In Japan (and much of Canada), visitors take off their shoes before entering a home. Years of experience have taught me the following: a) leave the thigh-high corset boots at home because you’ll spend 15 minutes unlacing them in the doorway; b) your socks will be exposed to the world, so they’d better match your outfit… and each other.

Swedish company Happy Socks asked me if I wanted to hop around in some of their products. Sure, why not? I slid their High Heel socks over leopard-print tights. My cute jumper is by Banana Fish and the sweater is from NYC’s SoHo.

Barring any foot odor, everyone will be praising your cute cotton hosiery when you take off your boots. The Switched Color adds a splash of purple to a monochrome outfit, while the black lower half maintains balance. I’m wearing an h.NAOTO Blood cardigan (vintage from Closet Child) over a black lace dress with a heart-shaped corset to (from a Seattle secondhand shop).

Here are some of my favorites from Happy Socks. They’re a nice addition to a Japanese Fruits-style outfit, and cost only $10 a pair. Now that’s something to smile about.

What are your plans for New Year’s Eve? I’ll be at a fetish ball… you can expect some wild photos!

Yves St. Laurent recently took a cue from Mana and coated black lip gloss on his runway models. The limited-edition product, YSL’s Gloss Pur Black, is now available from Sephora for a wallet-stretching $28. Lancome also debuted a shiny black Color Fever gloss called Piha Black, which is pictured (above) over red lipstick.

Want to guess which one I’m wearing? It’s a trick question – the answer is neither. I went DIY and reproduced the look without spending a penny.

Maybe she’s born with jet-black lips… maybe it’s Maybelline Semi Permanent Body Tattoo! The bottle comes with a pointy plastic applicator that makes it easy to outline and blacken your lips – and it never comes off, no matter how many Jack/sodas you swallow.

I gloss-ified it with Duwop Lip Venom (a gift from a friend in LA). I generally despise lip glosses, but this one has a pleasant S&M effect – a tingly, bee-stung sensation – that plumps up your lips. Finally, I applied two shades of Smashbox Cream Eye Liner (a free sample from a swag bag) and messy black eyeshadow.

As you can see, I recently plastered my closet door with flyers from Tokyo Goth/Lolita/Cyber club nights. I’m wearing a Black Peace Now cobweb sweater with separate arm sleeves (from Closet Child Harajuku) over an old cashmere-blend top (Joe’s, from a NYC Soho boutique).