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

• Sienna Miller, by her own admission, doesn't actually do much for her fashion line, Twenty8Twelve. "My sister's the sketcher. I can barely draw a stick man, let alone a frock," the actress admitted. "I'll say, you know, can we get a top and make it that crinkly material? And she's like, 'Organza.' I don't speak the jargon." That sister — Savannah — went to fashion school, if you recall. "But I have an aesthetic that she understands," Sienna clarified. [Style.com]
• Georges Marciano, a co-founder of Guess?, is running as an independent candidate for the governorship of California. Platform: something about taxes (and, this is just a wild guess, fabulousness). [WWD]
• Model Jenny Shimizu named the late Richard Avedon as her favorite artist. "He would bring out stuff in you that you would never think was in you. He and I used to play together like apes in his studio. He was an incredible man, a genius." [Daily Beast]
• Sarah Brown, wife of the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, gave up paid work in PR as her husband advanced his political career, to avoid any potential conflicts of interest. For glitzy state occasions, she can't buy a new designer dress every time — so she rents them. Smart lady. [Telegraph]
• Daul Kim, the South Korean supe who made hilarious videos for New York once upon a time, dyed her hair ash blonde in Paris. And blogged funny pictures. [I Like To Fork Myself]
• Maria Sharapova, in addition to being the face of Cole Haan, will design for the brand. "Somebody needed to make a shoe that you can stand around for hours in," the tennis star said of her design inspiration. The stilettos for her line have Nike Air cushioning. [WWD]
• Miranda Kerr, the Australian Victoria's Secret model who dates Orlando Bloom, totally wants his sweet, widdle, scrumptious behbehs. At least, that's what the Daily Fail reckons. What Kerr actually said was "Yeah, one day down the line, of course I'd love to be a mum." Then the Fail calls her 23, then 25. Then 23. [Daily Mail]
• Naomi's on the cover of Giant, and she looks good. [The Life Files]
• News of Barbie's interminable semicentennial is kind of getting stale, but if you care, Henry Holland "curated" a Barbie stand at Dover St. Market. Interestingly, Holland's mum didn't allow her children to play much with the toy as a child, "because she gave lectures on the welfare state and sharing the wealth." When Holland and his siblings finally did get their hands on a Barbie, they took turns shooting at it with a bow and arrow. "My mum was well happy!" Now you know. [Dazed Digital]
• The owners of Christian Lacroix are looking to sell a stake in the brand. That puts them in the same boat as Brioni and Roberto Cavalli. For Lacroix, sales have been slow, and retailers are scaling back their orders, meaning the label will be further squeezed for cash over the coming seasons. [WSJ]
• Alessandro Dell'Acqua left Malo, the Italian knitwear label he had designed for less than a year, because of pressure from its owners over cost. The label is owned by IT Holdings SpA, an Italian apparel company that went into bankruptcy in February. No new creative director will be appointed — IT Holdings prefers to maintain the current design team, without a banner name heading it. Surely it is cheaper that way. [UK Vogue]
• Your Target or Macy's faux-leather handbag: another thing that could be killing you. No further details are available. Thanks, evening news. [KPBS]
• Missoni is going ahead with the opening of a luxury hotel bearing its name in Edinburgh, Scotland. Because the thing was already mostly built before the recession bit. The second Missoni hotel will open this summer in Dubai. [FT]
• Four words: Yves Saint Laurent Musical. Are these tears of joy or despair? I can't even tell anymore. Pierre Bergé, what have you wrought? [WWD]

• Amanda Lepore has a scent which is more art project than perfume — sold at a gallery for $950, the crystal bottle contains notes of steamed rice, mandarins, champagne, and cucumber. It's fermented. [NY Times]

• The first issue of Indian Harper's Bazaar is now available. It features actress Kareena Kapoor on the cover, and a limited number of the issues are also bedazzled with "Xilion crystalized — Swarovski elements," whatever those are. [Mag-Scene]
• Meanwhile, the March '09 issue of V, featuring Natalia Vodianova and Luke Grimes, has a glow-in-the-dark cover logo. [The Cut]
• Back at London fashion week, Sienna Miller threw a "raucous" party for the label she co-runs with her sister Savannah. Her entire street was reportedly clogged with guests and their cars, and she didn't even warn the neighbors. [Daily Mail]
• Niki Taylor gave birth to a daughter, named Ciel Taylor Lamar, with husband Burney Lamar yesterday, the day before her birthday. Aw. [People]
• Chanel Iman has been publicly confirmed as Bar Refaeli's co-host on the revived MTV House of Style. [Sassybella]
• UK Esquire named Prince Charles its best-dressed man. [Yahoo! News]
• Lou Doillon is opening a concept store in Paris's 11th arrondissement. So we can add that to the list of places where I'd shop if I had any money. [Fashionista]
• For a wrap-up of the Milan shows from Aquilano e Rimondi to Versace, you can't really go past Cathy Horyn's analysis for the Times. [NY Times]
• New York decided to count models of color on the runways in Milan — and the results, especially after such a promising season in New York, are depressing. Dozens of shows with all-white casts, and then a cameo from Jourdan Dunn, does not diversity make. [The Cut]
• And, just like that, it's on to Paris. [WWD]
• British bag-maker Mulberry's January sales were up 30% on last year's results — although this article doesn't specify whether those are same-store sales (sales from stores open one year or longer) or if that figure includes sales from stores that have opened in the past 12 months. (Retail expansion inevitably boosts sales but has huge overhead costs, so same-store sales are the measurement usually considered most reliable.) [UK Vogue]
• A Wall St. analyst upgraded Steve Madden to a "strong buy," arguing that the share price had hit a floor and that the company was well-positioned with no debt, and the stock price jumped 10% in one day's trading. [Crain's]
• Urban Outfitters' same-store sales at subsidiaries Anthropologie and Free People fell during the fourth quarter, and earnings for the company were down 24% as a result. Across the whole business, January sales rose 9%, but same-store sales actually fell by 1%. Urban Outfitters won't be opening as many stores as it had planned in 2009. [WWD]
• Jaclyn Smith, former Charlie's Angel and, given her K-Mart label was launched in 1985, grand-mommy of the celeb clothing line world, says her line is doing fine in the recession, but gives no specifics. [Reuters]
• Fashion directors at department stores are finding their roles are changing — or being eliminated altogether — during this economic downturn. Harper's Bazaar interviewed six of them, at top stores like Saks and Bergdorf, only to find that two had been fired by the time the issue went to print. Let's just all cross our fingers and hope Barneys keeps Simon Doonan in our lives. [NY Times]
• Clients of models aged under 16 in the Australian state of New South Wales will have to adhere to a code of practice set by the government, and obtain the permission of the state Children's Guardian, under new legislation under consideration. The government also wants to add a zero to the fine limit for clients found to skip either of the above steps. [News.com.au]

• Chloe Sevigny says doing oversized unisex menswear for Opening Ceremony was easy. "Except for the trousers — getting the fit right was really difficult." She thinks we'll buy that she draped the pants herself? [WWD]

• Here's the Times of London's reviews of the Twenty8Twelve, Nicole Farhi, Christopher Kane, Richard Nicoll, and Luella shows, which all took place at London fashion week. (The gist is: Sienna Miller — good; Nicole Farhi — better than usual; Kane — a "masterclass" in cut; Nicoll — better luck next time; Luella — OK.) [Times of London]
• Fashion bad boy Gareth Pugh is the subject of renewed speculation about LVMH's possible decision to name him as the new creative director for Dior Homme. [The Cut]
• Blind item: maybe a model working London fashion week got a boob job recently. Any thoughts? (I'm going with not Kate Moss, because upsizing from an A to a B cup while simultaneously gaining a little weight on one's hips sounds totally within the realm of non-surgical female experience to me. Frankly, it sounds like something to aspire to.)
• It can't be Adriana Lima. She was busy eloping (to Wyoming!) that weekend. [People]
• And Lily Cole was too busy studying. She's skipping the rest of London fashion week to return to her art history classes at Cambridge. [Daily Mail]
• Mario Testino used to study economics at Lima University, and when he first moved to London he squatted in a partially disused hospital where the parties were legendary. Of fashion, he says, "Anyway, I am not really of that world, I just work in it." Which is about the best attitude you can have towards the industry. [Telegraph]
• Despite the economy, Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé's art collection fetched the highest price of any private collection ever sold when it was put to the hammer in Paris yesterday. The first night of auctions have already raised $264 million. The proceeds will go to Saint Laurent and Bergé's charitable foundation. Record bids were tendered for works by Matisse, Marcel Duchamp, Constantin Brancusi, James Ensor, Piet Mondrian and Giorgio de Chirico. A 1911 painting by Matisse sold for $40.9 million, or double its estimate. Bidding did have to be stopped on a Picasso that failed to meet its 25-30 million Euro estimate, but all in all it seems like the rich people of the world are doing their part for the art market. [NY Times]
• The fashion crowd, on the other hand, needs to learn to do its part and spread a little economic love around at this difficult juncture. Make your coffee at home if you must — I'm straining yesterday's grounds through a sock — but please, please, please, if you are in any kind of financial position to do so, buy something from this season that'll make you feel pretty for years to come. [WWD]
• Liz Claiborne has signed a long-term agreement with the Hong Kong-based exporter Li & Fung to let them handle Liz Claiborne's global sourcing exclusively. Li & Fung will pay the American retailer up to $83 million for the privilege. [Crain's]
• That deal to buy the house of Vionnet has gone through. Matteo Marzotto, former chairman of Valentino, and Marni CEO Gianni Castiglioni, joined forces to purchase this bit of prime fashion real estate. Others have tried to revive Vionnet before, never successfully, but the name seems latent with so much promise I can't help but cross my fingers. [WWD]
• Marzotto's old stomping grounds are seeing layoffs at the New York office. The director of communications and head of men's sales — plus his assistant — were among those to be let go. [WWD]
• Things continue to stumble along in the retail sector. Yesterday, Nordstrom announced earnings for the 4th quarter of last year dropped by 67.9%; they expect double-digit falls in sales and earnings this year. [WWD]
• Jaeger, which is privately held and therefore not obligated to release sales or earnings figures, but which does admit its US sales have not met expectations recently, intends to weather the downturn by concentrating on emerging markets like the Middle East and Australia. [Reuters]
• Just Cavalli has canceled its show at Milan fashion week. The move was expected after its main licensee, Itierre — a division of IT Holdings SpA — was forced to recently file for bankruptcy protection. [WWD]
• Conversely, Versus, Versace's diffusion line, picked this season to make its comeback. [WWD]
• In case you hadn't suspected, now is a bad time to be looking for a job in fashion. Two thousand people turned up to a job fair where only 20 companies were hiring; one of the job seekers was a 58-year-old production manager who was just laid off from his job at the Olsen twins' clothing line. [NY Post]
• Hello Kitty has signed a licensing deal with toymaker Jakks Pacific that will see Hello Kitty dolls and collectible figurines hit Target stores this fall. [BrandWeek]
• Erin Wasson, who said last summer that she thought the people with the best style were the homeless on Venice Beach, totally compounds the offense in this explanation. [The Cut]

An interesting twist on a classic piece...which looks like a highbrow version of something one would buy at H&M. I don't know about you, but I don't want a silkscreen of a melting breast anywhere near my own. I don't care how hot Dali is right now. Do not want. Cute, but looks like what an undergrad would wear at clown college. The only piece I covet from this collection. A sailor twist on the increasingly popular trend of high-waisted trousers. Ahoy, landlubbers! Whatever. This would be an adorable look for an afternoon barbeque. I can already picture myself slopping ketchup down those tiny buttons. Clown college graduation dress. You can advertise your S&M fetish for a lot less than the $110 cost of this t-shirt. Dear sisters Miller, enough with the fucking ruffles already. kthxbye.

Twenty8Twelve Spring/Summer 2008 Collection [Shopbop]
Twenty8Twelve [Official Site]

[All images via shopbop.com.]

• Aw, Lily Cole: So young, so naive. Says the model: "One of the more useful consequences of my role as a model might be to encourage more people to ask questions about the global clothing industry and what we can do to change it... I've long had misgivings about the industry I work in....I could say shop less. I could say shop here. But I would be an annoying hypocrite, since I shop a lot and buy clothes without reading the labels." [Vogue UK]
  
• The ads for Britney's new fragrance, Believe? Yeah, uh, believe it or not, they look pretty altered. [WWD, sub req'd]
  
• Sienna and Savannah Miller's London flagship store for their line Twenty8Twelve is alive at last! It's officially open today. Come on, London ladies, won't you go and scope it out for us and send horror stories? Please? Bonus points if you can snag a pic of Sienna looking "like a Christmas tree." [Vogue UK]
  
• Prepare yourselves: Keira Knightley and her lone fake Chanel boob are going everywhere. [WWD, sub req'd]
  
• When asked by "The Fashion Informer" what trend they're loving right now, the Rodarte Girls replied, "Planting one's own vegetable garden." [Uh, in unison? Or what? Apparently it's unclear. -Moe.] Kate and Laura Mulleavy, one of you just earned a girl crush from us. [The Fashion Informer]

• Christina Ortiz is leaving the house of Brioni to become the chief womenswear designer for Ferragamo, succeeding Graeme Black. Mazel Tov, Christina! [LOL -Moe] Always nice to see a fellow chick assume the position of designing clothes for her fellow chicks — esp. when she's taking the reins from a man! [WSJ]
• Council of Fashion Designers of America president Diane von Furstenberg sent a letter this week to her fellow CFDA members encouraging them to "to promote health as beauty when working with models." LOL! [WWD, 2nd item]
• Matthew Williamson: the latest designer to turn over a large portion of his company to a private equity house AKA sell out for gobs of cash. [Fashion Wire Daily via Sassybella]