Though Fern Mallis, senior vice president of IMG, is one of the most important figures in fashion (she is basically who we have to thank for that little thing called Fashion Week), many people don’t actually know her know her.

So we thought we’d share this short, rare interview she did with Bravo in promotion for her role as a judge on Bravo’s new Project Runway replacement called The Fashion Show, for which Isaac Mizrahi is also a judge, so everyone can get to know the lovely Fern a bit better.

Learn that she used to wear only American designers while director of the CFDA, that her style is “international,” that Donna Karan sometimes “gets fats, gets skinny,” and that Fern is much nicer than most people seem to think she is.

The show premiers May 7th - more info on Bravo’s site.

Since MTV’s attempt at reviving House of Style flopped and disappeared from memories in the course of thirty minutes, Chanel’s second try at becoming an official model/actress seems to finally be tonight, on her confirmed guest star appearance on tonight’s Gossip Girl, alongside other fashion-y folk like Leigh Lezark and Patrick McMullan.

So will Chanel be like a Georgina Sparks character, decked out in LA wares on the UES? Or will she simply play herself and maybe get a scene attracting the attention of Chuck at some point during Little J’s sweet sixteen?

We can’t wait to see, especially since whatever the girls on that show end up wearing gets blasted around the world the morning after - so who gets the coveted spot of Chanel Iman’s back on prime time?

PS If you’re looking for every spoiler under the sun, here you go - but we couldn’t bring ourselves to listen to the whole thing.

A teeny sentence in this morning’s WWD confirms a story that was floating around during Fashion Week, and so was subsequently ignored.

Gossip Girl has inspired a reality show.

Bravo - the network behind Project Runway, The Fashion Show and Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style - has started filming a show, which may or may not be called NY Prep, that follows around real-life UES private school kids, to see if anyone really lives a life like Chuck Bass.

Obviously, we’re just curious if anyone actually shows up to 8am geometry with Gisele hair and Celine, but we’ll know soon enough - the show hits small screens everywhere this fall.

Not only does Chanel Iman have an upcoming guest spot on Gossip Girl following her House of Style stint this weekend, but it looks like the Ford model’s planning a much longer career on sets instead of runways.

She told Fashionologie that she’s “kind of slowing down on the modeling” which would explain how she’s going to accomplish her earlier statements to Teen Vogue, that she wants to do “television, film, music and designing. I want to do it all!”

So is Chanel Iman the next model-business a la Heidi Klum? Maybe.

We would wonder aloud whether this new career path of hers has longevity, but considering that she was born in 1989, we’ll hold off.

Everybody’s looking for ways to drum up cash these days, and camera crew-toting stylists are no exception:

Next Thursday (March 26), the Decades Two in Los Angeles is hosting an in-store shopping event for 50 - 100 pieces of contemporary costume jewelry from Rachel Zoe’s personal collection, handpicked by one of the store’s owners. A portion of the proceeds will benefit a charity of Ms. Zoe’s choosing.

Unsurprisingly, you can’t go unless you’re invited. But here’s the flip side: Jewelry that makes it past the first night will end up on DecadesTwo.com and on the store’s eBay page the very next day, meaning you can click yourself silly with your friends while making all the bananas references you want in the privacy of your own home.

Though LA party girls, beware: The event will be taped for the Rachel Zoe Project, meaning you could end up on Bravo shopping Rachel’s cast-offs. We think the website might be the way to go.

We’re endlessly fascinated with the meeting of “real,” “reality” and “fashion” on television these days, and the way it endlessly fascinates us despite our constant stream of questions and concerns. Like:

1. Doesn’t Diane von Furstenberg (as in, the real DVF, not some character of herself she plays on MTV) care that the entire world has now watched her discuss Whitney Port’s love life on prime time?

2. Doesn’t Whitney Port care that the only time she actually got to talk to the real DVF (who, let’s face it, is always present with her on-screen self) was during a work party where she spewed about her boyfriend instead of about wanting to do more with her job?

3. Also, don’t the producers care that DVF just repeated the same advice we’ve heard her give several times?

Please, discuss this moment in true tele-reality. Because when Diane started playing with her hair and asking legitimate questions about Jay, we lost too many brain cells to think on this any further.

We don’t know - and can’t imagine - why, so we’ll just give you the facts:

1. Ashton Kutcher is starting another television show, this time for the CW (home of the fashion-centric Gossip Girl), and this time about models.

2. It’s going to be based on his experiences having grown up as a model from Iowa, though it looks like it’s supposed to be fiction.

3. Actress/former Keds girl/handbag designer Mischa Barton will star in the series as Sonia, “a successful model who keeps the competition at bay but also advises the younger ones, at the end of the month.”

Which kind of makes it sound like it’s supposed to be a fake reality show, which sounds perfectly in line with the rest of the information.

But most pressing: Can it top High Heel Boot Camp?

Oh boy.

The first images of the US version of Absolutely Fabulous have hit the internet, and with them, comes news:

Kristen Johnson, whom you might remember as the girl that proclaims New York o-v-e-r before falling to her death in a later SATC episode, is set to play Patsy, while Kathryn Hahn, who recently starred as Kate Winslet’s neighbor in Revolutionary Road, plays Eddie.

As for the show’s stylist, only his/her work can be seen so far.

If the mere existence of The City didn’t make this one obvious, allow the cold hard facts to stand alone:

Lauren Conrad is leaving The Hills after season five, which premieres March 30th.

No word on exactly what the show will become without its north star, but here’s the better question - what exactly is Lauren going to do with her life after being (arguably) reality TV’s best known experiment?

Our best guesses:

Early reports naming Chanel Iman as Bar Rafaeli’s co-host for MTV’s revival of House of Style appear to be true.

We can’t imagine how she’s had the time between walking back-to-back shows in New York, London, Milan, and probably now Paris. (We bet Coco’s been giving her tips.)

Unless, of course, the first House of Style episodes revolve exclusively around backstage shots of Fashion Week - in which case, how does Bar figure into it?

Looks like Allie from The City really is a model - here she is in Tracy Feith’s line for Target.

When we first heard about Bravo’s Project Runway replacement, Fashion House, we chalked it up to being a desperate move and a show that probably no one would watch.

Consider our tune changed: Bravo’s just announced the show’s judges, and they’re none other than Isaac Mizrahi (whom we wish we could carry around in our pocket for running commentary all day) and IMG’s Fern Mallis! (Oh, um, also Kelly Rowland, but let’s just skip over that part.)

The show airs sometime later this year, and pits professional designers against each other in a series of challenges for the chance to have their line available for sale in a “major retail outlet” (which we’re sure will be a major help to whichever department store signed on for this).

But back to what’s important: If Isaac can somehow work Sketches & Answers into this - maybe while the credits roll? - we’re hooked.

Update: Bravo’s changed the show’s name to The Fashion Show. Very descriptive.

So what do you do when House of Style comes back the air, and MTV blows you off even though you’re the perfect choice to be a host?

Get a different network to film you, obviously.

Coco Rocha’s been spotted filming segments with an E! microphone, and has even confirmed on her blog that yesterday was her “first” segment for the network, backstage at Erin Fetherston.

So it looks like we can expect a whole lot more of moving Coco on TV, we just wonder if her guaranteed success will keep her from modeling full time.

Bar Rafaeli just got the cover of this year’s Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, and she gushes to Time.com all about it.

But more importantly, when asked about her future plans near the end of the interview, she says this:

“I’m shooting a show for MTV; we’re starting right after all the parties for Sports Illustrated. And then I have work, work, work, work. The show is called House of Style. They used to do it before and now they’re bringing it back. So it’s very exciting.”

There you have it. Now if someone can corner Chanel later this week (we’re on it), then we can all know for sure just exactly who’s taking Cindy’s spot.

The 90’s television revivals aren’t stopping at 90210 and Absolutely Fabulous. No, House of Style’s jumping on the trend, too.

The Post reports that the MTV show that made Cindy Crawford America’s sweetheart is back for a second try, and the producers already have their sights set on Chanel Iman and Bar Rafaeli (who already has some experience with camera crews) as hosts.

Assuming the show will be the same format of fashion and design information brought to Americans via cute girls, we’re betting it’ll be a hit, especially with those that want to further understand the decade they were born in, which is pretty much MTV’s target audience these days anyway.

In the meantime, please enjoy Cindy and Niki, at left.

In honor of Fall Fashion Week, television stations tend to broadcast fashion-related movies during the month of February, and this year’s no exception.

Lagerfeld Confidential, the documentary about you know who, airs on the Sundance Channel on February 9th at 7pm EST.

Marc Jacobs & Louis Vuitton, which followed Marc in the making of the Spring 08 LV collections, airs on Sundance on Valentine’s Day at 7pm EST.

Yves St. Laurent: 5 Aveneu Marceau 75116 Paris airs the next day at 7pm EST, also.

Some might argue it’s even better than front row…

In case anyone else sort of came around on The City after Olivia shut down Whitney over talking about her friends’ hook up situation in the DVF offices (“Whitney, you’re an adult. You’re what, 23 years old? You’re not in high school”), take note:

MTV’s picked up the show for a second season, which could mean more fun quotes from Olivia, but definitely more cameras at Fashion Week.

Not exactly win-win, but maybe Diane will show up on camera again?

Ever since the news that The September Issue would hit the Sundance circuit, our hopes of seeing it on A&E - as originally intended - dwindled.

But according to WWD, A&E is still planning on airing the most anticipated fashion documentary since Lagerfeld Confidential sometime this year (the date has still yet to be determined.)

So if you couldn’t make it to Sundance this year (hah), fear not. You will see it (eventually) - and for free!

From a conversation last night:

“Did you know there’s dissent in the Gossip Girl wardrobe closet?

The main costume designer is clashing with the other stylists and producers on set because they think he’s making Blake look like a “trashy whore” and they’re convinced he was responsible for her awful Golden Globes dress.

Very funny.”

Yikes. We have to say, we kind of agree, but wouldn’t (and yes, it pains us to say this) Olivier be responsible for that particular look?

Just saying…

Good news if you’re a fan of Nina Garcia on Project Runway, and Stylista on the CW. Bad news if you think ELLE should lay off cable-related publicity:

ELLE has just hired on Creative Artists Agency as a consultant.

Why?

Because they need someone to look for “TV shows and film properties that can elevate ELLE’s brand among potential readers,” and they’re so serious they need someone to do that full-time.

Meaning?

Get ready for more ELLE on TV, which is sure to compete with Marie Claire’s Running in Heels.

In the meantime, we’re just waiting for someone to announce they’ll host live podcasts of editorial meetings and interns packing clothes. Can’t. Wait.