Are the new Duane Reades looking suspiciously like Sephora?

Gift Cards and Returns and Cash...Oh My!

I asked for a red scarf for Christmas. And I got it. And then when I brought it home I thought, "why did I ask for this?" So I returned it (sorry mom) - but I got something so much better! A gold (OK, not real gold) Skagen watch. I can't get enough of these Skagen watches, I have four! Then I also had a gift card from Bloomingdale's, so I went there and bought some Laura Mercier makeup...and then with the remainder put a small dent in a Elie Tahari coat that I couldn't say no to. It is so great - the style I have been seeking, 30% off, and...IT FITS! Then I headed to the Apple store where I bought a new iPod (an 8GB Nano) that I love - they have made some vast improvements over the one I bought about a year and a half ago. And since I gave them my old one back for "recycling," I got 10% off. THEN I went to Sephora because I had another gift card (thanks mom) and I bought a bunch of other fun makeup odds and ends from Make Up For Ever, Smashbox and Stila. I swear that store is a candy store for women.

Exclusive Bare Escentuals Offer from Sephora

This in from the KING KONG of guerilla shoppers (one of my stringers):

Exclusive Bare Escentuals Offer from Sephora!
Buy a full size Bare Escentuals foundation from Sephora (your choice of 5 shades) and get a full-size kabuki brush for FREE ($53 Value) for $25! Limited quantities so buy now!

New Eyelash Curler: shu uemura

I have already written about the famed shu uemura eyelash curler, but just wanted to give you an update on the new one I just purchased at Sephora for a bit over $20. What I really wanted was a couple of replacement pads to go on the apparatus that I already own. However, I was told that they don't sell them separately because once you are done using the two pads that come with it, the metal contraption is ready to be replaced as well. The woman didn't seem to agree with me when I told her that was an impressive marketing ploy to get people to spend $20+ on this thing a couple of times a year. Except for me of course, since I milked the last one for probably more than 3 years. This kind of thing annoys me.

February: Not a Great Shopping Month

OK, I've confirmed what I've been hinting at during the past few weeks. Shopping at this time of the year is not so hot. Literally.

First, yes, it is cold and windy - not a very relaxed convenient way to shop in NYC. Then, the stores are practically barren -- all of the fall/winter apparel already went on sale, more than a month ago, meaning that it's pretty much all GONE. Then, the new apparel is this weird "not Winter" and "not Spring" stuff. Some stores carry cruisewear and I don't know about you, but I've never gone on a cruise, and even if I did, I can't imagine that it would warrant an entire new wardrobe. But that's just me, the practical middle class kid.

I did buy the pictured skirt at my favorite, Club Monaco, today. Did I need it? Not so much, however it was on sale for only $29. What I really need are pants, but as I explained above, there was nothing doing.

What I did buy fairly free and easily today was makeup - at both Sephora and Aveda. And since it's freezing and there's not much to buy anyway, the stores were pretty empty - a nice change of pace for a NYC Saturday afternoon.

Union Square: Growing Shopping Oasis

Ah yes, Union Square as photographed by me from inside DSW. What used to be a marginal wasteland dotted with a few good restaurants is now feeling comfortable in its new retail skin. Barnes & Noble, Sephora, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's (nearby), Virgin, DSW, Filene's Basement, Diesel, Puma, Shoe Mania...the list goes on. And situated between 5th Avenue and the East Village, you really can't go wrong by taking one of the many trains that empties into the Square for hours of shopping until you are dropping.

Granted, the turning of New York City into a big huge giant-ass mall hasn't really thrilled me during the last several years that I've seen it happening. But if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. What choice do we have if we continue to choose to live in this teflon town where money continues to pour in no matter what happens? It's quite awesome, in the sense that it instills awe.

I will surely be driven out of dodge in the near future as there is no way that a barely middle class lass such as myself can continue to afford the spiraling prices of...everything... That is, unless I find myself a sugar daddy. Perhaps I should start wearing that Banana Republic outfit my mother bought me (see post from a few days ago) after all.

Parental Update, Urbanite, Sephora, Like.com

Hi all. Thought I'd forewarn you that today's post is going to be a hodgepodge of information. But I will be organized about it, and you will gain new insights and information that you will be able to use for yourself, and then against me somehow later on.

1. You'll be happy to know, as I was, that my parents did not disown me over yesterdays' blog. However, I left out a most important point on how they saved their money that allowed them to dress like fancy pants all these years, and also send me to a great out-of-state college: THEY ONLY HAD ONE KID (thanks to jay eff for that reminder!). The pictured rose is my peace offering to them.

2. Urbanite - Those brainiacs at The New York Times beat me to it with this new daily publication, which provides readers with what to see, eat, do and wear in New York City. It is a free e-mail newsletter sent Monday through Friday where you can find out about New York's newest restaurants, cultural events, latest styles, the best places to shop and more. There's also a weekend guide sent each Friday to help you plan your weekend. I have emailed the editor Melena Ryzik about Guerilla Shopper, but surprisingly have not heard back. She must be tremendously jealous. Let's hope she gets pregnant and goes on permanent maternity leave and then I can take over for her. I will accept an offer as a contributor in the meantime.

3. Sephora is opening a new store on Friday, November 17 at 711 Lexington Avenue @57th St. It's the most beautiful place on earth - they said so! Kidding aside, I love makeup they way I loved markers and crayons as a kid, so this place is fun for a girl and a boy (depending on what kind of boy we're talking about).

4. Like.com - Have you heard about this new shopping site? I've checked it out a bit, haven't acutally used it, but it sounded intriguing in The New York Times article that another G.S. friend passed along:
Like.com offers a shortcut for the budget-minded wannabe. The site, rolled out last week, relies on artificial intelligence technology to search images on the Web, and serve up goods for sale that visually match items on a shopper’s wish list.
Visitors to the site search for products in one of two ways. First, they may type in “red strappy shoes” or silver earrings and receive pages filled with images that match the description, along with prices and links to the product pages of the Web sites where the items are sold. Or users may browse through selected items in the wardrobes of about a dozen celebrities, including Scarlett Johansson and Jessica Simpson and choose, say, a pair of the dangling silver earrings Ms. Johansson wore to the premiere of “Scoop.” The site then searches for similar earrings, returning more than 8,000 pairs ranging in price from $40 to $8,000.