If you have a huge crush on Topher Grace, you should probably go to the Ralph Lauren Rugby store on 12th St. and University Place right-this-second to watch him try on jeans and popped collar shirts with little skulls on them. Dreamy.

Doutzen Kroes doesn’t just model for fashion, she also models for public service announcements.

Starting next week, she will appear in a series of ad campaigns from her home county of Tytsjerksteradiel in the Dutch province of Friesland, encouraging other Frisians like herself to “Praat Mar Frysk!”— As in, “Just Speak Frisian,” not Dutch. If the campaign is successful, it might mean emerging Frisian models won’t be able to gossip as fluently with Dutch girls like Lara Stone backstage.

The campaign doesn’t launch until next week, but we know that it will include inflatable mouths- Doutzen is planning on taking them around the world to have her photo taken with them.

Will we see them in the Tents during Fashion Week?

Also: We think this video might be about the campaign, but we don’t speak Frisian so we can’t tell…

Last week, Natalie kept saying “Dootzen” for “Doutzen Kroes,” and admitted that while interning at Vogue, she called Hamish Bowles “Ham-ish” to his face.

So we realized that we may need another one of our fashion pronunciation tutorials.

Today’s Lesson:

Proenza Schouler is Pro-en-za Shoo-ler
Ann Demeulemeester is Ann Deh-myoo-leh-meese-ter
Leighton Meester is Lay-ton Meese-ter
Costello Tagliapetra is Cos-tell-o Tag-lee-a-pyeh-tra
Costume National is Costume Na-syon-al
Giles Deacon is JAI-uls DeEE-con
Daria Werbowy is Da-ri-a WERE-bow-ee
Agyness Deyn is Ag-e-ness Deen
Doutzen Kroes is Doubt-son Crows
Hamish Bowles is Hay-mish Bowls
Bottega Veneta is Bow-tay-ga Vuh-NEH-tuh
Iekeliene Stange is Ick-uh-lee-na STAY-enge (easy on the “e,” like STAYnge)
Irina Lazareanu is I-ree-na La-za-REE-new
Freja Beha Erichsen is Fry-a Bay-ha Ericson

Now can anyone help us out with Andrew Gn?

—NATALIE HORMILLA, is or-MEE-ya

Alison asked this morning if Katie Holmes wanted to look more like Christina Ricci.

After all, her new and very severe haircut is so very goth, it adds a good 10 years to the well-married movie star.

We think it’s more of a nod to Anna Wintour, but there is a small goth connection:

Katie’s arched eyes and deep, shiny hair looks an awful lot like our favorite tantrum teen, Emily the Strange.

With her glowering appeal and her “don’t-touch-me” stance, Emily’s entire being seems to be Katie’s subtle subtext - unless you’ve actually started to believe she’s totally in love with her life, in which case, well, it’s just a very chic haircut.

Our favorite thing about winter is that we get to layer our cute summer stuff with some of our cozier, winter pieces.

This often means long-sleeve tees under tank tops and thin sweaters over flimsy dresses. These unexpected combinations are always a hit, but there’s one more layering tactic we love that a lot of people don’t seem to understand: shorts when it’s cold out.

We always wear our winter shorts over a pair of tights- sometimes even with thin socks layered, too.

But the look doesn’t garner the same compliments we get for a thermal under a strapless dress. It’s more like, “why are you wearing shorts out? It’s November.”

We don’t really understand that concern. It’s like no one can separate the two thoughts, “shorts” and “summer.” How is this any different from wearing a short dress with leggings? We maintain that it’s another great way of recycling your summer clothes and just a very cute look, especially with flat boots and thick gray socks.

So what do you guys think? Is this a look better left to LA-based celebrities, or does it still count as legitimate winter layering?

We’re glad someone has finally found a good use for old skateboards.

If you’ve grown out of your “skate or die” days, and you’re more interested in Repetto flats than Airwalks, then you might appreciate the genius of Kris Lovett.

Lovett, a University of Arts grad, had the vision to recycle used skateboards into cute Faryl Robin-esque women’s shoes. He sees the project, called “Reply,” as both an aesthetic adventure and a statement about eco-consciousness:

“Used skateboard decks continue to pile up due to the production of over 100,000 decks per month in the United States alone. Reply explores this material waste stream as a resource for women’s shoes.”

No word yet on whether you can ollie in the skateboard shoes. But we’re planning on wearing these wedges at left as soon as we can get someplace warm.

—ALISON COOL

We felt insanely cool for scoring a Proenza Schouler corset at a thrift shop this summer, but apparently, we weren’t that special:

Forever 21 also scored a Proenza Schouler corset, just like the ones Jack and Lazaro made for Target in February. They switched a color from white to black, added a little more room in the cups, and turned up the shine factor on the fabric so it went from Cavalli-shiny to Cavalli-for-H&M shiny.

Then they priced it at $22.80 - a whopping $10 lower than Proenza’s price at Target - and rolled it out onto their floor.

It’s a serious case of fashion deja vu, but if Forever 21 was going to knock off Proenza, we wish they’d been a little more literal - that black-and-purple color story zooms us straight back to Shira: Princess of Power.

Remember learning about chemical reactions in your high school chemistry class? And the awesome safety goggles you got to wear in case your lab partner sprayed sulfur in your eyes?

In case you need a little refresher course, Etsy seller Ikyoto has created a line of chemical reaction t-shirts. The Brooklyn-based artist pulled from vintage Japanese science textbooks for informative and funny illustrations to print on 100% cotton tees.

Our personal favorite is the “oxidation” design, which shows anthropormophized droplets of water and fruit juice attacking an iron bar.

We recommend browsing the selection (there’s a lot) to find your personal favorite. At $15 a piece, you might want to stock up on a few.

—ALISON COOL

“The guy is so prolific that, like Natalie Imbruglia, we’re torn.” - Horacio Silva on Karl Lagerfeld, in T Magazine’s new blog.

We adored Wednesday’s Gossip Girl, especially the part we feared would suck:

The flashbacks to Thanksgiving ‘06, where Nate was actually fun and cool, Blair was sick but happier, and Serena Van Der Woodsen was a serious problem child.

In the course of one episode, we saw her undress in front of her best friend’s boyfriend. Get drunk. Get high. Get caught by her mom. And maybe the best part, get almost run over by a car, while craving apple pie. Of course, Dan saved her at the last second from getting squished by a Saab, and this is a good time for us to remind you girls in high school, college, and anywhere with single men that Dan does not exist.

Besides noticing our lack of Dan Humphrey, we also saw this:

That whenever Serena’s doing something naughty, she’s wearing really cheap clothes.

Hosing down Nate in Blair’s bathtub? She was wearing Juicy sweats. Passed out from vodka on Blair’s sofa? She looked like an L.L. Bean ad. And perhaps the biggest grievance of all - when Serena was drunk and roaming the streets of Brooklyn, she sported a massive leopard coat from Forever 21!

Are Gossip Girl’s costume designers trying to increase Serena’s personal and moral value by upping her clothing allowance?

Totally, and that’s actually a really cool way to enhance the story. But there’s one thing we can’t forgive:

That leopard coat and Blair Waldorf’s dotted gray dress from Marc Jacobs? Those are in stores now. So how could our two favorite heroines have them a whole year early?!

Oh well. Maybe Eleanor Waldorf is the vice president of the CFDA…

We hear that rising photo babe Ryan McGinley’s been given a plum assignment:

He’ll be shooting the famous Oscar portfolio in The New York Times Magazine, which will debut just before the actual Oscars.

The fun part is, Ryan’s been booked (and so has a studio in London) but the talent hasn’t, at least not officially.

After all, the Oscar nominations won’t be unveiled until later this year, though we have a few fashion suspicions - Marion Cotillard is just too good not to get recognized for La Vie En Rose, and writer Tamara Jenkins should get a big spotlight for The Savages.

Hopefully they’ll both get their photos taken, and look cool like Kate Moss, left, whom Mr. McGinley shot earlier this year for W…

Those of you asking for more Girls Gone Styled episodes should get ready:

We’re filming the first bits of next season tomorrow (!) and there will be lots of adventures in store, including a Heatherette studio visit, a tutorial from a top model (she looks great in a bikini and that’s your only clue), and a brand new co-host, Paper fashion babe Quinn Asteak.

Meanwhile, Atoosa Rubenstein asked if I’d talk about fashion for her Alpha Kitty series, and although I can’t say “Alpha Kitty” without a low laugh (the same kind I’d make in middle school when someone said “boner”, weirdly), it’s a great series and it was a total honor and a total blast to be filmed.

Enjoy, and then watch some babes with way better hair - Taylor Warren (model), Byrdie Bell (Vogue crush), Jen Steele (Miss Seventeen!), and Andre J (French Vogue crush)- do their video confessions below!

xo F.

Sometimes we’re confused by designer judgment. Like remember the season when all of Valentino’s ballgowns looked like eclairs? And the time that Dolce & Gabbana fused new rave with jungle? And now that Rodarte’s had a really standout season with incredible tailoring, we hope everyone can agree - or at least acknowledge - that their earlier pillowcase poufs weren’t really working.

Add to the high fashion mishaps the Christian Dior bag at left.

At first we just thought, “God, that is so hideous.”

But then we noticed the name: The Dior Ethnic Hobo Bag.

Ethnic, exactly, how? Is it the wannabe hand-sewn edges, so much like our Jewish grandmother’s challah covers? Is it the braided strap, perhaps meant to evoke images of African village women plaiting with their families? Or maybe fuchsia just screams “Russian” (like Faran) or “Cuban” (like both Natalies) or “Egyptian” like Britt. Or something.

We know it can’t be marketing- as an office of “ethnic” women, we all “ugh”-ed in unison upon mere sight of the bag.

Really, we are totally stumped. Can anyone explain this one?

Ever wonder what fashion editors do when they’re not coaxing Coco into a risky Balenciaga blouse?

The possible zooming thoughts of Posh Spice as Look 57 slapped down the Marc Jacobs runway in September:

“Where’s the rest of her?”

“Could I wear that with Burberry plaid booties?”

“Wait, am I wearing my underwear?”

“Aren’t we right next to Pop Burger?”

“Do Stephen Hawking’s theories on particle evolution relate to Oliver Curry’s latest hypothesis?”

“I can’t believe you’re paying me for this.”

“No really, can we go to Pop Burger?”

When you’re carrying around a large assortment of awkwardly shaped objects – like an extra pair of shoes, library books, a laptop, and sunglasses – finding an appropriate bag can be something of a challenge.

And even though the duffel bag seems like the obvious solution, the options are often misses- American Apparel makes cute ones, but they’re a little flimsy for non gym-bag use. And Gucci did a duffel tote for fall, but we’re not about to drop $2,350 on the kind of bag you get for free when you participate in intramural sports.

When it comes to sturdy, attractive, and adorable carry-alls, we turn to Olivia Harris. In particular, the designer’s “Flap Hobo” in charcoal – a luxurious mid-size leather version of the classic duffel – just might be the perfect everyday winter bag.

—ALISON COOL

Last spring, I interned for a high-profile New York band. It was surprising how goofy the “jaded” rockers were, and how their cool style came as naturally as a catchy guitar riff.

Some wrote them off as models rather than real musicians, and we can’t tell you how many prestigious campaigns they turned down, but they preferred instead to work on an upcoming album. They’re still writing it.

But lately, rock stars have craved more from the fashion world than just its trophy wives — and designers are more than willing to oblige. It’s a symbiotic relationship: the designers score some pop-culture cred, the musicians get free publicity.

This explains the love affair between Karl Lagerfeld and Chan Marshall, or why Bloody Social frontman Jamie Burke — the one-time boyfriend of Kate Moss and Sienna Miller — is lending his scratchy black nails to Calvin Klein.

There’s also Hedi Slimane, who championed the ghoulish threads of the Horrors, and John Varvatos, who crafted an entire ad campaign featuring Iggy Pop and Alice Cooper traipsing in posh suits. Varvatos’ newest project is a boutique in the old CBGB space.

Gwen Stefani may get dressed by Dior, but we can’t envision any self-respecting rock star dropping 3 grand on a jacket (stealing one is another story…). And though the Sex Pistols were outfitted in Vivienne Westwood in the ’70s, they would never have gone into Seditionaries and actually bought her clothes.

But nobody really wants their rock idol to admit wearing expensive and manufactured style - something that’s a little revered in the hip hop community, but not with rock bands. If you know your favorite band is wearing designer outfits, do you respect them less as musicians?

— NATALIE GUEVARA

Every season, we find ourselves fixating on an absolutely gorgeous fancy dress that has absolutely no place in our life.

The dream dress is always way too expensive, usually on a celebrity, and probably not even sold in stores.

Also, unless we crash the Oscars, there’s usually no place to wear it.

Still, none of these annoying protests from the land of reality can keep us from dreaming.

Like an unrequited crush that you stalk on MySpace, we like to look at our unobtainable dream dress on shopping and fashion blogs, imagining a life in which we too get to pose for Style.com’s Look of the Day.

Alison’s Dream Dress is the amazing gold silk one from Vanessa Bruno, which costs $684.

Natalie’s Dream Dress is the Marc by Marc silk faille dress that closed his London runway show, which costs $548.

Faran’s unrealistic frock star is the McQueen gown that Nicole Kidman wore to the Country Music Awards.

And you?

—ALISON COOL

We’ve always loved American Apparel, and not just for their stock of basics, but for that second part of their name- “Made In Downtown LA.”

But truth be told, we shop at a million other places, too, and a lot of them have labels that read more like, “Made in Taiwan.”

Today’s Wall Street Journal details the lives of two different cashmere sweaters, one designer and one mountain-wear. The first is is a $750 version from Brunello Cucinelli, made in a 17th century castle in Umbria where the workers enjoy siesta on a daily basis. The other comes from Lands’ End, $100, and manufactured in China (their spokesperson would not say where in China, only things like, “The employees feel honored to be employed there.” The WSJ thinks the sweater is made in less-than-okay conditions.)

But while the choice may seem clear from an ethical standpoint, what if you don’t have $750 to drop on a top? Do you abstain from clothing made in questionable situations altogether, or do you simply go for the cheaper sweater and argue that you could spend some of your savings on charity?

Obviously everybody wishes that sweat shops didn’t exist and that every clothing option was a moral one.

But since that’s not the reality at all, we’re wondering- does where, and how, a garment’s made dictate where you shop?

“Nobody is going to take your picture for Lastnightsparty if you look regular.” -from Ruth LaFerla’s article on female DJs in today’s New York Times

Our favorite Project Runway moment came two seasons ago, when Santino Rice’s lingerie got slammed by Michael Kors. “I think it’s not very sophisticated,” said the designer. “I think lingerie’s supposed to come off, is what I think!” shrieked Santino.

But that’s part of the problem.

We know some girls who can’t bear to strip in anything but designer bras. There’s an entire industry to back them up - Agent Provocateur, Kiki de Montparnasse, Catriona MacKechnie, all with panties that cost more than James Jeans (or, yes, champagne!).

We know a lot of girls who aren’t confident at parties unless they have expensive handbags or killer high shoes. But is there also a tribe of women who can’t perform in the bedroom unless their lingerie is runway quality?

Personally, we’re a big fan of t-shirt bras and tie-dye undies (and sorry if that was an overshare). But there’s got to be something sustaining the million-dollar industry of very expensive underthings. Is Agent Provocateur like Viagra for fashion girls?

WHICH magazine is having Blake Lively (sans Leighton) on their cover first? Stay tuned for winter…

Cassidy (left) and Claudia (right), photographers, both 22

Got Them: Walking home in the East Village.

Stalked Them: Because Claudia’s neon jeans were perfect for a cold night out.

Shot Them: Check out the proportion on that Y & Kei jacket - the flare at the waist is sharp, and it can happen over a long sweater dress or a cropped hoodie, which means you can layer for late fall and winter. And Cassidy just looks adorable, especially since his entire outfit is from H&M!

Claudia Says: “I got these jeans at Trash & Vaudeville. My friends can always find me at night.”

Cassidy Says: “When we moved to the city, our mutual friend from home said, you have to meet each other, you’re going to be best friends. And we are!”

We Say: The kids stay in the picture.

We finally saw the Barneys windows last night, and they’re pretty hysterical -

Plastic bottles cut to look like Christmas lights.

Reindeer made from soda cans.

Recycled paper subbed for snow.

But one thing struck us as odd - that the windows screamed for a Green Christmas, but their flickering lights seem to suck energy the way we devour Skittles.

Surely they must be solar powered? Fueled by little running mice? Something?

Determined to figure out the exact shade of Barneys’ Green, we approached their fashion director, Julie Gilhart, at the Calvin Klein party last night.

“I don’t know the specifics on how much energy the windows use,” she said candidly. “But of course we use electricity, we use energy - but nobody can decide to go totally green overnight. It’s a process. We’re making a huge effort to be as green as possible, and to spread awareness to our community so they can start making adjustments, too. And we’re really proud and excited about that… isn’t the reindeer fun?”

The reindeer is totally fun, yes.

We appreciate Barneys being both honest and aware with their eco-promotions, even if their Loomstate organic jeans are still a little too expensive. And the recycled plastic windows are a neat concept - maybe next year for the solar panels. And the cheap organic jeans. Please.

10. Didn’t they build up this Project Runway challenge to be so unique and crazy that it would alter the show’s style forever? And this big crimp in the formula turns out to be… um, menswear?

9. Haven’t gay men and football suffered enough?

8. Who was Gargamel’s cat in The Smurfs? Azreal? Doesn’t Christian kind of remind you of him?

7. Exactly which men will Elisa touch?

6. How cute is Kit? Seriously, we might actually like her.

5. Mrs. Barber’s Versace dress: real or from Bebe?

4. Does Michael Kors really want us to look at the male model’s crotch? Oh yes; yes he does.

3. How long are we giving Sweet Pea’s extra-long tie to show up, in all seriousness, on Jamie Burke?

2. Next week, Bon Jovi?

1. Do you want to get drunk? Because we have an idea - let’s take a shot every time Kevin tells the camera that he’s a totally macho straight guy.

And then let’s not stand up for three days.

And you thought the campaign announcements were over for today:

First we break the good/bad news that Victoria Beckham is Marc’s new ad muse, and now we’ve got something else:

Cory Kennedy just signed her first beauty contract with Urban Decay cosmetics.

She’ll be their new face for the next year, and her ads will appear in magazines, on billboards and posters, and probably on the makeup counters at Urban Outfitters - where they’ll stand alongside her new clothing line.

At this point, all that’s left is a Le Sportsac line and a Kid Robot toy, and the girl will officially be a franchise.

We love Cory and we’re dying to see what kinds of colors she inspires for the Los Angeles cosmetics line - Internet Indigo? Silver(lake)? Translucent Fairy Dust?

Stay tuned…

We’ve bought a lacy bra or two for strategic layering under sheer tanks. It’s a comfortable and sexy look - our go-to going out outfit.

But we never considered wearing our bra OVER a tank or t-shirt - even after this season’s lingerie explosion - until we found this VPL set on ShopBop - something that’s also appeared in several of our favorite fashion magazines.

The model rocks a Vespa-green “Smoking Bra” over her white t-shirt, (with Helmut Lang shorts that we’re also mildly obsessed with), prompting Faran to wonder, “DIY Proenza Schouler?”

There’d have to be rules for this look, like funky, not lacy, bras.

A smaller chest would work best, and the outfit underneath the lingerie should probably be casual.

But with the right ingredients it could definitely draw well-deserved second looks.

Have you seen anyone pulling this off, besides Ali Michael in Teen Vogue? Or is this one “trend” best left to quietly die?

A conversation was sparked in the office today when we noticed the following items:

1. J.Crew leggings cashmere, with a faux pee flap in front, $150.

2. Basic bathrobe, Banana Republic, classified as what to wear while “opening presents,” $298.

3. $200 sweatpants. Also BR.

On the one hand, it must be fun to romp around in cashmere jammies all day. But unless you’re also drinking hot cocoa brewed with marshmallow diamonds, it seems a little excessive… even, dare we say it, tacky.

Is there an excuse for overpriced pajamas? Can robes that cost more than champagne really be worth it? Or is this just another “luxury” markup, to go with our $2000 handbags and $750 shoes?

Although we don’t know anything about fashion, we’d like to make a claim about Gareth Pugh’s ratty mink coat, as seen in the latest W:

It’s the most subversive anti-fur protest we’ve ever seen, and as such, we think it’s brilliant.

The coat plays on the classic fault lines of outsider and insider - the “anti fur” stance in fashion is often stuck with the “outsider” label, thanks largely to PETA and their disrespectful and immature protest tactics. Okay, Christy Turlington once said she’d rather go naked than wear fur - but she’s still modeled for houses that use it. And although Stella McCartney is a vegan designer, her parent company is the Gucci Group, who would skin zebras and kittens if it meant the latest It Bag. Meanwhile, the “insider” name gets tagged to Fendi and J. Mendel - both houses whose fur legacy continues, thanks to ingenious design.

But that’s where Gareth enters the picture. He’s a fabulous fabric architect, so he can build a great jacket. He’s also a master prankster, in the vein of Tim Burton or Damien Hirst, and his exploration of grim grins is part of his blackly beautiful style. His rat mink “passes” the style bar because it’s well built and terrifically terrifying - it references Isabella Blow at her darkest and hottest. It reflects the Grey Gardens sense of beautiful decay. It looks like Johnny Depp would dig it.

But the joke is really on the wearer. It may be a beautiful and historically rich piece of fashion - but it’s also a pile of dead rats. Which you’re wearing because you think it makes you look powerful/ beautiful/ rich/ It.

In fact, it’s just gross. So is fur, unless it belongs to a living animal. Thank you Gareth.

Those who asked Nina Garcia how to break into the fashion industry might want to hark up:

ELLE needs some fashion interns for next semester. You should be college age or older, ready to do absolutely anything with a quiet smile, and very knowledgeable about fashion, style, and the many attitudes of Keira Knightley. There might be a bit of reporting involved for their website, and you’ll definitely get to see the inner workings of stories, fashion shoots, and how to fetch your boss’ dry cleaning.

Meanwhile, Marie Claire needs one key intern, right this second, for their fashion closet. There’s no writing and no styling involved, but you will be waist-deep in Prada, Marni, Marc, M.A.C, and a path strewn with Balenciaga heels that could lead to a fashion assistant future. College students are best, because Hearst prefers their slaves to get credit for steaming and starching.

If you want the job, send BRIEF emails with your contact info to Carol, chan@hfmus.com (that’s ELLE) and akalicka@hearst.com (that’s Marie Claire, and yes, that’s Abby from Girls Gone Styled).

Good luck in the trenches.

Even if no one wants to take us to see The Nutcracker this year, at least we can look a little bit like a toy soldier in this black velveteen dress from Brooklyn-based label Hayden Harnett.

The black and gold color combo has a little bit of holiday sparkle without crossing all the way over to bedazzled red and green territory of your great aunt’s Christmas sweaters.

We recommend wearing this one for decorating the tree, lighting the menorah, ice skating in Central Park- or all of the above. So in case somebody out there is planning on taking us to Rockefeller Center sometime soon, we already have our outfit all picked out- I’m talking to you, Mom!

—ALISON COOL

“While some guests shopped (like Elton John, who purchased two bags before his 45-minute set), others played it cool. “I don’t need to buy anything - they give it to me,” boasted Monica Bellucci.” - from W Magazine’s story about Dior’s Paris blowout.

McQueen and Cavalli both went for plumage this season, but how realistic is a peacock tail if you’re not in Victorian costume?

We really want to test-drive the feather trend, but we still keep in mind the wise reminder from Style.com that, “feathers may be the new fur, but they’re not necessarily easy to wear—there’s a fine line between super-chic and Big Bird.”

Natalie satisfied her feather craving with Yarborough’s gorgeous necklaces, and now we’ve decided to get in on the trend with this awesome Grey and Black Pheasant pin that we stumbled across on the otherwise hokey art teacher/Upper West Side mom-ish website Frou Frou collection.

You can clip it to black ballet flats, stick it in your hair, or attach it to the strap of an otherwise yawn-worthy cocktail dress.

—ALISON COOL

We stayed too late at the Lydia Hearst for Puma party, so today we’re a little groggy.

Still, even if we’d had a yoga class and 8+ hours of sleep, we bet we’d think this video of Suzy Menkes and Natalia Vodianova was hysterical.

To start, there’s the contrasting pouf and pull of the hairstyles.

Then there’s the way Suzy eggshells away from Natalia’s super-rich husband in favor of her charity work building Russian playgrounds, which we get to see via interspersed clips.

We’re thrilled to see Natalia plugging her charity, but it’s interesting how Suzy frames the subject - Natalia is being interviewed for Suzy’s “Luxury” series, and she says “For me, luxury for Russian children is a playground.”

Natalia Vodianova is married to one of the wealthiest men in Great Britain. Her home in Tribeca costs $10 million. This is not mentioned in the Luxury segment, nor is this fun fact:

Her husband’s name is Justin Portman, so her married name would be “Natalia Portman,” and that sounds just like… anyway.

So when is TopShop coming to America? September!

According to WWD, the location is confirmed as 478 Broadway in Soho (right by us!). If the mega-space does well, there will be two more Manhattan stores probably within a year. And if those do well, TopShop will roll out in other American cities- think San Francisco, Atlanta.

For Americans, the worst thing about TopShop has always been one of its selling points, that if you want to shop there in person, you have to go overseas. We always thought this lent the brand a certain exclusivity- we all know when something is hard to get it only makes us want it more.

While we like the idea of TopShop opening near people who would never otherwise see it, we still feel like this might be a Catch 22. We’ve all been complaining for years that TopShop should open stateside, but will we still be head over heels when it shares the same sidewalk as Zara and H&M?

It seems like it’s all about designer collaborations these days. Adidas and Diesel, Stella and Notify, everybody and H&M.

Now Ben Sherman is jumping on the bandwagon, partnering with design and record label PPQ for a diffusion line. Though PPQ isn’t so known in America, they’re like an upscale Heatherette in London - this October, they opened their fashion show with Peaches Geldof and Agyness Deyn (in that order), and the MisShapes played their after party.

The limited-edition collection launches this March with only five dresses, all meant to capsule decades of musical style. The outfits begin with a Mod-inspired shift for the 60’s and end with a high-necked lace frock, which references (they say) the Cranberries, KT Tunstall and other moody songstresses from today.

Ben Sherman is only making 175 of the dresses, and only 25 for the US market. We think this is a cute idea, but something else is bugging us:

If the Indie Dress at left comes in white, it’s going to look a lot like the Chiffon with Velvet Dress from Erin Featherston’s diffusion line. But the Ben Sherman version is £180 - can we still rock out to the Kills if we shop at Target?

We love the kids at Real Gold for sending us their latest ad campaign, a slew of shots starring various British socialites in their latest limited t-shirt.

The London brand followed Mulberry’s recent example and got a pop-up store near Carnaby Street to sell art, CDs, and clothes to British youth addicts - their space is a lot like Opening Ceremony in New York or Satine in Los Angeles, but with more prints and photography, and less Marc by Marc.

As for their recent campaign, the Real Gold crew somehow corralled every Tatler hipster in sight to wear one of their t-shirts on camera, and while Peaches Geldof looks adorable (and rested and healthy, which we’ve sort of never seen from her…), our real standout shot is Alice Dellal, the photographer and best friend of Lizzie Jagger who was recently named to Vogue’s “Definitive Most Glamorous Women” list with Lily Donaldson and Alice Temperley.

She sure looks glamorous jumping around in her Day Glo t-shirt, doesn’t she? We’re going to wear the exact same thing to the Dior cocktails tonight.

So Jezebel is obsessed with The Hills and how Whitney might be leaving the show. Actually, Jezebel says that Star Magazine says that Whitney’s getting kicked off the show for being “too vanilla.”

But since Whitney seems to be the only Hills character without a learning disability, we root for her place on MTV’s unreality show… even if she does lead us into occasional heartbreak, like when she dated the lame personal trainer for half an episode, or when she wore skinny Acne jeans with a yellow smiley faced tunic that wishes it were Jeremy Scott.

Otherwise, Whitney is our beacon, and we made some California phone calls to find out what’s actually happening with our shining star.

Please note that nobody at Teen Vogue contributed to our Whitney Watch because they’re all sworn to Hills secrecy… but here’s what we heard from other sources…

We’re all anxious to get someone on this site who really knows her fashion, and for one post only, we’ve actually done it:

Next week, Fashionista.com will host its very first guest blogger, Nina Garcia.

The author, stylist, and ELLE Fashion Director will take your fashion questions and answer them with more expertise and probably less giggles than we do, and we’re thrilled to have her.

Nina was born in Colombia and raised in Massachusetts, where she went to Boston University and later to fashion programs at FIT and in Paris. She began her career as Marc Jacobs’ publicist, when he was still at Perry Ellis. She later switched to the fashion closet at Mirabella magazine, and stayed there until ELLE hired her as their market editor. She’s been the ELLE fashion director for seven years, and a Project Runway judge for three.

Earlier this year, Nina wrote The Little Black Book of Style, and later this year, we expect her to hurl some major and amazing fashion spears at some haughty reality TV kids (cough, Christian, cough). But next week, she’s all ours.

Leave your questions for Nina as comments below, and she’ll answer as many as she can. They can be about her job, about your wardrobe, about her books, about Project Runway, and about ELLE…

Meanwhile, our question for Nina is this:

When you saw Marc’s grunge collection for Perry Ellis, did you understand its impact at the time? What was it like to balance its press blessings with the internal fury in the company? And do you still have any of the pieces from that collection? (!)

Sorry. This is really exciting for us…

WWD began the rumblings several months ago, and now we’ve heard from someone involved with the shoot that Victoria Beckham has indeed been styled, photographed, and paid (oh my, she was paid…) for the Spring ‘08 Marc Jacobs ads.

Juergen Teller did the honors and shot Posh Spice just after Halloween.

The move ensures two things in the land of MJ:

1. Like Dakota Fanning and Meg White before her, now that VB has been chosen by Marc himself, she’s officially and undeniably cool. This is fine with us, because she seems pretty funny and smart.

2. Marc’s done with his Violet Incredible obsession and he’s moved onto finding the complications in glossed and glassy women, not shaggy and sharded girls. As his own appearance morphs and changes, his clothes edge into more implicit ideas about sex and identity - and so do his heroines. Dita and Victoria are the new Golden Girls here, and we’ve got to get used to it.

At least, for this season we will.

PS: The photo we chose… well, we really wanted one of Posh smiling… but she still had to have her trademark short hair… and this is the only one we found!

Ever since Renee Zellweger paired with Carolina Herrera, pockets and evening dresses have become a style staple.

Amy Adams proudly wore her pockets on the Oscar red carpet last year, and on the runways, Oscar de la Renta and even Lanvin had pockets on their girls.

But most American shoppers won’t ever hit a red carpet - their wedding is as close as they’ll get.

Maybe that’s why J. Crew just introduced this wedding gown with pockets at left. But do pockets belong on a bridal gown? We’re not sure.

We wouldn’t condone buying an $1,800 anything from J. Crew (especially when it can only be bought via catalog - seriously, who doesn’t want to try on their wedding dress?) but the idea of pockets is so intriguing:

You can treat your wedding like the latest disposable fashion fad, and seem so cool and above it all.

Or you can follow your mom’s lead and pretend this is the only cool thing you’ll ever get to do - a lie, for sure, but a fun one on the day when you get to wake up, have your hair done, have your nails done, have your shoes cost way too much on purpose, and (hopefully) have a really good party, then really good sex.

Anyway, back to the pockets:

Okay? Or terrible?

We’re still wretching from last month’s hyped subway setup, where video blogger Patrick Moberg saw a cute girl on the subway - then told every newspaper and blog in New York about it.

Apparently, Urban Outfitters was just as annoyed, since their clever designers invented a bag to help you meet other cute, shy kids:

The “Introduce Yourself, Dammit!” tote.

Created for supermarket and shopping outings, the bag screams “WE HAVE NOT MET” in huge, crafty letters sure to brush up against any adorable guy on the subway, in the library, or at the French Fry station at Whole Foods.

The tote can also help you cut back on wasteful plastic bags, and maybe if you meet a cute guy while wearing it, you can sell your movie rights, too -

Although here’s a memo for the subway crusher and his Australian girlfriend: We all saw On the Line with Lance Bass and Emmanuelle Chriqui, and it wasn’t so amazing the first time.

Is the luxury market so over-saturated that designers are trying to make their products look cheap?

That’s the only explanation we can give to the designer shoes we’ve seen lately, all made from plastic. If Marc or Sigerson wants to make a rubber rain flat, that’s fine. But why on earth would you want to wear plastic heels with your holiday cocktail dress?

Pedro Garcia’s shoes are usually made of silk or leather in movie-star approved colors. But his new pair has a giant piece of plastic stretching across the foot, and they still cost $475. And Vogue’s gift list recommends a pair of Kate Spade plastic ballet flats, priced at $275 (more than Kate’s satin ones we’ve been admiring for a month).

This would be fine if plastic shoes were more comfortable. We bought jellies a couple summers ago, and wore them once, before they were relegated to the back of the closet while our blisters healed.

Secondly, plastic’s an inexpensive material - so why do shoes constructed out of it cost as much, if not more than, their leather counterparts?

Is the luxury market so desperately driven that the only way to look expensive now is to also look cheap? Guess we have Mary Kate to thank for this one.

Steve Madden, master of all things copied, has struck again.

We’ve gotten used to seeing his Chloe rip-offs and Miu Miu imitations but this time there’s a twist.

The Chap is a white, platform covered ankle bootie with a black patent toe and black buttons up the side. According to the site, the shoe’s “Back by Popular Demand” and is apparently Steve Madden’s “Most Wanted” style.

We remember seeing these in the store at least a month ago - it’s hard to forget something so utterly unwearable yet cute, (unless of course you’re Christina Aguilera pre-pregancy and then you could totally rock them).

So we were taken aback when we found Christian Louboutin’s Emily boot, newly exclusive to Net-a-Porter and only available to pre-order. It’s almost exactly like the Chap, except the buttons are white and the heel is covered in light grey leather. They can be ordered now, but it might not ship until January, nearly six months after the debut of Steve Madden’s obvious knock-off.

Or not so obvious? Which came first, the Emily or the Chap? Is there an evil spy embedded in Monsieur Louboutin’s workshop?

Lauren Bush’s clever FEED Bag will soon hit Harrod’s, where thousands of luxe London shoppers can help fund the World Food Programme.

Now we hear the FEED Bag might also retail in our favorite American wunderstore, Barneys.

“Lauren Bush has been trying to match the FEED Bag with the right upscale retailer, and it will probably be Barneys,” shares a source, who adds the bag’s fashion cred gets helped whenever Lauren wears it to a red carpet event, which is always.

Barneys New York seems to be the best fit for the sack so far, because of their commitment to youth culture, charity, and being a little bit cooler and more irreverent than other stores. Plus, the FEED Bag is made from simple cottons, which matches Barneys’ new mission of catering to eco-friendly fashion.

We hope the bag does hit retailers soon, but those who want to swap their normal Christmas stockings for the bag (which you should totally do) can buy it on Amazon.com - each bag sold can feed a child for an entire school year.

Suspender skirts are everywhere this season and we’ve been fighting the urge to get one since we know our restless ways won’t make for a good fit. If you’re as prone to fidgeting as we are, then the straps can be more of an encumbrance than a delight.

But designer Richard Ruiz has figured out a way for those who do more than just pose all day to get the look without the hassle. His adorable trompe l’oeil silk satin dress creates a suspender look with clever black and white color-blocking.

It’s like finding the perfect suspender skirt and a coordinating blouse, except the blouse won’t ever bunch up under your skirt. Having the whole look in one garment obviates the impossible calculus of proportions where you end up trying on one blouse after another trying to get your outfit just right.

Best of all, less time fussing with your top means more time for picking out the right shoes.

—ALISON COOL

We’re all tired of Lauren Conrad’s black headband, but memories of Marc’s quirky headgear on the runways and Blair Waldorf’s stockpile of head-bows and jewels still make us want to put stuff in our hair - especially on days when we can’t give into the current hat craze.

Our favorite designer for hair accessories is Stacey Lapidus, who makes everything from glittery clips to satiny headbands, perfect for picking up the low lighting of a holiday dinner party - or tossed in the backseat of a cab when you kiss your boyfriend’s best friend…

We’re planning on clipping this Crystal Leaf Barrette at left into a low, semi-loose chignon for evening events. We think it’ll go perfectly with a strapless dress and minimal makeup.

You can get it online at Stacey Lapidus’ site, or for other styles, try Shopbop.

[Think $45 is what Blair - but not you - would pay for a hairband? Check out this equally cute headband for $11 on Etsy.]

Right this second on our community boards: Whiz kid Jamar tries a second stab at Balenciaga, and I try to deal with my eBay disaster…more drama than The Hills, plus way better shoes.

Reader Brittany writes in from London to tell us something sad:

The British party BoomBox will close on New Year’s Eve forever.

BoomBox was a dance bash that happened every Saturday in Hoxton, London. In its short lifespan (not quite 2 years), the party drew style blood from John Galliano, Naomi Campbell and Lindsay Lohan - though nobody seemed to notice because the party was such a fashion free-for-all, the real stars were the Central St. Martin’s kids who made their own outfits just for fun.

Henry Holland claimed he invented his famous designer slogans at the bar, Gareth Pugh and Agyness Deyn were frequently spotted, and Kylie Minogue danced on tables during London Fashion Week (no really, we saw her). The whole thing was so magic and exhausting, it probably couldn’t last anyway.

Along with MisShapes in New York, the BoomBox extinguish might represent something big, a turning away from the dirty glitter children and photo blog addictions that helped define the recent (but not most recent) shows by McQueen, Marc, Karl (for Lagerfeld, not Chanel), and Hedi Slimane.

Then again, it might just mean that half-drunk models will stop getting lost on the subway to Hoxton, and those tired of emo adoration will get a break from the hype.

At left is one of our favorite BoomBox babes, model Charlotte… we shot her in the BoomBox bathroom, though she’s just moved to New York, so maybe we’ll see her at the latest local fashion party, Circus ‘68?

We’ve been known to drag ourselves out of bed for early morning yoga, but an early morning shoe sale?

We don’t know if we can handle it, but Saks’ New York flagship store is hoping you can.

On Wednesday, their coveted new “Shoe Floor” holds its first ever sale - at 7:30 am.

The floor will discount hundreds of heels, from Louboutin classics to riskier Roger Vivier offerings. But this is hardly the Barneys Warehouse Sale, and the possibilities of landing a Lanvin wedge for under $250 seem smaller than seeing Gemma Ward back on a New York runway.

Is it worth it to shop super-early for 30% off footwear? Or should we stay in bed searching for online deals?

Attention shoppers:

If you missed your first chance to buy discount vintage Chanel on Yoox.com, there’s another opportunity coming up tres soon:

On December 5, you’ll have the opportunity to buy another load of ’80s and ’90s Chanel goodies, all on Yoox.com, with some of the pieces coming from the closet of Holly Brubach, former New York Times style editor.

Included in the stash are bags, blouses, skirts, and several white and black cloth Camellia flowers that last emerged on Carrie Bradshaw in the ’90s.

Be warned that the clothes aren’t cheap - you’re not going to get a 2.55 bag for $255 - but if you’re looking to invest in some special pieces, wake up super early next Wednesday and get clicking.

You do know: Henry Holland is one of our favorite emerging designers, due to his ingenious sense of branding, innate sense of humor, and total potential as a dance party partner. He’s also had a wildly successful year, becoming one of the few young designers to actually make a profit from his stuff, and also to make Anna Wintour’s coveted invite list to the Met Ball.

You don’t know: Henry Holland just relaunched his website, and soon he’ll have a blog.

We look forward to lots of rudely rhyming couplets about Agyness adventures and hangover cures. And we’re already lining up sunglasses next to the computer, as while Henry’s luxury quotient may keep rising with Mulberry collaborations and POP Magazine covers, his penchant for day-glo seems firmly planted.

Will Henry celebrate his new web adventures with rhyming t-shirts?

We doubt it - HEARTS AGOG FOR OUR NEW BLOG just isn’t as cool as filthy chants about Stam and Behati…

With Thanksgiving behind us, and more festive upcoming holidays to plan for, it’s time to start thinking about party dresses.

This season, our favorite beautifully artsy party-wear comes from Berlin-based label Mimi et Moi. Each dress plays with texture and volume, but the avant-garde appeal doesn’t come at the cost of wearability.

The collection runs the gamut from dainty bubble-hemmed frocks to heavier hooded sweater dresses. They’re all statement pieces though, so while you’ll definitely stand out (which is always the point of party dress, no?) wearing each more than once will require some serious guest-list considerations.

Our favorite is the snowy pouf at left. We’re already picturing it with Pedro Garcia sandals and matte red lips.

You can order the dresses online, or head to NYC’s Young Designers’ Market on Saturdays to shop for them in person.

—ALISON COOL

Most retailers are still scared about slow sales, but today, WWD reports Gap’s profits are up 26%. It’s a big leap for a company that’s endured a very public struggle, plus big changes in both their executive and creative teams. We’re sure retail analysts have their own scientific reasons for the rise in profits, but here’s our inside scoop into why Gap is gaining…

1. Their European collection was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic. Balenciaga’s Marie Amelie Sauve brought a whole new dimension to khakis and white shirts when she consulted on the line, and we’re sure Pierre Hardy’s shoes will sell out in minutes. When Gap picks a shoe designer stateside, we’ll be waiting.

2. Magazines may still want celebs on their covers, but Gap finally gets us back to models. Stam, Anja, Caroline, Coco, and Chanel Iman all said “cheese” for $49.99 denim, and that was perfect. Gap is finally targeting the fashion crowd, and it’s a good idea.

3. They lowered their prices. A couple of months ago we walked into a Gap store and everything was on sale. Doing away with excess sale stickers and pricing clothes according to their worth might be their best move yet. If it costs less, people buy more, right?

4. This one pair of boys pajamas. They’re navy with skulls and we want them. This is the true secret of Gap’s success.

In between dodging tourists and trying to find the perfect sweater dress on the sales racks, we managed to do a little anthropology on our fellow holiday shoppers.

We found they break down into three distinct types:

There’s a weird problem with Project Runway’s “Get The Look” for last week’s episode:

Each week, Bluefly tries to show how to snag a Project Runway look without breaking the bank. But this week’s winning outfit is actually available - for about $20 - at Steve & Barry.

We would never suggest buying a Bitten piece because… well… we’ve already gone there, but still:

Bluefly’s alternative is a 12th St. by Cynthia Vincent frock that sells for about $200, even on sale.

Another strange fact- it doesn’t look anything like the winning dress that contestant Victorya designed.

Immediate thoughts: why in the world would you pay more for a look that is kind of hideous to begin with?

And, is it just us, or does this miss the point entirely?

Since we always read our magazines back to front, the first thing we saw when we opened the new Vogue this weekend, was the $5,500 color-me-mine Fendi.

We stared. We were confused. The limited edition baguette comes with a logo embossed box filled with Pantone markers. Why? Because you’re supposed to color it in yourself.

Some things to think about:

1. A set of 48 Pantone markers costs around $120, and a wooden box maybe $50, which puts the clutch, (made of canvas, mind you), at $5,330.

2. What happens if you screw up? Smudges are inevitable unless you’re a pro, but on a designer bag? Can you use white out on a Fendi baguette? What about a Clorox Bleach Pen?

3. Vogue suggests having an artist friend or family member do the honors. Because everyone has an “artist friend,” right? Maybe Meredith Melling Burke can call Richard Prince or Rubin Toledo for her Fendi coloring bag, but the only artist we know is an ex boyfriend.

4. We actually bought the white heart bag from Erin Fetherston for Target with the intention of doing just this. When it comes in the mail, (hopefully today!), we’re scribbling the lyrics to our favorite Serge Gainsbourg song across the front, and sticking our vintage brooch from Portobello Road on the handle. But we spent $25 on it. If we’d shelled out over five grand, we’d probably just sit and stare at it in fear.

“If Ashley was the Beatles, then Mary-Kate would be the Rolling Stones.” — Nylon editor Marvin Scott Jarrett, in his latest editor’s letter

With the combination of global warming and the surprising effectiveness of layering, we’ve been holding out on buying a winter coat with little discomfort.

We’ve been eyeing a few voluminous black wool coats that are absolutely perfect for this season’s sculptural silhouette, and we have a couple that we’ve been tracking online. OK, actually it’s more like stalking, but we can’t wait for them to go on sale.

Last week we got an email from Oak NYC, one of our favorite Brooklyn boutiques – and the home of one of our coat crushes. All outerwear was 15% off.

We were tempted, but we held out. Then, this week another email hit our Inbox. Everything in the store is now 20% off.

We felt the tug on our heartstrings, but again declined to purchase.

Our personal rule is that we never buy any item of clothing over $100 unless it’s at least 30% off, and preferably 50% off.

What number do you have to see on the tag before you’re willing to whip out your credit card?

—ALISON COOL

Oh, how the tables have turned in the world of copyright infringement. The company with perhaps the most hatred for knock-offs of their designs, Louis Vuitton just released an official apology to a Dutch graphic artist for… ripping off his design!

The contorted women that spelled out “VBLV” (which stands for Vanessa Beecroft Louis Vuitton,) with only their naked bodies in the Louis Vuitton store at Champs Elyseés back in 2005 were not the mastermind idea of artist Vanessa Beecroft, but of Anthony Beeke, who created the inspiration for the spectacle back in 1970 with his “Naked Ladies Alphabet.” But nobody asked his permission or gave him any credit.

Both Vanessa Beecroft and Louis Vuitton have agreed to back off from using the design ever again, but we’re kind of wondering what this does to their ongoing argument against people knocking off their designs- will this affect their credibility?

The Telegraph has a fun incident involving Linzi Stoppard, a British socialite and musician recently busted in the dressing room at H&M.

The London violinist was so taken with a Cavalli for H&M dress that when she saw it hanging in another shopper’s dressing room, she promptly stormed in and took it for herself.

What’s really funny, at least to us, is that the dress was priced at $400 - hardly a must-have bargain! In fact, we suspect if Linzi patrolled Net-a-Porter or even most department stores in London, she could find a real Cavalli dress, albeit on sale, for about the same price.

Still, the silly story brings up an interesting moral dilemma:

Is it ever okay to pillage someone else’s shopping loot? When?

Think about that, then memorize this face, and if you ever see Ms. Linzi Stoppard - who is, according to her website, “what Dita Von Teese is to ballet” - hold tight to your over-hyped rayon halter gowns, and beware.

We never got an American Girl as a child (unless you count the Marilyn Monroe by Warhol poster from Hanukkah ‘95).

Still, we have half fond and half jealous memories of Felicity, Kirsten, and Samantha, the historical dolls whose every adventure, friendship, and fashion accessory were relentlessly chronicled and sold by the
Pleasant Company. Felicity in particular was huge with our friends, probably because her Colonial time period allowed her the most extravagant dresses and also, she looked a bit like Lindsay Lohan in The Parent Trap.

There was just one issue - with the exception of a few frilly gowns, the clothes were anything but great for these dolls. We could hole up for hours dressing Barbie in trash bag couture and wrap-dresses invented
from our mother’s old scarves. But the American Girls? Oh, they needed a Little Fashion House on the Prairie.

This season, things are changing. The company just introduced two new dolls named Julie and Ivy who are both from the ’70s (okay, Felicity was from the 1770s, but that doesn’t count). Along with Title IX and Nixon, the girls are also
learning about caftans, bell bottoms, and mood rings.

The cynical part of Fashionista worries this is all American Girl needs to start an overpriced denim line to go with their overpriced dolls.

The rest of us thinks if girls start thinking tunics and disco dresses are cuter than Juicy Couture and the Cheetah Girls, this is a very good step.

Our fondest Fall memory from childhood is crunching through leaves on the sidewalk.

We’d also find these maple seeds – the little green things that fall off trees and look like wings – and open them up at the bottom. Using its sap, we’d stick the seedpod to our nose to entertain our sister.

Kids everywhere would do the maple-seed-nose-trick (you totally did it, too), and that’s how the maple seed got its popular name, the pollynose. It sounds like a Harry Potter spell, but no, it’s just agriculture.

Now we’re way past school, and if, as adult women, we’re not even supposed to wear sneakers anymore, we’re guessing it’s also not so cool to stick plant parts on our face.

Luckily, we found this necklace on Etsy to satiate our childish cravings.

We love how it looks exactly like a maple seed and how its size is perfect for a v-neck sweater.

Best of all, the charm is sure to spark conversations with other former pollynosers, now disguised in dignified adult garb.

—ALISON COOL

Bored with What Not To Wear this weekend, my best friend from home swiveled on the couch and asked “How funny to be one of the girls on this show.”

Yeah, except if you weigh an ounce over 100 lbs, Nick Arojo thinks you need some sort of hair bob, which makes you look like the fat girl wearing nice lip gloss.

But anyway.

“I’d love to dress cooler,” moaned my friend, “But anytime I wear my Marc Jacobs wedges to work, my boss just smiles and says, ‘Interesting choice of footwear.’ And you’ll never get a promotion if you don’t dress for your boss.” This girl works in public television.

Meanwhile, I’m reminded of two conversations:

1. Last week with a very successful good friend, who insists she hires her interns and assistants specifically to look cooler and hotter than she has the energy to look. “I want to be the girl in charge, surrounded by all the hot chicks,” she admitted. “It sends a very powerful impression to the other people in the company, especially our new clients.”

2. Several years ago, my boss called me into her office about a fellow colleague. “Can you please start telling her to choose better clothes?” asked the boss. “She can’t represent us if she looks so clueless and tacky.” I had no idea what to say, so I just smiled, nodded, and bolted back to my desk.

I’m sure you’ve all had similar office experiences, so we should probably discuss them / explore them, to figure out when and if they’re ever appropriate, and how exactly to deal when your boss encourages you to sift through your colleagues’ closets.

And also: Are you dressing for your boss in the morning?

(Usually I’m dressing for you guys, so I guess my answer is “yes” and “no”…)

We discover a lot of odd news at Fashionista, but sometimes it’s just unreal - like the new lip gloss from Ben & Jerry’s.

Made with all-natural ingredients, the balm comes in a tiny pot that’s a perfect replica of the B&J Peanut Butter Cup carton.

The lip balm is available internationally - unlike the actual Peanut Butter Cup ice cream, which you can only scoop in America - and also comes in collector’s flavors like Chocolate Fudge Brownie and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, though you’ll have to sift through eBay to find it.

Personally, we’d rather Ben & Jerry’s restore the best flavor ever - vanilla chocolate chunk - than start churning out cosmetics, but oh well. Perhaps they were feeling left out by the Dr. Pepper Lip Smackers and the new Jelly Belly fragrances, which are equally weird.

TopShop better get built before next February, because that’s when we hear Gareth Pugh is launching his diffusion line.

It’s a total rumor, made stronger by the fact that Mr. Pugh just installed TopShop’s holiday windows, much like Rodnik did in September, just before TopShop announced their own little Rodnik t-shirt stash in the store.

Still, we really hope it’s true, since the thousands of club kids who worship Gareth’s creations should actually have a chance to wear them, and also, because it could help fund Gareth’s future efforts and make him more profitable. And we think Gareth Pugh should get really, really rich.

Meanwhile, a secret source in London emails to say that Agyness probably won’t get to do a TopShop line anytime soon, because she’s got some kind of exclusive deal with Burberry right now… but that sounds good, too, since we also think Agyness should get really, really rich… but not by doing Victoria’s Secret, because that would be icky.

[also: we a massive crush on this diane von furstenberg blouse, which would actually match fabsugar’s luella skirt crush perfectly… hmmm…]

10. So does this mean Bon Jovi isn’t this week’s special guest judge? Oh man. What about next week?

9. Why didn’t Chris tell Sarah Jessica that he was fashion’s answer to Nathan Lane? Then she totally would have picked him.

8. Has anyone else noticed that Jack only wears Ben Sherman clothing? We’ve noticed. We’re wondering.

7. Tim does not like Christian. Well, that wasn’t a question, but… he doesn’t. Maybe because Christian went to Central St. Martins instead of Parsons. Or maybe it’s just his aggressively silly haircut.

6. Doesn’t Heidi Klum’s jewelry, which she wears every episode, look a lot like Van Cleef and Arpel’s trademark Alhambra charms?

5. What’s with the Bluefly ads?

4. Come on, viewers, would you really trust Tim Gunn’s style over Nina Garcia’s? Really? Or did they rig the poll to help hype Tim’s Guide to Style?

3. Is Elisa the Rodarte of Project Runway?

2. Kevin, why do you keep saying “Thank you” when someone compliments Victorya’s dress? You helped sew, but those “omigosh” moments are hurled at your temporary boss.

1. But would Carrie Bradshaw have worn the losing design, that Pocohontas poncho thing? Oh yes, she would have, and she would have thought it was fab-u-lous (or at least fab-u-less).

And now, we need to make some cranberry sauce…

V’s photo shoots are always brilliant, but who knew their business savvy was just as sharp?

We found out today, when we got word that the magazine will put Kate Moss on an upcoming cover - with a set bought partly by V readers and Kate Moss fans, instead of by the magazine!

Here’s the deal:

ShowStudio genius Nick Knight will shoot Kate in mid-December, on a giant floral background that his team will design.

That’s where the fun starts - there’s been a call on ShowStudio.com for flower donations , which Nick Knight will photograph for possible use in V.

According to their website, “Nick Knight will be photographing a variety of flowers to create a three-dimensional photo sculpture around which the supermodel will be posed. He is inviting all Kate fans… to send floral tributes to Kate…

Simple sprays of freesias are very welcome, and hand-ties of peonies even better, but our advice is to get creative to ensure your contribution stands out and makes it.

Accompanying greetings cards bearing written intimacies, proposals of marriage and general kind wishes (within the bounds of decency) will be given to Kate on the day of the shoot, so make sure you remember to include your name and location!”

As for their location, it’s SHOWstudio, Export House, 25-31 Ironmonger Row, London EC1V 3QN.

Donations accepted until December 5.

Is the gape-inducing artist Kara Walker starting a fashion trend?

We’re still reeling from her terrific, terrifying exhibit at The Whitney, a show that employs her trademark silhouettes to build a mythical land, where race and class clash in crass, horrifying, and really beautiful ways.

Walker’s silhouette aesthetic is taken from the antebellum parlors of the South, where shadows and face shapes were drawn by candlelight and framed, and said to hold the key to people’s personality, intelligence, and worth.

And now Ann Demeulemeester has taken it from Kara, making little badges that mimic her shapes and style, but without the sharp racial subtext.

It’s not just using the silhouette, a technique that Alex & Chloe successfully mastered with accessories several years ago.

It’s the way Ann’s characters inhabit a fantasy world, and the way her buttons “have illustrations of mystical creatures. Pin them everywhere, and take yourself off to a different land.”

Or you could just go here and explore Ms. Walker’s own “mystical creatures.”

They’re less comfortable than Ann’s, but probably more exciting.

Every time I pack to go home, I face the same fashion problem. It’s not the giant climate difference between Manhattan and Northern California - it’s the style disparity that’s the issue.

Last time I was home, my mom said, “Everyone always does a double take when you walk by!” And it’s not because of my luscious hair. Apparently, my outfits are so far-out for California, I leave a string of confused bystanders in my wake. And here’s the thing - my style’s not so crazy.

I wore an emerald green, billowy, silk dress with leather gladiator sandals and an armful of bracelets to my sister’s graduation in August. I could have rocked it to the drugstore in New York, but apparently I was WAY over-dressed for a graduation.

And the poufy babydoll dress I wore out that night? I’m pretty people though it was a cast-off from the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show - which is totally fine. It was my favorite dress this past summer and that’s all that matters to me.

But I wonder how different my trips home would be if I dug the bootcut jeans out from the back of my closet, and brought just one pair of shoes home - my Converse. Would I finally go unnoticed in a town so small that everyone notices everything?

Do you tone down your city-style when you go home to the suburbs? Or do you dress just the same, but with a little more attitude?

When Nina Garcia filmed a Blackberry commercial, we knew it was just a matter of time before others followed.

Now the torch is passing to Stacy London, who joins forces with Sprint this season to sell phones and give style advice on which mobile matches which outfit.

No, seriously.

Stacy stars in a series of web commercials for Sprint that tells customers which cells work with their jeans, their bags, their budgets, and quite possibly their body types.

We’re a little fazed by the idea of cell phones as fashion accessories, despite the fact that marketers have tried to sell them to women that way for years. But at least the ones Stacy endorses won’t be pink and shiny, like Barbie’s…

Chloe got TopShop to stop making yellow jumpers copied from their current collection.

But can they force Urban Outfitters to pull a dress from their shelves that fakes a two-year-old design?

That’s the dilemma with this silk Portia dress, made by Luxx for $78.

It’s an undeniable rip of Chloe’s Gemma dress from Spring ‘06 (left), but we might be the only girls who remember it - everything else from that collection was bejeweled, billowed, and printed like a Klimpt heroine on a first date.

Meanwhile, the dress makes us dizzy for another reason:

How can we consider a flimsy lace frock when it’s almost double-cashmere weather?

Yesterday in the office, we talked about Doutzen Kroes, and why most girls don’t seem to love her the way they dig Coco, Gemma, and Stam.

We decided it was due to one odd fact: Doutzen sent her own photos into the Dutch modeling agency Paparazzi, while the rest of the girls were “discovered” at concerts, or pushed into modeling by their friends. And for some reason, this bothers us.

But why?

Nobody argues when J. Lo says she can dance or Alicia Keys says she can sing. But girls aren’t allowed to admit they’re beautiful, unless they’re the adolescent suffering kind on Oprah - certainly not if they’re adults whose entire job is to be pretty. Just look at the Vogue story we dug up from 1993, where only Naomi Campbell admits her body is perfect, while Cindy, Christy, and Linda all argue their flaws.

In the fashion industry, acting as if you’re unaware of your own beauty is obviously important for creating the right not-trying image. How many times has a model/actress bio read something like, “Her mother secretly sent in her photo” [Mariacarla] or “She tagged along to her best friend’s audition, but left after winning the casting agents’ hearts” [Gemma]?

We don’t think everyone should sprint around, reminding their friends of how gorgeous they are. But still, isn’t it strange that saying you’re pretty has become a taboo?

Is there a label that can outsell the diffusion lines of Madonna, Cavalli, and Stella McCartney?

We bet Marimekko can do it.

The Scandinavian design legend just announced a pairing with H&M, and ’80s babies everywhere started squealing.

The collections for women and children include printed tunics, dresses, and hats, plus some giant print bags that could rival Stella McCartney’s collection for LeSportsac (especially since these bags look much cooler).

Marimekko for H&M hits stores in April - just after the Jovovich-Hawk for Target debut.

A friend of mine recently went on an amazing first date, but the conversation quickly turned deadly, when the topic of deal breakers* emerged.

*Dealbreaker - says Urban Dictionary - is “the catch” that you can’t get over, that ultimately dooms your relationship, friendship, or potential fashion trend.

His deal breaker was all-over print hoodies. Her deal breaker was t-shirts about sex.

Then dodging purple-hooded, pre-fab, ripped-denim, NYCuties (*girls who live in dorms and solely for US Weekly), I saw my Dealbreaker Galore - UGGs, short for UGGly, and I realized that I could never live with myself if I ever let a woman that I loved own a pair of UGGs.

I thought it might be great to open the Fashionista floor to see what Fashion Dealbreakers lurk in the hearts and minds of us all.

—JOSH MADDEN, the Andre to our Anna…

Paparazzi shots of Kate Moss hit the web today, snatched from her new Donna Karan campaign - the one that won’t be released until Spring ‘08.

We suspect Donna’s people took a tip from the Sex and the City producers, who’ve been leaking their own fashion explosions all over town, via “leaked” photos supposedly smuggled on set - in fact, these photos look anything but candid, because Kate’s not only lounging like a tiger, but she’s also missing her trademark cigarette - something Donna’s corporate cats probably don’t love.

But maybe the weirdest thing is the way Donna’s dress was worn on the runway -

She slapped it on skinny superbabe Vlada R, who’s see through skin and waterlogged eyes are anything but sex bomb.

Is her schoolgirl strut the real way to pull off the dress - or is Kate’s vamp the best possible pose for Donna Karan?

(Hint: Yes, It’s Kate).

Ben Widdicombeofficially rocks our day with a fun, spoiler-alerted scoop:

This Wednesday’s Project Runway guest judge is Bon Jovi!

[Editor’s note: At this point in the story, Faran asked if we could add “OMG.” Natalie declined.]

Our first instinct was to freak out because we think there’s a good chance he’ll favor fellow Jersey boy Kevin.

Then we freaked out because this means the contestants will have to design menswear, which we’re betting many have never done. Also, what about the models - will they wear men’s clothing on the runway, or just sit out a week in favor of some cute guys?

Bon Jovi’s decision to appear on the show is pretty strange, too- we’ve never considered him a fashion icon, and we’re pretty sure he would agree. But he did appear on American Idol last year- maybe he’s gearing up for a comeback with the kids?

More pressing:

What will Elisa make Bon Jovi wear?

PS: If you’re pissed about this spoiler, then definitely don’t click on the rest of Ben’s article, which reveals SJP will also be a guest judge.

Oh. Oops.

We almost bought a pair of black thigh-highs the other day. We were going to wear them with our Wellies and our beloved Vanessa Bruno mini skirt.

But then we remembered that we’re 5’4” and a size 8, and that instead of looking like the girls on the Miu Miu Fall runway, we’d look more like Scooby-Doo’s Velma - and that’d be tragic.

We debated the look in the office this morning, but we think you have to be supertall and superthin for thigh highs to look like anything except a sorority hazing outfit.

The proportion of the sock, whether it’s to the knee or above it, has to work perfectly with the shoe matched to it.

And they should be paired with a pretty casual outfit, unless you’re really trying to rock the Prada Fall ‘07 look, in which case, your dress had better be very frumpy and very expensive.

Has anyone had any luck with the thigh high?

We’re giggling hard at British Vogue’s gift guide, which features a page just for Henry Holland addicts.

It suggests hoarding a stash of neon plastic goodies for Christmas candy ravers, including YOD vinyl toys and Essie’s sparkly nail polish - which the magazine recommends for women, but we think might be better suited to Henry’s male fans.

Weirdly, the page doesn’t suggest anything from House of Holland itself, which is too bad -

We thought for sure there would be a stocking this season marked, “DECK THE HALL / ANGELA LINDVALL” or “MIDNIGHT MASS WITH CARMEN KASS.”

Or something.

We all have our nervous tics- some people constantly glance down to check their cleavage, some people bite their nails. And these people are never alone.

How do I know this? Because the ultra-skinny actress in today’s blind item, can count me as someone who understands her insanity (though I realize my own paranoia is not nearly as justifiable.)

I’ll let you all in on a signature tic of my own: whenever I am in front of a mirror, especially in a dressing room, I have to check it for two-sidedness [put your face right up to the mirror and cup your hands around your eyes to block out the light- or, if possible, just turn off the lights.

When your eyes adjust, you’ll either see a room full of people laughing hysterically with a camera in hand, or you’ll just see your own eyes, in which case the mirror is really just a mirror.

I have no idea why I always have to do this- it’s probably my nightmare of people playing a clip of me performing my checklist of tests for say, jeans and short dresses. I think I fell asleep to a 10 o’clock news item about this many years ago, and still cannot extract the fear of it from my mind.

Does anyone else obsess over the possibility that someone may be videotaping your shopping trials and selling it on some random site? Or am I the only one?

On the mornings we make it to the gym, we typically roll out of bed and jog straight there - we’d never make it otherwise, and anyway, we don’t care what we look like on the treadmill.

But apparently, some girls do.

Their workout clothes always match, whether they’re in head-to-toe American Apparel or matching Stella McCartney for Adidas gear. Their ponytails don’t move because there’s Aqua Net in their locker room, plus a Lauren Conrad headband from Chanel on their head. And the best part is, they actually wear make-up - freshly applied lip gloss and mascara that’s waterproof and three layers thick.

We assume these are the same girls we see on the street who make us think, “Wow, they’re SO put together.” But what’s the point of looking pretty at pilates?

Do the boys make them do it? Or will they work harder in hip hop class if they actually look like they could be in the video? Maybe they’re just insecure - or smart enough to realize they could end up on YouTube at any time.

But please, someone, explain.

It’s almost time for Art Basel, the art festival where champagne replaces kerosene as the fuel of choice - next to Diet Coke and cocaine, of course.

The art fair claims to be “the most important art show on the American continent” but many in the actual art world have started sighing because of its relentless flashbulbs and commercial sponsors that turn exhibits into merely exhibitionism.

In other words, it’s become a fashion destination.

While Prada often holds exclusive parties in its Miami boutique during the week, the latest label to announce their Art Basel endeavors is Seven for All Mankind. The suburban jean label hasn’t had much luck reinventing themselves with Carolyn Murphy - though she does look great in their ads - so they’re trying a new recipe:

Get up-and-coming artists to make denim “art” for a party, then get support from major fashion players by buying new “art” ads in Vogue, W, and Vanity Fair. Mix well on December 5th.

It’s not as much fun as making your own mojitos, but it’s a neat excuse to put paint in your hair as part of your “Look.”

There’s nothing more satisfying than finding that dress you’ve been eyeing for a great price. Not even…sex? According to the U.K. Daily Mail, four in ten British women surveyed preferred shopping to sex.

At first, we were kind of surprised by the statistics.

Then we remembered a crucial detail: England is the home of Topshop, the greatest store on earth! And from our assessment of the guys in London, Topshop dresses are by far cuter than the average British bloke.

Faran wants to know if you’d rather be pretty or in a relationship, but we’re curious – could you hold out longer without shopping or without sex?

—ALISON COOL

There’s a big difference between the memory of Fall, and the reality of Fall.

Our first thought in September is always, “Fall fashion! Layers, cute boots, knit hats- I’m going to look so cute!”

But the reality is many days with gray, rainy weather and with temperatures too hot to really strap on winter boots. Plus, we are so sick of wearing our rain boots from Ricky’s all over the place.

So we think we’ve found the perfect fall transition shoe: these Marc by Marc Jacobs flats. They’re light enough for 50 degree weather, and since they’re made of vinyl they’re perfect for wet streets.

At $270, they’re definitely more expensive than Marc’s plastic version from last year, but we like the details on this pair so much that we’re secretly hoping other designers (paging Steve Madden) come up with a more inexpensive version.

Or that somebody gets us a Barneys gift card for Christmukkah…

With their sleek white walls, minimalist décor, and the inevitable intimidatingly chic girls lurking in the corner, it’s getting harder and harder to tell art galleries apart from expensive clothing boutiques.

In L.A., these distinctions have been tossed aside. More and more shops are installing artwork alongside racks of clothing – and everything’s for sale.

According to the L.A. Times, the new blend of art and fashion is mutually beneficial:

“These exhibitions benefit not only retailers by attracting new customers and creating a sense of atmosphere but also artists, by exposing them to an “out of the box” audience with spending in mind.”

Fashion-conscious shoppers who are also interested in contemporary art can learn about new artists in a familiar and comfortable environment, whereas the art gallery set gets exposed to younger and emerging designers that they might not otherwise come across.

Unlike the cringe-worthy “art shows” displayed at your local independent coffee shop, the works on display at hip boutiques are often as well-curated as the designer selection.

Would you pick up a painting while shopping for shoes?

—ALISON COOL

PS - That’s the Kate Moss painting by Chuck Close that was recently at The Whitney.

WHICH fashion-obsessed celebrity has a body guard or personal assistant search the dressing rooms at boutiques and even high-end ateliers before she changes inside them, just in case there’s a hidden camera? Some stars love being on YouTube but not this ultra-thin girl…

Jeffrey Campbell already took a pretty good stab at the Burberry Studded Platform Heel, but just in case you need another option, there’s these clackers from TopShop.

Reader Gabbi reports that the “Studded Crossover Platform” is available for about $130, and instead of a double-studded strap like the Burberry heel, they go for a single strand of metallic pyramids across the heel and toe. Everything else looks the same.

Will the shoe be different enough to prevent a cease-and-desist order?

We doubt it, as the shoes look closer than Mary Kate and Ashley in matching Lanvin sacks. But maybe it won’t come to a lawsuit - before Burberry has a chance to sue, these shoes might become a “So Yesterday” item for both upscale shoppers and high street girls, too.

PS: For more double trouble, check out the excellent find from Fops and Dandies - our favorite Target necklace was shamelessly ripped by Forever 21!

First Kate Moss gets to talk in her Rimmel commercials, and now we hear that Agyness Deyn will star in Burberry’s new perfume ad - complete with dialogue.

Writes in a secret source from London…

“Just saw the ad for the new Burberry Parfum, starring our beloved Agyness Deyn. It’s COOL, as you imagine.

Aggy even has lines!

Tomorrow the investors will see it, and I bet it will double her cache -

Rumor has it that since she replaced Kate Moss, the Burberry sales are up 30%!”

We’re checking with Burberry to see if they can comment - we didn’t see Agyness out last night (despite four rounds of wine on Ludlow Street), so we couldn’t ask her!

We first saw ahead-of-the-curve girls sporting classic Minnetonka moccasins at parties and shows around Brooklyn in 2003. We remember thinking that the shoes looked really cute, especially with skinny dark jeans, but that moccasin’s 15 minutes would soon be up.

But we were totally wrong. Moccasins – particularly the leather beaded-toe flats and the suede booties with fringe around the ankles – seem to be here to stay.

Marc Jacobs keeps including the traditional Native American inspired footwear in collection after collection. This fall’s Marc by Marc Jacobs moccasin boot is the perfect match for the studiously casual plaid shirt and the perfect jeans weekend outfit.

Are moccasins going the ballet flat way and becoming a classic? Or is this trend on its last legs?

—ALISON COOL

Carmen Electra bought a pair of gold sequin leggings last night, and we actually applaud her decision. In fact, for a moment there, we even wanted the black sequined pair. They’d look perfect with a long, white, cotton tank and our favorite silk Stella heels. And even though we stopped ourselves, (because really, how many times could we wear that outfit before we became the notorious girl in sequin pants?), we think they’re a healthy alternative to the ubiquitous sequin dress.

We can’t walk into a store, or flip through a catalog, or turn on the TV without seeing a sequined sheath. They’re everywhere, from Tory Burch, to Alice & Olivia, Forever 21, and H&M - in colors from hot pink to bronze. The look is often racer-back, almost always sleeveless, and very, very short.

They’re also very, very hot with celebrity stylists - at least if red-carpet sequins worn by Sarah Jessica, Sienna, Sharon Stone, Hilary Duff, and Blake Lively count.

On one hand, a sparkly dress could make the Friday night scramble to get ready much easier - just add shoes and a clutch and you’re set. But at this point, the odds are you won’t be the only one in the room draped in paillettes, and we’d rather stand out for our style than for the way the light bounces off our outfit.

Sparkles can be fun, but like most things, they’re best in moderation.

Would you wear a sequined dress?

(Halloween doesn’t count)!

When we first posted about ShopBop, we had no idea there was such an obsession for their models. People know them. People talk about them. We’ve even caught comments - and entire posts on other blogs - about the girls who model Juicy for a living.

They don’t seem to pose for any other catalogs or shopping websites. They all seem to have only one, continuous job: Distracting Shopbop shoppers from the clothes with annoying poses and confused gazes.

And since everyone seems to know who they are (on sight, anyway,) we thought we’d try to match some names to these familiar faces.

So we really want to know a little more about these girls, specifically the red-haired one that everyone loves to hate.

Do any of you out there know them?

Last week’s Wall Street Journal showcased a New York City boutique that makes a point of excluding any clothes with right-in-your-face logos.

We kind of like this idea since we think dressing as a walking advertisement is pretty lame (and ugly.)

But the article got us thinking about something else:

How do the designers who put out these products, usually accessories, actually feel about them?

We understand why they design them- there’s a market for people who want to show off that they can afford, say, a Louis Vuitton (as in, LOUIS VUITTON!) bag or a pair of huge, crystal-encrusted Dior shades. And, whether it’s ethical or not, companies want to collect the hordes of money that these people are willing to drop on “status” items that bellow their net worth to everyone they walk by.

But we find that the people who are truly into fashion- as in, style instead of trendiness- wouldn’t be caught dead with either of the above, or anything like them, and consider themselves apart from the people who buy into this heavily branded fashion. And this group of people, of course, includes designers - although we did see John Galliano in a “J’adore Dior” shirt, once.

Do you think designers ever think twice about perpetrating a hideous trend? Or does money matter too much to care?

When we were in college, we were given a strange science assignment: A Professor asked us to write a paper on the evolution of something, anything, from a scientific perspective. We chronicled the evolution of corsets. It was the only A+ we ever got in science (editor’s note: Faran also aced her advanced evolutionary theory class, although she did fail the midterm…).

We wonder if Lily Cole is taking a similar route for a political science assignment at Cambridge. The British model has teamed up with “her anthropologist friend Dr. James Suzman”, who also happens to teach at her university. The two launched the San Arts and Crafts range exclusively in London this month.

The San people live in the Kalahari desert of Botswana, and they usually use blown out ostrich shells to hold their water supply. But Cole thinks the shells should drape the necks of London’s fashionable women instead. The jewelry line offers necklaces, bracelets and earrings

Lily tells British Vogue, “When I was traveling in Botswana, I was so taken with these women and their extraordinary but primitive working methods, I began looking at ways in which to help them. [Editor’s note number two: At this point in the conversation, Faran starts yelling a British accent, “Oh yes! I must save this African nation! Perhaps I can send them all the food that fashion people won’t eat!” Anyway, back to Lily…] Each piece can take up to four months to make and the aim of this project is to enable the community to become self-sufficient.”

Sounds like a positive, and productive, alternative to a 15-page paper on the eating and drinking habits of the bushmen of the Kalahari desert.

We’re not comfortable wearing fur, or even faux fur, but we also really dislike (perhaps even despise) the immature and ultimately ineffective tactics at Peta.

After realizing that dumping red paint on people is both grounds for a lawsuit and a violation of their own supposed belief that all living things (including people) deserve respect, they’ve moved onto a new tactic:

Dressing up their members like slutty, tacky PETA “cops.”

An interview with Ingrid Newkirk – PETA’s president and co-founder in today’s New York Observer explains the rationale behind their thongs.

“You may feel more comfortable just arguing things intellectually. But that isn’t the way society is now; it’s all Paris Hilton and Britney Spears and ‘Show us your tits,’” Ms. Newkirk said.”

Newkirk also points out that young and emerging designers hardly ever use fur. She blames the persistence of fur on older designers stuck in their ways and shock-tactic aficionados:

“I think the old fogy designers like Karl Lagerfeld and so on, and the desperate designers like Alexander McQueen who want to be bad boys—Jean Paul Gaultier—they really want to be like, ‘Look at me, look at me! Aren’t I just shameless?’

Weirdly, we think what’s really shameless is exploiting your female members for their boobs intead of their brains, which could certainly be used to passionately but respectfully explain why using fur is wrong.

Meanwhile, it seems like PETA’s on the losing end of the industry, again:

Today, Oscar de la Renta announced a new licensing deal to produce a line of fur coats for his Fall and Winter collections.

—ALISON COOL

I remember the last time I got clothes as a gift.

It was Hanukkah, 1994, and I had just turned thirteen.

My mother had scanned the Seventeen Magazines on my floor - remember the one with Natalie Portman on the cover, that said “Who’s That Girl?” on the front? - and realized plaid was cooler than Green Day (though really, didn’t they go together?).

She bought me a pink plaid baby doll dress. It looked a little bit like “Skipper Dates Kurt Cobain Behind Barbie’s Back.” It still had the price tag attached, from TJ Maxx.

I think my mom got the hint when I was dead silent for five minutes - a rare state of being for her hyper 8th grader.

I’ll admit there’s elements here of a spoiled suburban pout. But when a girl’s too young to like boys (and weirdly, I didn’t crush on anyone until I turned fifteen…), her emotions get channeled through clothes (and classic rock - I was a Beatles fiend, too). Seeing that hot pink Hanukkah gift felt like being dumped, even though I wouldn’t connect the two feelings for another six years.

The whole experience is slightly embarrassing, and if I could do it over, I would have totally been like, “You’re the best mom in the world! What a great nightgown! I can wear this when I watch The Real World: London!”

Instead, I take away something different:

It’s very rough to give clothing as a gift. It’s hard to get the fit right - too small and they can’t wear it, too big and they think you think they’re fat. It’s also hard to assume you know someone’s personal style - “Omigosh, I can’t believe he thinks I like this!” And it’s hard for those shy about prices - with clothing, there’s an implicit return-to-store option that usually includes a receipt.

Still, some people brave the risks, sometimes with amazing results.

Are you one of them? Or have you too abandoned clothes in favor of albums, yoga passes, and the latest Kid Robot toys?

[editor’s note: At left is the one item of clothing I would like for Hanukkah, a Luella mini dress.]

Those who caught the Never Been Kissed marathon on Bravo this weekend may have spotted something fun:

A knockoff of Kate Moss’ Versace dress that she sported with Johnny Depp!

The outfit’s a little more dominatrix than Kate’s, but it’s undoubtedly inspired by Versace’s design, and it’s hilariously bad -

In the movie, Drew Barrymore wears it as one of the nerds in high school, desperate to impress Jessica Alba and the rest of her In Crowd!

Fortunately, Drew’s chosen accessories - a hot pink cardigan and a neon feather boa - never made it to the TopShop selling floor…

Reading the LA Times this morning, we were amused to see the ad at left:

“For Your Consideration: Marion Cotillard.”

It’s not that the French actress doesn’t deserve an Oscar for being Edith Piaf - in fact, she’s given the best performance in anything we’ve seen all year.

It’s just funny because the ad was placed in the style section, as though if all the actors and directors in the Academy don’t vote for Marion, at least all the costume designers and art directors will vote for the chicest chick.

Meanwhile, we wonder if Chanel is already pulling or making haute couture choices for their maid Marion, since there’s no way she’ll wear another designer on the carpet.

More proof that blondes will rule the Spring ‘08 campaigns, despite the hype of industry diversity:

Tanya D. will join Anja Rubik in the DSquared campaigns. When we try to imagine Helen of Troy, we usually picture Tanya, though presumably she’ll be styled less classic for the antics of Dan and Dean Caten in their latest ads. The Siberian model is now seventeen.

Meanwhile, WWD reports that blonde and banged Kate Moss was snagged by Donna Karan for her new Spring ‘08 spreads, a job that belonged to brunette Catherine McNeil last season.

We’re thrilled to hear about Tanya’s first booking for Spring (she’s so pretty! she’s so magical!) and we’re always down for another few pages of Kate. But it’s interesting to note that yet again, a very vocal piece of the industry has done nothing to sway the actual practices of it… at least not yet.

Also: When we go to Bumble + Bumble next week for our semi-annual color fest, we’re actually thinking of going dark brown… is this so totally wrong?

Walking back from Crunch, and these women behind me swing big plastic bags - the sturdy, static kind from Chinatown that Vuitton spoofed in ‘05.

They are dressed like tourists - that is to say, dressed like they think New York women dress. All black. Pashminas. Boots trying to be Uggs.

The oldest one says to the youngest one, “Honey, do you want me to carry your bag?”

She answers, “No thanks, Mom, I want to carry my own Paddington!” Then she says, “Won’t it be funny if I put it in my Barney’s bag and then everyone thinks it’s real?”

Wow, and I have an idea.

I race home and eBay “Hermes Box,” and “Vuitton Box.”

They’re all buyable, for about $5 - there’s even a Birkin box and an Hermes plastic bag meant to protect your Birkin in the rain, which sells for $100 - and will no doubt sell to some guy who wants to trick his wife into thinking she’s getting a real Birkin for Christmas.

Then I start scheming:

A Tiffany box and a plastic ring, and a girl would be totally and completely fooled.

The packaging is on eBay - for $2.

Colin Firth is getting into retail.

The actor best known for playing Mr. Darcy / Mr. Bridget Jones / Amanda Bynes’ Dad in What A Girl Wants is opening a shop with his wife called Eco that’s devoted to bringing fair trade and earth savvy products to London.

Besides selling things like organic cotton clothes and solar-powered cell phone chargers, the store will host occasional art exhibits and designer trunk shows with green outfits (not the color, the lifestyle).

Firth already owns two coffee houses in London, but we hope his new store encourages a homegrown fashion line to be sold exclusively in the shop - after all, if women can’t undress the actor, at least they could wear his clothes.

Anyway, with Rogan winning the CFDA prize last week, he might have a shot at even sheathing Anna Wintour…

When we heard Bridget (Helene) Bahl was “folding sweaters” at Vogue, we assumed it was in the fashion closet.

But it seems our source was a little too psyched about her Conde Nast employment - Bridget wasn’t working in the editorial department, she was a weekly freelancer in their events department helping to prep for Vogue’s biggest fund raiser of the year, 7th on Sale.

Not that Vogue staffers don’t do that, too - even their fashion market director, Meredith Melling Burke, helped to merchandise and price many of the donated outfits, which hopefully, some of you have bought!

(shoes, that is… show us your shoes…)

If you liked the movie Seamless, you’ll want to check out Behind The Lens on ShopVogue, which has an actually, honestly good mini-documentary about the plight of this year’s CFDA / Vogue nominees. You won’t see Ashley Olsen dancing with Johnson Hartig, but aside from that, it’s pretty killer - especially since the Band Of Outsiders guy is so, so cute.

PS - right-this-second at 7th on Sale, Anna Wintour and DVF are chatting, while Lauren Davis and Bee Shaffer fold sweaters with Zoe Kravitz. Awww…

Despite the diversity discussion off the runway this season, it seems Spring 08’s golden girl is literally the fairest of them all, at least if we’re going by ad pages.

Anja Rubik, 22, has racked up the most campaigns so far, including Valentino, Oscar de la Renta, Belstaff, DSqared, H&M, The Gap, and Neiman Marcus’ art of fashion special. She’s very cool and very gorgeous, and resembles something of a fairy princess built from stone. Like Mariacarla Boscono two years before, her new campaign rocket seems to come partly from a gutsy decision to chop off all her hair.

We suspect a close second in the campaign race will be another Fashionista favorite, Jessica Stam, who’s also blonde, pale, and stop-your-tracks gorgeous.

Meanwhile, blondie Vlada R. racked up some of the most runway miles during Fashion Week [Supermodels.nl rated her at the top of the pack, but BryanBoy did a very thorough investigation and totaled Kasia Strauss as the winner]. Regardless, both have skin that’s practically see-through, and eyes to match - just like Lily Donaldson and Snejana, both of whom also stomped many miles this season.

We really love Anja, and Stam, and we’re thrilled to see their new ads.

But the diversity discussion of the past three months seems like the skinny discussion of last year - talk that seems to send action in the opposite direction.

But there is one blonde style star who’s going for a change - Sarah Jessica Parker, whose reddish brown hair is new, yet constantly photographed around New York.

More proof that Blair Waldorf and Emmy Rossum were separated at birth:

This photo from Clinique, which shows the operatic beauty schooling Kathleen Hazleton from Silver Springs, Oklahoma, in a makeup lesson.

The scene reminds us, a little too much, of Blair’s constant critiques on young Jenny in Gossip Girl. Emmy’s in a pouf dress; Kathleen’s in something simpler. Emmy’s high gloss; Kathleen’s makeup is easier. And there’s an odd glint in Emmy’s eye that could be interpreted as almost mischief - though we’re sure it’s just the awkwardness of the situation, where she’s being sponsored to give some girl she’s never met a makeover.

Still, there’s one more similarity we thought was pretty funny:

Just like Jenny / Taylor Momsen, Kathleen looks like she doesn’t need any makeup at all to be pretty!

Barneys is really pushing the green thing this year.

First, Creative Director Simon Doonan decked out their window with a recycling Rudolph.

Now you can watch him in the hilarious video at left, interviewing Fashion Director Julie Gilhart about all the green products shoppers can buy from Barneys for the holidays.

But is it just us, or does Simon kind of sound like the street vendor hawking broken lamps in the beginning of Aladdin?

Those tired of Hayden and Hilary now have a new Neutrogena face to follow:

Diane Lane.

The actress has been quietly hunting for a cosmetics campaign for years; now she’ll star in a commercial for Neutrogena’s recovery scrub, the Healthy Skin Rejuvenator.

Diane is an Oscar nominee and one of the few woman to have sex with Viggo Mortensen onscreen; we like her very much and especially enjoy seeing a woman born before 1990 on a skincare campaign, especially since Neutrogena is normally associated with youth culture.

Speaking of that, here’s some trivia:

Last year’s Neutrogena spokesgirl was Rachel Bilson, 26, who stars with Diane Lane in Jumpers next year.

“Movies are next to religion in India,” said Suneet Varma yesterday.

The go-to designer for every Bollywood actress has outfitted India’s most glam for decades, dressing socialites and stars for every major wedding in India (and even one in Versailles,) and styling everyone from Aishwarya Rai on the cover of Vogue India (out next month,) to Cindy Crawford for Omega.

Now Varma gears up for another high-spangled event:

The Bollywood Music and Fashion Awards, which happen on Saturday. Held in Atlantic City, the festival celebrates the jewel-toned explosion of music, movies, and incredibly gorgeous girls that define the sparkly film genre - and the Indian designer is one of its defining aesthetes.

Tips, the Blockbuster-y Bollywood production house, has just signed Suneet as the exclusive costume designer of three developing films to be released next year, the first of which will feature mega-star Bipasha Basu.

And Suneet may soon become a household name in America, since he’s currently in talks to dress some Hollywood actresses for the Oscars (the rumor goes: blonde, thin, amazingly funny).

Is this the year that Carolina Herrera and Valentino get overthrown on the red carpet by a little bit of Bombay?

—NATALIE HORMILLA

Scarves are one of the best parts of fall dressing. When you have one draped and tied perfectly, it’s pretty much the cutest thing ever.

But when the time comes for the warmer winter version, arranging the wooly mass in a becoming style is a bit more challenging.

That’s why we love this reversible flag scarf from Maria Bonita Extra (about $58). It has a special little loop that you can pull your scarf through and so it will stay in place and look cute at every moment.

It’s also reversible, so if you want to wear the same scarf with a different coat, you can just flip it over to go from gray to black

This reminds us of those strings that you put through the sleeve of your coat and clip on to your mittens. Except a lot more adult.

—ALISON COOL

Editor’s Note: We know the scarf is on the “little red headed girl” from ShopBop, and for those of you who get nightmares from her haunted-house eyes, we’re sorry - if you can find another image of the scarf, send it over.

At last night’s CFDA / Vogue Fashion Fund party, it wasn’t just prize money that got exchanged.

Anna Wintour started the night with two fashion accents - one was her daughter, Bee , and the other was a Chanel Haute Couture jacket, studded with jewels and glowing the kind of green usually reserved for Kryptonite.

Then Style.com reports that somehow, by the end of the night, Ms. Wintour had been relieved of all her accoutrements - both Bee and the sweeping Chanel coat somehow landed with Ashley Olsen.

The backstory is intriguing, but we’d rather go where US Weekly can’t, and ask the key question - Who Wore It Better?

Hint: The answer is Anna.

In high school, I wore red suede Vans with everything. My vintage men’s jeans from Farrah. My black cocktail dress from Banana Republic. My blue Betsey Johnson slip for prom. Secretly, I think Lily Allen stole my style - or at least all the girls like me, trying to straddle grunge and glam, and still make it to class on time.

It’s been ten years since my first pair of Vans, but I still have a sneaker weakness. I like white Converse with jeans. I like Nanette Lepore skimmers with mini dresses. And I still have a pair of red Vans, a birthday present from a boy. They have Elvis Costello lyrics written on the soles, and I wear them on weekends with wide-leg slacks.

I love them, but sometimes I wonder -

When does a woman stop wearing sneakers? Is there ever an age limit? A prohibitive space?

Last year, Voguette Lauren Davis told me, “My mother always said that the only people who run are children and thieves. So why would you ever need sneakers?”

Stacy London from What Not To Wear agreed - okay for the gym, probably not for most women over 20.

Meanwhile, I’m contemplating my next rubber soles - a colored pair from Converse to support The Global Fund.

Are you craving a new pair, too? Or is it time for boots, flats, and conceding the idea that grown-ups don’t wear sneakers unless they’re playing pro ball?

Hey, Ebenezer: Remember how you wanted to to work for Duncan Quinn? They called our office looking for you - it seems nobody could resist your natty, fabulous suit! Email faran@fashionista.com and I’ll put you in touch with the Quinn kids. xo F.

Country music is one of the only categories in America still selling records, so maybe it’s no surprise the scent industry thinks it can help sell them too.

Today, Coty announced their latest face is Tim McGraw, who will launch his own fragrance for men in the Spring.

McGraw is a multi-platinum record artist, who’s also starred in Flicka and Friday Night Lights - two of our favorite nobody-knows-I’m-watching movies.

Whether his face can move millions of men to the perfume counter is still an untested idea, but he is married to Faith Hill, so we imagine his fans put some faith in him when looking for grooming and date prep tips.

Coty’s last fragrance was built for Kate Moss, and smells a little bit like cigarettes, rock candy, and baby shampoo.

We imagine McGraw’s signature scent will lean closer to barbecue sauce, with top notes of hay.

Top Model winners end up in J.C. Penny catalogs, and Project Runway designers sometimes work for Urban Outfitters. But has a “Fashionista Diaries” chick actually scored a high fashion position?

We hear Bridget Helene, the former Seventh House PR intern who earned some infamy on the SoapNet show, has scored a job at Vogue - sort of.

According to our source, the 25-year-old was recently temping for Vogue’s fashion department, after a chance meeting with Anna Wintour at Conde Nast. Though she worked full-time for several weeks, the magazine couldn’t keep her because House and Garden staffers are scrambling to be placed at other Conde titles, now that their venerable (and beautiful) magazine has shuttered.

If she doesn’t go back to Vogue, she could get placed at another big fashion title, which would be very exciting for her - although if magazines don’t work out, she could ask her talent agency to send her back to TV - especially since The Fashionista Diaries is in negotiations for a second prime-time season.

Designer Allen Schwartz of A.B.S. was recently asked about his copycat style by The LA Times - if you didn’t buy an A.B.S. prom gown, then you may remember Schwartz as the guy who goes on The Today Show every year to explain how to buy knockoff Oscar gowns.

Except Schwartz told writer Emili Vesilind that “Words like ‘copying’ and ‘knockoff’ do not exist in my life… When you talk about this, it hits a nerve for me. It’s based on such an elitist attitude.”

Um, okay Allen.

But what about this find by reader Cindy, who pulls her own Tory Burch dress from the closet - then sticks it next to a recent A.B.S. offering from Macy’s? Tory’s print may be a smudge more complicated, but it’s the same dress - two seasons late and under $100.

On the upside, at least he’s not copying those Tory ballet flats, which seem to multiply faster than private school applications on the Upper East Side…

Scene Two at the Mercer Hotel, as described by a socialite at dinner last night:

Photographers are staked outside the entrance, even though it’s rainy and really cold.

Mary Kate Olsen is seated inside the plush lobby, debating the best way outside without smacking into them.

She calls her driver, then asks one of the hotel staffers if it’s easier to exit out the back.

“Oh, those aren’t for you,” comes the reply, with a gesture to the paparazzi. “Those are for Kate Moss!”

Mary Kate safely leaves the building.

Wes Anderson should really make it into an animated short…

It’s probably uncool to watch the CFDA / Vogue Fashion Fund as if it were a horse race, but let’s be real - there’s no aloofness woven into our Luella dress, just some earnest “omigosh” at the latest winner:

It’s eco-denim designer Rogan Gregory, who beat the running favorite Phillip Lim to the $200,000 prize.

Gregory has a store in Tribeca and jeans that look like you wore them for five years of your life - straight. He only works with fair trade materials, and uses energy efficient techniques when making his clothes. Rogan claims Heath Ledger and Helena Christensen as major fans, and Bono as a spokesman - his wife, Ali Hewson, has another line with Gregory called Edun, which promotes environmental living and flowy sun dresses.

But what gave Rogan the edge over lines like Marchesa, Vena Cava, and Erin Fetherston?

Only Anna can tell for sure, but we bet the company’s environmental edicts had a large part to do with the decision - after all, this is the year when Barneys decorates their windows with recycled paper, and even the Top Model bus is a hybrid.

Phillip Lim won a $50,000 second-place prize from the fund, along with jewelry designer Philip Craingi.

So far, the average price you spent on today’s outfit is $959.16, at least according to the latest tally from the Fashionista Community boards. Did you all go buy the Chloe Paddington Boot without me?