The CFDA will erect booths in the tents during Fashion Week to provide information on eating disorders, but Barneys' Simon Doonan thinks diversity on the runway is a more pressing issue. "Eating is personal," Doonan said at the Artistry of Fashion Award benefit luncheon in the Rainbow Room this afternoon. "A much bigger issue is why they're not using more African-American girls." Doonan added that he never tells people to look to the fashion industry to find healthy role models. "It's always been extreme, even going back to the ancient Egyptians. In the Renaissance they wore corsets made of wooden slats." He continued, "At the moment fashion is very thin-orexic. The archetypes are extremely thin, but that will change. It's like that stupid walk they used to do where they would walk like that" — Doonan demonstrated by stomping his feet — "but eventually they stopped walking like that. It had to work its way through."

The ever-punctual Doonan also hopes designers will heed Diane Von Furstenberg's plea to start their shows on time this season. (He's especially impassioned after getting locked out of his house one season when a show ran late and his partner, Jonathan Adler, had already locked the doors and hit the hay; Doonan threw pebbles at the windows and shrieked to get in.) "Eight-hour productions of The Ring with animals and costumes start on time. People start heart operations on time," said Doonan. "So a few frocks on a few girls? Get it together."

Related: Step Right Up for Your Free Eating-Disorder Brochure at Fashion Week
Diane Von Furstenberg: Get Thee to the Tents on Time!

It's official: Debbie Phelps inked an endorsement deal with Chico's. Soon after she wore Chico's to the Beijing Olympics to cheer on her son Michael, the company created a "Debbie Phelps" section on their Website to showcase the items she brought with her. But now, she'll earn in the low six figures over the next year for appearing in Chico's catalogues and wearing Chico's for public appearances, including on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Michael's management team is now managing Debbie, so who knows what other deals might arise for her — could a Wheaties box be in her future?

Meanwhile, this deal couldn't come at a better time for Chico's, which just announced that its second-quarter profits dropped 83 percent. The drop was probably a result of the company trying to market to a younger customer base. But with Phelps on the ticket, Chico's can refocus on its core baby-boomer customers. Chico's president Michele Cloutier told The Wall Street Journal there's been an increase in sales of items in the Debbie Phelps collection.

Olympic Mom Fits Bill for Chico's [WSJ]
Related: Michael Phelps’s Mom in Talks to Collaborate With Chico’s

We love a good comeback story, and Iris Strubegger has a great one. In 2002 the Austrian model walked for Calvin Klein and became the face of Armani, but after less than two years in the business, Strubegger quit modeling to finish high school. Now 25, Strubegger's hiatus hasn't seemed to slow down her modeling career at all. Her mile-high cheekbones have recently been shot by Mario Testino for V, Steven Meisel for Italian Vogue, and Craig McDean for Pollini's fall ad campaign. So all you hungry, 14-year-old models, take note: Hitting the books and the runways is possible.

Model Profile: Iris Strubegger
See more pretty girls and boys in our extensive Model Manual.

FRAGRANCE
• Christina Aguilera stopped by Macy's yesterday to promote her Inspire fragrance. She inspired $50,000 in sales of the perfume at the Herald Square location over Labor Day weekend alone. Damn. [WWD]

• Gwen Stefani's Harajuku Lovers fragrances are taking over the Bloomingdale's windows on 59th Street. [Racked]

MAKEUP
• Hard Candy is not shutting down, as many beauty blogs speculated last week after their products went on sale up to 75 percent off. They're just "repositioning" and adding more options to their color collection. [WWD]

• Maybelline is doing a limited-edition calendar for 2009; the behind-the-scenes video for the project features Adriana Lima, Julia Stegner, and Anna Wang bathing in tub full of beauty products. [V via Robert Greene]

• Gisele Bündchen is new face of Max Factor, taking over Carmen Electra's three-year stint. [Off the Rack/People]

PLASTIC SURGERY
• Tennis star Lindsay Davenport injects Juvéderm™ dermal filler into her face to reduce wrinkles. [Beauty Interviews]

Behold! All the pretty colors of Jonathan Saunders's collection for Target. It hits stores October 5, but you can also scoop it up early (yay!) in one of the Bullseye Bodega pop-up shops opening around the city next week. The collection was inspired by the works of Gustav Klimt, Jackson Pollock, and Rothko. Pieces range from $14.99 to $59.99 and will be in stores through November 1.

See a slideshow of the collection.

Nastia Liukin will sit front row at Peter Som's show during Fashion Week. The Olympic gymnast told WWD Maria Sharapova invited her, which we all know makes her officially cool. Sharapova's a friend of Anna Wintour, so perhaps she'll introduce the Vogue editor to the gymnast. If they don't have time to get chummy at Som's show, there's always the Isaac Mizrahi or Cole Haan shows, which Liukin is also attending (we imagine she'll sit front row at those, too, but Liukin hasn't stated so explicitly). Maybe La Wintour and Liukin will become besties and the gymnast will appear in Vogue! (Do excuse our imaginations for running wild.)

Liukin's foray into fashion doesn't stop at Fashion Week. The five foot three athlete is working with Vanilla Star jeans on launching Nastia Liukin Gold jeans and tops for holiday sales. She is also in talks to design a line of activewear for GK, the company that makes her leotards, which she designs with her mom.

Liukin also said she'd "love to do some acting and modeling, but not as my career." We have a hunch she's a tad short for the runway, but she's already scheduled to appear on Gossip Girl. We can't wait for that episode.

Gold Medalist Liukin Jumps Into Apparel [WWD]

Hey, if musicians can make clothing lines, there's no reason designers can't make CDs: Vivienne Westwood will release a compilation album, Catwalk Breakdown, on September 15. British Vogue reports Westwood conceptualized, curated, and art-directed the album, giving us all a reason to go to an actual physical store where CDs are sold and buy the album, plastic case, cellophane wrapping, and all. The album includes sixteen of Westwood's favorite songs, like "Last Night Was Made for Love," by Billy Fury, and Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers. Westwood told British Vogue:

"My clothes always tell a story. It may refer to the past, but it's always projected into this heroic future. And I choose the music accordingly … Sometimes the music can just be sexy, it can let you relax, look at the clothes, put people into a fantastic mood. Then it might just have to swing back and lift you up to the final triumph of the fashion show."

"These are some of the pieces that I've relied on over all these years — my classics. They've never failed me."

It's like music therapy! When Fashion Week ends, we might need a little of that to ease our mourning. We can only listen to "Why Do All Good Things Come to an End?," by Nelly Furtado, so many times.

The Westwood Beat [British Vogue]

While many of us fled the city for the three-day weekend on Friday, Guess opened its first New York Marciano boutique in Soho. The glitzy runway-inspired label offers teeny cocktail dresses, slinky tops, leather handbags, and towering heels in a sprawling, two-story space on Broadway that reminds us of Cher's house from Clueless (and we mean that in a good way). Animal-print accents, custom-made furniture, and glittering chandeliers accent the store's pristine white interior — and we appreciated the bar and drink cart serving free cappuccino and soft drinks to shoppers on the first floor. A collage of mirror pieces on the rear wall reflects mannequins modeling short, tight dresses, and a projector above the staircase loops recent runway shows on a giant screen. Fitting rooms include plush leather ottomans and ample, inviting seating for restless boyfriends. Upstairs, an entire room is devoted to the high-heeled footwear collection — the largest selection of all the Marciano stores — displaying slingbacks, boots, and pumps in leather brights and metallics.

See more of the store in a slideshow.

Marciano, 514 Broadway, nr. Spring St.; 212-925-0817.

Yesterday Michael Phelps received his $1 million bonus from Speedo for winning eight gold medals. But rather than blow it on models, bottles, and $300 jeans, he's using it to create the Michael Phelps Foundation "dedicated to growing the sport of swimming globally and encouraging active lifestyles." Aw, that's sweet. WWD was on hand to interview Phelps. Joe Gromak, CEO of the Warnaco Group Inc., which owns Speedo, helped Phelps answer hard-hitting questions about his style. And guess what? He's a jeans-and-T-shirt kind of guy!

WWD: What do you wear when you are out of the pool?
M.P.: Jeans, polos, button-downs, nothing too fancy.
J.G.: He likes Calvin Klein Jeans and Underwear, I hear [which Warnaco makes].
M.P.: Yeah, I wear Diesel, Seven, D&G, Lacoste — that’s pretty much it.

That's right, Joe — if you wanted him to say Calvin Klein on his own, you could have cut him another $1 million deal. No one would be opposed to a topless Michael Phelps Calvin Klein jeans billboard, after all.

• Calvin Klein has nearly doubled its volume to $5.4 billion. It's expected to double again in the next five years, thanks to international retail expansion. [WWD]

• Here's a look at early sketches of Isaac Mizrahi's debut Liz Claiborne collection, showcasing lots of bright color and a "sporty attitude." [WWD]

• If you can't afford a $10,000 ticket to Anna Wintour and Sarah Jessica Parker's Runway to Change fund-raiser for Barack Obama, know that $250 tickets are now available. Flypaper has details on how to buy. [Fly Paper/Bluefly]

• Calvin Klein designer Francisco Costa: "I never thought of filling anybody’s shoes … Calvin did what he did. Am I Calvin? Absolutely not. Am I respecting the label? Yes. Am I doing what I am supposed to do? I think I am. Am I respecting myself? Yes. Am I having fun? Yes. Do I like being here? I love being here." [WWD]

• Designers will show a smattering of different hemlines this Fashion Week. Oh dear — we can't connect them to the economy?! [NYO]

Menswear designer Carlos Campos is showing his first women's collection Monday during Fashion Week, and he's just announced he'll use only black models in the runway show at the Altman Building. The New York Observer received a press release about the show, which explained supermodel Iman inspired the casting decision and described the collection as "Jet set rockstar — think David Bowie and Iman on holiday in the South of France."

But ironically, Iman told us she had reservations about Italian Vogue's all-black issue because she didn't want it to reduce black models to a "caricature." The Observer asks, "We're all for seeing more diversity in fashion, but should we interpret Mr. Campos's show as having diversity for the sake of diversity, or just a publicity stunt?" Considering the Campos camp sent out a press release about this, we're inclined to choose the latter. That said, we don't also doubt Campos genuinely believes in promoting diversity on the runways. But we've already seen Sean John and Dsquared2 do this. So maybe the truly innovative thing to do this season would be to cast a group of models that's actually, well, diverse.

Carlos Campos To Use Only Black Models in His Debut Women's Collection [NYO]
Related: Iman Doesn't Want Black Models to Be a ‘Caricature’
White Models Mostly Absent From Dsquared2 Show, and Could Be From Lanvin, Too

STARTING TODAY
• Castor & Pollux marked down clothes by Acne, Built by Wendy, and 3.1 phillip lim by up to 70 percent off. Through 9/12. 238 W. 10th St., nr. Christopher St. (212-645-6572); Mon.–Sat. (noon–7); Sun. (1–6).

• Mick Margo's online sale section features big discounts on their stock of cardigans, skirts, dresses, and more. An Alexander Wang T-shirt dress was $276 and now is $138.

• Gilt Groupe slashed prices on Charlotte Ronson’s sweet, feminine frocks. If you're not a member, click here for your invite.

STARTING TOMORROW
• The end-of-summer sample sale at Project No. 8 features extra discounts on men’s and women’s apparel from Martin Margiela, Sunshine & Shadow, and more. Through 9/6. 215 Centre St., nr. Grand St., second fl.; (212-925-5599); Thurs. (5–9); Fri.–Sat. (noon–7).