And now for another round of “Who Buys This Crap?” ... next up, these Rodarte charm necklaces available at Barneys. They start at $1,750 and go as high as $2,500. We get it: The Mulleavy sisters are hot hot hot right now. But come on. Why are these so pricey? No clue, and the description doesn’t give any hints either: “Decorative cable chain necklace with various charms.” Sounds like something you could find at any Forever 21 or make yourself. [Barneys]

No, these are not Halloween costumes. They’re actually pieces from the upcoming and greatly anticipated Rodarte line for Target.

Yes, images are finally leaking of the new line, which editors have already previewed, but were banned from sharing with their readers.

Along with the sequined skull dress (far right), the ultra “it” designers have developed 55 other pieces, ranging from a lacy t-shirt, to a leopard jacket and dress, amazing stockings, and even more lace. We’re looking at a price range of $9.99-$79.99 for the collection, including knee-highs, dresses, and jackets. Mark your calendars people. December 20th is R-day, and you best believe every fashionista (professional, amateur or otherwise) is gonna be clamoring to scoop each and every piece up. [Racked]

Crazy shoes. They’re all the rage! Last week, we admired Rodarte‘s urban glamazon heels that could have been made from leftover parts found at the local mechanic’s. Yesterday in Milan, Miuccia Prada debuted a series of Lucite and plastic chandelier shoes with a rainbow of heel colors and swinging crystals. Equipped with what looks to be a velcro strap, the Prada footwear looks somewhat comfy—at least they didn’t send the models tumbling, as did Rodarte’s Nicholas Kirkwood stilettos. After the jump, two more highlights of the over-the-top heels trend!

Check out these uh-may-zing heels by Nicholas Kirkwood for Rodarte’s spring 2010 collection. This season the Mulleavy sisters were inspired by Death Valley— the clothes have a “Mad Max”-meets-“Blade Runner,” neo-primitive, apocalyptic look. To match the urban guerrilla theme, Kirkwood, who’s known for his over-the-top footwear, created these Hermes-esque-leather-and-metal-spike-studded stilettos. The heel appears to be made out of nuts. Now, that’s hardcore. Take a closer look at Jak & Jil.

A fierce model in urban warrior garb and temporary tribal tattoos works the runway at Rodarte spring 2010 during New York Fashion Week. [NYC, 9/15/09]

Talk about a test-drive. Recent fashion seasons have seen some of the highest heels on record, from Nina Ricci’s heel-less high-heels to Rodarte’s towering Frankenstein boots. They may be beautiful, but can real women walk to work in the seven-inch stilettos that sent some supermodels spilling on the runways? The ladies at New York‘s style blog, The Cut, pulled together some of the craziest footwear and found out what happens when you try and sashay down the street in them. “They’re incredibly uncomfortable,” one good sport reports. And as for those Nina Ricci heels? Forget about it—unless you like walking on your tiptoes. [The Cut]

Rodarte is designing a line for Target‘s Go International project, allowing us to die happy after purchasing, well, everything the day it’s available on December 20. Because, really, what else is there to live for once you’ve filled your closet with Rodarte for $60 instead of $4,000? We’d sort of resigned ourselves to the idea that Rodarte would always just be a little too cool to be at all accessible, but the 55-piece Target collection plans have proven us wrong and caused us to hold our collective breathe in anticipation.

Rather than focusing on any one specific type of clothing, the line is said to range from knee highs to party dresses to jackets, meaning we could potentially make endless combinations in our online shopping carts as a means of entertaining ourselves. And because Rodarte is Rodarte and, thus, known for their over-the-top-awesome details, you can count on a semi-scaled back interpretation of the same sort of intensity you see in their regular runway shows.

We die. [WWD]

Nary a day goes by lately without another store closing, one more report of plummeting sales figures and a bright glint of hope that Crocs may finally go under due to massive losses. Some economists and fashion analysts are even saying that these tough times have resulted in Depression-era style having a resurgence (not always a bad thing), like muted color palettes and longer skirts. But while the tanking economy is forcing some of us into Ramen dinners, ankle length sack skirts and boring colors, others are telling all economic indicators to screw themselves and sticking with bright, hot little dresses. And they’re doing better than most.

Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour is not known for loving larger women. In fact, she even got Rodarte designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy to see a trainer and go on a diet for a story in the magazine’s April 2008 issue. But it seems as though Wintour is changing her tune. The British, Grammy-nominated singer Adele was recently photographed by Annie Liebovitz for an issue of Vogue, and Wintour took such a liking to her that the editor offered to style her for the Grammy Awards. Hmm… This sounds a lot like the time when Vogue editor-at-large André Leon Talley took Jennifer Hudson under his Balenciaga-designed wing, after she was nominated for an Oscar for “Dreamgirls.” Could it be possible that Vogue has, at last, realized that amazing women come in double-digit sizes? We certainly hope so, because most of us look a whole lot more like Adele in clothes than we do Kate Moss. Now, if Wintour can aid Adele in landing a deal as the face of some fashion house, then we’ll really know that change has come.

You already know Jimmy Choo, Christian Louboutin, and Manolo Blahnik. The names practically speak for themselves. These three shoe designers are the top of the line and as popular as ever. Enter my newest obsession: Nicholas Kirkwood. His shoes simply make me swoon. They remind me of superheroes and villains. Actually, I’m pretty sure if Batman was a woman, she’d be fighting crime in one of these bad boys. His designs are aggressive, dark, and mysterious while also remaining glamorous and super feminine. This talented Brit jumpstarted his career in 2005 when he won the Conde Nast Footwear Emerging Talent award for his first collection. Later, in the spring of 2008, his signature stilettos and wedges walked the runways of designers such as Tommy Hilfiger, Doo.Ri, and 3.1 Phillip Lim. Instead of bows and baubles, he opts for an architectural shoe that has power and intrigue written all over it. To go along with his unique ideas, the shoes are crafted from somewhat unlikely sources like lizard, stingray, and buffalo horn. A true one-of-a-kind; there is nothing on the market quite like them. Even if Kirkwood’s shoes aren’t up your alley, there’s no questioning his artistry and innovation. As Kirkwood says, “They’re not for everybody. Only the truly fashion-forward, which is fine with us.” On the runways, Nicholas Kirkwood shod the Spring and Summer collections of Rodarte, Alberta Ferretti, and Pollini. [Glam]