Tatler in London is that country’s equivalent to our Vanity Fair: a society magazine that is also full of fashion, entertainment, home design, beauty – but all done with famous irreverant wit. Clearly, “Mad Men” – a big contender at this weekend’s Emmy’s – is also a big hit in London, as January Jones – who plays Betty Draper – made the cover, in an amazing fall Prada dress. Interestingly, Jones’ character has had less and less screen time this season, now that she and Don (Jon Hamm) are divorced, and she’s remarried the incredibly boring Henry. But she’s far from leaving the show, she says in the mag. She also confesses that she – and the other actresses on the show – all wear girdles to create more curves, which women definitely had in the sixties. Exercise was not the trend then it is today. But girdles are horribly uncomfortable! This makes them even better actresses in our eyes now!

There’s been a lot of blogging – and talking (so old school) – about the fact that the big three fashion mags: Vogue, Bazaar and Elle – all put actresses over the age of 40 on their big September covers: Halle Berry on Vogue, Jennifer Aniston on Bazaar, and Julia Roberts on Elle. This delivers a very clear message to America and to women: 40 is now fine. And not just fine -we mean, FINE. As in, fashion fine. So where are the 20 year olds this fall? September Interview just came out with one on its fall cover: Blake Lively. Blake is not only the blonde fashionista of “Gossip Girls,” she stars with Ben Affleck and Jon Hamm in Affleck’s new movie that he directed, “The Town,” out September 17. In fact, she plays his girlfriend and has a sex scene with him. Ben actually interviews her for the mag, too. The Interview cover is predictably sultry, shot by Craig McDean in a cinematic vein. She gets to wear Donna Karan and Giorgio Armani jackets, Nicole Miller, Calvin Klein, and Moschino blouses and Altuzarra, Burberry and Longchamp skirts which show plenty of thigh. It’s nice to see a young woman wearing jackets and blouses and skirts, very 1940′s film noir. And it’s one of fall’s best looks – the skirt is indeed finally back in style.

Vogue Magazine has always owned New York Fashion Week – hosting the Vh1 Vogue Fashion Awards every fall, and last year, creating the giant “Fashion’s Night Out” (this year on Sept 10). Ever wonder if the other magazines are jealous? Now Hearst’s Harper’s Bazaar is jumping into the Fashion Week Arena with an Accessories Bazaar to highlight key pieces from the new spring 2010 accessories collections from a select group of only American designers. It’s being sponsored by the Willow Club at Avery Fisher Hall – which is, of course, part of Lincoln Center, which is where New York Fashion Week will now take place. There will be spring 2011 collections of 18 jewelers, milliners, footwear, handbag and small leather goods designers including Alexis Bittar, Philip Crangi, Albertus Swanepoel, Alejandro Ingelmo, Fenton’s Dana Lorenz, Pamela Love and Dean Harris in a gallery-like setting. The exhibit kicks off with a cocktail party on Monday evening Sept 13 (3 days after FNO) to celebrate the participating designers, and will be open all day Tuesday, September 14 and Wednesday, September 15th to Fashion Week attendees. Even if they’re second banana, this puts them into game.

W Magazine’s September issue will be very eyed in the media, since its new editorial team – Stefano Tonchi, Lynn Hirshberg, et al – are calling this their first full issue as directing the mag’s new look and direction, after Patrick McCarthy and Dennis Freedman left this past spring. We can’t find it on any Los Angeles newsstand yet – and it has models on the cover, not actresses, unlike the other September issues – but we were pretty taken aback to read Cathy Horyn’s New York Times review of it this Sunday. Let’s just say – it wasn’t particularly flattering. She decried all the fashion for a bit more content, and an acknowledgment of economic new times. Here are some excerpts, while we keep our eye out for the mag to show:

FROM CATHY HORYN’S REVIEW OF THE NEW MAG IN THE NEW YORK TIMES:

The newly revamped W now comes with a slanted logo, as if to say, “Let’s go!” The energized logo might be the most promising thing about the magazine, which has a new editor, Stefano Tonchi, formerly the editor of T: The New York Times Magazine, as well as a new creative director, Jody Quon.

 

Though Mr. Tonchi will need to produce several more issues before his W can be assessed fairly, it is clear from the September issue that he wants to restore its journalistic flavor. The cover tagline promises “Who, What, Where, When, and Why in the World of Style,” and the inside pages are spelled out accordingly. Reviewing the new W, Daily Front Row focused on the lack of party pages.

New York Magazine noted that there was more to read, then said it’s new but not revolutionary: “It’s still full of super-skinny, super-tall models, and gobs of clothes, shoes, bags, and vacations that most people can’t afford but land in fashion magazines everywhere.”

We’ll of course make our own judgement as soon as we get our Chanel-Particulered-Hands on it.

Getting the cover of the September issue of Vogue – its biggest of the year – is a huge honor and status symbol for any celebrity. Remember “The September Issue” documentary? We’ve been wondering who this mystery woman would be for a few months now. And today we learned – it’s Halle Berry! Which is a bit odd, since she’s been out of the limelight for a while – even though she has a movie called “Frankie and Alice” due out soon (and a woman with a racist alter ego), and many other films attached to her name. But it’s not like she’s been in any big hits lately. Still – she’s an Oscar winner, had a daughter (Nahla), and more importantly, parted ways with her younger model boyfriend Gabriel Aubry not long ago – and that’s dishy enough story to get newsstand sales going. Mario Testino took the amazing photos – we’re loving Halle’s very 1920′s hairdo, and it will no doubt set off many trends. It’s her first interview in 3 years, and here are some highlights:

On her first interview in three years: “I was burned-out with having other people tell the story about me that they wanted to tell. I told my publicist, ‘I’m not going to talk anymore. I’m just going to live my life and be who I am.’”

On being asked to be on the cover of the September issue of Vogue: “What that means for a woman of color and what that means in the fashion world, what that means to pop culture, there was no way I could say, ‘No I’m not going to be on the biggest issue of the year.’”

On the “Oscar curse”: “Everybody talks about the Oscar curse,” she says. “People win Oscars, and then it seems like they fall off the planet. And that’s partly because a huge expectation walks in the room and sits right down on top of your head. The moment I won the Oscar, I felt the teardown the very next day. I thought, If I’m going down, I’m going down taking chances and daring to risk. Hence…Catwoman.”

On her appreciation of the female body: “I love the naked female form…. I just feel like that’s the most empowered position you can be in.”

And of course, she addresses her break up, her daughter, and all kinds of personal things. So don’t worry – the September issue of Vogue WILL be a good one, out August 24 – and that’s when you know, fall is just around the corner.

Harper’s Bazaar is famous for doing two covers of its subjects: one for the newsstand, and one for subscribers – the subscriber cover photo is always more avant garde. Now Mary-Kate Olsen gets three covers of the September issue of Marie Claire, doing one in a military look, one in a girly look, and one more trendy/fun. She actually wears fur on the inside, too, something most celebs are afraid to do for fear of enacting the wrath of PETA. And here are some highlights from the interview:

On growing up on television:
“I look at old photos of me, and I don’t feel connected to them at all… I would never wish my upbringing on anyone.” MK also calls herself and her sister Ashley “little monkey performers.”

On her eating disorder:
“I think it’s really important to be able to talk when something’s wrong. I learned at a really young age that if you don’t talk about it, it can drive you insane.”

On her career:
“I still read scripts, and if something great comes along, that’s great… but this is my day job. The Row is where I go every day.”

She apparently also comments on Heath Ledger’s death, as he was her friend – and we don’t know what else. But we’ll have to wait for the issue to come out to see that.

It looks like Elle scored the big kahuna for their September cover, the biggest issue of the year: Julia Roberts, in all her glory. Interesting that two of the biggest fashion mags – Elle and Harper’s Bazaar – have women over 40 on their September covers (HB has Jennifer Aniston). This is a total triumph for actresses over 40 – and all women over 40. It never would have happened a few years ago. Julia – who’s “Eat Pray Love,” out Aug 13, is scheduled to be a mega blockbuster – was shot by Tom Munroe for Elle. There’s already talk she might get another Oscar nomination for this movie, so no wonder there’s so much advance press on it. Julia going to the Oscars again? It’s too much glamour to be true! Her interview is fairly revealing for her – here are some highlights:

On her husband Danny Moder: “The children became the shooting stars of him, of that thing we have. How lucky we are that we love each other so much that we burst into three pieces.”

 

On her acting skills: “I have no acting technique. And there’s nothing more boring than actors sitting around talking about acting.”

 

On botox/the plastic surgery trend in Hollywood: “It’s unfortunate that we live in such a panicked, dysmorphic society where women don’t even give themselves a chance to see what they’ll look like as older persons. I want to have some idea of what I’ll look like before I start cleaning the slates. I want my kids to know when I’m pissed, when I’m happy, and when I’m confounded. Your face tells a story… and it shouldn’t be a story about your drive to the doctor’s office.”

If Julia hates botox so much, how does she look so good on the Elle cover? Honestly, we’re just NOT buying it. Every picture tells a story – particularly a cover.

It’s that time of year again, people – just before the big September issues of magazines begin to roll out, hinting that fall, big movies, great clothes and lots of activity are about to kick in in a few weeks. Jennifer Aniston is still – after at least ten years – the actress that sells the most magazine covers. So it makes sense that she is on the September cover of Harper’s Bazaar – the September issue is the biggest of the year, and needs to sell a LOT of copies. This one will be on the stands on August 17th, and Mark Seliger shot Aniston – who has three major movies coming out – playing Barbra Streisand in a lot of the shots. We find this a bit weird – what is the connection between Aniston and Streisand? Sure, they are both “funny girls” – but Aniston had a nose job to avoid letting her nose define her – and here she is emulating a woman famous for her nose. We have a feeling Harper’s Bazaar was extremely aware of this. Aniston stars in the upcoming comedy “The Switch,” opposite Jason Bateman, “Horrible Bosses,” featuring Colin Farrell, and “Just Go with It” with Adam Sandler and Nicole Kidman. So at this stage of the game, she hardly needs to emulate another actress.

Here are some snippets from the interview inside:

On being a funny girl: “People laugh at me. Sometimes I know why, and sometimes I don’t. But I can pretty much find humor in anything. That is a necessary part of life. I don’t want to say laughter is healing, because it sounds corny, but it’s a release.”

 

On what she’s learned from Barbra Streisand: “You don’t have to stop at one thing. You can do it all if you want to.”

 

On being in the spotlight: “[Barbra and I] are people who have been put in the spotlight, for better or for worse, and you just keep riding, and you keep overcoming.”

Hmmmm – not much revealed here. But nice pictures.

Up until a few years ago, “Best Dressed Lists” were made up by the bitter Mr. Blackwell – who used it to insult Hollywood stars and get attention for himself – and older New York society ladies. Not anymore. Vanity Fair magazine took over the Best Dressed List and has made it contemporary – and a lot more relevant. Michelle Obama, Lady Gaga, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Christy Turlington come out on top of the American women named. U.S. designers Tory Burch, Stacey Bendet and Glamour mag editor Cindi Leive also made it as chic Americans. Michelle Obama has been on it before four times, but Lady Gaga was named “an original” (along with John Galliano and Helena Bonham Carter) – they say Gaga reminds them of a “Dada Catholic girl” in the spirit of Gypsy Rose Lee and Rosie, the Jetson’s robot maid. That’s quite a comparison! Other actresses who made the list outside of the U.S. are Carey Mulligan, Diane Kruger, plus Javier Bardem – and of American actors, Jake Gyllenhaal and Alec Baldwin were the only ones who made it. And there are many Europeans: Carla Bruni-Sarkozy. British first lady Samantha Cameron , Elber Albaz of Lanvin, Georgina Chapman of Marchesa and Germany’s Princess Mafalda of Hesse. Pharrell Williams was the only pop or hip hop star making the cut. P. Diddy must be fuming somewhere – perhaps sulking with Rihanna and Beyonce, two other fashion pop icons who did not make the list.