Archive
Q: I hear Clinton Kelly is leaving “What Not to Wear”. If so, who is replacing him? I think he and Stacy London have great chemistry.
Lori Higgins, Rockford, Ill.
You don’t have anything to worry about. TLC’s What Not to Wear just returned for its ninth season featuring Kelly and London. Some things to look forward to: Dancing With the Stars’ Cheryl Burke and actress Jenny McCarthy ask the duo to help their personal assistant; a woman gets ambushed while shopping for a wedding dress; and a woman receives a surprise visit during a job interview.
Who’s News Column Contributors: Olivia Barker, Gregory Connolly, Nancy Mills, Brian Truit
Q: Who puts together Bonnie Bedelia’s Boho chic outfits on NBC show “Parenthood?”
Camille Thompson, San Ramon, Calif.
That is costume designer Diane Crooke, who also has dressed the stars on Friends and Crossing Jordan. To dress Parenthood matriarch Camille Braverman as “a more current version of a past hippie life,” Crooke skips the hemp and starts with skinny black jeans (“She has great legs”), then adds staple tanks from Eileen Fisher and “flowy, colorful tops” from Citron and Harari.
Like Camille’s jewelry collection? Buy from local arts and crafts fairs, as Crooke does. “Bonnie is an artist and a painter in her real life, so she wanted to have that feeling influenced in her clothes now,” says Crooke, who keeps a closet busting with pitch-perfect clothes for each character.
Who’s News Column Contributors: Olivia Barker, Andrea Mandell, Nancy Mills, Brian Truitt
Q: Will there be another season of ‘Project Runway’ for Heidi Klum and the gang in 2011?
Mary Baptist, Green Valley, Ariz.
Good news for fashion fans: “Yes, Heidi and the gang will be back!” confirms a rep for Lifetime Television, which has aired new seasons of PR since Season 6. The upcoming Season 9 will shoot in NYC and air this summer. Lifetime has fashion on the brain. Also on the horizon are spinoffs Project Runway All Stars, which will feature past contestants, and Project Accessory, where shoes and bags will be the designs du jour.
Who’s News Column Contributors: Lorena Blas, Cindy Clark, Andrea Mandell, Brian Truitt
Q: Lisa Edelstein, who plays Dr. Cuddy on House, has a fantastic wardrobe for the show. What are the designers she usually wears?
Carol Applebee, Sabattus, Maine
“Lisa has an amazing figure. She’s really easy to dress,” says House costume designer Cathy Crandall, who relies on “classic chic” pencil skirts, fitted jackets and low-cut tops from Dolce & Gabbana, Gucci and Prada. “Over the years we’ve fine-tuned it. We use the same designers. She walks into everything in the tiniest size they make.”
Who’s News Column Contributors: Gary Levin, Andrea Mandell, Nancy Mills
Carmen Marc Valvo is a crusader for colon cancer awareness, red carpet fashion
Renowned American fashion designer Carmen Marc Valvo is the top-selling evening-wear designer at Neiman Marcus. His lines include everything from eyewear to lingerie, Victoria’s Secret swimwear and home décor. His dresses have been worn by starlets such as Beyonce Knowles, Kate Winslet, Lucy Liu and Catherine Zeta-Jones on the red carpet.
And the fashion concierge couldn’t help but to be disappointed about the lack of attention to detail on the red carpet at this year’s Oscars. The hair was sloppy, he told us, and they didn’t put as much thought into their jewelry as they could have. He noted Scarlett Johansson, Nicole Kidman and Helena Bonham Carter as just a few who missed the ball. If you’re going to dress fabulous you can’t miss those details, he says.
Some of Valvo’s favorite looks included those of Gwyneth Paltrow, Hailee Steinfeld and Helen Mirren. Valvo noticed a lot of shimmer and shine and blushes and whites on the carpet this year. Is this a sign of what’s to come this spring? Valvo is thinking not quite. “For spring, it’s about color,” he says. “It’s about coral. It’s about blue because blue is the new black in my opinion.”
Why blue? As a survivor of colon cancer Valvo is taking a stand against the disease and a blue star is the symbol of his efforts. He will be teaming up with the makers of Dulcolax and the Colon Cancer Alliance to fight the fears of the colonoscopy that saved his life. “There’s a lot of blue in my new collection this season to celebrate colon cancer awareness this month and the importance of early screening,” he says. Keep an eye out for Valvo as he spends next two months traveling to promote his book and and his mission to make colonoscopies fashionable. Read below for our interview with Valvo about his journey from cancer survivor to colonoscopy crusader, and his tips on making fashion work for you.
Photo by Melanie Dunea
Q: I enjoy Lesley Stahl’s reports on 60 Minutes, but I really admire her taste in jewelry. Is there any particular earring designer she favors?
Julie Hill, The Woodlands, Texas
The CBS newsmagazine correspondent, 69, says that when her former boss, Don Hewitt, was critical of her hair, “That led to a haircut and, for the first time, naked ears.” Stahl, who favors jaw-skimming drops and sparkling dangles, has a secret: “My ears are not pierced, so I scour about in search of delicate clip-ons that drop and dangle, which are not easy to find,” she says. “I don’t have a favorite designer. I like a store on Madison Avenue called Mariko, but I also enjoy browsing and window shopping. It’s kind of a hobby.”
Michelle Obama debuts new hair style
Forget Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss, the country singers who went to the White House last night as part of Michelle Obama's planned music series. The surprise of the night was the first lady's new do. Shorter, fresher, flattering. She debuted it on the same day the President admitted his own fashion sense is "frumpy," which was obvious in the outdated baggy jeans he wore to throw out the opening pitch at the All-Stars game.
First lady's ball gown — thumbs up or down?

Washington’s post-inaugural conversations today are all about: a) whether you went to the mall for the swearing-in; b) if you did, whether you got caught in the security glitches and were not allowed into your colored section; c) whether you went to a ball; and d) what you thought of the new first lady’s inaugural ensembles, particularly last night’s Jason Wu-designed ball gown.
It is that last question I put to all of you, my readers. Did you like Michelle Obama‘s inaugural gown? Or did you think, as some fashion mavens are saying, it looked "more Hollywood than Washington"? Post your thoughts in the comments below. And if you missed it, here’s the Obamas’ first dance last night at the Neighborhood Ball.
Photo by Evan Eile/USA Today

