Armani outfits Barbie in beads

New York — Giorgio Armani has a new muse: Barbie.

Armani has created a strapless, silk chiffon top and crepe skirt embellished with dark beads and covered with sparkle tulle for the 11 1/2-inch doll. Both pieces are taupe. An evening purse, also in taupe crepe and dripping with beads, a matching necklace and earrings complete the outfit.

But couture fashion doesn’t come cheap. The price of the limited- edition Armani Barbie: $134.99.

The Milan, Italy-based designer is donating his royalties to YouthAIDS, a global initiative to educate and protect at-risk youth from HIV infection, and Room to Grow, which works to improve the lives of babies born into poverty.

Armani Barbie will be in stores in September.

Avon’s new collection targets youth

New York — Avon is launching the next generation of its beauty business, and the messengers definitely are not your mother’s Avon ladies.

The young women who will be selling Mark, a line that includes color cosmetics, skin-care products, fragrance and accessories, can earn college credits through an online training course while learning to become real-life entrepreneurs. Avon says the new business fills a “job gap” for a generation of young women, beginning at age 16, who often take minimum-wage retail or food-service jobs.

The line, with its “Glow Baby Glow” lip gloss and acne-fighting medicated gel, is clearly targeted to the peers of the new sales representatives. Items are featured in a new magalog (half-magazine, half catalog) called “Meet Mark.”