Jenna Lyons on Google Glass: Jenna Lyons, rarely seen without her signature thick-framed Groucho specs, has spoken out against Google Glass, Google’s new range of frames. When asked by the Telegraph whether she’d trade up her glasses for Google's high-tech accessory, Lyons replied: “I would say no.” [Telegraph]

UN Stands Against Sexual Harassment: The UN has entreated Japan to pass a law that makes sexual harassment illegal in the workplace. The ruling comes in the wake of former Prada Japan employee Rina Bovrisse’s legal entanglement with the company. Bovrisse sued Prada in 2010 after its CEO, David Sesia, reportedly discriminated against female employees who were “old, fat, ugly, disgusting, or did not have the Prada look.” Prada has since countersued Bovrisse for $780,000 for tarnishing its image. [BuzzFeed]

Last month, we noted that farmwear fashion is on the rise, due in part to the growing popularity of heritage farm clothing label Pointer. The trend finally hit the runway on Wednesday, at Parsons's senior fashion show, as part of Yunxiang (Sharon) Zhou’s collection—who was named as the school’s menswear designer of the year later in the day.

Zhou, who was born in China and raised in Israel, wrote in her senior bio that her thesis was “based on the idea of worker’s garments and tools." She writes: "I incorporated the long-established details of workers uniforms, from office workers, construction crews, hospital personnel, farmers, and those in the military.” The look above shows her use of agricultural inspiration—with its leather apron and wide-brimmed hat.

Givenchy’s New Campaign: Givenchy has unveiled its newest campaign for fall, styled by and starring Carine Roitfeld, with additional appearances by her daughter Julia, alongside a smattering of models as well as actress and Givenchy muse Amanda Seyfried (who’s also the face of the brand’s Very Irresistible perfume). Photographed by famed duo Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott, the campaign will debut in September magazine issues. [WWD]

Saks and Neiman Marcus to Merge?: Luxury department stores Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus are both reportedly considering selling themselves off to new owners. According to The Wall Street Journal, a source with knowledge of the matter said that private equity firm KKR is weighing an investment in Saks -- "possibly with an aim toward merging the rivals." The New York Post reports that Saks is working with Goldman Sachs to explore sale options, while The Journal says that Neiman is looking into the possibility of a sale or public offering (Saks, on the contrary, is already on the market). [WSJ]

Ralph Lauren’s corporate headquarters at 650 Madison Avenue in Midtown Manhattan has temporarily transformed into a small-scale version of the Fashion Week tents at Lincoln Center. Preteen girls in cable-knit sweaters clutch their mothers’ hands tightly as they smile for photographers in the wood-paneled lobby. A gilded chandelier casts a dim light over an open space in the middle of the room, which has been cleared to form a runway. On the far wall, spotlights shine on a large white backdrop inscribed with “RALPH LAUREN” in bold letters. It’s September 5, 2012, school has just let out for the day, and it’s hours until the official launch of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. This crowd has gathered to see the designer’s second-ever fall and holiday children's wear runway show, featuring members of the RL Gang, the eight child models for Ralph Lauren’s two-year-old ad campaign. The group has gained recognition among the Nickelodeon set through a popular storybook series—available in print and online—that gives each model a character name and backstory. Charlotte Caizhu Berger, who goes by the nickname Zhu Zhu, plays the role of Mae, and is the only Asian in the preppy-clad coterie.

At 4 p.m. on the dot, the lights dim, the music—upbeat, bubbly electropop—begins piping through the speakers, and the first model takes her walk. Minutes later, Zhu Zhu appears, smiling nervously. She has naturally bronze skin and a black bob. Her face is round, and her dimpled smile is accented by two front teeth that resemble Chiclets. She’s eight years old—the oldest in the RL Gang—but her four-foot-tall frame is tiny and compact (Ralph Lauren representatives call it “travel size”), which is why she’s grouped in with the younger children. Her outfit looks straight out of a Christmas catalog: a scarlet wool peacoat is layered over black tights and paired with gray embroidered ballet flats. The look is topped off with a floral headband and a set of mittens, to perpetuate the holiday theme.

Prepare to meet the new Marc Jacobs. Like the spring and fall shows that drive the fashion industry, the month of May plays host to a bevy of collections presented by renowned fashion-design programs across the U.S. It’s there where bright young designers show off their talents to industry professionals and fellow students alike.

It all started when Erin Pearce needed a dress for New Year’s Eve.

“I’d been watching Seinfeld a lot and I really love [George] Costanza, so I thought—I’ll make a George Costanza dress!” she said.

New York-based fashion label SUNO is known for its cool array of mix matched prints and alternative silhouettes. So it came as a surprise when the design duo, comprised of Max Osterweis and Erin Beatty, decided to create a glittery cactus as part of the CFDA’s objets d’art program--now running at Upper East Side store Fivestory in anticipation of the organization’s upcoming awards. The cactus, covered in Swarovski crystals, is priced at a whopping $300.

It’s worth mentioning that the SUNO cactus is actually a living plant, presumably requiring the same kind of a care as non-crystalized vegetation. There was only one of them, and it’s already been purchased—by Max Stein, partner in the CFDA-lauded handbag label Reece Hudson. “While I was processing his order on the phone, six other big people called to get it,” Fivestory owner Claire Distenfeld told The Daily Beast. Stein tells us: "Claire said it will stay alive."

Cara’s New Tattoo: Cara Delevingne has gotten another tattoo. Following last week’s addition of a lion onto her index finger, Delevingne has covered the side of that same tatted hand in giant script-y initials. Like last week’s lion, the model debuted her latest body art addition on Instagram, followed by an image of her tattooing her own tattoo artist. [Buzzfeed]

Forbes Fashion Women: Forbes released its annual Most Powerful Women List on Wednesday, featuring many figures from the fashion fold. Anna Wintour (#41), Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts (#53), Miuccia Prada (#58), Tory Burch (#69), Diane Von Furstenberg (#74), Spanx founder Sara Blakely (#90), and Gisele Bundchen (#95) all made the cut. [Forbes]

In her new book, Cléo Le-Tan draws an intimate portrait of her family, darlings of the French art and fashion scenes. When she first started writing her novel Une Famille (A Family), which comes out with Grasset this month, the 27-year-old party fixture knew she had large shoes to fill. It is no coincidence that she chose to write about her family. “I adore them, I find them so hilarious, full of eccentricity, and full of faults,” she tells The Daily Beast in French. “Yet it is precisely those faults that make them so endearing.”

Rihanna Enlists Big Name Friends: Rihanna’s U.K. fashion reality show, Styled to Rock, is coming to the US with the help of some pretty lofty names. Last week the singer announced that Pharrell Williams would be helping her out as a mentor on the program, which will air on the Style Network. Now come reports that American supermodel Erin Wasson will also serve on the show. [The Cut]

VS Mastectomy Bras a No-Go: Victoria’s Secret won’t be making those mastectomy bras afterall. The lingerie giant released a statement on Tuesday clarifying that “through our research, we have learned that fitting and selling mastectomy bras...in the right way...a way that is beneficial to women is complicated and truly a science. As a result, we believe that the best way for us to make an impact for our customers is to continue funding cancer research.” The statement also noted that VS has donated “nearly $2 million to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and the American Cancer Society to fund breast cancer research, education, screening and treatment.” [Fashionista]

A young girl with a British accent speaks quickly into the camera. She shows off her beach attire—an alternative to what she calls the “horrific” burkini: cycling leggings, black-and-white printed head scarf, body-hugging turtleneck and a loose-fitting white scuba top. This is Dina Tokio, an influential Muslim fashion blogger.

New York City-based salon owner Michael Angelo has long been privy to the beauty industry’s inescapable image-driven, superficial depths. It’s why he has set glamour aside in the interest of putting his hair-know-how to good use through a partnership with the Somaly Mam Foundation. The project, as chronicled Monday by Daily Beast alum Abigail Pesta on New York magazine’s The Cut blog, has Angelo teaching the foundation’s small army of sex slave rehabilitees the skillsets of a proper hairdresser—equipping the girls with a potential channel of income in the outside world.  

Angelo first travelled to Cambodian capital Phnom Penh in 2006 to meet with the foundation’s founder Somaly Mam (a former sex trade victim herself), to discuss the ways in which he could help. “She asked me: ‘Do you know how to make a haircut?’” he told The Cut. It’s then that he began his work, teaching the tricks of the beauty trade to Mam’s cycling roster of sex trade victims, many of which she has personally rescued straight from brothels. And their relationship has continued--a trip back to Phenom Penh late last month was Angelo's third. “Some of the girls had never held a pair of scissors,” he said of his most recent experience, in which Angelo instructed 29 young women in how to cut hair and apply makeup.