• “Everything’s really great. It’s all about keeping the faith. That’s why I pray out loud.” Jessica Simpson when asked how she is doing..(Praying for liposuction).
• “She would probably end up in a hospital. Perhaps she would go back to her ’80s stuff and start bringing it out again.” Sarah Jessica Parker on how Carrie Bradshaw would handle the recession.
• “ Stereotypically gay people got such good [style] … they were smart enough to take a fresh-ass logo like the rainbow and say that it’s gonna be theirs. I’ve been collecting all of the freshest stuff that’s rainbows – Denver Nuggets jerseys, BAPE shoes, Nikes with rainbows on ‘em – and saying, ‘Man, I think as straight men we need to take the rainbow back because it’s fresh. I mean how is that a gay thing? Colours? Having a lot of colours is gay”. Kanye West I am praying out loud for you ( to take English lessons).
• “I’ll tell you, if there’s one thing I do miss about the ’80s, it’s all the great-looking people. I don’t just mean great-looking like, attractive, I mean great-looking like they had a look. Stephen Sprouse, Teri Toye, Billy Idol… For them, every night was another night to dress up and be fabulous.” Society photographer Patrick McMullan. GAY guys in rainbow outfits.
• “Your dress don’t give away whether or not you like a man, that’s when I was ignorant to gays … Because there’s a lot of gay people who don’t dress good at all. There’s a lot of gay people that I dress way better than.” Kanye West responds to rumours that he’s gay because of his fashion sense. Let us Pray.He will make sense one day
• “I hire someone specially to take care of my shoes. They clean them, box them, and take a picture of them so it’s easier to find them,” Kanye West (or should we say Martin “Louis” The King Jr. The rapper just changed his name), pays someone to look after his 450 pairs of shoes. Keeping the faith.
• ” I look at photos of myself, and I look like such a tranny! It’s amazing! I look like Grace Jones, androgynous, robo, future fashion queen.  Well, yeah, I take my pants off, but does it matter if your pants are off if you’ve got eight-inch shoulder pads on, and a hood, and black lipstick and glasses with rocks on them?” Singer Lady Gaga is GAGA.

Reasons to stop drinking today:

• Rehab is so last year.
• Your Manolos are so much prettier in focus.
• Your Birkin can only carry one bottle at a time.
• It’s easier to shop in a straight line.
• You need to concentrate when you buy these 3 cute Valentine’s Day presents online for your boyfriend.

kikki-K Wooden Love Stamp Set $15 from www.kikki-k.com.au
Heart Tee $35 from RemoGeneralStore.com
Beauty and The Beast Pillow Slips $35 from HartandHeim.com.au

Your boyfriend/husband/lover is stupid.
Give him this simple equation.

Flowers + Chanel + French Champagne = LOVE

Is there anything better than pulling a Super orgasm out of your bag? Talk about bring a smile to your face. Nars sheer blush in Super Orgasm is all you need on Valentine’s Day for a rosy-cheeked look of innocence. And contentment.

$62 Nars Sheer Blush Super Orgasm from Mecca Cosmetica.

• Michelle Obama is on the cover of March US Vogue…Read about it here.
• Sarah Jessica Parker is on the cover of US Harper’s Bazaar; inside is a shoot inspired by Diana Vreeland. Watch the video here.
• Watch the editors talking about the March issue of March issue of Vogue UK.
• Louis Vuitton recently fêted the launch of its Stephen Sprouse collection. Marc Jacobs said his inspiration came from a number of places. During a visit to Charlotte Gainsbourg’s apartment, he noticed a Louis Vuitton monogram trunk painted black, and the idea gelled. Watch the video for a glimpse of the Sprouse exhibit and Jacobs’s favorite new leggings. Love it!
• This is very amusing: Ethical Valentine’s Day ideas (like to how to recycle sex toys)…Guardian.co.uk
• Prada has enlisted four leading fashion editors to take over and make over key Prada boutiques. ‘ The Iconoclasts’ will showcase individual interpretations of Prada’s spring ‘09 collection.It will kick off with W’s Alex White the New York  boutique, followed by Love’s Katie Grand in London and Oliver Rizzo in Milan, culminating with Carine Roitfeld’s conversion of the Avenue Montaigne store in Paris. Fabulous. Reports Hintmag.com.
• In February, a Nielsen survey revealed that Gucci was still the most coveted luxury label in the world. Read an interview with Gucci’s Frida Giannini here.
• Check out the very glamourous video of photographer Terry Richardson shooting Angela Lindval for the Jimmy Choo spring 09 campaign. Love Tamara Mellon!
• ‘Adding to a star-studded cast that includes Daniel Day-Lewis, Marion Cotillard, Judi Dench, Kate Hudson, Nicole Kidman, Penélope Cruz, Stacy “Fergie” Ferguson and Sophia Loren, the film “Nine,” directed by Rob Marshall, will feature a cameo with Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce playing the roles of priests’ Reports WWD.
• Model Natalia Vodianova has collaborated with Etam, a French lingerie company, to create Natalia pour Etam which encompasses swimwear and lingerie. Etam.com
• Read about “fashion’s gentle revolutionary”, US and Italian Vogue fashion editor Edward Enninful in the International Herald Tribune.
• Phoebe Philo’s elegant clothes for cool twenty-somethings made her name at Chloé then, suddenly, she left. Three years later, she’s making her return. Can she do it all again? Hadley Freeman from The Guardian meets her.
• Stefano Pilati’s fourth Yves Saint Laurent Manifesto is happening! it’s a new approach to advertising. The S/S 2009 Manifesto, photographed by Inez Van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin and featuring Claudia Schiffer, will be uploaded and distributed on charming heart shaped USB keys on the streets of Paris, New York, London, Milan, Tokyo and Hong Kong on the 14th of February. Over half a million copies of the twenty page Manifesto, accompanied by behind the scenes footage, will be disseminated this way, along with a cotton tote bag designed by Pilati to the first 2,000 passers by in each city. FREE! See the video here. Please come to Sydney!
• ‘Tom Ford not only art directed his spring men’s wear and eyewear advertising campaigns, he also shot the photographs for the first time. “I have always felt that an advertising image is in a sense the last layer of the design, and so decided this season to just shoot the campaign myself.” The ad images were shot in LA featuring the label’s signature male model, Jon Kortajarena, and model Karen Elson’. Reports WWD
• It’s Beth Ditto fat and nude on the cover of Love magazine!
• ‘Model Lily Cole took a break from school in Cambridge over the weekend to promote the premiere of one of two movies she has coming out this year — Rage — at the Berlin Film Festival. The low-budget film — a offbeat murder mystery set in the contemporary New York fashion world — stars Jude Law as a cross-dressing model named Minx and Judi Dench as an acerbic fashion writer; Lily appropriately plays a young model named Lettuce Leaf, although her natural red hair which made her name has been replaced with a bleached blonde bob for the role’. Check out the video and interview (in German then English)…Reports Fashionologie.

www.RSPCAVIC.org
Donate to the RSPCA to help the animals in the fire. Bless. Watch the video here of Sam, the koala who survived the bushfire and then gulped down three bottles of water courtesy of CFA volunteer David Tree. So cute.

www.RedCross.org.au
Please donate to The Red Cross to help the survivors of the Bush fires in Victoria.They don’t have any clothes!

• Madonna is dating Brazilian model Jesus (they met on a W magazine shoot).
• “No one knew Madonna was a grandmother, not even her ex-husband Guy Richie. That is until now when the Daily Squib can reveal the dramatic moments when her Royal Madgeness finally got to meet her long lost Brazilian grandson.” see photos above.
• Helena Christensen and Ed Westwick were photographed together in March issue of US Harpers Bazaar.  Cougars rock.
• Chris Martin was celebrating his Grammy wins but Gwyneth was nowhere in sight. We still love you Gwyneth! Love the sparkle dress with the grey cardigan (below).
• Cristian Bale, the actor and supreme lovey of lovey’s, has created a Yoga instructional video that is blowing the Hollywood acting set for six. Filmed on the set of his newest movie ‘Terminator Salvation’, Bale narrates the Ashtanga yoga video as well as performs some of the moves himself. “I play this video every f**king day man, it’s like the mother f**kin’ bomb man,” Quentin Tarantino said Reports thedailysquib. Watch the hilarious video here (not suitable for work!).
• Chris Brown is looking at nine years in prison for assaulting Rihanna.
• ‘Usher was forced to cancel his Grammy appearances when his wife Tameka Foster Raymond suffered complications while getting plastic surgery. I don’t want to point any fingers here, but Chris Brown did it. Somebody had to say what we’re all thinking’. Says the superficial.
• “Because the apocalypse is at hand, Courtney Love was named “Woman of the Year” at the 2009 Elle Style Awards this weekend. Apparently looking like a slowly-melting version of Madonna on heroin is this year’s black. Who knew?” Says Thesuperficial.
• Rachel Zoe has Trademarked the phrases ‘I Die’ and ‘Bananas’. “ You may recall this brilliant, Rachel Zoe–inspired “Bananas” shirt designed by artist Christopher Sauvé. If you haven’t gotten yours yet, it doesn’t look like you’re not going to. Sauvé just received a cease-and-desist letter from Zoe’s lawyer. It turns out “I die” and “Bananas” are trademarked. Oh, excuse us — that would be I DIE™ and BANANAS™. We don’t want to get sued.” Reports Fashionista.
• John Mayer treated Jennifer Aniston to a song for her 40th birthday. (If you like it put a ring on it. He’s just not that into you.
  

Four Letter Word: New Love Letters……by Rosalind Porter.
‘Whatever happened to the love letter? Has the written word lost its charm in our digitally obsessed, speed-dating age? In this inspired and unique collection of new fiction, Joshua Knelman and Rosalind Porter have asked over forty celebrated writers to explore the potency and power of a classic - yet neglected - genre: the love letter. “Four Letter Word” brings us work, published here for the first time, from a dazzling array of contemporary writers, including Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Margaret Atwood, Michel Faber, Geoff Dyer, Neil Gaiman, A.L. Kennedy, Audrey Niffenegger and Lionel Shriver - to name just a few. These innovative pieces remind us of how enticing words can be and allow us a glimpse of what love looks like in the twenty-first century. Each ‘letter’ is radically different from the others, each is a testimony to the creative powers of our leading writers today, and each is guaranteed to seduce. ‘
£6 www.amazon.co.uk Publisher: Vintage (5th Feb 2009)

The Christmas List:
Venezia: Food and Dreams…by Tessa Kiros
Food is a quilt that is patch worked together by people’s language, traditions and way of living. In “Venezia”, Tessa Kiros shows the magic and the charm of the famous Italian city of Venice. She embroiders the recipes of this city of canals, bridges and carnivals with her own unique colors and threads. Tessa’s previous books, “Twelve, Falling Cloudberries”, “Apples for Jam” and “Piri Piri Starfish: Portugal Found” have been published to international acclaim and have secured best-selling status in many countries throughout the world. “Falling Cloudberries” won several awards including Best Hardcover Recipe Book at the World Food Media Awards. As usual, her book features stunningly beautiful photography and design, and recipes for the whole family - a European way of eating. Tessa Kiros was born in London to a Finnish mother and a Greek-Cypriot father. The family moved to South Africa when she was four. On a trip to Italy to study the language and food she met her husband Giovanni, and now lives in Tuscany. Very romantic.
$36 www.amazon.com Publisher: Murdoch Books (November 1, 2008)

In this terrible time amid non-stop talk of bushfires and the media blitz remember it is important to shop. Many stores, including Coles, David Jones, Myer, Sambag and Jeanswest, are donating profits and/or clothes to the Red Cross and the Salvation Army.
So get out there and shop for your country (and the economy!). Then donate last season’s leftovers. Everyone knows a little bit of Prada will cheer anyone up…

Economy Class:
Mollini:

• I love Mollini because they pretty much nail the latest shoes and boots all for under $200. Check out:
• The very Alaia short patent boots with cuts outs and a peep toe (and cheap but chic of the week in The FiFi Report last year), $138. It’s about wearing short boots with a skirt or shorts. Please do not EVER wear short boots under jeans. Unless you are stuck in a time warp 1998. Hint: tuck jeans into long boots. With short boots you need to flash some leg and show off the boot. Why? Because it’s fashion and we love it. So check out this fabulous look -below- from The Sartorialist. You want a pencil lace skirt, a leather bomber and bare legs. And a clutch.
• Then buy the short black boots with the peep toe and tiny strips, $148. Who cares if they are comfortable or not. I think with the air vent at the peep toe you will be fine to wear right now in summer.
• Love the short, black, very YSL round toe boots with a hidden platform. They are HOT! $198. You will wear them with everything. Except of course jeans. If you wear short boots with trousers they must be short and stop at the ankle to show off the boots. (See the shot of Taylor Tomasi chinos below).
• Checkout the round toe black or red classic pumps with a wide heel, $138. These are simple with no crazy detailing so you should buy them in red. A red shoe (or even two red shoes: makes walking easier) will razz up your wardrobe and lift all the black and navy. Remember this season all we can talk about are surreal heels and crazy statement shoes so if you are not feeling adventurous, or your budget won’t stretch to Louis Vuitton, invest in a red shoe.
• Another way to add colour and print without spending a fortune is the leopard print, round toe, classic pump with a chunky heel in brown and black suede: The only place to wear leopard is on your feet unless your name is Kate Moss. Sorry to break the news to you: you are not Kate Moss. $158
• There are choc brown, suede peep toes with a chunky heel and a little platform: chic $138. Black and brown is chic, brown and red is chic. Brown and caramel is chic. We love chocolate brown. This will be the closest you will get to eating it.
• Also check out the black lace up heels. We love a lace up shoe. It’s more to do when you are running out the door in the morning but think of it as exercise. $148.

Thai Rose-Petal and Cucumber Salad…adulterated from Stephanie Alexander at Cuisine.com.au

You need for 4 romantics, 24 fashion editors or 40 models:

4 Shallots, very finely sliced
1 tabs Vegetable Oil
2 long Cucumbers, peeled and seeded
1 tabs Brown Sugar
2 tabs Rice Vinegar or White-wine Vinegar
1 fresh Chilli, seeded and finely chopped
50g roasted Peanuts, chopped
2 tabs freshly chopped Coriander leaves and stems
Fish Sauce
Petals from 1 Red Rose, torn into small pieces
Serve with Poached Chicken.

• Pour a big glass of Verve Cliquot.
• Light the pretty Diptique candles.
• Slip into your Lanvin black dress.
• Climb into your YSL platforms.
• Spray yourself with Chanel #19.
• Put on Burberry apron.
• Toss on Prada sunglasses and start to chop shallots. No crying or mascara on the face for you.
• Peel the cucumbers and then get a vegetable peeler and peel into thin strips. Stop at the seeds. So much nicer than chopping into chunks.
• Grab the coriander and chop up roughly.
• Gulp down another Verve Cliquot.
• Now is a good time to poach a chicken breast. Add some ginger and a lime leaf to the water to give it a little more taste.
• Now saute the shallots gently in oil until they are as brown as an Hermes cuff.
• You might be pissed-hic- but please do not burn.
• Drain the shallots on kitchen paper to get rid of that naughty fattening oil.
• Find a bowl and dissolve the sugar in vinegar.
• Toss then vinegar mixture through cucumber.
• Then add all other ingredients except fish sauce and rose petals.
• Find the roses your (now ex) boyfriend sent you: you know the bouquet: it’s the one with the horrid tacky baby’s breath in it. That boyfriend is now sacked.
• Season the mix with salt and pepper.
• Then dip your manicured finger in and taste when you add the fish sauce.
• Slice up the poached chicken breast.
• Top with the cucumber salad.
• Serve with a scattering of rose petals. (He loves me: He loves me not.)
• Happy Valentine’s day.