Because you care *...

My take on the Vanity Fair International Best-Dressed List.

Yes, all the best-dressed are ridiculously wealthy. So dressing well is a no-brainer? Not necessarily. I give you two words: Britney and Spears.

- Charlotte Gainsborough: She's got bed-head, coltish limbs and is decked out entirely in Balenciaga - damn the French! Of course she's on this list.

- HRH Princess Alexandra of Greece/HH Pricess Mafalda of Hesse: Lovely. Proper. You can see women like this lunching in Georgetown all the time.

- Tilda Swinton: Wears an all-foil wardrobe well.

- Ivanka Trump: I have a (black, much cheaper) cocktail dress like the one in the picture! But I just didn't want the publicity of being photographed for a national magazine.

- Renee Zellweger: She probably wears a strapless Carolina Herrera gown to the grocery store. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

- Bee Shaffer: When you're mom's the editor of Vogue, you can't exactly run around in Crocs.

- Marjorie Gubelmann: Nice to see a representative who doesn't veer towards the size 2 side of the rack.

- Michelle Obama: The gown is great, but why only one photo? I sense a conspiracy from the Edwards camp.

- Fran Lebowitz: We get it, she always wears a suit.

- Richard E. Grant and a handsome international crew: Notice, men of Washington - not a pair of Dockers among them. Nor Blackberries clipped to the belt or the ubiquitous sky blue button-down. (and their security badges are discreetly tucked out of sight, too!)

- Lenny Kravitz: Nope, no Dockers there either.

- Nicolas Sarkozy: In a shirt. Not threatening to beat the #$%^& out of anyone.

And they have couples awards!

- Brangelina: Why do I get the feeling St. John makes entirely different clothes for her they don't sell in their stores?

- Mitch Glazer and Kelly Lynch: An age-appropriate couple, he's not wearing a trucker hat and her boobs are covered up - they can't possibly live in California.

- Random earls and countesses: Call me a populist, but I'm not seeing anything extraordinary here.

- Posh & Becks: Now there's something extraordinary - her implants and his metrosexual hotness.

The "fashion professionals" category. That's truly loaded - let's skip. Onto the grand finale - the Hall of Fame:

- Jemima Khan: Has a lot of hair

- Marina Rust Conner: Is wearing an elegant ivory ensemble in one photo and a bedazzled Christmas sweater in the other.

- Anna Piaggi: Is wearing all of her clothing at once

- George Clooney: I sense a theme: No Dockers. And an excellent way to end this post.

* And to leaven the very, very serious post of yesterday.

Beyond Beads...New Orleans Fashion





Liquor isn't the only vice that will drain your wallet in this city - exquisite sundresses, jewelry, hats and all sorts of modern Southern delicacies with a European twist can be found throughout. If that black draped Balenciaga blouse at United Apparel Liquidators had been my size, I'd have been $150 poorer yet not felt a twinge of pain. (We northerners need you, UAL - please open a Washington branch!)

(Does New Orleans style include include crocs? you might ask. Well, not exactly at the boutiques. Crocs are plentiful at the souvenir shops, displayed among the plastic dog poop, Elvis bobble heads and "I got Bourbon faced on shit street!" t-shirts.)

Help New Orleans rebuild. Support local merchants.

Because many businesses are not web-enabled, or are a uniquely in-person experience, you will have to visit. This is highly recommended.

- The master French Quarter directory
- Cafe Beignet , yumminess for dining in and take-out.
- New Orleans Tours Once you're dolled up and properly fed, explore and learn some history. The "Ghosts and Vampires" tour will creep you out...in a fun Bauhaus-meets-Ken-Burns kind of way, of course.

Now for pirates...arrrrrr!!!