Yowza! From Herve Leger.

As I mentioned in my fall closet update post, I am allowing myself the frivolity of picking up one sequined piece.  Sequins have been in to varying degrees for several seasons now.  I’ve been drooling over them in concept, but somehow I’ve managed to make it to this fall without ever getting my fix.  Lucky for me, sequins are more fashionable than ever this fall, and the stores are bursting with pieces for every budget.  I still haven’t figured out which piece to add to my wardrobe, but my shopping has shown me that there is a lot of really great stuff out there.  After the jump, some of this fall’s best options for glitz.

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Just a few of the names who have signed the Free Roman Polanski Petition:

Woody Allen (ok, no shocker here), David Lynch, Martin Scorsese, Julian Schnabel, Terry Gilliam, Jonathan Demme, Stephen Frears, Wes Anderson (sniff), Pedro Almodovar (sniff sniff), Wong Kar Wai,  Adrien Brody (no!), Tilda Swinton (no no no!), Monica Bellucci, Gael Garcia Bernal, Penelope Cruz … and many, many others.

Some excerpts from the document itself:

“Filmmakers in France, in Europe, in the United States and around the world are dismayed by this decision. It seems inadmissible to them that an international cultural event, paying homage to one of the greatest contemporary filmmakers, is used by the police to apprehend him … Roman Polanski is a French citizen, a renown and international artist now facing extradition. This extradition, if it takes place, will be heavy in consequences and will take away his freedom … Filmmakers, actors, producers and technicians – everyone involved in international filmmaking – want him to know that he has their support and friendship … If only in the name of this friendship between our two countries, we demand the immediate release of Roman Polanski.”

(And let’s not forget Harvey Weinstein, who wrote his own opinion piece in The Independent, claiming that “Whatever you think about the so-called crime, Polanski has served his time. A deal was made with the judge, and the deal is not being honored . . . This is the government of the United States not giving its word and recanting on a deal, and it is the government acting irresponsibly and criminally.”)  (OK, we always knew Harvey was a bastard to begin with.)

WTF???

I’m not going to get into all the sordid details again, but let me just say this:

So what if she looked 18 and has a terrible mother.   So what if the judge made a deal, and went back on it.  So what if the victim, now-fully-grown with children of her own, has moved on with her life.  So what if the case was “mishandled”, and so what if Mr. Polanski has spent the last 30 years suffering from guilt and international travel restrictions.  And most of all, SO WHAT if he’s a great director, if he’s famous, if he’s powerful, if he’s made some good movies, if he’s a kind and charming man, SO WHAT????

Are people crazy?

To paraphrase Chris Rock – this is like saying – Yeah, but did you see O.J. play against New England?

If Clive Owen’s name pops up on this petition I will really cry.

Page Six is reporting:

THAT Sarah Palin‘s agents are seeking a beauty endorsement deal, pitching cosmetic companies to capitalize on her “lipstick on a pit bull” catchphrase.

For the love of all that is beauty, please let no one take her up on it.  But if someone has to, I’m willing to bet it’ll be Mary Kay Cosmetics – that brand makes a mint pandering to middle America, and this would be right up their ally.

A silken touch of luxury. $58 at J. Crew.

Whooh!  The weather has turned crisp out there; I might even have to turn on the heat at some point.  In honor of our gorgeous fall weather, here’s a feature on scarves.  They’ve been in style all summer, but frankly, given some of the summer weather we had, there was no way I was putting anything around my neck that hadn’t just come out of the freezer.  Now?  They’re the perfect accessory.

The “new” thing, of course, seems to be snoods and infinity scarves (if you can bring yourself to call an item of clothing as old-fashioned as a snood “new” without snickering), but they for the most part look more warm and less pretty, so I’ll leave those for later in the season.  (Snoods?  Really?  Does anyone else feel like they might have to don a corset and several petticoats to wear one?)  I myself have christened the fall season by picking up the lovely at top, a long ombre scarf in soft, slightly crinkled sandwashed silk.  It’s worth noting that the scarf is available in different colors in stores than it is online; I fixed my orange craving by picking it up on Fifth Avenue in a gorgeous hue starting at peach and deepening to a dark burnt orange.  Could it be more fall?

The stores are full of scarves in ombre, tie-die, and perfect fall prints.  After the jump, a few of my favorites!

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Pair this with hard-core ankle boots, and... Get in my way. I dare you.

One of the (relatively) new kids on the block, Alexander Wang.  Wang, who won the CDFA/Vogue Fashion Fund award last year, put out his first full collection of women’s wear in 2007 and has been roaring through the fashion scene since.  His line so far?  These are clothes for the tough girl.  Wang himself has been quoted as saying that he designs for the “model, off-duty.”  Okay, I have to admit that strikes me as a bit much — it reminds me of some of the things I like least about high-end fashion — but it’s hard to argue with the clothes themselves.  They are hot — or alternatively cool, depending on which piece you pick.

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I just had to share: my Dell replacement computer crashed twice today — while I was filling out a customer service satisfaction survey for them.  Does it get any better than that?

I can but laugh.  By all means, share your latest poetic moment!

Origins is at it again … Find out how to get a complete starter kit – for FREE – after the jump!

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Lady Gaga at the 2009 MTV VMAs

Look, I’ll say it: fashion and entertainment has long been in need of a Lady Gaga character.

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This one isn’t flashy.  It’s just exquisitely tasteful. It’s Carolina Herrera, after all.  Click through and take a close look at the gorgeous combination of sequins and embroidery — the flattering crossed seaming at the waist.  Perfection.

Anyone who lives in New York or follows the national press on public health issues is probably aware that Mayor Bloomberg has been pushing a nutritional agenda whose primary method of implementation is to force New Yorkers to eat better whether they like it or not.  Recent measures have included banning the use of trans fats in restaurants and requiring chains to prominently post calorie counts for all of their foods.  His latest hobby horse has been pushing restaurants and manufacturers to reduce sodium levels in their foods.  Well, the New York Times today ran an article discussing Mayor Bloomberg’s own eating habits, which apparently include copiously salting pizza.  I can’t quite decide if this is hypocrisy, or if it just means that Bloomberg’s sense that New Yorkers needs the food police to watch them is based in his own need to have the food police watch him.

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