Getting to Spa Grandma

We're off on a plane today to Spa Grandma! But I'm traveling alone with my 2.5 year old, so I'm a little nervous. I stopped by Kmart for a few things.

The squeeze fruit packs and the organic lollipops are from Duane Reade. Thank you, Duane Reade and Kmart, for helping me bribe my way through a (*fingers crossed*) non-screaming plane trip to Iowa. If you need princess sticker birthday cards (no, it's not her birthday, but that is a princess sticker card. I'm going to get a lot of mileage out of that), Dora stickers, Dora sippy cups, Dora lip gloss bracelets (my total ace up the sleeve), or Dora anything, Kmart is your one-stop shop.

Hopefully, Fashion Herald will be sleeping in and getting massages, mani-pedis, etc. while Grandma and Beloved Grandchild have fun next week, and you won't be hearing from me as regularly. Be back in May!


Kmart 34th Street and Seventh Avenue
Duane Reade Herald Square 35th Street between Broadway and Sixth Avenue 

John Frieda Foam Love

I've been going gray for a long time now (hello, late 20's) but even in my teens I was coloring my hair. I usually go professional for my dye, but these days it's often easier for me to do it at home. Especially when one's schedule leaves a girl with very little down time for hair chairs and her stylist lives two subway trains away. One transfer on a weekend is one transfer too many.

3N is my color. Find yours with the John Fried Shade Selector.

I picked up the John Frieda foam at the Herald Square Duane Reade for the first time about 15 weeks ago and have used it twice since. It's not messy (no dye on your bathroom sink and a lot less on your towel), the foam is incredibly easy to apply, and the color and grey coverage last much longer than any other hair dye I've ever used. Also, my stylist didn't make funny noises when she inspected my roots during my latest visit. All of this means I've got a new hair color lover, and he's being very good to me. Yes, I'll be back in my stylist's chair soon for a professional touch up, but for in-between I'm all John Frieda's.

Duane Reade 1350 Broadway on the northern tip of Herald Square

News, Brooms, and Shoes

Can a broom and work gloves be sexy?

Click for full effect.
That leopard print broom gets pretty close. If you can make a wall of cleaning products look this good, you might just get me to actually clean my apartment. Nice merchandising, Duane Reade.

I was just going to talk brooms today, but then this story hit the New York Post: DSW is coming to 34th Street on the block between 7th and 8th that's now primed for new retail. Duane Reade, too, is bringing more sexy broom to 34th Street with a new 12,000 square foot store in the same box (DSW will have 35,000 square feet on four floors). In the near future, expect to hear more scintillating retail news about this 34th Street block.

Duane Reade, 1350 Broadway at 35th Street

It's the New Duane Reade on 34th Street

Today Craig, our Fashion Herald intern, visits the new Duane Reade in the 34th Street district.

Beauty at Duane Reade? Now, I’ve seen everything.

When I heard that the new Duane Reade in Herald Square had an epic beauty section, I was skeptical. I expected more shelves of Revlon and Covergirl, both respectable brands in their own right but with Sephora so close to this location, I am not impressed with drug store brands when Dior and Chanel are calling me from across the street. I ascended the escalator to the second floor and found myself speechless.



This is what I imagine heaven to look like; cosmetics as far as the eye could see. However, these aren’t just drug store cosmetics. Duane Reade is carrying legitimate brands like Too Faced, 100% Pure, MoroccanOil, and OPI.

Perhaps the most interesting display at the new Duane Reade is the Demeter Fragrance Library.



I think it’s safe to say that you are bound to find the right scent for you in this collection but be sure to steer clear of these gems:



and



I can’t believe Duane Reade is selling OPI and Essie nail polish. They have a great selection of color, as well as, some matte shades if you are adventurous enough to tackle that trend.



On my way out, I found the beauty tool display which (dare I say) rivals Sephora! The prices are very reasonable and the brushes look decent.



Before I left, I spoke to the woman who does the eyebrow shaping there. Yes, there is an eyebrow bar as well here but it’s not so much a bar, as it is a chair with a sign next to it. For $30, you can get your eyebrows shaped with tweezers. I was willing to try until she hit me with the price. If I wanted to get my eyebrows done, I would just go down the street for $5. Have any of you tried getting your eyebrows done here? I’m anxious to hear a review.

Overall, I was totally impressed with this. Name brand cosmetics, Duane Reade prices, and I can use my rewards card! Who could ask for anything more?

Duane Reade, 1350 Broadway between 35th & 36th

Why I Love 34th Street's Duane Reade

The Duane Reade on 34th Street and 5th Avenue embodies everything I love about the big drugstore. Let me elucidate in bullets:

• Open 24 hours. So reassuring.
  
• Huge snack area on the first floor. Huge. This means not just kettle corn and all other varieties of organic, "healthy" chips, but also sandwiches. And I have it from my new intern that their sandwiches aren't bad. Crazy!
• Huge, revamped beauty section. Huge. I could browse makeup for hours in a drugstore. For some reason, I'm more comfortable shopping for beauty in a drugstore than a department store. I like getting lost in a drugstore aisle.

Now for a few visuals:

















That little boutique called "Look" on the left is at the top of the escalator, and carries the more high-end skincare brands (spotted 100% Pure on the rack). Right are racks of some of my favorite products, namely Burt's Bees. I was able to score some of their suntan lotion, which is always tough to find. And not in the picture but in between the two is a selection of MoroccanOil haircare. Nicely done, Duane Reade.

And guess what's at the new Duane Reade on 35th & Broadway? A brow bar! Crazy. But that's for a future story, as I'm in dire need of a brow shaping.

Duane Reade, 34th Street and 5th Avenue
Duane Reade, 35th & Broadway

Dry and Brown Shampoo

Remember my old posts testing the Rene Furterer dry shampoo I got at Sephora on 34th Street? Remember how I was frustrated that it didn't last longer?* And then I yammered on about wanting more for my money? Remember how I said I was going to test a cheaper brand?




















Well, instead of sticking with my stylist's backup, Psssssst, I was seduced away by this Salon Grafix dry shampoo I found at the Duane Reade by the Empire State Building. Why seduced? Because I was enamored by its dual functions: dry shampoo, and spray-on color. Yes, a dull brown tint that cannot possibly match any brunette's color EVER in the history of brunettes. This dry shampoo cost around $7. And it works perfectly well if you like a brown powder on your head that leaves a brown residue on anything your head touches, such as:

• White walls in conference rooms during meetings;
• Pillowcases, including those at my husband's grad school digs which really freaked him out as he thought a very dirty person was fooling around in his bed;
• White blouses;
• Under your nails if you scratch your head.

I could go on. But this time I learned the messy way that sometimes it really is worth the extra money for a quality product. And I need to remember that spray-on color anything is usually a bad idea.

None of this, unfortunately, will stop me from getting an awful spray-on tan someday. And probably right before a major public event.

*actually it lasted almost 3 months but obviously I get stupid when things I like run out.

Duane Reade, northwest corner of 34th & 5th

Drugstore Cruising

I dropped off a prescription last week and did what while waiting for it to be filled? Shopped, of course. I love drugstore cruising almost as much Target roaming. And I perused Duane Reade's aisles for how long? Exactly "20 minutes," the magical pharmacy waiting time.

When you drop off your prescription, they will never say "just a few minutes!" No, it will always be "20 minutes," that nebulous time that keeps you in the store so you can spend not just $20 for your meds, but another $30 on snacks, makeup and entertainment. And it is magic, because as soon as you finish cruising every aisle, arms full, and sit down on the gross plastic chair, they call out your name.

Here's what I got:
-Organic chocolate bar, veggie chips, energy bar (hadn't eaten all afternoon)
-water to wash down gross energy bar
-Neutrogena alcohol-free toner (after reading that skipping the toning step of cleansing is to aestheticians what dangling babies off hotel balconies is to almost all of humanity)
-cheap, dark blue nailpolish
-Physician's Formula Organic Wear "Soft Green Organics" concealer stick

Here's what I cruised:
Trashy novels, trashy mags. Resisted buying trash.

Strange, out-of-place item:
Bare Escentuals Bare Minerals starter kit! Price was no lower than Sephora.

Best buy of the trip:
Not the antibiotics, which were woefully ineffective (resistant plague). And not the toner which I keep forgetting to use, which reminds me why I never buy toner. My favorite buy (beside the chocolate bar) was the green organic concealer. All my drugstore makeup is now going to be Physician's Formula Organic Wear. This concealer helps hide my red, problematic skin, and goes on smooth and light so it doesn't cake.


Drugstores in the district & conveniently located right by my doctor @ 34th & Park:
Duane Reade, 4 Park Ave between 33rd & 34th
Irmat Pharmacy, 2 Park Ave between 32nd & 33rd