Who, What, Where?

London - Nicolas Ghesquière is bringing his Balenciaga to London today, with a flagship store on Mount Street that looks like a scene right out of a sci-fi flick. The new, 1,900-square-foot, space age store is "quite an experience," according to Ghesquière, and is decorated with lacquer, wood covered in silver leaf, and even volcanic rock. Expect to find only women's ready-to-wear and accessories in this store though - it's not quite as big as the Milan flagship.

Washington, DC - All-American label Tommy Hilfiger has set up shop in our nation's capital, and there is no shortage of red, white, and blue touches. Besides the framed vintage flags, the store features eagle statuettes and patriotic posters from the fifties and sixties. The store, located at 3229 M Street NW, offers a new, colorful sportswear collection that was designed in Europe, and mirrors the styles sold in stores there. The collection currently retails from $49.50 to $495, with new pieces from the runway scheduled to come to the store next month.

Moscow - Coach is heading overseas to open its first store in Russia this April. The 1,500-square-foot space will feature the full Coach brand assortment - handbags, small leather goods, outerwear, and eyewear. "Russians are becoming important consumers of luxury accessories," Coach International President Ian Bickley told WWD. "Opening Russia is part of our strategy to capitalize on the increasing popularity of the brand with emerging luxury consumers globally."

Europe - Jimmy Choo is scheduled to open three new, freestanding boutiques in Europe over the next six months, starting in May with a two-story, 1,718-square-foot space in Cannes. The store opening comes just in time for the international film festival. a 2,160-square-foot shop will open in Barcelona in the city's luxury shopping district the following month; and a shop in Rome is scheduled to launch over the summer.

Rachel Pally Launches Swim

Los Angeles designer Rachel Pally is one of my favorites for her insanely stylish jersey dresses and tops that are as comfy and easy-fitting as they are pretty, and now she's dipping the proverbial toe in the pool of swimwear.

Her debut collection is set to hit stores in June, and includes four one-piece suits, six bikini tops, and four bikini bottoms, all in solids, stripes, or a leafy print. One piece that's guaranteed to stand out is the sinfully sexy Belize style (pictured), not just for its plunging neckline, but for the barely-there back that resembles a two-piece from behind.

And if you're feeling a little apprehensive about exposing your body on the beach this summer, no need. "We made sure that we have everybody's body type covered," the Queen of Jersey told WWD.

Prisoner of Love - 3 Days Left to Enter!

Don't miss your chance to win! Click here now and enter before 11:59pm on January 31, 2008!

Old Navy Walks Out on Family Image

Old Navy is abandoning its family image for something younger and better-looking. The retail chain wants to ditch the amorphous, "men, women, and children alike" style and center instead on the twentysomething crowd, with more fashionable merchandise and even a hip, new logo.

The plan is to introduce new, fashion-focused collections and faster delivery, with wardrobe-building pieces changing each month- similar to the fast-paced collection introduction of such speciality chains as Zara and H&M. You'll see the first of these change next month with the introduction of an "urban safari" look. Expect to see Palm Beach-inspired brights and whites in March, surf influenced gear in April, tropical styles in May, and glitzier designs in June - apropos since Old Navy is sponsoring the MTV Music Awards that month.

In addition to the accelerated delivery plan, the clothing company, which has had suffering sales in the last few years under the struggling Gap Inc umbrella, hired designer and TV personality Todd Oldham as Creative Director in the hopes he will breathe new life into the brand.

Sweet Links: Splendid Reads - January 27, 2008

From the Splendicity community, comes this weeks best posts in beauty, fashion, and shopping!




SHOPPING
Let's Go Shopping is giving away a bracelet worth $135 From Nomination Italy.
Style Goodies is giving away a sinfully stylish Freedom necklace, just in time for Valentine's Day!
The Latest Luxe enjoys a taste of simplicty with the Versace Patent Hit bag.
She Knows Best found 6-Foot Red Roses For Her On Valentine's Day.
Style Tots has the latest on Reebok and Kool-Aid For Sweet Smelling Kicks.
Aging Fabulous says to visit her site and leave a comment to win a T'Fivve Body Smoother.

BEAUTY
15 Minute Beauty Fanatic finds her All-Time Perfect Mascara!
Beauty Banter gives you the top celeb hair colors... asked and delivered!
Have a wish? Lipstick, Powder 'n Paint asks you to enter the Pantene Beautiful Wishes contest for a chance to have your wishes granted! For every Wish made, $1 will be donated on behalf of the wish-maker to Pantene Beautiful Lengths.
makeup loves me is giving away products from mac's newest collection!
Raging Rouge finds a solution to hideous pregnancy breakouts.
eBeautyDaily tackles her lizard legs with Bioelements Vitalization.
The Scented Life is posting recipes and resources for making DIY bath and body goodies!
Check out A Touch of Blusher's ultimate makeup archive.
Beautiful Makeup Search wonders about Sue Devitt's Eye Intensifier Kit.

FASHION
STYLEnosh asks, "Is this acceptable travel wear?"
The Well Heeled Society says to come on over to enter for a Chance to Win a copy of The Girl's Guide to Kicking Your Career Into Gear.
Which expecting diva wore 4/5 inch platform heels to her baby shower? Find out at Hot Mama Daily.
The Fashionable Kiffen welcomes everyone to Studio-808.
Wardrobe Oxygen celebrates the new year with a contest to win an Aliza Darik necklace valued at $70!
The Snarkstress reminds us that Tom Cruise does have other children - and that they are stylish, too.
Teen Style Lounge wonders if change is always good?
Style It Less shares the joy of finding 10 Spring Floral Print Dresses at only $15 Each.

Pluey on You

It's raining, nay pouring, in Los Angeles. Cats and dogs. And other cute little furry animals. I mean it is really coming down! While I understand most Southern Californians are ill-prepared for such downpour I still find it hard to believe what I saw this morning - a young woman, wearing denim capris and flip flops! Sister girl, may I recommend an umbrella and a trip to Plueys?!

Plueys.com is where you'll find the most adorable wellies to keep your feet dry and warm and your style quotient intact. Delightfully colorful (the better to brighten up your rainy day with, my dear), with a dash of whimsy, every pair of boots comes with a matching carrying bag so you can change out of them if you want to (if you want to!).

They also have boots for the bambinos, and by the way, when you order any pair for adults, you'll get a kids' pair free. Now that's news that should have you singing in the rain!

Prisoner of Love: Win a Freedom Necklace

Don't miss your chance to win this so-stylish Freedom Necklace from Italian jeweler Nomination (worth $165). Click here now to enter!

Get a Clu

Even if they weren't as appealingly soft as they are (but they totally are), you'd probably still love Clu dresses and tops for their flattering silhouettes and surprising mix of laid back style with avant-garde flavor. The label, founded in 2004, breathes new life into the ordinary T-shirt with wildly comfy basics that add a unique twist to an everyday look. And right now all things Clu are on sale at Shopbop.com!

Click on an image for pricing...

Goodies from Carol's Daughter

There's a Carol's Daughter boutique in a nearby mall so I took advantage around the holidays, requesting yummy, whipped, moisturizing concoctions from friends and family. Fast forward to today (less than a month later) and I've got a jones for more of the good stuff - Ecstasy, Groove, Almond Cookie...hmmm, maybe cupid will plant a bug in my darling boy's ear.

These are new and totally divine! As the Almond Cookie Bath Bomb fizzes and bubbles in your warm tub, essential oils, natural butters, and detoxifiers melt into the water, making for a decadent, spa bath like nothing you've ever experienced!

Fruity and sweet with just a hint of Egyptian musk, Ecstasy Sea Salt Scrub, is an indulgent way to pamper your tired feet after a long day in heels. Avocado, jojoba, and wheat germ oil quench your dry itchy skin, while natural sea salt buffs your skin to a gorgeous glow.Beauty fast-fix: If you've got zero time (or money) for a manicure, simply clip your nails straight across and rub cuticle oil on them. This gives the appearance of clean, manicured, healthy nails. My cuticles get painfully dry and this Lemon and Jojoba Cuticle Oil really softens and protects.

Groove Body Butter is so intoxicating I would honestly drink it if I could! The blend of rich cocoa and shea butters drenches your skin in moisture and the sweet red currant, dewberry, and vanilla fragrance leaves you smelling like heaven!

Prisoner of Love - Win this Freedom Necklace!

Valentine's Day is quickly approaching and, as is the grand tradition of the holiday, I've got some pals who'll complain of having no inamorato to shower them with flowers and chocolates, and friends who'll complain that their man hasn't a romantic bone in his body. This year, to honor all the gorgeous, funny, original, and extraordinary women out there, single or attached, I'm giving away this sinfully stylish Freedom Necklace from Nomination (worth $165) for Valentine's Day!

Whether you've got a special someone to pamper and spoil you, or you're flying solo on Valentine's Day you can look sweeter than a box of Godiva truffles in this chic, stainless steel and 18K gold necklace and all its good-girl-turned-bad splendor. Just leave a comment telling me the funniest, sweetest, most romantic, or most horrific Valentine's Day gift you've ever gotten and you could win! (Winner selected at random)

Contest starts today, January 21, and ends at 11:59 pm on January 31, so hurry up and enter!

xoxo,
Miss Angel

Who, What, Where?

Las Vegas - As if it were possible, Las Vegas got even more glamorous this week with the addition of Barneys New York to the famous Las Vegas Strip - and just in time for WWDMAGIC!The 81,000-square-foot space is the first Barneys in Vegas, with a notable difference from other Barneys locations in New York and Los Angeles.


"There's more glitter here," Creative Director Simon Doonan told WWD magazine. "There was a conscious desire to inject a little flamboyance here."


The store is located in the new $2 million Palazzo, with an entrance from the street and valet parking, plus a facade that can be seen from Las Vegas Blvd. - the only fashion retailer in the city with its own facade on the Strip.

The new location features two concierges and three personal shopping suites, tricked out with black leather club chairs and flat screens, plus the usual, glorious suspects - Diane von Furstenberg, Marc by Marc Jacobs, and Helmut Lang in the Co-op; designs from Lanvin, Prada, Marni, Fendi, and Stella McCartney; an enormous space devoted to jewelry and accessories that includes pieces from Givenchy, Miu Miu and Rene Lewis; and a shoe department that "might be our biggest yet," according to Doonan. Road trip to Vegas, anyone?

The Brow Factor

Celebs like Halle Berry and Eva Mendes have an army of experts to make sure they look picture perfect at all times, but what about the rest of us? Well, when it comes to beauty, one tried-and-true secret to looking your best all the time is to have great-looking eyebrows. No kidding! Have you ever studied your face after a brow wax - you're instantly transformed, instantly fresh, and instantly glamorous! That's where Billion Dollar Brows comes in.

Aside from the insanely clever name, Billion Dollar Brows is a line of fantastically life-changing products that help to boost puny, over-plucked brows, keep stray hairs in place, and promote beautiful, healthy eyelashes and brows, plus a whole slew of powders, tweezers, mascaras, pencils and tools to give your eyebrows the star treatment.

The ingredients in this little tube are the answer to your over-plucked prayers. Put the tweezers down and pick up Brow Boost ($19.95) immediately to correct and restore straggly, sparse brows.

The eyes are the windows to your soul - frame them with gorgeous, lush lashes. Forever Lash ($19.95) is a blend of vitamins and proteins that nourish and strengthen your eyelashes from root to tip. Wear it alone or under mascara for instantly fresh, wide awake eyes.
This Brow Gel ($12) is heaven sent! I typically don't get strays but occasionally one random strand will decide to go against the flow - this stuff whips it right back where it belongs. Plus it's not at all flaky like other gels.

And just for Style Goodies readers, I've got the scoop on how to pluck the perfect arches from the Eva Scrivo Salon in New York. Here's Eyebrows 101:

Shape
1. While looking straight ahead, draw an imaginary line from the center of the pupil down to the apple of your cheek.

2. To determine where the inner edge of your eyebrow should begin, place a ruler flat against this point, and line it up with the inner corner of your eye (the bottom of the ruler will cross about an inch below the corner of your jaw bone). Where the ruler lands along your brow bone is where the inner edge of your eyebrow should begin.

3. Next, place the ruler against the same point below the eye and angle it against the corner of your mouth. Where the ruler lands along your brow bone is where the outer edge of your eyebrow should end.

4. Create the arch of your eyebrow 2/3 of the way out from its inner edge.

Technique

1. Work on one eyebrow at a time. Pluck eyebrow hairs one-by-one starting from the outer edge, working in rows and alternating between the top and bottom of your eyebrow to avoid creating too thin of a brow. Remember that today's eyebrows are more full and furry, so be careful not to over-pluck. For this reason, avoid using a magnifying mirror.

2. To fill in thin brows, use an eyebrow pencil one shade lighter than your hair color and make upward strokes to create the appearance of individual hairs. Use a stiff, angled brush and the same technique to apply powder over pencil to create a "furry" look.

Copyright © 2007 Eva Scrivo Salon

Point of Hue

Spring will be here faster than you can say "End of Season Sale," and with it comes the requisite florals, ladylike silhouettes, and, this year, colors galore! If you've always been a neutral kind of woman, get ready to change your perspective about vibrant hues, and start dressing en couleur!

Style Goodies has uncovered 24, colorfully cute and affordable (nearly everything is under fifty bucks) pieces you'll be dying to wear this spring! Just click on the images below!

Orange

For an unexpected punch of vibrant color, add orange to Spring's most coveted neutral pieces (think khaki wrap dresses, straw wedges, and wooden jewelry)!

Blue

Blue tops, shoes, and accessories beg to be paired with white jeans and trousers - a crisp color combo that never goes out of style!

Pink
So feminine and flirty, pink is the ultimate girly color! Look for age-appropriate pieces that mix well with jeans and heels to avoid looking overly-precious.

Yellow
Yellow is the carefree color that can add a little sunshine to any look! It's so bright and summery you'll feel energized and uplifted every time you wear it.




Green
Green is so fresh and clean - it embodies everything that spring is! Be bold and mix green dresses and tops with accessories that add a hit of pink, yellow or blue.

Red

Red is a surprising yet perfectly gorgeous color for spring! Mix it with of-the-moment wide-leg jeans or the season's most fetching natural accessories.