>> Liberté, fraternité, égalité...and the inspiration for this jacket -- the four good things that came out of the French Revolution.  I've always loved coattails, but I never thought I would be able to wear them (I thought they only made them on tuxes these days). So you can imagine my excitement when I saw this soldiery jacket of goodness made by Mr. Ralph Lauren, of all people.  Okay, I'll give you a hint.  I was ecstatic.  So ecstatic, I could fly.  Using my coattails as wings, of course.

>> Looks like the Free Kate campaign can finally be suspended -- their wish has been granted.  CNN is reporting that Kate Moss is out of rehab...hopefully, things can only go up from here.   (But things look promising -- her modeling agency is already has assignments in LA, Paris, and New York for next month.)

>> Yell it like Stanley Kowalski (love that play), because Stella McCartney is coming to H&M November 10.  It will be interesting to see if all the stores are overrun like last year when Karl Lagerfeld's collection debuted -- I found this collection to be a bit bland.  There was nothing that really hit me upside the head and made me say "Wow!" 

The colors are dusty, there are some great skinny jeans, an oversized sweater -- all very true to Stella.  And I do like the graphic tees.  If I had to pick a favorite, it's probably this cropped trench with the bubble hem (left).  Love bubble hems. 

But really, for what this collection basically is -- a marked-down sample sale -- we have it pretty good.    

The collection preview is up here.

>> All of us need some good solid basic pieces in our lives.  Especially ones that have a teensy bit of flair to them -- because even basics need personalities.  I've always thought that turtlenecks could look so elegant, and the puffy cap sleeves just cap off the look.  Har har.  But yes, back on topic.  This top even reminds me of this Missoni top.  Okay, it basically is the Missoni top.  Except not cashmere.  And not grape-colored.

Missoni top available at net-a-porter 

>> It's something that I just can't explain.  But I do, I have a ridiculous obsession with skulls -- mostly on accessories.  So basically, when I saw this necklace, I fell.  Hard.  But of course, I'm a silver person.  Not gold.

Tiny skulls necklace, Exhibitionist -- $490 for 14K gold, $140 for sterling silver

>> The man who drapes cloth into confections like the one on the right has quit his namesake company, his backers Sharai and Andre Meyers announced yesterday.  Monsieur Roland Mouret will continue as head designer of Roland Mouret long enough to present a Fall/Winter 2006 collection, and then he'll leave his name behind with the company.  No decisions on who will replace Monsieur Mouret have been made. 

I'm still in a state of shock...he's one of my favorite designers.  Surprising as this seems, apparently the relationship with the Meyers has always been voltatile.  Monsieur Mouret is quoted in September as saying, "It was like love at first sight when we met.  We just clicked.  Then her husband encouraged her to work with me.  And we're like husband and wife, and the company is our baby.  Sometimes we think alike, other times we fight like cats and dogs.  We have two distinctly different backgrounds -- she's Scottish, and quiet, and I'm French, fiery, and, well, a guy."

Pauvre, pauvre Monsieur Mouret...I hope to see you back soon.      

**sources: vogue uk, style.com

>> Mattel is expanding Barbie's domain to include high-end designer clothing.  Yes, you heard me right.  Barbie, that inhumanly large-busted, small-waisted, long-legged individual with the feet permanently in high heel shape, is getting a clothing line.  For adult women.  The so-called "Barbie Luxe" line will include jeans, shirts, handbags, and jewelry designed by the likes of Anna Sui, Citizens of Humanity, Judith Leiber, Paper Denim & Cloth, Stila, and Tarina Tarantino (a good pick on that one, I must say).  Barbie is their muse, so think pink stitching on jeans or a retro silhouette on a cameo pendant.  Pardon me while I cackle at this idea -- it's supposed to be targeted at "the fashionista."  Well, I never did like Barbie as a kid.   

**sources: usa today, blogger

>>  I think it's good thing to pull an Annie Hall every once and a while.  Especially with all the ties on the Spring runways...

Leather Driving Gloves, J. Crew

>> And it's getting pretty darn serious.  And by serious, I mean, I pretty much want every boot that I lay my eyes on.  I think it's a side effect of that season we call "autumn" -- my favorite season to shop.  Because, let's face it, fall clothes are so much more fun than spring clothes -- there's more to wear at once, more you can do, without the worry of getting hot.  Or maybe you will be hot, with boots like these -- it is inevitable, after all.    

I first laid eyes on these in Nylon -- I think it's the color that smote me.  Or maybe it's just the beautiful styling that Nylon always does.  Either way, I'm taken with these boots, with their green leather and their slouchiness and their cuff.

And then there's the booties... a newfound love for me.  I used to turn my head in disgust, but I've had a change of heart.  Again, these are seen in Nylon -- probably my favorite ones I've seen thus far.  But Anthropologie does have three or four oxford-inspired pairs up their sleeves.  Like these...or these...or these...or last but not least, these.

But wait, there's more... the flat boots.  These are the killers -- so many shapes and sizes to love.  There's the slim short Victorians (right), the loose slouchy average heights, and the willowy tall ones.

If the flats are the killers, these ankle boots are the serial killers --  I was a goner the moment I saw them.  The ankle height, the flared suede, the bow.  Delicious, Moschino, just yum.  And I have to give Target mad props for producing a much more price-conscious option that can be worked with -- just slouch it down, and add a bit of velvet ribbon.    

Sigh... I've really gone to town, now, haven't I.  Oh well.  It's probably lust, not love, anyway.  (Or I can keep telling myself that, at least).

>> When I picked up the New York Times yesterday, I found this little blurb quite amusing:

The valley girl is alive and well - in Japan.  Lookism may reign in American high schools, but Japanese girls have a new way to assess relative coolness: call it "soundism." Tired of the Tokyo mode of speech, they mix words and accents to affect their own suburban vernacular.  Japanese fashion magazines quick to pick up on street trends are publishing photos with speech bubbles above the girls' heads.  Commonly used words include "messa" ("very") and "jan" ("for sure"), but the test of skill comes in the combination of words and dialects.  The obsessive Manba girls of Shibuya, known for ultradark tans, garish makeup and bleach-blond hair, take it one step farther: many practice their language through another pop-culture tradition, karaoke. Messa cute.

**sources: nytimes