There are bad knock-offs and then there are really bad knock-offs.

Modcloth’s version of Marc Jacob’s Ginny bag is strictly the latter. Their rendition, strangely called the Debbie Gibson bag, lacks all of the qualities that make us lust after MJ’s without disguising its design references.

Modcloth remembered the purple leather tassels, the leather woven striping and a magnetic snap closure. They even got the color palette right - the yellow, the purple, the black to white contrast - awkward combinations perfectly pegged. Everything else? A disaster.

Their “vegan-friendly” leather lacks the shine of Stella’s signature faux skins and the bulky shape and padded strap definitely aren’t what Marc had in mind. But if the gold and tortoise chain strap, sleek silhouette, padlock and subtle gray suede detailing aren’t that important to you - basically all the things that makes this bag worth the extra effort and dollars - then go ahead and put your money towards rent.

Just don’t blame us when your Debbie Gibson doesn’t make it past Memorial day.

—CARSON GRIFFITH

You wouldn’t think it, but President Bush has been busy with more than just saving the country from financial implosion - he’s also had fashion on the brain.

Yesterday, he signed an anticounterfeiting bill that will make the consequences for knocking off a Fendi bag all the more serious and scary to those waiting in the shadows with a pencil and tracing paper. The bill includes that President Bush will appoint a sort of piracy and counterfeit czar who’ll chair his or her own committee to fight knock-offs of all kinds (clothes, art, music, etc) in accordance with the Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property (PRO IP) Act.

So, basically? The government has allocated lots of money ($25 million) to make a department that helps members of the FBI train state/local officials to seek out the producers of knock-offs, in addition to doubling the fines that intellectual property pirates face, making the job all the more unattractive.

So does this just mean more random public crackdowns on Canal? Or does all this new cash mean the giants (you know who) come tumbling down, too?

(A reader tried to leave this in Community, but it was too good not to display front and center.)

Doubtless you’ve heard of Edie Rose, the capsule collection Rachel Bilson designed for DKNY Jeans.

But it’s a more doubtful you’ve heard of Sretsis, a very small line based out of Bangkok that once had a very brief mention on The Fashionista Diaries.

Or, you could remember that Rachel Bilson was once photographed wearing the green, Sretsis dress at left. And then realize that it must have weighed heavily in her memory in designing the yellow, Edie Rose dress at right.

We guess it’s a nice gesture that she left the studs off the neckline, kind of like changing a semi-fictional character’s last name to avoid legally-upholdable comparisons.

But then again, as Alexandra pointed out, at least now we know she’s been “designing” the line…

And now, a note from Faran…

Last weekend, my mom asked why I was so obsessed with knockoffs. “We get it,” she said, “Forever 21 copies stuff. Now what?”

I know some of you share the same attitude, but let me try and give you a window into ours. We still think Adventures in Copyrights is a sustainable resource, in a matter of speaking.

Here’s why:

1. Because we’re rooting for young designers, and a knockoff can mean the difference between making money and going bankrupt. Yeah, we notice when Anna Sui and Balenciaga get copied, and it’s pretty outrageous, but we really fume when Vena Cava, Shipley + Halmos, or Chris Benz get played. (In fact, we’re wondering if rampant knocking-off had anything to do with Jane Mayle’s decision to close shop citing the “out of control” and “ever-accelerating” fashion system.) They’re in a very costly business and barely breaking even (if that), and dependent on every single sale. If even one girl buys the knockoff instead of the original, those kids could lose the funding for another season. Yeah, that’s business, but it also sucks, and we’d like you to be aware of it.

2. Because knockoffs are made in poor conditions. Sweatshops are rampant with many brands, but Forever 21 and Canal Street vendors are constantly called out on harmful working conditions. Bad fashion karma isn’t worth much.

3. Because fast fashion is shitty for the environment. Factories + synthetic materials + clothes you throw away after like two weeks = pollution. Buying fast fashion is a quick high, and a direct route to a landfill. Topshop, Target, Converse, Keds, Gap and H&M have addressed this, making a portion of their clothes with fair trade cotton and eco-friendly dyes and materials. Many of them also make stuff that lasts longer - hence those Topshop dresses from 2002 and Luella for Target stuff from 2004 that still kick around people’s closets. Cheap clothes = great. Throwaway clothes = not great.

4. Because we have hope. Hope clothes can be cheaper and more responsibly made. Hope that if we keep hammering at it, executives will start asking the right questions. And hope that at the very least, you like Adventures in Copyrights because it’s really funny to see Lego shoes from like, eight different brands.

Honestly, how many of you were going to wear Lego shoes to begin with?

Love you guys. xoxo F.

Story time: On Saturday, I met a few friends for drinks - one of whom showed up in that Forever 21 Mondrian rip-off and a pair of Bakers’ Tribute to YSL.

Since she’s a good friend of mine, I asked her if she was familiar with the origins of her outfit. She responded, “Oh yeah, I know. I mean, it’s not like I can afford the originals, so I just got these instead.”

I winced. Such an irrelevant excuse and yet kept in a holster.

But the thing is, my friend is really cool and really into fashion. Definitely not someone you’d expected to show up sporting an F21 knockoff and an “I know’ smirk. (I previously, and naively, thought that knock-offs were normally purchased when the shopper just didn’t realize she was coveting a copy.)

She couldn’t really tell me why she bought it, other than that the fakes were so exact that only someone who spots fakes for a living could have told the difference. The finer points, in her mind, were moot.

Apparently, a lot more people buy knock-offs than I realized. I’ve always thought that if you wanted say, a Balenciaga blazer, but couldn’t muster the cash, then you could find a fitted vintage suit coat and wear that instead. Inspiration. Not theft. But, apparently, when the copy’s close rather than butchered, the ethical question goes out the window and people leave their apartments carrying F21 Motorcycles.

So, if a knock-off was good enough, would you wear it? Or would you just save your change - or better, get creative?

—KYLE HAYES

Almost every knock-off we see from Forever 21 raises the original from the dead and into a plastic-y patent leather evil twin - why does everything they make have to be shiny? - and this Chanel rip-off is no exception.

The criss-crossing straps along the front make a decent imitation but the buckles are lacking the Chanel’s extra oomph, plus the heel kind of looks like the Chanel’s frumpy cousin. And of course, the patent ‘leather’ completely changes the sophisticated tone of the original.

Nine West managed to do a bit better with the look. They, too, offer a version in black patent but also turned out a few suede versions in different colors. Like F21, Nine West opted for a shorter heel without the detail (we guess they drew the line at quilting), but with less criss-crossing straps and forgettable buckles.

We bet Karl’s pouring some Bacardi in that Diet Coke right about now…

—HAYLEY PHELAN

I am obsessed with this shoe.

Sure, it’s meant for a woman’s foot, but I’m in love with it nonetheless. It’s sleek and sophisticated, the perfect ending to any nighttime outfit in summer or fall.

So when I was walking by Baker’s yesterday and noticed my beloved Gucci Newton in the window, I immediately did a double take. It couldn’t be, right?

Wrong. Baker’s stole my shoe. The heel might be altered just a tiny bit, but the white piping and cute little shoestrings remain. All that Gucci goodness for only $69.95.

But no fear because the real Newton, left, is now on sale, too!

—KYLE HAYES

Steve Madden knows that everybody on the planet is going to see Sex and the City - The Movie this weekend. He also knows that whatever is seen on the foot of Carrie Bradshaw is retail gold.

So he’s done his research.

At left, the Dior shoe that Carrie will wear while wandering the city and pondering her relationship with Big for the 8-millionth time. At right, Steve Madden’s copy.

He’s so accommodating, he’s even made a more sales-friendly version, with a lower, slimmer heel and lesser ankle strap.

How thoughtful.

Reader Bridget sent in a follow up to an old Adventures - seems that Forever 21 let Steve Madden take the first jab at this Miu Miu, and came up with their own version only recently.

Honestly, we’re not so into any of the three, though the Forever 21 version definitely look the cheapest thanks to the addition of black, which just makes the other colors look like big mistakes.

But can any of you tell which is which (without clicking on the links first!)?

Reader Emily sent in this latest design double-take, and we can’t get over how close the copy is.

The original wrap dress is navy blue and by Diane von Furstenberg. The copy is Pepto pink and by Calvin Klein.

Other than some minute changes here and there (length of the bow, shirring at the sleeve hems, size of neck ruffles) the “inspiration” is way too direct to call coincidence. The real kicker? The copy’s even called the “Wrap Front Dress”.

Calvin’s selling his for $128, which definitely puts it in the general price point of a DVF wrap dress - we would tell you the price of this particular one by Diane, but it’s already sold out on Nordstrom.

Glad some people know the difference.