Rumor has it that Katie Holmes was the first celebrity woman of late to wear jeans that were — gasp! — not tight in the butt. At first, uncertainty swept the fashionistas: Is this sexy or does she look homeless? What does Tom have to say about it — might they actually be his jeans? Then stars picked up the trend left and right, as did clothing companies across the nation. The uncharacteristically loose-fitting jeans were named “Boyfriend Jeans,” close kin to the already popular “Boyfriend Sweaters.”

First, I would like to express my excitement for the wonderful month of October. If you aren’t as excited as I am, I’d like to bring up a few things that just might persuade you to share my feelings: Fall Break, Sweater/blazer weather (well at least in New York) and a holiday that might be the most entertaining of the year, Halloween. So to give you a helping hand from a faraway place, let us address these October occurrences and how you can look your best.

Unless you have personally received a 700-billion dollar bailout — and while you are waiting for Wall Street’s bailout to “trickle down” — you (and I) should probably not be buying very many new clothing items. So, as promised, here is a new way to wear pants you already have: tight-rolling.

When I say new, I don’t actually mean new; not to quash your nascent fashion creativity, which I hope this column is fostering but, as they say, everything old is new. And in this case, we’re talking ’80s-excellence old. This cuffing technique is also called a French roll, farmer roll, pegged leg and who knows what else, and is probably best associated with another ’80s favorite: acid-wash jeans.

This summer I had the chance to visit three excellent places — Paris, France; Taipei, Taiwan; and the sunny situation we call Southern California. This meant three excellent opportunities for my favorite things (in no particular order): dancing, eating and fashion. If you know me, and if you’re reading my column, there’s a good chance you do, you know that I’m always thinking about clothes, and this summer’s travels provided both mental and physical fodder for myriad new outfits and thoughts about the current state of fashion. Today I want to talk about one of the trends that stood out to me in my first stop.

Is it just me, or is Boyz II Men’s “End of the Road” simply impossible to get out of one’s head during weeks like these?! Well, either way, keep a kleenex handy, as, sadly, it’s just about time for our own dramatic farewell.

Last year, upon receiving an email asking me to write for The Cornell Daily Sun, my initial thought was, “That’s sweet, but probably not going to happen.” I’d heard great things about the paper, but couldn’t claim to be an avid reader. Now, reflecting upon the experience one year later, the supporting fans, angry blogs and occasional “LOL”s all add up to an overall very pleasant surprise.

It seems that I have always been a sucker for trends. When I was younger, I used to go to sleep in my school uniform so that I could be more efficient and have more time to eat breakfast and watch cartoons in the morning. Every night as I buttoned my plaid pinafore and folded my collar, I felt a peculiar pleasure from cheating the system. Not only did I get to watch 15 more minutes of Captain Planet than my brothers, but I also got the best pick of breakfast food. “It’s just a phase — a silly trend she’s started in her head,” my mother said behind closed doors to my father, as he stood perplexed over how to react when I was fully clothed and ready to go to school at 8:30 p.m. the night before.

So this is a fashion column. What does that mean? Well, I talk about fashion, style and clothing and it’s printed in a columnar shape. Like any good social scientist, I say basically whatever I want, but try to back it up with some sort of solid evidence. With a substantial amount of vigorous wit and idiosyncrasies, I assert my opinions and analyses of trends past and present. But first and foremost I am here to help you look good, feel good and know your shit (like me, of course).

As this is my last column for this year, (sad face), in lieu of a single theme I am going to open my Mary Poppins-bag of fashion tips and tricks to get you through the rest of the semester and get you excited/ready for the summer with the clothes you already own.

I have been waiting a long time to delve into the Spring 2009 Ready-to-Wear lines and to bring you the best and boldest looks and trends. The fashion world’s timeline is very confusing: These designs were dreamt of last spring, debuted and manufactured in the fall and finally shipped to stores for you to buy this season. So when I say waiting, I mean a long time. But sporadic Ithaca weather be damned: It’s April, and it’s time for spring.