>> CFDA, New York City Join to Subsidize Fashion Incubator for Emerging Designers —On Monday, New York City's Bloomberg administration announced that it will be subsidizing rent for a 10,000 square foot fashion incubator space; emerging designers will compete for twelve spaces in a showroom building in the garment district, with rent coming in at only $1,500 instead of the current $2,900 market price for a comparable space.  The new tenants will be selected through a competition; winners will be announced in December and move-in — with a lease lasting two years — is expected in February. The applicants must be "working designers," according to CFDA executive director Steven Kolb, who have been in the business for a year and a half, employ a staff, and have both media attention and orders from top retailers. The CFDA also plans on giving the selected designers educational and industry support. [NYTimes City Room]

>> Cathy Horyn Chats with Mary-Kate, Ashley Olsen about The Row —Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen were recently inducted into the CFDA, a watershed moment for an industry that typically shuns celebrity lines, and now Cathy Horyn writes that she interviewed the Olsens for a New York Times piece on The Row, coming out tomorrow: "I was strangely pleased to discover that their two-room production office on W. 39th looked like a storage closet, it’s so crammed full of scuffed furniture, sketches, dress racks and plastic-sheathed bolts of fabric." Ashley's take: “I think people would be surprised that all the product is produced from the five people who work here,” Ashley said. “I think that would be shocking—that the brand seems much bigger than the actual process is.” [On the Runway]

>> CFDA Publishes American Fashion Cookbook Full of Designer's Recipes —Food and fashion don't always go hand in hand, but the CFDA is trying to change that this month with the release of American Fashion Cookbook, a compilation of recipes, illustrations, and food-related quotes from over 100 American designers. No word on what foodies like Jason Wu or Peter Som contributed, but Derek Lam went with Yellowtail Crudo, Isaac Mizrahi submitted Mushroom Truffle Spaghetti, and Diane von Furstenberg, who says she's "never been a great cook," added a recipe for Saturday Night Chicken. Publisher Assouline has a preview of the first 30 or so pages. [Stylecaster, Amazon]

>> This morning, the CFDA held its first town hall meeting, moderated by CFDA president Diane von Furstenberg, to discuss whether Fashion Week is still relevant.  Many attendees agreed with Proenza Schouler's Jack McCollough, who voiced his concern: "There seems to be a disconnect. For us, the shows have become a press thing. It’s on blogs; magazines pull straight from the runways; and by the time it’s in stores, it feels sort of old."

Donna Karan, who has long been a proponent of selling and showing clothes in season, also wondered about the timeliness of the shows: "We are in a crisis. There's no question about it . . . We spend so much money on shows, but what is it getting us?”

Anna Wintour suggests something illegal »

>> INSIDER WIRE —Vogue-helmed events could be a little different from now on: Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, 11-year Vogue veteran and the magazine's director of special events who oversaw the Costume Institute Gala and CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund, resigned to spend more time with her husband and three children; no replacement has been named. The move marks the loss of one of the magazine's many pedigreed names: Winston Wolkoff is granddaughter of Harry Winston. [FWD]

>> INSIDER WIRE —Marc Jacobs traded his skirt in for pants last night at the CFDA Awards, while Alexander Wang — who says he started wearing shorts a month ago and hasn't switched back to pants — debuted his "suit shorts" from Comme des Garcons: "I always feel awkward in a full get-up. You’ve got to break it up a little.”  He may break with tradition, but it sounds like the Swarovski Womenswear winner is being groomed for big things — he was discussed yesterday at the Financial Times Business of Luxury Summit as a good investment opportunity, and rumors are circulating that for his Spring 2010 show, his usual stylist Alastair McKimm has been replaced with "a certain godhead of a stylist" who "deemed" to take the gig. [FWD, Style File, Alexandra Wilson's Twitter, The Imagist]

>> The 2009 CFDA Awards are on Monday — the afterparties are planned, various outlets are hedging their bets on the winners, and to the disappointment of many, Board of Director’s Special Tribute honoree Michelle Obama will not be in attendance — fashion has been foiled once again — her cultural ambassador Bonnie McElveen-Hunter will receive the award in her stead.

But the rumor about the mini fashion show at the awards ceremony is true: As a preview of New York Fashion Week's move to Lincoln Center next year, a runway presentation of Lifetime Achievement honoree Anna Sui, plus the work of other womenswear nominees, will take place on the Center's Alice Tully Hall stage.  According to Fashion Week Daily, "Don’t expect anything less than stellar models to strut their stuff on stage, nearly every big name is already booked for the mini-shows."

UPDATE: The show's presenters »

>> INSIDER WIRE —The 2009 CFDA Awards show is coming up next week, and in addition to short films of the Swarovski nominees being shown, COACD is hearing that there will be a mini fashion show. As for which of the nominees are going to be honored, Refinery29 predicts Marc Jacobs will win Accessory Designer of the Year, Rodarte will take home Womenswear Designer of the Year, and Jason Wu will score the Swarovski Award for Womenswear. [COACD Twitter, Refinery29]

>> All 21 designers nominated for the 2009 CFDA Awards have been photographed by Craig McDean for the CFDA Journal, but the nine who are Swarovski emerging designer nominees will also be featured in individual short films, along with an editor or stylist of their choice, to be shown at the June 15 ceremony.

The shorts, directed by Michael Palmieri and still photographed by Jennifer Livingston, feature designers Thakoon Panichgul, Jason Wu (who partnered with T fashion director Anne Christensen, left), Alexander Wang, Justin Giunta (who picked Harper's Bazaar accessories director Ana Maria Pimentel), Alejandro Ingelmo, Albertus Swanepoel, Patrick Ervell (who shot with V fashion editor Jay Massacret), Tim Hamilton and Robert Geller.  The films also feature editors Anne Slowey, Brian Coats, Brian Molloy, Kate Lanphear, Camilla Nickerson and Melanie Ward.