Versace sees red and copies Christian Louboutin

The iconic red underbelly of a Christian Louboutin shoe has long been its calling card. That flash of crimson has become as much of a status call out among those in the know as the boucle of a Chanel suit or the weave of a Bottega Veneta bag.

Now, Versace is seeing red too. The image (left) is part of the new ad campaign starring Gisele Bundchen. The shoes I have seen so far are beautiful, but that red undersole is a direct rip-off of  Christian Louboutin (right). With all these designers speaking out on counterfeits and copycats, it seems declasse for Versace to nab a competitor's signature.

Is all fair in love and war and fashion?

Photo credits: Versace; Louboutin

The Hollywood version of Coco Chanel

Shirley MacLaine (left) is interviewed by WWD on the set of her new Coco Chanel biopic in Paris. In the article, she says that it was Audrey Hepburn who first suggested that she play the iconic designer. Here's the comment:

"When we worked together she said to me, 'You should think about doing Coco Chanel when you're older,' " recalls MacLaine. "That was in my 20s. I said, 'You should do Coco Chanel.' She said, 'No. You.' I've thought about it all that time and then this came up. I couldn't believe it."

Now, a quote from the real Coco (right): "Fashion has become a joke. The designers have forgotten that there are women inside the dresses. Most women dress for men and want to be admired. But they must also be able to move, to get into a car without bursting their seams! Clothes must have a natural shape."

Photo credits: MacLaine, Dave Yoder; Coco, the Metropolitan Museum of Art

Come Sale Away: Gryphon coats at 75% off

Never underestimate the power of a statement coat. The perfect coat -- a must-have staple for every woman -- shows that you can make adult decisions.

A coat is a lot like a tattoo. No one wants to commit and regret it later. Lucky for us, Hautelook.com -- a sample sale website that offers premiere designers at up to 75% off -- has coats by Gryphon (see right) on sale tomorrow, starting at 5:00 a.m.  With that kind of savings, you needn't worry about pangs of post-purchase depression.

The designs, a few modern trenches and white swing coats, are perfect for crisp L.A. days and nights. Oh, and a statement coat is the best camouflage for a blah, boring outfit.

Set your alarm and crack those knuckles. I predict a frenzy on Hautelook.com in the morn.

Photo credits: Audrey1.com; Hautelook.com

Heath Ledger & Michelle Willams: Art sadly mirrors life

Even more sad news on the untimely death of actor Heath Ledger.

His ex, Michelle Williams, is in a new movie at Sundance called "Incendiary" (see still, left). In the film -- which is receiving excellent reviews for her performance -- she plays a woman who loses her husband and son to a bombing at a soccer game in London.

Here's wishing Michelle Williams and her daughter sympathy and best wishes during such a horrible time.

Photo credit: "Incendiary," Sundance.org

Smells like Chanel No. 5 Teen Spirit: Lagerfeld's latest crush

"The Hills" are alive with the sound of Lagerfeld. According to WWD, the Chanel designer paid homage to hormones in his spring couture collection shown in Paris yesterday. Models wearing skirts short enough to sway any Catholic High School sophomore paraded down the runway; Chanel logo ballet flats -- a fave among the teen set in Beverly Hills and Bel Air -- were also seen.

This past September, I went shopping with a few wealthy Brentwood teens and both of them told me that Chanel was their favorite designer. I was floored. Back in high school, my logos were big Bs for Benetton and Lacoste gators. I wore Yves Saint Laurent red lipstick just to have something by the designer in my trusty nylon Le Sport Sac.

Here's a bit of the reporting I did back in September for my story on teens and luxury goods. The truth is: designers have seen the future and it's, like, moody and twirls her hair and might just hate her parents.

Here are some facts from my story:
Designer labels make up about 15.3% of purchases by 13- to 17-year-olds, according to a recent study by New York-based marketing research company NPD Group. Five years ago, that figure hovered at 9.6%. Increasingly, luxury brands are catering to younger customers.

Also: The women’s media website Jezebel.com recently tallied the prices of the merchandise featured in the editorial content of the September issue of Teen Vogue to a total of $74,458. Per their research, Cosmopolitan — not CosmoGirl, mind you — rang in at just $27,636.64.

What does this all mean? I just pray to God that when my husband and I start a family, it's a boy!

Photo credit: Women's Wear Daily

My favorite Sundance movie: 'American Teen'

Just back from single-digit weather in Park City -- I am more congested than the 405 at rush hour, thank you very much. But I managed to see a few great movies at Sundance and my favorite film was a documentary called "American Teen."

The filmmaker -- Nanette Burstein -- spent a year in Warsaw, Ind., and shot 1,000 hours of footage at a high school. The results are priceless and as of yesterday, there was talk that Paramount Vantage might buy the film. (Left is Jake, the band geek, who broke my heart.)
I wrote about "American Teen" and interviewed the director for our Calendar section and so, I will post my story here:

High school doc a hot property

PARK CITY, Utah -- So far, the buyer's market at Sundance has proved to be as frigid as the temperatures in Park City. There's been some buzz here and there but no direct heat surrounding any one film.

All that changed when a documentary called "American Teen" screened on Saturday. It was clear that the film had generated interest by the flashes of blue light in the audience, as acquisition folks frantically texted their business affairs departments to start negotiations.

In a phone interview Sunday morning, the director, Nanette Burstein, said that she had been "in talks" until 4 that morning with potential buyers. "It's been surreal in a good way," she said. "I just want it to find the right home."

Miramax and Fox Searchlight were among those in the early bidding, but they dropped out as the sales price for North American rights climbed toward $2 million. No deal had been closed by Sunday afternoon, but a potential sale (other parties included Paramount Vantage) was expected before today.

This isn't Burstein's first successful foray at Sundance. Her last documentary, "The Kid Stays in the Picture," premiered at Sundance in 2002 and went on to be a commercial and critical success.

To make "American Teen," she spent the 2005-06 school year shooting footage of four seniors at Warsaw Community High School in Indiana. She scouted 10 different schools in three states before setting up camp in the Midwest.

"I wanted a town, with just one high school, that was economically mixed," says Burstein, who then interviewed all of Warsaw's incoming seniors for 20 minutes before selecting her stars. "I just picked people that I really liked."

In the end, she chose quintessential archetypes that used to collide in every John Hughes film. There's the band geek named Jake whose acne flares with each romantic rejection and the jock, Colin, who is as affable as a golden Lab. Hannah is the quirky Molly Ringwald-esque misfit with dreams of becoming a film director, while the rich, blond queen bee named Megan wages psychological warfare on anyone who threatens her power.

For the 37-year-old Burstein, gaining the teens' trust took a few months. "They're very protective of their lives and suspicious of adults," she says. Working with one camera crew, she maintained daily contact with the four students to stay abreast of their lives. "I was constantly on call, texting and i-chatting. "

In "The Kid Stays in the Picture," Burstein used photo animation to flesh out the life of Hollywood producer Robert Evans. This time around, she worked with Blacklist to create vivid animation sequences that convey the fantasy lives of each teen. The results are poignant, though predictable: The geek gets the girl; the jock scores the winning shot.

"You don't get that wish-fulfillment in real life," says Burstein of the animated vignettes. The most haunting sketch -- which feels like a macabre take on "Alice in Wonderland" -- reveals Hannah's fear that she will inherit her mother's mental illness. "I spent a lot of time talking to them about their secret fears and fantasies."

In some ways, the film feels as choreographed as an episode of "The Hills." The popular girl predictably reigns like a despot and turns on her best friend. The jock's father, an Elvis impersonator who hoped to play pro ball back in the day, pressures his son to make 12 rebounds at the big game. Around Park City, there have been whispers that Burstein may have scripted the doc.

"It's not scripted and I didn't make any arrangements with the kids to act a certain way," says Burstein, who shot 1,000 hours of footage. "I don't want to sound arrogant, but it plays like fiction because it's so moving. Maybe it speaks to the polish of the film."

Or to the fact that Hollywood truly is like high school.

Photo credits: Nanette Burstein

Sundance needs a makeover

When Paris Hilton -- dressed in a pink Paris Hilton ski cap and a T-shirt bearing her image  -- causes more of a manic panic than Robert Redford at Sundance, you know this film festival needs an overhaul. The fact that she had a movie to promote, "The Hottie and the Nottie," is utterly irrelevant. (The film was not officially part of the festival, but merely piggybacking on the vast exposure of the annual event in Park City.)

Paris, wearing her frothy Paris togs, represents everything that is now wrong with Sundance. The festival has become a hot bed of branding for everything and anything. (Even Sundance itself teamed up with designer Paul Frank to hawk its own festival branded merch this year, but, hey, they deserve to make a buck.)

Movie parties are sponsored by vodka brands and speaker companies. Magazines like Bon Appetit open ad hoc eateries to host catered luncheons for visiting talent. (Full disclosure: I attended a lunch for the cast of "The Wackness" at this venue and watched Sir Ben Kingsley chew his beef tenderloin from across the room.) When an agent approached to introduce me to a film director but got waylaid by a PR rep who was touting a Napa Valley Chardonnay, it was clear to me that there's too much heat in the kitchen.

Photo credits: Paris Hilton, Wire Image; 'Sundance Woman,' 20th Century Fox

Anna Wintour on Hillary Clinton: MANNISH!

Anna Wintour, unlike Karl Lagerfeld, has no love for Hillary Clinton. She says, in  her latest editorial in Vogue:

"The notion that a contemporary woman must look mannish in order to be taken seriously as a seeker of power is frankly dismaying. How has our country come to this? ... This is America, not Saudi Arabia."

Precisely, Anna. Right on. Just because you're chapped off that Clinton backed out on your recent Vogue cover, you go and make some silly, snitty statement that plays right into the right wing's criticism of our first female presidential candidate.  Read more about it on Jezebel.com.

This type of girl-on-girl action is the very reason that we may never have a woman president. You go, Anna!

Photo credit: Getty Images

Sundance coverage: Brrr

Off to Park City to cover the Sundance Film Festival. According to weather.com, it's 21 degrees there, with a slight chance of flurries.  Makes me wonder how all those swizzle-stick-sized actresses will stay warm.

Me? Parka, black tights under wide-leg Joe's jeans, equestrian boots with a sturdy heel, and thin black turtlenecks beneath vivid peasant blouses. I am aiming for the look of a bohemian yeti.

Expect flurries of commentary when time allows.

Photo credit: WireImage

The 'it' bag is dead. Designers mourn

THE "it" bag, a status purse that costs more than a round-trip ticket to Paris and a favorite among stylish affluent women, is officially dead. "It" always refused to reveal its age but first hit the scene in the early '90s and was most prominently seen swinging gleefully from toned arms in the last five years.

The "it" bag was often known for its vibrant hides, large-toothed zippers and flamboyant hardware. Designers like Louis Vuitton, Chloé and Fendi all vied for the prestigious title with seasonal offerings of hobo bags and zaftig satchels -- all gifted to celebrities, of course.

The species did not die of natural causes. Fashion authorities suspect that a recent "it" bag -- the Yves Saint Laurent Muse -- is mostly responsible for wiping out the trend of women coveting one brand of designer bag ad nauseam.

The Muse, a jaunty and haughty take on a bowling bag, was the Palme d'Or among accessory addicts. Like a slain stag slung across the roof of a pickup truck, the Muse signified that a woman had bagged the right bag. Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton and other starlets reserved the cozy crooks of their arms for the popular purse.

These days, life pales for the Muse. The newest gray-felt version of the YSL handbag was last seen sheepishly lurking on discount retailer Bluefly.com. It was priced at 20% off. (Muse's distant cousins -- the Burberry Edna and a patent leather satchel by Fendi -- are currently selling at Costco.)

Much like the popular pretty girl who always dies first in a horror film, the "it" bag was a victim of its own ambition.

"A bag is only an 'it' bag when it's not accessible to everyone," says Christos Garkinos, the co-owner of local designer consignment store Decades Two, who admits that he is currently harboring a few secondhand Muses in his shop. "When Banana Republic and Forever 21 came out with a version of the Muse, it was suddenly everywhere."

Not to mention the coy Muse clones sold by Guess, H&M and almost every counterfeit purse hustler from Canal Street to Santee Alley. Muse-carrying studio execs and talent agents were horrified to see their assistants rifling through their very own Muses. Beverly Hills socialites mistakenly grabbed the wrong white Muse after a few mimosas.

"I ordered one when I was in New York, but then came home and saw everyone carrying it," says Jessica Wu, a chic Los Angeles dermatologist with an A-list clientele. "I sent it right back without even opening the box."

The Muse's noxious ubiquity has spurred the most fashionable women to stray from the retail herd mentality. A purse touted as the next "it" bag holds as much cachet as a VIP Blockbuster membership.

"There's a backlash because women feel betrayed by the fact that a company calls a bag 'limited edition' and then makes 100,000 of them," says Milton Pedraza, chief executive of the Luxury Institute, a retail research firm in New York. "That's deadly."

The "it" bag -- in all its incarnations -- will be fondly remembered. The Muse is survived by its sister, the YSL Downtown bag, and offspring including the Muse charm bracelet, Muse wrap sunglasses (left) and Muse sandals.

Photo credits: Kate Moss, Splash; coffin, cemetarybroker.com