Join the queue. Stand in line. Has there ever been a more fashionable reason to be doing just this? What a week it's been for designer/high-street collaborations, or as the Americans call it, "high-lows"?
If you didn't make it to a global Gap store launch for the hotly anticipated Valentino for Gap, did you race to H&M to pick up Lanvin at once-in-a-lifetime prices?
If you came away from either potential fashion splurge empty-handed, did you ask yourself why? Perhaps you came to the conclusion that maybe you are simply not a "dress" sort of girl.
Don't panic. You are not alone. Karen Bonser, the head of design at Topshop, told me at the Arcadia spring/summer 2011 preview that Topshop is currently selling as many, if not more, options aimed at customers who are "not into pretty pretty" than the ubiquitous frothy or frilly frock.
"There's a huge feel for separates," said Bonser, "from leather shorts to ladylike blouses with our fashion-forward customers."
To give Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli (the designers behind the Valentino label) credit, the unlikely blend of gloriously feminine signature and Gap's no-nonsense ethos worked remarkably well, even when forged into combat-like trousers with ruffles.
H&M's Lanvin debut was reassuringly infused with ritzy Gallic glamour, but didn't include what's emerging as the unlikely star of the holiday season. Given the backdrop of all the dramatic offerings around, from feathered jackets to sheer gothic lace and leather, not to mention all the colour and texture, its easy to miss the best, and certainly the best-selling alternative to the dress: the all-in-one.
Even the search engine giant Google failed to spot this blast from the past in its fabulous new fashion site, Boutiques.com, which uses fancy image-recognition technology and promises to revolutionise the way we will shop online, preferring instead to do such features as tried-and-tested celebrity get-the-looks starring Carey Mulligan and her lovely party frock.
By next summer, Bonser believes the playsuit, the shorter, strappier version of the long-sleeved all in one, will have entirely replaced the dress in our affections.
Better get some practice in, I hear you say. Part of the reason the onesie (as it's also referred to) is popular, according to the Wallis design director Clive Reeve, is because "a lot of women want to invest in something they can get a lot of use out of right now".
True, that Lanvin red net tutu is a scene-stealer but how many times could you wear it? One could also say the all-in-one is a no-brainer when it comes to working out how or what to wear to where. You don't need Google's team of fashion insiders to pull this one off, or technology to check out if you've got the right sort of figure (anyone can wear this).
You don't even have to worry about your arms (like this season's one-shouldered hit) because they are covered. As the name suggests, this is a one or perhaps two-stop fashion look.
Step one: put on. Step two: choose no more than three accessories. Heels, preferably strappy gold sandals or black courts; bag, something tiny but showy like a Judith Leiber; jewel (note the singular), such as a vintage scarab brooch pinned to a lapel, Solange Azagury-Partridge ruby-encrusted lips ring or one dangly earring (yes that trend is back). And you are good to go. As in go anywhere.
Like so many 1970s fashions - the maxi, fringed leather jackets, retro knits, hippie flares, platforms - on the surface they might look rock'n'roll, but on closer inspection, with the exception of platforms, they are about being casual, comfortable, louche and relaxed.
The onesie in its latest guise has been drained of colour and Elvis-like embellishment. It follows the clean lines favoured by Celine, and wide-leg shape Yves Saint Laurent deployed in his version of it. All in all, it scrubs up like new.
It might not be pretty as such, but it's glamorous, which isn't always the case in a dress. Even a Lanvin dress.
"Right now we are having a Jerry-and-Bianca moment," Clive Reeve told me. "Ask yourself: would Jerry and Bianca have worn it to boogie at Studio 54?"
The answer is, of course, yes. Perhaps the question Reeve should ask is: will real women too? But we know the answer to that already, don't we?
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
The specs: 2019 Infiniti QX50
Price, base: Dh138,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.0L, turbocharged, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 268hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm @ 4,400rpm
Fuel economy: 6.7L / 100km (estimate)
Tales of Yusuf Tadros
Adel Esmat (translated by Mandy McClure)
Hoopoe
Brief scores:
Manchester City 2
Gundogan 27', De Bruyne 85'
Crystal Palace 3
Schlupp 33', Townsend 35', Milivojevic 51' (pen)
Man of the Match: Andros Townsend (Crystal Palace)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
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COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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UAE WARRIORS RESULTS
Featherweight
Azouz Anwar (EGY) beat Marcelo Pontes (BRA)
TKO round 2
Catchweight 90kg
Moustafa Rashid Nada (KSA) beat Imad Al Howayeck (LEB)
Split points decision
Welterweight
Gimbat Ismailov (RUS) beat Mohammed Al Khatib (JOR)
TKO round 1
Flyweight (women)
Lucie Bertaud (FRA) beat Kelig Pinson (BEL)
Unanimous points decision
Lightweight
Alexandru Chitoran (ROU) beat Regelo Enumerables Jr (PHI)
TKO round 1
Catchweight 100kg
Marc Vleiger (NED) beat Mohamed Ali (EGY)
Rear neck choke round 1
Featherweight
James Bishop (NZ) beat Mark Valerio (PHI)
TKO round 2
Welterweight
Abdelghani Saber (EGY) beat Gerson Carvalho (BRA)
TKO round 1
Middleweight
Bakhtiyar Abbasov (AZE) beat Igor Litoshik (BLR)
Unanimous points decision
Bantamweight
Fabio Mello (BRA) beat Mark Alcoba (PHI)
Unanimous points decision
Welterweight
Ahmed Labban (LEB) v Magomedsultan Magomedsultanov (RUS)
TKO round 1
Bantamweight
Trent Girdham (AUS) beat Jayson Margallo (PHI)
TKO round 3
Lightweight
Usman Nurmagomedov (RUS) beat Roman Golovinov (UKR)
TKO round 1
Middleweight
Tarek Suleiman (SYR) beat Steve Kennedy (AUS)
Submission round 2
Lightweight
Dan Moret (USA) v Anton Kuivanen (FIN)
TKO round 2
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
57%20Seconds
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rusty%20Cundieff%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJosh%20Hutcherson%2C%20Morgan%20Freeman%2C%20Greg%20Germann%2C%20Lovie%20Simone%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2%2F5%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
More on animal trafficking
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
if you go
The specs: Lamborghini Aventador SVJ
Price, base: Dh1,731,672
Engine: 6.5-litre V12
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 770hp @ 8,500rpm
Torque: 720Nm @ 6,750rpm
Fuel economy: 19.6L / 100km
The specs: 2018 Opel Mokka X
Price, as tested: Dh84,000
Engine: 1.4L, four-cylinder turbo
Transmission: Six-speed auto
Power: 142hp at 4,900rpm
Torque: 200Nm at 1,850rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L / 100km
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
The specs: 2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio
Price, base: Dh198,300
Engine: 2.0L in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 280hp @ 5,250rpm
Torque: 400Nm @ 2,250rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7L / 100km
The specs: 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV
Price, base: Dh138,000 (estimate)
Engine: 60kWh battery
Transmission: Single-speed Electronic Precision Shift
Power: 204hp
Torque: 360Nm
Range: 520km (claimed)
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
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SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20SAMSUNG%20GALAXY%20S24%20ULTRA
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No Shame
Lily Allen
(Parlophone)
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