OXYGEN

"God, is it supposed to have one? I always think of it as just a bunch of frocks."

Stella McCartney on being asked what the pet name for her collection was, the Times

"In a worst-case scenario, physical therapy may be required to correct the problems, and foot surgery... may be necessary. The other rarely discussed - and slightly embarrassing - problem: tripping. It's natural, when you switch to flats, to feel a little uncoordinated at first. Even models on the fall runways had as hard a time with total flats as they once did with killer stilettos."

The terror that is flat shoes, Harper's Bazaar

"I can't believe that in the 1990s we are still restricted by the sewing machine. Stitching! A technique invented hundreds of years ago..."

Antwerp designer Walter van Beirendonck on fashion's lack of technology, Scene

"You look at Rizer in an Ungaro Haute Couture dress and, despite its opulence, you sense she is a no-nonsense girl. That she spends time with her brothers and sisters at their lake cottage. That she's a great water- skier."

Harper's Bazaar loses its marbles over pretermodel, Maggie Rizer

"What makes you think we want to dress as acid casualties or German students? I realise the 'Blue Chip Bohemia' article was ironic, but this is one trend you could have ignored."

Reader's letter, Frank

"This is just dress-making after all, not the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel."

Karl Lagerfeld's classic bitch on Yves Saint Laurent's fragile mental state, Scene

"Monsieur Laurent is in a very bad mood right now. This morning it was fine... But now he doesn't like the new girls. He doesn't like the clothes. You know how it is... artists."

YSL muse Loulou de la Falaise behind the scenes at his haute couture show, Paris, Harper's Bazaar

"For some, good taste is becoming boring, it's creating a homogenised society. Always looking perfectly manicured... quoting the correct phraseology and owning the proper door handles seems mind-numbingly pernickety - individuality...is being lost to a generic lifestyle."

Luella Bartley on quirky touches, Vogue

"The most boring point was Liz Hurley in her totally straight outfit."

Cerys Matthews (left) lets rip at the Elle Style Awards, Elle

"After the designing, it involves a lot of boiling and dyeing which I do from my kitchen... You could say I cook clothes rather than food. I felted my last collection on my copper hob..."

Julien Macdonald on the uses of his kitchen, the Express

"Look at how Meg Matthews has blossomed on the fashion front since she became Mrs Gallagher. Or how Ffion Jenkins has assumed more of a First Lady look since she became Mrs Hague. Ditto Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, dishevelled even by the standards of an All Saint when she dated future husband John and who, upon marriage, became a glamour icon in much the same way as...Jackie Onassis."

Christa D'Souza argues that a woman's wardrobe is only as stable as her marriage, Vogue