>> INSIDER WIRE —The rest of the country might be hurting for money, but not Anna Wintour.  She just had expensive renovations on her country home in Mastic — including a gym expansion and a new 700-square-foot garage — approved by town hall late last month. [Cityfile]

>> Now that Georgina Chapman has officially realigned herself as the designer of Marchesa, leaving Keren Craig, former co-designer, to the more business side of things, she's branching out beyond Marchesa.

Garrard, the British jewelry brand that supplied Princess Diana's engagement ring, is seeking a creative director since Jade Jagger left the post in 2007, and in the meantime, they've asked Georgina to be a guest designer.  The Georgina Chapman for Garrard collection is to be unveiled next September during New York Fashion Week — no doubt accessorizing the Spring 2010 Marchesa collection — and prices are expected to run in the $10,000 to $15,000 range.

It's interesting that the collection is called "Georgina Chapman for Garrard" rather than "Marchesa for Garrard," don't you think?  Especially when the company is looking for a new creative director and Garrard's CEO says Georgina's line is expected to be "a significant part of the Garrard business."  Not that Georgina would leave Marchesa behind for jewelry — but it does seem like she's trying to do things more on her own without Keren.
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>> INSIDER WIRE —Anne Slowey has been given grief for her diet and pitted against former co-worker Nina Garcia, but nothing seems to phase her; She's still got a show debuting Wednesday.  Besides, she doesn't seem to think much of Nina: "I think she certainly. . . . by comparing herself to me, lent it some credibility. I'm not even really conscious of the fact that, oh yeah, she used to work at Elle." But the real question is, why was Anne at her town dump before being interviewed? [LA Times]

>> Yves Saint Laurent may have passed and Valentino retired, but of that generation of design masters, Giorgio Armani joins Karl Lagerfeld in the not-going-anywhere category.

On Friday, the 74-year-old designer told Italian daily Il Sole 24 Ore he doesn't have a contigency plan in place because he still makes all the decisions: "I have never posed myself the problem, looking at the pros and cons . . . I have not picked my 'heir'. Touch wood, we're not talking about it [but] an organization that is so precise could easily survive me."

If the takeover ever does happen, Armani acknowledges that it will have to be a clean cut: "It is painful but you need to have the courage that — once it is done — not to have any claims over it. In the case of reaching a certain age or the market needing a radical change in style, it is extremely difficult for someone who created a company to detach themselves from it."

The full detachment is necessary, Armani says, because it's hard enough as is for a designer to take over from an "untouchable icon" of fashion: "The founder is linked to the brand and represents its style.  When it comes to replacing the founder there is always a doubt as to whether to change the style.  The young designers have all the talent that is needed but in a system made up of only 'untouchable icons' that cut off all oxygen, you can also die."

Sounds like he doesn't want what happened with Alessandra Facchinetti at Valentino to happen at Armani.
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>> ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL —It seems Burberry has a no tolerance policy for drugs — the house cancelled its campaign with Kate Moss back in 2005 after tabloid pictures of her snorting cocaine surfaced, and now it's phased out Fall 2008 face Rosie Huntington-Whiteley after pictures of her with a drug pipe appeared in July.  Her replacement is said to be Eden Clark, although Burberry would not confirm the choice. [Daily Mail]

It's kind of like snacking before dinner...check out some of the most entertaining posts from our Network before you finish up your work day (c'mon, we won't tell)...We're not skilled in the beauty area and thankfully All Laquered Up clued us in to an awesome Fall nail trend: the smoky hues. This look seems perfect for those of us who still can't fathom black nail polish...Pop goes under, and Chic and Untroubled says goodbye. We're pretty sure we should stop giving people our speech about how British magazines are still thriving. There are just, well, so many of them...Foot For Thought gave a shoutout to footwear designer Chie Mihara, and took pictures of her feet without getting busted by the store clerks...and finally, if you're just too tired to read anything, get wrapped up in a You Tube video to f&art's liking, namely, a techno-remix of Gareth Pugh's Spring 09 show. Happy Monday!

>> Zaha Hadid's 7,500-square-foot ad for Chanel is now open in Central Park and ready for business.  The Mobile Art pavilion, which houses 20 artists' tributes to the classic 2.55 quilted and chain-strapped Chanel bag, required Chanel to ship 51 containers, donate a sum in the "low seven figures" to the Central Park Conservancy, and pay a city "use fee" of $400,000 all to get it in place. 

Tickets are free, but is it worth a visit? "No doubt," says Izzy Grinspan of Racked, who visited the exhibit this morning. "It's so much more insane than we could ever have dreamed."

If a visit is not an option, The Cut has a video tour with your name all over it.
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Rodarte, one of the more absent brands when it comes to e-commerce, is working with Los Angeles boutique, Presse, to release never-produced garments a la the boutique's online store. Seven items have been chosen by the designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy and will debut on Presse's website this November 3rd. Elle.com, reports that among the pieces chosen, there will be a crystal necklace from Spring 06, a sky blue blazer from Spring 08, and pyramid studded gloves from the Fall 08 collection. Price points remain a mystery...

>> ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL —It's been a couple of seasons since a model held a Balenciaga ad campaign — Charlotte Gainsbourg did Fall 2008, Jennifer Connelly did Spring 2008 — but it seems like Spring 2009 may bring the winds of change.  According to an anonymous commenter, "there's nothing going on at the Balenciaga campaign casting that would suggest 'safe' and 'sellable.' There's a wonderful cast brewing there . . ." The use of the word "cast" seems to imply more than one girl, too, no? [TI]

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