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This article was first published 13 years ago

A super-sexy swimwear launch and more fashion news!

Last updated on: April 1, 2011 20:24 IST

Image: Alessandra Ambrosio, Candice Swanepoel and Adriana Lima celebrate the 2011 Victoria's Secret SWIM Collection at Mondrian Los Angeles on March 30, 2011 in West Hollywood, California
Photographs: Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Victoria's Secret

Welcome to the weekly fashion round-up, where we bring you the latest on supermodels, style, designers and everything in-between!

Which reality starlet celebrated National Cleavage Day in fantastic form? Which new swimsuit is being touted as a 'slimsuit' that moulds your figure?

Here's the lowdown on the latest fashion news!

Victoria's Secret Angels model the latest swimwear

Supermodels Alessandra Ambrosio, Candice Swanepoel and Adriana Lima launched Victoria's Secret's new range of swimwear at The Mondrian Hotel in Los Angeles yesterday.

The trio of lovelies stunned, with Alessandra in a black push-up bikini and wispy robe, Candice in animal-print briefs and Adriana in a sequinned monokini and sarong.

Despite their enticing looks, however, the Daily Mail commented on how the latest Angels are a far cry from the curvy brand ambassadors of yesteryear like Heidi Klum, Naomi Campbell and Tyra Banks.

While Alessandra and Adriana are both young mothers, you'd never know it by looking at their slimline bods and Candice, 22, was even thinner than her companions at the Mondrian launch, sparking questions as to whether she has lost weight in recent months.

Kim Kardashian celebrates National Cleavage Day in daring low-cut dress!

Image: Kim Kardashian arrives at the 2011 Victoria's Secret SWIM Collection Pink Carpet Event
Photographs: Jerod Harris/Getty Images for Victoria's Secret

Maybe Candice should take a page out of curvy Kim Kardashian's books! The socialite was photographed celebrating National Cleavage Day to the full in a daring low-cut dress .

Kardashian, 30, wore a sheer low-cut dress and showed off her curves as she arrived at the 2011 Victoria's Secret SWIM Collection Pink Carpet Event at Club L in Hollywood.

Her designer dress was fitted at the top to accentuate her cleavage, while the full skirt at the bottom showed off her toned legs.

She accessorised her daring look with some nude platform stilettos and a gold clutch bag and wore her hair free-flowing and painted her fingernails with scarlett red.

National Cleavage Day is an annual celebration in South Africa and the UK held in either March or April and sponsored by the bra maker, Wonderbra.

Samantha Paterson, brand manager for Wonderbra, said National Cleavage Day was started "to symbolise women's independence and power in all facets of life, from their careers to their relationships to their own destiny".

"It gives women a chance to be beautiful and glow in the furtive, yet appreciative, glances their cleavage evokes from men," the Daily Mail quoted Paterson as saying.

"It gives men a legitimate reason to stare at boobs," she added.

Kylie Minogue spends 10 million pounds on designer costumes for latest tour!

Image: Kylie Minogue performs at the Cardiff International Arena on March 25, 2011 in Cardiff, Wales
Photographs: Matt Cardy/Getty Images

Talk about a passion for fashion!

Pop singer Kylie Minogue has apparently forked out almost 10 million pounds on designer costumes for her latest tour.

The singer, who kicked off the UK leg of her Aphrodite world tour in Cardiff last night, was dressed by Dolce & Gabbana.

She wore gold costumes encrusted with Swarovski crystals and real pearls, a chiffon gown so sheer it "looks like smoke" and a chain-mail Barbarella-inspired dress covered in priceless vintage brooches.

All her backing dancers and singers have also been decked out by the Italian designers.

"Kylie's petite but perfectly proportioned and looks stunning in whatever she wears," the Daily Express quoted a D&G spokeswoman as saying.

Katy Perry's bod-flaunting traumatises her mum!

Image: Katy Perry
Photographs: Cover of California Gurls single

While Kim Kardashian and Kylie are all for showing off their figures, pop star Katy Perry's mother Mary Perry Hudson has revealed that she feels ashamed when she sees her daughter flaunting her breasts.

Katy Perry's Teenage Dream is a middle-aged nightmare for her evangelistic mom -- who complains in a book proposal that, "no mother wants to see the top of her daughter's boobs," reports the New York Post.

Preacher Mary describes her horror at Katy's outfits: Backstage at a concert, "Katy stepped out from behind the changing doors in a tiny risque costume. No mother wants to see the top of her daughter's boobs."

"My first instinct was to order her back behind those doors and demand she put something else on...However, I had no problem letting my eyebrows say what I wouldn't allow my mouth to utter," she further wrote.

Fergie hasn't had surgery, says hubby Josh Duhamel

Image: Fergie
Photographs: Cover of Ralph Magazine Australia, February 2008

Josh Duhamel has slammed speculation that his wife Fergie has had plastic surgery, insisting she's just been experimenting with cosmetics.

The Black Eyed Peas star and her bandmates performed on US TV show American Idol last week, and Fergie's fresh-faced appearance sparked rumours she has gone under the knife.

But Duhamel is adamant his wife's glow is all natural and he credits a new pink lip colour with transforming her look.

"I thought she looked amazing (on American Idol). It's amazing. You put a different colour on your lips and, uh, rumours fly. But she's the same, she's the same Fergie...I sleep right next to her every night. I like it," the Daily Express quoted Dahuamel as telling Ryan Seacrest.

Liz Taylor owed her sexy eyelashes to 'genetic mutation'

Image: Elizabeth Taylor
Photographs: Getty Images

Here's another case of natural beauty being mistaken for cosmetic enhancement.

The late Dame Elizabeth Taylor, who was regarded as the world's most beautiful woman, was in fact born with a "genetic mutation".

The "mutation" in question was nothing more sinister than an extra set of eyelashes, a rare medical condition known as distichiasis, reports the Daily Mail.

While the cause of the extra lashes is indeed a mutation -- a result of an abnormal development of the FOXC2 gene -- the effect of the luxurious lashes, also known as an "accessory row", was entirely captivating, framing Taylor's deep violet eyes, and only added to what admirers called her 'incandescent' beauty.

In fact, Taylor's mother, on hearing of the issue, is said to have responded with what became her typical sang froid: "Well," she said coolly. "That doesn't sound too horrible at all."

The condition -- more commonly seen in pure-bred dogs than in humans -- is known to cause painful and unpleasant symptoms, especially when the hairs on the second row of eyelashes do not grow in a straight line or are positioned too close to the eye.

While normal eyelashes grow on the outside of the eyelid, the second row -- also known as distichia -- can develop deep within the gland of the eyelid rather than on the surface.

As the lashes grow, they protrude from the soft part of the lid, where they rub against the eye causing irritation, tearing and even vision impairment as surface cells on the cornea are damaged.

Treatment includes the wearing of protective contact lenses or removal of the secondary lashes.

But these apparently mutated lashes did nothing to hinder Taylor's success.

Encouraged by her mother, Sara, to be a child star, Elizabeth Taylor first entered the public eye when she appeared in the film Lassie Come Home, aged nine.

According to J Randy Taraborelli's biography of Taylor, the star of the film, Roddy McDowall, then 13, recalled: "On her first day of filming, they took one look at her and said: "Get that girl off the set -- she has too much eye makeup on, too much mascara."

So they rushed her off the set and started rubbing at her eyes with a moist cloth to take the mascara off.

"Guess what? They learned that she had no mascara on. She has a double set of eyelashes. Now, who has double eyelashes except a girl who was absolutely born to be on the big screen?"

Leave casual footwear, cut-offs in closet: Tom Ford advises gentlemen

Image: Tom Ford
Photographs: Cover of TIME Magazine, October 2009

Guys, if you dream of dating a modern-day Liz Taylor, American fashion designer Tom Ford has doled out tips on how a perfect gentleman should dress and behave.

Ford, 49, who is launching his own line of women's clothing, shared some of his tips with Another magazine, and right at the top is leaving the casual footwear and cut-offs in the closet.

"A man should never wear shorts in the city. Flip-flops and shorts in the city are never appropriate," the New York Daily News quoted him as saying.

"Shorts should only be worn on the tennis court or on the beach," he said.

Ford also advices wealthy gentlemen of leisure to get a job.

"A gentleman today has to work. People who do not work are so boring and are usually bored," he said.

"You have to be passionate, you have to be engaged and you have to be contributing to the world," he stated.

Manners are manly and chivalry is just as important as a trouser crease or the knot of a tie.

"I always open doors for women. I carry their coat. I make sure that they're walking on the inside of the street. Stand up when people arrive at and leave the dinner table," he said.

But most importantly, for a fashionable soul, be a gentleman on the inside.

"Don't be pretentious or racist or sexist or judge people by their background," Ford said.

"You should put on the best version of yourself when you go out in the world because that is a show of respect to the other people around you," he added.

Lady Gaga to become fashion journalist

Image: Lady Gaga
Photographs: Cover of V Magazine, Fall 2009

And guess who else is going to be doling out fashion advice soon?

Lady Gaga is all set to try her hands at journalism.

The singer and entrepreneur will give journalism a try as a new columnist for V Magazine, reports the New York Post.

"I have some exciting news little monsters," the pop singer tweeted Wednesday, adding "I begin next month as a Fashion+Art Columnist for VMagazine."

"V are proud to announce our newest columnist: Lady Gaga! Each issue, Mother Monster will put pen to the page, bringing us an editorial window into her fashion multiverse," the American fashion glossy said in a statement.

In anticipation of her upcoming column, for the magazine's May issue, readers and fans were asked to create an illustration of the pop singer donning her most memorable outfit.

"Rather than bore you with a run-of-the-mill author's headshot, (Lady) Gaga has asked that we hold a contest each issue in which applicants illustrate her for us," the magazine wrote to readers.

"We are asking all artists, creators, and little monsters to submit illustrations of our new columnist dressed in her most studious ensemble," the contest announcement added.

Britney walks into new airbrush row

Image: Britney Spears: The PR still (left) is a far cry from how she looked performing this week (right)
Photographs: PR still for Femme Fatale (left) and Max Morse/Getty Images (right)

Britney Spears has been accused of trying to dupe fans after releasing a heavily airbrushed image of herself.

The singer appeared to have shed pounds in glamorous publicity shots for her new album Femme Fatale.

The Toxic hitmaker looked super slender in a polka dot swimsuit, but in a gig on TV she looked much bigger.

She was seen bursting out of a leather basque and fishnet tights and appeared much older than in the album shots.

"Britney still looks good but she's changed a lot since she first found fame as a teenager," the Daily Star quoted a source as saying.

"The leather outfit made it impossible to hide any lumps and bumps but these photos make her look like a different person. It definitely looks like she's had a helping hand from technology," the source added.

Freida Pinto defends racy men's mag shoot

Image: Freida Pinto
Photographs: Cover of GQ India, December 2010

Freida Pinto has also found herself having to defend pictures recently. The Slumdog Millionaire star, who raised eyebrows last year with a series of racy shots for the US version of GQ, is now defending the photoshoot.

Rumours suggested that the photoshoot for the men's magazine was a deliberate attempt to shake off her 'nice-girl' image, but Pinto has now spoken out to stress that she was not manipulated into taking part and it was entirely her decision to pose for the pictures.

"The decision to do those pictures was mine. I definitely knew how I wanted to look. A stylist may have chosen the clothes but the decision to wear them was mine. I would hate to feel that I was being objectified," the Daily Star quoted her as telling You Magazine.

"I have always said that a woman's sexuality should not be used in a way that is demeaning to her. But, you know, I don't think this is a sexist issue any more because actors are strutting their stuff in photoshoots just as much as actresses now," she added.

Now, get back to shape with the swimsuit that acts as a slimsuit!

Image: Debenham's slimsuit is a marked improvement on regular swimsuits, it's being claimed
Photographs: blog.debenhams.com

For women who dread revealing their lumps, bumps and less-than-perfect figures in swimwears, a new swimsuit could be the perfect solution.

The 45-pound "slimsuit" or "diet in a swimsuit" -- dubbed Spanx for the beach -- from Debenhams has been created after its poll of British women showed 92 per cent fear how they look in swimwear.

Despite more than half saying they had gone on a diet in an attempt to look good, they still found their costumes and bikinis ill-fitting and unflattering.

The design's secret is the illusion of instant weightloss, helping to shape the body in the same way as Spanx control tights and lingerie.

"The challenge was to use data to create a suit that accentuates the good bits, and smooths the lumpy bits without making women feel like they're wrapped in cling-film," the Daily Express quoted Debenhams swimwear buyer Sasha Nagalingham as saying.

The suit's inner layer is made from a specially-designed heavier gauge lining fabric which does the "miracle work", while the outer layer is a slinky micro-fibre.

Low-rise legs ensure no bulges and a smooth curve in the hip. Moulded bust supports lift and separate in a similar way to a bra. It is sized by cup fitting as well as dress to make a perfect fit.

Extra strength through the waist panel creates an cinching effect and a control panel simultaneously flattens the tummy.

Bare-faced beauty Megan Fox's steamy Armani lingerie advert

Image: Megan Fox for Armani
Photographs: Emporio Armani Underwear ad campaign

Megan Fox's has shot a steamy advertisement for Emporio Armani's lingerie collection, showing off her bare-faced beauty that needed little touching up.

The footage has been shot on location in Mallorca, reports the Daily Mail.

Sizzling in the Spring and Summer underwear collection, the Transformers star strikes a seductive pose.

But while some shots show her looking extremely toned and healthy, other angles show her looking extremely thin -- which sparked rumoured about her weight when the campaign was launched earlier this month.

She is seen lying across a couch and at points prominent stomach muscles are clearly visible.

Earlier this month Megan's personal trainer put her slim frame down to her 'fast metabolism' and denied claims she is suffering from anorexia.

Lily Allen designing a line of vintage-inspired dresses for her store

Image: Lily Allen
Photographs: Cover of GQ Magazine, October 2009

Lily Allen and her sister are designing a line of vintage-inspired dresses that the star will sell in her shop, Lucy in Disguise.

The singer launched the vintage store six months ago and the career change has clearly been a lucrative one, the company is expanding from collecting into designing.

In June, the sisters will be throwing their own vintage-inspired designs into the mix with an 18-piece ready-to-wear collection, reports the Daily Mail.

This is not Lily's first venture into designing.

She launched a collection with New Look way back in 2007. Kate Moss and Sienna Miller have also designed their own collections, for Topshop and Twenty8Twelve.

Now, try out dozens of looks in minutes with the magic makeup mirror!

Image: Shiseido's virtual makeup mirror

Now you don't have to spend hours applying makeup to get the right look, for a 'magic mirror' is here to do the job for you.

The virtual makeup mirror, the first of its kind in Europe, can give you a full make-over in seconds, lets you test hundreds of different products in minutes, and does away with the need for make-up remover afterwards, reports the Daily Mail.

The simulator, created by Japanese beauty brand Shiseido, allows users to virtually apply make-up to eyes, lips and cheeks.

A camera on the device captures your face and works out where your eyes, nose and mouth are.

Using the touch-sensitive screen, you can choose from more than 50 different eye colours, around the same number of lip colours, and 12 blushers, bronzers and cheek tints.

You can whizz through a huge array of shades in a matter of moments, see how products change with more intensive application, and experiment with far more drastic looks than you might normally dare to.

The image you see is a perfect mirror image. If you squint to take a closer look at the eyeshadow you just ''applied'', you'll see it on the screen; turn your head slightly to see how that blusher looks and your mirror image will do likewise.

Once you find a look you like, you can take a still image. The machine can store a few of these, giving you an opportunity to compare different looks.

Source: ANI