An Inside Look at the Life of a Model

Don't hate the models of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week because they're beautiful. Or because they get to recharge in the Model Lounge of the Gansevoort Park Avenue South. Or because they get chauffeured around in the new Porsche Panamera. If you think you can stand a look, grab a behind-the-scenes peek at what's making their tough lives a little easier here.

NY Fashion Week - The Model Lounge

Grab Your Credit Cards, It's Time to Spend!

Unlike the Kyoto Protocol, tonight's big global initiative is likely to win widespread support across the aisles here in the United States. We're talking, of course, about Fashion's Night Out, the open-house spendapalooza sponsored by Vogue magazine and the Council of Fashion Designers of America. In addition to the U.S., participating countries include the UK, Greece, Italy, Russia, France, Brazil, India, Spain, China, Germany and Japan. Here in New York, at stores uptown, downtown and everywhere in between, customers will enjoy music performances, celebrity appearances, special gifts and discounts. There are far too many to name in one post, but among our favorite participating retailers include Thom Brown, 7 for All Mankind (whose children's line is seen above), Takashimaya, Barneys New York and Alexander McQueen. For the complete list, click here.

If you do wind up hitting the stores this evening, drop us a line tomorrow and let us know where you went and what goodies you wound up buying. Good luck, and happy shopping!

On the Surface

Far from the preeening in the tents at Bryant Park, Surface magazine threw a Fashion Week bash on the Lower East Side last night where there was nonetheless still quite a bit of preening in evidence. Held at the Surface-designed bi-level penthouse of the Hotel on Rivington, the party attracted a diverse cast of characters who sipped cocktails, danced and soaked up the jaw-dropping views. All in all, it was a welcome break from the frequently buttoned-up scene in midtown.

For more photos, click here.

Painting the Town Red

Desi Arnaz would have been in his glory during the glitziest of Fashion Week's high-profile events. Had he stumbled on "The Heart Truth," the man who sang "The lady in red is as fresh as a daisy when the town is in bed," would have been delighted to spy not just one lady in red, but twenty. Yes, the runway was filled with red-clad ladies, each one in a dress more stunning than the last. Vivica Fox, 90210 alumnae Jennie Garth and Tori Spelling, Susan Lucci, Kristi Yamaguchi (left), a pair of Amandas (Beard and Bynes) and other luminati took to the red carpet in gowns designed by the likes of Betsey Johnson, Donna Karan and Max Azria to help raise awareness about heart disease, the number-one killer of women. If you think you can pull off a red dress yourself, check out clothesoffourback.com, where several of the gowns worn in the show will be auctioned. The sale concludes on February 27 and the ensembles will be on display at Top of the Rock's Observation Deck through February 21.

For more photos, click here.