Beauty heaven awaits at Hudson's Bay Yorkdale!

Months of construction at the Yorkdale Bay store have resulted in 23,300 square feet of cosmetic wonderfulness that you are going to have to see to believe!

Now you may be thinking - "Why do I need department store cosmetics when I can get all the same brands at Sephora or Murale?" - and being the first to admit what a Sephora-whore I am, I'm in the perfect, un-biased position to say that the problem with Sephora is that while they do have everything, it's all so crowded in together that it's hard to really experience the brand or just wander it and browse. And of course while Sephora beauty advisors can be lovely and very helpful, it's impossible to know everything about every brand, whereas when you go to any of the brands at The Bay, you are getting an advisor for just that company who will know everything about it!

Now come take a tour of some of the counters:

Anna Sui has an exclusive partnership with The Bay and here's the first new concept counter in North America inspired by Anna's own apartment - the whimsical decor ties in nicely with the uniqueness of the product packaging!

Now a little easier to get your hands on now that Bobbi Brown has opened at both Yorkdale and Queen Street Hudson's Bay stores!

Chanel - well do I really need to say anymore than that? I'm especially taken with the gold couch you can see in the right hand corner, I'm going back specifically to sit on it!

Clinique brings you a shopping experience like no other, letting you choose exactly the level of service you want...

Just grab a bracelet and the consultants will know whether you want help or just want to browse - brilliant!

The Elizabeth Arden counter features a custom designed colour wall to display the Beautiful Colour eye shadow shades, available only at Hudson's Bay as well as a "Best Sellers" wall making it easy to find their best performing products!

Estée Lauder makes it easy to shop for foundation with the Beautiful Skin Studio - if you're ever bought foundation only to realize that it's the wrong shade when you see it in different lighting, you are really going to appreciate this!

The Guerlain fragrance display is amazing and the bottles look like works of art, not just perfume!

Remember when British brand Illamasqua was hard to get your hands on in Canada? Not anymore!

No longer will you have to deal with the massive crush that is normally the MAC counter - this one is huge and can be approached on all sides!

The NARS counter is new to the Yorkdale location and has arrived with a bang with a huge sleek and modern looking space - my favourite part is the interactive iPad station with How-To wardrobe tutorials and face charts by NARS Lead Makeup artists.

Origins has a brand new design - "Nature's Laboratory" - with easier access to sampling...

and a sink area make it much easier to give everything a try!

My beloved Philosphy has a beautiful new space with sections for skincare, fragrance and gifting - I especially like the Peel Bar where you can experience the benefits of a micro-exfoliating treatment!

The Shiseido counter offers an interactive 55" multi-touch Discovery Centre as well as a hidden treatment room where you can relax and have a specialized service (or a nap)!

Yves Saint Laurent is looking glamourous in black and gold!

Other counters include: Lancome, Shu Uemura, Armani, Dior and Clarins and other brands available at the Yorkdale Bay are: Tanda, butter London, Ciate, Clarisonic, Decleor, 3 Lab, St. Tropez, Bliss, T3, Hermes Fragrance, Cartier Fragrance, Tom Ford Fragrance and Michael Kors France and Beauty.

Also fun is the fragrance section - where you'll find the 9 most popular fragrance houses with their own little stores each designed to highlight their special nature of their brand - Narciso Rodriguez is dark and sleek...

While Viktor & Rolf is pink and airy -

Other houses included are: Armani, Chanel, gucci, Prada, Dolce & Gabbana, Mugler and Givenchy.

Time to get shopping!

 

- Lisamarie -

Spruce up the boy with products from NeoStrata, Viktor & Rolf and Dove!

According to a recent study by The NPD Group, men are outshopping Canadian women as far as the apparel sector goes. As a matter of fact, the men's sector was the only one to show any growth (up 3%) at the end of last year, while women's apparel declined (down 4%). All I know is that my husband isn't contributing to these growing numbers at all - his clothes would literally have to fall apart into pieces before it would even occur to him to buy more.

I know the market for men's beauty (grooming) products is also growing and as a result, more and more companies are putting out products specifically for men. And just remember the benefit to your man having his own products - he'll stop stealing yours! There is nothing worse then opening up your expensive moisturizer and finding a big hunk of it gone with his fingermarks and stubble left behind!

Here are some products the man is sure to love:

What's great about this new line from NeoStrata Men is it's very simple and precise - 4 products if he wants to use the whole collection, 3 of which can be used day and night - or if he's concerned with signs of aging, just throw in the Anti-Aging Cream as his night cream - easy-peasy!

NeoStrata Men Gel Cleanser - 150ml - $26.75 - cleanses and refreshes in one step without drying out the skin - with 4% glycolic acid - great for removing the build-up of dead cells on the skin's surface which helps minimize ingrown hairs.

This is perfect for my husband as his skin tends to be oily and is prone to break-outs - the glycolic acid is great for this skin type as well as the whole ingrown hair thing.

NeoStrata Men Soothing Moisturizer - 50ml - $29 - improves hydration by 40% in as little as 30 minutes after application - soothes freshly shaved skin while providing instant and long lasting hydration while providing anti-redness and anti-stinging properties.

NeoStrata Men Eye Contour Anti-Aging Gel - 10ml - $32 - reduces fine lines, wrinkles and promotes skin firmness while moisturizing.

This is my husband's absolute favourite product from the line and I'll tell you why - the roller ball applicator. While women know that a roller ball is awesome way to eliminate puffiness, my husband sees it as the ultimate tool for a guy who is usually too lazy to apply an eye product - two quick rolls and he is done!

NeoStrata Men Anti-Aging Cream - 50ml - $47 - reduces fine lines and wrinkles while promoting firmness and improving skin tone and texture and eliminating shine.

Available now at drugstores including Shoppers Drug Mart, Rexall and Pharmaprix.

Viktor & Rolf Spicebomb - 50ml EDT - $75, 90ml EDT - $99 - is born of the incendiary encounter between two accords with virtually opposing tones: the first is irresistibly addictive, blending a heart of incandescent spices - chilli and saffron - with the all-masculine roundness of elather and tobacco, along with the distinguished brute strength of vetiver. The second is explosive, busing fresh zesty notes of bergamot and grapefruit, while cold spices - elemi and pink pepper - leave the mark of their icy bite.

Touted as a "weapon of mass seduction" this is sure to get the boy smelling great, and even if he doesn't usually like to wear fragrance, he has to love the grenade bottle and want to pull the "pin"!

Available now exclusively at The Bay.

Dove Men+Care is offering some new scents in their lineup:

Body & Face Wash - 400ml - $5.99 - in Clean Defense for oil buildup and Fresh Awake for energizing scent - both contain micromoisture technology developed coat the body to hydrate the skin from head to toe and ensure skin feels moisturized and clean.


Aqua Impact Anti-Perspirant - 76g - $5.99, Aqua Impact Deodorant - 85g - $5.99 - for an intense blast of freshness that lasts throughout the day.

Available now at drug, grocery and mass retailers.

- Lisamarie -

Viktor and Rolf's Collection Will Make You Want to Get Married...or Poke Your Eyeballs out!

I'm not sure who Leigh Lezark is but this outfit reaches new levels of awesome...when Japanese tourists look at you as if you were from planet Romulus and when even Parisian pigeons snob you, you should know your outfit is truly scary. In all fairness, Leigh was on her way to Viktor & Rolf's spring runway, and a collection fit for Pierrot the clown, was awaiting her:

You see, Lisamarie has been bugging me for a while: she does not approve of my free love lifestyle and would like to see me getting married - any guy would do, really - as long as she can wear a bridesmaid dress... and I believe I've just found the perfect bridal gown and the perfect bridesmaid outfit for her. So perfect, in fact, I'm already crying - yes, laughing hysterically will do that to you! -

This is possibly the most ridiculous bridal dress ever made.

How many collars do you need? As many as your sleeves!

Pictures: Imaxtree

-Christelle-

Happy 5th Birthday Flowerbomb!

I had told you previously of my great (and unexpected) love for Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb. The love affair continues - I like it more everytime I smell it!  Turns out my new fave is turning 5 and celebrating in style!

What kind of birthday party would it be without cake!?!  And holy crap the description of it is making me hungry!  Yannick Alléano, head chef, and Camille Lesecq, pastry chef of the prestigious Parisian hotel, Le Meurice, have whipped up a special dessert for the occasion:  My Sweet Flowerbomb - a mysterious delicate pink cube stamped with an irresistible dark chocolate seal.  Inside a millefeuille of colours and favours intensify the flowery tones of the fragrance:  praline, rose, lime and bergamot, jasmine sprinkled with some vanilla notes.  The green tea-flavoured sponge base contrasts deliciously with the crunchy chips of praline biscuit.  Take a bite and there's a surprise!  The cake fizzes in your mouth as a result of a magic sugar recipe, an explosion of addictive sensations!  Should you find yourself at Le Meurice in the next little while go and score yourself one (and get one in a doggie bag for me)!

The celebrations continue with a limited edition of the Flowerbomb bottle, numbered and signed by Viktor & Rolf for this 5th anniversary.  The bottle is a rare and overwhelmingly simple version of the well-renowned hand grenade design.  This limited edition (2000) is available exclusively on viktor-rolf.com.

- Lisamarie -

Paris Fashion Week: Viktor & Rolf Make a Big Statement!

I needed to share these pictures from the latest Viktor & Rolf's Parisian runway show. Not all their designs are so avant-garde, but I can't help wondering sometimes what is the point of creating such extreme - and ridiculous- fashion. Well, this will make a nice wardrobe for Lady Gaga, I suppose.

Who needs skinny models to wear this?

-Christelle-

And you thought your job sucked?! Kudos to Viktor & Rolf Flowerbomb and The Bay - you sure know how to torture your employees!

There's not a lot that will make me stop when I'm on a mission to Sephora on my lunch hour but as I was cutting through the Bay to get to the mall, this did.  Specifically the perfume spritzer lady wearing a huge hat like this one pictured.  Sympathy for having a job that requires you to wear a giant flower on your head is the only reason I let her spray me with Viktor & Rolf - Flowerbomb - from the name there is nothing about it that I expected I would like as I am not a fan of the floral - and upon smelling it, yup, the top notes are way too floral for my taste.  On my way back seeing the flower lady still at work reminded me to smell it again and surprisingly it had dried down to something sweet that I quite like.  Would I buy it?  Probably not.  There was a gift set in the display with a fragrance and a bath gel and the price sticker was $200 and something - that's a little rich for my blood.  But hey, if you have all kinds of money and like floraly fragrances that might turn into something sweet if you have awesome body chemistry like mine then go for it!

- Lisamarie _