By STEPHANIE HAYES, St. Petersburg Times

No boyfriend? No problem!

Well, no problem if you don't mind replacing actual human companionship with inanimate objects. Imaginary boyfriends are everywhere these days, from your clothes to your scent to the cushions that cradle you at night. These aren't blowup dolls. These are products aimed at women, designed to comfort the lonely.

If you walk into CVS and head toward the back, past the assorted Band-Aids and the Icy Hot, across from the Gold Bond and the lice treatment, you'll get to the pregnancy tests and condoms. Next to that, nowadays, you'll find a titillating piece of the reproductive marketplace, a tool of satisfaction at your, uh, fingertips.

Vibrators.

Show of mittens. Who has a fuzzy snowman sweater shoved in the closet?

You know about foot binding and corsets and bird masks of yore.

But fashion didn't suddenly stop being odd centuries ago. In fact, you could argue it has only gotten stranger. The current culture teems with Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, adult onesies, Pajama Jeans and general pantslessness. It's all fun to watch, but when average people attempt weird fashion, a carnival sideshow ensues.

Supermodel Cheryl Tiegs, known for her all-American beauty, Sports Illustrated covers and bikini royalty in the 1970s and '80s, is now a spokeswoman for Cambria stone surfaces. We caught up with her to talk fashion and her evolving concepts of beauty.

Tiegs, 63, also dropped news that she has agreed to appear on "Celebrity Apprentice."

BRANDON, Fla. - After Mark Little parks his truck along bustling Big Bend Road in this city southeast of Tampa, he slams a metal ladder against the side.

His teenage daughter sits on the bumper under an umbrella, cell phone in one hand and business cards in the other. Her dad climbs to the top, where the tin roof is scalding.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. - Gennifer Flowers stood in a sea of ladies who lunch. She wore a mesh shirt covered by a blazer, and her lips were slick fuchsia. She styled her own platinum hair. She balanced on platform lace booties, peep holes exposing a perfect French pedicure.

She wasn't nervous, exactly. But she was careful.

Ken -- and he doesn't need a last name -- is about to turn 50.

And he still spends his time chasing a salty blond vixen.

That Barbie. She gets all the glory. Ninety percent of American girls own a Barbie. She has video games, clothing lines, DVDs, books. Her perky name is venerated.

Let's do things a little differently today. Let's tell you how to look ugly.

This is imperative information if you plan to attend an Ugly Sweater Party for the holidays.

Got a pile of clothes in your donation box? Bring them to work for an office clothing swap -- sometimes called "a naked lady party."

For instance, someone brought a little pile of clothes into the Tampa office of the St. Petersburg Times. She didn't want them, and set them out for the taking.