MEN ABOUT TOWN: With the Oscars on Sunday, the Milan shows are proving to be light on major celebrities of the A-list Hollywood variety. So instead of Emily Blunt, for example, the paparazzi had James Blunt, the pretty-boy British singer, headlining the front row at Emporio Armani on Sunday.

Is he looking to trade in his regular jeans and T-shirt look for a sleeker, more luxurious Armani wardrobe? Blunt said he thought he'd better "come and see what it's about," but he added that, no, Armani is not suiting him up for his upcoming world tour. "I'm too short for that," noted Blunt, who is promoting his latest album, "All the Lost Souls." As an homage to his guest, Armani played Blunt's "1973" as his show's opening track.

On Monday at the Giorgio Armani show, a soccer star named Kaka was taking in the limelight. But don't hold your breath waiting to see the Brazil and AC Milan player in his briefs à la David Beckham for Emporio Armani anytime soon. Kaka, a devout Catholic, prefers to show his, ahem, ball control on the pitch. "Leave it to him," Kaka said. Beckham is fronting Emporio Armani's underwear campaign, which was launched last month.

MODEL LIFE: Model-turned-actress Vanessa Hessler confessed she was slightly "intimidated" working with such actors as Alain Delon and Gérard Depardieu on her latest flick based on the Astérix comic series. "But we all became friends in the end," said the still-wide-eyed 20-year-old, who is working on a film for Italian television. "This is my first and last experience for TV, though. I prefer working for the movies," offered Hessler, prior to the D&G show on Monday.

However, Hessler said it was hard to be accepted in the movie world. "Everyone sees you as merely another pretty face, and I work really hard every day to show I am more than that," she related.

Down the row, English model Daisy Lowe is still in the thick of the runway world. "I just moved to New York because I want to do this modeling malarkey, but I think it means I've more moved into a Virgin Airline Boeing 747," the 19-year-old said. Having modeled for Agent Provocateur and French Connection, Lowe has aspirations to make clothes herself once she tires of modeling and clocking up the air miles. "I love playing with clothes," she said.