Today whilst reading The Cut: New York Magazines fashion blog; which is a regular feature on my mac screen, I came across a very interesting blog which instantly reminded me of something from Sex and the City.

The blog was documenting how the Washington’s Post’s Carolyn Hax had received a troubled letter from a distressed Manhattanite. The young woman went on to explain in her distressed note how she had been casually dating a work colleague for a few weeks, that the connection between them was incredible and that she was beginning to fall for him. But to her dismay he turned out to have a very strange pet hate.

Over dinner one evening he had commented on how un-sexy sweat pants/jogging pants are on the opposite sex, and if the person he’s dating ever wears them, it would be “over”, without a single hesitation. She wrote on how she had explained to him how herself and thousands, if not millions of other women often wore them; being that they’re comfortable around the house or when your feeling sick. H e still remarked that it was out of the question.

Well my friend we think you should get upto date with fashion trends and get your head out of 90’s, or for that matter your ideals out of the 1900’s when men were telling women how to dress and how to act. We are in  2009, fast approaching is the year 2010, where sweatpants are set to be the new premium jeans. In the past year designers have emulated the Alexander Wang  look that was featured on the runways around 2 seasons ago. Sweatpants lovers ranged from Wang to DKNY. So whether you love them or hate S/S 10 will be embracing sweatpants in all their style and versatility.

Here’s MFN’s agony aunt advice, get rid! He is obviously false with double standards; you know that if he were at home with a dreaded bout of man flu, he would not be curled up in front of Jeremy Kyle in his best Armani trouser suit, he would be lay there in his Topman jogging bottoms. If he acts likes this over sweatpants, I dread to think what he’d act like over the dreaded no make-up scenario. This breed of male should be banished from earth!

This exquisite necklace is one of many to feature at this evenings Fatz K jewllery launch at the General Store, Manchester. The oversized, vintage necklace could be a key piece for this years party season, sitting beautifully on the neckline of a simple, chic, party dress. The piece is handmade, incorporating vintage and religious charms,brooches and watch parts; recycling at its best!

The necklace is bang on trend as bold statement jewellery is still extremely popular and is set to remain a hit in the upcoming months winter months. Remember ladies big is beautiful.

To view more of Fatz K’s pieces or to find out more information about this evenings Fatz K jewellery launch, follow the link below:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=195320824287&index=1

Chinese take-away: check, big mug o’tea: check, baited breath and high hopes: I’ll work on it. It’s the X Factor Final – hoorah! The nation awaits your grandeur, so please don’t disappoint.

Dermot! You’re in black! Ding, dong, the grey is gone. Well, to be fair, it only took ten weeks; uncannily, the same amount of time it took for Mrs. Cole to get it right. Although she found it near impossible to walk (and I imagine, even harder to breathe) in her Zuhair Murad dress, Cheryl looked stunning. Definitely worth the bruised ribs and organ crushing.

In a surprising twist, Dannii failed to wow. Her over-processed hair screamed out for more than just an awkwardly placed headband, and her asymmetric, bland, grey (ankle-length!!) dress required more than a gold belt to rescue it from the brinks of boring-ness.

On to the show. Bring on the giant Christmas trees! Brian, was this your idea? Ooooh, exciting!… Are we having Christmas songs? No. It’s all bravado. Brian, how could you; no singing children dressed as elves? * sigh *

We begin with Dagenham Stace, who seems to be channeling Dannii’s lean toward the Grecian era, in an off-the-shoulder royal blue mini dress, complete with embellished neckline. It’s okay. It shows off Stacey amazing pins (I hate her) and, if you squint slightly, you’d swear it was a 70’s Barbara Streisand up there. Stacey’s second outfit is a floor-length, strapless bronze gown. Her hair is big; her voice is bigger. The WAG nail extensions are in full shot, now. At least you’ve got Alex Curran’s vote, but you won’t be winning any style awards any time soon. The final outfit for our Dagenham darling is a black sequined mini dress, again showing off those envious pins (please, Santa, bring me a Wii Fit). The Bat-cape, I’m sad to report, let’s the outfit down. If 10 year-old boys and WAGs make up the voting population tonight, Stacey’s place is safe.

Olly is up next, looking better this week in an ensemble of black and white. He’s working that waistcoat, and the stubble is a definite crowd-pleaser. Yes, the Olly style-package is back for one night only. Let’s pray that the shirt malfunctions stay under wraps. We make it to look number two without any flashes of nipple from Olly; so far, so good, but the Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum double act he’s got going on with Mr. Robbie Williams is a little disturbing; an ode to Jedward, perhaps? Outfit number three brings it on home. The shiny grey suit is back!

Taking pointers from Leon Jackson’s stylist, (who? Exactly.) Joe looked blander-than-bland. Here’s an idea; your mentor has two stylists – borrow one. Joe’s first outfit consisted of a pale shirt, no tie, very tight trousers and, wait… is that a buckle on Joe’s shoulder? I guess for the eighteen-year-old, this is considered risqué. At least for Joe’s second performance, our eyes are shielded from the shocking tight crotch by an ill-fitting grey suit jacket that’s at least two sizes too big. So THAT’S where Dermot’s suit has ended up. Performance three and old tight-crotch is back. I know it’s all about getting the votes in, but come on this is scraping the barrel. For Joe’s final performance, that grey hooded       waistcoat from week six is resurrected for another airing. It was bad enough the first time around and it’s certainly not a grower.

In the last naughty corner * sob *:

Cheryl, you were doing so well, but crashed and burned with Sunday’s horrific choice of garments. What have we learned from this series? Couture generally looks better on those 5’ 10” and over.

Final Sunday Best:

Well done, Joe. Now, fly my pretty and go find yourself a good stylist.

What a night this years British Fashion Awards turned out to be. Perhaps the worlds two biggest style icons Moss and Becks went head to head in the title race for most stylist guest. But in the end tied, as despite very different dress senses the pair opted for very similar styles, as they both donned full-length black gowns with long trains and accompanied by immaculate up-dos, posh sporting one of her collection pieces and Moss a gothic Dior number. Moss kept up her infamous reputation of being notoriously under spoken, as she only managed thanks and bye on two occasions, when coming out twice once for John Galliano’s Outstanding Achievement in Fashion award and once for her London 25 award.

London based labels and designers came out triumphant on the night.  It was a double win for Burberry as they bagged the Designer Brand award and creative director Christopher Bailey took the Best Designer award, for developing Burberry from a heritage label into a international luxury brand.

The nights other big winners included the gorgeous, Georgia May Jagger who was named Model of the Year, Christopher Kane who scooped BFC Collection of the Year award and the legendary Dior designer John Galliano, whos career started out in London, was awarded with the Outstanding Achievement in Fashion Design.

Unfortunately for Manchester we had a bit of a fall from fashion grace, as one of our ambassadors supermodel Karen Elson took a rather unfortunate tumble. The former winner of British Model of the Year came on to present the Fashion Creator award then seconds later disappeared from sight down into the orchestra pit. Luckily she appeared a couple of minutes later unscathed and proceeded to announce to the audience that she was ”the clumsiest person on this earth. I cannot believe I just did that. That is the worst fall I have ever had. I might have broken a rib, but I’m fine.”

I’m glad that Karen wasn’t injured, but in all seriousness it is a blow to Manchester that the only story we generate from British Fashion Awards is Karen Elson falling off the stage, which is a shame with all the unique and innovative brands and designers that come out of the city.  Hopefully Manchester brands are just being overlooked rather then being totally disregarded from the offset.

Today sees several pieces of fashion once owned by the late iconic film actress Audrey Hepburn hit the auction block. For years women across the world have emulated her look and style, now Audrey Hepburn fans have the chance to own a real piece of her personal fashion collection. Items up for auction included an Yves Saint Laurent empire-waisted gown, a Valentino Haute Couture dress, and a black lace Givenchy dress worn in the film How to Steal a Million.

The collection is made up from clothing dating back to 1953 to the late 1960s, the period when Hepburn made some of her most celebrated movies.

The auction is set to attract a star studded audience, with rumors that serial fashionista Victoria Beckham received an early catalogue of the collection, as Beckham has talked about her love of Hepburn, with many of her DVB pieces taking inspiration from Hepburn’s streamlined silhouettes.

Half of the proceeds from the sale will be donated to Audrey Hepburn Children’s Fund and UNICEF for their joint venture “All Children in School”.

The sale is being held by Kelly Taylor Auctions at La Galleria on London’s Pall Mall.

This is shoppers once in a life time chance to own one of  Sir Elton John and David Furnish’s flamboyant garmants. Renowned for their love of  high-fashion, the pair will purge wardrobes for “Out the Closet”, their latest charity sale.

Fans and shoppers alike will beable to get their hands on an exclusive array of flamboyant clothing, straight out of the rocket mans wardrobe, as well as David Furnish’s favourite designer pieces including his favourite Dior shirts, with prices ranging from a mere £10 to £2000.

All money made from the pop up shop sale will go towards the Elton John AIDS Foundation, one of the world’s biggest HIV and AIDS charities. This is not the first ”Out the Closet’, the last sale in 2002, sold approximately 15,000 items and raised £400,000 for the charity. The shop will open its doors on 12th December in Covent Garden, and closes on 19th December, with any remaining garments being deducted to clearance upon its closure.

With his huge celebrity fan base, be sure to keep a look out for them hidden in amongst the sequins and bowers!

Cheryl and Dannii; see previous weeks. Danni: floor-length, Cheryl: short and messy. Come on, it’s getting boring now.

It was semi-final night; a chance to go all out and make the most of what little time was left for the remaining contestants. Unfortunately, for the first half of the show, wardrobe failed again. You know if Jedward were still with us, we’d have had drama, sequins and one-handed gloves. Where was the Jacko fashion tribute????

Exhibit A: Olly. Why he was sent out dressed as the hybrid of a dental hygienist and a psychiatric nurse is beyond me. All white? ALL WHITE? Are you serious?? Lengthen the sleeves, add buckles; you have yourselves a straight jacket. I am pleased to say, Olly looked SO much better for his second performance… Or was I just so relieved that the white body suit had gone…

Exhibit B: Joe. Again with the white! Were the shirts on a 2-for-1? Joe looked like he’d just finished a night shift at the bistro. At one stage I seriously started doubting my eyesight; Joe had the makings of a ‘tash! A pre-pubescent-schoolboy-‘tash! Uuugh… now, I’m questioning the talents of the make-up and hair department – what IS going on back there behind the scenes?! I’m guessing no mirrors and very poor lighting. Joe’s second ensemble wasn’t much better.

Stacey – Thank goodness for Stacey. She looked like a little hot updated version of Shania Twain (you know the video… “man-shirts, short skirts” and all that jazz). The Trilby: good. The sexy     feminine basque under the masculine tailoring: good. Leather gloves with rhinestone trim: bang-on. Don’t care what Simon said: Stacey rocked… at least in her first outfit. Lovely dress in the second half, but it did nothing for her shape and made her hips look huge; hard to pull off on such a slim girl, but somehow wardrobe managed it. Make-up is in the bad books again; too much bronze on Stacey, with pale lips. It’s not the 70’s.

What on earth was Danyl wearing? Spoiler alert Look away now if you still don’t know the result (where have you been?) That tie loosely draped round the neck got Danyl the boot. The public knows better. And the half-in half-out shirt – what was going on? A rebellious move from Danyl perhaps, in protest of the tie. I like to think so. Second performance was much more presentable; who doesn’t like a man in a nice suit?

In the naughty corner this week…

The straight jacket, the schoolboy ‘tash, the make-up dept, the loose tie… the list is endless this week. PLEASE do something special next week for the final, I beg you.

Sunday Best:

Although it was a little Halloween, Cheryl looked a vision; expertly fitted and beautifully executed.

Lily Allen has fast become one of the nations favourite starlets, best known her unique and edgy voice, but also for her escalating relationship with fashion. She has certainly come a long way in the fashion stakes since her ball gowns teamed with trainers look, and her infamous New Look collection. She has become the face of Chanel Coco, takes a front seat at the most sought after designer shows, launched her own jewellery range – but her next alleged venture is sure to secure her status as a serious fashionista, as she plans to follow in the footsteps of Victoria Beckham by quitting music to set up her own boutique.

Reports have suggested that the stylish boutique will be named Lucy in Disguise, with the concept of enabling shoppers not only to buy clothes but also to hire or rent them, a familiar concept to some of the existent online shopping sites and high end vintage stores.

She told the Daily Mirror “It’s about getting really nice clothes but letting people rent them for affordable prices so they can go out and feel like a million dollars and it won’t cost them a million dollars.”

I am personally a big fan of Lily Allen’s style, she really seems to have her finger on the pulse of fashion whilst staying unique and quirky, so hopefully Lucy in Disguise will reflect this. It should be great, Go Lily!

Above: Louise Goldin/Topshop heels Second: Christian Louboutin/Rodarte heels

There has been a lot of talk surrounding the collaboration between english designer Louise Goldin and Topshop, especially over the killer shoe collection, which are very similar to her own designs that were exhibited during fashion week. Although there has been no mention of the release date there is already a huge buzz surrounding them, similar to that of the H&M and Jimmy Choo collaboration.

As any fashionista knows that studs, enbelishments, rock and grunge are all big this season, so the Louise Goldin collection will seemingly fit in perfectly, although they could be perceived as being slightly OTT as surely not everyone will see the desire in wearing a pair of shoes with this amount of spikes and studs, as they do give of a slight dominatrix vibe.

The shoes seem to take a very familiar form to those of Rodarte’s spiked shoes, designed by Christian Louboutin in 2008, famously worn by stars such as Victoria Beckham. But that is were the similarity ends, thankfully when it comes the price tag shoppers will be seeing a vast difference.