Two days after Nicole Phelps’ positive and curious review of Yohji Yamamoto’s spring collection, the house has filed for bankruptcy.

She wondered whether or not the designer was scaling back; he invited less people, kept the clothes commercial and put all of his avant-garde might into the hair and makeup instead of the pieces that need to sell in stores. Today it turns out she was right to worry.

Though the company’s debts total $67 million, Japan has a specific corporate rehabilitation law that’ll allow the company to continue functioning, and Yohji to continue designing, while dealing with the bankruptcy proceedings.

In other, much, much happier bankruptcy news, it sounds like Lacroix’s been rescued. Sheikh Al Hassan bin Ali Al-Nuami, the nephew of the emir of Ajman, presented his offer, which makes Lacroix a minority shareholder, to Paris’ commercial court and is expected to be a success. The court makes their final decision at the end of the month.

Fingers crossed Yamamoto gets a similar happy ending.

Couture Carries On: According to WWD, an Ajman sheikh has put in a bid for Christian Lacroix that would keep the biz running as is, which means couture stays, too. No final deal is in place yet.

The details are not all in yet, but WWD is just now reporting that a serious offer has been made for Christian Lacroix.

Last week, word was circulating that Bernard Krief Consultants planned to put in a bid for the company, but apparently the offer was not good enough, as were apparently two other bids. We’re guessing they must have been pretty low, considering the only other option here seems to be going out of business.

But a new “serious” offer is in from the Borletti Group of Italy. According to their website, the company is worth over $6 billion. Their interests lie in luxury, fashion, consumer goods, and retail - including La Rinascente and Printemps (acquired from PPR in 2006.)

Lacroix may yet live to see another couture season after all.

There may be a little life in Lacroix yet.

We’ve all been following the house’s financial woes and many thought the designer’s most recent (and well-received) couture show would indeed be his last. Editors were saddened. Signs were present saying “Lacroix Forever”. Even the models walked for a much-reduced fee.

But reports this morning state that Bernard Krief Consultants have put a bid in for the company, not only as a business decision but because they feel Lacroix is part of France’s cultural heritage.

Our fingers and toes are definitely crossed.

In a recent perusal of Net-a-Porter’s “What’s New” section, I came across several Judith Leiber crystal-embellished clutches. The two that really caught my eye were a cupcake(just like the one Charlotte’s daughter Lily had in the Sex and the City movie) and a jaguar.

I am a great lover of shiny things, and when I was young and would go to the mall with my dad, I would always stop and gape at these bedazzled-object-clutches that one boutique carried: Minnie Mouse or a high heel or a lipstick tube.

These sorts of things still make me happy, but I could never, ever, even if I actually had the money, warrant spending five thousand dollars for it (the jaguar is $5,495 and the cupcake is $4,295.)

On the heels of the likely last showing by Christian Lacroix last week at couture comes word that another design house might not see the end of the summer.

Things are also not looking so rosy over at Escada. The company is attempting to enter into a debt restructuring plan this week, but this is apparently the final effort in a long road to keep themselves in business.

Vogue UK (via a German newspaper) reports that if this plan doesn’t work, the company won’t be able to function after August.

While its demise may not bring the outcry and emotion in the fashion world that we saw with Lacroix, its terrible to see another line disappear.

Plus, there are sure to be some heartbroken celebrities.

In the Trenches: Sasha and Malia are about to cause another round of skyrocketing coat sales at J. Crew - this time of the khaki trench variety. {Politico}

LVMH Making Moves? Christian Lacroix was spotted at the Givenchy show just after his own (perhaps final) presentation. Tongues are wagging that the Arnaults might just step in to save the house. {FWD}

If She Could Turn Back Time: Holy photoshopping! Britney Spears looks like it’s 1999 in these shots for Candies. We bet she wishes she could revisit that past too. {StyleWatch}

Who’s the Man? The chicest of the chic stay at the Ritz in Paris. This guy makes their loves run smoothly while they’re there. {W}

This picture comes straight from Elle Creative Director Joe Zee’s Twitter at the Christian Lacroix couture show in Paris. And we have to agree with his tweet, “How can a man who designs THIS stop designing? Again, fashion injustice!”

That is one heck of a beautiful creation. Here’s what else Joe had to say (er Tweet?) about the rest of the collection before heading to Givenchy in a sudden rainstorm.

“The mood may have been somber and the clothes black but it was still pure French sophistication at Lacroix. Magnifique ca!”

“Even the shoes were quiet and restrained at Lacroix where he reinterpreted the classic Belle de Jour pump with the square buckle.”

“You can’t help but shed a tear for Mr. Lacroix as he receives a standing ovation for what could be his last s …”

There may be some investors interested in saving the company, but it’s not looking good.

Picture This: There’s no video yet from Vanessa Bruno’s short film, just stills. But we’ll take Lou Doillon any way we can get her. {Fashionologie}

And They’re Off: Recession be damned, there will always be couture. Even if Anna isn’t there to watch it happen. {FWD}

With One Notable Exception: A “restructuring” plan has effectively wiped out most of the jobs at Christian Lacroix. {WWD}

“Don’t tell anyone, because I’m not allowed to do this, but we absolutely are going to have a show in mid-July, during Fashion Week - and it won’t be a funeral: it’ll be a fightback…I can’t stand the idea that people think I am to blame, but to a certain extent I am paying for not having done what everyone else did, with their logos and It-bags. I never went down that route.”” —Christian Lacroix to The Telegraph.

“But just as royalty now has less attention than celebrity, so couture has lost its unique prestige, with the word bandied about by any high-end designer. And whereas fragrances produced from the mystique of haute couture once kept the houses afloat, now it is just as likely that a hip jeans brand like Diesel or a celebrity like Jennifer Lopez will have the perfume hit that has stubbornly eluded Lacroix.” Suzy Menkes, on the devastating news that Christian Lacroix has filed for bankruptcy protection

Christian Lacroix’s in need of new financial backing.

Florida based Falic Group, who bought the house from LVMH in 2005 is said to be looking for someone to buy a majority stake in the company. In the past four years, they’ve opened two stores stateside and almost doubled the number of employees. Still, they’re not even close to making a profit.

The problem, according to the Wall Street Journal, is that no one wants to invest money in something that hasn’t been profitable in years. Especially these days.

We can’t imagine couture sales swinging upwards this season and it’ll be impossible for the brand to make a profit without opening more stores, which won’t happen without a major influx of cash.

Who’s making the Save Lacroix tees?

Lace has popped up in a few different ways this season, but it’s at its best, and most interesting, when used in panel form.

It’s come in extremes - the black and very fine sheer lace dress from Preen isn’t for everyone, but the girl who wears it is the guaranteed center of attention. Stella McCartney’s version is a little bit sweeter. She cut strips out of her black, evening nightgown-dress and filled the holes with classic lace. And Christian Lacroix carved little lace windows in each side of his otherwise conservative black dress making Siri Tollerod’s waist look even smaller.

Pretty much anyone could wear a version of this trend - but it’s one that won’t translate well with poor quality fabrics which could inhibit its trickling down. Though you could always cut holes in your favorite dress and sew in your own strips of lace. Or not.

If you’re not familiar with Absolutely Fabulous, get thee to Amazon.com.

The British sitcom ran on and off from 1992 to 2005. It stars Patsy (Joanna Lumley) and Edina (Jennifer Saunders), a washed up model and a wannabe PR dame who spend almost the entire series drunk, stoned and decked out in the loudest Moschino and tightest maybe-Alaia they can find.

Patsy and Edina’s fashion obsession led to an insane roster of guest stars including Lacroix, Zandra Rhodes, Gaultier, Erin O’Connor, Twiggy and even Naomi Campbell.

So, we’re kind of jumping for joy that Fox confirmed they’ve picked up the re-make and will debut it later this year (Saunders, the original Edina, has signed on as Executive Producer). This means fashion, fashion, fashion on TV in the form of a killer costume department and hopefully some major guest stars.

Because while Victoria Beckham on TV is fun, a Patsy and Edina meet the Costello boys meet Jourdan Dunn would be life-changing.

Gareth Pugh showed his first full menswear collection in Paris last night.

The “visionary” collection - super skinny pants, platform patent boots, chain mail vests - might’ve sparked LVMH’s interest, according to The Telegraph. Delphine Arnault, Bernard’s daughter, sat in the front row and personally congratulated Gareth on his show.

The editorial darling could be a big financial risk for LVMH (whose stable of fashion brands include the more reliable likes of Fendi, Louis Vuitton and Marc Jacobs) and a much needed breath of fresh air on the heels of their Lacroix sale.

If forced, we’d have pegged Gareth for Gucci Group membership, but it’s hard to imagine him under anyone else’s control, financial or creative, and answering to a larger body who demands a certain measure of commercial success (because we’re pretty sure Michelle Lamy, Rick Owens’ wife and Pugh’s current backer, loves him just the way he is).

Meanwhile, if Pugh joins the luxury conglomerate, shoes and bags are guaranteed and the thought of Gareth Pugh shoes knocks the wind out of us.

We finally got to check out the full line of Gola by Christian Lacroix sneakers that won’t be out til January today, and we’re half excited, and half wondering why the hell we’re excited.

One the one hand, they’re beautiful. Black and white embroidery on leather is not something we would have previously considered for casual footwear, but somehow, it works, and we want it to work with gray jeans and worn sweaters right now.

On the other hand, they’re sneakers, and they’re priced between $240 and $400, which almost makes them criminal if not dangerously fun.

The idea of wearing couture (we are using that term so loosely, yes) sneakers is kind of layered - we think it might feel fun, funny, but maybe a little tool-ish, too (we are using that term so childishly, yes.) Because really, couture sneakers? Has the high/low really brought us kicks designed with 19th Century French baroque embroidery and gilded bullfighter-inspired paisley prints to wear while shopping for milk?

We’re not usually ones to get in the way of something potentially ridiculous for people to wear (we’ve been trying to figure out how to DIY the Giles Pac-Man heads all weekend!), but we’re not sure even we can wrap our heads around sneakers in the mid-hundreds.

But more importantly, can you?