The one context in which Taylor Momsen's teen goth makes sense! Besides, you know, high school.


Jessica Szohr goes topical, too: this is vaguely Interview with the Vampire. Retro!


Hey, if there's one place you can do steampunk spinster, this is it. Not that Agyness Deyn needs an excuse.


Rachel Roy boldly disregards the Tim Burton dress code, and as a result wears one of the more interesting - and certainly cheerful - outfits here. Dig the mixed patterns.


The lovely Ashley Greene plays a clairvoyant vampire. Her dress plays angry shag carpeting.


Alexa Chung's eyes sparkle with the unholy light of the true fan.


Kristen Stewart looks chicer and more comfortable every time we see her. No mean feat at 19.


Genevieve Jones' shoes are altogether too gay for such a serious event. Does she not realize that young girls are dying with love all over the world?


Fabiola Beracasa is...camera-ready. And yes, it is a teen vampire movie! Whatever, who doesn't love costumes?


Lydia Hearst is 1920s ethereal. The "good" to Fabiola's "evil," if you will.


I can't think of a single nice thing to say about Veronica Webb's getup, so let's move on for karmic purposes.


Haha, Natalie Portman thought she could sneak in the back way, did she? Not on our watch, sister! Admit that twi-love!


Ivanka Trump has the look, and the getup, of one who's just realized, wait, this isn't a charitable fundraiser?


Amber Rose just refuses to leave home without her dunce cap!


There are many embarrassing things about this event. This is obviously one of them.

[Images via Getty]

• Stella McCartney's collection for GapKids is pretty damn adorable. [KanyeUniverseCity]

• Prince Charles toured the new Burberry headquarters yesterday. Designer Christopher Bailey and C.E.O. Angela Ahrendts showed him the 160,000 square foot building, and gave him a peek at the unreleased Burberry social-networking venture. [WWD]
• J. Crew creative director Jenna Lyons, whose salary is $1.9 million annually, received a hefty $1 million bonus this week — with strings attached. If she leaves the company within two years, she must repay it, and if she leaves during the following two years, she has to repay half. J. Crew has been cutting costs aggressively since the economic downturn began; in February, it instituted a wage freeze, fired 95 employees, and ceased matching 401(k) contributions. [WSJ]
• Kiwi model Rachel Hunter recommends see-to-be-seen spot The Standard Grill for dining in New York. She also recommends closing the curtains, should you rent a room at the hotel. [TDB]
• Demi Moore is a big supporter of designer Prabal Gurung. After she wore one of his dresses, his Twitter followship jumped from 50 to over 1,000. Why this story merits the tabloid header "Should Ashton Be Jealous of Prabal?" is inexplicable. [Style.com]
• Lara Stone may have missed out on the next Chanel campaign, but being the spring face of Louis Vuitton must be some consolation. Hopefully the brand won't Photoshop her into a waxy, corpselike likeness, à la Madonna fall 2009. [WWD]
• Sexy designer Yigal Azrouël is running the New York Marathon this weekend. Joining him — and nearly 40,000 other people — will be supermodel Veronica Webb. Model Anne Vyalitsyna has volunteered to guide a disabled runner along the course. [The Cut]
• There are paparazzi shots of Georgia May Jagger on the Leicester Square set of her new Rimmel ad. Yeah, she has her dad's mouth. [Daily Mail]
• Christian Dior, Chanel, and dozens of other French labels are collaborating on a Chinese website that will feature lavish, 3-D photographs of their products. And then not allow anyone to buy them online. Sounds like a counterfeiters' cookbook if ever we heard of one. [AP]
• Kenneth Cole cracked puns shared his sobering thoughts with students at FIT on Wednesday: "People say that things will get better in a few months, but to be honest, I don't think it will get better for years. The key is to go out in the world with a sense of contest....Find out where you can offer value as a designer and create something that people will desire." [WWD]
• Then at FIT on Thursday, fashion illustrator Ruben Toledo took to the stage to talk about his new Penguin Classics cover designs. And his day job. Toledo says despite having his work featured in a plethora of international editions of Vogue, he hasn't cracked American Vogue because "they're a bit too safe." [The Fashion Informer]
• Alexander Wang's fall collection includes $395 bike shorts. He defends them thusly: "People look at that and go 'Oh, those are biker shorts.' But the yarn we use is from Italy, the technique is digital weaving, there's a lot that goes into product development that the consumer doesn't necessarily always understand. And for the people that do understand it, they do get into it, they buy it, and those are the people I'm speaking to. And there will always be people that don't understand what you're doing, but I'm not here to satisfy everyone." Do you get that? Those are the people he's speaking to. He's selling $395 bike shorts to the $395 bike short-people. And only them. The rest of you peons can buy your non-Italian yarn, loomed bike shorts at Target. [The Cut]
• You could buy two styles from Tory Burch's new sunglass range for less than the cost of Wang's shorts. (And they're still overpriced!) Though there's one pair of folding aviators that's kinda nifty. [Style.com]
• Crystal Renn is in the latest campaign for Evans, the UK plus-size high street store. And she looks great. [Daily Mail]
• Pics are out of Nicole Richie's footwear for her House of Harlow brand. The shoes, which will go on sale in the spring, feature some Navajo-inspired embroidery. Sounds like Richie's been taking a leaf from the Navajo-Pocahontas-at-the-disco stylings of Kelly Bensimon. [FabSugar]
• Christian Siriano "designed" a Starbucks gift card for the holidays. It differs from the regular gift cards thus: it is smaller (which is noticeable) and "chic-er" (not really noticeable). [FWD]
• "There's nothing more American than a pair of blue jeans," says a worker at one of the last remaining denim mills in the U.S. Actually, blue jeans are a French product — serge de Nîmes dyed with indigo imported via Genoa, or bleu de Gênes — that was reinvented in the American West by Eastern European Jewish immigrants. But close enough! Boo to those Mexicans who are now making our products! [CNN]
• Michael Kors is doing a makeup collection for Estee Lauder. It'll go on sale in January, and it's named Very Hollywood, to match Estee Lauder's recently launched Very Hollywood perfume. [WWD]
• Estee Lauder's profits for the quarter ended in September rose to $140.7 million dollars. Last year during the same period, the company made a paltry $51.1 million. [AP]

Man, does anyone do pure glam like Iman? (That's not rhetorical. The answer is no.)


Although Susan Fales-Hill is not half-stepping either, as a lame, sleazy dude said to me once after complimenting my friend.


What is it that renders Emmy's bodice detailing somewhat...mature?


Oh, and you have to see the side-view, when she goes totally ethereal Aphrodite. Somewhat ridiculous, but when you've done that "Music of the Night" Victoria's Secret scene at such a tender age, your threshold is probably permanently altered. (And what does Duritz make of it, btw?)


I am on record in my affection for the public persona of JoAnna Garcia (since, you know, I don't actually know her.) And while I'm still getting used to platform-and-gown-not-in-a-drag-show, she's working it.


I once saw this quote where Rufus Wainwright said "I have a body that looks really good in clothes," which, while it was one of the most ludicrous things I'd seen prior to seeing Jorn Weisbrodt's cravat, is also indubitably true.


Presented without comment.


Y'know, Natalie and Mila would look impeccably cute all alone - the coordinating perfection just takes it over the top. And did they plan this? Because there are literally no photographs where they're not huddling together like this.


Aww, I hate it when "guests" are not identified, especially when they sport such riveting jewelry!


Remember that IMAX film Blue Planet? Yeah, so does Veronica Webb. Ah, those halcyon, post-March-of-the-Penguins years when we thought people would line up forever to watch nature films...


See, what is the fur adding to this beyond a recoil factor? Not warmth, surely - her arms are still bare! I don't understand, unnamed guest!


Yeah, you know what I think of when I hear "American Ballet Theatre Gala?" Adam Duritz. Rage on. Guy's only doing it for some doll, some doll.

[Images via Getty]

Disclaimer: I'm writing this in the middle of the night, swigging straight buttermilk, and realize I've been droning the Affair to Remember theme under my breath for the past 45 minutes, so. Even more salt than usual, if you don't mind. Also: yes, Michelle Obama was there, and according to the unsatisfying lectern partials, looking very lovely indeed in what's rumored to be an Alaia dress and Thakoon jacket, but First Ladies have a pesky habit of not walking pap-swarmed red carpets! I don't know why either.


The Good:
What's the cultural, historiographic significance of the Recession/Barbie-gown confluence? Why can Iman wear this and look amazing? And why does she give such bizarre interviews, with such impunity?


Coco Rocha's saloon gal? Milkmaid? is crazy, kooky, over the top AND I LOVE IT!!! (I was being Mary Murphy.)


Rachel Roy enjoys the trousers. Wouldn't you feel a little bit like Oliver when he's working for the undertaker and the grand marshal or whatever of all those junior funerals, if everyone else was in these Barbie getups? But Rachel's making the party come to her.


Kelly Ripa: sure.


Let's get one thing straight, charmeuse frock: I like you but not in that way. You and your smug sueded surface that just purrs, 'I rubbed against Dancy in the Town Car and I'll DO IT AGAIN!'


Kim Raver takes one of the evening's few textile risks. Cue inevitable upholstery comparisons, but such is life. Can I get a "fiddle-dee-dee?"


Sessilee Lopez looks stunning, elegant, and manages to make the coexistence of those two adjectives totally sensical.


Ivanka Trump has probably been doing 'evening' from the cradle, and as they say, practice makes perfect. No Miss USA references, if you please. Not what I meant at all!


The Bad:
Are Lindsay Price and Coco Rocha wearing basically the same dress? So why am I arbitrarily putting one in the Bad? Does this have something to do with Lipstick Jungle? And let's say if justice is blind - is that a good thing when we're judging clothes?


On the one hand: Lynda Carter looks happy, beautiful, is Wonder Woman. On the other: print of dress reminiscent of those black and white pix of smooching kids, occasionally holding a single, Schindler's List-style pink rose.


Have never yet managed to work in the lyrics to "Just Walk Away, Renee" while discussing Zellweger. Maybe she, um, should have, um, done that when they accidentally brought her Nancy Reagan's wardrobe? Even though it was a really pretty color? We try.


So on his Twitter, Karl Lagerfeld said something to the effect of, expensive clothes should never look expensive. So guessing he'll be digging on Hilary Rhoda! Then he said, "My dream? Transparent fur." [Note: I know you all love this. And does my intense aversion have something to do with a certain Cache frock, purchased by mom at The Westchester, that a certain ed wore to a certain disastrous junior prom? Some would say yes.]


We get it: when some hear 'gala' they hightail it over to 'stiff and uncomfy' land. (This is known to some of us as Loehmann's Back Room.) But why would Mariska Hargitay, the daughter after all of Jayne Mansfield, want to go to there?


And speaking of Mansfield-era glam, Eva La Rue is kind of channeling that late lamented lady's Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter look, where she basically wears a hyper-Marilyn professionally sexy cocktail costume the entire time. Also: remember when moms were very into cut-velvet scarves? That was nice.


The texture of Amy Fine Collins' gown reminds me of a 'haunted house' song by The Knife. Specifically, "Silent Shout." Intricate, playing within an established framework, and kind of creepy.


It's almost like Ashley McDermott got a totally different dress code on her invite. Hers said "Prejean" and nothing else, which I admit is cryptic.


The Wintour:
Say what one will about the 'Nuke, but she's managed to establish a distinctive iconography that, Vreeland-style, somehow transcends any definition but "Anna Wintour." (The ram's horn Chanel was apparently an aberration. Back to the uniform.)


What Say You?
Veronica Webb's June bride special is the very definition of 'What Say You!' Well?


Whatever we think of Suzanne Vega's stripes (save that she needs to be proceeded by a herald with some kind of warning to epileptics) this picture is very awesome. And what do we think? Or, you know, you?

[Images via Getty]

• Eva Mendes, along with male model Jamie Dornan, are confirmed as the fall faces of Calvin Klein Jeans and Calvin Klein Underwear. Steven Klein shot the campaigns. [WWD]

• At last night's Met ball, seven models and one designer were conspicuously absent. Azzedine Alaïa, the diminutive Tunisian-born designer whose relationship with his models, particularly the mega-famous 80s/90s supes, is so deep that most of them call him "papa," was not asked to be part of the Met's exhibition, themed "The Model as Muse." Because, explains curator Harold Koda, he assumed, without even checking, that Alaïa would not want to be in the exhibit. Although Alaïa made and fitted dresses for models including Stephanie Seymour, Naomi Campbell (who has been his muse for 23 years), Veronica Webb, and Linda Evangelista to attend the exhibit opening, when he found out that none of his work would be represented at the museum, he asked all his models not to attend. Which they were more than happy to do. "Azzedine has made my dress for every single ball," said Seymour. "I will still make my donation to the Met, but I won't be going." Koda, ball organizer Anna Wintour, and co-chair Marc Jacobs, whose company is sponsoring the event, are all very sorry indeed that the designer who has perhaps the most enduring links of all with his model-muses will not be included in the show about designers, models, and muses. But none of them admit a whit of responsibility, which leads me to point out here, that Azzedine Alaïa, like Dries van Noten and a handful of other successful designers, doesn't produce campaigns. Armani and Versace, the two designers who dominate the 80s section of the exhibit, regularly lavish Vogue with their advertising dollars. [On The Runway & On The Runway]
• Of the event itself, the Times writes: "Asked how she felt about being a museum-worthy muse, Ms. Moss shrugged and pulled a big piece of gum out of her mouth. 'I'm amused,' she said. 'I think it's quite interesting for somebody to go outside of the box and think that a model actually has had some input into fashion. A lot of the time, the models don't really get a say.'" [NY Times]
• Significantly more enthusiastic was André Leon Talley, who, upon his first sighting of Moss, was heard to shriek "Goddess!" [WWD Twitter]
• Today, Chanel launches its new ad for its No. 5 perfume, a video by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, starring Audrey Tautou. In honor of the momentous occasion, the stretch of Fifth Avenue that borders Saks will be renamed "Avenue No 5" and the department store's windows will be dressed to celebrate the ad. [Racked]
• Jason Wu gives New York magazine a tour of the modest West 37th St. one-bedroom, decorated all in gray, that his family bought him after he moved to New York. The designer relaxes by cooking dinners for his friends. In between, he clears off the kitchen bench to design his FAO Schwartz range of dolls. [NYMag]
• Elle MacPherson's style icons are Steve McQueen and Katharine Hepburn. She also name-drops Banjo and Matilda cashmere, "an Australian brand," without specifying that it's owned by her brother and sister-in-law. [Independent]
• Marc Jacobs: "If you have five minutes free in New York, you're a failure. If you have five minutes free in Paris, you're a success." [Glamour]
• Stella McCartney has been making appearances at Barneys left and right; she's doing two more before the week is out. And her 23-piece collection for Net-a-porter goes on sale today. [WWD]
• Miuccia Prada loves her Carston Höller office slide, contemporary art, and Earl Grey tea. And being different. "I always want to be different, as a way to progress. At the beginning, I wanted to make a soft bag out of stiff leather. I wanted to make rich materials look poor, and poor materials look rich. Always there was something disturbing. In the end, that's probably why people like Prada." [Telegraph]
• American Apparel's witness list for its upcoming court date with Woody Allen includes Allen's ex, Mia Farrow, his current wife and Farrow's adopted daughter, Soon-Yi Previn, and Larry Flynt. [Reuters]
• Conflicting reports about Liz Claiborne today: while just last week Racked was reporting that, gee, an awful lot of the new Isaac Mizrahi-designed clothes seemed to be already needing heavy discounts on the website to move, today, Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to a "buy," partly due to the company's leaner inventories. Share prices rose 30%, to $6.46, following the news. [Crain's]
• In this economy, retailers are trying "positive thinking." Because it's all they have left! Ha ha, I'm kidding. But only a little. [WWD]
• Adidas needs to save 100 million Euros this year. To that end, it's closing regional offices in Europe and Asia, and has not ruled out shutting retail stores. [NY Times]
• J. Crew's children's line, Crewcuts, now has its own standalone catalog. [WWD]
• Estée Lauder's profits fell 70% in the third quarter, so now they're touting the brand as a good option for bargain-hunters. There'll be more free services at the cosmetics counter, and smaller-size products that'll be priced to scale. But probably still expensive. [WSJ]
• Kathy Ireland thinks the media obsession with women's bodies is ridiculous, and that the focus on how we look, as opposed to our health, is misdirected. Because bodies are for living in, not looking at. "Beautiful people come in all shapes and sizes, ages and colors," Ireland told Larry King. "With my weight gain, people wanted to know, Well, when is she going to squeeze back into a bikini? No. That is not what it's about. But what people weren't asking me [was], What's the triglyceride level? What is the C reactive protein?...Heart disease is the number one killer of women in America." [CNN]

• This shoe is made by Christian Louboutin, out of python skin, leather, cobbler's glue, and, we assume, diamond-plated unicorn farts. Because what else could justify a $2,875 price tag? Happy recession! [The.Life.Files]

• Lindsay Lohan made the cover of Taiwan Harper's Bazaar, which a celebrity blogger initially misidentified as China Harper's Bazaar. An international incident unfolded in the comments. "Actually it is from Taiwan's Harper's Bazaar,not China……." wrote the user SAM. "Taiwan is a part of China," shot back someone called liangjuan. "Taiwan is independent as territory of the ROC, it is not part of the PRC," offered a stickler for details. "TAIWAN IS NOT PART OF CHINA!!!!! It is an independent country and it has NOTHING to do with China," said Taiwan Is My Life. Someone else pointed out the extensive use of Photoshop, and several users debated the invisibility of Lindsay's freckles, and downright Freudian levels of cocaine use. Someone called A split the difference: "photoshop does wonders ha. and taiwan and china are not the same." Then someone who reads Mandarin on The Fashion Spot pointed out the cover is from April 2008, not April 2009, and the seeming importance of all this faded. [JustJared]
• Charlotte Ronson threw a party for her J.C. Penney line, I Heart Ronson (which is pretty bad). This story doesn't mention how Lindsay Lohan was turned away at the door by security. Then she Twittered that Sam Ronson had broken her heart. [WWD]
• In response, Lindsay threw herself into her work. She's now designing pantyhose! Control-top pantyhose. [The Cut]
• People has the details of Gisele Bundchen's wedding gown. Presumably they shot this grainy telephoto image of a woman wearing an white dress before their photographers' window was shot out by a trigger-happy bodyguard? The dress and veil were John Galliano, custom, of course. Gisele's veil involved six feet of white silk tulle and hand-sewn lace, while her gown was bias-cut silk satin. [People]
• Veronica Webb might launch a jewelry line. "I would make accessories that would be the ultimate building blocks of women's wardrobes," she told New York last week at a Topshop opening party. "You know, things that they could interchange from season to season, and no matter what, they'd have the perfect little thing at their fingertip every time you need to get dressed in twenty minutes and leave the house — the belt that matters, the hoops that matter." Ah, yes. Accessories that matter. I've always craved those. Then she said Kate Moss was only as tall as her 6-year-old. [The Cut]
• Roberto Cavalli went ahead and extended his licensing deal with Itterre SpA, the bankrupted manufacturer whose subpar construction and late deliveries Cavalli alleged was the reason he had to cancel his fall Just Cavalli show at the last minute. At the time, Cavalli ranted — and cried — about Ittierre's actions to the international media, and Ittierre threatened to sue. Cavalli's new deal wipes away $26.5 million in royalties the designer claims Ittierre owes him. He must really want to sell that 20% stake in his company. [WWD]
• Alessandro Dell'Acqua has quit as creative director of Malo after less than a year in the position. IT Holdings SpA, the parent company of Ittierre, owns Malo and the label Gianfranco Ferré, which has been rudderless since the death of its founder last year. After Ittierre went bankrupt, IT Holdings was forced to announce its own bankruptcy. [WWD]
• Karen Elson, the British supermodel who married Jack White, moved to Nashville and opened a vintage store with a stylist friend. They look very happy. And well-dressed. [Blackbook]
• The CEO of the Gap, Glenn Murphy, took home $9.3 million last year. Despite his company's under-performance. [WWD]
• Christian Siriano would like everyone to know that CariDee English, formerly of that television show about weaves and feelings, is not his casting choice for his fall campaign. CariDee happened to do a test shoot recently with Brad Walsh, Siriano's photographer boyfriend, and for that shoot, Walsh styled CariDee in clothes from Siriano's main collection and shoes from his Payless line. Then, CariDee gave an interview to After Elton about how OMG she loves teh geighs SO MUCH!!! (and Fashion!), and somehow, the interviewer came away with the impression that the shoot was for Siriano's campaign. Which is not true. Christian loves CariDee, and he would do anything for her, but he won't do that. [The Cut]
• Yves Saint Laurent will offer a "new vintage" capsule collection starting next month at Barney's. The clothes will be made from fabrics from the label's archives. It's all part of a strategy to increase consumer spending on luxury items that doesn't involve sales — brands think they can do this by making their offerings seem more special and personal. [WWD]
• Beyoncé's $11,000 shopping spree at Patricia Field's store included the purchase of a hand-made mask. Pat has no idea what she'll use it for, either. [The Cut]
• There are three good stories at the end of this link: for one, Oscar de la Renta is still digging. On learning that the First Lady, who has yet to wear anything designed by him, had worked a few pieces by European designers into her wardrobe for her trip to, you know, Europe, he said, "Our industry right now is having a very difficult time. I think it would be great if the First Lady dressed in American styles. There are a lot of talented people here too." Which would sound less like a gloss on sour grapes coming from a guy who wasn't saying just last week that Mrs. Obama looked dowdy in that sweater she wore to meet the Queen. Secondly, Lord & Taylor is picking up Liz Claiborne again after five years. Because Isaac Mizrahi is the designer now, and L & T recognizes that kaleidoplaid is the way of the future. Thirdly, Stila is maybe bankrupt/for sale. Their website is down, and carries a warning that orders placed in late March might be canceled. [WWD]
• A good-looking 30-year-old San Francisco businessman, who happens to be a practicing Sikh, was spotted last year by the designer Kenneth Cole. Now he's working for GQ, which just proves that...hotness knows no religion? [Telegraph]

• Recession? What recession? "In 2011 I'll be doing more clothing," quoth "designer" Lindsay Lohan, who, in addition to leggings, is working on "self-tanner and cosmetics with her fashion and beauty company Stay Gold." [WWD]

• In case you were wondering, here's what Salma Hayek wore on her honeymoon: "a ruby-colored ensemble" from Vesperini. [WWD]
• "Which kooky fashion figure asked for illegal substances on her contract rider? She said in order for her to appear at a fashion show, she needs two bottles of Cristal and "cocaine - a lot of it." Um, you tell us! [New York Post]
• Speaking of...we don't even know, Ashley Dupre for some reason continues to be a fixture at Fashion Week. Says Veronica Webb, ""Who's that? Spitzer's call girl? Oh. Well, no matter what you do for a living, you still need clothes." [New York]
• And killing the last of our interest, apparently Bryant Park is rife with celeb spawn. [WWD]
• Eva Longoria Parker claims to be just another penny-pincher: "I've always been pretty frugal about everything I wear on the red carpet. I return it all the next day." [WWD]
• Nicky Hilton is equally somber: "I'm being smarter about my spending. I'm not going into stores and buying anything. I am buying more pieces instead of just a bunch of clothes." [WWD]
• As we feared, Eleven Minutes, the Jay McCarroll-Fashion Week documentary, apparently blows. [Yahoo]
• Speaking of the Prodge, Tim Gunn's being all elliptical about their traditional end-of-week final showing. Quoth the Silver Fox, "You'll see collections from extremely talented people, but you won't be able to place the designer with the collection." [MSNBC]
• Oy. Puma's down almost 80%. [WWD]
• Laura Ashley, meanwhile, blames stores' price-slashing for its profit warning woes, rather than the proliferation of floral chintz in said stores. [Times Online]
• Halston, for its part, gets with the times: slashing prices and embracing new technology. Doesn't it seem like now's the time for a disco revival? [WSJ]
• But Benetton's up! [WWD]
• And more good news: Armani donates a million dollars to New York City public school arts education. [New York Times]
• Which will not affect PETA's plans to protest at the New York Armani store this week, dressed in giant bunny suits. [WWD]
• Continuing to keep them guessing, Dame Vivienne Westwood is teaming up with Royal Ascot; she's styling the PR shoots for the venerable races. [WWD]
• Not shockingly, buyers and investors are trying to score fashion lines at rock-bottom prices. [Portfolio]
• Thakoon Panichgul is a big fan of Michelle Obama's stylist, Ikram Goldman: "You know what, she has guts, and she has instinct about what she likes, and she's passionate about it. And so when I first launched the collection, she said, ‘I'll buy every single piece.' And so that kind of conviction, I think, is exciting." Exciting for him, definitely! [New York]
• Designer and socialite Shoshanna Lonstein Gruss is the new face of Judith Ripka jewelry. [WWD]
• Why does Kanye West love the Paris Women's shows? "It's Paris. Women's. Shows." [PaperMag]
• Kirsten Dunst - who so would - loves Rodarte. So do we, but no one cares. [WWD]

• Jessica Simpson is launching a line of luggage. Because that's the image of America we want to project when we travel abroad! [People]

• Jennifer Aniston wants a beauty deal. Join the club, sister. [WWD]
• When Kimora's slashing fabulosity budgets, you know things are bad! On her subdued Baby Phat show, "Now's not the time to be running all over and flaunting the money that we don't have." [WSJ]
• Ex Russell Simmons would seem to agree: he's launching a line at Wal-Mart. [Business Week]
• Remember how last week Rachel Zoe said that designer Christopher Sauvé couldn't sell those "Bananas/I Die" tees due to trademark infringement? He's having none of it! He's starting a "free the fruit" campaign to return bananas to the people. [New York]
• Should you have a Michelle fetish and a few grand to spare, check out Jason Wu's truly lovely offerings on Net-a-Porter. [Fashionista]
• Liz Claiborne exec: "Isaac Mizrahi is a nuclear weapon." Is that...a good thing? For the flailing company's sake, we hope so! [New York Times]
• A big spread in O Magazine can't hurt: "A spokeswoman for Liz Claiborne said the brand chose O because it reaches its demographic. In the issue, more than 50 pieces will be modeled by a mix of "real" women, models and celebrities, including Veronica Webb, Becki Newton of "Ugly Betty" and fashion icon Iris Barrel Apfel. The designer has included plus and petite sizes in his collection and has kept it budget conscious. To finish each look, Liz Claiborne is selling coordinated shoes, bags, jewelry and lingerie."[WWD]
• David Gandy is as modest as he is beautiful. Quoth the British model, "Why would anybody want to look at my body?...How can a man be pretty? Flowers and women are pretty. Men are not". We respectfully disagree. [Fashionista]
• Wal-Mart's move to New York could screw some of their vendors. Good plan, though: we're sure the cost of living is way cheaper here than in Bentonville, Arkansas! [Business Week]
• We're not sure how psyched we are about the Jay McCarroll Fashion Week documentary. On the one hand: his last doc was a bit sad, what with Heidi blowing him off and everything. On the other: it's as much Runway as we're getting! [Reuters]
• Jenna Lyons, the creative director of J. Crew, obviously has great timing and a lot of skill. But...we're confused by the deliberate hole in the knee of the jeans she's pictured wearing. [Observer]
• The new Zappos ads: "Underpants-clad customers are pictured either standing in a Zappos box or walking into one. Putting on their best Vanna Whites for the camera, they either reveal their purchases or lift the box over themselves — at which point they are suddenly transformed into fully-dressed Citizens of Society." Hehe. Underpants. [AdRants]
• Speaking of skivvies: OMG the Herry Hall Cherie-inspired Chanel ads are out and are they rad! (We're assuming they're ignoring the sequel in which Cherie commits suicide.) [New York]
• Meanwhile, Chanel's mastermind, Karl Lagerfeld, doesn't dig the internet. Quoth the Kaiser, the web doesn't project "the unique feel and sophistication of luxury materials, refined tailoring and extraordinary attention to detail found in luxury fashion." But can luxury fashion show Christian Bale ranting?! [WSJ]
• THE BARBIE COUTURE IS HERE. Okay, sketches, but still. [AP]
• Anna Sui: "It's survival of the fittest at this point." We'll back the iconic iconoclast in any Darwinian struggle! [NYT]
• Says the head of struggling label Five Four, "I want to create our generation's Polo. You can't be a megabrand in the U.S. today if you're selling a woven shirt for $200...I think the concept of luxury is passé." [WSJ]
• Rachel Roy's current motto? "Strength and courage." [Glam.com]

• Before we tackle today's inevitable layoffs, liquidations and bankruptcies, look at David Beckham. Look at semi-naked David Beckham. In his very important new Emporio Armani ad. Why, good morning to you, Dave. [People]

• Unfortunately for Heidi Montag, clothing lines whose main qualification as same is the attachment of a famous name are not faring well in the downturn. (Please, let someone therefore piece it together that continuing to announce B-List Star for Major Middle Market Retailer arrangements isn't a recession-proof move.) [AdAge]
• Unfortunately, the news came too late to stop Hilary Duff for DKNY Jeans... [WWD]
• ...and to stop Jessica Alba from dipping her toe into the designer waters. [Fashionista]
• And Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen menswear. (OK, so The Row technically should get a pass for being, actually, kinda good, but it's the principle of the thing.) [Elle]
• But getting a celebrity to wear your dress on a red carpet is still worth a starlet's weight in gold. [WSJ]
• The recession will not, however, kill Spanx, which had sales volume of over $350 million last year. Because while the shitty economy is temporary, hating your body enough to want to squeeze and yank and pull it into a girdle is forever. [Reuters]
• The economic situation is making it tougher perhaps than ever for young designers who were in the midst of expanding in line with pre-recession demand and fanfare. [NY Times]
• Esprit has reported its first interim drop in profits in ten years. Sales are slow worldwide, and particularly so in Europe. [Financial Times]
• Estee Lauder's second-quarter profits are also down by 30%. The company will restructure 2,000 workers out of working existence. [The Street]
• Elizabeth Arden, however, beat analysts' expectations for the second quarter by 2 cents a share. Sales still fell 12.7% and net profit was down from $33.8 million one year ago to $17.4 million now. [Reuters]
• A handful more details about the Mathew Williamson line for Target: it launches on April 23, it will be colorful (which, frankly, if anything at all comes to mind when you think "Mathew Williamson" you already knew), and in addition to the regular frocks and tops, there'll be jumpsuits. Controversial move! [Blackbook]
• Kim Gordon discusses her line for Urban Outfitters, Mirror/Dash, with the New York Times, but although they hit stores on February 16, there's only one picture of the actual clothes. She's surprisingly realistic about Mirror/Dash's design process — she admits she doesn't actually sketch so much as talk about fabric and "ideas" with her partner before sending away to Urban Outfitters' sample houses. [The Moment]
• Never to be outdone by Vogue and its eyebrow-raising Sean Avery internship, Elle now has for an intern the fashlete (did I just make that up? I think I did. Let's go with it!) Stew Bradley, an actual Philadelphia Eagle. May he cherish the coffee-schlepping, xeroxing, and sexual harassment that are the hallmarks of any true New York media internship. [The Cut]
• Except, on his first day, Bradley went to lunch with Diana Ross, Diane von Furstenberg, Jessica Alba, Jason Wu, Anil Kapoor Veronica Webb, Eva Amurri, John Frey, Roberta Myers, Joe Zee, Anne Slowey, Whitney Port, and Olivia Palermo. At Diane von Furstenberg's studio. [WWD]
• Now, if she'd only worn her favorite label, Carhartt, on the campaign trail, Sarah Palin might have had a shot at the Brooklyn hipster vote! [US News]
• Janie Bryant, the costume designer for Mad Men, is crafting a contemporary, not vintage, clothing line. And that's about all she's willing to say just now. [WSJ]
• High-end Baltimore fabric store Michael's Fabrics says it has the lemongrass embroidered wool Isabel Toledo used to create Michelle Obama's inauguration day outfit. It's 33" wide and yours for a mere $500 a yard. Just in case you want to whip a dress up at home. [Unbeige]
• Isabel Toledo is still reeling from the media attention following dressing Michelle Obama. (Her husband, the fashion illustrator Ruben Toledo, calls it "Obamathon.") An exhibition of her dresses is going up at the museum at FIT in June. [WWD]
• Monique Lhuillier is introducing a new, more moderately priced line for fall. Given her regular dresses retail for $3,000-$7,000, "moderately priced" in this sentence means around $2,500. [WSJ]
• The Washington Post saw Jill Biden and her security detail nip into Bloomingdale's to buy some Tory Burch shoes. [Washington Post]
• UK Elle has Vivienne Westwood's handwritten "manifesto," and it includes such worthwhile tips as "DIY Suggestions: Necklace of safety pins" and the reminder "We need an estimated $30 billion per year to save the rainforest. $30,000,000,000,000,000,000,000etc-->" Also, she believes Leonard Peltier is innocent. [Elle]
• PETA Photoshopped a Pinocchio nose on to Giorgio Armani's face for a full-page ad in Variety after the scrappy perma-tanned Italian allegedly went back on his word after pledging to no longer use fur in his collections. Armani's people say they use only rabbit fur from animals raised for meat. [New York Daily News]
• Now, this should be fun: Lynda Carter, Valerie Bertinelli, Katie Couric, Natya Liukin, Jennie Garth, and Tori Spelling are among those modeling for a fashion week show dedicated to heart health. Designers include Christian Siriano, Carolina Herrera, and those guys at Badgley Mischka. [WWD]

The Good:
Amy Adams can put a dress over like no one else!


I like Eva Amurri's nod to the cold with black tights.


Viola Davis looks classically, sexily elegant.


Again, Melissa Leo gets serious points for an actually weather-appropriate gown. And how often in this life does one get to sing, "She wore blue velvet..." in an off-key Isabella Rossellini voice?


Heather Graham works total bombshell.


The Bad:
I'm not saying it's easy to pull off a "Where the Wild Things Are" costume, but unlike Amy Adams, Anne Hathaway has a bad habit of being worn by her clothes.


I hate, hate, hate the way this bodice cuts across Salma's chest!


Alina Cho's basic black looks just fine...and then you hit the bows.


The Ugly:
MaybE Veronica Webb is celebrating her freedom from being a fashion guru on Tim Gunn's Guide To Style...by looking awful?

[Images via Getty]

• Remember when Ellen came out and everyone was like, "yeah, we know, but thanks"? Her confirmation that she's the new Cover Girl is kinda like that. [People]
• Our unreasonable dislike of fame whore/hockey player/Vogue intern/fashionisto Sean Avery grows apace. He is now involved with a Bravo reality show. [NY Mag]
• Hey, remember how YA author Lauren Conrad's designing the gowns for the "trophy girls" at next Sunday's Emmy Awards? "'I did green because green [is the] theme for the Emmys this year,' said Conrad, who also mentions using a diamond brooch, signifying the Emmy's 60th anniversary, to accessorize the gown." [FabSugar]
• Model Erin Wasson: "The people with the best style for me are the people that are the poorest. Like, when I go down to Venice beach and I see the homeless, like, I'm like, 'Oh my God, they're pulling out, like, crazy looks and they, like, pulled shit out of like garbage cans." Indeed, moddle. Indeed. [Nylon TV via Fashionista]

• The Dow crisis is — surprise, surprise! — disastrous for retail stocks, too. [WWD]
• Apparently spoiled for models by having a bunch of dolls wear their creations earlier this year, Viktor & Rolf decide not to do a runway show. Speculation is they'll do something weird instead. [Style.com]
• Yup, it's all virtual. [VogueUK]
• Kate Moss was afraid the thief who broke into her car took this two hundred thousand pound diamond ring. But he didn't. He just took a chocolate bar. [The Mirror]
• The verdict is in: rompers and jumpsuits will once again be big for spring. [WWD]
• Also, sequins. [Fashionista]
• Weirdly, Gordon Brown hosts fashion week party. [ElleUK]
• Neighborhoodies is having personalities ("one blogger, writer, artist, or all-around cool person a week") do designs for them. Nerve's Erin Bradley kicks it off with a Dr. Ruth tee. [Neighborhoodies]
• Kicked to the curb by Liz Claiborne, designer Sigrid Olsen turns to art. [WSJ]
• Viv Westwood launches that album she compiled, reveals she's collaborating with robot rockers Queens of the Stone Age. Oh, and apparently she's nice, but we'd heard that.[The Mirror]
• Buyers (and us bloggers!) underwhelmed by NYC Fashion Week. [WWD]
• But! No fewer than five Top Model contestants spotted on the NYC runway. [NY Mag]
• Aww! Luella Bartley had pink and white meringue pigs at her pre-show breakfast! We'll assume no more sinister or insulting implication.[WWD]
• "Veronica Webb turned frosty at the Us Weekly 25 Most Stylish New Yorkers party at Hudson Terrace Friday night when she ran into Gretta Monahan - who replaced her as co-host on Tim Gunn's Guide to Style. A source said, 'They sat right next to each other but Veronica wouldn't even look at her. She's furious she was replaced on the show.'" [Page Six]

• Amy Poehler is leaving Saturday Night Live! She'll step away after the November election to give birth to her first child, and she won't be coming back. "It's gonna be really hard — Boyz II Men hard — to say goodbye to yesterday," she says. "But like any good drug, you need to know when to put it down." Amy will still be on TV, though: She's getting her own NBC series from the producers of The Office. [LA Times]
• RIP TRL! After ten years, Total Request Live will end its run on MTV. All kinds of stars stopped by the studios promote their projects, from Britney Spears to *NSync to Eminem. Remember when Mariah had her meltdown? It's the end of an era. [AP]
• Katie Couric has landed an interview with Sarah Palin. The CBS anchor will travel with the Governor next week. Will the ladies go on a moose hunt? [Page Six]
• Amy Winehouse posted pictures of Blake Incarcerated exposing his manhood on her Facebook profile. (Click to see a censored version.) In other news, Blake would rather stay in prison than accept early release where he has to live with his mum and wear an electronic monitoring device because he doesn't want to go somewhere where he can't be with Amy. [The Sun]

• Oh dear, it seems that Blake Incarcerated has failed a drug test and will spend Christmas in jail. Amy is upset she'll be spending New Year's Eve alone. She must feel like she's fighting some unholy war. [ONTD]
• Christina Applegate went back to work on the set of Samantha Who? yesterday, after taking time out for a double mastectomy in July. She'll undergo reconstructive surgery in the next few months. [E!]
• Nikki Blonksky sat down with Entertainment Tonight in her first interview since the incident in a Turks and Caicos airport which lead to her — and her father — being arrested. "You never expect things like this in your life, but you take life one day at a time, and you deal with situations," Nikki says. [ET]
• Nikki Blonsky also says nice things about Zac Efron: "I love him with every inch of my body and soul. He has been an amazing support system." [Just Jared]
• Mischa Barton and Josh Hartnett partied in London together. They left a club and went to his hotel; she was seen leaving an hour later. Is it on? [This Is London]
• Kevin Federline skipped his sons' birthday party to get wasted in Las Vegas. [MSNBC]
• Zahara Jolie-Pitt is three years old, but she already has a job lined up: When she's older, she can work at the clinic her parents have established in Ethiopia for children with AIDS and tuberculosis. [Star]
• Leonardo DiCaprio and Bar Rafaeli's off-again/on-again relationship is currently off. Stay tuned. [Rush & Molloy]
• Mariah Carey doesn't pick up her dog doo. [Page Six]
• Don't look for any more singles from Mariah Carey's album. [Perez Hilton]
• Lily Allen's new album comes out in February and is basically done, though she's adding some things. She explains: "I’m working on some extra stuff in the studio at the moment, it seems making an album isn't enough these days, some websites (not naming any!) won’t put an album on their front page unless you give them exclusive tracks, not that I’m complaining." Then she goes on to complain: "I always thought an album was a body of work in itself. you take it or leave it. You wouldn't say to a painter 'yeah I love the naked ladies, but would you mind painting their hair blonde instead of brown, and making their t*ts a bit bigger?' or 'the trees are really pretty, a few more leaves perhaps?' Maybe you would actually, ha ha." [Mirror]
• Tom Hanks: Being honored by the Film Society of Lincoln Center. [USA Today]
• Pat O'Brien of The Insider cares about poor people, claims he has "raged against the machine" and says we can change the world. [Page Six]
• Veronica Webb was replaced by Gretta Monahan on Tim Gunn's Guide To Style, but was still forced to sit next to her at a party. The cruelty! [Page Six]
• Guy Ritchie says a quickie is the best type of sex. Also, when asked why his films rarely have actresses in them, he said, "That's because I don't understand women." [The Sun]
• Benicio Del Toro and Steven Soderbergh: Seen partying in Toronto, getting lap dances and letting the ladies pour vodka shots into their mouths. Che it ain't so. [Page Six]
• Uh-oh, Kate Moss's daughter likes the way gas smells, so Kate leaves the car door open when she fills up at the petrol station. Does snorting chemicals run in the family? [The Sun]
• Jack White is not happy that Coca-Cola is using a song he wrote for the James Bond film Quantum of Solace. Although! Jack White did once write a song for Coke. Just not this song. [AdFreak]
• Ew, Aubry O'Day seen making out with Girls Gone Wild founder Joe Francis. [Page Six]
• Miley Cyrus's new guy is a model and aspiring country singer snamed Justin Gaston. Her rep says he is a "friend from Nashville." The two went to church together on Sunday. Jesus, talk about a clean teen. [People]
• Here's an interview with Michael Emerson, who plays Benjamin Linus on Lost. He says: "I learned the story at the same rate the audience was learning it. I didn’t know where it was going… But I've gotten used to it. Now, not knowing is part of the fun." [LA Times]
• Snoop Dogg, Rihanna and Chris Brown will attend the Melbourne Cup. Just a short while ago, it was unclear whether Snoop would be allowed into Australia; now he'll be in some kind of VIP booth at the horse race. Trifecta like it's hot. [News.com.au]
• The West Hollywood Gay and Lesbian Alliance are calling the British comedy series Little Britain USA "offensive" and "obnoxious." Isn't it supposed to be? [ONTD]
• Cate Blanchett and Philip Seymour Hoffman are working on a project to promote collaboration between theater companies in London, New York and Sydney, Australia. Blanchett's husband is a playwright; Hoffman is directing his work. [AP]
• Megan Fox is on the cover of GQ running her tongue across her teeth and wearing a bikini. She's also on the cover of Maxim, but the magazine bought old pix and did a story without her cooperation. [People]
• Noel Gallagher plans to team up with Russell Brand to create TV shows. Maybe even a sitcom. Be afraid. [The Sun]
• Saturday, Susie Essman of Curb Your Enthusiasm married her boyfriend of five years, a real estate broker named Jim Harder. Congrats! She says: "He didn’t even have HBO, or cable for that matter, and maybe that was a good thing because if he had ever seen me play Susie Greene, he probably would have run for the hills." [People]
• Dane Cook's made three shitty movies. Will My Best Friend's Girl be different? [AP]
• Um, a remake of Children Of The Corn. For the SciFi Channel. [The Hollywood Reporter]
• Any CSI: NY fans out there? How do you feel about the fact that Rumer Willis will be on a November 19th episode? [EW]
• "No one can replace Richard Wright — he was my musical partner and my friend. He was gentle, unassuming and private but his soulful voice and playing were vital, magical components of our most recognised Pink Floyd sound." — Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour. [BBC News]
• "(David) wasn’t very well endowed, because he was fighting Goliath. There was very much that effect (for me). You tighten up like a hamster." — Daniel Radcliffe, on "shrinkage" due to stage fright while appearing nude in Equus on Broadway. [MSNBC, Daily Express]

The Good:
As usual, Carine Roitfeld looks perfect, although she could stand to lose the Kenneth Cole accessory.
Sure she might've fallen during the pageant, but Miss Universe Riya Mori had one of the most stand-up looks of the evening.
Molly Sims looks cool and effortlessly glam in her almost-sheer sheath.


The Bad:
I'm sure that Lauren Bush is wearing Ralph Lauren, but this dress is just ill-fitting and not at all flattering.
Christy Turlington let me down. This dress is just all wrong for her.


The Ugly:
Who the hell is going to listen to Veronica Webb give fashion advice of Tim Gunn's Guide To Style after seeing her in this monstrosity?
Jennifer Esposito's dress looks like, in the words of Michael Kors, "something the town whore's mom made."

[All images via AP]