STOPWATCH

Chronographs are timepieces with both timekeeping and stopwatch functions. Produced as early as the 18th century, but not gaining popularity until the 1820s, chronographs are once again enjoying a resurgence at the forefront of fashionable accessories.

1- Forever 21's jeweled watch in yellow, $8.50; 2-Fossil chronograph champagne dial, $115; 3-Swatch men's watches suiw400-ww, on Amazon $96.56; 4-Michael Kors women's chronograph at Macy's $225; 5- gold-tone chronograph watch with crystal accents, BCBG $225; 6- Vintage Omega speedmaster professional "Moonlanding" watch, £1,695 on Asos.

These watches are not for the Wallflower. The commanding size begs to be noticed. Colored chronographs will be fun for Spring and Summer, but I'm particularly keen on the Michael Kors mens chronograph in gold and have been wearing one since I had to replace my Swatch version of same.

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HOT NEW HUE: MUSTARD

According to Michael Kors, mustard is the must-have color for wardrobes this fall. It's not just your grandmother's mustard however. It's 2008, so think wasabi and/or sun-dried tomato infused mustard. "Kors says mustard yellow seamlessly transitions from summer to fall and even winter. It's that right pop of autumnal color to announce the beginning of the new season -- but it's upbeat, doesn't make you miss summer and looks great with a bit of leftover suntan." - AP

Left to right, French's Classic Yellow Mustard, Old Fashioned Mustard by Delouis Fils, S&B Wasabi, Maille Dijon Originale, Lakeshore Wholegrain Mustard with Guinness Extra Stout and Stonewall Kitchen Sun-Dried Tomato Mustard.

StyleChile readers are always on trend...add one or two (or three) mustard-y pieces to your fall wardrobe and voila! See below for my picks and where to buy, or check out previous posts with mustard choices here and here.

French's Classic Yellow Mustard: citrine cuff by Bounkit for Vivre, $1,575.00; Milly textured wool coat with gold buttons; and Bamboo wrap scarf by Echo, $58. Old Fashioned Mustard by Delouis Fils: leather gloves by, Agatha & Me, $175; skirt suit: jacket and matching skirt are $498 and $288, respectively, from Badgley Mischka Platinum Sportswear- available at Saks; and Nine West's "Galen" boots are $250.00. S&B Wasabi: Motorcross leather jacket by Adam plus Eve, $795.00 at Neiman Marcus; Liberty flower print dress, £50.00 at Topshop; and trousers available at Antrhopologie for $228.00. Maille Dijon Originale: Dolce & Gabbana satin skirt, 350 at net-a-porter; leather gloves, $125.00 by La Crasia; and Fendi's patent leather B bag is available at net-a-porter for $1,860. Stonewall Kitchen Sun-Dried Tomato Mustard: Nylon bag, $25.00 at Gap, $25; Wet Seal's, bright Skinny Jean is $24.50; and Chinese Laundry's "Annabnelle" is available at Zappos for $73.00.

It appears that Michael's color forecast is missing a few key colors! Per Pantone, which is the self described "world-renowned authority on colour", fall 2008 is a season of change, change from the traditional dark autumnal shades to purples, rose, blues (and variations of traditional mustard). Pantone lists the following colors: blue iris, royal lilac, shady glade, caribbean sea, aurora red, shitake, withered rose, twillight blue, burnt orange and ochre as the colors of fall 2008. Check out Pantone's list of Fall 2008 colors and commentary provided by the likes of Zac Posen, Peter Som, and Y&Kei here.

Click on the label below for vintage Hot New Hue and Style Trends posts!

THE LAST STRAW

Want to exude boho chic? Emulate safari inspired styles? Go neutral or vamp up the color? Leave a small(er) green(er) carbon footprint? Swap out last season's leather "it" bag for one of these. Prices range from $14.50-$535.00.

Clockwise. Outter semi-circle: Kotur "Natural Lind" clutch $311.00 at chickdowntown.com; Michael Kors Santorini Shopper $278.00 at Macy's; Beehive clutch purse $15.80 at forever21.com; Anya Hindmarch Basket Tote $535.00 on vivre.com; Michael Kors Santorini Clutch $126.00 at Dillard's; Straw tote $21.99 on newport-news.com; Tory Burch Women's Rattan Clutch $275.00 at Bloomingdale's; and Juicy Couture snappy wicker basket $225 on net-porter. Inner semi-circle: stripe straw oval tote bag (turquoise) £ 30.00 at topshop.com; Tory Burch's "Suzie" straw clutch (yellow) $395.00; vintage style fan straw bag £20.00 at asos.com; Straw clutch $14.50 at alloy.com; and Martha Stewart collection straw tote $39.99 at Macy's.

The straw bag may be the most versatile accessory this season. Take a woven straw bag from the office, to the beach, or out on the town. It's not your mother's straw bag--though my mom asked me for one for mother's day--these hip versions run the gamut from clutch to hobo to tote.

Mena Suvari wears an Alice + Olivia jumpsuit and oversized straw Valentino purse at SocialVibe.com's Green Launch Party at Les Deux in late March, 2008; Sienna Miller strolls along the beach in Ibiza, Spain in September 2007.

My Pick: Michael Kors' Santorini Shopper, above, and this Antik Batik Kylie tote; my mom likes Juicy Couture's version shown above.

Click on the link below for vintage StyleTrends posts!

FUR REAL?

Be a Trooper...jump onto the fashion bandwagon with this trend! I generally choose form over function, but it's always great when the two meld together beautifully. You will be chic and very warm in these.

Fur hats have been all the rage, especially at New York City's fashion week.

The gentleman caller wears a Trooper in NYC's freezing weather outside of the Fashion Week tents; Vogue's Andre Leon Talley with Kimora and Britney behind the scenes at the Baby Phat show; Melania Trump channels Anna Karenina at Michael Kors' show; Gwenyth Paltrow wears a Trooper at Sundance; Milan Fashion week model dons a fur hat for Elisabetta Villa show; model sashays in fur at the Marc Jacobs show; and Baby Phat model struts her stuff.

The Trooper hat is pretty popular right now, but other variations are just as fab (see Andre Leon Talley, Melania Trump, Elisabetta Villa and Marc Jacobs' models above)! Specialty Furs has the best selection; most are reasonably priced at $170.00. If you're more socially conscious than me, faux will do...

This young man was kind enough to pose for me, in the belly of NYC's subway system, he bought his Trooper hat from a vendor on Canal Street. Sweet!

SHOE-IN!

Starting tomorrow and lasting through Wednesday, January 10, Shoe-Inn will host it's 10th annual warehouse sale featuring over 10,000 pairs of women's designer shoe and boot collections. All shoes are $19.00- $135.00; boots are $50.00 -$195.00.

Designers range from Pucci, Michael Kors, Chloe, Donald J. Pliner, Betsy Johnson, Uggs, Miss Sixty, Burberry and the list goes on ad infinitum...new merchandise will be added daily!

Join me, and every other woman in NYC at Gotham Hall, located at 1356 Broadway. More info below!

Thanks to reader, Kristin, for the tip!

1/3/2007 -1/10/2007
Mon- Fri 9am- 6:45pm; Sat- Sun 10am-5pm
1356 Broadway Gotham Hall (at 36th & Broadway) New York, NY 10018

THE DEVIL'S IN THE DETAILS

I may not be the most detail obsessed person, but I can’t stand to see a great outfit fail for lack of attention to a particular element. Why bother with getting your hair done, brows plucked and new shoes if you don’t plan on steaming your dress (see Nicky Hilton below)… No need to get the outfit right if your shoes can stand a bit of polish! Now that the winter months are approaching, be sure to get your entire game tight, or at least pretend that it is…The best way to do this is to have immaculate outerwear. Be sure that your coat, boots, scarves, gloves and hat are in order and we’ll worry about what’s underneath later.

The model, above, is wearing a coat from Charlie Brown's Autumn/Winter 2007 Collection. I'd love to see this coat paired with red leather driving gloves.

With respect to outerwear, my pet peeve is ridiculous gloves. Preposterous gloves will bring your winter ensemble down! See infra: I didn't set out to pick on the Hilton sisters, but if the glove fits...

Here are my picks for fabulous gloves! I’m a big fan of driving gloves… check out this one from TopShop, only 15.00 pounds sterling:

Banana Republic's Shearling Buckled Gloves are $98.00:

Add some spunk to regular 'ole black leather gloves with these studded leather wool-lined gloves from Michael Kors, only $60.00 on BlueFly! :

Styletip: mittens are only cute on the kiddies!

Credit: Getty Images.