KANYE WEST IS DEEPLY ABSORBED IN DESIGN RIGHT NOW

Kanye West's fashion line PasTelle could go up for sale on the Internet at any moment. Any delays in launching are only because he is almost insanely aware of his responsibility to offer only the best. As it stands, Kanye has — after working on the project for more than a year — only created four pieces as part of his line. They include three articles of clothing. And a belt. All of which Kanye wore to the shows in February and March.

He's been so absorbed in fashion as of late, he even cleared his schedule for an entire five months, starting back in February, to work only on clothing design, including the range of sneakers he designed for Louis Vuitton. This is not simply a case of Kanye attaching his name to a product, but a return to his childhood passion. Lil' Kanye, you see, loved to draw shoes. "Nobody — not even girls — loved clothes as much as me," West says. "And even now, the girls I go out with, I take them to the Pierre Hardy store and say, 'Why don't you wear these instead of Vans?'" Kanye won't even tour until the summer, so he can continue perfecting his garments and perhaps soon end the world's torturous yearning to wear them at last.

FUNNY SH*T | BILL O'REILLY GOES IN ON JAY-Z AND JEEZY

As much as I despise dude... I must admit, Bill O’Reilly is never scared! He goes in on Jay-Z and Jeezy for their comments Monday Night in Washington, DC during their performance. Check it out!

ARLENIS TO WALK IN VICTORIA'S SECRET SHOW

The Victoria's Secret girls had a beach photoshoot in Miami yesterday, we got to see of the 30 non-Angel faces that will be participating in this weekend's fashion show — 19 of them, to be exact. No sign of Jessica Stam or Natasha Poly, but after missing yesterday's event, Noemie Lenoir was there. There are plenty of new faces — but we are most excited to see fav Arlenis Sosa Pena in the mix.

SEAN JOHN ACQUIRES ENYCE

Sean “Diddy” Combs and Liz Claiborne Inc. announce late yesterday the purchase of fashion label ENYCE by Sean “Diddy” Combs. Founded in 1996, Enyce is a denim based sportswear brand offering knits, wovens, outerwear, and graphic tees for men and boys, as well as a successful “Big and Tall” and women’s line. Liz Claiborne purchased Enyce in 2003. Both companies will work together to ensure a smooth and orderly transition for retail partners, vendors and employees. Founder and CEO of Sean John, Sean “Diddy” Combs said, “Enyce is a brand that I have always admired, and they have been a very important player in the young men’s sportswear arena for over a decade. I am really excited to bring it into our portfolio of brands that already includes Sean John and Zac Posen. Given our track record of success in marketing products such as Ciroc Vodka, Unforgivable by Sean John, and all of our television titles, I look forward to adding our expertise to an already hot fashion line. Our long-term plan is to grow the Enyce brand through innovative marketing, expansion of the menswear and boy’s lines, and launching into new licensing categories. The current economic climate may be challenging, but we believe it is also an opportunity, and we are really excited to add Enyce to our lineup.

JOURDAN DUNN’S FIRST BRITISH VOGUE COVER

Jourdan Dunn is doing the damn thing.

After starring as one of the cover girls on the ground breaking Vogue Italia ‘A Black Issue’ and beating up virtually every runway this season - the British beauty now appears on the cover of Vogue UK.

Despite the fact she shares the cover with Eden Clark and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, it’s a start. And major news.

The last black model to be featured on the cover of Vogue UK was Naomi Campbell in 2002. (Naomi was right about now being able to retire.)

SESSILEE MIXES THINGS UP AT GIRBAUD

We were more than disappointed with Milan's all white runways. So we're glad designers are mixing it up in Paris. Sessilee Lopez opened up the Marithé et François Girbaud show yesterday morning, after walking Vivienne Westwood the night before. (We've also spotted Hollis, Arlenis and Chanel. And not that we don't love Jourdan, but one gorgeous girl of color per runway just doesn't cut it).

Anyway, the audience summed up the clothes on MFG's runway. Front row-ers channeled their best street style vibes mixed with a little bit of girly and lots of denim.

There was one dress we're pretty sure you could make out of a pillowcase.

USHER'S NEXT GIG: LINGERIE DESIGNER

Usher is a lingerie designer. Apparently he thought you might know that. At the Dutch lingerie designer Marlies Dekkers' show in Paris yesterday, the singer told WWD, "You may have heard that I might be launching a lingerie line for men and women." We don't know about WWD, but we sure hadn't heard. Usher said some of his designs appear in the yet-to be-released video for his new joint, Trading Places. We can imagine what his ladies' lingerie might look like, but a men's lingerie line leads the mind to wander. Ursh, you have us at the edge of our seats.

PHARRELL PREFERS ROLLS-ROYCE OVER BENTLEY

Pharrell recently did an interview with Motor Trend and he talks about why he loves the Roll-Royce so much.

“every stitch and every tiny detail are brilliant. It’s traditional and consistent quality. They spare nothing. Also, you can drive it just how you’re feeling. It can be a luxury vehicle or you can really put your foot in it and it darts out like an arrow. I had a Bentley but it wasn’t for me. At the end of the day, a Rolls is a Rolls.”

Click here to read the rest of the article.

RACHEL ROY DESIGNS FOR GREY GOOSE

Rachel Roy has partnered up with vodka maker Grey Goose, for her to exclusively design a cocktail dress for the company’s spokesmodel for all Grey Goose sponsored events.

Roy’s creation is “derived from the classic heritage and discerning taste of the luxury vodka brand,” according to Grey Goose. Roy notes, “In keeping with this tradition, my design matches the timeless fluidity of the little black dress, with a hint of the iconic, signature blue to capture the effortless elegance of this occasion.”

Rachel Roy will also incorporate eco-friendly materials into her fashion line in upcoming seasons to come. Rachel will donate 100% of the proceeds to an organization in Africa called Orphan Aids Africa, which helps orphans in Ghana.

FENDI HAS LANDED

Sessilee Lopez @ Fendi Spring '09

Milan Fashion Week is on its final leg. Karl Lagerfeld sent Über-messy-haired models down the runway at Fendi, Dsquared2 brought back the side slit, and Matthew Williamson showed his last Pucci collection.

NAOMI THE NEW FACE OF D&G???

Is Naomi Campbell the new face of D&G?

That’s the news being whispered about in the industry right now.

The supermodel has been seen sporting a variety of custom dresses from the design duo of Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana recently at London Fashion Week.

A source tells us:

“[Naomi] and Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana have been in secret talks for a while about making her D&G’s next face. They have had a relationship that spans decades and now the plan is for [her] to be their official muse and ambassador. She’ll be at the shows and will star in their worldwide advertising campaigns. An absolutely huge deal is on the table. The final deal is about to be signed off any day now.”

MILAN'S DISAPPOINTING DIVERSITY QUOTIENT

Milan Fashion Week wrapped up today, and we have continued tracking the model diversity quotient of shows over there as it did in New York. Ironically, runways in the nation that brought us an all-black Vogue were not only less diverse than New York's but disappointingly white:

3 major shows, Giorgio Armani, Marni and Jil Sander had no Black or Asian models at all. Gucci and Prada both had only 1 black model. Of the ones we surveyed (and in all fairness, we can't break down each and every designer) the only show to impress us with diversity was Bottega Veneta with 4 Black models and 1 Asian. Fendi, Versace, and Missoni all cast only one black model as well.

Can we point out that houses like Armani, Gucci, and Prada , we are big enough to get the girls that they want, so it's unlikely they were forced into using such white casts because they lost a battle with a show in a competing time slot. Paris starts tomorrow, so maybe we'll see a mix of girls there?

CHANEL IMAN BRINGS GUCCI BACK TO BLACK

Jourdan Dunn broke down walls last season at Prada, becoming the first black woman to walk for the house in ten years, and today Chanel Iman had her moment. This afternoon, she walked at Gucci, modeling two looks, becoming the first black woman to walk for the house since the Tom Ford days ended in 2005 and current creative director Frida Giannini took over.

HAS BERGDORF'S GOTTEN EVEN MORE EXCLUSIVE?

So, a Chanel gown in the window of Bergdorf Goodman is not a particularly big deal. There's practically one in there every week, so what's the big deal about this one? The text on the window reads:

CHANEL
Haute Couture
Fall Winter 2008
for information, visit our
Chanel Boutique on 2

Bergdorf's houses one of the most successful Chanel Boutiques anywhere, but what they and pretty much every other Chanel Boutique, whether freestanding or in-store, sell is deluxe Prêt à Porter, which, while wildly expensive and beautifully made, is not actually Couture. This gown is, and as such has to be custom made in Paris after a series of fittings for a price we would estimate to be in the high five figure range or higher.

So is Bergdorf's now taking orders for Chanel Haute Couture? ??

Well, no, according to our inquiry, but perhaps in efforts to counter the publicity blitz over the new Chanel Boutique at Saks, Bergdorf's has invited this gown for a rare visit to Fifth Avenue for the week or so, just to remind everyone who is top dog when it comes to opulence.

NAOMI AND JOURDAN WALK TOGETHER

A TINGLE went up the spines of London's front row yesterday at the Issa show when fashion history was made on the catwalk.

After a show which featured some of the modeling world's biggest names, it felt like the changing of the guard when, after an all-white finale, designer Daniella Issa Helayel walked down her catwalk with Naomi Campbell and Jourdan Dunn to close the show.

"Words can't describe how it felt to walk down the catwalk with the Daniella and Naomi," an elated Jourdan said backstage after the show. "I want to relive it all."

TYRA BANKS AND SESSILEE LOPEZ'S ODE TO MAHOGANY | V MAG OCTOBER 2008

Tyra Banks and Sessilee Lopez recreate some of the avant-garde looks Diana Ross rocked in the 1975 cult classic, Mahogany, in the October issue of V Magazine. I've always loved Tyra in editorial shoots but I think hats go off to Sessilee.

TOP MODELS GIRLS GET WORK AT FASHION WEEK

Dani, Eugena, Naima @ Project Runway

Yes, really! Five of America's Next Top Model contestants hit the runway this Fashion Week. Four of those five, including Naima Mora and Dani Evans, walked in the Project Runway showcase. And of those four, two walked in Korto's collection. So math tells us if any more past contestants want a shot atleast a semblance of a visible career, they ought to hope Korto becomes the next Christian Siriano. Check out the pics to see all five of the Tyra-trained models actually *gasp* working.

Saleisha @ Pamella Roland Bianca @ Project Runway

BEST SIGN FOR ANTM'S STREET CRED
Two former contestants and two winners — Eugena, Bianca, Naima, and Dani(elle) — walked in the Project Runway contestants' shows.

WORST SIGN FOR ANTM'S STREET CRED
Two former contestants and two winners had nothing better to do in the modeling world than walk in the Project Runway contestants' shows.

CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF ARLENIS

... neither can Oscar de la Renta.

First on his arm to the Met gala, then walking his resort collection, and now she does the honors of opening AND closing his show.

NAOMI STARTS COMMUNITY SERVICE... AGAIN

Naomi Campbell started the 200 hours of community service she was awarded for the infamous airport incident yesterday, but this time, there were no W magazine-hired photographers to capture her at work. You'll recall the last time a judge ordered Campbell to serve her community, she had to clean up a New York sanitation facility. Working in a soup kitchen this time, she shouldn't have to worry too much about keeping her designer clothes clean, since other volunteers have the messy jobs of cleaning and washing dishes, while she got to help out with paperwork in the office.

V MAG, VOLUME 55 | SEPTEMBER 2008

The issue has 18 covers, featuring the likes of Agyness Deyn, Christy Turlington and Naomi Campbell. Guess which 1 I'll be getting???