Most of us love fashion yet hate the trampede of shopping bags and credit cards during the holiday season. Aside from dropping your dough on incorrect sizes, fits and colors at online retail shops, may I suggest fashion books as a safe and educational alternative? Thanks to the internet gods, it's easier and sometimes cheaper to buy books online than face the threat of elbows and "sold-out" signs. Here is a list of my favorite fashion books this season:

For the trendy, wardrobe-flipping best friend who seems to always be on top of the fashion world, get her a subscription to Fashion Trends - The Forecast Book, $385.

For the wanna-be do-it-yourself co-worker who needs a lesson in sewing, pick up Built by Wendy's Sew U, $17.15.

For the Facehunter and the Sartorialist stalker who longs to emulate  street fashion, pick up The New York Look Book: A Gallery of Street Fashion, $16.47.

For the arty, avant-garde fashionista who has it all, an issue of Visionaire, which is more like an art object, may be a wonderful treat.

For the budding fashion historian and collector of encyclopedias, pick up The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Costume and Fashion History: From 1066 to Present Day, $16.47.

This is the biggest week for holiday parties, both at work and with friends, and ladies across the city are all wondering "What the heck am I going to wear?" With New York's diverse retail shops, you would think that dress shopping would be easy, but I'm sure wading through racks of ugly sequinned numbers or animal prints can be a bit overwhelming. My suggestion: Stay simple, pick something you can wear again, and accessorize your outfit with shimmery tights, belts and vintage jewelry.

This American Apparel Pencil Dress can be styled to your liking, and for a mere $34 it leaves you with enough money for some sexy shoes. Urban Outfitters has some great party dresses this season, but this $54 Lux Baby Doll Dress can be worn casual without the belt or with jeans, or more formal with a belt and tights.

I can't say more about how essential the little black dress is. This sequined number from Bebe will cost you $98 but you won't need much else besides some simple jewelry. Happy shopping and good luck out there!

1. I don't mean to get all macaroni-glued-to-construction-paper on you, but I just can't help it--'Tis the season for craft fairs! For an entry fee of $1 you can hit up Bust Magazine's Craftacular and a get chance to meet Amy Sedaris.

2. For a less crowded, non-commercial feel, roll out to Bushwick, the struggling artists paradise, for the Handmade Holiday Craft Fair at 3rd Ward.

3. Squeeze in some Native American art while you shop at the holiday market at the National Museum of the American Indian this weekend. The 36 Native American artists will be selling handmade art, apparel and jewelry.

4. Fashionistas who cringe at the thought of wearing the same thing as someone else should check out the Style Market at F.I.T. for one-of-kind threads, accessories and jewelry.

5. Tired of the old dinner and bar Friday routine? Go for some baked yumminess and tea at Alice's Tea Cup II before taking in a fashion discussion at the French Institute between Pamela Golbin, a Parisian fashion curator, and Olivier Theyskens of Nina Ricci.

(Photo Courtesy of Bust's Craftacular)

You can't look at a Gustav Klimt painting without feeling mesmerized by the mythical women adorned in shimmery frocks and geometric prints. With the holiday party dress season approaching I needed a bit of fashion inspiration. Thankfully, the Neue Gallery's acquisition of the $135 million Adele Bloch-Bauer Portrait I (painting, top) has motivated an exhibition showcasing the Klimt collection owned by Ronald S. Lauder and Serge Sabarsky. The exhibit features eight paintings, the re-created interior of Klimt's art studio, and some of his personal belongings including his painting smock, photographs and more than 120 sketches.  You'll leave the exhibit longing for a gold-sequined number. For a great hoilday gift, pick up Christian Brandstatter's Klimt and Fashion book in the gift shop.

(Photos Courtesy of Neue Gallery)

Name: Edward Scissorhands, Sexy Candycorn, Record Player, and Windup Doll
Spotted: St. Marks

Name: Pimp and Bunny
Spotted: Avenue A

Name: Queen of Hearts, Sexy Vampire, Dude with Afro
Spotted: d.b.a

Name: Peacock and Stewie
Spotted: Bua

Name: The Village People?
Spotted: St. Marks

The day before Halloween is upon us and I'm sure most of you have your packaged costumes from Ricky's ready to go. Some of us on the other hand have resorted to poking holes in our bedsheets for that old school ghost costume (go here for directions). Desperate partygoers who cringe at the sight of yarn and scissors should check out these witty Halloween T-shirt costumes instead.

Sci-fi geeks rejoice! Urban Outfitters is carrying a line of Star Wars T-shirt costumes, including R2D2 (photo, left), Darth Vader and Chewbacca.  Wanna blend in with the rest of the sexy costumes but lack the guts to pull off an apron and feather duster? This French maid costume from t-shirts (photo, right) along with the sexy nurse and sexy cop T-shirt is your answer (caution: next day delivery may be a bit pricey). Gather a crew of dancers, some white gloves, plastic switch blades and this M.J. shirt (photo, below) from Threadless and "Beat It" through the Halloween parade. Happy Halloween!

As much as I admire high fashion for its button-pushing creativity, I gotta wonder, isn't some of it just glorified Halloween costumes? Don't get me wrong, I enjoy crazy, body-transforming garments, but honestly, some of it looks very Halloween to me. Granted, it is insulting to group the geniuses of Felipe Oliveira Baptista, Comme des Garçon and Alexander McQueen with the lame designs of slutty baby, slutty nun and slutty zombies sold at Halloween Adventure, but if you did have the money and feel the need to sport some avant garde high fashion for Halloween, you too can be Wonderwoman (photo, left), a cut-out paper doll clown zombie (photo, center) or a bird caught in a parachute (photo, right).

(Photos courtesy of A Shaded View On Fashion and Style)

Halloween is only two and a half weeks away, so I feel the need to talk about an important issue: couples costumes. They are a blight on this sacred holiday. Ironic couples costumes can work. I had a friend who once dressed up as a bloody Roy and with his girlfriend as a white tiger, which was hilariously inappropriate and therefore acceptable.

But "cute" couples costumes just make people hate you. Nobody wants to see you wear matching knit sweaters, why would they want to see you dressed as a Hershey Hug and Kiss? Before you hit up the Halloween stores, you might want to take a look at these atrocities:

I can't really grasp the subtext on this one...

This is the worst thing anyone has ever done, ever. At least they will never have to wait in a bathroom line. Am I right or am I right? 

Happy St. Patrick's day weekend! You're either thrilled or apathetic because green booze will be flowing in every Irish pub, but, regardless, there's no denying that spring fever was in the air. Let us ignore the "wintry mix" that is predicted for the weekend and hit up some New York happenings.

1. Refer to Citysearch's long list of St. Patrick's day events, or, shall I say, pubs, to make your Irish holiday possible.

2. Squeeze in some shopping at the Fashion Alley during this weekend's antique show at Pier 94.

3. Head over to the Museum of Moving Image in Astoria and take advantage of the smartly curated festival, Fashion in Film. Starting this Saturday, the exhibition features film, documentaries and video art.

4. Since March is women's history month, why not partake in the various events around the city? Check out the Bohemian Broads of Greenwich Village historic pub crawl and the group exhibition of female artists at the Cynthia Broan gallery.

5. In case the "wintry mix" turns into "full-blown snow chaos," catch Matthew Bourne's musical adaptation of Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands, closing this month at BAM.

(Photo from Midtown Manhattan.)

In case you have $10,000 to drop on a memorial Valentines present for your boo, check out the auction sale of fashion photos from the Estate of Thomas T. Solley at Christies featuring big time photographers such as Richard Avendon, Irving Penn and Helmut Newton. Those of us with a tighter budget can always give our loved ones a tour of the photo collection instead, on view today from 10am-5pm. Follow this tour with chocolates from La Maison du Chocolat and a bouquet of roses from your local bodega, but make sure you woo your significant other by brushing up on a bit of fashion photography before you go.