Some of my best friends here in New York have pasts I have a hard time reconciling with the people I'm close to now. But I wouldn't change them - or their pasts - for anything in the world. Their experiences are what made them the people they are today.

With her first Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Lisbeth Salander in 'The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,' Rooney Mara gave fashion fans a new Gothic-chic muse.

One of the perks of my job as a fashion journalist is the travel opportunity.

I stumbled upon the 3x1 shop because it's a few doors up from the 'V' magazine offices on Mercer. The store is intense: They can take your measurements, and the sewers are right there behind glass making what amounts to a couture pair of jeans.

Although it's not something I'm particularly proud of, I'm willing to admit that, in addition to whiling away the long stretches of time in the air and waiting in airport lounges reading the 'New Yorker' and 'New York Times' on my Kindle, I've picked up the occasional tabloid magazine.