The rap superstar is planning to debut his first clothing collection at the upcoming New York Fashion Week.

He has been busy honing his designing skills by taking up internships with Fendi and designing footwear with Louis Vuitton since 2008. He has also been taking notes from his fashion peers as he is regularly spotted on the front row of fashion week events around the world.

West began working on his own line earlier this year, and is said to have enlisted the help of British knitwear designer, Louise Goldin for guidance on how to break into the Womenswear market.

He has is also working with Louise Wilson – a professor at the top fashion college Central Saint Martins, who’s alumni include Alexander McQueen and John Galliano. Kanye was also seen visiting the prestigious college in London, causing the university to deny reports that he was planning to study with them.

Kanye attracted global media attention after he took to the stage at the Coachella festival in April, wearing a women’s shirt by French designer Celine. A move that has caused people to speculate whether he was channelling inspiration for his own collection.

All of the work towards unveiling the line is reportedly being done at West’s design studios in London and New York, and the aim is to have the collection ready for September to be shown on the runway at New York Fashion Week.

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A collection of the late actress’ jewellery, art and clothes are to go on display around the world, before eventually being sold at auction in December.

Taylor’s possessions will be exhibited on a tour beginning in September.

This will include stops in Moscow, London, Dubai, Geneva, Paris, Hong Kong and Los Angeles, before ending in New York. This is where the items will be displayed at Christies’ gallery space at the start of December.

The auction itself will be held in the middle of December, just in time for Christmas. The proceeds from the auction will go to The Elizabeth Taylor Aids Foundation.

Elizabeth Taylor died in March, aged 79, and was estimated to be worth around $1 billion at the time of her death.

Her jewellery collection alone was valued at $150 million in 2002. This includes her most prized possession – La Peregrina pearl, whose previous owners include Queen Mary I of England. This coveted piece was a present to Taylor from Richard Burton on Valentine’s Day during their first marriage.

Marc Porter from Christies says that the tour “will be a window into the world of a true icon”.

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It’s not the first time a celebrity has turned into a fashion designer and it certainly won’t be the last, but unlike many of the singer-come-dabblers-in-fashion-design who enjoy minimal success in the cutthroat industry, rapper Kayne West is causing quite a stir in the world of high-end fashion design, with the likes of Louis Vuitton requesting his creations.

The American rapper, singer and record producer now even has his own studio in Paris where he designs high-end fashion collections  for both men and women. Rumours are even circulating that West has enrolled at London’s notorious school of fashion, Central Saint Martins.

Speculation is also surfacing to whether the rapper with exhibit his spring 2012 collection this September, although a venue and specific date has yet to be announced.

In designing his landmark ‘rapper’ gear, similar to the outfit Kayne West wore to this year’s ‘106 & Park’ in June and at the CFDA Fashion Awards, which included a Mitchell & Ness Chicago Bulls snapback hat, a pair of black/red Air Jordan 1s, a Salt and Pepper Zip Hoody from American Apparel and black waxed jeans, Kayne is bringing ‘Hip Hop’ and ‘Rapper’ fashion to a high-end market.

Although Kayne West is not the only rapper to be stretching his creative instincts into the world of fashion. Nathan Thompson, aka Hollowman Giggs, who, in 2010, was signalled as the hottest rapper in the UK, has launched his own clothing store in Peckham, London, known as SN1.

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The iconic Travilla dress that defined Monroe’s sex symbol status has been sold at auction for more than double its estimate.

The legendary dress worn by the star in the 1955 film, The Seven Year Itch was originally expected to fetch between $1 and 2 million.

However, it ended up exceeding expectations as a one lucky bidder managed to take home the dress for staggering $4.6 million (£2.8 million). The garment was featured in one of the most famous film moments of all time – Monroe clutching the dress as a gust of wind from the subway causes it to billow up and expose her legs.

This was one of Marilyn Monroe’s crowning moments as the sex symbol she is known as today.

It was just part of a collection held by actress Debbie Reynolds, which featured several pieces of Hollywood history.

The whole sale, which included a lot of Monroe memorabilia, was valued at $22.8 million altogether. The collection was sold at Profiles in History auction house in Calabasas California.

It was made up of items that Reynolds had collected over the years as Hollywood studios sold or emptied their old warehouses. The dress, which was ivory and has now turned cream with age, was the highest value feature of the auction, which consists of around 700 pieces.

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The Irish-born milliner, known for his outlandish creations, reveals his inspirations to the public at an exhibition opening next month.

Conversation Pieces opens in July at Tate Liverpool in the UK and gives visitors a rare insight into the thought processes behind some of Treacy’s eccentric designs.

Philip Treacy is considered to be a ‘celebrity-milliner’ and has a whole host of famous friends and clients. He created a total of 36 bespoke hats for the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in April.

This, of course, included the now infamous design for Princess Beatrice ultimately sold on eBay for over £80,000 for charity.

The exhibition will include works from Treacy’s personal art collection, as well as some of his most famous designs.

He has also selected his most inspirational pieces from the Tate’s collection, including artworks from Andy Warhol, Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon.

From his personal collection, Philip will loan a rare photograph of the late Isabella Blow – the fashion stylist and Treacy’s long-term muse. He is also exhibiting another picture taken by Bruce Weber that shows a model wearing his famous “Galleon Hat” from 1994, which was worn by Blow and singer, Grace Jones.

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