San Francisco Chronicle - October 3, 2004
Sylvia Rubin, srubin@sfchronicle.com.

Some other charitable fashion options to mark awareness month: Burberry's purple print trench, tote and scarf, New Balance's slip-on sneakers and Estee Lauder's pure-color crystal lipstick, at department stores. There are many other pink-ribbon fashions for sale at cosmetics counters all over town this month.

Plus, the usual assortment of thousands of shoes go on sale to benefit breast cancer charities on QVC, the cable shopping channel, from 4 to 7 p.m. Oct. 20.

Never gets cold feet: The perpetually sockless Michael Kors came to town last week for Macy's Passport show, an annual AIDS research fund-raiser and fashion event. Now that he's no longer designing for the Paris fashion house of Celine, Kors is not missing that commute, he says. "I don't want to sound like a spoiled brat, but after the Concorde stopped flying, going to Paris two times a month was not easy," he said.

The personable designer, who lives in New York's Greenwich Village to be close to the river ("It's as close to a beach house in Manhattan as I can get, " he said), is never far from the water in his collections, either. Capri, Crete and other sea fronts have all provided the inspiration for his clothes; his shows are a blast of color, luxury and eternal fun-in-the-sun fashions.

For the rest of us, though, he's just introduced his new Michael collection of classic, wearable work clothes, such as coats and jackets with silver toggle buttons, zebra-print trenches and tops; black leather pencil skirts with white topstitching, diamond-patterned sweaters and slim suits. "I'm the last of the Mohicans," he said. "A real sportswear designer."

But he does have a new take on his craft. What he took away from his six years in Paris, he said, was a new interest in the sensual.

"The French are all about seduction," he says. "We Americans are too pragmatic, too practical. I will be incorporating a lot more special touches, like embroidery and beading, in my runway collections now. But it will still be sportswear, no matter what. I'm not turning into a ball gown designer any time soon."

Top secret, sort of: The serious sample sale -- current season's clothing at 75 to 80 percent off retail prices -- which is a staple in New York and Los Angeles makes its way to San Francisco for the first time with the Billion Dollar Babes sale, an invitation-only event in Potrero Hill on Oct. 16.

"We've been hounded for years by women who come down here four times a year for the Los Angeles sale," said co-founder Shelli-Anne Couch. "They begged us to bring it up to San Fran."

Oh, there's got to be a catch, and here are two:

Hitch No. 1: It's not exactly open to everyone. Only the first 3,000 people to sign up on www.billiondollarbabes.com will receive an e-mail invitation.

Hitch No. 2: You must be a size 8 or smaller, unless you're only in the market for shoes, bags or sunglasses.

But it's free.

The clothes include overruns from the current season, sample sizes and canceled orders. Designers include Rebecca Taylor, Catherine Malandrino, Petro Zillia, Plein Sud, William B., Oliver Peoples eyewear and others.

The event was first held in L.A. in 2001, "in a tiny room with 20 designers and 200 shoppers, including a nearly naked Naomi Watts," Couch says. "She dropped trou in the middle of the room to try on a Richard Tyler dress. She's one of our best customers in L.A."

Clothing is arranged on racks by designer, the dressing room is large and communal, there are 60 staffers to help keep the place from looking like a rummage sale gone bad, and there are 12 registers. "We are very aware that people hate to wait," Couch said. If tensions rise, there is always the hosted bar.

The sale takes place 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Oct. 16 at Dogpatch Studios, 991 Tennessee St. in San Francisco.

041003
SC041003

Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2004. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.

AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.

Copyright ©1980, 2004. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .