It’s time to move beyond those trendy, lightweight, loose, fringed scarves that have been hanging around since summer. It is chilly (or will be soon) and you need a substantial scarf to stay warm. A classic, beautiful scarf that will stand the test of time, that is.

1. Calvin Klein wants to hug your neck, snuggle your chin and warm your ears, with his luscious cashmere logo scarf in blue, brown, camel or gray ($90, above left).

2. Ralph Lauren hopes to be equally close to your vest, but with a Polo logo and a prep attitude from his lambs wool argyle scarf  (charcoal or cypress, $60, above right).

3. You won’t get bright colors or wild stripes from either of those boys, though. Let’s do a little bit of global warming and visit Novica.com, with handcrafted work from around the world. A beautifully striped Alpaca wool scarf is created by Patricia Anaya in Peru ($60, above left).

4. Another Novica find, a blue and burgundy Alpaca scarf named Peacefulness (above, center) is made by Alfredo Falcon.

5. From India, an artist named Sajad works on a traditional Kashmiri loom, as did his ancestors, to create  hand-woven wool scarves, also from Novica ($43, above right).

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NBC’s Heroes returns for its third season on Sept. 22. One of the show’s stars is also an up-and-coming fashionista. Hayden Panettiere, who portrays cheerleader Claire, steps up to the hero role in real life with PanettiereCloset.com in which the actress sells off clothes straight from her closet, with proceeds going to her Save the Whales Again campaign. As Hayden says, “Cleaning out my closet is just the beginning; and putting my stuff up for sale is the first step in a crusade that will go a long way to helping these majestic mammals.”

In fact, Hayden just closed a moving sale, featuring furnishings from her family’s home. Every now and then, PanettiereCloset features an auction, most recently the Summer Breeze dress Hayden wore in her summer Candie’s photo shoot (it went for a cool $2,020).

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How can this woman, who has been married at least 10 times - and been so angry / jealous / manipulative / scheming / whining / unconscious /murderous / lovely and fabulous most  that time - be so tiny and have such flawless skin? Erica Kane is the daytime diva of all time on All My Children (she came to the show in 1970 and is she’s single, again!). As if that wasn’t enough, actress Susan Lucci is going to charm us in a new role: celebrity contestant on ABC’s Dancing With the Stars, starting Sept. 22.

Now we get to see her floating on air, chiffon whirling around her in barely appropriate dresses meant to show us just how tiny her waist is.

Fine. Want in on some of her secrets? 

 Start with that damnably pretty skin, perhaps due to her personal microdermabrasion skin line, Youthful Essence, All My Children ($30, automatic delivery). (more…)

New boots are a heralding of autumn, a shout-out that you’re moving into the other side of your closet to make the seasonal switch. In honor, we’ve found five pairs of fabulous boots to inspire you. Not booties, or peep-toe gladiator fringed platform Mary Jane type booties, but real, wonderful boots.

1. Christian Louboutin ‘Forever Tina’ fringe boots: If you’re going to wear fringe, then wear it! Black suede and a five-and-a-half inch heel with that CL signature red sole that you show off when you sit back. $1,575 at Neiman Marcus.

2. Prada Degrade riding boots: Hunting or riding boots are a comfy addition to your boot lineup, and this pair of ombre leather beauties are so hot that Saks will only let you buy three of them every 30 days. They’re $1,250. (more…)

From the moment she marched out onto the stage at the Republican National Convention, people were captivated by vice-presidential hopeful Sarah Palin: Not just for her accomplishments, but for her style. First it was her hair. Now it’s her glasses.

Maureen Dowd, the acerbic New York Times columnist, mentioned Sunday that Palin’s rimless eyeglasses are made of titanium by designer Kazuo Kawaskai, and they cost $375. Marie Claire’s British Web site said Americans were rushing to buy them. The glasses, according to the site, are part of the designer’s 704 collection, and Palin’s are No. 34 gray. The site added that Palin bought them from Home Optics in Chugiak, Alaska.

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You’re in the mall. You’re on the Web. You’re attempting to decipher the completely mixed fashion messages in the fall collections: Clothes are black and white, unless they’re grey; trends are sleek and minimalist, except when layered and chunky; silhouettes are classic, except when ragged and asymmetrical.

We hear, we know, we understand. We can make sense of it. Breathe, order a latte and get comfortable as we list scene-stealers for your closet this fall. Want all the details? Read our whole story.

Here’s a quick summary:

1. On the A-List: the waist: Start those sit-ups. Cinched waists are back, accentuated with wide belts.

2. Outrageous lengths: from very short to very long, but don’t stay in between.

3. Mixed messages: Don’t be shy with this trend, mix plaids with florals, fur with feathers, slick with bulky.

4. Over our heads: The season’s most forgiving style - big, bulky, oversized sweaters.

5. Open up the vault: OK, perhaps you don’t have lots of jewels, but jewel-toned evening dresses are in and shining.

6. Plaiditudes: Anything, everything is plaid. Scarves, dresses, coats, sweaters, skirts, anything!

7. Going long: Of course long, leggy models look good in body skimming long pants and dresses, but opt for a monochromatic look and you can be Giselle Bundchen of your neighborhood.

8. Showing our bias: This may be a one-season wonder, but skirts and dresses are showing a lot of angled attitude in their hemlines.

9: Gam chic: Show off those legs with over the knee boots in varied fabrics and hues.

10: Coats to cuddle in: Look like you stole your husband’s, boyfriend’s or dad’s big wool overcoat and you’ll be right in style.

Want all the details. Read our whole story.

Nike athletic shoes are always popular, and they are always introducing new shoes into their lineup. The top seven new men’s athletic shoes sold by Nike are:

1. AJF12 Premier men’s basketball shoe: A hybrid of their Air Jordan shoe design and the Air Force One shoe, it’s $160.

2. Nike Air Pegasus+ 25 men’s running shoe: This variation is part of Nike’s nod to the 25th anniversary of this classic running shoe, with light mesh and full-length Air Sole unit. It’s $85.

3. LeBron Zoom Solider II men’s basketball shoe: Another variation on the popular LeBron series, this has a full grain leather upper portion with perforated areas for breathability, and a new herringbone pattern. It’s $110.

4. Nike Air Max 360 III men’s running shoe: This is Nike’s fully personalizable shoe: you pick the colors, and select a symbol or your own ID. It’s $165 (pictured).

5. Nike Air Zoom SPARQ TR elite men’s training shoe: Described as the “ultimate training shoe” this has a breathable mesh upper and a Zoom Air unit in the heel. It is on sale for $62.99

6. Dwane Wade team signature United We Rise men’s basketball shoe: This one must be hot. It’s limited to one pair per customer and is excluded from all promotional discounts. It carries an Olympic theme with red, white and blue colors and a Beijing-inspired tattoo print. Cost: $110.

7. Nike Air Zoom Vapor V men’s tennis shoe: Nike’s solid tennis shoe styling, with four colors of trim, for $115.

In the world of fabulous handbags, there are two must-have sizes: diminutive clutchs and huge, almost-like-luggage, carry-everything-you-can think-of, I-think-I’ve-hurt-my-back really big bags. Let us focus on the latter.

High-end designers have many beautiful, but expensive, offerings:

• Bottega Veneta has a lovely leopard print jumbo bag for $5,500
• At Net-a-Porter, Jimmy Choo’s patent shoulder bag is wonderful, and it’s $2,495
• Tod’s has a buttery gray leather bag at eluxury for $1,675 (pictured)
• A  snazzy Sergio Rossi patent leather duffle for $1,550
• For some perspective, Ralph Lauren’s pretty alligator Ricky bag is $16,995
• And for a little more perspective, you can snatch a coveted Hermes Birkin bag on eBay for $42,500
• Back to reality: Michael Kors has a lovely deep red patent Astor tote for $348
• Cole Haan’s light tan tote is on sale for $237 at Bluefly
• There’s also a succulent Prada lambskin tote on sale for $1,608 (yes, it’s expensive, but it was $2,010)

Coming in a tad cheaper:

• There is a buttery soft equestrian Juicy Couture shoulder bag ($395), and a precious Kate Spade satin (white or purple) bag at ebags for $150
• Tignanello has a multi-pocketed shopper in many shades for $139
• Jessica Simpson has some cute patent satchels at a mere $98
• But our favorite big bag deal of the day is Simply Vera’s Vera Wang hobo at Kohl’s for $62 (pictured, right)