Rag & Bone opened its first store in the West Village today. Designers Marcus Wainwright and David Neville selected a cozy 1,600-square-foot space at 104 Christopher Street in a residential and decidedly gay area; a rainbow flag hangs proudly above Rag & Bone's smartly styled window displays. But with the hustle and bustle of Bleecker Street a block away, the new outpost isn't entirely removed from the Marc Jacobs and Magnolia foot traffic. When we popped in this afternoon, customers continually trickled in and out: Fashionistos perused the menswear, a mother with a stroller stopped in, and a few stylish downtown girls were lured inside after a long look at the window displays. The predictably rustic interior includes exposed-brick walls, artfully scattered furniture, and vintage trunks. And the clothes looked dreamy in it: A work-friendly charcoal pencil skirt ($295) hung just a few feet from a pair of leather leggings we are coveting but at $1,440 won't be able to afford this season. Wardrobe staples like a double-breasted black blazer ($510), high-waisted tuck pants ($370), and a selection of buttery-soft cotton and cashmere tees and cardigans were more affordable. For men, a black shirt jacket ($445) pairs nicely with the charcoal-gray cigarette trouser ($315). And of course, a large selection of denim fills up the back wall. We dare say we'll return … after that holiday bonus rolls in.

Last week we brought you a glimpse of the forthcoming New York Times Magazine profile of Yves Saint Laurent head designer Stefano Pilati, in which he asserts that Tom Ford — from whom he took over YSL when Ford stepped down in 2004 — is "talented but not gifted," and more interested in designing safe clothes than taking risks in his collections. Pilati has been taking risks at YSL, and though they didn't pay off in his critically panned first collections for the house, to call his fall '08 collection a success would be a gross understatement. Critics haven't stopped raving over it since it walked in February. The full Pilati interview ran this weekend, and he had a lot more to say to Lynn Hirschberg about designing, his time in rehab, and why he doesn't like male models. But let's start with a little more dirt on Tom Ford.

Ford "seduced" Pilati to leave Prada for YSL, where everyone hated Tom.

“Tom is a seducer … When I met him, I was under his spell. But I was amazingly scared to move to Paris and work for YSL. Prada was like a family, and it was a very female environment. Tom was surrounded by men, and he was like a fashion designer in a movie. We were naïve at Prada — we did things because we liked them, and they took off. Tom was much more calculated. I spent the first year trying to absorb his mentality. It was very difficult. Tom was mostly living in London, and I was being tested by everybody at YSL in Paris. Even the receptionist. They all hated Tom, and they were all telling me about Mr. Saint Laurent and what he used to do.”

We didn't think our crush on Yigal Azrouël could get any bigger. But we just learned he designed condoms — yes, condoms! — and now we're beside ourselves. Proper Attire condoms teamed with Azrouël because they wanted to make stylish rubbers for women to carry (no one wants any ol' Trojan spilling out of her Dior bag next week). The Yigal-designed condoms will be available for purchase in his stores starting this Friday with all proceeds benefiting Planned Parenthood (you can also buy them online here). Yigal said in a press release:

“Having grown up with five sisters, causes related to women’s health and wellness are close to my heart. I love being able to apply my passion for design to raise awareness for Planned Parenthood®. My business is largely founded on designing for women, so it is really about taking that mindset and applying it to a product like PROPER ATTIRE® to figure out what appeals to a woman.”

Also, these ought to make excellent Fashion Week gift-bag items since they're something we can actually use. Unlike, say, the bright-orange eye shadow no one bought in stores.

SKIN
• Bethenny Frankel on her monthly facial at Christine Chin Facial Spa: "[I]t costs a fortune. It is a facial and a microdermabrasion which is like a surgery, it’s not fun. They should play chain saw music in the background. They take every pore you ever had and they really get it clean. It’s all worth it." [Beauty Interviews]

FRAGRANCE
• Gant is launching Gant Silver this fall with a campaign starring model Ryan Heavyside. This is the third men's scent for Gant, featuring citrus and herbal notes. [Cosmetic News]

HAIR
• Victoria Beckham wore a vinyl hair accessory that didn't look very posh. [BellaSugar]

NAILS
• The Lippmann Collection's Start Me Up kit features seven ways to prep before a self-manicure for $39.50. It's a little much, but an ample backup if you can't make it to the salon. [Daily Obsession]

Last September Toronto native Kori Richardson debuted in Milan as an exclusive for the spring 2008 Jil Sander show. Days later she flew to Paris and snagged bookings for Yves Saint Laurent and Chanel's runway shows. Though casting agents have been fawning over the 19-year-old for the past year, we only recently started swooning ourselves when we saw her Italian Vogue editorial in the September issue for the first time last week, shot by one of our favorite photographers, Paolo Roversi. The sleepy-eyed model evokes Greta Garbo in gorgeous Dolce & Gabbana suits and eveningwear in the black-and-white photos, which you can see in her model profile. And if that's not enough Richardson for you, don't miss her on the September cover of Dazed & Confused.

Model Profile: Kori Richardson

For more on the runway’s finest, check out our always expanding Model Manual

Until now Katherine Fleming has been best known for launching Tory Burch's accessories — and we all know what a hit those were. But the 29-year-old Miami native recently left the label to launch her own namesake bag collection, hitting Barneys and Opening Ceremony later this fall. Though she's starting small, she plans to branch out into more styles, shoes, and jewelry. We had to ask the rising star how she met Tory and what she can't live without. (Hint: It's not a bag.)

Indian Vogue editors probably thought they had a pretty clever idea when they asked real people instead of professional models to pose for its current issue. Average men and women on the street appear in a photo spread flaunting items like a $10,000 Birkin bag, a $100 Fendi bib, and a $200 Burberry umbrella. But the thing is, 456 million people in India — half the country's population — live on less than $1.25 a day. So a lot of people are finding the spread rather sickening. New Delhi newspaper columnist Kanika Gahlaut told the New York Times she found it "not just tacky but downright distasteful," calling it an "example of vulgarity." She added it's not "fun or funny" to put a poor man in a mud hut in Alexander McQueen clothes. How did Indian Vogue editor Priya Tanna respond?

“Lighten up,” she said in a telephone interview. Vogue is about realizing the “power of fashion” she said, and the shoot was saying that “fashion is no longer a rich man’s privilege. Anyone can carry it off and make it look beautiful,” she said.

“You have to remember with fashion, you can’t take it that seriously,” Ms. Tanna said. “We weren’t trying to make a political statement or save the world,” she said.

Right — $10,000 Birkin bags are every man's privilege. Which is why we have seven. Critics are further upset that Tanna didn't even identify the names of the real people in the spread, simply referring to them as a "man" or "woman" and crediting the item. Maybe the fashion assistants were too busy trying to keep the McQueen samples wrapped in plastic when they were done shooting to write down names. Doing two things at once is tricky.

Vogue’s Fashion Photos Spark Debate in India [NYT]

It's been said Tara Subkoff wishes she'd never sold the Imitation of Christ label she founded. But though she no longer helms her own line, she'll still put on a show this Fashion Week — or at least she'll help with one, as Form just announced Subkoff will serve as artistic director of its spring/summer 2009 show. Now, on the matter of Form: It's the label designed by Project Runway season five's first castoff, Jerry Tam. (We don't know about you, but the serial-killer costume that earned him the boot is still as fresh in our minds as our three-day-weekend hangover.) Tam and Subkoff got to know each other when Tam interned for Subkoff at Imitation of Christ. "I had no idea that [Jerry] would have so much respect for me that he would bring me on board! It's so great to be able to support one of my first interns at such a crucial time. Feels karmic and cosmic," Subkoff says in a press release. It is a surprising pairing to us, too. We never would have expected her to make a runway comeback with a Runway castoff/her ex-intern. Not that there's anything wrong with Form, but we kind of expected her to align with bigger potatoes. Maybe she really does miss the biz.

• A Tokyo-based apparel group will buy Jil Sander for $244.1 million. Raf Simons will stay on as head designer of the label. [WWD]

• Matteo Marzotto, former chairman of Valentino, is displeased with his portrayal in the documentary, Valentino: The Last Emperor: "There is no mention of how we turned the company around and sold it [to Permira] so advantageously for everyone. I am just made to look as the heartless industrialist." [WWD]

• Rag & Bone opens its Christopher Street flagship today. Yay! [WWD]

• Tourists can now tour Gianni Versace's Miami home for $50. [British Vogue]

• The film Tara Subkoff made to promote her Bebe collection starring Lydia Hearst will premiere at Norwood club and on Bebe's Website this Thursday. Quick — someone fetch us our calendar so we can cancel life that night. [WWD]

• Alan Cumming and Heather Graham will curate the first edition of G-Star Raw Nights' New York art show following the G-Star runway show on September 11. [WWD]

It looks like Halston won't appoint a big-name designer to replace Marco Zanini, who helmed the label's revival during February Fashion Week with a fall collection that received mixed reviews but sold impressively around the world. When he was let go almost two months ago, the label was expected to announce a replacement before the next week's rapidly approaching runway show and had reportedly met with several big designers like Roland Mouret. But today WWD reports the label "is opting to move ahead with the in-place design team creating the collections — at least for the foreseeable future." So no changes for now. Zanini, however, conceived the spring 2009 collection, which will walk in exactly one week at the Museum of Modern Art. Just don't expect anyone to come out and take a bow when the show's over.

Halston Update [WWD]
Related: Halston Lets Its Head Designer Go

STARTING TODAY
• In celebration of Sally Hershberger's announcement of a new salon, the staff at her downtown spot is kicking off its training program with discounts. Score a cut or coloring for $40. Through October. 425 W. 14th St., nr. Ninth Ave., second fl. (212-206-8700); Tues.–Fri. (9–7), Sat. (9–5), Sun.–Mon. (closed).

• Showroom Seven's sample sale features Orla Kiely, Erickson Beamon, Issa, Tony Cohen, and more for up to 75 percent off. A pullover by A&G Cashmere is $225 (originally $562) and a cotton jersey dress by Tee Party is $55 (originally $120). Through 9/17. 263 Eleventh Ave., nr. 27th St. (212-643-4810); Tues.–Sat. (10–7), Sun. (closed).

• Honey in the Rough is slashing prices on sale items by Tsumori Chisato, Alice McCall, and United Bamboo by an extra 50 percent. Through 9/7. 161 Rivington St., nr. Clinton St. (212-228-6415); Mon.–Sat. (noon–8), Sun. (noon–7).