The Hills has much more going on than the catfights and fabulous outfits. But it does have to do with fabulous outfits, actually.

Heidi Montag, villainness of The Hills, is taking a needle out of costar Lauren Conrad’s sewing box. She has just reportedly signed a deal to design her own line of clothing. This fast spreading affliction seens to be de rigueur for the “I think I can design because I am hot right now” young Hollywood set. First Nicky Hilton, then her sister Paris, followed by Mandy Moore, Amanda Bynes and Lauren Conrad, but the list goes on. Just how many clothes can a fashionable girl/woman wear? It is a Hollywood punishable offense to repeat an outfit!

This deal for Heidi follows on an earlier one where she will be the face of the spring/summer 2008 campaign for the store Anchor Blue along with designing seasonal pieces for them. We wonder what her pieces will look like; we actually like some of Conrad’s past pieces.

This recent trip to Paris for vendor shows marks my fourth trip to the
“City of Light.” What I noticed immediately was the enormous increase
of bicycles in the city. Everywhere you looked there were two wheelers
zooming by. And no there was no training for the Tour de France going
on. It seems with a little ingenuity and lots of traffic, this was the
ideal mode of transportation for Parisians and visitors alike. During a
client dinner I found out from one of the executives that these
“at-the-ready” cycles were a newly installed phenomenon overtaking
Paris. One only needed a credit card, have the ability to ride a
two-wheeler, and an adventuresome spirit, to ride off into the sunset
of the city or the nearest Vélib dock. This phenomenon began on July 15
with thousands of bicycles being available at self-service docks
through out the city. The advantage is that the metro system stops at
approximately 1:00a.m. and the bicycle docks are open all night. So
check out a bike, ride with liberté and park/dock at the nearest Vélib.
For more info check out www.velib.paris.fr.

What do Heidi, Josie, Helena and Daria have in common? Better yet, how can we benefit from it? Besides their winning tickets in the gene pool lottery and supermodel status, they all have make-up/hair lines in stores or coming out that we, as mere mortals, can revel in.

Heidi has her “secret,” that would be Victoria’s Secret The Heidi Collection Very Sexy Makeup, which has all the requisite pieces:
concealer, mosaic bronzer, eyeliner for bedroom eyes, and, of course, the pout-perfecting lipstick. Former Maybelline spokesmodel Josie Maran has an eco-conscious line with biodegradeable packaging coming out soon, and Helena teamed up with fellow model Erin O’Connor and British singer/model Jamelia to produce five-piece product lines that address hair care exclusively for Tony & Guy Model.Me. Daria has created a limited-edition color collection with Lancome, the Daria Werbowy Collection, where Sephora, who will also sell the collection, will donate a portion of the proceeds to a children's art center in Brazil.

Eco-conscious, charity-minded and just plain beauty-centered lines - we're looking forward to these models' collections.

Designers are doing more than just talking about going green and its effects, they are designing for it too.

Linda Loudermilk and Phillip Lim are two of the fashion forward
thinking eco-design warriors who use environmental safe and sustainable
fabrics in their eponymous collections. In Phillip Lim’s Go Green Go
line, a full line of dresses and mixed pieces sold exclusively at
Barney’s New York starting in Spring 2008, is made using undyed and
untreated organic cotton. He mixes in sustainable silk and uses it as a
lining in some of his designs. Though the line is organic the styles
are anything but mundane. Linda Loudermilk, a designer at the beginning
of the “see the eco light” brigade, is known for her languid, luxury designed eco-wear. She experiments with mud dyes, organic cotton,
bamboo, seaweed and even recycled plastic bottles. Loudermilk’s designs
are eco luxury designs that are chic and hip. But these two are not the
only designers that feel Green is the new Black, Stella McCartney’s
Organic, Earthaware’s Organic and Monarchy offer a wealth of styles to
choose from, too.

Life really is all about the shoes and the handbags, at least according
to the 11th annual Accessories Council Excellence (ACE) awards held in
New York City on November 5, 2007. Awards were given to an Indigo
haired Marc Jacobs for Designer-of-the-Year, to Terry Lundgren — Macy’s
CEO for Retailer of the Year, Tory Burch for Accessory Brand Launch,
Nancy Gonzalez for the Brand of the Year from Bergdorf Goodman and too
many more to name. The Fashion A-listers, television personalities and
Hollywood starlets all turned out in fabulous frocks to show their
support. A few stand out looks of the evening were Kerry Washington, in
a “bucking the trend” silver Tory Burch knee-length shift and Lucy Liu
a vision of loveliness in a black layered Valentino halter gown.

Glamour was the theme across town at Lincoln Center. Avery Fisher Hall
was abuzz with the fashion cognoscenti for Glamour magazine’s Woman of
the Year awards. Amongst the evening’s honorees were Donna Karan who
received the Style Force award, Jennifer Garner awarded the Icon Next
Door, Elizabeth Edwards was given the Role Model award for her courage
and continual campaign commitment. The lovely Angelina Jolie received
the Inspiration award, Victoria “Posh” Beckham received the
Entrepreneur of the Year and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi received the
Special Recognition award.

At the third annual Los Angeles Fashion Awards 2007, designer Max Azria
was honored with the Wells Fargo Century Achievement Award. The award
was a testament to his BCBG Label, his staying power and international
success. Also during the award Fred Segal was honored with the Retailer
of the Year award.

Who better to create a resort collection than Stefani Greenfield, owner
of the eponymously named shops in NYC and as far flung as Mykonos,
Greece. The collection, aptly named Scoop Beach is not for the “fashion
faint at heart” girl. This line is reminiscent of the Sixties icon,
Talitha Getty, known for her often worn, endless array of caftans. The
line isn’t all saccharine sweet day pieces though, there are ikat print
caftans, long crocheted skirts, strapless leopard print dresses, woven
tops, pants, scarves, sandals, handbags and jewelery too. With vivid
colors and fairly reasonable prices — ranging from $55 to $500 — life
really is a beach.

Being tall, handsome, writing all of your own lyrics, the ability to play almost every instrument, having a successful music career, and skads of beautiful models is not enough for Lenny Kravitz. The style chameleon has teamed up with Tom Ford - former Creative Director of Gucci and YSL, owner of the Tom Ford store in NYC - to produce an as yet named line of upscale clothing to be sold exclusively in high-end boutiques in London. Can't you just smell what these two style scientist will be cooking? If that were not enough, he
is also opening a new lounge in collaboration with Art Basel Miami Beach at the Delano Hotel in South Beach. Oh yeah as for that music gig, his new album, "It is Time for a Love Revolution" drops early next year in time for Valentine's Day.

Was there something in the water last winter and this past spring? Because, damn, lots of celebs are pregnant or rumored to be pregnant. Of course some
are more obvious than others. Nicole Richie seems to have settled into impending motherhood better than expected. A glowing Cate Blanchett happily confirmed that she was in the early stages of her third pregnancy.

But some celebs aren't ready to confirm what we all know to be true. There have continued to be denials and slips of the tongue — her own mother speaking about twins and Roberto Cavalli publicly announcing last week that she had special needs &mdash and J. Lo's ever-increasing baby bump has still not been confirmed that it is, in fact, a baby bump (come on, we know Jenny from the Block wouldn't let herself go). At least a very happy Halle Berry is ecstatic --and vocal! -- about her baby she's expecting with her gorgeous Calvin Klein model boyfriend Gabriel Aubry. That'll be a baby whose looks will rival the Jolie-Pitts newcomer(s?). Diaper bag, anyone?

What does a designer to do when her name is synonymous with one of the leading bridal collections, designs many thriving ready-to-wear lines, has flourishing fragrance deals and mattresses, to name a few? Besides realizing she's at the height of success, take advantage of that by bringing her high-end designs to the masses.

Simply Vera by Vera Wang for Kohl’s promises to do just that. The line not only includes standouts like ruffled cardigans, short sleeved brocade coats, shift dresses, skinny pants and oversize sweaters that exemplify Wang’s style. You can wear the pieces as Vera shows you in her online look book under the Women’s category at Kohl’s or mix and match the pieces to find your own eclectic fit.

Now, thanks to Kohl's, everyone can afford a little Vera Wang.