If you've been reading between the lines in the coverage of Madonna and Alex Rodriguez, you might be inclined to believe that the pop star is not to blame for the breakup of the baseball player's marriage.

L.L. Bean can't keep Blucher moccasins in stock. Cargo shorts and mocs are everywhere. Bottega Veneta is making $5,000 camp stools.

Gucci, the biggest money maker for Paris-based retailer PPR SA, may report a 5.8 percent increase in second-quarter sales today after losing customers in the first three months of this year to luxury rivals it had outperformed for three years.

Adding the refreshing smell of fruit to a deodorant seems like a fruity idea. But we've been using lemony lotions, strawberry-scented soaps and citrusy shampoos for years, so why not infuse a personal hygiene product with a shot of sweetness? Like everything else with fragrance, we do insist it not be cloying. And let's not forget that this is a workhorse product: We'd rather have a deodorant/antiperspirant with endurance than one that smells good but doesn't work. We asked three testers to try three solids. Were they happy with the aroma of ripe fruit or did it leave them just … ripe?

Summer is in full swing, and in the Carolinas, it will be time to show off some skin in tiny tank tops and spaghetti-strap slip dresses for a while.

Q: I went to prom with a boy whom I consider a friend, but who I think likes me more than just as a friend. We had a lot of fun and have hung out since, but only platonically. Recently, he gave my phone number to his best friend, and the best friend and I have been talking, texting and Facebooking.

I am just back from a two-week staycation, and I have a confession: I shopped. And most was not very satisfying.

It's summertime, humidity is hopping and the frizz is high. Sigh.

J ust when you thought all '80s fashion revivals had run their course, big hair is back.

For 15 years, Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan lived in a 265-square-foot one-bedroom apartment in New York City. Last winter, with his wife and 1-year-old in tow, he upgraded to a “really huge” two-bedroom. It's 725 square feet.

With the hit movie musical “Mamma Mia!” just out, based upon the light-as-air '70s pop tunes by ABBA, what do you really know about the Swedish group that existed for only a decade (1972-'82) but produced a slew of frothy pop songs?

Along a curving street lined with handsome Queen Annes and well-tended Tudors, the Darwin D. Martin House in Buffalo, N.Y., shatters the genteel calm with its muscular power.

Designer Monica Botkier's handbags are an armful – if you're willing to pay anywhere from $395 for a clutch up to $695 for a hobo bag.

Life's a beach this time of year.

There's a big difference between a glowing shine and a greasy shine when it comes to your face.

It's a long story - one that involves a darling family of ducks, a semitrailer and me - but the upshot is that for the first time in three years, I have a car payment.

Online shopping site of the week: Moderndose (www.moderndose.com)

Have a pile of favorite hats in your closet? Don't expect them to last long.

In their 1970s heyday, cutoff jeans were meant for bare feet and a can of beer on the warm hood of an

ALEXANDRIA, Va. Ready for the latest in spa pampering? Prepare to dunk your tootsies in a tank of water and let tiny carp nibble away.

Teeth are now preternaturally, blindingly white. Everyone, it seems, from actors on the big screen to the 19-year-old barista with the dazzling grin is fueling the $1 billion-plus-a-year whitening industry.

Do you flip, or do you flop? Flip-flops are just one way to offer a little protection to the bottom of your feet around the pool.

There is no end in sight for fashion's infatuation with the Reagan era. Fast-fashion chains are stocking Ray-Ban rip-offs, tapered jeans are seeping back into style and neon colors are all the rage, so naturally the cheapie plastic sports watch is once again a bona-fide accessory.

Two-time “Dancing With the Stars” champion Julianne Hough endeared herself to ABC viewers by leading speed skater Apolo Anton Ohno, open-wheel driver Helio Castroneves and comedian Adam Carolla on the floor.

“The Dark Knight” – which opens Friday – has bombs; bullets; car chases with gigantic and loud crashes; brutal, sadistic murders; and a cast that sometimes appears as big as Gotham City.

It's a sunny Saturday morning and 15 guys are lined up outside Black Sheep Skate Shop, a skateboard and clothing boutique in South End.

Q. Please help a size 18 businesswoman find a flattering business suit (with skirt, not pants). I did buy one recently, which I thought hid my bulky hips. It is a black knit, with a long, loose-fitting jacket and calf-length, A-line skirt. But my husband says it makes me look like a frump. Is there any style of suit that will camouflage my shape but not look frumpy?

CHICAGO The wavy, reddish-brown hair that dances down Rowan Nelis' face might have once been the envy of most schoolgirls.

Wal-Mart's new Canopy and J.C. Penney's new Linden Street home furnishings brands don't have the name recognition of an Ikea or a Pottery Barn, but they're going after the same customers.