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Monthly Website
Review - May 2004
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Have you ever shopped for
a moisturizer and wondered if it actually did what the packaging
said it was going to do? Ever wonder if there was a cheaper
drugstore alternative to your favorite blush? Ever have a beauty
product question and no one to ask? MakeupAlley.com is here
for you! This addictive site is so useful that you won’t
buy beauty products again without looking here first.
MakeupAlley’s
features include:
• Productville: read honest product reviews posted by members
• Shopping Diary: track your purchases and look at what others
are buying
• MUA Cares: donate unused makeup to women in need
• Swap: swap gently used products with another member
• Message Boards: chat online with other members about makeup,
skincare, haircare, fashion, health/fitness, etc.
You can read product reviews
of nearly every brand out there, or you can do a targeted
search by category, from
blush and bronzer to sunscreen and makeup tools. The member
base is comprised of thousands of women of all ages, ethnicities,
nationalities, and skin types, “delivering the dish
on today’s best-selling beauty goods!” When
last checked, the site contained 319,178 reviews of 42,789
different products. MakeupAlley.com gets five “lipsticks” out
of five for being so fun and informative.
Reviewed by R & RC Staff Member - Kirstie Harless - S.F
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Monthly Magazine
Review - May 2004
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Visual
Merchandising and Store Design (VM ? SD) is a
trade publication that gives the reader an immediate
impression of what to expect just from its title.
However, it separates itself from other retail
magazines by focusing on giving the reader the
very best of current innovations in the industry
as well as keeping an eye towards the future.
The April 2004 issue spotlighted the following:
• Timberland’s new flagship store
in Tokyo.
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Van’s expands its SoCal style to London.
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The sensory stimulation of the Michael K store
in SoHo.
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The use of theatrical lighting in retail.
In addition to having great features each month
the aspect that really reflects VM ? SD’s
attitude of keeping the reader aware of future
innovations are the editorials. In this issue
an author discusses the topic of reinterpretation
in the 90’s and our current decade and
its effect not only in store design, but also
in art, movies, and fashion and asks the question, “Where
are the New Classics of Tomorrow?” It’s
a great article that speaks to and challenges
anyone who considers him or herself a designer
or artist.
VM ? SD chooses to focus on content and has
very few advertisements compared to similar publications.
It’s filled with great photos that visually
relate the information of each article. Whether
you’re major is Visual Merchandising or
Graphic Design or you are just curious, you’ll
take away something invaluable from this magazine.
Give it a look!
Reviewed by R & RC Staff Member - Brian Seguin
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Monthly Book
Review - May 2004
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Author: Herbert Ypma
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
500 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10110
212.354.3763
Website: http://www.thamesandhudsonusa.com
ISSN: 0500284040
Copyright: 2003
Pages: 256
Price: $29.95
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Any book with the
word “hip” in the title that lists
the matronly Mark Hopkins Hotel in San Francisco
is worth looking at if only to find out the author’s
definition of “hip.” Herbert Ypma
makes a pretty good case for the Mark Hopkins
describing the Room of the Dons, “a stunning1920’s
ballroom with a series of seven-foot-high murals
that relate the history of California in high
Art Deco style…with its pilasters, panels
and medallions delicately accented in turquoise,
melon and persimmon….” In this review
of 40 hotels across the United States, stunning
photographs further substantiate his choices.
In addition to his acute aesthetic sensitivity
he brings a social awareness that is as refreshing
as it is informative.
Examples of Ympa’s attention to detail
on the subject of Haute Hotels, include:
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The Hotel George in Washington, D.C. and references
to Native American chiefs lobbying in the capitol
to protect their lands during the westward expansion.
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Rancho de la Osa, a dude ranch in Arizona, with
saddles for seats in the bar.
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The Standard Hotel in downtown Los Angeles which
boasts “bright red capsules that stand
like little spaceships beside the pool [that]
were designed for groups of up to twelve to enjoy
cocktails sitting on the gently vibrating waterbeds.”
Hipness doesn’t come cheap, however. Prices
are mentioned as well:
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The witty Duchamp in Sonoma Valley, CA with its
surrealistic touches comes in at $225.
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The Cedar Creek Treehouse near Seattle goes for
$250 a night.
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The gorgeous Canoe Bay in Wisconsin for $300.
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The stately Wheatleigh, a “magnificent
Italianate mansion” in the Berkshires rings
in at $425.
Most of the hotels listed sound at least intriguing
if not downright fabulous, but the only one I
could afford was the Wigwam Motel in Holbrook,
AZ. This funky throwback to the 1950’s
is located on the historic Route 66. “The
outlines of the white concrete teepees with their
graphic red detailing stand out a mile away on
this dead flat terrain,” states Ypma. This
is high plateau Navajo country, famous for its
petrified fossil forests. This truly hip hotel
costs $35.00 and up. Can’t wait to get
there!
Reviewed by R & RC Staff Member - Judith Wehlau - S.F.
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