We are having a bit of gender confusion today as community member She's A Betty helped takes us from money clips to the world's girliest trend in about an hour. Tiered dresses may just be the diametrical opposite of our earlier post and yet we we feel just as strongly in support of hyper feminine dresses as we do ultra masculine money clips.

Ruffles have traditionally made us feel a little silly but lately we have been feeling positively underage. We don't know if its all the Gen-X men that have been percolating around Williamsburg but we feel completely girly making this particular look almost appropriate. We want to curl our hair, giggle and bat giant eyelashes!

Predictably we must be channeling some sort of moment, as ruffles are showing up all over cruise collections. We are particularly enamored of a gauzy pink tiered blouse from Missoni's Cruise 2009 collection. If you want to buy into your inner ditz right now we have a few high and low selections or you can cruise right on over to She's A Betty.

How much money do women spend on supposedly cheap fashion? Enough to make Amancio Ortega the 22nd wealthiest man in the world. Don't know who he is? He is the owner of Inditex and worth 20.2 billion dollars. From selling what? Ohh just cheaply made suits at Zara. Sort of makes you rethink your spending habits doesn't it? Go discover a few more fashion billionaires.

Another good reason not to wear clothing with logos? Apparently CCTV cameras can track you that much better thanks to your big Nike Swoosh. Consider this a friendly public service announcement for the benefits of wearing independent designers.

Boring white Pratesi sheets got you down at your favorite luxury hotel? Craving zig zag sheets? Never fear, Missoni is the latest to jump on the designer hotel bandwagon. Rezidor Hotel Group will be collaborating with Missoni on an expected ten hotels with the first two to open in 2009 in Kuwait and Edinburgh.

Cartier is launching a men's fragrance called Roadster. Apparently they think it will be quite a seller with $20 million in sales its first year.

Preppy women rejoice! Lilly Pulitzer is opening up at 1020 Madison Avenue. The impressively branded experience will include womenswear, menswear, and children's clothing. The store is a branded paradise with some intense amenities like palm shaped doggie treats and a juice bar. Lily really knows her demographic doesn't she?

We are giving this Missoni Chain-Strap Patio Dress props for being a decidedly non-twenty something frock. It's not often that you browse through designer offerings and think, 'Wow, I'm definitely going to wear that when I get older'. That is, most fashion makes you feel just the opposite. Leave it to Missoni, the domestic embodiment of beauty at every age, to create this dress that inspires us to daydream about our glamorous 65 year old selves. The scoop neck dress is fully lined with side pockets, it even comes with a sash. It could, of course, be worn well at any age, we just happen to like the fact that it's mature, flattering, and vibrant enough for a women with slightly more experience.


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It's been said that this season's Missoni collection was inspired by 'The Women', a 1939 film about New York socialites. The film, a boyfriend's Bryant Park nightmare, is cast entirely of women who manipulate and gossip within fancy New York apartments. As for the film's wardrobe, the outfits are sophisticated and conservative, what one should expect from the relative time period and economic vantage point. They are indeed striking but the film so clearly has a greater message to send. Namely, one that articulates the intricacies of social and economic power from a domestic perspective. What's interesting is how Style.com's Sarah Mower, without reference to the inspiration, attributes Missoni's 'grown up note' to a cognizance that the consistent luxury consumer (one who, perhaps, doesn't even have Levi's in her closet) is least likely to be effected by a recession. The question is, which came first? A cinematic inspiration that happens to call for a more conservative, high-end aesthetic, or the straight-up strategy to appeal to the consumer most stable in a time of economic hardship?

Coutorture Editorials

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This A/W 08 season, Adam Lippes of Adam drew inspiration from the geography of the Berkshires. Lippes, one very charismatic and handsome gentlemen, conjured quite a crowd for his A/W 08 show. Among a very becoming set of thirty to forty year-olds were Margherita Missoni and Anna Wintour. The collection was chic and conservative; wool trousers, silk dresses that came to knee, high waisted belted skirts. The attendees erupted with applause when the show commenced as if it was the collection to end all collections. We suspect though, however handsome the collection was, the enthusiasm was partly due to the atmosphere of the show and the personality of its designer. With so many well-dressed attendees (this is not your Miss Sixty crowd) and Lippes running around, twinkling his bright blue eyes, combing his disheveled blonde hair with his fingers, and talking about his house in the Berkshires, we suspect it was the whole package that had every one aflame.