Louis Vuitton unleashes the fresh things regarding need.

Louis Vuitton, it really is well-known, could be the gem inside the LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy) the queen's as well as the utter level regarding equally creation and also established have been practically nothing or even any assertion regarding strength. Any lender regarding parrot cage elevators plus a control staircase have been middle period over a catwalk portion he african american, portion just as inky, high-shine.

The particular garments mirrored that flawlessly: glistening patent-leather throat parts, corsetry, collars and also cuffs have been enjoyed away from in opposition to uptight, uniform-inspired made of wool tailoring and also just as stringent, utter pad skirts.

The particular staples with the dominatrix dungeon have been almost all current and also appropriate also: whips, handcuffs and also goggles have been appliqued to sets from affiliate marketer lids to be able to night time layers.

Block-heeled court docket shoes or boots plus more that have been laced for the knee have been accompanied by plastic bad weather boot styles, concluding any seem that has been strong coming from check out bottom, specifically since used simply by supermodels Naomi Campbell, Silpada Valletta and also Kate Moss – the particular last option inside hotpants and also smoking cigarettes any e cigarette. The particular come back to the particular catwalk of the, the greatest supermodels, is obviously any picture regarding tender face.

By the end with this calendar month HBO will be verification any tv set re-make with the Joan Crawford vintage, Mildred Pierce, alone designed from your David Meters Cain story emerge Depression-era The usa.

The particular eponymous direct, now enjoyed from the English occasional actress Kate Winslet, will be improbable being really thus properly or perhaps without a doubt since curiously fitted because the designs on the Miu Miu present in which occurred afterwards inside the evening nevertheless they discuss the same character.

The following, any 1940s glenohumeral joint series has been high about strong made of wool outdoor jackets together with inflexible, white-colored collars in which by no means achieved at the center. They will seemed more robust regarding the fact we were holding used not necessarily together with slacks yet above simple hip and legs.

Any boyish grow however, we were holding juxtaposed together with crepe green tea attire in which plainly acquired their particular beginnings because identical period of time yet emerged inside the sludgy coloring colour pallette Miuccia Prada provides chances are produced her own, and also inside grayscale, and also padded together with sprigs regarding dazzling gold cherry flower, white meadow plants and also gold and silver chickens inside airline flight. Coppied coming from menswear once more, and also a smaller amount nostalgic, have been sportswear-influenced made of wool blouson clothes and also slacks together with elasticated waists and also hems. They will seemed specifically great used together with outdated university hockey lids.

Inside primary distinction for the hard-edged glamour which includes focused the summer season as well as the People from france trend money specifically, the following has been any sweetly mournful and also carefully gorgeous persona, the girl idiosyncratic charm simply included with simply by smoky doe face, crumpled bows, large velvet nana purses and handbags and also glittery Linda Britta shoes or boots.

Naomi Campbell's The japanese trend present

Naomi Campbell is always to present the girl help for your patients regarding previous month's earthquake and also tsunami inside The japanese simply by internet hosting a conference by means of the girl Trend regarding Reduction charitable organization.

Naomi Campbell is always to present the girl help regarding Japan's earthquake patients simply by internet hosting any Trend regarding Reduction function.

The particular supermodel : who's brought up $7 thousand regarding non-profit brings about together with related activities currently : can wear the particular type show off in the course of subsequent month's Cannes Motion picture Celebration, together with almost all continues proceeding toward supporting people afflicted with previous month's disastrous earthquake and also tsunami restore their particular lifestyles.

Helped simply by German Fashion manager Franca Sozzani, Naomi can sponsor equally any trend present and also an art form market about May well of sixteen.

Before this kind of calendar month, Naomi chatted regarding the girl expectation to be able to sponsor a conference for your survivors with the Western normal devastation together with the girl Trend regarding Reduction charitable organization.

The lady mentioned: "We will keep on. It is not 100 % validated, yet we have been inside discussions today. With any luck , we have to realize from the conclusion with the few days when we have been carrying out Trend regarding Reduction: The japanese.

"But not necessarily inside The japanese, we have been wanting in an attempt to take action inside Cannes.

The particular 40-year-old superstar ordered the same function inside Feb . 2010 to improve funds for your survivors regarding previous year's disastrous Haitian earthquake, together with many other supermodel Kate Moss, past Tart Lady Geri Halliwell and also Women Aloud performer Nicola Roberts almost all using for the catwalk regarding Trend regarding Reduction.

Revenue regarding shorts climb : yet carry out we all use them properly?

ales regarding gents shorts have an overabundance as compared to doubled given that now a year ago, since The uk appreciated the particular warmest saturday and sunday with the yr up to now.

David Lewis noted in which revenue acquired greater than doubled among Jan and also Apr due to the particular latest spate regarding summer, yet mentioned the particular accomplishment has been furthermore owing to the array of personalized shorts, of demonstrating well-known between guys searching for any "preppy look".

The particular merchant mentioned guys have been more and more complementing personalized shorts together with lace-up shoes or boots and also tops, as opposed to shapeless sporting activities shorts.

He McCormack, brain regarding menswear getting with David Lewis, mentioned: "It's the particular preppy seem which usually guys have become significantly choosing. It's really a significantly better seem compared to the battle shorts.

The web trend retailer Asos furthermore observed any revenue hop, credit reporting any 110 % go up inside revenue regarding gents shorts, although Signifies & Spencer put state with a 45 % go up. A2z tony O'Connor, brain regarding menswear layout with M&S, mentioned: "The catwalks have been awash together with shorts regarding guys regarding spring/summer 2011. The particular chino quick could be the best on-trend merchandise any time used using a nautical striped blazer and also polo to get a well-defined summer season seem.

The uk basked inside the best evening with the yr about Weekend, together with temperature ranges ascending more than inside L . a .. Greater london as well as the South-east observed temperature ranges regarding 22C, with all the temperature trend anticipated to previous right up until the midst of this kind of few days. Jesse Cameron has been the other day noticed showing off a variety of african american shorts, white-colored socks and also white-colored instructors since this individual holidayed along with his better half Samantha inside Granada as well as the the southern part of Speaking spanish hills.

English guys have got usually recently been pilloried regarding complementing their particular shorts together with improper shoes or boots, and also the other day the usa clothier Mary Honda, a person which is aware something or perhaps a couple of concerning seeking excellent, criticised guys which use shorts and also flip flops inside the metropolis. This individual mentioned these kinds of clothes has been "never appropriate", regardless how very hot the next thunderstorm has been, besides around the football court docket or perhaps the particular seashore.

Questionnaire unveils eight inside 10 folks wouldn't normally use genuine pelt.

Eight inside 10 folks wouldn't normally use genuine pelt regardless of that building a comeback around the catwalk, in accordance with study nowadays.

Inside the poll for your RSPCA, 92 % of men and women mentioned they might will not use genuine pelt and also 93 % considered goods needs to be plainly classed since genuine or perhaps artificial pelt. More than half advised the particular pollster TNS that will not necessarily acquire something with out these kinds of labelling.

The particular RSPCA, Britain’s largest dog charitable organization, mentioned it absolutely was “disappointed” numerous developers employed genuine mink, monk and also raccoon puppy furs as of this year’s trend displays inside Greater london, Nyc and also Milan.

Burberry, Giles Deacon and also Julien MacDonald almost all employed genuine pelt with Greater london Trend Few days inside Feb ., together with Mr MacDonald’s designs sashaying straight down the particular catwalk inside monk and also goat pelt.

The particular RSPCA introduced the poll because it introduced this kind of year’s Excellent Enterprise Prizes, which usually complete foods and also trend organizations when planning on taking a great moral posture toward pets.

Shelly Vella, trend movie director regarding Modern plus a determine, mentioned: “One with the drawbacks to be able to my own career will be experiencing a great deal pelt taking over the particular global catwalks each time of year. It absolutely was one thing My partner and i considered to be strongly away from trend yet it’s crept back in reputation using a vengeance. ”

Eventually year’s function, prizes got to be able to Fresh Seem, George with Asda, Signifies & Spencer, Sainsbury’s as well as the organic and natural package structure Abel & Cole.

The particular Co-op earned the particular People’s Selection merit, subsidized from the Self-sufficient, regarding bettering survival regarding farmville farm pets, which includes using only free-range offspring inside own-brand foods.

Regarding initially a year ago, Authorities figures uncovered inside Feb ., 50 % regarding BRITISH offspring have been put simply by parrot cage totally free birds, through to forty-five % the season just before.

Alice Clark, RSPCA farmville farm dog scientist, mentioned: “The RSPCA feels that most birds needs to be stored inside appropriately maintained free-range or perhaps barn methods. We have been stimulating people inside the foods store market to be able to bring in and also increase their particular dog survival procedures also to get into the foodstuff sounding the nice Enterprise Prizes. ”

Chicago as a fashion industry is under the radar manufacturing hub

One Midwest city that’s having much success is Chicago. For the past three years, Chicago’s fashion scene has been bustling with trunk and fashion shows displaying clothes by local designers and much of this buzz is because of the success of Chicago’s fashion incubator which began in 2008.

"Our programming has been so successful because of the support of the community to be totally honest," said Lara Miller, director of Chicago’s Fashion Incubator.

"Chicago as a fashion industry is under the radar manufacturing hub. People don’t realize how much manufacturing is actually here. But there’s quite a lot of that available to young designers," she said.

Donaldo Smith is one of those young designers who just finished his year as a designer in residence at Chicago’s incubator. In addition to helping him gain visibility, he said the incubator helped him learn the business side of the fashion industry to help build his contemporary men’s line, Killian Gui.

"I had done a couple garments in the past, but I didn’t have a full brand. I know the incubator really helped me to turn it from a hobby into a business," Smith said.

Stephanie Kuhr also recently finished her year at the incubator. She was a little unsure about costing structure for Dottie’s Delights, her line of vintage lingerie and foundation wear for women.

Kuhr said the incubator helped her create a budget and stay within it.

"It’s probably what makes or breaks a new designer because it’s a big question, it’s a huge deal to make sure that you’re paying yourself enough and covering all of your cost indirect and direct," she said.

Because fashion is a global industry, designers don’t necessarily have to be in places like New York, Paris or Milan to be successful. Because of this, Miller said people in different cities around the Midwest and elsewhere have reached out to her for advice and guidance about starting an incubator in their cities.

But Chicago isn’t the only place with these incubators. Around 2005, Detroit made an attempt at a fashion incubator, but by 2007 it was closed.

Sarah Lapinski who was a contributing designer to the Detroit incubator said the right infrastructure wasn’t in place for designers to continue to grow. Aside from location, there was one other major hurdle for Detroit’s incubator: "People don’t really shop in Detroit. It just doesn’t really happen," Lapinski said.

But there is hope in other Midwest cities, like Cleveland. Valerie Mayen who was a contestant on Season 10 of Project Runway is the founder of Buzz and Growl, an incubator like program in Cleveland slated to open this summer. The main goal of Buzz and Growl is to provide designers with space and professional equipment.

Mayen said people associate fashion with runways and overseas production, but for Cleveland that’s not a realistic venture. “We’re hoping that we can to help designers to grow to start their own small businesses that are legitimately providing their full time income.” said Mayen.

Who knows, maybe some day one of those designers will dress Chicago’s most famous contribution to fashion, First Lady Michelle Obama.

Vivienne Westwood nonetheless reductions a serious fantastic access outfit.

The fashion Memorial inside Bathtub stays between this kind of place's best-kept strategies.

Along with creating a great long lasting number of trend and also images, dating back in terms of 1600, the particular gallery is residence to be able to exhibits regarding designer wedding dresses, the task regarding Helmut Lang, and also, for your a lot more in times past minded, 17th-century hand protection.

This kind of year's outfit smashes the particular mold relatively because it has been picked by way of a artist regarding initially – milliner Stephen Jones. His / her selection can be a spring/summer 2010 Vivienne Westwood Rare metal Tag outfit.

Westwood, which flipped 75 the afternoon clothing travelled community, nonetheless reductions a serious fantastic access outfit, and also almost all although creating the girl political opinions sensed. Just now, the particular grande dame regarding English trend will be enthusiastic about guarding the earth plus a DIY/make-do-and-mend cosmetic which is since refreshing and also progressive because it will be stunning. Foods regarding considered, next, plus a thousand a long way far from the particular clearly status-driven cosmetic in which continues to control, even though a lot more discretely as compared to it's got completed.

"I has been surprised to find out the trend doyenne, Vivienne Westwood, had not been displayed inside the assortment, inches Jones claims. "For myself, this kind of outfit symbolizes the particular junction inside the girl layout oeuvre; the brand new cut hems in which the lady has been the initial to generate thirty five years back inside the girl punk garments... The analysis with the ladylike layout requirements with the English Noble Household in which started in 1985... The particular bicoloured taffeta draped in the drastically special way which usually ideas with decorum yet having an root libido which is in the middle regarding Westwood's models.

The girl will be, Jones argues, "possibly the maximum artist individuals times". And also he has not necessarily completely wrong.

Can a cushty your back heel are present!

Each morning hours atlanta divorce attorneys metropolis you can view these. Intelligently fitted females, sporting matches or perhaps divides matched together with incongruous sporty instructors while they be quick to be effective.

Hidden yet clear for the viewer are usually their particular appropriate shoes or boots, possibly high heels, secreted in the bag or perhaps bag, all set to get a speedy change prior to starting per day regarding perform. Thus most of us seem to be undertake a "can't are now living in these, can not move with out them" relation to our own conventional shoes or boots today.

In the mean time, in operation media, right now there is apparently a primary connection with all the top with the high heels as well as the income velocity with the business, in terms of shoes or boots brand names. Jimmy Choo published any 2 hundred % boost inside income this kind of Jan; Orlando Louboutin will be broadening simply by beginning retailers since a long way away since Brazilian and also The japanese, and also Kurt Geiger reckoned that marketed five twos regarding shoes or boots a moment this season – together with five-inch high heels demonstrating the most used selection.

Since females acquire directly into a lot more towering types, precluding the possibility the feminine ft . must progress Darwin-style, which are the improvements inside shoemaking engineering to make sure that supporters regarding trend can easily nonetheless shift from your to be able to T with out the usage of car couch, or perhaps no less than, a big bag made up of apartments? Can a cushty your back heel are present, or perhaps could be the thought just like "anti-wrinkle cream"– a great difficult task, but a single also luring to be able to discount totally?

"As significantly since diverse types move, wedges promote exceptionally properly, and they're quite definitely in fashion at this time, and the ones just like these because they're secure although nonetheless providing you in which top. One more secure type would have been a included program water pump – once more, you've kept in which top yet, as a result of program bottom, the particular perspective the ft . is put with just isn't since high, thus how much strain will be a smaller amount. At this time we've Alexander Wang's summer season shoes or boots inside. They may be large yet have got a great deal shock absorption and also support inside the interior which you sense like you might be jogging about atmosphere. Usually it is possible to notify whether or not any boot will probably be secure or perhaps not merely simply by seeking within it.

That directed your pet to obtain any patent using one distinct array of his / her shoes or boots, the particular R-Flex, which can be intelligent high heel pumps using a adaptable plastic only. Younger mentioned this individual initial acquired the theory 12 years back, browsing any boot manufacturing facility "that has been producing ease and comfort shoes or boots, practically orthopaedic shoes or boots, the location where the operator discussed which he needed a remedy to produce the particular shoes or boots a lot more adaptable, which may offer genuine ease and comfort in the event the shoes or boots can go along with the particular normal movements with the walk". Younger thought about this kind of issue for decades, when his / her business acquired several added purchase they will utilize it fixing the particular outdated difficulty. "After studies and also checks inside the manufacturing facility, I came across the particular complex treatment for help make shoes or boots since adaptable and also secure being a ballerina. We all copyrighted that.

Kay Barron, Grazia's trend media and also characteristics manager, can be a self-confessed your back heel lover, then one that is thus well-known regarding sporting "skyscraper" high heels throughout the day, provides also composed any first-person bit outlining the task regarding sporting apartments to get a few days as an alternative. Barron will be excited about the particular R-Flex array. "The Raphael Younger shoes or boots are usually supremely adaptable and also secure – amazingly contemplating just how large they may be. My partner and i donned these to get a complete evening in the course of Greater london Trend Few days and also there was clearly simply no using up soreness, or perhaps numb foot! inches As a possible specialist about high heel pumps, Barron will be specific concerning the girl shoe-buying suggestions. "It's not necessarily regarding the particular top, any pitching wedge or elsewhere, or perhaps the particular brand name. It really is almost all any issue regarding equilibrium and also syndication regarding fat. Any well-made boot that enables excess fat being distributed consistently may well be more secure to be able to endure in for more time, as compared to a single the location where the strain will be almost all on your golf ball with the ft .. And also feel myself, I needed to be able to use several toe-curlingly agonizing shoes or boots just before I came across the right couple.

loving hats is all about restoring a sense of glee to everyday dressing

With regard to a few of the participants, the actual event is going to be their own very first which needs a good loath. As well as caps, as soon as consigned towards the world associated with moms from the bride-to-be as well as chicken celebration covens, happen to be energised like a class with a clean team associated with enthusiasts and also the outpouring associated with exhilaration within the upcoming festivities.

'My caps appear to match a brand new era associated with hat-wearers that did not believe they might actually adore caps, a Victoria Give, the milliner that clothes Paloma Belief, as well as who's these days putting on the kiss-shaped beret within electrical red chiffon, stated. 'I experienced a customer associated with the actual Regal Wedding ceremony are available in today. Your woman strolled within the doorway as well as your woman stated, "I'll get one of these couple of points upon, however I'd in no way put on the loath. inch Inside 5 min's, I'd the woman's transformed.

The main brand new influx associated with theatrical mind equipment testing comes from powerful part versions, Piers Atkinson, the person at the rear of Ould - Dello Russo's huge cherry headpiece as well as Rihanna's spiked beret, flower prosper, cherries, and so on, advised. 'It's excellent to possess individuals such as ADR reducing the swathe like a figurehead [for hat-wearers] within the style business, a he or she stated. 'Hats tend to be ornamental. They are such as small scuptures, small caps; they are about revealing in an exceedingly celebratory method!

James Servant, the actual innovative at the rear of Woman Gaga’s Phone loath, offers magicked luxurious playthings, classic phones as well as t towels in to sculptural caps. The woman's styles frequently develop from tests along with origami methods. In order to Servant -- the near-daily hat-wearer -- caring caps is about rebuilding a feeling associated with joy in order to daily outfitting. ‘A excellent loath provides self-confidence like a declaration item since it convey a good guarantee associated with distinctive style’ your woman stated. ‘It’s a simple approach to add on which has immediate spectacular impact... which, or perhaps a amazing method to conceal a poor locks day time. ’

Not really you need to proceed the entire Coo in order to accept caps. It is a issue associated with getting a complementing form for the encounter, along with a small braveness as well, Give stated. Your woman provides loath employ with regard to neophytes and people unclear regarding splashing on a complete buy.

Atkinson indicates beginning little, along with among their studded headbands, for instance. 'Or choose the actual cherries! a he or she states. 'But in the event that you are going to make use of the loath, after that all of those other appear must be as much as the begining -- the perfect tote, extremely pumps and also the winning attitude.

Stylist Nura Khan understood she’d discovered an ideal framework on her brand new headpiece whenever your woman had been asked towards the classy country side wedding ceremony associated with 2 buddies previously this particular springtime. Your woman capped the woman's ensemble (peach man made fiber Charles Anastase clothing, pailette-covered Stella McCartney small, Marni system pumps) along with T. Cruz Esquire’s Beak Overhead, the dark made of woll describe of the tiara. ‘I believed it might include an additional prosper to complete my personal ensemble having a truly enjoyable, contemporary loath, ’ your woman stated, observing which putting on the modern loath to some conventional wedding ceremony do need a way of measuring boldness. ‘There’s absolutely no component of “I simply put this upon. ” In the event that you’re putting on the loath, you’re correctly decked out. It’s the actual cherry on the top. ’

Kiehl's, Aveda, and Origins have launched products in honor of Earth Day

Kiehl's, Aveda, and also Beginnings have got introduced goods in honor of World Evening, Apr twenty-two.

Über-popular cosmetic brand name Kiehl's celebrates not merely World Evening but in addition the 160th loved-one's birthday in 2010 and contains teamed upwards together with celebrities Erika Chemical. Hallway and also Chloë Sevigny around the celebration: equally have got developed limited-edition brands for the Unusual World Strong Pore Purifying Masque ($23), whoever continues can see a Waterkeeper Alliance, any charitable organization in which operates in opposition to h2o polluting of the environment.

http: //www. kiehls. com

Ever-green Aveda in addition has introduced any limited-edition array, however, not regarding cosmetic now: the lavender-infused Mild just how World Calendar month wax lights ($12 each and every), accessible from the conclusion with the calendar month, gain endeavours regarding clear normal water inside creating nations around the world.

http: //www. aveda. com

Several attractiveness suppliers for instance Sephora are usually internet hosting in-store activities in the world Evening alone: with the 6th Opportunity place inside Nyc, as an example, consumers will get any transformation simply by attractiveness master Josie Maran, go shopping eco-friendly trend simply by Edun, and also acquire environmentally friendly merchandise free gifts.

http: //www. sephora. com

Furthermore, Josie Maran gives $1 for the Could World Alliance for all which "like"s the particular Josie Maran Argan Acrylic site about Sephora. com by means of May well.

Ultimately, Beginnings features a genuine handle earmarked for the buyers: in the world Evening, check out the internet site to be able to use any voucher and also go on it with a retailer towards you for a free of charge jar of just one regarding the cleaning agents. Any limited-edition graffiti layout can elegance the particular the labels that has been produced from completely recycled parts.

http://www.origins.com/

the style business requires discover

Each and every springtime, once the warm leave sunlight models within Indio and also the seems from the Coachella songs event dancing with the atmosphere more than keen, humming enthusiasts I can not assist however question something: What exactly are all of them putting on?

Because the style critic Sales space Moore place it inside a current post, "never thoughts the actual songs. inch OKAY, obviously Coachella is all about the actual songs; it is a songs event in the end, however Moore could not become more correct. The actual sexy bikinis, cut-off pants, tanks as well as edge which have turn out to be event staples barely create a de rigueur gown signal, however every year the style business requires discover associated with songs business big-wigs and also the unique Coachella type of their own enthusiasts.

Kelly Osbourne had been one of the fashionable event participants in the Empire Polo Membership in which the occasion occured. The actual 26-year-old previous actuality tv celebrity offers a few severe style chops since the co-host associated with At the! channel's Style Law enforcement along with Joan Streams and also the brand new encounter associated with Madonna's Materials Woman clothes collection. Your woman used an enjoyable as well as flirty navy blue polka us dot gown, grey as well as dark loafers along with socks along with a floppy hay loath. Osbourne would wear the actual traditional printing having a feeling associated with contemporary glamour as well as the woman's subjected socks provide the woman's appear which personal Osbourne cool distort.

Burberry's provides benefited coming from robust requirement inside Cina in which

High end items teams always money the particular store economic downturn regardless of concerns in regards to the influence regarding previous month's Western earthquake around the market, together with Burberry and also France's LVMH conquering industry anticipations.

Burberry, the particular 155-year-old enterprise most commonly known for the bags and also stylish verify models, mentioned profits inside the next half the season acquired gone up simply by 30% to be able to £860m, plus it desires total yr income towards the top conclusion regarding Metropolis estimations regarding £279m to be able to £300m. The particular party provides benefited coming from progress inside Cina, in which that got total handle regarding functions earlier work simply by franchisees inside September. That exposed eight fresh retailers inside the half a year to be able to Goal – including Beijing to be able to Nyc – and also ideas more enlargement inside 2011 simply by improving marketing area simply by around 13%.

Chief executive Angela Ahrendts mentioned: "Burberry acquired a solid end for the yr, pushed simply by our own layout, electronic digital marketing and advertising and also store projects, along with excellent early on development inside Cina. Because of this, we all assume altered income just before duty for your yr being across the high class regarding industry anticipations. Even though the high end market confronts international difficulties inside the yr in advance, we all continue to be self-confident inside our team's power to outperform.

The business mentioned the higher-end Prorsum brand name and also wear-to-work Burberry Greater london array have been specifically robust artists.

Lavender can be a timelessly stylish shade

Whether or not used as a possible emphasize or perhaps all-over, lavender can be a timelessly stylish shade that may decorate virtually any collection.

We all enjoy how a designs with Tracy Reese sauntered straight down the particular runway inside '70s-inspired frocks constructed totally regarding lavender and also Chanel's watercolor top outfit that you will find the greatest inside eat outside clothes.

And also Royal prince may have his / her pink leadership: the particular paler, a lot more subdued shade seemed wonderful about Kelly Osbourne and also Christina Hendricks -- a couple of females which are certainly not frightened showing of these shape.

But also for us all frequent folks, the particular springy color will be completely wearable: we might want to couple any several flirty nighties beneath any flimsy fish tank, or perhaps use this kind of headscarf being a headband, any diamond -- your options are usually countless!

The particular girls individuals Tumblr Community are certainly not frightened to mix that upwards -- Arielle regarding One thing Deep blue provided the girl single parent's antique outfit a contemporary spin and rewrite together with plenty of dazzling jewelry. Hurling extreme care for the wind flow, the particular tumblr extra floral-printed shoes or boots -- creating to get a stylish night time collection.

Kate Hudson's glam Elle BRITISH protect seem motivated us all to include the particular shade directly into our own attractiveness program -- we all failed to consider it absolutely was proper to be able to stone a great insanely lavish smoky vision for the business office, thus we all chose a fresh color regarding enhance -- Essie's "Lilacism" toenail enhance.

The actual Trainer Classics re-issue selection

Using the '70s pattern ongoing upon to the drop, the actual timing from the re-issue appears wise. Holli Rogers, Net-a-Porter's purchasing overseer, informed WWD, "While these people enhance the present pattern popular of the wide-leg denim jean combined having a excellent stack-heeled sandal, these types of totes tend to be therefore flexible, they'll appear wise along with virtually any kind of day time appear.

The actual effort additionally arrives at any given time whenever merchants, writers as well as customers as well tend to be clambering with regard to traditional design as well as history manufacturers. Large merchants such as T. Team happen to be becoming a member of causes along with old-school United states as well as Western labeling for example Minnetonka, Belstaff as well as Timex to provide clients history item, occasionally along with contemporary adjustments. Likewise, the most popular weblog A continuing Slim functions a good "American checklist, inch helpful information in order to history manufacturers created in the united states.

Along with this particular pursuit of traditional, practical Americana, vintage Trainer bags--the unique items which are now re-made through the label--have be a warm item from flea marketplaces as well as classic stores inside recent years many years, grabbed upward through in-the-know design setters as well as add-ons creative designers trying to find motivation items.

Maternal Suitcases

That they declare guiding every single profitable gentleman is an acronym women. In the matter of Eileen Kors, it can be the new mother, Joan, a new ex - style along with Kors's perennial muse. Currently she has made a new handbag worth holding not simply your ex budget along with sun glasses and also your ex brand.

Your Joan, which in turn occurs in several hues and is also reasonably costs three hundred dollars $398, complies with Joan's rigorous criteria: "I often seek out a third party bank account pertaining to our mobile phone along with recommendations, " the girl affirms, "and I like a new scoot drawing a line under. "But the girl brings, "I surely might not head staying shocked which has a crocodile variation! " Joan affirms the girl strategies for you to observe Single mother's Morning for the Western side Seacoast which has a incredible design involving peonies along with evening meal using Eileen. The highest surprise he has been ever before granted your ex? "Not the need to go on a spree to the prior 40 several years. "

A number of creative designers had been showcased

Center Tn Style 7 days kicked away having a click on associated with stilettos as well as swipe associated with lipstick a week ago.

The actual inaugural occasion supplied a chance with regard to newcomers to obtain their own ft moist as well as discover the actual the inner workings associated with style 7 days.

"It's hubbub, inch stated Maximum, that released Styles Through Maximum regarding 6 months back. "It's a continuing on-the-go, however it is pleasant. You need the enthusiasm for this. I really like, a lot more than something, whenever a lady places on a single associated with my personal styles as well as huge smiles.

From 5 ft 7 in ., Aubrey Vorderberg had been informed your woman had been as well brief in order to design within Nashville Style 7 days. However she is an ideal elevation in order to design with regard to Center Tn Style 7 days.

"I'm understanding all of the small points, such as just how much period adopts fitted as well as rehearsals, however it is just about all likely to end up being worthwhile, inch the actual 14-year-old design stated.

Each took part inside a style picture as well as movie take Thurs from Anastasia's Shop within down-town Murfreesboro throughout the shop's trunk area display, that was additionally a part of style 7 days. A number of creative designers had been showcased, such as Style, Judith 03 as well as At the Bray Jewellery.

The actual collecting associated with innovative thoughts delighted Shannon Perry-Rawls, proprietor from the Parrots Home Beauty salon.

"Creativity must be marketed within Murfreesboro, inch your woman stated. "This is actually just about all simply part of a larger eye-port associated with style.

Your woman led a number of what to end up being raffled throughout the Sunday style display, together with contributions through Condition Elegance Provide proprietor Keith Sanford.

"He's giving in order to my personal store, therefore my personal store may contribute, inch Perry-Rawls stated. "I'm certainly fired up with regard to smaller businesses to obtain included (in Style Week) as well as create a title with regard to on their own.

MTSU had been planned in order to web host it's style display Fri night, then Center Tn Style Week's great style display climax upon Sunday from About the Rubble club upon Murfreesboro's sq ..

Training had been additionally discovered through occasion coordinator Sharon Cumberbatch, that stated she is much better ready for that forthcoming many years.

"Now individuals possess a much better experience exactly what style 7 days ought to be, inch your woman stated, including which she would such as much more fashionistas to obtain included following 12 months. inch.

Fashion week woes put spotlight on Milan's influence

Milan offers lengthy stated it's location one of the best style capitals from the globe, however diary worries possess fashionistas requesting be it dropping impact.

Whilst best titles such as Giorgio Armani, Gucci as well as Versace offered this their own just about all in the autumn/winter 2010-2011 catwalk exhibits as well as received broad compliment for his or her outlines, the actual speak associated with style 7 days offers dedicated to the actual rigorous routine associated with it's cramped diary.

Coordinators had been remaining rushing to suit the actual main titles in to 4 times from the Feb twenty-four -- 03 1 pursue effective style publisher, Vogue's Ould - Wintour, apparently stated your woman prepared in order to reduce the woman's work to visit London style 7 days after which the actual Oscars within La.

Each nearby as well as worldwide push possess discussed the actual "Wintour effect" about the north Italian language town as well as exactly how creative designers had been bowing in order to needs from the worldwide push.

Mario Boselli, the actual chairman associated with Italy's Nationwide Step associated with Style -- that sets up Milan style 7 days -- stated Italian language creative designers frequently demonstrated these were not really alert to their own energy "and rather provide into the stress from the international push.

"I believe the actual large maisons ought to talk upward. We're scaled-down however we'd in order to routine the display appropriately using the diary, inch Maurizio Modica, among the creative designers from Frankie Morello, informed Reuters. "The impact associated with Ould - Wintour? It is a actuality.

Milan offers lengthy depended upon it's standing from the exact same large title manufacturers which have been close to for many years as well as in whose masterpieces tend to be lapped upward all over the world. However primary competitor style capitals Ny as well as London possess lengthier agendas with this period. Business observers additionally be aware there has been couple of worldwide acknowledged youthful creative designers in order to arise right here within the last couple of years.

I attempted to create a style which was fairly distinctive

Two New york college students by having an attention with regard to style possess scooped upward awards inside a exclusive nationwide style competition.

Jessica Madlinger as well as Natahlia Hall-Bourdeau, each senior citizens from Manhattan's Senior high school with regard to Artwork as well as Style, received 2nd as well as 3rd location respectively within the 2011 Cornell Style Honours through making a good ensemble with regard to "a wedding reception about the celestial satellite. inch

These people defeat a minimum of two hundred and fifty additional college students in the united states. "It simply type of found me personally, inch stated Madlinger, seventeen, through Maspeth, A queen, in whose successful drawing exhibits an exciting precious metal, crimson as well as lemon bustier gown along with dark high heel shoes.

"I attempted to create a style which was fairly distinctive, inch your woman stated. "It simply type of found me personally. inch

Madlinger as well as Hall-Bourdeau, in the Bronx, may go Cornell College this particular weekend break to view the actual Ivy Category school's biggest student-run style display reside.

Hall-Bourdeau's development is really a futuristic-looking dark as well as surprising red gown having a mermaid butt.

The actual successful style, through Tiffany Zhang the jr . through Piedmont, Calif., may be converted to a good ensemble which is put on about the catwalk through among the versions.

"Those 2 are simply geniuses when it comes to their own artwork capability as well as style, inch stated their own style style instructor, Eileen Farrelly-Moyotl.

Kate's gown is going to be an essential gown

Whenever Kate Middleton strolls lower the actual section later on this particular 30 days in order to wed Knight in shining armor Bill, the actual would-be wedding brides viewing available will likely house within on her behalf gown.

Wedding business insiders anticipate the woman's dress to become replicated often more than the moment the general public will get it's very first peek.

A few wedding gowns depart the heritage past the actual next-day imitations: Little princess Diana's great dress, Sophistication Kelly's gorgeous 1, Carolyn Bessette Kennedy's easy container — as well as particularly Full Victoria's whitened golf ball dress — transformed the way in which wedding brides outfitted with regard to a long time.

Middleton's will probably fall under which class.

"Kate's gown is going to be an essential gown, 1 that'll be discussed for that relaxation of your time, inch states Millie Martini Bratten, editor-in-chief associated with Wedding brides journal.

Diana's gown assisted determine the actual splendour associated with style within the earlier 1980s, Martini Bratten states, however Middleton's may be much more important simply because ladies connect with the woman's like a 29-year-old having a created feeling associated with design, in contrast to the actual 19-year-old Diana, in whose dress most likely had been selected through panel.

Additionally, photos associated with Middleton's dress may instantly end up being submitted on the internet with regard to dialogue as well as review, information Darcy Burns, publisher within main associated with Martha Stewart Wedding ceremonies. "It's incredible just how much wedding brides tend to be affected in what others put on, particularly royalty, celebs, presidents' kids. Prior to Chelsea Clinton's wedding ceremony had been more than, each and every bride-to-be noticed which Observara Wang gown as well as desired a few edition from it, inch Burns states.

Celeb red-carpet appears tend to be modified for that section, states Marchesa co-founder as well as custom Georgina Chapman, however a lot of women happen to be considering their own dream dresses for a long period and do not switch on the cent. "Wedding dresses tend to be in contrast to every other gowns, inch your woman states, simply because brides' choices "are frequently much less trend-driven, and much more individually centered on exactly how they would like to feel and look on the wedding.

Nevertheless, the little princess retains specific swing due to the fairy-tale facet of wedding ceremonies.

"A regal component causes it to be much more dreamlike, along with a wedding is the time for you to seem like the little princess, inch states Kimberly Shelter Small, main style strategist from the wedding content label Priscilla associated with Birkenstock boston, that created dresses for that kids associated with Presidents Manley as well as Nixon.

From Style Isle shops following the occasion

Ricky Gunn, co-host associated with Lifetime's "Project Runway, inch located "Tim Gunn Desires You to definitely Allow it to be Function, inch the style display as well as meet-and-greet which drawn approximately 1, 000 individuals Sunday morning within the Neiman Marcus-Bloomingdale's courtyard from Style Isle within Newport Seaside.

Gunn, who's additionally the main innovative official associated with Liz Claiborne Inc., supplied comments throughout the display along with strategies for springtime 2011 design, as well as later on clarified queries in the target audience.

Selections about the runway incorporated the most recent through Liz Claiborne, Succulent Couture, Kate Spade Ny as well as Fortunate Manufacturer Denim jeans. Items in the demonstration had been available from Style Isle shops following the occasion.

Ginny Locks associated with Huntington Seaside stated your woman heard bout the big event Sunday early morning, as well as hurried towards the shopping mall.

"It's my personal favorite display, inch Locks stated because your woman anxiously waited within collection to satisfy design professional Ricky Gunn, "I believe you are able to slim a great deal.

Gunn happens to be focusing on their following guide, "The Style Holy bible, inch which is a good anthology from the background as well as family tree associated with various clothes.

Target audience people that invested a minimum of $150 from the 3 manufacturer shops upon Sunday had been asked to consider an image along with Ricky Gunn as well as go to a good following celebration including bubbly as well as sweets.

Los Angeles-based handbag line Hammitt

A handbag collaboration with a television show? Yeah, we were rolling our eyes too. That is until we heard the name of the designer... and the show.

Los Angeles-based handbag line Hammitt is a cult favorite with starlets like Angelina Jolie for its hand-crafted Italian leather construction. And HBO's "True Blood" is a cult favorite for its, well, sexiness. The combination of the two results in please-touch leather bags with studs and detailing inspired by characters on the show. For example, the Eric appears to be a straightforward black crossbody, but turned sideways reveals itself to be pierced with silver bullet-like studs. The Sookie has a sweet, vintage appeal, all ladylike closures and gathered gray suede, but its gussets hide edgy rivets.

The handbags hit stores this summer to coincide with the new season of True Blood. And you can bet we'll be sinking our teeth into one.

Danielle Nicole is really a hot brand new handbag designer located in New York

Danielle Nicole is really a hot brand new handbag designer located in New York that has an attention for making edgy as well as on-trend handbags which are high high quality and inexpensive. Her designs will also be animal pleasant, making Danielle Nicole the designer for that modern fashionista.

Like a 17-year-old freshman retailing student, Danielle Nicole started purchasing purses and ripping them apart to determine how these were constructed. She had been determined to determine how the actual bags had been made to ensure that she might design her very own handbag and understand how to engineer this for building.

Danielle Nicole’s style talents had been quickly acknowledged while she is at school. Because of her acknowledgement, she had been accepted to stay a exclusive class that took her within the handbag galleries of London, Milan, Venice as well as Rome. It had been while your woman studied within Europe which Danielle Nicole could witness professional craftsmen at the office and find out about the consistency and fabrications utilized in luxury purses.

Upon time for america, Danielle Nicole started to make her very own handbags in your own home. She discovered the tile ground in the woman's apartment to become the ideal hard area for working, much towards the chagrin associated with her downstairs neighbours. Despite several noise issues, she continued to operate on making and creating handbags. Her dedication towards the craft associated with handbag producing has resulted in the high-quality status her purse line likes.

“I’m involved with every step from the process; each and every bag is actually personally looked over by me personally. ” Danielle Nicole functions hard to make sure every solitary handbag adheres in order to her top quality standards. Not many, if any kind of, handbag designers go their industrial facilities, as will Danielle Nicole, to inspect each and every handbag that's made to be able to ensure top quality standards tend to be met.

Danielle Nicole’s style talents arrived her a very sought-after internship along with Bergdorf Goodman exactly where she done the purchasing side from the business in addition to being an individual shopper. Bergdorf Goodman, which is famous for transporting high-end custom fashions in addition to hot, brand new, up-and-coming creative designers, instantly acknowledged Danielle Nicole’s creative talents, and your woman was asked to style cosmetic bags for that department shop.

Consumers cherished Danielle Nicole’s styles so Bergdorf Goodman requested her to exhibit them the woman's handbag collection, and the remainder is luxurious handbag background. Her purses hit shop shelves from Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, Saks 5th Avenue as well as Bloomingdale’s, simply to name several. Danielle Nicole’s high-end purses were gaining interest and the woman's friends wished they might afford this type of luxurious tote. This motivated Danielle Nicole to determine a requirement for luxury handbags that have been high within quality as well as style, yet lower in price.

the contrary sex's thoughts

Occasional actress Emma Roberts could not ask a person for trend advice because she would never rely on their thoughts.

Emma Roberts could not ask a person for trend advice.

The 20-year-old occasional actress says the lady wouldn't trust a part of the contrary sex's thoughts on type and would prefer to get suggestions and opinions from the girl female close friends.

She advised Seventeen newspaper: "I by no means ask boys' thoughts on garments, ever. I must say i think, until you think the particular guy provides style, will not ask. Therefore i only question my lady friends. My partner and i don't rely on guys' thoughts on type! "

Emma furthermore revealed how she's got accepted she's going to never become curvy yet knows the lady can nevertheless be sexy.

The lady said: "Sexy once i was youthful always intended boobs, and We have never acquired boobs within my life - therefore i always sensed that alluring was impossible for myself. I utilized to genuinely wish to be that sort of voluptuous lady, and We have just sort of embraced in which I'm not necessarily. "

Emma - that is the niece of Julia Roberts and also daughter regarding Eric Roberts : recently uncovered how the girl "crooked" tooth give the girl "character".

The particular 'Scream 4' superstar said: "I have got really jagged teeth - they offer me persona! We Robertses have way too many teeth for our mouths. inches.

All it's developed close to a event initially conceived

Whilst Arcade Fireplace and Nobleman of Leon tend to be jamming onstage, fashion as well as lifestyle companies is going to be vying for that attention associated with festival-goers offstage, along with branded air conditioning tents, seaside balls, Coachella "survival kits" in the Empire Polo Membership grounds, plus swimming pool parties along with bottomless drinks and their very own live songs at resorts and locations offsite.

Brands deliver clothes in order to celebrities in advance in hopes they'll be photographed putting on them, deliver promotional products, and recruit social occasions with the aim of generating conventional and social networking coverage, as well as, eventually, product sales. At the same time frame, design teams exist, studying the way in which festival-goers dress to allow them to turn suggestions around as well as sell all of them next 12 months.

All it's developed close to a event initially conceived instead of corporatized reside music encounters with higher ticket costs. And it's the idea of this indie spirit which makes Coachella so appealing to fashion brands for example H&M, Lacoste, Levi's, Havaianas as well as Ray-Ban.

"Coachella is actually underground, not really rebel, but much less mainstream than the usual traditional live concert format, inch says Darin Skinner, Guess' older vice leader of shops, including Grams by Speculate, the Speculate brand's more youthful sibling. "That's the way you see Grams by Speculate. The entrance side from the herd, not really the herd.

In among the brand's greatest marketing initiatives from the year, G through Guess is going to be sponsoring an event for 750 to at least one, 000 visitors at a good 8 1/2-acre property in Indio, which boasts its private river and a good airport. Skinner has additionally hired the "delta force" associated with models in order to ride round the festival upon G through Guess-branded bicycles, distributing 5, 000 Coachella success kit fanny packages.

Talk in relation to good gossip

Seemed to be the Skill Production Fund's Beneficial & Loads benefit a over-the-top gathering, or some sort of knowing parody of merely one? During cocktails for the Park Road Armory, servers made available Gouda lollipops by headpieces fashioned like dairy products wedges in addition to witty effectiveness artist Ryan McNamara endured frozen in various lounge lizard postures. Whimsical as the effect was, setting up the nonprofit's minute fundraising extravaganza seemed to be no scam. "It was considerably more intense than setting up a marriage, " APF co-founder Yvonne Power Villareal claimed. Tell of which to Neglect Middleton.

Together with honoring Estée Lauder's Ruben Demsey in addition to curator in addition to critic Clarissa Dalrymple, the provider managed to turn some connected with New York's almost all sought-after painters into gathering planners. Will Silk cotton collaborated having chef Mark Burke within the menu, which included sausage skewers stepped into minds of iceberg lettuce; Jason Koons intended a platter; and this lipstick-smeared napkins within the tables were being Dan Colen's creative perception of where to start with lots of MAC merchandise. Elise Øverland left that has a pile advisors, having offers Burke she'd make them an kitchen apron.

It's this height on the season connected with art bashes in Big apple, with just about every benefit seeking to upstage one more. "I was thoroughly partied available. I employ a sore throat, " Ruben Currin griped. Within the upside, he / she added, "Aimee Mullins appears to be hot seeing that hell. I was almost checking the woman out and I bought caught.

As silk cotton candy in addition to cupcakes were being served, Amy Sacco seen a topless performance artist who has been seated atop a hierarchy and littering the floor with notices she'd considered about revelers with her speedy vicinity. Sacco ignored the urge to take them in place and create a peek, even so the thought crossed her intellect. "Talk in relation to good gossip, " your lover said.

Fashion world will be seen at Coachella

In 12 years, the three-day spring break for adults has become a branding juggernaut approaching Sundance Film Festival proportions.

Brands send clothes to celebrities ahead of time in hopes they will be photographed wearing them, distribute promotional items, and sponsor social events with the goal of generating traditional and social media coverage, and, eventually, sales. At the same time, design teams are there, studying the way festivalgoers dress so they can turn ideas around and sell them next year.

All this has developed around a festival initially conceived as an alternative to corporatized live music experiences with high ticket prices. And it is the idea of that indie spirit that makes Coachella so attractive to fashion brands such as H&M, Lacoste, Levi's, Havaianas and Ray-Ban.

"Coachella is underground, not rebel, but less mainstream than a traditional concert format," says Darin Skinner, Guess' senior vice president of stores, including G by Guess, the Guess brand's younger sibling. "That's how we see G by Guess. The front side of the herd, not the herd."

In one of the brand's biggest marketing initiatives of the year, G by Guess will be sponsoring a party for 750 to 1,000 guests at an 8 ½-acre estate in Indio, which boasts its own private lake and an airport. Skinner has also hired a "delta force" of models to ride around the festival on G by Guess-branded bikes, distributing 5,000 Coachella survival kit fanny packs.

Kate Bosworth, reality TV star Olivia Palermo and Kirsten Dunst are expected to attend the Mulberry BBQ and Pool Party, dressed in Mulberry styles, along with bloggers, stylists and editors from Teen Vogue, Style.com and other fashion media outlets. The British clothing and accessories brand also has a page on Mulberry.com devoted to "festival fashion," including flat sandals and the Edie bag with a guitar strap.

"People like to see celebrities being themselves, not just being photographed on an arrival board with logos in the back," says Vanessa Lunt, communications director for Mulberry, which has had synergy with the music industry for some time, booking up-and-coming bands for store openings and fashion week parties, and enlisting DJ Alexa Chung to design the popular "Alexa" bag.

For celebrities, the freebies start flowing even before they pack their bags, as clothing labels "seed" their products, hoping celebrities will be photographed wearing them. "People are paying a lot more attention to street style. And there is a lot of it at music festivals," says Ali Froley, a partner at the fashion public relations firm Bismarck Phillips in Los Angeles.

s creative director and the driving force of Fashion Week El Paseo

“This is surreal” was the spontaneous reaction that popped from the lips of Susan Stein when she walked into this year's expanded big white Fashion Week tent a few weeks ago.

As creative director and the driving force of Fashion Week El Paseo, Stein's words were not only correct but were a prophecy.

The enlarged tent just off El Paseo on Larkspur was only the beginning. After five-years, this year's Fashion Week took off with dramatic increases in attendance, income, merchant participation and economic benefits for the entire valley.

Our team of stylish society reporters, armed only with bulging closets and overflowing shoe racks, worked tirelessly throughout the week to bring you these gems and glimpses from the more than 18 fashion week events held in at least five venues in seven days, as well as more than 40 in-store El Paseo events.

The two best events to attend if you were short on time or money were the opening and closing shows.

Opening: March 20. Saks Fifth Avenue drew a sold-out crowd of more than 650 to see the best of the best from famous designers around the world. Top trends: vibrant color, longer skirts, 1970's-style pants, trench coats, open-weave knits, flap bags and stacked bracelets. Cuistot provided an elegant after party.

Closing: March 28. Designer Oliver Tolentino's runway show was over the top impressive — flattering, wearable, vibrant colors and designs with inventive and eco-friendly fabrics on great models who strutted and twirled, nonstop, two at a time, for more than a half hour. What a portfolio! And what a great after party at Ace Hotel.

Most of this year's major events made generous donations to a charity. One of the more successful evenings was The Girlfriend Factor reception, “Wine, chocolate and Shoes,” that raised substantial funding for its women's scholarship fund.

That event preceded The Fashion Runway Bar, an event that has been part of Fashion Week for six years.

The runway was packed with fashions from 17 El Paseo merchants and designers including Tommy Bahama's, White House/Black Market, She She, V&G Hip Wear, Cactus Flower Shoes, El Paseo Jewelers, Chelsea Taylor, bebe, Tink, Josie's She She Kids, Don Vincent, BbOne and Eileen Fisher.

The Sydney catwalks at Rosemount Australian Fashion Week

Designer Kylie Radford is hoping to inject new life into the brand and has enlisted the help of Australian creative guru, Mark Vassallo to style the show. “We want this to be very much in line with what we are doing, but we are trying to push the limits on the brand – show our customers a new way of looking at our clothing, and perhaps new way to style it,” said Radford.

“Mark is so highly respected in the industry. When we sent through some references, he got exactly where we were at and what we were trying to achieve.

“It’s still daywear, but we have done a lot of research into colour and fabrication for this collection,” said Radford. “You normally see very natural colour tones from Morrison – but we have played with those tones and now they are more vibrant – gorgeous terracotta, marine green and plenty of white.”

Other established WA labels locked in for solo shows include Flannel and swimwear label Kooey. Garth Cook will be presenting his wonderfully architectural collection in one of the group ready-to-wear events.

The New Generation shows generate huge publicity as the industry eagerly awaits the unearthing of fashion’s next big things. With five local designers in the mix, WA’s certain to be making a splash.

Fashion is a powerful force and nobody can manipulate it to serve their needs

In fashion, as in music, the thing that makes brand owners extremely nervous is the idea that when you do eventually hit the big time, your product is a one-hit wonder. They often wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, the nightmare always the same: that someone in the fashion press has suggested that their product has had its day. Suddenly the queues outside your shop disappear and you begin to wonder whether it was a good idea to buy that enormous stock warehouse last month.

The dilemma starts when one of your products begins to take off and everyone seems intent on cramming you into a pigeonhole of their choice and locking you in it forever. I say dilemma because, as sales begin to take off exponentially, it creates opportunities that you had never dreamt of, and it is nearly impossible to turn them away. Can you imagine the owner of Ugg saying that he is worried about being pigeonholed and is therefore stopping production of all sheepskin products in order to concentrate on sexy stilettos? You can't do it. So instead you have to ride the wave and try to introduce more and more new and different products as quickly as you can.

Why did it happen? He is a great designer who had a lovely brand which was worn by all of the great celebrities and he hung out with Elton and David. It happened because he became so strongly associated with one single product that when it became unfashionable, the business crumbled.

Crocs is a classic example, swinging from a profit of $168m in 2007 to a loss of $183m a year later. It seems to have now stabilised by introducing new, and somewhat successful, products into the mix.

Staying on the shoe theme, our own Dr Martens rides the peaks and troughs of fashion like a rollercoaster. One minute its products are all the rage, next they are not, but the company still relies on the sole it invented at the start of its life and the brand is so strong that it can make it through the hard times, safe in the knowledge that in the not-too-distant future, a new generation of hipsters will "discover" this down-to-earth workwear brand.

What is the point of all of this? Fashion is a powerful force and nobody can manipulate it to serve their needs, unless you are Coco Chanel. What you can do, however, is create season after season of clever, well-designed product, that is relevant for your brand but shows the breadth of your capabilities, and then just keep plugging away.

Metal Gear Solid Edition

Earlier this week, Konami announced a new clothing line based on the Metal Gear Solid series. When the publisher was kind enough to send us a sample of this upcoming line, we decided to show it off in the only way we know how: by playing dress-up with GI editor and fashion aficionado Tim Turi.

Here's a good look at the front of the jacket that Konami sent us, a replica of the one worn by Big Boss in Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker. Note that Tim's eyes are not showing in any of these pictures. This could be a fashion trade secret, or it could be because he has something to hide. Such as being stoned.

I think GI executive editor Andrew Reiner said it best when he said, "Tim looks kind of like a fisherman in that."

Here Tim is trying to emulate Snake kneeling down to have a codec conversation by putting his finger to his ear. He failed to take into account that his hood gets in the way of seeing that and kind of ruins the effect. Models can be so silly sometimes!

In this picture, Tim attempts to be clever by hiding in a box like the video game protagonist that he's dressing up as. Unfortunately, in doing so, he reveals the reason why he'll never get a job in the real fashion industry: He's a fatty. (Note: I'm actually approximately 300 pounds heavier than Tim, so it's okay for me to make that dumb joke.)

Tim upgrades to a bigger box. Getting closer, buddy! I'm secretly hoping he's reading this and develops an eating complex of some sort. I'm trying to help him.

The sleeve of the jacket contains nice, sturdy-looking patches depicting the logo and symbol for Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker, just in case you forget the game that you loved enough to buy clothing based on it or want to share it with strangers.

Here are some of the biggest fashion events

Here are some of the biggest fashion events and releases coming up over the next few weeks.

50th Saloni
April 12-17
Milan, Italy

Fashion brands including Hermès, Frankie Morello, and Banana Republic, will launch home collections at the world's biggest interior design fair. The event is open to the general public on April 17.
http://www.cosmit.it/
Facebook Map

Burberry goes Beijing
April 13
Beijing, China & International

The brand is readying a fashion-meets-technology extravaganza that will be broadcast live all around the world: following its Beijing store opening at the Sparkle Roll Plaza, Burberry will stage a show at the Beijing Television Center that will feature Brit rockers Keane, top models, and digital imagery including "life-like" holograms.

http://www.burberry.com/

Opening Ceremony launches at Lane Crawford
April 14
Hong Kong

The famous New York-based concept store sets up shop at the Hong Kong shopping destination with US-themed concepts that involve designs by Alexander Wang, Band of Outsiders, Pamela Love, Suno, Rodarte, and Chloé Sevigny. The pop-up will stay open for a month before continuing on to Beijing.

http://www.openingceremony.us/ / http://www.lanecrawford.com/

H&M Fashion Against Aids collection release
April 26
International

The Swedish retailer's yearly Fashion Against Age range is unisex this year and includes spring basics as well as trendy accessories. All designs will be available in H&M's Divided department and online, with 25 percent of sales donated to Designers Against Aids and various other international HIV/AIDS prevention projects.

http://www.hm.com/

be overly audacious in my shopping habits

"What do you think of dungarees?" I ask my friend Lucy – we are both in the throes of last month's Paris collections and it's a loaded question, obviously. And, no, they're not denim. I might, on occasion, be overly audacious in my shopping habits, but I'm not insane.

Back in London two days later and they arrive. They're cut in fine black cotton. And they are big. They are very big. It's safe to say that I could probably fit my entire family in them, perhaps with sofa, which gives new meaning to the concept of one-step dressing. Speaking of family, my son (aged 11 and quick to judge where my wardrobe is concerned), is in stitches.

"What are those?" he shrieks. Interestingly, even at such an early age, Western men seem to think that anything that doesn't cling to the body doesn't really fit. For his part, my other half has always looked upon my love affair with the Japanese design aesthetic with a certain degree of scepticism, inevitably opining, with none of the wisdom of Confucius, "But isn't that too big?".

What other way to wear dungarees is there but oversized, though? Unless, that is, you happen to be Kiki Dee. To my mind, they are a less prissy and more dignified alternative to a sundress. I like the idea of pulling something on over a vest and a pair of sandals without feeling that I'm fit for nowhere but the beach. If my dungarees were purple, people might call me Tinky Winky (not good) and if they were indigo and I wore them with a hoodie, say, I might be more Salt-n-Pepa circa 1990 (a fine fashion reference if ever there was one).

As it stands, I think the look is more late-Eighties workwear/utility in flavour – think the aforementioned Yohji but also Katharine Hamnett, Helmut Lang, Martin Margiela... And I like that.

A great way to reconnect with old friends and meet some new ones

Every woman needs some time with their girls doing what girls do best, shopping, getting pampered, and sipping fun cocktails! In tonight's Style File, 7's Belkys Nerey takes us on a girl's getaway right here in Miami!

You don't have to jump on a plane to escape with your gal pals. The Loews Hotel in South Beach is inviting all the girls over for a 'girlfriends getaway.'

Sarah Murov, PR, Loews Miami Beach: "A weekend with your best friends of sunning, sipping, socializing."

Need we say more? Women from South Florida and all over the country will bunk at the hotel the last weekend of April for three days of girl time.

The weekend is kicked off with a happy hour on Friday night, and then the fun really starts. You can hang out with your girls by the pool or join in all the cool activities planned.

Sarah: "Spa services, beauty, you name it we have it."

Like complimentary hair, nails and makeup sessions poolside, and 'Marie Claire' magazine editors will be there to talk fashion trends.

There will also be pop-up boutiques where girls can shop hot brands like "Citrine By The Stones."

Michelle Stone, Citrine By The Stones: "We have a very Boho chic feeling for our collection. We have tassels, semi precious stones, we have chains, there's also a lot of flowers that's more for our evening fun wear."

Or get funky and make your own shoes.

Michelle Stone: "Havianas are launching a new create-your-own flip flop."

For those who like to spice up the kitchen, Miami's top chef Michelle Bernstein will offer cooking demos.

Michelle Bernstein, Chef: "I'm definitely going to be doing what I like to consider girly food, a little more femme food. Teaching these women about dishes and techniques that they haven't seen or experienced yet."

She'll be doing the cooking and the girls will be doing the eating.

Michelle Bernstein: "I just want them to be relaxed and have fun, and if they happen to learn something, awesome."

Best part, this weekend away won't break the bank.

Sarah: "It's $499 a person for the weekend and that does include all the services, breakfast, the happy hours, and all the perks for the weekend. So, it's a great deal."

A great way to reconnect with old friends and meet some new ones.

Girls are coming from all over the country, but the Loews have a room block, so there will be plenty of rooms available for all of us Miami girls!

Your morning fashion and beauty report

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen at age 24 already have four fashion labels -- The Row, Elizabeth and James, Textile Elizabeth and James, and Olsenboye.

Miami Heat star LeBron James is in a deal with Audemars Piguet. James will be a celebrity representative for the watchmaker, while the company will support the basketball player's charities.

Designer Roland Mouret and model Claudia Schiffer will be among the judges for "Fashion Fringe," the British competition that nurtures young designers who compete for a cash prize and mentoring from established pros. The pair replace John Galliano, late of Dior, who was honorary chairman last year. "Fashion Fringe" is taking applications through May 4, and three finalists will produce collections to show at London Fashion Week in September. Past prize winners include Erdem and Eun Jeong.

Alexander McQueen is releasing a limited edition skull-print scarf to coincide with the opening of the "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty" exhibition at the Met in NYC. The scarves will sell for $495 and be in the brand's stores in May.

New L.A. label Sol Angeles celebrated its launch this week with a party Tuesday night attended by Kardashian queen mum Kris Jenner. The line's soft tees will be on sale at Fred Segal.

Cynthia Rowley is making over her menswear line, and renaming it too. Mr. Powers is named for her husband, gallerist Bill Powers.

Anne's outer beauty is matched by inner beaut

There's a new jet-setting socialite in town who's bringing her signature style and love of anything and everything fabulous with her.  An international fashion icon, Anne steals the spotlight as the glamorous relative of the Count of Paris, who traces his lineage back to the French Monarchy. Anne, perfectly coiffed and beautifully dressed, frequently graces the pages of top fashion magazines and society pages. Anne worked as a fashion buyer for an influential designer label.  She also has a background in investment banking where she mixed and mingled with the power elite.  These high-profile experiences have influenced Anne's already impeccable taste.

Anne has tackled London and is taking the New York fashion world by storm. Anne prides herself on her ability to look put-together at every occasion and is featured on international best-dressed lists.  Her love of beauty trends is reflected in her ever-changing lip color, and there is always a Dior or Chanel tube in her purse.  Anne is throwing a lavish party this spring, sure to make society headlines around the world. The dazzling array of stars combined with the New York power elite is sure to make this event the most highly anticipated ticket in town.

Anne's outer beauty is matched by inner beauty as she raises money for several charitable causes near and dear to her heart.  Anne's royal lineage and high-profile status lends international cachet to the world's leading fashion brands.  As a special consultant to fashion magazines and a muse to many top designers, Anne provides the creative direction that sets the trends for seasons to come.  Fashion insiders predict that Anne Yap is the royal one-to-watch on the international fashion scene.

a parade featuring the festival designer award finalists

The L'Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival is all about glamour, but unlike most red- carpet fashion events, this one isn't just for the style police.

The festival, now in its 15th year, may be for the people, but it's still taken seriously. The celebrities are in attendance, wearing their sponsored frocks and smiling for the cameras, and the shows are extremely polished.

The only real difference between something like this festival and the preview shows of most major fashion weeks is that what you see at the festival is what has just been delivered to stores. If you see something you like, you can go out and buy it.

The only exceptions at last week's extravaganza were the opening event, Fashion Full Stop, and a parade featuring the festival designer award finalists.

This year, the prize went to new menswear label Song for the Mute, whose mostly black, mostly wool collection beat off competition from well-known Australian designers Arnsdorf, Bassike and Ellery.

Fashion Full Stop, which celebrated decades of Australian fashion and music, was slick, fast, colourful and noisy. Former Australian Idol winner Guy Sebastian and Mark Seymour (of 80s rock band Hunters & Collectors) were among performers who shared the stage with models in the infamous mini dress worn by Jean Shrimpton to the 1965 Melbourne Cup, whimsical designs by Akira Isogawa, Michelle Jank and Willow, and evening gowns by red- carpet designers Alex Perry and Toni Maticevski.

Perry's own show, a glitzy affair showcasing his trademark glamour gowns, was an exclusive preview to his spring-summer collection, Cuban Princess.

Menswear label Jack London also held its first stand-alone show, presenting its winter collection, Urban Warriors and Dandy Lions, at the Prahran Town Hall. Jack London designer Karl Bartl was influenced by the "hard Mods and punk style of the Skins/Lemonheads" and stayed true to the label's signature classic tailoring with a rock 'n' roll edge.

Spontaneous applause erupted when a model walked out wearing a sequinned camo blazer and leading a bulldog named Chops.

Sequins aside, it was mostly an incredibly saleable collection, with camel trench coats, straight pants that sat above the ankle, skinny ties and khaki duffle coats.

Anna Wintour's fascination with the young starlet

The term fashion faux pas seems to be completely unknown to "Gossip Girl" star Blake Lively. Whether she's sitting front row at a runway show, splashed across the cover of a magazine or making a red carpet appearance, Lively never ceases to impress the most discerning fashion palettes. This will be Lively's hat trick edition of Frugal Fashion, proving the 23-year-old has a serious knack for dolling up on the red carpet and that maybe there is a little something to Anna Wintour's fascination with the young starlet.

Lively stars in the latest DC Comic-turned-film venture "The Green Lantern," out June 17, as the feisty siren Carol Ferris opposite Ryan Reynolds. When she hit the red carpet for CinemaCon in Las Vegas -- the annual gathering of cinema owners and operators (formerly called ShoWest) -- was she attempting to hide her future as the film's star sapphire villain under her all-white, angelic disguise? Or did Lively's wardrobe choice have a little something to do with the weather? The comic fan in me votes for the first option, but feel free to decide for yourself.

Lively looked ready for summer in an all-white lace uber-mini and sheer top ensemble by Dolce & Gabbana, white blazer with black trim and cream colored suede booties with cleavage.

Equine portrait set to become one of the most expensive British paintings ever sold

In British master George Stubbs's 1765 painting of the legendary English thoroughbred Gimcrack, the artist shows the horse several lengths ahead of its competitors. Now the work is expected to gallop into the record books to become one of the most expensive British paintings ever sold.

"He became something of a favourite, winning 28 out of 36 races which he was entered for, which was a remarkable feat."

The sale will make the work one of the most expensive Old Masters ever sold at auction. The current record for an Old Master is held by Flemish artist Sir Peter Paul Rubens, whose The Massacre of the Innocents sold for £50m in July 2002. If the Stubbs raises more than £20m it will make it the sixth most expensive Old Master ever sold, above Rembrandt's Portrait of a Lady Aged 62, which sold at Christie's for £20m in 2000.

"It is of great importance on many levels," said Mr Stainton. "The use of space is daring and unprecedented in British art at the time. It was a wonderfully wide panorama of the scene, and was unusual in that the central focus is shifted to the extreme left of the composition. In both pictorial and compositional senses it is groundbreaking."

Stubbs spent his early career as a portrait painter in his native Liverpool and York, before finding fame as a painter of horses. In 1754 the artist spent 18 months in a Lincolnshire farmhouse, where he dissected and drew horses. In 1766, he published a scientific study The Anatomy of a Horse, which added to Stubbs's reputation as the greatest artist-scientist since Leonardo da Vinci.

Retail sales continue to generally come in ahead of our expectations

We continue to see signs that the U.S. economy is on the mend, but visibility beyond the summer months appears severely constrained.

Consumer cyclical firms are still planning for top-line gains but are bracing for margin pressure, particularly in the second half of the year.

Most luxury goods stocks are still expensive, even after the recent pullback, but some warrant a closer look.

We continue to see signs that the U.S. economy is slowly improving, and while our expectation for a modest recovery among consumer cyclical firms in 2011 remains intact, the group is by no means out of the woods.

On the positive side, retail sales continue to generally come in ahead of our expectations, and traffic growth has been impressive. Costs have remained in check, driving record corporate profits in some cases. The unemployment picture has also cleared up a bit, and many expect job prospects to become more favorable in the coming year.

However, we remain balanced in our view and note that the impact of holiday shifts, year-ago government stimulus, and mounting input cost pressures could lead to a couple of choppy quarters and, ultimately, margin compression as the year unfolds. As such, we still project mid-single-digit top-line growth for much of the sector, but we see early signs of incremental slowing in the second half of the year.

more expensive boutiques in the booming top end of the retail market

Burberry's new 820sq m flagship quietly opened for business on the weekend and already trade has been brisk. One Burberry sales assistant who asked not to be named said it was "like Christmas in here on the weekend".

The new store at 343 George Street is three times the size of the brand's previous store and stocks the complete Burberry range. Prices range from $195 for a men's tie to $6795 for a leather biker jacket. The classic women's trench, for which the brand is best known, costs $1875 and a child's quilted jacket is a snip at $250.

The Burberry boutique is part of a boom in luxury store openings in Sydney this year that has included the first Bottega Veneta store in Australia in the Westfield Sydney development, which also houses new stores by Diane von Furstenberg, Hugo Boss, TAG Heuer and Salvatore Ferragamo.

In July, Prada will open a flagship store at the entrance to the Westfield complex, which will be flanked by Prada's sister brand Miu Miu.

Gucci will move into a two-level store on Castlereagh Street later this year, as will Ermenegildo Zegna.

The luxury store openings are a sign of growing confidence in the top end of the retail market.

"Our new Sydney store is the most ambitious and expensive boutique we have ever opened," TAG Heuer chief executive Jean-Christophe Babin said.

"After just two months of operation, it was already our No 1 store in the world."

Not to be outdone, Louis Vuitton will relocate to George Street in a store that will have 1200sq m of selling space from November.

The Louis Vuitton store on Castlereagh Street will then be refurbished and re-emerge as a Christian Dior boutique.

Hermes is expanding its store on Elizabeth Street with an extra 85sq m and Chanel will overhaul its Castlereagh Street store later this year.

The luxury store openings are further evidence of significant market segmentation in the retail sector. While the middle and lower ends of the market have been hit by rising fuel prices and interest rates and a mood of uncertainty, the top end is booming.

In contrast to retailers such as the Colorado Group in Australia, which was placed in voluntary administration last week, American Apparel in the US, which is on the brink of bankruptcy, and Swedish retailer H&M, which reported a 30 per cent drop in profits for the first quarter, luxury is booming.

As a staff photographer at the legendary Picture

Ingrid Bergman's pose suggests elegant decorum and shows little evidence of the furore which had recently enveloped her failed marriage to the Italian film director Roberto Rossellini. This photograph of the actress sitting in period costume was taken in 1956 on the set of Jean Renoir's Elena Et Les Hommes.

This exemplary snapshot in time is one of many taken by 97-year-old renowned British photojournalist Thurston Hopkins, a selection of which will be exhibited at the Getty Images Gallery in London from 15 April. The show draws on pictures developed from Mr Hopkins's personal negatives, including rare images of Joan Crawford and Alfred Hitchcock.

"As a staff photographer at the legendary Picture Post magazine, Mr Hopkins had the rare opportunity to witness first hand different countries and communities," said the gallery's director Louise Garczewska. The photographer worked at Picture Post until its demise in 1957. He joined the magazine after working in the RAF's photographic unit.

Austrian actress Julia Arnall is also shown leaning against a shop window smoking a cigarette and Diana Dors is pictured scantily dressed on location.

The music still resonates today

Neasden, north London. 1971. The man who would become the first musical superstar to emerge from the developing world is cooped up in a freezing house in one of the capital's greyest and least fashionable suburbs. He has no money, no passport and no work permit. This was Bob Marley at 26, standing on the verge of greatness. His drab, monochrome surroundings belied the fact that he would soon be painting the planet red, gold and green, electrifying audiences on all continents with an original sound that carried a lyrical message of rare power. But less than a decade after Marley left that house in Neasden to make the journey to the Island Records office in Basing Street where he would secure a career-defining deal for the Wailers – the band he formed with childhood friends Bunny Livingston and Peter Tosh – he would be dead.

It is 30 years since we lost Bob Marley. You can't believe it? Just a moment's consideration of music culture now should be enough to tell you how long he has been gone. The flame that, for most of his international audience, began with the albums Catch A Fire and Burnin', shining a new light on injustices and inequalities that had previously been widely ignored, blazed intensely but only briefly. Now it feels like the candle lit in his memory is all but extinguished.

It's not just that the current charts are almost bereft of serious thought or spiritual feeling. Pop music flourished when Marley was alive – when he was in that house in Neasden the British No 1 was "Ernie", a ditty about a milkman by Benny Hill (and still an all-time favourite track of the current Prime Minister). The sad thing is that, in an era when the tourist stalls have replaced the once ubiquitous T-shirts of Bob or John Lennon with football tops branded with Rooney or Ronaldo, there's almost no one singing about anything of importance. When aspiring artists are encouraged by reality television shows merely to replicate the hits of the past, it's tough being a singer-songwriter, let alone one that wants to change the world.

Marley encouraged musicians to think differently. He was an inspiration to British punk bands in the late 1970s and acknowledged their spirit in his own song "Honkey Reggae Party". His success encouraged the explosion of World Music in the 1980s with South Africa's Lucky Dube and Ivory Coast's Alpha Blondy among the artists who sought to emulate his songs of protest.

His influence extended well beyond the parameters of music. The message in songs such as "Get Up, Stand Up", "So Much Trouble in the World" and "War" would surely resonate with demonstrators in Cairo's Tahrir Square and Libyan rebels in Benghazi. "Bob Marley lives on as an icon – not just in the world of music, but in the social sphere, at the political grassroots, and in the field of human rights," noted the British photographer Dennis Morris, a friend of the musician. Since Morris wrote those words, in 1998, Marley's influence seems to have waned, especially in career-conscious 21st-century Britain.

"The music still resonates today, the people in Libya and Tunisia could be singing the Marley tunes," says Tony Sewell, a former lecturer at Leeds University who is director of Generating Genius, a British and Jamaican charity for boys' education. "You would have to look at the Beatles to see that kind of international currency. It's remarkable that the music has stayed so fresh."

The erratic behaviour of Radio 2 presenter Ken Bruce today

Listeners were left baffled by the erratic behaviour of Radio 2 presenter Ken Bruce today - until it emerged the show was being hosted by comedian Rob Brydon.

Brydon managed to get through almost the entire programme before eventually dropping hints that it was an April 1 wind-up.

Listeners took to message boards wondering whether Bruce was drunk.

Brydon had still not owned up by the end of the show when he handed over to the next presenter Jeremy Vine, who he called Tim - the name of Vine's comedian brother.

Some listeners were fooled by the switch. One tweeted: "Ken Bruce has been really annoying this morning totally unlike him but I for one am not impressed. There, I've said it now, rant over."

Others saw through the gag and praised Brydon's appearance.

And the funnyman himself dropped a hint during the show, when he posted a message on Twitter which said: "Loving Ken Bruce on Radio 2 this morning..."

Brydon repeatedly burst into incomprehensible rambles and cracked ribald jokes, far removed from Bruce's usual patter.

And at one stage he chatted to afternoon presenter Vine and grumbled he was "boring".

The programme also included a spoof interview in which Brydon interviewed Sir Terry Wogan - another impostor who turned out to be Peter Serafinowicz.

The real Bruce said after the show: "It's been wonderful to be able to listen to the radio - tuning into someone entertaining in the morning for a change. I'm offering him a contract to share the honours on a regular basis."

And Brydon said: "They were big shoes to fill but I loved the challenge of being Ken for the whole show. I'd seen Being John Malkovich and wanted to take it to the next level. Happy April 1, everyone."

Joel is by no means the first popular musician to cancel an eagerly awaited book

He sang about the delights of being able to "forget about life for a while", and that's exactly what Billy Joel has decided to do after suddenly pulling the plug on a revelatory autobiography which was already written, was in the final stages of being edited, and had been scheduled to hit the world's bookstores in the middle of June.

In a statement released by HarperCollins, his cuckolded publisher, the 61-year-old singer said he'd suddenly had second thoughts about raking over the gory details of his career. All manuscripts of The Book of Joel, a handful of which are already rumoured to be in the hands of reviewers, will now have to be retrieved and pulped.

"It took working on writing a book to make me realise that I'm not all that interested in talking about the past, and that the best expression of my life and its ups and downs has been and remains my music," Joel said. The seven-figure advance he was given after signing his original $3m book deal three years ago is now expected to be repaid.

Joel's decision represents a huge blow for HarperCollins, which had already revealed the cover art for the book and had been busy promising journalists that it would provide an "emotional ride" which would "contain details he has never revealed before". The firm had been counting on it making a splash on a par with that of Keith Richards, whose autobiography has spent recent months at the top of the hardback best-seller lists.

The singer's romantic life has included three failed marriages. His first was to Elizabeth Weber Small, who was married to Joel's (then) bandmate Jon when their relationship began. A second, in the 1980s, was to supermodel Christie Brinkley, the subject of "Uptown Girl". His third ex-wife, Katie Lee, is a television presenter 30 years his junior. Other notches on his bedpost include Elle Macpherson, whom he dated in the 1980s and who inspired "And So It Goes". Joel has also experienced lifelong struggles with depression, substance abuse and alcoholism, which led him to attempt suicide in the early 1970s.

Joel's publicist, Claire Mercuri, would not elaborate on the reasons for his withdrawal from the project, saying only that, "he feels that his music really speaks about his life better than anything else".

Joel is by no means the first popular musician to cancel an eagerly awaited book. Mick Jagger backed out of a deal in the early 1980s, saying he couldn't remember anything interesting. More recently, Sean "Diddy" Combs didn't bother to complete a memoir that he was supposed to write for Random House and ended up being sued.

From Diana's royal puffball to Meg Matthews' Walkers

In 1981, as Britain was in the midst of a biting recession, Lady Diana Spencer married Prince Charles, while the world watched.

Elizabeth Emanuel, designer

"Until Diana's dress, wedding gowns had been uniformly the same: white, ankle-length, A-line, long-sleeved. We brought the wedding dress into high fashion. Diana was introduced to us by Vogue; she didn't yet have her own sense of style, but she loved the very theatrical, fairy-tale dresses we made. When she asked us to make her wedding dress, it was life-changing. She told us to be secretive, but there were no instructions from Buckingham Palace, no protocol.

There was so much speculation in the press after she wore a gown of ours to an official dinner, the Palace was forced to make an announcement through Reuters. The whole world went mad. There were photographers at the studio constantly and we had to take on security. We left false trails for the tabloids in the rubbish bins and we locked the dress in a trunk every night. We even made a spare dress in case our real design was leaked.

On the day itself we realised this wasn't just a wedding dress, it was a moment in history. We dressed her at Clarence House, with the bridesmaids and the Queen Mother. Diana was excited but very calm. There was a moment, waiting for the coach, when we all stood in total silence for what seemed like an age. Then she stepped into the carriage and the crowds went mad."

Nicky Haslam, interior designer and writer

"Princess Diana's wedding was extraordinary because it was a royal wedding. One thinks of watching the coronation on newsreels, there's this incredible formality to it, which doesn't exist now. It was certainly very traditional. There was a ball afterwards, given by the Queen, but Prince Charles and Princess Diana weren't there. In those days, the bride and groom left after their reception and went on honeymoon. To give a dance the night of your wedding was seen as incredibly bad form. The last thing you wanted was the bride getting reeling drunk so she couldn't consummate her marriage."

Bruce Oldfield, designer

"The Eighties was a showy decade. I made a dress for an Australian bride in 1984. We had three appointments and each time she said the sketches weren't quite right, until she finally said, 'You've missed the point. We want our guests to know we've spent an absolute bloody fortune and that this is Australia's royal wedding!'.

Even three or four years after Diana's fairy-princess dress, wedding gowns were changing to suit the times. This Australian bride wanted the full skirt, but also to be able to detach parts of the dress to reveal her very good figure; there were moves afoot to sex up wedding dresses."