The International Herald Tribune’s hosting a conference in Berlin right now.

Techno Luxury’s the theme and Christopher Bailey, Jefferson Hack, Claudia Schiffer, Tomas Maier, Natalie Massenet, Frida Giannini and Prada’s Tomaso Galli will take turns speaking and answering questions about new technology’s effect on the fashion industry - blogging, twittering etc.

Top quotes (via Twitter of course) so far:

Federico Marchetti: The Marni online store is already the biggest store they have in the world. —Business of Fashion

Natalie Massenet says fashion bloggers contribute to 5% of Net-a-Porter’s sales. —Bryanboy

Massenet of Netaporter says that 25% of sale are returned. But as the store is in “every city in the world” that is not so bad. —The Moment

C[hristopher] B[ailey]: From Facebook, we understood how many of our young fans were entering the Burberry brand through fragrance. —Business of Fashion

You can tweet questions for Claudia Schiffer @IHTluxury right now - she’s up in two hours.

“And new-millennium Balmain has definitely caught the fashion moment, as well as the attention of a whole wide world of bloggers, Tweeters and cyberspace image makers. They see in Mr. Decarnin the vibe of the moment: love it, grab it, own it, have fun with it. MySpace is his space.” —Suzy Menkes in her interesting IHT article that cites Balmain and Christophe Decarnin getting twice the Tweets and Google results of the superior, in her opinion, Nicolas Ghesquière and Balenciaga.

In which we catch those of you, and those of us, who spent the weekend outside, away from a computer or on a phone-cation, up on the fashion Twitterverse.

1. “I don’t get it,” from @jess_stam. She’s new to the world of tweets, give her a warm welcome!

2. “A Lanvin ‘snow sprite’ cashmere elf hat. It kind of makes me feel like skipping,” from @bunnybisous who appears to have been stranded uptown in the rain.

3. “Got sandwiched between Vogue’s Sally Singer and Anna Wintour to my left and Michael Roberts and Suzy Menkes to the right,” from @bryanboy at Dolce & Gabbana. A better view of their reactions, here. Sally looks amused; Hamish looks dangerous.

4. “Is it possible to have fashion sensory overload? Tell me no. I have 10 more days and another city to go,” from @mrjoezee. Yes, yes there is sir.

5. “Spotted on the front row at Versace…..Janet Jackson,” from @dazedmagazine. She sure pops up in the strangest places.

Yesterday afternoon MAC’s John Demsey and Milk’s Mazdack Rassi hosted a panel discussion for Parsons and FIT students in the studio that was the site of so many shows this past week.

First, let us just say kudos to the two. MAC & Milk was a huge success in my opinion. It was such a more serene atmosphere than the agita-inducing tents. The staff was incredibly helpful. PR people told us it was drama-free and easy to stage their shows and presentations. There were no nightmarish elevator or temperature situations (two of our big concerns). My only real complaint was the patchy internet service I sometimes got inside on the second floor. A girl’s gotta Tweet!! But all in all, it was a job very, very well done. Let’s do it again in February!

Back to yesterday’s interesting panel, moderated by the hilarious Suzy Menkes and including Rassi, Jack & Lazaro, Humberto Leon and Caral Lim from Opening Ceremony, Parsons Dean of Fashion Simon Collins, and Alexander Wang.

“You could always write a book and get it turned into a movie.” —The fabulous Suzy Menkes, to a soon-to-be Parsons grad lamenting the poor hiring market, during a panel discussion at MAC & Milk.

The International Herald Tribune just confirmed Claudia Schiffer as on of the speakers at their super prestigious annual conference on luxury, this year being held in Berlin.

This year should definitely bring some interesting ideas to light as it focuses on the role that technology and how new types of marketing and branding affect the luxury sector. And, of course, with the economy in the state that it is, there has never been a more important time for creative ideas.

Christopher Bailey, Frida Giannini, and Tomas Maier will also be speaking, along with some super big wig CEOs.

Die Hard: Do you think Tallulah’s getting ribbed about these pics over at her Bazaar gig? We’re just super glad that’s not our dad doing all those things because this is definitely more uncomfortable than anything her stepdad has ever Tweeted. {W}

All Tied Up: We’ve been rocking out old school knot bracelets since Memorial Day and plan to all summer long. Behnaz has a different spin. {Elle }

Thank You Selma: Charivari creator Selma Weiser passed away this weekend. We have her to thank for giving Marc his first fashion job and basically reinventing merchandising and retail. {WWD}

This is…Fashionair: Manager and producer Simon Fuller (he of American Idol and Spice Girls fame) is taking his wily media ways to the internet in September by way of a fashion website called Fashionair. Will VB be blogging? {Grazia}

“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

‘Tis the season of honorary degrees and while ASU may have caused a stir by not handing one to the President, the University of the Arts London made the International Herald Tribune’s Suzy Menkes a doctor last night.

And Giles Deacon was awarded a professorship!

We realize these are honorary and not actual. But wouldn’t you just love to have Dr. Menkes or Professor Deacon leading your lectures or giving a commencement address?

What fashion folks would you deem worthy of an honorary degree at your alma mater?

Talking Cats: Mad-libs with Catherine Holstein. She loves cut-offs as much as we do, all things purple, dogs and shoes. {Glamour}

Twittered: In case you missed it, here’s a tweet by tweet account of Anna Wintour’s 92Y talk last night. It started with Peta and ended with Andre’s blogging. {NYMag}

Dig Deep: Ali from The City gets questioned. She really likes Splenda and scented candles and ended up on the show after Adam was cast. {Nylon}

Suzy Says: Suzy Menkes took a trip to SF. Alas, she doesn’t have time for tweets. {FabSugar}

I grew up with a dad who is fifteen minutes early to everything which means my single act of adolescent rebellion was being half an hour late to everything - something that’s generally ok in this industry.

But I’d never been to one of Marc’s shows and I was not going to be one of those distraught people stuck outside three minutes after start time because the new Marc is both fit and punctual. I gave myself one hour to go pick up my ticket, walk back to the Louvre and take my seat for the 2:30 show.

At 2:33 half the venue - a tent set up in one of the Louvre’s giant courtyards giving tour groups a major surprise - was still empty. There was an open seat behind me, in front of me, across from me and next to Carine. But sure enough, a re-mixed version of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” switched on at 2:37 and the first model stormed out in a black lace number layered over a pink and blue skirt with killer shoes. Meanwhile, a couple of models in, Suzy Menkes tumbled across the runway into an open aisle seat.

The collection was like everything good in life rolled into one - if half of me wants to wear Giles everyday, the other half wants to wear this. Marc threw lace into everything, used bright lingerie over sheer neutrals, tucked metallic mini-skirts under camel pea-coats and ruched leather into retro skirt suits. There were bunny ears and giant pearl hat pins stuck into fluffy buns. The girls wore platforms and thigh-high lace-up boots. Raquel Zimmerman had on amazing blue capris with ruffles at the bottom, Catherine McNeil a Working Girl red coat and Vlada rocked the perfect shade of green.

It’s clothes - and shows - like this that make people fall in love with fashion - it was the perfect fantasy. And with that, it’s back to Brooklyn.

I landed in Paris this morning, grabbed my tickets and pranced through Paris’ gloomy rain to the Boulevard Faubourg de Saint-Martin for Gareth Pugh’s Fall 09 show. There, a surprisingly small group of people stood behind a curtain in a tiny black room before being ushered into a make-shift movie theatre.

I knew something was up when they handed me a credit sheet declaring, Model: Natasa Vojnovic. Natalie emailed, “Is she listed for every look?” Before I could respond, I realized I’d be watching the same video that everyone around the world (or every fashion obsessed person around the world) would be watching live on ShowStudio.

Granted, I was watching it in a mini-warehouse, full of three white benches, Suzy Menkes, Sally Singer, Lauren Santo Domingo, Jefferson Hack, Pugh-wearing London kids, Rick Owens and loads of dry ice-induced smoke. People actually smiled during the video, so impressive were Natasa’s warrior dance moves, not to mention Gareth’s collection, before hopping to the back room to congratulate the soft-spoken designer on a kind of historical fashion moment.

We finally left to grab a bite to eat in between the show and the party, our only regret that we wouldn’t get to see the nailed bodices and pleated trousers in person - until Natasa Vojnovic turned the corner, charging across the cobblestones, arms linked with Kate Lanphear and trailing a Gareth cape - which means Paris Fashion Week is off to a grand start.

Sitting at the Charles Anastase show, we felt like London Fashion Week had really started.

It was a sweaty, hot, mad mess in what looked like someone’s really large flat. The PR’s screamed: “Is Suzy coming?”, “Yes!”, “No, I’ve just rung her driver!”, “Get Tim Blanks!”, “Is he downstairs?”, “Yes! Yank him up the stairs!” while Pixie Geldof held court in the front row with Diane Pernet and Daisy Lowe crashed half way through.

The collection was part punk, part wearable. We’d rock the plaid jackets and striped skirts anywhere, though we probably wouldn’t tie our arms down with rope; the oversized pink cardigan was striking, though no hand chains, please; the shoes were unreal though we’d need them 3” shorter and minus the smeared mud.

Shirts came printed with “Dementia,” “Don’t Kiss,” and “Malia Obama” and the models wore the goth red lip that was everywhere in New York.

Very excited chatter led the way downstairs.

Barbie’s 50th meant major sensory overload - not delicious seven course meal overload but one too many cherries atop the sundae overload.

It went a little something like this: Kimora Lee Simmons on one end of the runway and Vogue’s Marina Rust on the other, both holding Barbie wielding children. A Real World: Brooklyn cast member sat on the right while Heidi Klum sat on the left, sandwiched between Miss J and the ubiquitous Robert Verdi who wanted to chat with Simon Doonan. Simon was trying to catch up with Diane who joyously embraced Suzy Menkes while Peter Som looked on calmly from his center perch. Rachel Roy’s daughter handled the paparazzi better than Lindsay Lohan and the soccer moms behind us tried awfully hard to make sense of The Blondes while I enjoyed a breakfast of Barbie chocolates.

The show opened with a Barbie through the ages sort of montage and ran to a Barbie-fied Top 40 soundtrack; Ken got to wear Kenneth Cole (ha!); the crowd went wild for Bob Mackie’s creation; the video screen told us that, “A plastic tan never fades” and for the second time this week confetti rained down atop our heads.

Because she’s a Barbie girl, in her very own Barbie world.

Suzy Menkes’ new video just went up on IHT’s website.

In it, Menkes declares, “There’s only one icon who mattered in Paris this season, and that was Amy Winehouse.”

She takes us on a whirlwind tour of the runways, from the beehives at Dior to the cat-eyes at Commes Des Garçons and attributes fashion’s interest in the cracked out singer to Karl Lagerfeld’s initial fascination with her retro look.

The best part is when Menkes informs the audience that Winehouse’s most popular song is called “Rehab.” And that in that song “she sings, “No, No, No,” but the fashion world is saying ‘Yes, Yes, Yes’.”

“This Ruritanian rock ‘n’ roll was open to every cliché: “Rock the Czech Republic!” “Blonde models have a lot of polish!” - Suzy Menkes, on the Gucci show, in the International Herald Tribune.

“Clients were breathless with excitement. ‘I want everything - it was made for me,’ the actress Diane Kruger said, while Sofia Coppola uttered one joyous word: ‘Flats!’” - Suzy Menkes, on the wave of approval at Chanel’s S/S ‘08 couture show, in IHT.

The International Herald Tribune’s video of Suzy Menkes interviewing Christopher Bailey makes us remember why “DO ME DAILY/CHRISTOPHER BAILEY” was our favorite House of Holland t-shirt.

Though the video features the adorable designer discussing only the Burberry Men’s A/W ‘08 show, we think his observations apply to the fashion world at large.

When Suzy asks him what it means to be English, he says “I sometimes describe it as this disheveled elegance. I love the fact that there is something quite traditional, quite stoic…along with this real art side to it, along with this real almost rebellious side.”

We think that’s one of the best descriptions of British fashion we’ve heard. The constant struggle between incorporating the past and moving in an entirely new direction is one of the main reasons the Brits are so often at the forefront of developing new trends. Witness Stella’s Saville Row tailoring applied to womenswear; Vivienne Westwood’s courtly silhouettes worn to bashes at BoomBox; McQueen’s armor-inspired breastplates made of leather for women.

And as far as the vibe on Bailey’s latest runway - men in crisp coats and feathered sweaters - we hope it doesn’t take a whole year to translate to the boys stateside.

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.