There are few businesses where it would be okay to say, "We used a black girl last year" or "We already have one black woman, we don't need you anymore". It happens in the fashion biz where runways are mostly white.

Having learned a wealth of business savvy since founding her clothing line in 2004, Tony Burch took a moment to pay it forward. Check out the best advice she received when starting out and the two-letter word that has helped her succeed.

Fashion has long been stereotyped the ultimate vapid industry, a world where style matters more than substance and political discussions are anath

This is why women have so many clothes! We need an all-purpose black skirt that does old fashioned, another one to do proper, and a third to do flirty… at the very least… and all in casual, business, and formal. And we need heels to go with each (stilettos = provocative, high heels = flirty, low heels = proper, etc, plus we need flats for the picnics and beach weddings etc). And we need pants that are hemmed to the right length for each of these pairs of shoes.

A video report from Univision looks at an exciting new exhibit at Casa Azul, the Frida Kahlo Museum in Mexico City, featuring the contents of one of Kahlo's closets. The items in the exhibit include clothing, medicines, and photos that were recently discovered in a previously un-opened closet belonging to the artist. In the video, a museum representative discusses how the exhibit explores two major themes from Kahlo's life: disability and ethnicity.

This post details some daily rituals that help interrupt damaging beauty culture scripts. For instance, do at least one "embarrassing" or "unladylike" action a day. Discuss your period in public. Eat sloppily in public, then lounge on your chair and pat your protruding belly. Swing your arms a little too much when you walk. Open doors for everyone. Offer to help men carry things. Skip a lot. Galloping also works. Get comfortable with making others uncomfortable.

Looks matter, both in our social and working lives. We want to look good and our employers expect us to look good, or at least want us to look a particular way. A raft of research from the US and UK has now established that being perceived to be attractive improves our chances of obtaining work, and boosts our pay and career prospects. Line managers also rate the performances of attractive workers more highly. Finally, attractive workers are less likely to lose their jobs.

"'Poses' is a direct criticism of the absurd and artificial world of glamour and of fashion that magazines present. Specifically, the highly-distorted image of women that they transmit through models that do not represent real women and that avoid all those who are not within their restricted parameters," says artist Yolanda Dominguez on her website. The artist created images of women posing like fashion models out in the "real world," and the results are both hilarious and poignant. Watch a video of the images after the jump.

Models have rights too, no? You might not think so to look at the way many women and men are mistreated in the industry. To combat those issues, nonprofit group the Model Alliance has drafted a bill of rights for models. According to the document, which is still in draft form, models should have the right to a professional relationship with their agent/agency, transparent accounting processes, control over their careers, and negotiable commissions, with special notes for models under 18. Watch a video from the Alliance after the jump.

Realizing that she had "a closet full of clothes and nothing to wear," 20-year-old Nikki Durkin founded 99dresses, a clothing swap website serving fast-fashion shoppers in her native Australia. "To participate on 99dresses, users upload a dress that they may be tired of, but that somebody else might appreciate," TechCrunch's Alexis Tsotsis reports. Users rack up virtual buttons that they can use to "purchase" other dresses. The service is now available in the U.S. at 99dresses.com.

"Israeli lawmakers have banned underweight models from catwalks and commercials, a measure they hope will reduce eating disorders and promote a healthy body image," Reuters reports. The new law makes it illegal to hire a model with a BMI of less than 18.5, "also bans the use of a person who 'appears underweight' and says advertisers must explicitly state if graphic manipulation was done to make a model look thinner in a photo."

"UNDERWRAPS is the first modeling agency within the mainstream fashion industry that is specifically for Muslim models," writes Sharrae of the blog Muslimah Media Watch. She raises many questions about whether the agency is a net positive for Muslim women; for instance, "Will a Muslim fashion agency contribute to a better and more holistic perception of hijab? Or will it risk the adoption of religious modes of representation that can further be appropriated and worn without meaning?"

"Apparel and accessories that are too tight, too loose, too heavy, too high or too floppy can all create health issues," the Wall Street Journal's Melinda Beck reports, citing too-tight belts and skinny jeans, ill-fitting bras, and bunion-causing high heels as potential causes of problems for women. Another potential culprit? Accessories, like heavy handbags, bacteria-laden jewelry, and damaging hair extensions. Fashionistas beware!

Smith & Wesson has rolled out a line of fashionable apparel to appeal to the 15 to 20 million U.S. women who own guns. AdWeek reports that "the collection is being made by military outfitter Wild Things LLC, whose in-house designer Julie Golob (herself a world champion shooter) drew from Smith & Wesson’s 160-year history for inspiration. Buttons are shaped like the bases of bullets and the zipper pulls resemble revolver hammers. Jackets also feature “concealed carry pockets” perfect for a 357 Magnum—or an iPhone."

In the realm of crafty lifestyle blogs, Mormon women like Natalie are killing it. There is Gabrielle of Design Mom, Naomi of Rock Star Diaries, Liz of Say Yes to Hoboken, and hundreds more keeping carefully curated accounts of their daily lives.