Project Runway alumnus (who will soon be returning to the tube via a new Valentino-esque reality series) Christian Siriano is just shy of the debut of his second collection for Payless. But the photos of his labor hit the web yesterday, promising quite a few very cute, very, very cheap styles for the line's launch in time for the holiday season. Styles include "two pair of flats with zippers on the toes, two boots with gold zipper details, and a pair of black and gold pumps and shiny black strappy sandals, both with little gold zippers up the backs," says Racked. All heels come in an attractive upside-down cone shape and are decidedly more demure than the talon-like shoes that made their way down Siriano's well-received SS10 catwalk. The best part: "nothing's more than $49.99."

● Now that Britney Spears is all productive and successful again, Lindsay Lohan has taken over for her on the meltdown train. First sign of impending doom: Lohan spoke in a British accent to the paps. [TMZ]
● Nicole Kidman will bring her fashion icon experience to the "All-Star Challenge" episode of Project Runway. [People]
● Twilight fans have nothing to fear; the fourth novel in the series, Breaking Dawn, will indeed be made into a film. [E!'

Last we saw Project Runway, she had fashioned a noose out of a surplus of tulle and had placed a stick of dynamite between her teeth, but not before saying, "Arrivederci cruel world!" We were sure that we'd creep into the cellar to find a mess of glitter and pincushions, perhaps even a cat or two mewing about. But no, it seems Lifetime is going to reap big from the sixth season of Runway. This also means that, once again, we finally get to enjoy Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum weekly -- a needed reprieve from the befuddling non-chemistry of Isaac Mizraahi and Kelly Rowland. But that's not all!

● Peaches Geldof would like Ed Westwick to know he’s no Pete Doherty. She says of the Gossip Girl star that he acts like “English guy with a poet soul and it doesn't really work.” [NYM]
● By now we’ve all seen the Lilo Fornarina ad where she does her best Small Wonder impression; the director has defended the ad by saying we just don’t get his subtle homage to Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot. Huh? [WWD]
● Meghan McCain, as in John McCain’s daughter, was seen having lunch with Tila Tequila. What did they talk about? Evidently everything from politics to pop culture. [US]

I've never been one to follow fads. Okay, never mind. But throughout the shitshow that presented itself as the fifth cycle of Project Runway, where some jerk from my hometown decided to wear ill-fitting black denim and sling homophobic asides underscored with envy to the camera, I also had something of a soft-spot for finalist Kenley Collins. From her contrived Bettie Page bangs to her gratuitous floral hair accents to her vicious sneer, dear Kenley was what ultimately proved to be the fifth season's raison d'etre -- in a season with no fan favorites, brimming with bitchy villains, Kenley was by far the bitchiest.

Jen Egan, Gen Art’s ubiquitous It Girl and Project Runway’s eagle eye, on being perpetually “out,” decoding Japanese door lists, and why Beverly Hills fashion still sucks.

Where do you hang out? I love the Tower Bar at the Sunset Tower Hotel. Jeff Klein is a good friend, and Dimitry, who does not need a last name just like Madonna and Cher need no other name, is bar none the best host in the city. He will greet you with his adorable Italian accent, “Ciao bella,” and kiss you, always both cheeks, and never an air kiss. Tower Bar is dark enough to take 10 years off me, swank enough that there are always celebrity sightings, and intimate enough that you feel cozy munching on the amazing thin crust pizza and drinking champagne, a.k.a. “champers dahhhling.”

This may just be the final diamond-studded nail on the gilded coffin that's become Project Runway. Advertisers have withdrawn their money from the series' next run, which remains mired in lawsuits. And with waning advertising dollars across the board, Lifetime is trying all sorts of last-ditch attempts at keeping as much of that purported Runway cash in-tact. And with fare like this and this, both harder sells to advertisers than those dubious Runway spin-offs. But let's assume that Lifetime miraculously succeeds and this mess gets untangled sometime in early 2009.

Christian Siriano’s career has been on a roll as of late. The collection the 23-year-old (celebrating his birthday just last month) Project Runway winner designed for Bluefly sold extremely well, he's doing costumes for Uma Thurman in her upcoming film Eloise in Paris, and not to mention his maternity line is still afloat. Now the New York Post reports Siriano will debut a line of inexpensive accessories -- shoes and handbags included -- at Payless in the fall of 2009.

In this post-election haze, the one question clearly weighing on the fashion industry’s collection conscience (mine included) has been: What will Michelle Obama wear to the Inaugural Ball? While it seems safe to assume the dress will come courtesy of an American designer, as has been a Michelle Obama constant up until this point, the rest is open for interpretation. Translation: In a day and age where competitions and reality TV are as commonplace as skyscraper stilettos (at least this season anyway), it’s the perfect impossible task to turn over to a few Project Runway alums. And, this is exactly what The Daily Beast did, before publishing the looks (and Simon Doonan's reactions) yesterday.

No, not a revival of the short-lived soap opera which featured a predictably scrappy Morgan Fairchild, but a replacement for the bitterly-departed Project Runway. The network posted a casting call to all aspiring fashion designers with a deadline of late November for all applications. And with Runway tied up indefinitely in legal limbo and its prospects of Fashion Week synergy unraveling, the copycat could sate the appetites of those hankering for taffeta, tulle, and talented egotists.