ]
• Kanye West "promotes" his new Louis Vuitton-collab sneakers in a bizarre new video. Which is to say, he proclaims that he's changing his name from "the Louis Vuitton Don" (?) to "Martin Louis the King, Jr." (?) then declares, "and until then, I will be in the building, swagger, until one hundred thousand trillion." [Racked]
• Speaking of odd collaborations, we don't even want to imagine what kind of douchey teen will carry the new Ric Owens Eastpaks to school. At the very least, the inkstains had better be solid gold. [Fashionista]

• Good morning! Obama is president, did you hear? The hat Aretha Franklin wore to sing "My Country, Tis Of Thee" was hand-molded and embellished with Swarovski crystals by Detroit milliner Luke Song. [WWD]

• Sasha and Malia's colorful ensembles were all from J. Crew kid's line Crewcuts. When consumers figured this out yesterday, traffic crashed J. Crew's site. [NY Daily News]
• Michelle Obama's gown of choice for her 10+ inaugural balls last night was by Jason Wu. The 26-year-old designer had thought he was a long shot. Says US magazine of Michelle's one-shouldered cream gown, "She's bringing sexy back." Really. Her husband wore a tux by his favorite suit maker, Hart Schaffner Marx. [US]
• The New Yorker's Judith Thurman, who profiled Isabel and Ruben Toledo last March, spoke to the designer and her husband about the First Lady's choice to wear one of her designs at her husband's swearing-in. Says Ruben, “To be woven into the thread of this historical moment is a major blessing." Making the outfit was a family affair: "Vitelio Toledo, Ruben’s father and the couple’s pattern cutter, was particularly proud to have worked on it. The seamstresses, almost all immigrant women, also took particular pride in participating in a historic moment. Ruben told me that they added a very fine inter-layer of pashmina to help keep Michelle warm on the dais." How touching. Maybe someone can please hire Isabel Toledo again now? [New Yorker]
• Regardless of whether or not that happens, Toledo's sales are sure to see a boost. Barney's Simon Doonan reports scrambling to get her wares into his windows yesterday. "It’s going to be an Isabel Toledo homage," he said, before adding, "I’m sort of annoyed that Michelle Obama has spring merchandise before us!" [WWD]
• Here is a 735-word story about Michelle Obama's eyebrows. [Chicago Tribune]
• And why not let her hairstylist in on the action? [Allure]
• Lois Cassanos has been make-up artist to every president since Nixon. Cassanos claims she never uses anything more than foundation, concealer, and powder on her charges, since the leader of the free world has got to look manly, and reveals there was nothing on George H. W. Bush's lips when he said "read my lips." Good to know! [Allure]
• Can everyone please stop with the tacky Obama tie-ins? It's opportunistic and the thought of wearing something called "Obalma" on my lips makes my toes curl. [BrandFreak]
• Kim Kardashian is thinking of forswearing fur — because when her sister Khloe agreed to do so, PETA put her in her very own naked ad. Could it be that vain entertainment personalities are more interested by the thought of appearing nude and hot on a billboard somewhere than the actual plight of farmed animals worldwide? [E Online]
• PETA nonetheless salutes Payless's decision to produce its first-ever totally non-leather shoe line. In fact the animal rights group gave the company some kind of an award they call a "proggy." [PETA]
• Audrina Patridge vamps it up in her unique Real Girl way in the campaign for her Arden B. jeans line. Jonathan Rhys Meyers and celebspawn Alexandra Richards and Ben Taylor (Carly Simon and James Taylor's son) also scored spots in the deluge of spring denim ads. [NY Mag]
• New York designer Valdemar Iodice has an approach virtually guaranteed to get editors and buyers to make it to his scaled-back Fall/Winter show, even though a showroom presentation is a little less sexy than seeing designs on the catwalk. Upping the stakes for free gifts henceforth, he's offering attendees free dresses. Funny, that's normally how they make sure the models show up. The worm turns, etc. [WSJ]
• Goldman Sachs downgraded Polo Ralph Lauren to a "sell"; shares slid 7% in the remainder of the day's trading. [WSJ]
• Another groan-inducing Kenneth Cole billboard: "In tough times, some land on their feet (others on the Hudson). — Kenneth Cole. Thank you to the pilots, crew, and N.Y.ers for all that you did, and all that you do." How is it that Cole is only able to express even totally respectable notions in the voice of your corny old uncle-to-be-avoided at the annual reunion? [WWD]

• The Pussycat Dolls are launching a clothing line for La Senza. It's underwear...or is it? [The Sun]
• Fashion "designer" Lauren Conrad knows her demo: sorority sisters! [NY Magazine]
• Gwen Stefani and those four hapless Harajuku girls will be in the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. Presumably their float will trail hers. [Racked]
• Chicago suiter makes hay: “Dressing Presidential. Pick Your Power Suit. President-elect Barack Obama Found His at Hart Schaffner Marx.” [WWD]

• Oh dear. Word is, Lucky is laying off editors. [Portfolio]
• Dame Vivienne Westwood's 'Chaos Point' show introduced her Gold Label line, raised money for environmental concerns. [ElleUK]
• Speaking of charity...here are the Dame's recessionista tips: “Women should try on their husband’s jackets and even boxer shorts for size as outer wear...Wearing political badges is also a great look and kerchiefs worn as knickers can be fun for the disco or beach. You can also tie tablecloths or even blankets around yourself to look good." [Daily Express]
• Plumes, Sarah Stein's new study of feathers —- and, by extension, of course, the fortunes of the millinery industry — is on our eccentric Christmas list. [WSJ]
• The NFL Shop is courting women. Seemingly, Jessica Simpson has failed to start a trend in skintight jerseys. [BrandWeek]
• Are we the only ones who find the Times' vicarious "critical shopper" column a despair? Especially when the clothes are as rad as these Oscar de la Rentas... [New York Times]
• Ralph Lauren donates $13 million towards the restoration of the Smithsonian's anthem-inspiring 200-year-old Old Glory. Well, he's made a lot of money off the stars and stripes; nice to give back. [USA Today]
• Do people still wear Docs? And would those people wear special-edition Raf Simons docs? [WWD]
• Cautious Burberry cuts costs. [WSJ]
• The drama of shopping H&M's new line! [Village Voice]
• Doll porn: "Nearly 90 dolls dressed by top designers were displayed at the Mini Palais in Paris Monday night ahead of an auction benefiting UNICEF. While most dolls were decked out sumptuous evening gowns by Lanvin or Oscar de la Renta, others were slipped into colorful and comfortable frocks, like Christian Lacroix’s freestyle patchwork. Chantal Thomass went cubist, making hers entirely with Ladurée pastry boxes." [WWD]
• A counterfeit bag plot thickens: is the mob involved? (The Godfather: Gucci edition.) [UPI]
• Designer Roksanda Ilinic: "When I go to the countryside or on a skiing holiday, I am always horribly under-equipped - I wear high heels when everyone else is in ski boots...It's a terrible mistake, but I can't say it won't happen again." Minus the part about holidays, skiing, and heels, we can totes relate! [VogueUK]

[Image via The Sun]