They said/We said: Linda Evangelista and Francois-Henri Pinault settle their child custody battle for an undisclosed sum

Photography by Amy Sussman/Stringer

By Kyla Parrish
A still-secret settlement has been reached between fashion heavyweights Linda Evangelista and Francois-Henri Pinault, who turned the Manhattan Family Court into an all-out battleground on which the two waged war last week over child support for their son, Augie.
Evangelista, the Canadian supermodel and former Cover Girl who is famous for saying “we [supermodels] don’t wake up for less than $10,000 a day,” was seeking a record $46,000 in monthly child support from Pinault.  To date, the largest child support cheque in New York was awarded to Sean (P. Diddy) Combs’ baby’s momma Misa Hylton-Brim to the tune of $19,000 a month.
The Evangelista/Pinault child support case turned ugly as mud was thrown and both sides made allegations. Evangelista’s lawyer, William Beslow, claimed Pinault “suggested she terminate the pregnancy.” Pinault’s lawyer, David Aaronson, claimed that Evangelista was “trying to boot-strap herself into disguised alimony.” Aaronson continued by saying, “Most of the expenses [in Evangelista's list of $46,000 a month in child care expenses] do not relate to Augie but they relate to Ms. Evangelista.”
We know what you’re thinking: does a five-year-old boy really need $46,000 a month in child support from his billionaire father? Evangelista seems to think so.  How else is the former Cover Girl supposed to cover the tab for 24-hour nannies and pricey chauffeurs—the chauffeurs are former NYPD cops, so at $16,000 a month they’re a steal—for young Augie?

THEY SAID…
David Aaronson, attorney for Pinault: “Everybody’s glad, for the sake of the child, that it’s done.” [Reuters]
Shinan Govani: “Linda Evangelista tells court: I picked cherries in Canada before I was a supermodel. Translation: I’m no gold-digger.” [Twitter]
WE SAID…
Randi Bergman, online editor: “This is the stuff that the most stylish soaps are made of. However, I really hope for the sake of both of Pinault’s kids that this hullabaloo disappears and never comes back. Serious daddy issues in the making.”

Tea Collection $11 Dresses

I convinced hubby to watch the baby under the premise of “post-Thanksgiving cleanup”… little does he know I’ve actually gotten sucked into online Black Friday sales. :)

Not only is Tea having an awesome $15 dress sale, but all sale items are an extra 25% off today, making each of these cuties $11.25 each. I’m stocking up in sizes 6 mo – 2 yrs. :)

Back to Work!

Clothes are fun again!
In preparation for today’s return to work, I spent the weekend at the local mall picking up a few work basics. Unfortunately, at my “local mall” Forever21 and GAP are as fashionable as it gets. It took me 2 hours to pick out 3 uninspired work separates. What a disappointment, especially after months of sweaty fitness classes in an attempt to wear normal clothes again!
So imagine my anticipation for the upcoming Marni collection at H&M. I can’t wait to get creative again about what I wear, after a long year of maternity dresses, stretchy pants and “easy access” nursing tops.

Dote Nursingwear

I’ve spent the last few hours absolutely horrified at the selection of nursing tops online. I’m sick of seeing the same v-neck top on every website, available in the same 3 generic colors: black, grey and purple. After spending some quality time with the Google search box, I finally came across Dote Nursingwear, a line of modern, trendy functional nursing wear that I hope will save me from cursing at my misshapen Bravado camisoles.
Dote’s designs are somewhat Theory-esque with modern silhouettes and don’t scream “Motherhood”. The only catch here is the line is from Singapore and can take up to 15 business days to ship, and they’re closed until January 12 for the holidays. But I did find a few styles at figure8maternity.com. Tip: their coupon codes are stackable so use as many as you can.


Meanwhile, please excuse me while I go off on one more rant. I don’t know what irks me more, websites that use obviously un-pregnant and/or non-nursing women as models (I doubt the pink dress above looks like that on a DD chest) or the ones that use “real” shots of women using their clothes, and by “real” I mean it looks like the pictures were taken in someone’s backyard

Supermodel Evangelista: French billionaire wanted abortion

NEW YORK (Reuters) - When supermodel Linda Evangelista told French billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault in 2006 she was pregnant with his child, he asked her to get an abortion, her attorney charged Thursday on the first day of a child-support trial in Manhattan.

Pinault, 49, who is currently married to actress Salma Hayek, denied that charge but testified he told Evangelista that "if she were to have a child (they) might not have a relationship."
With that a four-month relationship, in which he said the couple only actually saw each other seven days, came to an end.
"I didn't even know her very much," Pinault said during an acrimonious afternoon hearing.
The case drew widespread attention last year after it was reported Evangelista was seeking as much as $46,000 a month in child support.
Her attorney William Beslow said that figure was inaccurate, while acknowledging that the unspecified sum she would be seeking is "substantial."
Beslow contends Pinault is worth more than $3 billion. Pinault's attorney, David Aronson, calculated that Evangelista's annual income averaged $1.8 million for the four years leading up to her filing for support in 2010.
"Is Mr. Pinault a comfortable person of substantial means?" Aronson asked in opening arguments. "The answer is yes. But Ms. Evangelista is also a person of substantial means."
Evangelista, 46, gave birth to a son, Augustin, now 5, and supported him for the first several years of his life. She decided to take Pinault to court after private child-support negotiations failed and her multi-year contract as a spokesmodel for L'Oreal Paris cosmetics ended in 2010, Beslow said.
One of the modeling world's most recognizable faces, Evangelista arrived about 15 minutes late to court wearing a black skirt, a floral-patterned blouse, beige stiletto pumps and a grim expression. She barely glanced at Pinault as the trial got underway.
During opening arguments, both lawyers sought to portray their clients as victims of each other's public relations smear campaigns.
Pinault testified he first received a child support request from Evangelista in 2007.
"I asked, 'What do you have in mind?', he said. "I received a demand. It was not reasonable, I made a counterproposal."
He said the next time he heard from Evangelista was 2010, when she filed the support case.
Augustin is Evangelista's only child. Pinault has two children from a previous marriage, and a third child by Hayek.
The trial is expected to last several days, after which a surrogate judge will decide on the amount of child support due to Evangelista. Either side may appeal that ruling to a family court judge.
(Editing by Paul Thomasch and Xavier Briand)