Hemlines

The second annual Design Week awards, now sponsored by Glen Dimplex and therefore carrying that company's name, are scheduled for November and closing date for applications is Friday, November 2nd; whoever was responsible for the design of the entry form certainly deserves a prize for excessive fussiness and poor colour choice. Among no less than 13 categories eligible, fashion folk may submit work in the field of clothing, textile and accessory design. However, we think it a touch disappointing that there should be an entry fee of at least £30 payable by any participants, especially since the best a category prize-winner can hope to receive is a lava lamp - surely these 1970s relics, so incredibly stylish a couple of years ago, have now reverted to naff once again? The overall award winner will be presented with a trophy by the President, Mrs McAleese. Still interested in the possibility of taking home some kitsch lighting? Further information is available from the the Design Week office, tel. 01-6715442.

Awards Part Two: A new fashion initiative, the Jerwood Fashion Prize, has just been announced in England. The winner - must be aged 21-35, resident in Britain for the past two years and either about to set up business or has recently done so - will get a range of goodies including rent-free studio space in central London, a cash prize of £20,000 sterling, an order from Liberty's worth a further £25,000 and sponsorship of a show during London Fashion Week two years hence. There must be lots of Irish designers who have been studying at the likes of St Martin's College and are therefore eligible for this tempting package. Closing date is November 6th and for an entry form, send an A4 size SAE (remember UK stamps) to: Jerwood Fashion Prize, P.O. Box 5669, Wellingborough, NN8 4ZN, England.

Among the flotilla of fashion books published this autumn, one worth looking out for is Key Moments in Fash]ion: The Evolution of Style. Fifteen such moments are each given chapters, ranging from the launch of Vogue magazine to the importance of the trainer as fashion footwear. In between, different writers consider such topics as the influence of New York's Studio 54, Chanel and sunbathing, punk, Marlon Brando's street style and trousers for women. Well-chosen colour illustrations are scattered throughout the text, making the book even more alluring. Key Moments in Fashion is published by Hamlyn, price £20 in the UK.

A new you is promised by cosmetics house Clarins tomorrow evening at Dublin's Westbury Hotel. Aside from the company's make-up artist Olivier Hasse, the occasion will offer Liz Bailey speaking on stress management, Kate Gaffney of Diffusion in Clontarf on personal dressing, and tips from 1997 Hairdresser of the Year, Shay Dempsey. Tickets cost £15 each and to check if there are still any left, contact Clarins's Suzanne Lynch at 01-2846477.

Check out the outdoor images currently being shown in Dublin's Meeting House Square. They come courtesy of fashion photographer Peter Evers, working in collaboration with Niall Sweeney of nearby Arthouse, plus graphic designers Aiden Grennelle and Keith Sweeney. Screened every evening from dusk until 11 p.m., the show runs until October 7th.

President Clinton's televised testimony last week on the Lewinsky business - that shiny face. He really should have been told about Shiseido's fabulous Oil Blotting Paper, which leaves the skin looking cool and matt. Only £10 for 100 sheets at all Shiseido stockists.