Greatest

Attention freegan fashionistas: Yves Saint Laurent will hand out thousands of free limited edition cotton totes starting September 6 in the fashion-conscious cities of Paris, New York, London, Milan, Tokyo and Hong Kong. The Stefano Pilati-designed bag giveaway coincides with YSL’s annual catalogue handout in key markets. Approximately 500,000 catalogues land in the hands of potential customers with 5,000 in each of the five cities coming in the black and white tote.

Does the dotted red line pop up every time you spell “consensus”? Well, the consensus of the people at Collins dictionary in Britain is that certain misspellings are less the result of ignorance and more the over application of rules by the uncommonly clever. When spelling a word like “sacrilegious,” those in the vocab-know mistakenly assume “religious” must form its base; “consensus,” contrary to a certain logic, does not have the same spelling as “census.” For those missing the boat on “reely,” “peenut,” “hor” and “as,” no one is quite sure what’s going on there but please avoid any serious attempts at graffiti.

We have entered the world of shopping ’round the clock, click here, click there, ta-dah and all without having to engage in an awkward conversation with a nosy salesperson or drab cashier. While online shopping won’t likely ever disappear, do we all secretly miss having that middle-aged woman in housewares tell us where to find jackets? In studies that looked at the satisfaction of three completely different groups–convicted felons, venture capitalists and injured patients–the level of “customer” satisfaction directly tied to the amount of feedback and attention offered. In a hurried world, customer relationships can not fall by the wayside if companies hope to grow.

A gift-bearing crowd of 150,000 descended on the small town of Keshobpur, Bangladesh to lay eyes on Kiron, the boy born with two heads on Monday. Worries about the safety of the baby and his 22-year-old mother prompted doctors to transfer the pair to a larger city with a more substantial police force who are posted around clock. The child appears to have one set of everything with one obvious exception, but doctors have not yet determined whether any internal organs have also been duplicated. So far, he’s a healthy little guy otherwise.

Lucky for Nastia Liukin, Shawn Johnson and Alicia Sacramone, Michael Phelps doesn’t break out the blush brush or accent his brown eyes with volumizing mascara. The trio of adorable U.S. gymnasts will appear in CoverGirl ads, joining the company of other famous CoverGirls like Rihanna and Drew Barrymore. The flipping, cartwheeling and swinging squad actually signed a deal with the cosmetics company before their trip to Beijing, allowing a CoverGirl team to create custom make-up looks for each of the gymnasts. The team’s silver-medal success and the individual achievements of Nastia and Shawn will mean more ads and maybe a little more moola. Kudos to CG for skipping the tacky eye shadow a la that little 14-year-old Chinese gymnast. Note: bright blue eyeshadow doesn’t make you look older, just straight out of the 80s.

Expectations for LA to land in the big pond at some point (some hoping for sooner rather than later) run high, but what about New York City? Though not on a single major fault line like its western counterparts, a “family” of smaller fault lines — discovered in a recent analysis of local seismic activity conducted by Columbia University — could be just as disastrous for the metropolis. Of particular concern is the Indian Point nuclear facility’s location near the largest of the faults, though a spokesperson claims it “may very well be among the safest places to go during a seismic event.” Yeah, they’ll be lining up for that opportunity.

Ok, so two Karl Lagerfeld posts in two days might seem a bit excessive, but the kooky fashion icon provided so many comical quotes in a recent interview with the Times’ Sunday magazine that it would be a crime not to post. The oft-smug designer sat down to express his dislike of intellectuals–”I don’t like their (intellectuals) company. I’m the most superficial man on Earth”– and his “abstract” view of death– “Everything changes, except death. Billions have died before us, so it can’t be that bad.” Lagerfeld also revealed a secret about his footwear, revealing he buys shoes a size too small because he “likes the way it feels.” Ok, one last quote for your giggling pleasure: “I have no problem with journalists. Only if they are really stupid, or if they’ve got bad breath, or if they smell.”

Marc Jacobs has tapped faux-lesbian girl group t.A.T.u to star in his new fall-winter ad campaign. Don’t expect to see the quirky ads in the pages of Vogue anytime soon though, as the campaign will only appear in Russia, which makes sense since the last thing most Americans remember about the Russian pop group is a white underwear extravaganza of a performance at the 2003 VMAs.

Could the Lifetime network’s wooing of “Project Runway” signal a major shift at the network known for melodramatic movies of the week and “Golden Girls” reruns? The female-targeted cable channel’s original programming has enjoyed relative success with shows like “Army Wives,” but with “Project Runway” joining the channel in November, Lifetime is diving into the crowded world of reality competition shows. “Blush: The Search for America’s Greatest Makeup Artist” will serve as a companion to the network’s expensive “Runway” acquisition. Lifetime has ordered six-episodes of “Blush” that will feature eight would-be makeup artists living together in L.A. and battling it out for the grand prize.

Although bikini-clad pole dancers may be standard fare for beer commercials, French viewers of the new Orangina commercial think sexing up the animal kingdom is taking it a little too far. The audience was shocked by scenes of Orangina “…exploding between the thighs of zebras and squirting onto the breasts of other animals…” and phoned in numerous complaints after the commercial was aired during an episode of “How to Look Good Naked.” One children’s charity says the commercial sends mixed messages to kids, but one has to ask, why are they watching “How to Look Good Naked,” anyway?

A routine traffic stop outside of Denver turned into something much more sinister when police discovered rifles, boxes of ammo, a rifle scope, a bullet proof vest, walkie-talkies and methamphetamines…and the driver threatened Barack Obama’s life. Three more arrests followed at various hotels in the area where weapons and drugs were also found, and the suspects’ jewelry and tattoos suggest they may have ties to white supremacist groups. Police believe the comment about the candidate was more off the cuff rather than premeditated, but the weapons found in their possession were extremely disturbing in light of the previous felony convictions of the driver. Is this really something that should be played down?

Garrett Lisi epitomizes every suburban mom/high school teacher’s worst nightmare: a surfer living on the beach, doctorate in theoretical physics sitting on the shelf while he guides hikes and builds bridges, the possibility of being homeless next month pretty good. Well, think again! Lisi’s online article, “An Exceptionally Simple Theory of Everything,” has struck the scientific world like a lightening bolt, outlining a new theory of the universe based on the mathematical pattern E8. While former theories linked three of the four fundamental forces in the universe, Lisi’s model also incorporates the elusive force of gravity as well. “My brain exploded with the implications and the beauty of the thing…I thought: ‘Holy crap, that’s it!’” Duu-ude.

Manscaping continues to spread around the world and it seems the Germans have fully embraced beauty regimes. Women of Deutschland, not so much. An online survey revealed that German men spend an average of 30 minutes daily caring for their skin and body (not including shaving and bathing), while women only dedicated about 26 minutes per day. Ich liebe metrosexuals!
(Photo Credit: Eva Serrabassa/iStockphoto)

Retailers around the country have felt the economic pinch, reporting declining sales and store closings, but Urban Outfitters has managed to somehow avoid the effects of the consumer-spending slump. Outfitters, along with sister stores Anthropologie and Free People, boasted a 79 percent increase in fiscal second-quarter net income despite putting a relatively limited number of items on sale. Other retailers have gone a bit sale crazy trying to lure in customers wary of spending money. Chief Executive Glen Senk said that the company plans to roll out 45 stores this year, but plans to cap growth for each branch at around 250 locations because of a company-wide policy that notes “big is the enemy of cool.”

Imagine an innocent cut on the knee leading to the nightmare of seemingly growing roots, and there you have the dilemma that faced Dede, an Indonesian fisherman, until University of Maryland’s Dr. Anthony Gasparri picked up the case. A case of HPV, which generally causes small warts on its sufferers, combined with a rare genetic condition unable to hinder the wart growth led to root-like lesions blossoming from the man’s hands and feet. Fired from his job and abandoned by his wife, Dede was left to depend on his extended family and a gig with the local freak show to support his two children. Synthetic vitamin A and surgery should allow him to lead a normal life, but bureaucratic obstacles necessitate him staying in Indonesia for the time being.

Bratz and Barbie share a few physical characteristics, like abnormally large body parts and perfectly arched eyebrows, but the two popular doll lines also shared one vital link that has landed Mattel enough money to buy a boatload of Barbie Mansions. The link is Carter Bryant, creator of Bratz dolls who was under contract with Mattel when he came up with the idea for and sketched mock ups of the big-headed urban fashionistas. Mattel had sued MGA Entertainment, the maker of Bratz, for $2 billion arguing that because Bryant remained under contract, Mattel owned the rights to all of his designs. The settlement did not reach anywhere near the $2 billion asked for, but MGA will have to payout at least $40 million.

Just what everyone over a size 6 was waiting for: the return of leather pants. A number of designers have rolled out versions for the fall ranging from long, lean and lanky, to loosely tailored, though some say stick to the skinny version for a classic ’90s flashback look. And for the fashion-conscious vegan, Notify, Guess, Harvey Nichols and Goldsign are wheeling out an all-pleather alternative. Although touted as a return to the grunge look, last time I checked my grunge wardrobe, there was nary a leather pant to be found amidst the flannel and hiking boots, but that might be why Vogue ain’t knockin’ on my door…

The Primetime Emmy Awards may finally move from Snooze-ville to a mildly entertaining trophy-fest as a persistent rumor has popped up that reports funny lady Kathy Griffin will present at this year’s show. Only presenting?! If the producers had any sense, they would book the My Life on the D-List star to host the TV schmoozefest.

With Michael Phelps landing oodles of high-paying endorsement deals following his amazing Olympic performance, it should not come as any surprise that Mikey’s mommy may benefit from her son’s success with a collaboration deal of her own. Debbie Phelps went on a mini Chico’s shopping spree pre-Beijing, even sporting one of the retailer’s outfits in a Johnson & Johnson commercial, and now the womenswear line has entered talks with Mama Phelps about a possible deal. The website already showcases different pieces donned by Debbie during her trip to China.

Consumers waiting to jump on the Blu-Ray bandwagon may finally hope onboard as a rumored player price slash will arrive this fall. Sony will reportedly cut prices by $100 or more and companies like Philips, Insignia, Magnavox and Sylvania will likely follow, putting players in the $249 range and far more appealing to mainstream consumers.

What can you not buy at Cracker Barrel? From holiday-themed home accessories to omelets to rocking chairs, the comfort food restaurant chain is the ultimate shopping destination for people who want to drop money in a place that smells like French Toast and scented candles. Add Kenny Rogers’ latest CD to the Cracker Barrel shopping list as the country star has tapped the restaurant to sell “Kenny Rogers: 50 Years.” Not available anywhere else, the album sells for $11.99 and features old hits like “Lucille” and “The Gambler” along with three new tunes.

Procter & Gamble hopes that a new $60 million marketing campaign featuring fashion guru Tim Gunn of “Project Runway” and a tie-in with Ann Taylor Loft stores can spell success for what the company calls the biggest product launch ever. The ad campaign for Tide detergent and Downy fabric softener’s “Total Care” line hopes to lure customers to the venerable laundry goods by boasting the products’ latest innovations that include technology from P&G beauty brands. Check out Gunn’s laundry advice on how to “make it work” at Tide’s website and swing by Ann Taylor Loft retailers for free samples starting in September.

So, who do you call when the fire station is on fire? In one small Arkansas town, they had to come up with an quick answer on Saturday when firefighters arrived at the station to answer a call and found they had a little problem. Calling the electric company to shut off the power was a bit frustrating according to the town’s fire marshal: “We told them the fire department has a fire. SWEPCO said ‘Yeah, the fire department has a fire.’ The dispatcher told them, ‘No it’s the fire station on fire!’” The blaze, started by a lightening strike, was caught in time to prevent any major damage, and the call they were supposed to answer turned out to only be a tree branch that had fallen on a power line.