EVENTS
• Check out a free live concert by the Vivian Girls when Kate Spade's Florence Broadhurst tour bus makes its first stop in NYC this weekend. The pop-up shop on wheels will feature exclusive "tour" items, as well as pieces from the upcoming spring collection. Gansevoort Plaza, at Hudson St.; 3-9 (concert at 7:45).

SALES
ONGOING
• Get up to 75 percent off menswear at Brunello Cucinelli. Sweaters are $450 (originally $1,995), casual button-downs are $100 (originally $435), and casual pants are $195 (originally $675) with free alterations. 683 Madison Ave. (212-813-0900); M-Sa (10-7:30), Su (11-6), through 2/12.

• Clothes, shoes, and accessories by designers like Martin Margiela, Rick Owens, Junya Watanabe, and more are up to 85 percent off at the IF semi-annual basement sale. The Dries van Noten flower beaded dress is $818 (originally $2,725), the men's Martin Margiela single-breasted wool-jersey knit suit is $702 (originally $2,340), and Johnny Farah leather bags are $250 (originally $890). Men's and women's shoes are 70 percent off. 94 Grand St., nr. Greene St. (212-334-4964); W–Su (11–7), through 2/12.

• All clothing is 25 percent off and shoes for men, women, and kids are up to 40 percent off at Vans DQM General. 93 Grand St., nr. Greene St. (212-226-7776), through 2/12.

• Clothing and accessories from Joie, Three Dots, Diane Von Furstenberg, Woo, Portolano, and more are up to 80 percent off at Bit+Piece, with prices starting at $19.99. 246 Mott St., at Prince St. (212-343-2268); M-W (noon-8), Th-Sa (11-8), Su (11-7), through 2/13.

• All Mexican tableware from Gorky Gonzalez, Majolica, and Talavera, including tapas plates, platters, and mugs, is 30 percent off at La Sirena. 27 E. 3rd St., nr. Second Ave. (212-780-9113); daily, 12-7, through 2/13.

• Fall and winter clothes, shoes, and accessories are 50 percent off at Maryam Nassir Zadeh. Choose from brands including Hussein Chalayan, Etoile Isabel Marant, and Dieppa Restrepo. 123 Norfolk St., at Rivington St. (212-673-6405); daily, noon-8; through 2/16.

• Clothes and accessories from Helmut Lang, Jimmy Choo, Phillip Lim, DVF, and more are up to 90 percent off at Scoop's closet clean-out sale. 430 W. 14th St., nr. Washington St. (212-691-1926); M–W (10–7), Th–S (11–8), Su (11–6), through 2/20.

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Filed Under: fashion calendar ,shopping ,sales ,events

For nearly two decades, French stylist Marie-Amélie Sauvé has consistently blown minds with her directional work with Nicolas Ghesquière at Balenciaga. Naturally, we're thrilled to be showcasing her daily outfits throughout fall 2012 New York Fashion Week. Sauvé starts her week by mixing her favorite fitted Balenciaga coat with the label's spring 2012 knee-high zipper boots and two-tone clutch. Which shows is she most looking forward to this week? Alexander Wang, as "he's very fresh and cool; and doesn't try too hard," and Marc Jacobs.

On Marie-Amélie: Balenciaga coat, Balenciaga spring 2012 boots, Balenciaga spring 2012 bag, Balenciaga sweater, wool skirt from Joseph, Balenciaga spring 2011 watch, vintage diamond bracelet, and her family's ring.
About the look: "[My look] is very simple. I wear this coat almost every day; it's very easy to wear and it's good because it's really fitted. It's like a bit of a school uniform for me. I like to wear a lot of black and quite fitted clothes, usually."

Read more posts by James Lim

Filed Under: style diaries ,marie-amelie sauve ,balenciaga ,fashion shows ,new york fashion week fall 2012 ,nicolas ghesquiere

The Cut and New York Magazine are psyched to announce that we’ve teamed up with Made Fashion Week as its official media partner for the fall 2012 season. We’ll be bringing you lots of coverage from Made’s 50 shows, presentations, and events at Milk Studios in the meatpacking district (with a few stops along the way at the Standard Hotel), including live runway feeds, a video Fashion Confession Booth, street-style trend roundups, designer interviews, and candid party coverage. The lineup includes Peter Som, Cushnie et Ochs, Erin Featherston, Suno, Ohne Titel, Zero + Maria Cornejo, Jeremy Scott, and more. PLUS — the Wu-Tang Clan and Lissy Trullie are kicking things off tonight — holla!, swag!, etc.

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Filed Under: made fashion week

CNN's Alina Cho tweeted last night, "HEARING: @karliekloss cancelled all catwalk appearances in NY for a big opportunity ... " Which can only mean a REALLY major European exclusive, if it's true. 

Read more posts by Charlotte Cowles

Filed Under: alina cho ,karlie kloss ,model tracker ,rumor alert

The only show at Fashion Week that feels like a cruise is the Heart Truth Red Dress show. That is, unless Alexander Wang is planning something terribly ironic for his show on Saturday, like making his models walk the runway next to a full buffet. But last night at Heart Truth, which boasts celebrity models wearing red dresses to raise awareness about heart disease in women, the entertainment is campy, the people on the runway bear flesh and wrinkles, and the audience happily dresses in theme (red) and dances in their seats. No one goes to this show to see if they're the only one with the new Celine bag and if they've been dieting longer than everyone else. No, this one is fun.

The runway in Hammerstein Ballroom has a screen at the end of it, which tells us who all the celebrimodels are and who designed their red dresses. But before the show starts, we get a little animated CGI vignette of the Statue of Liberty set to a seat-shaking remix of every feel-good song any woman ever liked (Alicia Keys, Adele, Rihanna, Adele again). Once Lady Liberty's robes turns red, Fantasia-style, and the Glee-sounding song ends, the show begins!

And the committee who put this thing together deserves credit for accruing a stellar cast, that included only two reality stars! La La Anthony, who the program tells me was on Vh1's La La's Full Court Life, and Patti Stanger, who, to be fair, had a legitimate matchmaking business before she became one of Bravo's premiere attractions. (As one girl in the audience exclaimed, "Maybe Patti can find me a Valentine's date!") So there's practicality in Patti's celebrity, unlike many a Kardashian.

Patti was actually one of the best models of the night, looking stunning in a dress by Marc Bouwer. Yet she was not one of the most popular, judging by the level of applause and shrieking awarded to each celebrimodel's runway entrance. Those were Christie Brinkley, who got so excited when she came out that she tripped on her Pamella Roland chiffon, which only made everyone like her more; Giselle Bondet, the Univision host, wore Oscar de la Renta and danced her way down the runway to that LMFAO song with the best lyric ever ("I work out"); Linda Evans, who prompted one man to exclaim, "Wow, how old is she?!"; Chaka Kahn, who wore a red leopard-print number by Chris March and walked to, well, what else?; and Gloria Estefan, who made up for the height her heels couldn't give her by wearing her hair in the shape of a cone-head. An honorable mention goes to Rose McGowan, who had a slit up the front of her dress so high that when she rearranged it so as not to trip, the audience saw that even her panties were red, in keeping with the night's theme.

When it was all over, the show left you with this wonderful feeling that it was okay to go eat some calories, get drunk, and dance in an embarrassing fashion. And that's saying a lot because most fashion shows don't leave you with any feelings at all.

Read more posts by Amy Odell

Filed Under: chaka khan ,divas ,celebrimodels ,new york fashion week ,fall 2012 ,fashion shows ,linda evans ,gloria estefan ,rose mcgowan

The vice-president of men’s design for Club Monaco, Aaron Levine, is a jovial, thickly bearded, and charmingly burly man. He’s hardly the type many would associate with fashion obsession, but he does have something aside from that in common with her reality eminence Rachel Zoe: He speaks his own language. “Those are nasty,” he declares sporadically in the early fall, when he sees an item in Club Monaco’s men’s department that he likes.

This means he likes them. Call it his version of Zoe’s signature, “I die.”

Despite these phrases not meaning much, they’ve become the basis of fashion conversation among the masses. It’s no longer enough to say you simply like a certain sweater, or that you find a cocktail dress flattering. Such pedestrian words have fallen out of fashion in favor of exaggerated language that, while expressing enthusiasm for clothes, doesn’t give us any insight into why they’re so wonderful. We have come to expect the world’s fashion authorities to “die” or “stop breathing” when they find a pair of shoes that’s especially “fierce” or “tranny,” or perhaps when they find a model “werking” a particularly “mayjor” “smize” or “lewk.” And we’re happy with this, even though precious few of the world’s most famous fashion experts truly make a habit of articulating why certain clothes can be so great.

A very different kind of confusing language also appears in outlets that are far from reality television. Fashion reviews in papers like the New York Times or Women’s Wear Daily are peppered with beautiful phrases that leave readers with only vague understandings of why clothes are good or bad — and we're in for a huge new slew of those now that the shows are starting anew tomorrow. In September, Suzy Menkes told us Raf Simons’s Jil Sander collection "caught the refined, haute spirit in a pure, but sensual, and modern way,”  while WWD wrote that the Prada collection “took a sweet turn, but with an overt schoolgirl vibe challenging for adults.” Yet, the paper added, the “lineup played as all chic, with endless gloriously adult wardrobe options.” Huh?

But there are people to turn to when it all becomes too much of a headache. Naturally, these include Stanford Linguistics professor Penny Eckert, who describes herself as “not a consumer of fashion discourse.” She noted one key discrepancy between the two schools of fashion conversation. One offers analysis (the papers) and one skips it entirely (many reality shows).  “You could always look at it as saying well [Rachel Zoe] doesn’t have an analysis,” she explains. “Another is, well, when you talk to people, when you pre-suppose common ground. It’s one way of creating connections and creating community, so she’s creating a connection with the reader.” In reading Menkes’s Sander review, she said, “As an outsider I say this probably means something but I don’t know what?” I said a lot of us very regular consumers of fashion discourse don’t, either. “There’s an interesting thing, too, that if you grab hold of abstractions, that puts you in an authoritative position,” she replied.

Such abstract language reminded her of the work of anthropologist James Ferguson, who studies urban life in the Copperbelt in Africa, and “commented that there are people in urban settings who would make stylistic moves that were meaningless. You take something” — an outfit, let’s say — “and tweak it in some way — you add something, you subtract something, so people can interpret it. And sometimes there are these uninterpretable moves that that signal that a person is part of this cosmopolitan, urban world, and that people won’t be able to interpret what the stylistic moves are. So it’s pure mystification.”

So ultimately, the language mirrors the runways: Not all of this has to make sense to work (werk?), or, frankly, make its creator some money. So while it makes more sense to describe clothes as pretty or flattering or well-made, people talking about fashion from on-high can only say that stuff so many times before the bore themselves — and all of us — into not paying attention. 

Now, do enjoy our handy approval-matrix-style guide of the quippy-iest and thinky-iest fashion speak from the past runway and television seasons.

Read more posts by Amy Odell

Filed Under: is fashion week upon us already?

• Abercrombie & Fitch and Victoria's Secret are ranked best in the public’s perception of shopping experience, store reputation, merchandise assortment, and value, according to a new study. [WWD]

• Victoria's Secret Model Search winner Kylie Bisutti has quit lingerie modeling because of her Christian values. "My body should only be for my husband and it's just a sacred thing," she tells Fox411. [HuffPo]

• Vs. magazine's latest covers feature Rosie-Huntington Whiteley, Julianne Moore, Helena Christensen, Erin Wasson, Elizabeth Olsen, and Shailene Woodley. [Fashion Gone Rogue]

• Jewelry label Erickson Beamon is starting a clothing line. [NYT]

• Scarlett Johansson won’t attend any fashion shows. "You won't see me at any fashion shows, I prefer to be much more low key," she says. "I just remembered it was that time of the year, I'll need to stay away from Lincoln Center." [Us]

• Pieces from Marc Jacobs and Marc by Marc Jacobs will be available to preorder immediately following the shows. [WWD]

• Karlie Kloss: "Whenever I'm not working, I'm on a plane, train, or car back home to St. Louis to visit my family. I love being with my sisters. I love to drive — even if it's just to the grocery store! Plus, I get to bike, swim, and run. I'm a really active person and I like to be going all the time. I'm never sitting still. I also really love to bake!" [Teen Vogue]

• Here's a look at Duro Olowu's pop-up shop. [Vogue]

• Elettra Wiedemann’s GOODNESS restaurant returns to Fashion Week, this time inside the Museum of Art and Design's Robert restaurant. Mario Batali will be a guest chef. Yum. [Modelinia]

• People wearing Anna Wintour masks will distribute Humor Chic newsletters outside Fashion Week shows like Alexander Wang’s and Diane von Furstenberg’s. The newsletter contains drawings of fashion icons like Karl Lagerfeld, Marc Jacobs, and Tom Ford doing things like sitting on the toilet. [WWD]

• Perry Ellis has tapped Duckie Brown to create a designer collection that will hit retail next spring, and will show during September's fashion week. [WWD]

• Ralph Lauren has pulled the plug on its American Living line, exclusive to JC Penney. [NYP]

• Time Out New York profiles New York's most stylish people. [TONY]

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Filed Under: loose threads ,rosie huntington-whitely ,abercrombie & fitch ,victoria's secret ,kylie bisutti ,scarlett johansson ,erickson beamon ,karlie kloss ,marc jacobs

Isaac Mizrahi showed some designer solidarity last night, standing up for Karl Lagerfeld after recent criticism over his calling Adele "a little too fat." "Icons are people too. They're allowed to express themselves too. If that's really what he thinks, then he's allowed to say that," Mizrahi said at the QVC runway show. "I'm serious, because someone has to defend people like Karl Lagerfeld. We have to defend Karl Lagerfeld's rights!"

Read more posts by Evan Mulvihill

Filed Under: karl lagerfeld ,isaac mizrahi ,qvc ,party chat

Patti Stanger did some fantasy fashion-world matchmaking before she took to the runway at last night’s Heart Truth Red Dress Fashion Show. First up: Marc Jacobs.  “If I could put him, and oh my God, let me think for a second. Tom Ford. That’s a fit. Is Tom Ford and Marc Jacobs a fit? 'Cause they both have those muscles and ripped bodies. And they both look straight. I’d date ‘em. They’re both gorgeous. And I didn’t mean that as a generalization, and don’t you gay people get all snippy with me. I meant that as a compliment!” Patti, it turns out, has a personal connection. “Daniel, my ex, is cousins with Marc Jacobs, from Massachusetts.”

Now, try to imagine Tom Ford getting “snippy.”

Read more posts by Jenni Avins

Filed Under: party chat ,patti stanger ,marc jacobs ,tom ford ,heart truth red dress collection

Lorenzo Martone was quite the host at last night’s launch of the Melissa Shoes store in Soho, where Marc Jacobs made a cameo, and Dita von Teese and a small slew of Brazilian models elevated plastic shoes to previously unknown levels of sexiness – at least in North America. 

“Every child in Brazil knows the jelly shoes,” Martone said, noting that he grew up with the brand there, and has been consulting with them for three years here. The new Soho “gallery” — currently filled with installations by Eli Sudbrack of Assume Vivid Astro Focus — is Melissa’s first store abroad, and Martone has some advice for Americans. “They shouldn’t be afraid of plastic!” he said. “It’s a great material for sustainable, good-smelling, well-designed high-tech shoes.” Good-smelling? Martone's brown eyes widened when we requested clarification. “They smell amazing,” he said. “Like bubble gum! Try, try, try. It really brings you to your childhood.”

Indeed, a pair of Jason Wu–designed peep-toe flats smelled sort of like fruity baby-powder. “The galeria Melissa here in New York is going to be all about the five senses,” said Martone. “You’re going to explore things — not just visual like today — but things people can touch and smell.”

Read more posts by Jenni Avins

Filed Under: melissa shoes ,lorenzo martone ,party chat

Last night, Barneys confirmed rumors about their ongoing debt struggles, admitting that they'd hired law firm Kirkland & Ellis to help renegotiate a $200 million credit loan due in September. Meanwhile, credit watchdogs are calling attention to the company's rocky credit ratings: S&P rated one of their other loans — a $280 million loan due in September 2014 — a "CCC-minus," which means it's vulnerable to nonpayment.

So how did Barneys get into this mess? The retailer had been mired in debt ever since their 2007 takeover by Dubai investment group Istithmar, which bought Barneys from The Jones Group for $942 million. Istithmar still owes $660 million in outstanding loans stemming from the deal, primarily to Citigroup and Wells Fargo, all of which are due in various chunks — $200 million, $280 million, and $180 million respectively — over the next four years. 

But despite rumors about possible bankruptcy and/or restructuring, a Barneys spokesperson insists that nothing will change at the stores. Indeed, retail-wise, they're doing quite well. Following a major management turnover (some might call it "bloodbath") in late 2010, the store posted strong numbers in 2011, boasting a double digit sales growth over 2010, which was also a profitable year. (Barneys wouldn't comment, however, on sales from Gaga's Workshop, many items from which are now on deep discount on the Barneys website.) Says Barneys' spokesperson:

Barneys New York is actively engaged in discussions with the company’s small group of lenders to improve its balance sheet and further position Barneys New York for sustainable, long-term growth and success. We are focused on resolving this matter as expeditiously as possible, and it will remain business as usual at Barneys New York.

Related: Barneys’ Fall Line

Read more posts by Charlotte Cowles

Filed Under: barneys ,mark lee ,istithmar ,financial woes

The Extra host's best tip for getting ready for Fashion Week: Go for cheap. "The difference between high-end and low-end is literally fabric and fit, and fabric has come such a long way that you can get great fabric. So now we get to fit. So what I'll do is, I'll go to Target and I'll get a cute shirt, and it doesn't really fit right. So I'll take it to a tailor and for $4 or $5 they tailor it to my body and now it looks amazing, and people never know the difference," Menounos said at last night's Carlo Pazolini opening party in Soho.

Read more posts by Tina Peng

Filed Under: maria menounos ,party chat ,carlo pazolini

The CFDA released new industry guidelines late last month, including a recommendation that no models under the age of 16 be allowed to walk in New York Fashion Week shows. They listed Ford Models as one of the agencies signing the age-related pledge; however, Ford now says that's not the case. In a statement released to preempt a New York Times story on the subject, the agency says that while they don't agree with the CFDA, they "take the age and maturity of our models very seriously. We work on a case-by-case basis alongside a prospective model’s parents to make a determination as to whether they are ready to walk the runway. In most cases, the answer is no. But a select few demonstrate the know-how and maturity that are necessary to work earlier than they otherwise would." This season those youngsters include Ondria Hardin and, reportedly, Kremi Otashliyska.

Read more posts by Alex Rees

Filed Under: age limits ,models ,model tracker ,ford models ,cfda ,diane von furstenburg

It's hard to top the easy versatility of classic black and white. Inspired by the Australian wallpaper designer Florence Broadhurst (of whom Marc Jacobs and Stella McCartney are fans) these earrings pair octogonal resin baubles with fourteen-karat-gold beads. Their shape gives them an Art Deco feel, while the small gold spacers provide a light-catching contrast.

Octogonal earrings, $78 at Kate Spade or online.

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EVENTS
• Get ready for the top trends of spring at Bloomingdale’s semi-annual Mad About Fashion event. Check out presentations of the upcoming season's must-have items, then stock your closet with the latest in neons, pleated skirts, prints, accessories, and more. Bloomingdale’s, 1000 Third Ave., at 59th St. (212-705-2000) and 504 Broadway, nr. Broome St. (212-729-5900); 10–8:30.

• Check out a roster of emerging and established fashion photographers and illustrators including Veronica Ibarra, Keena Gonzalez, Ronald Cadiz, and Wesley Nault at a free pop-up art event curated by celebrity makeup artists Juliet Silva-Yee and D’angelo Thompson. Lazzoni, 154 W. 18th St., nr. Sixth Ave.; 7–10.

SALES
STARTING TOMORROW
• All Mexican serving ware from Gorky Gonzalez, Majolica, and Talavera, including tapas plates, platters, and mugs, is 30 percent off at La Sirena. 27 E. 3rd St., nr. Second Ave. (212-780-9113); daily, 12-7, through 2/13.

ENDING TOMORROW
• Womenswear is up to 50 percent off at Daryl K. 21 Bond St., nr. Lafayette St. (212-529-8790); M–S (11–7), Su (noon–6), through 2/9.

• Dresses, sweaters, and accessories by Byron Lars, Hutch, Motif 56, and more are 40 to 60 percent off at the Juniper Galaxy winter sale. 82 Bond St., nr. Atlantic Ave., Boerum Hill (718-643-6867); T-Su (noon-7), through 2/9.

ONGOING
• Clothes, shoes, and accessories by designers like Martin Margiela, Rick Owens, Junya Watanabe, and more are up to 85 percent off at the IF semi-annual basement sale. The Dries van Noten flower beaded dress is $818 (originally $2,725), the men's Martin Margiela single-breasted wool-jersey knit suit is $702 (originally $2,340), and Johnny Farah leather bags are $250 (originally $890). Men's and women's shoes are 70 percent off. 94 Grand St., nr. Greene St. (212-334-4964); W–Su (11–7).

• All clothing is 25 percent off and shoes for men, women, and kids are up to 40 percent off at Vans DQM General. 93 Grand St., nr. Greene St. (212-226-7776), through 2/12.

• Clothing and accessories from Joie, Three Dots, Diane Von Furstenberg, Woo, Portolano, and more are up to 80 percent off at Bit+Piece, with prices starting at $19.99. 246 Mott St., at Prince St. (212-343-2268); M-W (noon-8), Th-Sa (11-8), Su (11-7), through 2/13.

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Filed Under: fashion calendar ,shopping ,sales ,events

Condé Nast, which shuttered the beloved magazine in 2009, won't bring it back as a monthly thing, but rather as a newsstand-only special, publishing this spring and fall. It will not, as former editor-in-chief Deborah Needleman made abundantly clear on Twitter, involve any of the original team.

Read more posts by Noreen Malone

Filed Under: ink-stained wretches ,conde nast ,domino ,deborah needleman

Gisele's post-Super Bowl outburst implying that Tom Brady's teammates hadn't held up their end of the game might have been inappropriate. But she now gets sympathy points after Giants running back Brandon Jacobs issued a far more offensive response.  "[Gisele] just needs to continue to be cute and shut up," he told the Post. Oh. Maybe football players just need to keep their mouth guards in.

Related: 
Video: Gisele Curses, Swigs Water
Breaking: Gisele Signs Her Personal E-mails With Smiley Faces 

Read more posts by Charlotte Cowles

Filed Under: giants ,gisele bundchen ,model tracker ,tom brady ,super bowl ,brandon jacobs ,backlashes

French tea house Ladurée celebrates its 150th anniversary this year. As part of its efforts to mark the occasion, the macaron-makers partnered with Japanese designer Tsumori Chisato, who "art directed" a special set of macarons and the box they come in. It's cherry-blossom-themed, very cute-looking, and there's a matching scented candle, too, if, for some reason, you're not excited enough about the thought of macarons.

Read more posts by Alex Rees

Filed Under: collaboration station ,designers ,tsumori chisato ,laduree ,macaroons

Beyoncé made another public appearance last night — twice in a row, you guys —  for Jay-Z's second benefit concert at Carnegie Hall. She didn't do much preening for the cameras, as evidenced by this blurry photo, but she wore a sparkly Monique Lhuillier dress that revealed — how to put this delicately? — noticeably heftier cleavage (which really should silence those baby-doubters once and for all, even though nothing probably ever will). Anyway, these multiple public outings SURELY indicate something VERY exciting: There's a good chance she'll show up at Fashion Week, folks! And thank goodness for that, truly. This long, dark winter without a single sparkly House of Dereon jumpsuit was getting awfully hard to bear.

Related: 
Look at Fabulous Post-Baby Beyoncé in Her Tight Red Dress!
Slideshow: A Retrospective of Beyoncé's Glorious Pregnancy Looks

Read more posts by Charlotte Cowles

Filed Under: beyonce ,i'm a i'm a diva diva ,beyonce knowles ,jay-z ,tina knowles ,babyonce ,blue ivy carter ,monique lhuillier

• Carmen Marc Valvo rang the closing bell at NASDAQ yesterday, to help usher in this season's New York Fashion Week. Nothing quite cements a sense of ceremony like a good old bell-ringing. [WWD]

• Joe Biden's nephew will reportedly D.J. at Andrew Buckler's Fashion Week party tonight. [Page Six/NYP]

• Not only is GQ's fashion closet fastidiously organized in the run-up to Fashion Week, it's also spacious enough to throw a football. (But probably not to catch one at the same time.) [GQ]

• Just like the rest of us, Calvin Klein menswear designer Italo Zucchelli stays fresh thanks to "transcendental meditation." [BoF]

• Diane von Furstenberg designed four Diet Coke bottles, emblazoned with some of her signature prints. [Fashion Etc]

• In other Diane news, Architectural Digest takes a tour of her meatpacking-district apartment. [Architectural Digest]

• Alexander Wang will open fourteen stores in Asia this year, beginning next month, as part of major expansion plans in the region. [WWD]

• Fern Mallis says her biggest piece of advice is to be nice because, “you never know where anyone will end up in this business." [NYT]

• Shot by Inez & Vinoodh, Natasha Poly and Isabeli Fontana wear lots of spring 2012 Prada on the March cover of Vogue China. [Fashion Gone Rogue]

• See two of the new windows at Printemps department store in Paris that feature videos of Daphne Guinness. [WWD]

• Mayor Bloomberg teamed up with FIT to organize a free, "mini-MBA" program called Design Entrepreneurs NYC. The program will offer insight and skills-based workshops into what it takes to run a successful label. Thirty-five designers will be accepted on the course — each must have a NYC-based business that's been operating for at least a year. [Racked]

• Avril Lavigne will sell shoes and handbags on JustFab.com under the direction of Kimora Lee Simmons. Sounds like an Oxygen reality show waiting to happen. [WWD]

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Filed Under: loose threads ,carmen marc valvo ,nasdaq ,andrew buckler ,gq ,italo zucchelli ,calvin klein ,diane von furstenburg ,diet coke ,natasha poly ,models ,model tracker ,isabeli fontana ,prada ,designers ,vogue china ,alexander wang ,mayor bloomberg ,kimora lee simmons ,avril lavigne ,fern mallis ,daphne guinness ,printemps