Karl Lagerfeld meant it when he said in our video interview that he had a new proportion for Chanel RTW. The attitude and the mood of that proportion is "we are longer and leaner than anyone else."We suppose that is why the models looked so tiny against the giant 2.55 purses. And as he said it was not overcharged with details. And while Karl, ever the marketing genius, had a few new "it" items like the little beret and the two colored stocking, the collection itself was not overcharged. The message was loud, clear, and slim.

To celebrate the kick off of New York Fashion Week we've produced five teaser videos for the Spring 09 season. Last week, amid the inevitable chaos of designers and their pr offices, we snuck in and said hello to some of our favorite New York designers. That is Jerry Tam of Form, Ashleigh Verrier, Steinunn Sigurd of Steinunn, Chris Han, and Brandy Lunsford of Harlan Bel. In the teasers you'll discover a glimpse of the inspiration behind their collections and what each designer does to prepare for Fashion Week. When the time comes, we'll be posting their respective Spring 09 fashion shows (or presentations) and a little backstage action to boot.

Our Network Partner, Chic & Untroubled, clued us into a new feature on Shopbop. Handbag designer Rebecca Minkoff, whom we interviewed a few weeks back, has filmed a short video walking Shobop customers through her Fall collection. This, we think, is big news indeed. Right now we're seeing a cross-pollination of fashion editorial and shopping. Ecommerce is going editorial (see Net-a-Porter's magazine, Shop Bop's video look books) and editorial, is going ecommerce (see our Shopstyle spreads). Online shopping and online reading never meant to mimic the magazines and developments like these really drive that point home. What does it mean to read about fashion online? Well, to us, it means following the process from runway show to shopping bag and reveling in all the particulars along the way. Did that trend we talked about seeing on the runways ever make it to the street? Is that pair of sandals we saw editorialized sold out for the rest of the season? If we don't have the budget to buy those tights, can we make them ourselves? All of these details are aspects of what it means to be interested in fashion and, if you ask us, helps us to be educated consumers indeed.To make things really postmodern we've included a spread of our top five favorite Minkoff bags, all from Shopbop, below.

Just when you thought our DVF X Bloggers content had hit its saturation point... With all of the photo galleries, ecommerce tie ins, and posts of posts of posts that were the result of the Bloggers X Diane Von Furstenburg photo shoot, our behind the scenes tape took a backseat. Then we found ourselves in San Francisco where we decided to slice up the footage for a little retrospective post. It was, for us and our lovely Network Partners (we wish it could have been all of them but that would have been one hell of an event), a real blast. More than anything, we think we can speak for everyone in saying that the experience really solidified the DVF brand in our minds. Not only were the frocks flattering on everyone, but the people who helped Coutorture organize the event were accommodating and supportive to no end. That, truth be told, is a combination that will keep us brand loyal for a long time. If there were ever a question in our minds, the wrap dresses we just picked up at the massive DVF sample sale would have sealed the deal. Somehow, we forgot just how sexy, and we mean traffic-stopping, those classic DVF wrap dresses can be.

Few designers are as articulate about their inspirations as Charles Nolan. We suspect his expressive personality comes from his detail oriented work process that focuses not only on the big picture of a season but on the tangible needs of his particular customer base. One never gets the impression that anything is haphazard when at the house of Charles Nolan. We were privileged to have a quick word with Mr. Nolan before his Cruise 2009 showing. Please take a moment to enjoy it.