Some scoff at the frenzied shopping experience that is the Barney's Warehouse Sale, but we really love it.

Where else can you see Prada sheaths mopping the floor and Louboutins piled up like recycling?

If you can deal with the sacrilege, and live in New York, you might want to visit before the sale concludes on Monday.

Why?

Because everything is 60% off the last markdown price. Which means besides $30 Marc by Marc dresses, there's also a lot of Lanvin and Balenciaga, for under $400 a dress. It's an investment, but if it fits you well - and only then - you should run to the cash register.

Check out some of our scores below... alas, the Lanvin was either too big or too small!

When Sam Shipley and Jeff Halmos were part of the Trovata brigade, we instantly liked them.

They were funny; they were rumpled; they were hot (yes, fine, admitted); but also:

They never apologized for making clothes that kids actually wanted to wear.

There was no Trovata bubble skirt and no Trovata chain mail - just miles of cotton that everyone understood. "But is it overrated?" I asked Vogue's Sally Singer one season. "I have khakis too, from The Gap."

She explained that my Gap khakis weren't as well built as Trovata's (very true, once I examined them) and that also, some designers (Elbaz, Ghesquiere, Zac) build dresses. And then some of them build brands.

Now Sam and Jeff have a new one - Shipley + Halmos. It's all menswear, it's all very controlled, and it's all stuff you'd want a guy to wear when he takes you on a date.

We love it, we love Men.Style.Com for showing it in such depth, and we love the designers -

Though sadly, we know we're not the only girls in town who do!

When designer Peter Bertsch took home the 1,2,3 prize at Hyeres, we were intitially struck by the sculptural beauty and absurdity of his his "Half Plant/Half Human" collection.

With dresses that recalled the ambigious sexuality of Georgia O'Keefe's flower paintings, Bertsch revealed his talent for playing with the physical boundaries of the body and the sensual pleasures of fabrics.

Still - it didn't occur to us that Bertsch might design something we might actually want to wear until we looked further into his collection and found the beautiful diaphonous, Midsummer Night's Dream-inspired dresses that look perfect for running through the forest in the middle of the night and for more ordinary activities.

We also love what we read about Bertsch in this month's Paper -- apparently:

"Christian Lacroix, who was the president of the jury at Hyeres this year told [Paper's Diane Pernet] a funny story about the the jury deliberation over whether Peter Bertsch should be awarded a prize -- some of the jury members thought that he was too handsome and that his collection was too perfect!"

--ALISON COOL

Racks of Burberry trenches hit our shores each year - now Christopher Bailey wants us to return the favor.

The checked designer was in Chicago last week for a Burberry fashion show, and the local models used on his runway made quite an impression -

According to Time Out Chicago, Bailey booked several of them for his Milan runway next month.

Stranger discoveries have certainly happened, and remember that Cindy Crawford developed in Chicago 20 years ago - it's also Erin Heatherton's hometown.

Who's next?

Maybe Shaletta Porterfield from Ford - Andre Leon Talley reportedly called the Vogue home office about her, and today, WWD runs a photo of her storming the Burberry show.

Look out, Milan!

Which designer hasn't issued an invite to an always-photographed starlet, despite her publicist's requests?

The designer's camp - which has also taken several fashion editors off its list - claims their new show space is small, and can't fit too many people.

But how much room can this celebrity need? She's always the thinnest girl in the room!

Add one more girl to the stack of Fashion Week casting cards:

Cory Kennedy just signed up with Muse models.

The boutique agency has a small stack of sex bombs whom they call their muses - yes - which includes Nylon favorite Holly Hayden and also Kemp, who may be best known in the States for her Young Love video with Terry Richardson, but also has a huge Maybelline campaign in France.

Now they've got Cory "by special arrangement," which we think is code for "we must bring her Mochaccinos whenever she's on set."

Whether she's signed in time to walk a runway is something, of course, we'll keep investigating...

It's not just models who come from Slovenia.

Cathy Horyn's NYT blog has a particularly erudite --and, okay, at times a pretty pedantic-- set of commenters.

The most famous is "Autre", who writes virtual dissertions on a variety of subjects - some related to fashion, some related to him.

Yesterday "Ms. Horyn" (as her commenters call her) posted a 7,000 word essay of Autre's, and revealed that he is actually writing a dissertion:

He's a Ph.D candidate in art history at the University of Ljubljana.

We found the essay, which uses 'Silence of the Lambs' as a vector for exploring fashion, and particularly fashion criticism, to be quite intriguing-- both in and of itself, and for what it represents about the changing face of fashion commentary.

We think it's great that the path to writing about fashion is no longer always through the fashion closet.

Right now, some of the most exciting commentary is coming from people like Autre; outsiders in a very insider industry.

But while his removal from New York and Paris means his voice is fresh, and brings his academic training to bear on Nina Ricci's feathers and Marni's sack dresses, it also means Autre is sometimes talking in a bubble.

Which is natural, considering he's in Slovenia.

Should fashion be guided from the outside in?

--ANNA FIELDING GRIGGS

This week's Time Out New York has an extremely useful article about the best photo booths in the city.

Our personal favorite location for photo booths is in bars, because it's a good make-out spot, and a good place to shamelessly immortalize your making out, for better or worse.

We also think that color photo booths are a waste of time -

It's all about the retro appeal of the black and white in the era of digital photography.

And B&W is way more 1960s Andy Warhol photo booth self-portrait-esque.

But do photo booth strips lose their cool factor when you scan them for your myspace page?

--ALISON COOL

With summer coming to a close, you can get steals on beachwear while designers stock their stores with the first crop of autumn attire.

But is there really much difference between what you wear in August and what you will wear three months from now?

Today's Wall Street Journal features a piece on the decline of seasonal dressing.

The article credits global climate changes, as well as Central AC, as a leading cause for why you're going sleeveless in November.

The shift might also be part of the "casual movement", since people can wear the same jeans year-round, and simply add or remove layers.

We can identify with many of these observations - especially when we think back to last December, when it was 60 degrees and we were ditching our coats for t-shirts.

And then there are those girls who wear flip flops in the winter, even if it's snowing...

--SARAH MUEHLBAUER

We're not allowed to say how we know this, but we can promise that Angela Lindvall is back at IMG Models.

After working with the agency for 10 years, she briefly decamped to One in 2005.

It's worth noting that Angela is one of the rare American models right now, and also that she's (gasp) 27 and a mother of two boys - both things that make her something of a mannequin rock star in our book.

Angela is the current face of Zara, but we expect she'll score. even bigger campaigns for Spring '08...

After all, IMG is sending her out on the runways with the rest of their pretty posse next week, and she's too gorgeous not to get booked... and booked... and booked.

Remember Best Friends necklaces? The necklaces which each had half of a heart, and when you put them together it made a whole heart that said "Best Friends"?

We love how Swedish designer Agnes Rosa Beckman Carling has updated this concept - and made it way more morbid - with her "half animal" necklace.

She's still a student at Sweden's prestigious Beckman's, but you can email her at agnesrosa_bc@hotmail.com if you don't want to wait until she graduates to find out more.

As far as the necklaces, we suggest getting a pair. Then, you could give one to your best friend, best enemy, or just selfishly wear both of them yourself!

--ALISON COOL

IMG's show package is up online, and it includes some of our favorite VIPs:

There's Freja, Jessica Stam, and Tanya D. all looking gorgeous.

There's also some incredible new "talent" - and by "talent," we mean "gene pools" - and our hearts actually stopped when we saw Heidi Mount, a blonde who looks like Tommy Hilfiger built her specifically. And though The Casting Director picked some gorgeous girls for ELLE, we also wouldn't discount IMG's Hannah Davis, the beachy beauty who booked some Ralph Lauren ads last year, and now is here to stay.

Meanwhile, Gemma is not in the New York package, and neither is Lily Cole.

BUT.

We hear from a casting assistant that Lily is being quietly allowed as an option for a few select designers.

We hope it's true -

We love Lily!

Things that impress us about Betsey Johnson's invitation:

1. It came with a hot pink balloon that said "Prom Queen."

2. It came with several photos of Betsey at her own prom, at Terryville High School in Wethersfield, Connecticut.

3. It came stamped with the date of Betsey's actual high school prom - 1958.

How many fashion icons do you know who will admit their age in writing?!

Also, is it us, or does Betsey's pink dress need its own crinoline zip code?

Amazing.

Thursday Styles has an article about the Hampton Classic that might just be the best reading the Times has to offer today.

The piece focuses on rich girls and their horses, and sheds a lot of light on why equestrian fashion never really goes out of style. And of course, the first two words in the article are Ralph Lauren:

"RALPH LAUREN was lying on the grass in the late afternoon sun, eyeing the willowy teenage girls, flushed from humidity, cantering their steeds. Clad in an orange Polo shirt, Ralph — the Yorkie, not the noted designer — was but one of many preppy attendees of the Hampton Classic horse show, where it actually feels appropriate for a dog to wear a collared shirt rather than a collar."

Doesn't it seem like the traditional clothes sported during the leisure activities of the wealthy - horse racing, polo, hunting, etc. - are having a big moment right now in fashion?

First you have Kate Moss wearing those understated Hunter boots at Glastonbury, and now we're seeing jodphurs, houndstooth, and tartan all over the place.

Pretty soon NYC hipsters will be indistinguishable from the English landed aristocracy. They'll be like "Oh, are you going to the secret White Magic show"? "No, I'm going to Wimbledon. Cheerio!"

--ALISON COOL

Reader FM writes in with this challenge:

Can you tell which of these dresses is Kate Moss for TopShop ($150 at Barneys, when still in stock) and which dress is $24.80 at Forever 21?

True, Kate's "original" dress was also a copy - she had a Versace dress just like it in the '90s.

But will that stop TopShop from suing?

We doubt it -

And we wonder how many girls will miss their chance at buying the Kate dress and this one when it's pulled from shelves...

All the sneaker companies are going crazy trying to compete with one another to make the coolest, most limited-edition, hippest artist collaboration, niche market sneakers.

You practically can't walk down Broadway without tripping over a pair of rainbow hued Reebok Freestyles, and Adidas and Nike are probably spending more than the GDP of some countries trying to outdo one another generating buzz around their new styles and re-releases of classic & vintage styles.

And now the weird little brother of sneaker companies - Vans - is joining the game.

We're actually kind of excited about their line of sneakers in tribute to metal and punk bands - including Iron Maiden, Circle Jerks, and Motorhead. Style-wise, our favorites are the Iron Maiden hi-tops, but music-wise we prefer Motorhead.

But it kind of begs the question - how many models are we going to see wearing sneakers in tribute to bands they have most likely never heard?

--ALISON COOL

A few months ago, we asked you which celebrity should design a clothing line.

Most of you answered Chloe Sevigny... and she must have read your comments.

The actress announced last night that she'd show a small collection for Opening Ceremony in New York and LA.

It'll debut with a presentation on September 4. the day before Fashion Week officially starts, and also the day when Jen Kao, Form, and Trovata unveil their Spring '08 lines.

We'll take photos for you, and try not to get them mixed up!

PS: We love this image from photographer Chris Buck so much. We hope he's shooting for Fashion Week.

What is Qoniak?

It's not a fourteen-year-old Belgian with a Prada exclusive--

It's Cheap Monday's new, more expensive clothing line (pronounced like "cognac"), which just debuted at Stockholm Fashion Week.

We were not thrilled about all the acid wash, but we were impressed by the resemblance between one of the models and writer/socialite/Banana Republic campaign girl Jessica Joffe.

However, we can't decide if the person in question is Jessica's long lost twin brother... or sister.

Androgyny is big for fall.

--ANNA FIELDING GRIGGS

Ever since Kate Moss for Topshop flew in and out of stores, we've been kicking ourselves for not snapping up that cute pansy-print mini dress.

We tried to make peace with our loss, and managed to forget about it (sort of) for a while -

But a recent sighting of the dress in Southampton spurred a major obsession-relapse, and we've been scouring eBay for it ever since.

That is, until today, when we spotted this "Ditsy Print Tea Dress" on Topshop's website.

The floral pattern is a bit dottier than the original, and the waist is cut slightly different. Still, we think it would look just as good with sandals and a cute boyfriend.

It may not have the Kate label (or her seal of approval), but we just might have to snag this one anyway.

--SARAH MUEHLBAUER

London artist Matthew Stone has already caused quite a stir in London:

Besides exhibiting his massive, fantasy photos at various British museums, the 25-year-old "art shaman" has also performed as part of the WoWoW! Collective, a UK group of culture misfits that also includes Gareth Pugh, and gets a large amount of credit for re-sparking the rave scene in England.

Now Matthew's come to New York, and we're told to expect him at a few fashion shows and parties.

Perhaps he'll be in the company of Terence Koh, the Manhattan-based artist whose recent performance piece let him wear Balenciaga's robot leggings. Matthew photographed Terrance at Boombox, where he did a living art installation and wore some Pugh masks, too.

And while Stone's work may not be as scene-driven as Ryan McGinley's, it's a good bet he'll be collaboration with the fashion world for years and years.

Start watching now.

You'll either love this or hate this, depending:

Besides the usual crush of TV actors and stylists coming to Fashion Week from LA, there's a new infusion of style seekers that hail mostly from Cinespace.

They're the LA scenesters, and they'll be out in full force next week.

Starting the party is Imitation of Christ, who'll launch their diffusion line on September 4th at Snitch. The DJs are Paul Sevigny, the Czar of the Beatrice Inn, and cutie David Katz. And we'll be looking for designer Tara Subkoff and her neon blonde hair.

Meanwhile, Steve Aoki will spin at Alexander Wang's show and party, while rumors swirl that his sister, Devon Aoki, will walk the runway. Those whispers are very unconfirmed, though we can promise that supermodel Erin Wasson will be there - she's styling the clothes for Wang's latest collection.

Finally, Jeremy Scott's muse, Cory Kennedy, is in Manhattan for two weeks. She'll attend various shows and parties, and pose for countless MySpace pictures along the way.

And now, back to the clothes...

We can all agree that J. Lo looks hot on the cover of eFashion Rocks.

Corset belts are huge for fall, and in general we are totally in favor of them. But we think the Dolce & Gabbana metal corset belt deserves a little bit of closer inspection.

The corset itself has a somewhat problematic history in terms of women fainting and suffocating, but that doesn't bother us as much as the way the D&G belt references the chastity belt.

And here's why:

The lock and key on the D&G corset belt reminds us of how medieval knights would lock up their ladies in chastity belts to guard their purity while they went out marauding and plundering.

We think this trend started with the recent resurgence in popularity of the Cartier love bracelets and the idea that locking someone down in a piece of expensive metal symbolizes commitment.

But really, whose vision of sexy is this?

--ALISON COOL

The snowball effect has swept up one of our favorite designers:

After being named creative director for Bill Blass, and getting a fast-selling lipstick from Lancome, Peter Som may get a big cash infusion from Lord and Taylor.

The Wall Street Journal says the store's owners want a stake in the company.

If the deal goes through, it marks the second young brand this year to get a big fashion investor (Proenza got its own payment from Valentino's parent company this Spring).

It also hints at Lord & Taylor's emerging strategy to pair with high fashion labels and turn around their image - remember, these are the people who got Vogue's Lauren Davis for their fall ad campaign.

We'll be watching Peter's front row this season, searching for the Lord & Taylor team - though really, anyone at Fashion Week who isn't Daria becomes a blur by day two...

As someone who routinely panics in front of her morning closet, I'm taking huge comfort in this Style.com video.

It trails the streets of London in hot pursuit of style, and finds three well-dressed women - albeit women who are massively hooked up in the industry - to gab about their clothes.

Maybe the most interesting thread running through all the women is the idea that your looks shouldn't be perfect.

As British Vogue contributor notes in her own interview - while wearing a slouchy smock and Beatles t-shirt - "I guess you could dress like a supermodel, but I'm not a supermodel - I'm me."

We'll just keep repeating that to ourselves, over and over again, as we stare at our piles of jeans and heels, and moan we have nothing to wear.

Will America's Next (or just latest) Top Model pose for Fashion Week?

We don't know - but we do have her show card from Elite.

Jaslene looks really good in her industry composite, and we know her wiry frame will look great in the menswear shapes hugging the catwalk.

But we haven't heard of her appearing at any castings yet, and designers may not be interested in casting a mild TV personality.

One place we will be watching:

The runway at the Van Cleef and Arpels Paris-themed party, which promises to feature a handful of models in dazzling Van Cleef jewels, and all will be procured from Elite's boards.

Wait a minute - wasn't catwalking in 10 lbs of diamonds while surrounded by Can Can dancers a Top Model challenge?

Last night we checked out the 1971 noir-ish movie Klute at Film Forum, mostly to see how they outfitted Jane Fonda to play an early '70s call girl named "Bree."

And we were not disappointed.

Other than her somewhat unfortunate haircut, which recalled the electroclash "fashion mullets" of 2001 (remember that?), we found a lot of outfit inspiration.

Our favorite Jane Fonda look was a mini-dress cinched at the waist with a wide belt with over-the-knee leather boots. But the true genius of the outfit was the classic trench thrown on casually over the whole ensemble.

In retrospect, we think the whole film should have been devoted to exploring how adding a trenchcoat to any outfit instantly makes it look WAY less slutty.

--ALISON COOL

Easy Spirit snagged Tara Subkoff; now the other comfort shoe company wants to climb on the catwalk.

On Friday, Aerosoles will meet with Nicole Romano to discuss a possible collaboration for next year.

The move follows Fashion Week sponsorship deal between the brand and the designer, and a shoutout on Style.com for Aerosole's newly cute flats.

The pairing would be great for Nicole, but it's also threaded with irony:

Nicole's big break came when Patricia Field dressed Sarah Jessica Parker in her clothes on Sex and the City.

But if her shoe collection launches in the next year, it'll compete directly with Patricia Field's new range for Payless!

Until those lines debut, let's get acquainted with these $89 chunky heels...

One trend may emerge for Fashion Week that has nothing to do with the runways:

Flats!

10,000 NYC cab drivers are threatening a strike to protest new laws mandating GPS units in every cab. Unfortunately for the fashion industry, the strike is scheduled to start on September 5th; the first full day of shows in New York.

The move may even affect magazine editors, who rely on car services to shuttle them from show to show - but even some car services belong to the Cab and Limousine union whose cars could sit in the garage.

That means if you're an editor, model, designer, dresser, make-up artist, stylist, casting director, or someone who shelled out for skybox seats in the tents, you may be walking or (gasp) taking the subway.

We suggest doing so in a pair of these terrific Marc by Marc mary janes, and maybe bringing a good book

- The shows will almost certainly be running even more behind schedule than usual.

--ANNA FIELDING GRIGGS

In fashion math, $200 will get you 1 pair of Lanvin flats on sale at Barneys, 10 Tarte lipglosses, or half the sleeve of the Chanel penguin sweater.

It could also get you into the Carolina Herrera show.

American Express recently announced a deal with IMG - the company producing New York Fashion Week - which makes tickets to runway shows available to Amex gold card holders.

$200 buys you a seat for two collections -- in a specially constructed 26 seat skybox in the tents, complete with food, beverages, a giftbag, and a very small view of the back of Anna's head.

Or at least, it did.

The 450 packages available went on sale 5 days ago, but they've already all been snapped up by Coco fans, DVF lovers, and would-be Olsen spotters.

The ticket proceeds go to American Express, but the company is paying IMG a substantial sponsorship sum for their special seats. IMG says that it's a way to keep charging labels the same amount to show their work, despite rising production costs.

But insiders say the deal is why more designers show outside the Tents - They want total control over the show's environment, guest list, and advertising, and feel that IMG is more concerned with its own brand than those showing in Bryant Park.

Despite the nay-sayers, IMG plans to offer similar deals for other fashion week events it produces (in London, LA, Berlin, and Miami). They're tapping into a growing desire to see real live size zeros stomp the catwalk:

In November, labels like Oscar de la Renta and Valentino re-enact their spring collections in Dallas, during four days of 18 runway presentations. Every seat is for sale, and prices start at $25 a show.

This could be a great way to demystify fashion for those who don't breathe the industry - but it might also kill some of its magic.

Will fashion shows lose their appeal? Or will fashion be better when it answers to the people as well as the press?

--ANNA FIELDING GRIGGS

Will fall's It bag be....a sunglasses case?

Roberto Cavalli hopes so.

His limited edition 'Eva' shades - named for his wife - go on sale October 15th, with a hefty price tag of $640 - most of the brand's current pairs retail for $300-$450.

But the press release points out that "The original packaging, created exclusively for the “Eva� sunglasses, is covered in leopard print champagne colored satin and decorated with the RC monogram logo in bronzed metal. The case can also be used as an evening clutch or shoulder purse."

Clearly, Cavalli expects the case to be a selling point. Perhaps they're anticipating women rationalizing this way:

$640 is a lot, even for designer sunglasses...

But not so much compared to the price of a regular designer purse (a Cavalli clutch will usually set you back $1000).

And if you deduct the price of a normal pair of Cavalli shades ($340), you could say that you're getting a Cavalli bag for $300 or less...

We know some girls who do similar arithmetic when it comes to justifying buying Dior make-up (pricey eyeshadow, "free" bag).

Are you convinced by their math?

--ANNA FIELDING GRIGGS

As much as we loved Hussein's electronic contraption dresses, we are fully aware that as far as we are concerned, they about have as much to do with our everyday wardrobe as our toaster.

That's why we got a crush on this blue shadow puppet t-shirt from the Hussein Chalayan e-shop.

It's about $90, and as far as we know, it does not open or close while you are wearing it.

We were initially attracted to the shirt because it has a horse (cute!) and shadow puppet hands (nostalgia!), but then we read more about the concept, which is meant as a "playful interpretation of surveillance and CCTV where hand movements reproduce the shadow of a horse’s head, transforming sinister shadows associated with being watched into a game."

The wording slightly boggles our mind, but we agree with the sentiment.

And the cute horsie!

--ALISON COOL

Let's face it - all too often great shoes come with a price, and wreak all sorts of havoc on your poor feet. Stilettos, platforms, those super cute flats that you bought on sale 1/2 a size too small....

Obviously, abandoning your footwear friends and wearing comfy sneakers 24/7 is not an option. So what's a girl to do?

Our outdoorsy friend recommended these admittedly unglamorous British blister band-aids from Compeed, which are about $8 on Multipharmacy.

Realizing they would be a serious lifesaver for shoe-induced pain, we tried them.

And they work!

We love this scientific description of why they are so great:

"Compeed is an advanced type of plaster [that] relieves pain and pressure. The unique Hydrocure System allows the plaster to absorb moisture from the skin, forming a cushion that provides optimum healing condition."

But they forgot to mention that now you can safely try on those insane Balenciaga shoes!

--ALISON COOL

If songs came with dresses to match, we think that Leonard Cohen's "Bird on a Wire" would go well with this black and white dress from Saja's pre-fall collection.

The print on the dress is more interesting than plain black and white vertical lines, but packs the same graphic punch. And we think the abstract pattern looks a bit like little birds lined up on a telephone wire - are we alone in this?

Short-sleeved dresses are the most comfortable item of clothing possible, and when they have little pom-poms on the hem, like this one, all the better.

We suggest wearing it with tights and peep-toe shoes. Summer never really ends!

--ALISON COOL

Good news for the suburbs:

According to Sara Glassman at Minneapolis / St. Paul Magazine, the Vera Wang for Kohl's line is already in stores.

Sarah's impressed with some of the dresses, especially the deep gray and blue ones with beading.

Meanwhile, we're impressed with something else:

The huge discrepancy between when we can buy Simply Vera on the web, and when those with cars and Midwestern drivers licenses can buy Simply Vera in person.

Let's change the name of her line to Simply Not Fair!

Reader Sophie writes in to tell us about her latest shopping experience:

"Dear Fashionista,

My friend just bought a Vuitton fake on Canal Street - I know, I'm sorry.

But when she pulled it out to show us, the plastic straps were a dark brown color.

I know one of the easy ways to spot a Vuitton fake is by its straps - usually they're that light yellow color, and they never darken like actual LV leather.

Did they make the strap like that so it looked more real?"

Probably - the same way that when the Murakami fakes came out a few years ago, a few counterfeiters made them with deeper colored graphics, which made them look more authentic than the cheesy neon hues you'd associate with a fake Cherry Blossom bag.

We wonder if they'll ever start using canvas, and not plastic, for the skin...

Some stalk celebrities; we stalk wedges.

Hunting down our favorite pairs on sale (so far: Louboutin from Bluefly; Bottega from Net-A-Porter) is our official past time, but last night, we caught some panic:

It's almost September, and open-toed shoes will officially fade.

Of course, there have been a few editorials lately with girls in tights and wedges...

And we even tried the look - and loved it - at a party for the Made: I Wanna Be a Hipster spoof last week.

But was this just a failed attempt at Judy Jetson's wardrobe, or is it a realistic option for Fall?

In other words: Will you do it, too?

Steve + Barry's wants to assure you that no designers were harmed in the making of their Bitten collection -

In other words, they sent us a very firm email declaring the Anna Corinna ripoff bag that caused such a fuss was never, ever made.

We don't shop at Steve + Barry's (sorry!), so we can't confirm seeing the bag or not seeing the bag (as you readers have). But we do think it's awfully funny that even after insisting the bag never made it past production, it still appeared in not one, but two press previews of the line.

Still, we appreciate the S+B awareness of the issue, and we even made a special graphic (below) for Bitten's second collection.

It admits that some of their new pieces are darling, and now the only issue is the tag line "Fashion Should Not Cost More Than Your Groceries."

Well, our groceries definitely don't cost as much as our clothes... maybe we're just not eating enough?

The frenzy for Fashion Week celebrities has officially reached a fevered pitch, as publicists scramble for stars and fashion editors pretend not to care.

So far, Calvin Klein's been the only brand to release public names - Kate Bosworth and Julianne Moore have both been invited (sometimes in the fashion world, that's a polite word for paid) to their show and also their Fashion Week dinner party.

Meanwhile, Miss Sixty has Jessica Stam in their ads and two movie stars in their seats.

Look for Hilary Swank and Maggie Gyllenhaal to attend their famously loud and glossy show.

It may seem like an odd fit for the two stars and the teen brand - Hilary with her architectural leanings and Maggie with her sharply stylized pout, but we know from experience that everyone needs a great pair of jeans - even Oscar winners...

Vests were huge for Spring and Summer, so maybe it's not surprising that we're seeing a lot of puffer jackets in various Fall collections.

Our first encounter with The Puffer came at boarding school, when North Face ruled, and the infamous jacket-with-no-sleeves was everywhere.

But the new Puffers are slimmer, with a longer cut and more detailed quilting to streamline its shape.

The Puffer has also gone from girly to unisex, as several men's collections have introduced them in place of a blazer.

Our favorite so far comes from Club Monaco, where they've cleverly styled it with pinstripe pants and a tie.

Logo babes can also take comfort - See by Chloe has a few cute ones for winter, which seem ideal for those who want to pick up a snowboarder.

WHICH indie rocker is going to Fashion Week castings? Turns out burgeoning exposure and radio-friendly songs just aren't enough... plus, doesn't every guy in a band need to meet more models?

It's a good day for tofu here on Fashionista.

Besides discussing the kangaroo leather at Adidas, we got word from reader Wendy, who noticed something odd about The New York Times, and their super-fun piece on Hogan's Guitar Handbags:

"The ponyskin Chrissie -- which the Times says is a tribute to Chrissie Hynde -- looks gorgeous. Too bad the formerly leather-pants-wearing Hynde is now a PETA activist!"

Ah well.

The singer did used to wear those leather pants, so a bag in her old-school homage seems reasonable - especially when it looks great, and especially in a story where a choice line "puts the muse in music."

Still, if The Pretender's star really offended by a misappropriation of patent leather, here's a suggestion:

Chrissie could stage a protest in front of their Soho store... wearing her own cloth handbag, of course.

Her actual accessory can inspire a new Hogan fabric line for Spring, which will hopefully wind up with another cool Times write up.

Bonus: If it's a cloth bag from Hogan we'll actually be able to afford it.

We've marveled over the fall/winter menswear collection from Swedish label Gentlemen's Affair. With no current stockists in the states, your best bet is to email lotte@gentlemensaffair.com to find out more.

The theme of the collection is "Haunted House," which translates into David Bowie-meets-Baroque moody knits, tailored suits, and just a touch of theatricality.

We know the cardigan is a surefire staple for fall, but we're not sure if the guys we run around with would style theirs with a giant bow, as in Gentlemen's Affair's lookbook.

But we might!

--ALISON COOL