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Punishment is just fine for these fashion criminals

Afterwards: Betty Thomas and Gill Hallard after getting their makeover courtesy of Canadian Tv show Crimes of Fashion.Photo by Tamell Simons

Does anyone know Farid? He was booked by the fashion police yesterday for a partially bad haircut and absconded before he could be made over.

"He was all excited about his makeover," said Crimes of Fashion executive producer Claude Barnes. "Until he heard Kelly at Bersalon mention an eyebrow pluck and waxing. He said he was going out for a smoke, which I don't think he really smoked, and never came back.

"He was a good looking guy and well put together. He just needed a little improvement."

Mr. Barnes, who hails from Canada, along with four crew members are on the Island this week shooting the premiere episode of the reality show. According to Mr. Barnes, Crimes of Fashion has already been sold in Canadian, American and European markets.

So, have residents been terrible offenders of any fashion crimes?

"There's definitely no shortage," Mr. Barnes said with a laugh. "A lot of bad hair and some people wear absolutely no make-up. We even issued a ticket to a woman for having too many children strapped to her chest. We advised her to get a double stroller."

The worst fashion crime the crew said they have seen so far is a woman dressed in a black skirt suit with black leotards, red shoes with a red turtle neck. But fashion officer Raquel Atienza had high praise for the corporate dressers on the Island. "Both the men and women look great, " she said.

However, yesterday, one Bermudian issued a ticket to officer Bryan Trieb. "She told me I had a nerve to be ticketing people with my hair like this. Someone said it looked like a bird nest. In fact, no one liked it besides one lady who said she liked crazy styles," Mr. Trieb said.

On Monday, Gillian Hallard was ticketed for wearing high waters (pants that are too short) and messy hair. "I was just walking along Reid Street when they approached me," she said. "They caught me at my worst. I had come from a first-aid class and had just thrown on any old thing."

Mrs. Hallard said she took the ticket in stride and was willing to try the make-over, something she said she had wanted for a while.

"I was half-embarrassed, half-excited," she said.

She said after getting a new hair style at the Willow Spa at the Fairmont Southampton Princess and a new outfit from Trimingham's, she was pleased with the end result. "And my husband liked it," Mrs. Hallard said. Although she was booked for not having on any make-up, Betty (Soares) Thomas said she was not offended when she was stopped by Crimes of Fashion.

"They were nice. I thought it was a joke. It was like a Candid Camera-type thing when they told me to look around at the camera," Mrs. Thomas said. "I actually choked and cried I was totally overwhelmed." And while she called her day of beauty "surreal", the mother-of-two said the make-over came just in time for her reunion with her American husband, who has been at sea with the Navy since November 2001.

"We are going to meet in Ohio on Valentine's Day. I told him about my new look and he is really happy for me."