Calvin Klein, I'm afraid, lost any claim to coolness when Cherie Blair helpfully revealed that husband and then-PM Tony wore his signature underwear.

Not since John Major was rumoured to have tucked his shirt into his y-fronts had politics and pants been so nauseatingly combined. No matter which way you looked at it, the hip New York-based fashion king was finally outed as the provider of everyday underwear rather than the purveyor of cool chic that slid effortlessly from catwalk to the perfectly-formed bodies of rich, good-looking twentysomethings.

Tony Blair in his CK pants? Puh-leez!

But although this blip on the upward coolness curve at CK may have devalued the brand for me, it's the Chinese knock-offs that flood into Europe that does the damage for the rest of the fashion-hungry public.

Cheaply-made, poorly-stitched, guaranteed-to-shrink tat being sold as genuine Calvin Klein can be found in street stalls from Istanbul to the Algarve.

Though you can take your choice of any designer label – Burberry, Gucci, Dior, Hermes – one other brand that has been ripped off mercilessly is the former streetwear kingpin Tommy Hilfiger.

Getting your baby fully kitted out can get quite expensive, especially if you can't count on many hand-me-downs from other people and/or are very fashion conscious.

The cost of clothing your child and keeping them amused for the first five years can run into thousands of pounds, according to the National Childbirth Trust (NCT).

There is a bewildering number of websites and shops out there, so where do you start?

With London Fashion week in full swing, you may well be dreaming of snapping up the perfect investment purchase to ensure you're on trend for the season ahead.

But whether you have a passion for designer clothes or your tastes are more Primark than Prada, you are potentially at risk of underinsuring the clothing, shoes, jewellery and accessories in your wardrobe.

So how do you make sure the contents of your wardrobe are sufficiently covered?

Retail sales fell at the fastest rate in 18 months in January, partly because heavy snow and ice kept shoppers away. They cut back on most things from food to furniture.

Sales volumes dropped by 1.8% between December and January, the sharpest fall since June 2008. The Office for National Statistics said the Big Freeze hit sales of household goods and petrol in particular. The fall was much worse than the City had pencilled in.

The figures end a week of bad economic news when inflation surged, unemployment rose and the public deficit hit a fresh record. The sharp drop in highstreet spending raises fresh doubts about the economy's recovery from recession.

The untimely death of British fashion designer Alexander McQueen has sent shock waves through the fashion industry.McQueen was found dead at his London home yesterday, just days after posting anguished online remarks about the death of his mother who died on February.

He was just 40 years old. As the tributes from fashion insiders such as Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour flood in, we ask whether anyone lucky enough to own one of McQueen's designs is now in possession of a collector's item...

Let's face it, we all like to kick back on our crystal-studded furniture and down an alcopop before settling down to watch something with Noel Edmonds in it. Well, if you happen to be Wayne Rooney or his charming bride Coleen you could live this dream every day of the year.

And thanks to a little legal difficulty Wayne and Coleen are having right now, we can all see it. The Rooneys are embroiled in a set of legal shenanigans regarding Wayne's former management company which claims Wayne is withholding £4.3 million he owes.

We have no idea about the rights and wrongs of the case, and frankly we don't care. What we care about is the fact that Wayne spends £16.50 to get his chest waxed, while Coleen plays about with diamonds "the size of chicken nuggets".

So much for cultural diversity. A report on global fashion trends predicts that we are all going to buy our clothes from a handful of big international fashion chains in future.

The likes of Gap, Uniqlo and H&M will dictate what people wear around the world.

Ten years ago the global fashion landscape was shaping up to be a fight between H&M, Spain's Inditex (the owner of Zara) and Gap, according to a report from Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Since then, others have joined the fray: Esprit, based in Asia, but whose largest market is Germany, Italy's Benetton and most recently Uniqlo from Japan and Abercrombie from the US.

Debenhams is bringing back Principles less than a year after the fashion brand disappeared from the UK high street, with designer Ben de Lisi at the helm.

Debenhams is counting on Principles' 5 million loyal customers to rush to its stores when the new collection launches in February. Prices start from £10 for a bag, £20 for tops, £30 for trousers and from £45 for dresses.

It's always good to see popular brands that died come back. Similarly, French fashion brand Kookai, a favourite in the 90s, made a comeback late last year, although its new London flagship store has received mixed reviews.

So which brands would you like to see return? And which are already back on the scene?

Almost £2 billion spent in the January sales is considered a "waste of money". Shock, horror!

The research from protection provider Bright Grey found that almost £5 billion will be spent in the January sales in the UK this year as shoppers defy the recession and start the new decade with some serious splurging.

Of that, £2 billion is wasted, with people throwing money away on items they don't need or won't use. Although men are revealed as the bigger spenders (spending an average of £56 more than women), women are more likely to have bought things in the past they considered to be wasted purchases.

Looking forward to going sale shopping? Me too! With unwanted gifts to exchange and special sales going on, it's important to be aware of your rights as a consumer.

Make sure you're up to speed with exactly what you are and are not entitled to, and check out the set of golden shopping rules over the jump.