Model Madness: Darren Taylor

There's nothing I love more than a great story about working your way from the top. Sure it's great to finally "get there" but I'm an appreciator of the journey rather than the destination. And someone else who is enjoying their journey to fame is our Model Madness spotlight this week Darren Taylor. A native Texan, not only is everything bigger there but apparently more beautiful as well.

Maverick Monday: Introducing Rashad Benton

Few men around are adept at the subtle art of style like this week's man-about-town Rashad Benton. A student at Florida A&M University, Rashad's creativity and his erudite eye for style have placed him in our spotlight. From first sight you'd never notice the taciturn and res Fem a very quiet person, low-key type. I keep to myself a lot. I honestly don’t enjoy being rved nature that lies under Benton's refined exterior.

Model Madness: BJ Williams

This week's male model BJ Williams hails from Las Vegas, Nevada and is one of the recent newcomers to Red Models, an agency that is currently leading the modeling industry in producing top-performing minority male models. Though his time at Red has not been very long, his portfolio says quite the opposite. Williams has worked with Levi's in their Fall 2008 campaign, Akademiks' Spring 2009 campaign, Sean John's Fall 2009 campaign, and Williams has appeared in Ebony Magazine, GQ Magazine, as well as GQ Britain. BJ stands at 6'1 and is definitely charming designers as well as musicians such as Cassie who cast him in her video. Check out the photos of this rising star.

Don't Call It A Comeback

Call it a come-up. The Dynamic Duo of Style Marquis Phifer and Sham Shirley are returning to the blogosphere with a new and improved look for their site LateBoots, a collection of photographs, personalities, and most importantly hard work. Calling themselves the New Workers, Phifer and Sham are showing young creative aspirants as well as the world at large just how much power a little bit of perseverance, ambition, creativity, and drive can get you what you want and where you want to be. Through their brand public relations team, Marquis and Sham are spreading their influence through independent fashion designers as well as catching the eye of notable style professionals not only in their stomping grounds of Atlanta and New York City but also abroad. The urbanly urbane Morehouse dandy Marquis Phifer creates a smart and innovative synthesis with the street-smart, edgy, and artistically erudite Sham Shirley giving a new perspective not just on getting ahead in life but on realizing and achieving your dreams. Check out the new site here.

Black Swan Style

This week, bring the beauty, the drama, and the style of the critically acclaimed motion picture Black Swan from the big screen to your wardrobe with these fashion sets from Polyvore.com. Learn how to successfully combine the elegance, purity, and effortless chic of white with the seductive, stylish, and timeless quality of black. It doesn't matter whether you heading out to a day at the office, going out for after-work drinks, getting ready for a date, or simply having a night out on the town make yourself the center of attention with these styles. And if you've got a keen eye for style yourself or if you're looking to design your own Black Swan look, head over to Polyvore.com, create a profile and create fashionable sets and share your style with the world!

Black Swan II by ♥ Adorable~T ♥ featuring valentino shoes

Black Swan by lagomera featuring a bodice gown

2. Black Swan Inspired by •• deeelushious •• TAG ME! featuring ballet shoes

Black Swan by julesmason2311 featuring a ballet shoes dress

Blake Lively Becomes The New Face of Chanel Mademoiselle

Blake Lively, the uber-stylish starlet who plays the equally glamorous Upper East Side-dweller Serena van der Woodsen on the CW show Gossip Girl is now reaching new heights as she begins to take her place as the new face of Chanel's Mademoiselle handbag collection. The 2011 collection began during Chanel's Cruise 2011 show and Karl Lagerfeld was the photographer who shot Blake Lively for the new campaign. Lagerfeld spoke highly of Lively and called her 'a kind of American dream girl'. It's no doubt that the blonde bombshell has definitely been garnering the eyes of the who's who in fashion as an American muse, with a double Vogue cover, and even snatching the cover of their Best Dressed Special Edition issue. Perhaps its her ethereal goddess appeal, those perfectly coiffed golden locks that even still manage to look smokin' hot all tousled and strewn aside, a look that her character Serena van der Woodsen has managed to be caught it numerous times. But even though she may not be the Park Avenue Princess that she plays on television, Lively's individualism and her willingness to embrace fashion garner her tons of praise for her canny dress smarts. And now she follows in the footsteps of other great actresses who have been the face of Chanel Mademoiselle such as Audrey Tautou, Nicole Kidman, Keira Knightley, and Vanessa Paradis.

The Top Apps for Fashion Enthusiasts

With the era of smartphones in effect, it's easier more than ever now to stay in touch with what's going on in the world of fashion as well as locate the most exclusive style finds with the simplest of ease. Apple's App Store provides an enormous amount of fashion apps to buy but great style is priceless and so are these are some of my favorite fashion apps for your iPod Touch, iPhone, or iPad. No matter where you go or what you do, make sure you're armed with the right technology to keep you abreast of what's coming in and what's going out.

TrendStop TrendTracker

This app is one of the best tools for finding out the newest in fashion trends as well as breaking news events from the fashion industry. An extension of their larger site Trendstop.com, get quick blurbs on the most important collection showings, fashion events, industry changes and trends from fashion professionals right on your iPod, iPhone, or iPad.

Elle 

This app is an extension of the magazine's features without having to pay for the full issue. Read your daily horoscope, get instant updates on fashion articles, and even read advice from Elle's in-house columnist E. Jean. Bookmark articles to your own personal My Elle profile for reading later and most of all enjoy the stylish interactive design. For any Elle lover, you definitely won't want to miss this app. 

Style.com

The glamour and fashion collections from the site come straight to your iPod complete with push notifications on all of the latest parties and sightings and full viewing capability of the newest collections. You can even view runway show videos right on your iPod and gather the top news from the Style File Blog. For men, you can also view the latest runway shows from around the globe and the slideshows of each look. A must have for any trendspotter.

GQ Style Picks 

Get the best fashion, entertaining, and grooming tips right on your iPhone with GQ's Style Picks app. You can also use the built in GPS in your iPod, iPhone, and iPad to to find an item and locate a store near you that carries that item. Also browse the top brands and view their picks right from the men at GQ. You can also input product requests through messages so you can find out where to find your favorite brands. For the style-conscious man this app should definitely be in your arsenal.

Who What Wear 

Get all of the insight and knowledge from the top fashion forecasters right on your iPod with Who What Wear. The famous website provides interactive stylings of the newest trends in an attractive, fashionable design that's perfect for any fashion professional, stylist, or enthusiast. And if you're a hairstylist or makeup artist you can also browse the hottest in beauty right from this app as well. If you're wanting to change your look then definitely head over to the App Store and download this free app. 

The Sartorialist

You've seen the website by Scott Schumann and you've read his column in GQ magazine. But now you can browse all of his international style spottings right through the app. If you're looking to see what everyone around the world is wearing you'll find no better app than the Sartorialist. Zoom in, zoom out, slide, and even save the photos to your iPod, iPhone, or iPad. The perfect extension from his blogsite, The Sartorialist gives real photos of real people with real style.

Target

Get the awesome style and convenience of Target right to you through their app. If you're looking for something specific or if you're just wanting to browse a category check out Target's full collection and even look up an item in their store tracker to find a store near you to buy it from. Also use your iPod Touch and iPhone camera to take a picture of an item's barcode to find that item within the store. Refine your search by price, color, style, and department. You'll find no app that's more geared to the modern shopper than this one.