Cheryl Shops

This week's big news is that French icon Sonia Rykiel will design two lines for H&M [subscription required]: The first collection, of holiday lingerie, will hit 1,500 H&M stores (and 90-odd Sonia Rykiel boutiques) worldwide on December 5th; the second, featuring knitwear and accessories for women and girls, drops in 250 H&M stores February 20th. While I am definitely more excited about the later collection than the lingerie--H&M doesn't make bras in my size, although I'm assuming there will be some coquettish nighties and undies--this is definitely good news, as Rykiel has a très Parisienne sense of style that I feel really hasn't had much exposure stateside (she has only two stores in the U.S., in New York and Boston). H&M's designer collaborations also tend to be more well made than, say, Target's. The only downside: They sell out like hotcakes. (Sonia Rykiel photo from WWD.com)

Speaking of H&M, Nitrolicious has images of the entire Jimmy Choo H&M women's collection. While I certainly don't agree with this blogger, the collection is definitely a bit...flashy. But fabulously so. I actually think the clothes might be more interesting than the shoes; I'm particularly taken with the slit-up-to-there black maxi dress pictured at right. I also would not mind getting my hands on those over-the-knee boots. But, then again, I am not fond of queuing up for hours in Midtown. If you are, Jimmy Choo for H&M hits stores November 14th.

Fashionista reports that Mark Fast will design a line for Topshop; if you weren't following London Fashion Week news last week, Fast quickly created a publicity frenzy by sending several "plus size" models down the runway (and by "plus size", I mean approximately a U.S. size 10). His uber-sexy open-work dresses (bodycon, as the British say) will hit stores sometime next spring.

And speaking of Topshop, I stopped by the store on Saturday to see if they had any Christopher Kane left; to my surprise, they had a ton, and it was all front and center as soon as you walked into the store. The line is not cheap: The most inexpensive item is an embellished scarf for $60, and the more intricate dresses and shoes go above $300. This may be particularly distressing to you if you are not a fan of synthetic fabrics (a few items are cotton, but most are nylon or polyester). However, everything is very intricately detailed with crystals, grommets, and mirrored pailettes, and I was impressed with the fit of everything I tried on (except for the crocodile T-shirt, which was cut so huge, I was swimming even in a size 4). My favorite piece was the eyelet skirt; I think I might go back later this week to get it. I also liked the crocodile dress, but I don't know how keen I am on having a menacing animal's mouth at the level of my you-know-what.

Finally, WWD published an article at the end of Fashion Week, instigating that Jean-Paul Gaultier may be next in Target's Designer Collaboration series [subscription required], although no one would confirm that, and as of now, there haven't been any follow-ups. Still, I would estimate that 100% of the rumors about Target's masstige collaborations leaked to WWD turn out to be true, so barring any major disasters, I think we can safely say this one is a sure thing. Normally I would be very excited about this, but considering how unpredictable the quality of Target's merchandise can be, I will reserve judgment until I see actual product.

UPDATE: I forgot two totally relevant bits of information! The first is that Jil Sander's collection for Uniqlo hits stores tomorrow, October 1st! I knew I was forgetting something very important! The second is that fashionista-favorite Ruffian is designing a line for Anthropologie [subscription required]. It's called Mise en Scene, includes both clothing and housewares, and will hit 55 Anthropologie stores in November.