A quick search shows that most brands are still attached to the old layout – and considering the speed at which fashion usually embraces anything new,  that’s not much of a surprise. They won’t have too long to cling to the familiar: on March 31st all pages will get the timeline treatment. Though the fact that Facebook is discouraging overt promotions or headlines in favor of photography and visuals should make fashion and design brands feel right at home.

In case you need a bit of inspiration, here are a few timelines from some of our favorite fashion early adopters.

Burberry

After months of speculation as to who might acquire the 15-year-old luxury shoe and accessory label, Jimmy Choo has been acquired by Labelux for £500 million (approximately $806 million at current exchange rates). {M&A Deals}

Labelux is a privately held Austrian luxury goods company that includes Bally, Derek Lam and Solange Azagury-Partridge in its portfolio. In March of last year CEO Reinhard Mieck hinted at the possibility of an acquisition, though he didn’t name any brands specifically. “If we find something which fits fantastically, plus would be available, we might even acquire this year but we are definitely not in a hurry,” he said at the time. “We look at the long term potential of brands rather than short-term profitability.” {BusinessWeek}

Though other suitors reportedly included luxury behemoths like LVMH, it seems like Labelux’s approach may have been a better fit for Jimmy Choo.

With £150 million in 2010 sales (approximately $241.5 million at current exchange rates) the label isn’t exactly an emerging brand, but Labelux sees an opportunity for even stronger growth.

“Jimmy Choo is an outstanding brand with enormous growth potential and the ability to deliver material growth synergies across our group,” Mieck said.

Labelux is the third company to hold a majority stake in the label, which was launched in 1996. Phoenix Equity Partners first acquired a 51% stake in 2001 for £9 million, which it later sold for £35 million to Lion Capital. Lion Capital also purchased shares from Jimmy Choo’s management for £110 million in total, and later sold their shares to TowerBrook Capital for £185 million.

The latest sale is by far the brand’s largest, and gives TowerBrook the biggest return of any investor so far. Tamara Mellon, who co-founded the company, has maintained a 17% ownership stake in the company and will continue in her position of creative director. Jimmy Choo CEO Joshua Schulman will also remain in place in his existing role.

The deal is expected to close in June 2011, and may give Jimmy Choo the resources to make a long desired push into the growing Asian luxury market.

Jimmy Choo CEO Tamara Mellon attempted to explain the odd pairing to W:

“Uggs were my guilty pleasure until I was on a flight to London and the airline staff said, ‘Weâ€re all so excited to see what shoes youâ€re wearing!†I had Uggs on. So now weâ€ve done a collaboration where I took traditional Uggs and decorated them with the DNA of Jimmy Choo—animal prints and studs.” {via the Cut}

No. Just no.

Really, we’re not against comfortable shoes, but there are some things that animal prints and studs just can’t help. The classic Ugg boot is one of those things. While we can sympathize with the temporary embarrassment of being seen outside (what you wear behind closed doors is your business, and we don’t judge) in a pair of Uggs, adding flashy, sparkly things to them is not unlike spritzing perfume on dog poo – it doesn’t actually make things any better.

But, if you were wondering “who would wear these things?” or “why?”, now you know.

Alexander McQueen Moves Forward

Goodbye Mr. McQueen, hello Ms. Burton. Long live McQueen.

Style.com covered the passing of Alexander McQueen and the showing of the final collection he designed, but something that was equally important this year was the success of Sarah Burtonâ€s first show as the new designer for the McQueen label. The passing of such a genius creative mind was indeed tragic, and the showing of McQueenâ€s last collection was a special moment, but Burtonâ€s signal that the brand can honor McQueenâ€s legacy while moving forward was absolutely stellar.

John Gallianoâ€s Dior Couture Wows

Dior haute couture was in full bloom this year when John Galliano showed his Spring 2011 collection of flower-inspired looks. The imagery and execution of the designs combined with the high, tulip-like hair of the models for a full package display of gorgeousness and perhaps our favorite moment in fashion of 2010.

According to a press release from Deckers Outdoor Corporation, which acquired the Ugg brand in 1995, Brady adores Uggs and wears them all the time (doubtful), and company Chairman and CEO Angela Martinez said Mr. Giseleâ€s status as a highly noted football player and “style icon” makes him their ideal spokesman.

We were going to say that what that likely means is Brady is meant to make Uggs seem more masculine and thus more appealing to a wider population of men, but actually Uggs are already pretty masculine-looking and have somehow become associated with women and girls. The Uggs will probably, therefore, have the opposite effect on Brady. In other words, heâ€s liable to find his Ugg boots wearing him, not the other way around. The score for now: Ugg-1, Brady-0.

We have had quite a love affair for years now, darling. Your commitment to creating only the highest quality shoes at equally high prices has brought on the admiration and worship you so deserve as one of the most iconic shoemakers in the world.

But, dear Jimmy, we must say itâ€s time to go our separate ways. Itâ€s not us. Itâ€s you.

It seems youâ€ve been caught dabbling with the annoying, wannabe-shoe-idol mistress of footwear. Ugg Australia.

Love the look... from the ankles up

No offense, Jim, but Uggs are, well, Ugg-ly. And kind of tacky. Talk about a way to ruin any outfit with the Ugg bootâ€s shapeless, bulky form. We donâ€t care how warm and fuzzy your new little gold-digging tartlet makes you feel.

You see, when you team up with the Ugg brand to create a limited edition collection of studded, fringed and animal print Jimmy Choo Ugg boots (which, BTW, one could make oneself with a BeDazzler), we just lose a lot of respect for such a prestigious shoemaker as yourself.

Our love affair will effectively end Oct. 21, when the Ugg and Jimmy Choo boots hit Jimmy Choo and Ugg Stores in addition to a selection of other shops. {Fashion United} We werenâ€t  speaking to you yesterday, when a sample set of the Jimmy Choo and Ugg collection began touring Jimmy Choo boutiques and was officially made available for pre-order for a 24-hour period. {Stylelist}

And would you kindly tell Supermodel Amber Valletta sheâ€s looking pretty hot in this unfortunate collaborationâ€s ad campaign, but no actual, self-respecting, motorcycle-riding, badass biker chick would actually be caught dead wearing the collectionâ€s gold and silver-studded black Mandah boots.

We loved the cheap thrill of your fling with H&M, but on this tawdry dalliance, we have to part ways.

With sincere regrets,

Signature9

Apparently panties being thrown on stage has awakened a sleeping undergarment designer, or something. The weirdest part is that he wants to team with Jimmy Chooâ€s Tamara Mellon. Sheâ€s great at making shoes, and while sexy heels and lingerie are a pairing that lots of ladies (and guys) enjoy, it still seems like an odd step for the brand.

Styleite points out that Usher has been “flighty” with his plans to found a clothing line before, so perhaps heâ€s not all that serious about the idea.

Note to Usher: Stick with the fragrance promotion like countless other celebrities (now including Lady Gaga) do.

The new line of clothing, shoes, accessories for Men and Women for H&M created by Jimmy Choo is coming to H&M stores in only 12 days! When the news of the line hit the press wire in June, fashion blogs everywhere began to speculate about what the line could potentially look like and if the price points would still be too luxurious for recessionary spenders. The high profile designs have begun to hit the internet gradually with mixed reviews, but there’s still palpable excitement and a close eye being kept on the countdown.

But to what extreme must we go to even get a glimpse of some of these pieces? Well if anyone remembers a few years back when Karl Lagerfeld created a line for H&M, then you will immediately associate the release of such an anticipated line with lines wrapped around the block as far as the eye could see, and those very brave souls who actually camped out overnight to have first dibs on the coveted collection. Our girlfriends are even threatening to get hotel rooms near H&M locations in Manhattan for November 13th to have a chance at being one of the first to enter the store on the morning of the 14th (for that price, wouldn’t something from the main Jimmy Choo line be a better investment?). Whatever your strategy, preparing a list for the mad dash through the door and having a game plan of what to grab first will help.

And if you can’t get everything you want Rykiel’s up next, so there’s still time to work on your designer diffusion acquisition skills.