Wendy Nichol is known for her standout leather bags and accent jewelry, from tassel-decked satchels and leopard-print pouches to revamped hoops and studs. The eclectic accessory designer originally studied food and nutrition sciences in college; luckily, she recognized the error of her ways early on. “I would walk past the fashion department and be like, I think I’m in the wrong classroom,” she says. “After graduation, I wasn’t that excited about working in a diabetes clinic, as it turns out.” Instead, she snagged a job as a technical assistant at Club Monaco, where she worked her way through the ranks to become the accessories buyer and designer in four years.

She launched her first eponymous jewelry collection in January 2007, starting with a pyramid cuff hand-sewn from glove leather. Her work with leather led her to launch a small line of handbags in January 2009. “Most bags these days turn me off — they look mass produced, like 200 of them were shipped in plastic with salt packets,” she says. “Ours are cut by hand, so they have a handmade quality to them.” The pouches, satchels, and bucket bags are all made in Nichol’s three-month-old boutique on Sullivan Street. The shop doubles as a studio, where she and four others construct one-off pieces and small-batch collections in back. We caught up with the designer to discuss her traffic-stopping coat collection, top thrifting sources, and more.

NAILS
• Alexandra Tretter modeled various wintery manicures in this month’s Vogue Nippon. The spread was shot by Eric Maillet. [Fashion Gone Rogue]

SKIN
• Paul McCartney shopped for fancy face creams at the Four Seasons Spa in Washington, D.C., yesterday with his girlfriend, Nancy Shevell. [Page Six/NYP]

HAIR
• Russell Brand sniffed Justin Bieber’s head and tweeted, “I just smelt @JustinBieber’s hair. It was like a vanilla meadow made from lego. I’d eat my dinner off it.” [RustyRockets/Twitter]

It's the most wonderful time of the year: when Balmain goes on sale! Now you can get the label's sequin camo pants for $1,022 instead of $5,110. Or the low-rise distressed cropped jeans (pictured) for $322, a veritable steal compared to its former price tag of $1,610. Or the awesome Cousin Itt–shouldered jacket (also pictured) for $1,376 instead of the $5,505 Beyoncé may have spent on it somewhere along the way. There's also the treated Napoleon leather jacket for $1,970 instead of $7,880. And the jewel-embellished velvet dress (pictured) with belle sleeves for $2,151, down from $7,170. Wait, what? Where did that thing come from?

BALMAIN [Outnet]

Ah, the holidaze: a time when invites to events and the occasional odd formal are too likely to contain the words jingle, ball, or even the extra-clever holidazzle (true story). Since there's no better way to bridge the awkwardness than by looking your festive finest, our latest Shop-A-Matic features sparkly and sexy frocks, guaranteed to dazzle. Whether you're looking for sequin-encrusted frocks to outshine the disco ball or a twist on the classic little black dress, we pulled 120 ideas for all of your party needs. Check out our top five picks below.

• Marilyn Minter shot the new Jimmy Choo ad, which features a heel-clad model splashing through a dirty golden puddle. [Elle]

• Celine launched a capsule collection of pants, appropriately called Five Perfect Trousers. [Vogue UK]

• Valentino CEO Stefano Sassi says the brand might be in the black again for the first time since 2007 if holiday sales go well. [Fashionologie]

• Linda Evangelista and Hard Rock founder Peter Morton appear to be back together. [Fashionologie]

• Katie Couric interviewed hand model Ellen Sirot, who is incredibly creepy. [Gawker]

DecorMyEyes.com is a website run by Vitaly Borker that purports to sell luxury eyewear. If you think the site, pictured here, looks too creepy and shady to shop from, the authorities would give credence to your suspicions! Also known as “Tony Russo” and “Stanley Bolds,” the 34-year-old Borker was arrested at his home in Brooklyn yesterday for allegedly fraudulently selling counterfeit and inferior quality goods, making unauthorized charges, and being generally totally creepy.