Another week, another round of sample sales and cocktail parties. We have to say, the atmosphere in New York this week feels a bit on the serious side, but there are bound to be moments when a twenty minute break is needed. Hop on the train and check these happenings for a little alone time.

Monday: Maxx New York is having a sample sale today. Get a new summer handbag for up to 60% off. Try to find the quilted hobo, or something like that, because these bags have never been our favorites. That's what sample sales are for though, eh? Sale at 385 Fifth Avenue, runs through Thursday.

Tuesday: The DVF sample sale starts today with current season looks, including those featured in our DVF X Bloggers photo shoot, marked up to 75% off. Part of the Coutorture team hit up the sale this afternoon (press day) and gave us the scoop on what to expect. Apparently the selection is top-notch, and the prices hovering between 75 and 100 dollars. For right-now DVF, we say that's more than worth the money. Sale at 260 Fifth Avenue, runs all week.

Wednesday: There's a King Stampede party tonight at 40 Thompson. If you don't know the brand, don't worry. Expect a bunch of skater gents and ALife types. This is probably the only time you'll see women wearing hoodies with heels other than at the felafel place circa 3am. Flyer, top left.

Thursday:Rebecca Taylor's sample sale ends today (starts Tuesday). Better get girly before it's too late. We hear it's going to be about 50-60% off which will most likely turn even the loveliest fashion rose into a raging sample sale maniac. Sale at 145 West 18th Street. See the collection here.

Friday: If you need something to romp around Manhattan in over the weekend (and we mean one of those weekends where you live in a variation of the same outfit from Friday through Sunday night) then hit up Opening Ceremony's ongoing 'Super Scary Sale' which, by this time, apparently will include Alexander Wang and Jeremy Scott for 30-60% off.

>>  A look to the left reveals a first image of Proenza Schouler's shoe deal with Giuseppe Zanotti, and now, to the right, the specifics.

Until now, the label didn't have any commercial shoes, except for the ones they did for shows with a little factory.  But moving forward, expect ballet shoes, loafers, lace-up sandals, and heels to hit stores for the resort season, running from the $300s up to $3,000, and hitting an average of $685. 

Now that there's a whole Proenza Schouler accessories team, handbags are on the horizon, too, but as Lazaro Hernandez explained:

The entire market is so dense with bags and everything else, that until we [find] something original and specific to say, we [don't] want to say anything. We don't do anything unless we have something to say.

Wise choice.

*images: source

>>  In the aftermath of Yves Saint Laurent's death Sunday evening, funeral services have been scheduled for Thursday afternoon, 3:30 pm,  at the Eglise Saint-Roch in Paris.  Afterward, YSL will be incinerated, and his ashes will lay in his Majorelle Garden in his beloved Marrakech. 

Although details surrounding cause of death were not originally released, it has now been confirmed that M. Saint Laurent was suffering from brain cancer, which he was diagnosed with in April 2007.  Lifelong business partner Pierre Berge and muse Betty Catroux were present at the time of death, and Catherine Deneuve arrived soon after.

*images: source

Today's article in WWD, on the strength of the flagship in spite of the recession, sparked our interest in writing about the newest Yohji Yamamoto outpost. Last week we walked by the space in the Meatpacking District, and admired its simple facade and modern interior. Though this flagship doesn't occupy multiple floors and boast the kind of bells and whistles that are characteristic of other fashion houses, it was designed with the same thought in mind: that the flagship is one of the most important dialogues between a brand and its customer.

For his second Manhattan outpost Yohji Yamamoto hired architect Junya Ishigami to design a pointed, low-slung boutique with equal parts utility and attraction. At night the wedge-shaped structure, made of large windowpanes and original brick walls, glows from the warm lighting and stark white furniture inside. The structure, divided into two triangular spaces, allows for one part retail and one part storage. In between them a small open-air garden functions as a clothing-free party space and otherwise convenient passageway between private and public quarters. Occupying only 1,300 square feet this sleek outpost was never meant to accommodate the entire Yamamoto range, only select garments and accessories are offered for sale. More than anything, the Gansevoort Street boutique means to embody and encourage the Yamamoto aesthetic, where minimalism is not without its own brand of warmth and detail.


Click to see images from the Yohji Yamamoto Fall 08 collection

Our network partner's post was the icing on the sweet, cavity-inducing cake that is The Hammer Pant Trend. This morning, wanting a fresh, fashion-forward look for Monday morning at the office, That's Chic snapped a pic of herself wearing H&M's latest incarnation of the pant of the summer. In her post on the outfit, she references another network partner of ours, a miss Style Bubble, who mused on the trend back in, ahem, August 2007. We might officially put this topic to bed, but before we do, we just can't help bringing back our posts on the silhouette that is holding our hand while we transition from skinny jeans to wider styles.

On Friday afternoon, in Phone Tag, we called 3.1 Phillip Lim to make sure they didn't have any harem pants left. A few months ago we got immaterial over a Rick Owens pair of drop-crotch trousers. We've also referenced the trend numerous times and had many a conversation over this punctuation mark in the changing silhouette. It also deserves a mention that, in the blogsphere, the conversation was being put to bed around the same time a certain fashion magazine wrote a nice little article on how, gasp, 'they're everywhere!'. A final sendoff to the pant that's given us so much content? The YSL Fall 08 version, our favorite by far (not to mention that haircut, which is, as we speak, taking New York by storm) and definitely a version that will not be forgotten.

>> Although earlier reports suggested that the 2009 Costume Institute Gala might be an ode to Marc Jacobs, now sources are saying it will explore the concept of the fashion muse. 

A spokeswoman for the Costume Institute declined comment when asked about details, but can you imagine an exhibit on everyone from Talitha Getty and Denise Poiret to Sofia Coppola and Lady Amanda Harlech?  Definitely a worthy subject.

*images: source

Designer Yves Saint Laurent passed away this Sunday at the age of 71. More coverage will obviously follow on Coutorture but we figured it should be in the round up. Reuters, CNN, The Guardian, The BBC, The International Herald Tribune, and the AP report.

Bergdorf Goodman Men unveiled their largest shop in shop in their retail history with a 1,600 Tom Ford boutique.

British denim line Lee Cooper is turning one hundred.

Proenza Schouler and Vicini SpA home of Giuseppe Zanotti are teaming up for a larger Proenza Schouler shoe offering and WWD finally has a photo to show off! Proenza Schouler shoes will retail for an average of $685, with pieces beginning in the $300s up to $3,000.

Fashion sucks in Washington D.C. Well, at least the respective Ann and Annes (Taylor and Klein) still battle it out there.
Just buy one great dress. Really! OK and lots of accessories to go with it to make it special.

Elie Tahari is launching a costume jewelry line.The Elie Tahari Empire Collection will be available in smoke, diamond and ruby hues. It will be sold at Elie Tahari's six boutiques in the U.S., as well as at Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus. The pieces will retail at around $400.