This may come as no surprise to any husband or boyfriend who has had to wait for their partner outside shop changing rooms.

Woman will try on more than 21,000 items of clothing in a lifetime - but will only actually buy half of them, a study revealed today.

On average, women hit the shops four times a month and disappear into the changing rooms with ten tops, pairs of jeans, dresses or shoes on each trip.

That's a total of 40 different items of clothing tried on each month - or a staggering 480 a year.

However, only five of those items make it into to the tills during each shopping trip.

That's just 240 garments a year or 10,560 over a typical shopping lifespan of 45 years.

It also emerged one in two women regularly try clothes on at stores - with absolutely no intention of buying them.

Sue Beck of Lambrini, which carried out the research, said: 'For many women, trying on different clothes is often the best part of a shopping trip.

'Hours are spent in changing rooms with friends trying on weird and wonderful outfits you wouldn't ever dare wear out in public.

It's also an excuse for some of us to try on clothes that are designer and beyond our budget.' 

Celebrity stylist Patrick Swan added: 'Take an entire outfit, right down to footwear into the changing room so you can see and understand how it is meant to work together.

It seems despite an increased crackdown on traffickers of counterfeit goods, the business of selling fakes is booming more than ever.

While federal and local governments are more aware of the situation than in years past, counterfeiters have become more savvy about being detected, moving from New York City's infamous Canal Street and Santee Alley in Los Angeles (the sites of many busts) to direct-to-customer sales on the Web, as well as mobile shops that are harder to track, according to WWD.

Most of the fake products are coming from China and the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition estimates that these illegal operations cost oft-imitated luxury companies like Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Coach, Burberry, Gucci, and others around $250 billion a year in lost sales, which translates to 750,000 lost jobs.

In 2009, the U.S. Customs & Border Protection found $260.7 million worth of counterfeit goods, most of which was footwear ($99.8 million), followed by handbags and wallets ($21.5 million), apparel (also $21.5 million), watches ($15.53 million), and jewelry ($10.5 million), WWD reports.

According to Kris Buckner, a counterfeit investigator interviewed on CNBC's special "Crime Inc.: Counterfeit Goods," the dangerous end result of buying counterfeit goods is unknown to many customers.

"Sales of counterfeit goods have been tied to street gangs and terrorist organizations," he says. "There's a lot of implications from the sales of counterfeit goods that I don't think the general public knows or understands."

Besides explaining these relationships, the CNBC special chronicles the long battle between New Balance and Chinese counterfeiters and even fake Botox treatments that left a Florida couple fighting for their lives.

Exclusively @ The-Manhattan.Net! As "unseen" on Nicole Richie, Kim Kardashian, Beyonce & Jennifer Lopez! Introducing "Invisibelt," the no buckle, no bulk belt. This adjustable clear belt is undetectable under fitted tops to give a super slim silhouette-- no more ugly bumpy belt buckles showing through your shirts! This belt adjusts like a bra, and fits U.S. sizes 0-14 (UK 0-20). Comes in a small tin which is perfect for gifting! :)

10 KD. Shop Invisibelt HERE!

View Invisibelt celebrity style & press HERE!

New @ The Manhattan! A 300 year old Japanese beauty secret for a petal fresh complexion revealed. These wonderful blotting papers have been featured in MANY reputable publications such as Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar (editor’s pick), Grazia, Vanity Fair, Allure, Marie Claire– among many others! They are even Rachel Zoe’s favorites! These gold-speckled sheets (which are larger than normal blotting sheets) remove excess oil and sweat without disturbing makeup or stealing moisture from the skin. They can also be used as a powder and primer alternative that improves the wear of makeup suitable for all skin types (oily, normal, dry & sensitive).

Fragrance-free. Powder-free. Oil-free. All-natural, biodegradable. No animal testing. Handmade in Japan. Ingredients: 100% abaca leaf, gold flake. 30 sheets per pack. Sheets are 3.74 X 3.74 inches.

Be careful what you wish for, Rachel Zoe. The celebrity stylist's "I die" catchphrase is the inspiration for a new Harper's Bazaar photo shoot in which Zoe -- you guessed it -- dies.

The September fashion spread -- snapped by lensman Douglas Friedman -- sees the pint-sized reality star getting offed by designers Vera Wang, Michael Kors, Francisco Costa, Brian Atwood, and Marc Jacobs.

"I only want to kill Rachel when I don't land one of her fabulous clients for the Oscars," confides Wang, seen poisoning Zoe's cocktail. "The perfect accessory can make the difference between looking blah and totally to die for," adds a devious Kors, who is photographed burying the stylist underneath a pile of designer handbags.

Every woman has done it, and every woman has had it done to her—the minute you start a new relationship, your girlfriends are pushed to the back burner. But no matter how wonderful the man, it's unlikely he'll ever replace that much-needed time with friends, whether it's bonding over the season finale of The Bachelorette or a heart-to-heart over coffee. After all, says Carmen Renee Berry, MSW, coauthor of Girlfriends: Invisible Bonds, Enduring Ties, women (much like men) speak their own language. But more than that, our girlfriends are the family we choose for ourselves. Below, a few reasons—some silly, some serious—why we'll always need one another.

This statement-making cuff by Allison Daniel Designs will add instant vintage glamour to any outfit-- casual or dressy! Handcrafted; Antique gold plated finish with black glass stones. Goes beautifully with matching Big Fat Mama Cocktail Ring!

36 KD. Shop Big Fat Mama Cuff HERE!

View Allison Daniel Designs celebrity style & press HERE!

Wow, I was never aware of this!

Keeping Saudi Women Tagged By SMS
Text alerts for men when their female charges leave Saudi alone is the new frontline in the country's technology war

Want to know whether your wife, sister or daughter has left the county? Well, in Saudi Arabia, there's an app for that. Reportedly, male guardians or mahrams in Saudi Arabia are now receiving text message notifications when their female charges leave the country unaccompanied. "iMahram", as some jokingly call it. According to Wajeha al-Huwaider, a Saudi female activist, when she left the kingdom for a holiday with her family, her husband received a text message from the foreign ministry notifying him that she had departed.

"It is sad how Saudis use technology in a way not intended to be used for," she told The Media Line. "In Saudi Arabia, technology brings more restrictions and misery. They use it to have more control over people's lives, especially women."

Although Huwaider is summarily dismissed as an exhibitionist by some Saudi women (mainly for her regular attempts to leave the kingdom without her mahram's permission in order to highlight the limitations of the guardianship system), it is very likely that she was targeted due to her previous activities.

But it is nevertheless an indication that the authorities are becoming more inventive and resourceful with technology. Just as expatriates in the country are tethered to their native sponsors, women are tethered to their guardians, who, no matter how laissez-faire they may be, must still go through the bureaucratic rigmarole of granting permission for their female dependents to leave the country unaccompanied. Even then, the permission has to be renewed regularly. There is little scope for blanket licences from mahrams – ostensibly to ensure that they are not abused.

Read the full story HERE.