Before I begin: You may wonder why most of my Retail Roundup entries are always set at Ala Moana Center. Well, as I've mentioned before, it's the closest shopping mall to where I live, and it's got a good mix of everything - locals and tourists, designer boutiques (Louis Vuitton, Emporio Armani), neighborhood favorites (Sears, Macys, Longs) and mall staples (Barnes & Noble, Ann Taylor). It's definitely not the only mall in Oahu (*ahem*WindwardKahalaPearlridge*ahem*) nor is it the only place to find the finer stuff (hello, Kalakaua Avenue, Ward Center, and Waikele Outlet) but it is the place where you'll be most likely to find someone like yours truly checking out the merchandise.
So. On with the roundup...
- The Chanel display window continues to disappoint me. Now the mannequins are clad in white one-piece bathing suits, which... well, okay, if that's what they want, but I didn't need to see that much hip bone on display after seeing Madonna's leotard in the “Hung Up” video the night before. (Seriously, though: Leotard scenes aside, the song and the video are both awesome. And even if Madonna herself has gotten kind of boring lately, I'd still give anything to have those legs when I'm 40.)
- Sephora finally stocks their own store-brand Foundation Primer, and it costs only $12! Sweet deal! (Still didn't buy it, though - maybe next week, when I'm not so bummed about my textbooks?) Also, most of their Aquolina bath & body stuff (except for the Pink Sugar fragrance) is on sale, as with Dessert Beauty, and some decent fragrances from Comme des Garcons and Comptoir Sud Pacifique.
- In non-sale news, I caught a whiff of the new J.Lo fragrance (at Macy's in downtown Honolulu) and I thought it was way too sweet. Not as noxious as any of the Britney fragrances - or, shudder, the Ashanti one I sniffed at Wal-Mart - but now I'm beginning to wonder about who it is, exactly, that develops these celebrity fragrances, and the decision making process that goes into choosing the particular notes. I, for one, can't wait to figure out who gets to decide the "white flowers" Mariah Carey will include for the fragrance she's developing right now.
- Speaking of celebrities with beauty partnerships: Catherine Deneuve and MAC? Talk about a real classy combo! The makeup she's wearing for their ads is plenty bright, but still timeless and feminine, and not a whiff of hoochie whatsoever.
- Lush: Still giving away their Christmas stuff! I'm so happy with some of the product I still have from their store, though - the Arabian Bright hair conditioner gives my hair lots of salon-style shine - so I'll just leave the rest to the bath-product freaks.
- At Barnes & Noble, I was shocked to see Julie & Julia (in hardcover, no less) at 50% off. I snapped it up anyway, and I hope to give a review soon. In the meantime, apparently Kim France is following Linda Wells and Anna Wintour in their descent to hell, now that the latest cover of Lucky features... Nicole Ritchie. And not just that, but a badly airbrushed version of Nicole Ritchie. I'm glad not to see her ribs poking out, but the end result made her chest look flat and plastic-y, like a shirtless GI Joe. Not a good look for the cover. But at least the editorials didn't annoy as much.
- My one disappointment so far is that I have yet to visit the nearest Estee Lauder counter so I could surrender my senses to the influence of Tom Ford - I mean, ask if they had Youth Dew Amber Nude in stock, just to see how that tea-and-patchouli combo holds up. But it will happen. Someday.
Edited to add more links. Now, if only somebody will finally develop PopoZao: The Fragrance for Women, with the unmistakable top note of Cheetos and Red Bull...
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