• Michelle Obama wore Michael Kors to celebrate the National Design Awards winners on Friday. "What I love about design is the artistic and scientific complexity that becomes useful," said the first lady, to a crowd that included Francisco Costa. [WWD]

• Meanwhile, Ikram Goldman — the Chicago boutique owner who is the closest thing to a stylist for Michelle Obama — is in New York to view pre-fall collections. Although Goldman won't comment on anything the first lady might or might not wear in future, she did say that Thakoon Panichgul (whose clothes have been worn by Mrs. Obama before) had produced "probably my favorite collection that I've seen so far." [Style.com]
• And the fashion love for the Obamas goes beyond mere dresses: Jacquetta Wheeler pulled an André Leon Talley and volunteered for the campaign for three weeks in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, last October. The supermodel described the 17-hour days she pulled as "the most interesting and rewarding thing I've ever done in my life." [Vogue UK]
• Wannabe model Amber Le Bon is too "free and liberated" for university. [Telegraph]
• After the rejection, by the administrator of the bankrupt company, of three bids for Christian Lacroix's fashion house, a fourth more "serious" offer has been received from Italy's Borletti group. If a buyer is not found by the end of this month, the current owners, Florida's Falic Group, plan to shutter the house and continue just producing goods that license the Lacroix name. [WWD]
• Three words: Hello Kitty Sneakers. Fourth word: $145. [HighSnobiety]
• Amber Valetta has announced a design partnership with Los Angeles label Monrow. The supermodel's pieces — t-shirts, simple dresses, and blazers — very closely mirror Monrow's existing offerings. [Elle UK]
• Scott Schuman got drunk at a party in his honor in Toronto and decided to give a speech described by one guest as "rambling" and "nonsensical." That same night, he went on the record with Globe and Mail reporter Amy Verner. What ensued was an object lesson in why not to give interviews under the influence: Schuman leveled spurious attacks on designers James Coviello and Peter Som ("When I had my showroom in New York, [I told them], 'You have to build your brand,' and they didn't listen"), disdain for the media that have helped make him ("I don't need another interview with any other magazine or newspaper in the world") and plenty of bragging about his own sexual prowess ("I'm pretty good at the sex. And pretty good at picture taking. That's about it. Garance is pretty happy. And the hotel-room neighbours are pretty pissed.") "Garance" is Garance Doré, the French street style blogger for whom Schuman left his wife of 20 years — who had financially supported him after his showroom business failed — Christa. [OmgBlog]
• Isaac Mizrahi's QVC just-announced program sounds like it might be zany good fun to watch when it launches in December. Called "Isaac Mizrahi Live!" it'll weave the designer's pitches between his extemporaneous monologues about life and his other daily activities. It'll be filmed in his real New York studio. The show will also sell Mizrahi's cheesecakes — which he, an accomplished home cook, fine-tunes the recipes for and decorates. Hopefully they'll find time to plumb his affection for the word "sauté" as well: "I liked the way it sounded — sauté, sauté, sauté!" [WSJ]
• There is an astounding 46.6 square feet of retail space for every single person in the United States. But, as we all know, this recession is causing that number to fall. Businesses are closing up shop entirely: regional department stores like Mervyn's and Gottschalks, as well as chains like Steve & Barry's, S&K Famous Brands, Abercrombie & Fitch's Ruehl, and Pacific Sunwear's D.e.m.o. and One Thousand Steps. Troubled retailers that still hope to survive this downtown are nonetheless shutting stores left and right: Jones Apparel Group is closing 225. Ann Taylor, 163. All told, 8.1 million square feet of retail space was vacated during the last quarter. UBS Securities expects a contraction of 10% in retail space over the next few years. [WWD]
• San Francisco artist Stephanie Syjuco decided to counterfeit designer handbags — in handicrafts. Her crocheted objects created after brands like Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Burberry, and Chanel are intended as a "critique of a political economy," and you can watch a short documentary about Syjuco's project. [Threadbared]
• A slightly more par-for-the-course tale of handbag counterfeiting is buried in the story of last week's New Jersey money-laundering and corruption case, which led to the arrest of 44 businessmen and politicians. The government informant who helped make the case claimed his fortune came from the fake handbag business. The FBI gave the informant large sums of cash, which he then gave to the defendants to launder; his explanation for how he came by the cash was caught on tape. "The business is very good now because the market's down — economy's down, and everyone wants to buy. Instead of spending $1,000 for a Prada bag, we sell it for $200; Gucci bag, $300. It's $1,200 in the store," the informant, who is believed to be 36-year-old rabbi's son Solomon Dwek, said in June, 2008. [WWD]
• Oh, look: someone figured out how to make money from a fashion website by combining editorial content, user-generated content, and e-commerce. Magazines take note. [NYTimes]
• Inventors have discovered how to turn used coffee grounds into a soft, breathable, but water resistant fabric. [Guardian]

• In a video, skeevy CEO Dov Charney claims that "there's a conspiracy against celebrities in the Hollywood area" and that "the judges are generally patriarchal, they don't want to give celebrities a chance." Down with the patriarchy! [The Street]
• Word is, Katie Holmes shot her Miu Miu campaign yesterday. [Fashionologie]
• More inaugural gown sketches! We're not feeling 'em. [Politico]
• Colombian bulletproof jackets were inspired by our trigger-happy Veep. “This is a new market for us. Dick Cheney has helped raise awareness of accidents." [Think Progress]
• Thakoon, maker of Michelle Obama's "reverse kimono" DNC dress, has discontinued the design. [WSJ]

• Rich kid Peaches Geldof's music and fashion tips! "Most people who know me know I don’t follow fashion. I mean, I just dyed the tips of my hair blue for God’s sake. I hate stars who look totally overstyled, like Victoria Beckham; give me Courtney Love, with her babydoll nighties and ripped fishnet tights, any day. For me, fashion is about pushing boundaries. Vivienne Westwood once told me that people who aren’t creative or have no love for art don’t dress up, I asked her why people should and she replied simply, 'Because it’s fun.' Sage advice." [Nylon]
• DNR, the men's trade fashion mag, has been folded into WWD. [Fashionista]
• Steve & Barry's liquidates. [WWD]
• So does Bill Blass New York. [WWD]
• Cathy Horyn's all about Norma Kamali for Wal-Mart. Maybe we can call it...VallMa? [New York Times]
• Gap surpasses Wall Street's third quarter expectations. [Reuters]
• Liz Claiborne, however, is hit hard. [WWD]
• 80's icon Romeo Gigli is back, baby. "I have never created for 'someone' in particular, always for 'anyone' willing to take a journey of the imagination made up of dissonant harmonies, freedom and sharing." [IHT]
• Hoping to offset shopping malaise, Fifth Avenue outdoes itself with Christmas decorations. [IHT]
• Madonna's astroturf special? It's Vuitton. [New York]
• Mod maven Mary Quant unveils her special-edition stamp. [Sassybella]
• Modestly belly-buttoned moddle Karolina Kurkova has been voted "World's Sexiest Woman" by E. [InventorSpot]
• Beyonce's Japanese ads for “Samantha Thavasa” handbags — with singer Takuya Kimura — are pretty cool. [LifeFiles]

• Katie Holmes is the new face of Miu Miu. Srsly? [New York Magazine]
• Marc Jacobs' company has been accused of bribing a state official so the designer "could get a desirable venue for his fashion show." They're paying $1 million in fines. [TMZ]
• In happier news, Marc is open to marriage! Even if California isn't. “I refuse to let anyone tell me who I can and cannot marry, and who I can and cannot love. That’s just bullshit...Wherever we’d have to go. If he’s up for it, I’m up for it.” [New York Magazine]
• Are women overreacting about American Apparel's latest ads? Reverse Cowgirl's Susannah Breslin thinks so. Personally, I just hate leggings as pants! Seriously, we're talking blouses tucked into leggings, kids. [Reverse Cowgirl]
• Jessica Biel is not, we repeat, not, designing handbags for William Rast. [Fashionista via People]

• Steve & Barry's files for bankruptcy for second time. [WWD]
• Leighton Meester continues the strange Gossip Girl cast-sneaker trend as she becomes the new face of Reebok. [Fashionista]
• Karl Lagerfeld just designed a piece of French currency. "The limited-edition collector’s coin, which features Chanel’s signature quilted pattern on one side and the head of Coco Chanel on the other, was created to commemorate the 125th anniversary of Ms. Chanel’s birthday." [WSJ]
• Celeb spawn Julia Restoin-Roitfeld and Dakota Johnson Griffith are the new models for Mango. [WWD]
• Diane Von Furstenberg: "My mission is to make women feel more confident. I do it through fashion. I do it through philanthropy. I do it through everything I do. I didn't know what I wanted to do when I grew up, but I knew the kind of woman I wanted to become and I became that woman: an independent woman who was in the driving-seat. Because I am in fashion I have given other women tools to become that also." [Telegraph]
• In a rather less vague example of this, Eileen Fisher gives out this year's Business Grants: “With the credit market tightening and small businesses finding it increasingly difficult to secure financing, it is important to support woman entrepreneurs more than ever." [WWD]
• PETA comes down hard on "bunny butcher" Donna Karan. [Racked]
• George David, the ahem "colorful" head of Marks & Spencer's Per Una brand, steps down. [Guardian]
• In other M&S news: this affordable bespoke shirt idea seems genius. [Telegraph]
• Sarah Palin sports wrist corsage to Alaska's birthday party. From her date?! [LA Times]
• Meanwhile at his own birthday party, Christian Siriano — "pausing for impromptu dance-offs with friends and later, grinning over platters of cupcakes festooned with sparklers" — was feted by the MisShapes. [Observer]
• Many are boycotting Australian wool because of a "barbaric" process designed to prevent maggots; wool producers say there's no alternative. [Reuters]
• Naomi Campbell to host Miami photo retrospective...of herself. [Yahoo]
• The Limited experiences major net fall. [WSJ]
• How to accessorize your Prada phone? The Prada Link, of course — "a braceletlike leather and metal timepiece that alerts Prada phone users to calls and SMS messages." [WWD]
• Proenza Schouler designer Lazaro Hernandez raises his own turkeys, which for some reason, makes sense. [New York]
• Recycled soda can lingerie. Green? Sure. Cool? Very. Comfy? Yeah, not so much. [InventorSpot]
• On the Sonia Rykiel retrospective: "She did conceptualism before the conceptualists, Japanese before the Japanese, minimalism before the minimalists. So in a way she smoothed the way for all movements in contemporary fashion." Well, il faut pas exaggerer! [Guardian]

• Ooh! Sneak peek at Christian Siriano's bizarre "Moody Mamas" maternity line! [New York Magazine]
• Russia's fashion elite feel the financial burn; neglect shopping. "Usually abuzz with Moscow's rich, the shop was populated only by the mounds of black caviar and giant lobsters left untouched in fridges." [Reuters]
• Jesse McCartney (he's part of the Disney stable for those over the age of 16) is launching a scent. [WWD]
• I'm sure you can figure it out, but here's a how-to on Palin Halloween costumes! [Sassybella]

• Call your PO on a Prada cell! [WWD]
• Scrawny designer Hedi Slimane now a photographer instead. [Fashionista]
• New CEO is optimistic about Steve & Barry's. Although seriously, what's he supposed to say? [NY Times]
• Nike is suing WalMart for allegedly ripping off a shoe, selling a cheaper version. Completely implausible! [WSJ]
• Forbes "discovers" 10 "undiscovered designers" who, despite being completely secret are, you know, already being sold at boutiques and stuff. [Forbes]
• How to weather the recession? Cross-dressing! But seriously, I've scored in the boy's section at SalvA. [WSJ]
• Gotta say, if a moddle's gotta multitask, Karen Elson's Nashville boutique sounds kind of good: "The model, musician, and Jack White spouse joints forces with Venus & Mars’ Amy Patterson to open Venus & Mars—The Showroom. As Refinery29 notes, the shop “will be stocked with rare high-end vintage duds for men and women (with the option of custom tailoring in-house, upping the profile and selection of what was already, in the words of GQ, ‘the best clothing store in America’ two years in a row.'” [BlackBook]
• Barney's fashion director on Rodarte: “They are two of the best designers right now.…I really do know. I don’t brag that often, but I really do know.” [WWD]
• Illustrator It-Girl Daisy de Villeneuve is collaborating with Absolut Vodka on this London installation, "The House of Masquerade." "A vintage clothing boutique and cocktail bar in one, for five nights only, the space will play host to a fashion wonderland, offering shoppers the chance to come in and play dress-up - there'll even be a dedicated stylist on hand to help - while chilling out in the elegant surround." [VogueUK]
• FabSugar brings us its Budget Shopper's Guide to Fall. (Otherwise known as, not shopping.) But it's good: nothing over $50 for once. [FabSugar]

• Is Gossip Girl pretty boy Chace Crawford set to replace McDreamy as the face of Versace? [Perez Hilton]
• Fashion slang seems to have no regard for a word's actual meaning: "Designer Ashleigh Verrier said her favorite fashion word was "diaphanous" — an adjective characterizing fineness of texture. 'As in, 'That dress is so diaphanous!'' she said. 'I like 'Glamit'," said fashion designer Marc Bouwer, who uses the term for a fashion line. 'It is so gorgeous and glamorous. You don't want to use cliched words.'Designer Thuy Diep said 'prune"'was popular within her fashion crew to express disapproval." [Reuters]
• Vogue-interning hockey playing fashionisto Sean Avery on who should play him in the rumored movie about him: "'Shiiiiiiiiiiiiit, man. I dunno I dunno I dunno I dunno I dunno. Fuck. I dunno!...I don't know anything. That's what casting guys are for! Shit. No questions!'" Sounds like that'll be some sparkling dialogue! [Radar]

• This is like telling us the Earth is flat! An "expert in visual perception" claims that vertical stripes are actually unflattering! Prune! [Guardian]
• As if her life was not sufficiently charmed, stunning editrice spawn Julia Restoin-Roitfeld is now art-directing! "Casting fellow model and brother Vladimir as the male lead, Restoin-Roitfeld art-directed the campaign from start to finish. The result is a super-sexy music-inspired campaign that lends Rock & Republic's image rock and roll cool." [Daily Mail]
• Eva Mendes is feeling her banned CK ad: "It’s very rock ’n’ roll; I kind of like it. I want to do more. I want keep pushing the envelope.” [WWD]
• Apparently "pushing the envelope" means working on a home decor line with Macy's. "The line, created with Mendes' boyfriend, film producer George Augusto, will be called "Vida" and will initially feature five bedding styles." [Crains]
• High-street brands making token (read: "almost no") effort to improve the conditions of overseas manufacturing. [Guardian]
• More on the kinda heartbreaking Sears Fashion Week tent. [AdAge]
• Embattled retailer Steve & Barry's now getting sinister emails from a supplier: "When customers 'happily shop' at the chain, 'they are actually buying clothes … soaking of blood and tears of worldwide vendors,' one e-mail read." [NYT via a href="http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/12/supplier-has-harsh-words-for-steve-barrys/>The Post]
• In honor of fashion week, Luca Luca executives will ring in the closing bell of the NASDAQ Stock Market. Brokers will almost certainly not care. [WWD]
• After years of giving it short shrift, Calvin Klein focuses on high-end collections again. [WSJ]
• Teen spending down. [Portfolio]
• Gok Wan (the British Carson Kressley) on his idols: "Sarah Jessica Parker - she has amazing style, and when I saw her and Vivienne Westwood [another one of Gok’s favourites] on the red carpet at the same time, I didn’t know whether to throw up or fart - I was so excited!" Why not do both? [Mirror]
• Albino model Shaun Ross breaks the mold. [NYT]
• Things are looking gloomy for French Connection. Has FCUK had its day? [FT]
• Fashion minions give the Nuclear Wintour a piece of their minds - okay, anonymously. "Painter Geoffrey Raymond hawked his portrait of Wintour, dubbed The Annotated Anna, to Bryant Park and asked fashionistas to write a message to Wintour on the canvas. Comments ranged from 'Scaaary!'‚ to the more flattering 'You look great without the sunglasses"' Raymond plans to sell the painting on eBay, with a starting bid of $3,500." Wait, that's the best they can do? Pass that thing around Jezebel! [The First Post]
• This pleases us: fashionistas waiting on line get into the Target "pop-up bodegas." [WWD]
• Tory Burch seeks outside investors for her boho-country club empire. [WSJ]

• Rihanna has been made the face of Gucci’s new UNICEF campaign. Gucci's creative director, Frida Giannini, chose the pop star and founder of the Believe Foundation after seeing her perform at a UNICEF fundraiser in February. "When we decided to dedicate a full ad campaign, more than just creating products, to really come out and show our commitment to UNICEF, we wanted someone with a strong personality," Giannini explained. "I felt a musician and a beautiful woman was the perfect icon for this campaign." [ElleUK]
• Louis Vuitton has introduced a new bag that comes emblazoned with cornball jokes by mid-century Borscht Belt comedian Henny Youngman. (My wife went to the beauty shop and got a mud pack. For two days she looked beautiful. Then the mud fell off," is one.) It's part of the "Jokes" series by designer Richard Prince "pertaining to sexual frustrations and middle-class American mentality." [The Life Files]
• Naomi Campbell on fashion's inequalities: "Now at Paris Haute Couture there was only one black girl out of all the shows. It cannot be a trend." [Yahoo]

• The much-anticipated Lindsay Lohan legging line has hit Intuition's shelves. Zippers, knee pads and leopard prints are involved. [Bauer-Griffin
• Some ranking of fashion capitals shows that while "the big five" still dominate (that's NYC, Rome, Paris, Milan and London), "B-list" cities like Sydney and Dubai are "coming on strong." [Yahoo]
• A judge has green-lit a class-action lawsuit against possibly lead-tainted LVMH lipsticks. [Cosmetics News]
• London scenester and daughter-of-Sir-Bob, Peaches Geldof, is hawking a bunch of her old clothes on eBay. Some of the dosh goes to charity. [Sunday Mirror]
• Alleged 'Bust-firming bra' promises '4 weeks to a firmer looking you.' We call possibly-temporary-and-almost-unnoticeable-improvement-bullshit. [Victoria's Secret]
• Alexander McQueen goes all high-tech with an e-commerce option. [WWD]
• Gossip Girl crosses the pond! The show, "perhaps, the most cynical product placement exercise in history, is set to transform British teenage girls into preppy Manhattan Upper East-Siders." Come on, you know you love us. [Guardian]
• Los Angeles luxury market pushes the architectural envelope: "L.A. is in the midst of a designer boutique boom that's as much about statement-making architecture and one-upsmanship as it is about selling bags and boots." [Los Angeles Times]
• Macy's chairman puts a brave face on dismal market. [WWD]
• A wedding's locale “has everything to do with choosing the dress.” As They Might Be Giants bride discovered the hard way. [New York Times]
• Tragic YSL muse Talitha Getty. [Telegraph]

• Want to hear Jesse Jackson say something embarrassing and regrettable about cutting Obama's nuts out that is probably even more regrettable considering the supposed context is some shit about how Barack Obama needs to stop focusing so much on taking black men to task for being bad role models? Then turn on O'Reilly at 8! Yeah, I'm choosing beer in this case. [Drudge]
• Test missile launches always seem like the ten million dollar equivalent of showing up at your ex-boyfriend's party with some hot dude you blow at around midnight in the corner, in full view of at least three of his closest friends. Which is to say, they're just sort of inexplicably lame to me but it's the sort of behavior that shows you know exactly how to fuck with dudes. [WSJ]
• Sure you can get mad at Obama for supporting this rotten warrantless wiretapping retroactive immunity crap, but do you really think "swing voters" would buy that he doesn't support the U.S. Constitution solely on grounds that he's an Allah-worshiping terrorist? [Salon]
• Handy "analogy for the whole fucking economy" of the day #1: My grandfather's people are about to start getting paid in Euros. [WSJ]

• Handy " " " #2: High-flying super expansionary company employing 17,000 mostly unskilled uneducated Americans and some untold number of Chinese sweatshop workers goes down the tubes because it never really made money in the first place, and as it turns out its actual "earnings" came mostly from the same sweet loans and real estate kickbacks that have sent the rest of the system into disarray, but at the end of the day some rich Penn guys and Sarah Jessica Parker will get paid. [WSJ]
• Oh yeah so the market fell today, led by companies involved in those mortgage thingys, putting the S&P 500 index officially in the same "bear" category as the Dow. [WSJ]
• Angela Merkel does not have a crush on Obama, but her foreign minister does, which I guess means this whole awesome saga is playing out in Germany about some speech he wants to give before the Bradenburg Gate. [Breitbart]
• A depressing way to remind oneself that Istanbul is not actually the capital of Turkey. [NYT]

• OMG remember Efraim Diveroli, the 22-year-old Andy Samberg lookalike from Miami with the $300 million defense contract to sell ancient Chinese ammunition to the Afghan insurgency via Albania? Apparently the US Ambassador was involved in covering up the scam, probably because Efraim was also Albania's leading supply of whores. [NYT]
• And speaking of…people we haven't thought about in a few months, Ashley Alexandra Dupre updated her MySpace! [People]
• 92% of Americans believe in God or something Godlike that doesn't sound quite as lame. But there are ways to combat this! 10% of people raised without religion describe themselves as atheists, and that likelihood goes even higher if you raise your kids Jewish. [LA Times]
• Rich people are actually less happy because they spend so much time doing the unpleasant things required to become rich, such as laying people off and outsourcing business functions to Bangladesh and actually like "working." [Washington Post]

• It's one thing to hope for another terror attack when you're among friends but when you're a McCain adviser talking to a reporter from a major national magazine you're going to get some shit. [TIME]
• That discount retail chain that brought the world the Sarah Jessica Parker clothing line is badly needs $30 million quick, I know you feel soooo bad for them. [WSJ]
• Why I love this country: when a candidate breaks a promise that was a centerpiece of his early base of support because, after all, all the late-adopters to the cause wouldn't be giving him so much money if they expected him to give it back, we call that bad for the "brand." [ABC News]
• The Economist discusses plans for a 100% Ron Paul supporter-occupied residential community in a story that invited me to wonder what it would be like if there was a 100% Jezebel commenter-occupied compound. Would you guys have a sex shrine like the Mormons? Would SinisterRouge be the first evicted? Would I, like Ron Paul, be afraid to visit? [Economist]
• America might try to open an "interest center" — sort of like an Embassy popup store, or an Embassy Lite — in Tehran, which I think is a good idea as long as they still get to sell alcohol. [Wash Post]
• Morgan Tsvangirai is hiding out at the Dutch Embassy and everyone else involved on the anti-Mugabe side of Zimbabwe's little flirtation with "democracy" got arrested so I guess that's the end of that. [Washington Post]

• OMG: Rachel Zoe has been disinvited from the Anna Wintour-hosted Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Gala, taking place Monday night in New York. This is what you get when you tempt the gods and proclaim yourself more important than Vogue. [Fashion Week Daily]
  
• Also, Wintour has instructed Vogue staffers that they may only wear white, silver, or other "pale shades." Just like the colors of faces that she likes to see on her magazine's cover! [Fashion Week Daily]
  
• French Vogue editor-in-chief Carine Roitfeld and designer/Chanel creative director "Krazy" Karl Lagerfeld were both named to the Time 100 List, as influential members of the fashion community. Something about the way they both made fashion about "the street" or something. [Vogue UK]
  
• Gisele Bundchen is still the top-paid model, according to Forbes. Heidi Klum is the second. Take that, Moss. [Sassybella]

• Agyness Deyn: The mannequin. [BlackBook]
• The Rogan for Target collection is also going to be sold at Barneys. Which is not Target at all. [WSJ]
• Steve & Barry's is going to be shilling Sex and the City movie merchandise, which will be licensed for the store under Sarah Jessica Parker's "Bitten" label. [Sassybella]
• Uh oh: Seems the women behind the red carpet label Marchesa are having a bit of a tiff. While Georgina Chapman and Keren Craig used to be knows as the label's "co-designers", their titles have been changed on their website: Chapman is now listed as "designer" and Craig is noted as "co-founder." [Page Six]
• Dockers: Trying to reach out to the hip and the young. LOL. [MediaPost]
• Christian Siriano: Designed a dress for Puma. [Chic Report]
• Helena Christensen on why she loves photographer Peter Lindbergh: "Even when I looked pretty funny back in the day with my baby fat, perm, and hippie clothes, he put me on the cover of British Vogue!" Oh, models. [Fashion Week Daily]
• The latest beauty tool you didn't know you needed: An eyelash comb. [BellaSugar]
• The Versace resort in Dubai is... sorta exactly what you would expect a Versace resort in Dubai to be. [Chic Report]
• Diane von Furstenberg, Dolce & Gabbana, Oscar de la Renta, Akira Isogawa, the members of Coldplay, Jeff Koons, Philippe Starck and Tory Burch have all been asked to create "themes" for iGoogle's new customized homepage thingies. [Sassybella]
• Vanessa Paradis: The new face of Miu Miu? [Glaumrama]
• Calvin Klein went on a little field trip to Dubai last week. Blah blah, models behind plexiglass. The usual. [WWD, sub req'd]
• Jones New York: Stock is up, profits are down. The usual. [WWD, sub req'd]
• Kohl's: Gonna slow down its expansion plan 'cause their scared of the economy. The usual. [WWD, sub req'd]
• If you want to wear a pantsuit, make sure it's not double-breasted. [WSJ]
• Blue's Clues's: The shoes — at a Payless near you. [BrandWeek]

• Keith Richards for Louis Vuitton = Awesome. [WWD, sub req'd]
  
• Amy Winehouse played a Fendi party in Paris and talked about her mumps onstage before offering some gratitude to, like, someone: "Thanks for asking me to play. Whoever asked me to play." [WWD, sub req'd]
  
• Meta Kate Olsen came dressed as Karl Lagerfeld for the Chanel show Friday. [WWD, 4th item]
  
• Miss J (Alexander of Top Model) to WaPo fashion critic Robin Givhan on a Nina Ricci model: "She has that hungry walk. She's mad because she's so hungry!" [Off the Runway]
  
• Formerly anorexic model Crystal Renn on why a girl's gotta eat: "How can you be happy if you're working out for five hours a day? People want to hire happy models. You need fat to think!" Um, modeling requires thought? [Telegraph]
  
• Who is the man who would wear Juicy Couture cologne? [BellaSugar]

• Sayeth Heidi Klum: "Victoria's Secret should do men's underwear, Seal would love that. Bloomers are just not cool, boxers are all right, but there are so many sexier things we could do for guys." Like, just get 'em naked? [Times of India]
• Expensive shit alert! The $110,000 purse, only at Bergdorf Goodman. [Chic Report]
• And on that note, Steve & Barry's (home of Sarah Jessica Parker's "Bitten" line) just received an $197 million loan from GE. [WWD, sub req'd]
• Agyness Deyn is England's best-dressed celeb. [Telegraph]
• Anna Wintour did not attend the Lanvin show in Paris on Friday. But French TV personality Mlle Agnes did...costumed as Wintour: "Getting through security was mighty speedy." [WWD, 2nd item]
• The perm is back! [Telegraph]
• Sean "Diddy" Combs: Helping people every day! Or at least designing scarves to benefit Dress for Success. [WWD, 2nd item]
• Donna Karan: Helping people every day! Or at least having a garage sale of her old shit in the name of charity. [WWD, sub req'd]
• Helena Christensen: Helping people every day! Or at least auctioning stamps with her kid's pic on them on eBay for charity. [Sassybella]
• Faced with the coming recession, women are cutting back on their spending habits before men are. [MediaPost]
• Yay for Lush for no longer using palm oil, since it's wicked bad for the environment. [Guardian]

Look 1: Belted safari jacket, $39.50; safari shorts, $22.50; scarf, $12.50; clutch, $19.50. Verdict: The scarf looks a little dated styled that way, but go tie it around your wrist and you've got a cute outfit. If you don't fear short shorts, that is.
Look 2: Pullover safari dress, $34.50; bangle bracelet, $9.50. Verdict: Practical and easy — all good things.

Look 1: Cropped safari jacket, $39.50; pencil skirt, $29.50. Verdict: A cute suit for every chickadee.
Look 2: Belted tee dress, $29.50; bangle bracelet, $9.50. Verdict: H&M better watch its back.

Look 1: Belted safari jacket, $39.50; safari shorts, $22.50, bangle bracelet, $9.50. Verdict: I'd wear this on the prowl.
Look 2: Printed top, $19.50; bangle bracelet, $9.50. Verdict: With jeans, why not?

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Look 1: Pullover safari dress, $34.50; clutch, $29.50. Verdict: Good for work or play.
Look 2: Safari jumper, $29.50; bangle bracelet, $9.50. Verdict: I'm sorta scared of jumpers, not gonna lie.

L to R: Leather gladiator sandal, $19.50; canvas wedges, $34.50; platform sandals, $34.50. Verdict: Must have gladiator sandals. I'll pass on the wedges though.

For full Urban Explorer looks, visit Old Navy.com

L to R: Katherine wrap, $140; Jackie tube top, $42; Leggings, $48 / Jillian dress, $145 / Maura top, $85

Verdict: I like to wear leggings around my apartment. But even I wouldn't match them with a tube top; Why wear a burlap sack when you can wear a jersey sack? If your milkshake doesn't bring all the boys to the yard, you can always just show them your boobs.

L to R: Sophia dress, $145; London top, $100; Audrina dress, $150

Verdict: So when are you due? What? You're not pregnant? Sorry; Nouveau Flashdance; The poor man's Rami Kashou!

L to R: Britton top, $94; Bree tank, $75; Nicole skirt, $85

Verdict: How Contempo Casuals ca. 1993; Seriously, you can buy this but nicer at Target. Words I never thought I would say: A cheaper Amy Winehouse.

L to R: Whitney dress, $170; Natonia dresss, $150

Verdict: LC must not like Whitney very much as this is by far the ugliest look of the lot; This is probably your best bet of all the pieces, even though it cannot be worn by those with actual breasts.

• Clothing line Anchor Blue has signed Heidi Montag to be its new face. Because execs want to appeal to a "slightly older" demographic. No, really. [WWD, sub req'd]
  
• Would you like to be Erin O'Connor's escort to a show during London Fashion Week? Well lucky for you she's holding a contest with Vogue UK. To win her hand (or, you know, the seat next to her) all you have to do is compose her a poem. Start work-shopping those dirty limericks here! [Vogue UK]
  
• Thrilling/disturbing news: Steve & Barry's has inked a licensing deal allowing them to create and sell t-shirts bearing images and logos from The Little Rascals, The Andy Griffith Show, The Beverly Hillbillies, The Brady Bunch, The Love Boat, The Twilight Zone, Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, Cheers and Beverly Hills 90210. And if you feel a twinge of sadness that the average Steve & Barry's customer has probably never known the joy of watching an episode of Laverne & Shirley, just think of the poor children in China who will be sewing them. [WWD, sub req'd]

• So the family of the actual Ossie Clark, whose namesake label was just revived during the opening of London Fashion Week, says they never gave anyone permission to use the house's name. And are now taking legal action. Awkward. [WWD, 4th item]
• Talk about expensive shit! Remember those Van Cleef & Arpels-Earnest Sewn jeans we told you about? They retail for between $9,700 and $11,300. Also, they are fug. [Fashion Week Daily]
• "I couldn't fit into my [Bill] Blass sample. I guess it's because I'm not an 18-year-old Russian." Socialite Plum Sykes: just like us! [Fashion Week Daily]
• Ooh la la: Heidi Klum and Seal on the cover of French ELLE! [Sassybella]
• Alessandra Gucci (daughter of dead Maurizio) is launching her own accessories line under the label AG, since the Gucci clan won't let any of its usurping-relatives use the family name to promote their own half-wit businesses. But Alessandra's business sounds less half-wit than most: It's all alligator handbags in pretty colors. And the girl does have a degree in economics, so good for her? [WWD, 2nd item]
• Perry Ellis revenues are down. Insert instinctual defensive remark about the halycon days of Marc Jacobs and his grunge collection. [WWD, sub req'd]
• Jones Apparel also doing not so good. That's a recession for you, folks! [Reuters]
• Liz Claiborne is thisclose to selling off Ellen Tracy to (who else) a private equity firm. The sale will fetch $50 million, which...seems kind of low, albeit to someone who will never see that kind of cash ever. [NY Post]

[New York, January 7. Image via INF]

• SJP does not wear Bitten (her Steve & Barry's line) or Covet (her new fragrance).
  
• SJP "never forgive what she [Kim Cattrall] did." Also, everyone on the cast of SaTC hates Cattrall. Also, SJP took KC to lunch in an attempt to make things less awkward between them. It only sorta worked.
  
• SJP hates Jessica Seinfeld, even though they, like, both vacation in the Hamptons and shit. SJP thinks Jessica is a social climber. No shit.
  
• SJP does not hate Meryl Streep's daughter, actress Mamie Gummer, even though Gummer cornered SJP hubby Matthew Broderick at a party and pulled an "OMG-I-love-Carrie-Bradshaw-SOOOOOO-much!" which both M. Brod and SJP think is like a totally annoying thing to have done to them. But because she's Streep Spawn, it's all good.

WOAH [Sehorn]

• Venus Williams was awarded with an associate's degree in fashion design from the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale over the weekend, becoming the first celebrity "designer" to ever get a degree in fashion design. She even got a prize for the "Best Sportswear Collection" and a 3.5 GPA. Also, she has a collection for Steve & Barry's. [Sassybella]
  
• Mango takes a nod from Pedro Almodovar, keeps Penelope Cruz as the face of its brand for a second consecutive season. Now if she could only find a boyfriend with the same devotion! [WWD, 3rd item]
  
• Italian director Franco Zeffirelli wants to give the Pope a makeover. But would the Pope approve of all the gratuitous tit scenes in Romeo & Juliet? [Sassybella]
  
• French Vogue editor Carine Roitfeld is in New York for her lesser-known spawn Vladmir's 23rd birthday. [Fashion Week Daily]

• Film mogul/fat man Harvey Weinstein and Marchesa designer/pretty young thing Georgina Chapman's honeymoon: not so picture perfect. The $250,000 yacht they're renting is unable to enter St. Bart's due to a fuel strike there. We weep for them, seriously. [Page Six]
• The real reason Vivienne Westwood is showing her Red Label line in London revealed at last: She has a coffee table book to promote. This from the woman who wrote the manifesto against capitalism! [WWD, 2nd item]
• New Balance will be releasing a new line of women's shoes called NB Inside which offer style, comfort, and basically no actual athletic usage capabilities. [MediaPost]
• Former Dior Homme designer Hedi Slimane is now in talks with his former bosses at LVMH to start his own eponymous menswear line. Which, we assume, will look just like Dior Homme. [WWD, sub req'd]
• Names to know: Roksanda Ilincic, Richard Nicoll and Jens Laugesen. These designers all won the big prize in the UK's Fashion Forward competition this year, which is basically a guarantee of becoming the Next Big Think in Cool Britannia fashion. [Vogue UK]
• Jeweler David Yurman is coming out with a perfume. There has been no mention of what it smells like. And, surprise, a whole lotta mention on the elaborate-jeweled bottle which will hold it. [Fashion Week Daily]
• Current fashion darling Phillip Lim will be making his debut in Bryant Park during the upcoming fashion show season, which means he's "arrived" or whatever in fashion world terms. [Fashion Week Daily]
• For the first time ever, we are envious of socialites: the society set got to attend a private performance of the Isaac Mizrahi-narrated Peter and the Wolf over the weekend. Mizrahi's costume consisted of a scarf and a fedora. Swoon. [Fashion Week Daily]
• Okay, for the second time today, we are envious of socialites: the rich bitches got to buy the Miu Miu spring collection at a private sale/party Friday night in New York before it goes on sale for the masses this week. [Fashion Week Daily]
• One in four Massachusetts hair and nail salons stands in violation of health codes. And if they're being that poorly behaved in a bleeding heart and highly moral state like MA, we don't even want to think how bad things are here in hedonistic New York. Ew. [BellaSugar]

• Poseur/artiste Damien Hirst is not only attending the "hotly-anticipated" Prada party during New York Fashion Week, he's designing the giant skull-shaped mirror that will be enhancing the store's decor the night of the party as well. [WWD, 2nd item]
  
• Somewhere there is a decree that Stella McCartney is infallible regarding the rights of animals and the environment and if you commit the heresy of questioning this she will bite. [Vogue UK]
  
• "The collection is many women. She is strong, hard working, sincere, purposeful, intelligent, easygoing, chic, professional, edgy, happy, a mother, a friend, a single woman, a hippie spirit," Rachel Roy on the woman who represents her upcoming Spring/Summer 2008 collection. In other words, anyone with two breasts and a credit card. [The Fashion Informer]

• Kelly Klein is having a baby, something that never happened while the sometime-photographer was married to her now-ex, Calvin Klein. [Page Six]
• "I wanted something memorable and sweet. It started with a drawing of a deer. I changed the "deer" to "dear." You know, something that's dear to you," says Amanda Bynes, on the name of her Steve & Barry's clothing line. Wow, Amanda. We had no idea until you told us that that's what "dear" means. [Houston Chronicle]
• Project Runway! At last! November 14 we will be reunited with Heidi, Tim, Nina, and Michael. [FabSugar]
• OMG. Vintage Reebok. Revived. Go look. Now. [FabSugar]
• Seattle Post-Intelligencer]
• The CEO of Rock & Republic has been charged with sexual harassment by a former employee. And by "sexual harassment" we mean she has accused him of attempted rape. Just putting that out there. [TMZ]

• Betsey Johnson is selling a majority of her label to a private equity firm, which is sort of like the tent dress equivalent of this year's fashion financing world, but Portfolio blogger Lauren Goldstein Crowe is confused. What would a private equity firm want with Johnson, a "grandmother, 65 years old?" Um, and Valentino: such a strapping young lad himself! [Portfolio.com]
  
• The Atlanta City Council is attempting to amend the city's current public indecency law to stop the (twenty year old) "epidemic" of baggy pants and the horrific collateral damage of exposed boxer shorts. Women would also be prevented from showing thongs, sports bras, or any bra straps. We really hope this is a joke intended to provide Katt Williams with material for some epic Freaknik routine, but just in case, the ACLU is already on it. [AJC]
  
• If you have a Platinum Amex you can go to a New York Fashion Week show for $100 and watch the show from a sky box and, uh, eat some lunch, although shows last an average of 16 minutes, so you won't have time to eat much, which we guess is the point. [WSJ]

• Designer Behnaz Sarafpour sent emailed invitations to her Spring/Summer 2008 show in lieu of paper ones to help the environment. [FWD]
• Beth Ditto to model for Christopher Kane. Um, wow. [The Sun]
• Want to look just like Helena Christensen? Eat snake and drink Guinness. [Vogue UK]
• Anna Wintour will not be attending Paris Fashion Week, because she's going to London Fashion Week instead. The world: shocked. [WWD, 1st item]
• The latest celeb Steve & Barry's line: Venus Williams' EleVen. She says the name is rife with symbolism because the number shows how you can be more than your best? Um, whatever. What happened to her Reebok contract, anyway? [WWD, sub req'd]
• Danskin, in honor of its 125th anniversary, will offer key pieces from its "collection" in cashmere and silk. So what do you call a cashmere unitard? Unitarded! [WWD, sub req'd]

• Amanda Bynes is designing a line for Steve & Barry's. It's called Dear. It has a MySpace page. With 9 'friends'. [Racked]
  
• An Italian town named Biella hopes to brand its name and assert its authority in the wonderful world of cashmere. You know how you don't say 'tissues', you say 'Kleenex'? Biella wants it to be like that. [NYPost]
  
• Donna Karan's new fragrance Delicious Night, is said to smell like "the magic of New York at night." Oh, Donna, trust us: New York at night smells like stale Parliaments, cheap wine, sweat, and, er, bad decisions. [WWD, sub req'd]
  
• Vogue impresario/notorious megalomaniac Andre Leon Talley's advice to budding fashion industry drones? "Stay humble." Because nothing says "humble" like velvet loafers and massive fur capes. [WWD, 2nd item]

• Oh that progressive Miuccia! The lovely Ms. Prada is now designing costumes! For, uh, an anime cartoon? [WWD, sub req'd]
• On the heels of its vows to become more youthful (read: slutty), Escada says it is losing money. [WWD]
• Kenneth Cole's new "Awearness" campaign to combat homelessness, AIDS, and probably most yucky stuff. [WWD, sub req'd]
• Iconic fashion photographer Mario Testino just bought a $6.3 million condo in Ian Schrager's 40 Bond St development in New York's SoHo. We walked past it the other day, gagged its ugly exterior, and asked outloud, Who the fuck would want to live here? And now our questions are answered. [WSJ, 1st item]
• Heart shaped sunglasses are sorta cool — when you're four. [Vogue UK]