Inescapable pop culture phenomenon Twilight and its marketing machine has triggered an onslaught of inspired looks for salivating tweens, teens and maybe even adults. Hot Topic and Nordstrom have both issued collections (see samples from Nordstrom’s above) of shirts, charm necklaces, cardboard figures and lunchboxes emblazoned with Edward and Bella’s faces and phrases like “Bet you can’t read my mind.” Despite my personal Twilight obsession, I can’t get behind anyone (be they 13 or 30) wearing these clothes. I can, however, understand the appeal of some of the actors’ onscreen looks, such as Bella’s cozy parka, Edward and Jasper’s sleek jackets and aspects of Alice’s bohemian, vintage-inspired layers (bell sleeves paired with cropped vests and such). Want to get your own Twilight look, without buying the cash-in collections? Check out G-Star for similar men’s styles, our vintage store round up for Alice’s look, and find the exact replica of Bella’s parka by Jack BB Dakota at fredflare.com.

“I want my clothes to be your friends,” Diane von Furstenburg told a couple hundred guests at Neiman Marcus last night after models donning looks from her winter and resort collections had finished struts down the catwalk. “I want you to reach into your closet for my clothes when you want to feel good.”  In a charming thank-you-for-coming wrap-up, the woman who made wrap dresses an eternal gotta-have-one item explained that nothing makes her happier than hearing a woman say she was wearing a DVF piece during an important event that marked a new beginning in hlife—like a marriage proposal, or a successful job interview. “And no matter how old or young you are, there are always new beginnings,” she added. The crowd-pleasing collection had a characteristically happy DVF vibe: jumpers, dresses, tunics, pin-up style bathing suits and cardigans came in ethnic prints, polka dots, bright-hued sequins, flowy chiffon and hot pink. And just about every look—minus the giant, over-the-top bow turbans—looked as wearable as DVF’s ubiquitous wrap dress.

More bad news for the West Loop: This morning I received an e-mail from owner Allyson Holleb of handbag boutique Bess & Loie announcing the closing of her store at the end of this month. Next week (Thursday 12, 5–9pm), show your support by stopping by for the closing party, where items will be marked as much as 90% off. Fixtures and furniture will be available, too, but make sure to bring cash for that stuff.

In addition to the discounts available now through closing day, the major consolation is that while Holleb is shuttering the doors of her West Loop location, she’s still planning to stick around in other brick-and mortar-boutiques by hosting a self-described “shop-in-shop.” For her first stop, she’s bringing her bags to former neighbor, Lincoln Park newbie Erin Gallagher’s eponymous store (Erin Gallagher, 2034 N Halsted St). Keep an eye on Holleb’s website (where she’ll continue adding new merch) to find out more about these upcoming shops in a shop.

In this week’s “Almost perfect” issue, I said State Street needs a better selection of stores. And guess what? Crain’s just reported that a bunch of new stores have signed leases to be a part of Block 37. We already knew about Zara, Anthropologie and Puma opening in the space, but the new list includes Sephora (which will be a big competition for the Ulta down the street), GNC and L ‘Occitane.

Yes, these seem like typical mall fare, so what’s more exciting about the list is the addition of a few local shops in the mix. Local designer Michelle Tan is opening a second outpost of her namesake boutique in the mall’s second level. Other local-owned businesses slated for Block 37 include Bleeding Heart Bakery, Comic Vault, Alternatives Shoes and a second location of Claudia Kleiner Malabar Collection.

Of course, with a foreclosure lawsuit filed against its developer, the mall’s opening (currently scheduled for later this month) could get pushed back. Kleiner seems optimistic, though, and tells us she’s hoping to be open by December 1. “I love the development [of the mall],” Kleiner told me in an e-mail. “It looks fantastic and is going to be a totally different mall than what Chicagoans are used to, this will be the first to showcase ‘hometown talent’ designers stores, so it won’t be only big national retailers, and we are so proud to be part of that.”

While we have our fair share of great vintage stores in the city, one thing we don’t often find is a vintage show where shop owners, designers  and shoppers in-the-know find deals and inspirations. Thank God for the arrival of the Chicago Vintage Show, an offshoot of Manhattan’s popular edition, which takes place this weekend at Plumbers Hall. The event features 30 vintage textile and clothing vendors selling the original looks that inspired today’s runway fashions. If you’re willing to pay $10–$25 extra, whet your whistle at the preview party from 6-9pm Friday night; otherwise, stroll in Saturday from 10am–6pm or Sunday from 11am–5pm. Pay $10 in advance or $15 at the door.

While everyone is out rushing to get their last-minute Halloween costumes, you fellas can invest in an item that has a lot more longevity than that Michael Jackson get-up that’s costing you a small fortune. I just put in a call to the local Brooks Brothers to find out how many of the $1,000 Mad Men edition Brooks Brothers suits they have left in stock. The answer: one! But don’t fret just yet. You can try to place an order online (sizes 36 and 39 are still available) if another guy beats you to the punch tonight.

It was a night full of surprises at this year’s Fresh Faces fashion show presented by Gen Art. The event, which showcases Up-and-coming Chicago designers, served as the grand finale for the city’s Fashion Week. There were glorious highs and a few lows that made for an interesting affair. Read more »

Friday night got a little warmer as Horacio Nieto debuted his spring 2010 collection of men’s and womenswear at EnVent. The runway layout placed a linear rectangle in the middle of the room for the models to navigate through and a massive dynamic screen projection turned the cozy wooden palace into a fierce theatrical event. With the right combination of music, atmosphere, and positive energy, Nieto successfully executed a charming experience that left the public wanting more. Read more »

Models showcased high-fashion sleepwear and sexy lingerie from Chicago’s up-and-coming designer Marc Wayne of Marc Wayne Intimates this past Friday night.  While the LadyLux Fashion Show was accompanied by music spun by one of LuxLounge’s all-female in-house DJs, the models stayed around and lingered and joined the other club-goers on the dance floor post-runway. Check out the gallery above for photos.

Photos: Amy Mokris

Spring is a pretty rainy season, so I guess it kind of worked that it was pouring down rain as spring looks were shown at the Macy’s Presents the Designers of Chicago runway show, the first big show in the Millennium Park tent this weekend. In fact, as the city’s fashion czar Melissa Gamble and Andrea Schwartz from Macy’s introduced the show, they warned that the backstage area was majorly flooded and the models, shoes and some clothes might look a little wet. I was prepared for the worse. I remember attending a Columbia College fashion show in a tent a few years and a couple of the models totally bit it due to water on the runway. Luckily, that wasn’t the case here. No one slipped and everything looked dry.

The show was broken up into two parts: Designers that are actually carried at Macy’s on State Street and the designers-in-residence at the store’s Chicago Fashion Incubator.

Because a majority of the clothes will be sold at Macy’s this spring, many of the looks were on the safe side. Lara Miller opened the show with her signature eco-friendly materials (including hand-loomed bamboo, organic cotton and raw silk organza). A standout was the Stacia ruffle dress in pool color—a cool color that made up a majority of the collection.

Miller’s color choice was a nice touch, because many of the designers (such as Jermikko) featured a lot of boring old beige. Pierre Colorado of Blake Standard had nice splashes of color (reds, purples) in his casual, knit clothes; and designer Tennille White also focused on interesting shades (seafoam green, peach) but the most interesting thing about her presentation wasn’t the clothes, it was the plus-size models strutting down the runway.

White’s models got the biggest applause of the night—until it was time for Lee Allison and Sugar Chicago to present ties. Yes, boring, old ties. But the male models wore them with only boxers, dress socks and dress shirts, which they unbuttoned down the catwalk. One of the most popular moments from Macy’s Glamorama is always when the male models show off the latest underwear, so I think the department store remembered this and brought it back.

While nothing on the runway was avant-garde, the Incubator designers took a few more risks. Anna Hovet’s color-block knitwear kind of reminded me of Rainbow Brite going “street;” and the designs of Furio were nice (blouses and skirts) but every piece included the same fabric accents. It wasn’t really enough to make much of a statement, which made me think she really liked the fabric, but couldn’t afford enough of it.