Katie Holmes is breaking fashion ground by designing her own clothing label for Giorgio Armani — it’s the first time a haute couture fashion house has aligned with a non-professional designer. According to OK! Magazine

Mrs. Tom Cruise has indeed closed the deal for her first line, to be called Katie Holmes for Armani. The line will roll out over the course of the next two years, starting with a collection aimed at toddlers for spring 2009. A collection for older children will follow that fall, followed by a handbag line and a women’s collection by fall of 2010.

I wonder how much involvement Tom Cruise is going to have in his wifey’s new hobby. If he has his say, all the ladies’ blouses will come with GPS tracking devices and thetan-repelling overlay made of aluminum foil. “Katie Holmes for Armani” will be an uber-chic amalgamation of futuristic design, luxe textures and schizophrenic hobo swimming in the duck pond.

Katie without her choke chain and lead March 17th:

The NY Post’s Rush and Molloy ran the following blind item today:

Which floundering pop star is hoping a clothing line will rehab her nonexistent singing career?

Coincidentally, floundering pop star Avril Lavigne announced that her new clothing line “Abbey Dawn” is set to launch in Kohl’s department stores mid-summer. Coincidentally! Us Weekly says

The threads (ranging from $24 to $48) mimic the singer’s signature skater-girl-chic style and include hoodies, jeans and tees in bright colors and skull and zebra patterns. Lavigne, who had a hand in collaborating on designs, plans to wear the line during her Best Damn Tour, which launches this month.

For a limited time only, buy a pair of glittered Converse or fingerless gloves and receive a travel-size pink hair mascara FREE! And with every purchase over $100, you’ll receive your very own Abbey Dawn brand plastic tubing and medical-grade double-lined bag — yours to keep!^* Now you, too, can have the Insufferable Douchebag^TM look made famous by pop’s punk princess. Coming to Kohl’s July 2008!

_{*Vinegar and fountain syringe sold separately. Prices and participation may vary. See participating Kohl’s stores for details.}

Airbrushed in this month’s Maxim:

Look out, fashion world — Amy Winehouse is launching her own clothing and make-up line! For a couple of quid, you, too, can look just as sexy as the girl pictured above. London’s The Sun says

Amy has a meeting scheduled for later this week to discuss the project with fashion and cosmetics experts. A pal revealed yesterday: “There could be hairspray, head scarves, liquid eyeliner. There’s a lot of money to be made. It’s a very distinctive look.”

Well, “syphilitic pirate” and “down-on-his-luck cobbler” are distinctive looks, too, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to appeal to the public at large. And even if they did, why would the public pay to look that way when they could just pass out headlong in a drainage ditch after a night of binge drinking and huffing VCR head cleaner for free? If she really wants to appeal to her target demographic, she should come out with a line of stick-on tattoos and black tooth wax and a little something called Junkie Splash^TM — now with genuine Amy Winehouse¹ urine! Hepatitis and self-loathing sold separately.

¹_{Or hobo}