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Summer Sale at Melanie Gayle

Melanie Gayle has marked down all existing summer merchandise to 75% off. We always find fabulous frocks that we can’t pass up at this Snider Plaza shop. Let us know what summer sales you can’t resist.

Barneys Jean Trade-in Offer

Starting today (and through August 25), take a pair of old jeans to Barneys (where they will be recycled) and get 20% off a new pair. Just another reason to love Barneys…

Fall Fashion Scoop

With temperatures soaring above 100 degrees, fall may be the last thing on your mind, but we can’t resist all the fabulous fall fashions arriving in stores now. Some of our favorite local haunts have us feining for frosty temps with new merchandise arriving daily. Follow the jump to get the scoop. (more…)

Cle de Peau S’il Vous Plait

Cle de Peau’s Extra Silky Lipsticks from their upcoming Attitude Sensualle collection are to die for! Silk is the key word – it is the smoothest, creamiest lipstick I’ve applied in a long time. And the color I chose, Sheer Brick Red (#117) was gorgous on my fair skin and with my brown hair and eyes. True reds never seem to look right on me but this is a berry-colored red with some great shine to it so it looked fantastique. And since berry is one of the hottest colors for fall I am now confident that my pucker is perfectly prepared for the new season. Cle de Peau is a Shiseido company so you know it’s quality stuff. Their entire fall line (including the Extra Silky Lipsticks) will be available in September at Neiman’s and Sak’s. Au revoir!

Summer Specials at the Spa at the Crescent

Here at ShopTalk, we talk a lot about how to beat the summer heat. Well, I spent my lunch hour today at the Spa at the Crescent, where I experienced the seasonal Cucumber Mint Body Energizer. After a vigorous cucumber and mint sugar scrub, which left my skin oh-so-soft and smooth, I snuggled up under a fat duvet–no itty bitty sheet here–for a hydrating massage with a luxurious cucumber-and-mint body mousse. The cucumber and mint combine for a soothing, cooling effect that’ll make you forget–if only for 90 minutes–about the oppressive temperatures outside. Another summer treat: gift card holders can get a complimentary single upgrade on their spa service until August 31. So up the ante from that signature massage and get an aromatherapy, hot rock, or ayurvedic massage treatment instead.

Full Steam Ahead

As stylists, Stephanie Quadri and I are always lugging big, heavy clothing steamers around from shoot to shoot which is not easy to do in 3″ heels (Steph and I are both short so wearing flats is not an option). Recently, we heard that the Jiffy Esteam was a great portable steamer so we ordered one to see for ourselves. We received it on Friday and I took it home to test it out over the week end. I had a pile of clothes that needed to be ironed and I decided this would be the perfect way to try the Esteam. I opened the box with great anticipation and was thrilled to see that there was nothing to assemble. I simply pulled it out, filled it with water (took 10 seconds and was as simple as filling a glass), plugged it in and waited for it to heat up. After 3-4 minutes it began to emit a full cloud of steam and I dove into my pile of neglected clothes. Within 30 minutes I had de-wrinkled six pieces of clothing including a pair of jeans! This thing is like magic! It worked just as well as the industrial steamers but without all the trouble. The only bothersome part (which really wasn’t much of a bother at all) was that I had to re-fill it three times but what do you expect from a portable steamer? It wasn’t too hot to touch when it ran dry so I was able to re-fill it immediately and get back to the task at hand. At $69 this timesaver is a real steal. Plus, 10% of all proceeds go to breast cancer research so you really can’t go wrong. Now if I could just find something that will do my laundry for me…

Dry With a Twist

Although the Dry Soda Co. has been around for a few years now, it wasn’t until this spring that the caffeine-free, low-cal beverages were available throughout Texas. And after the taste-testing demonstration the folks at Dry put on for us, we’re glad to have them. Similar to fine wines, these cuisine-inspired drinks were created to serve as meal pairings. They’re made with all-natural flavors and only small amounts of sugar and come in four unique flavors: kumquat, lavender, lemongrass, and rhubarb. My personal favorite is rhubarb, which is described as bold, lush, and tart and weighs in at only 60 calories per 12-ounce serving. Considering my affinity for red wine, this makes sense, but given the choice between a Dry Soda and a good Cabernet, I’m not sure I’d go the rhubarb way.

UPDATE: Forgot to tell you Dry Soda is available at all area Whole Foods Markets. Try it out and let us know what you think.

Get Horny

I recently took one of our interns to the Pin Show which not only featured the wares of several local designers but was co-hosted by D’s fashion editor, Stephanie Quadri. Only moments after my (very tall and beautiful) intern and I walked in, she was approached and asked if she wanted to model in the show because one of their models went AWOL. Always up for something new, said intern ended up modeling three different outfits, one which was accessorized with an amazing bag (see photo). We were both so in love with it we contacted the designer, Carnce to find out more. It’s called the Leather Steerhorn Bag and it comes in brown or black. Anyone have $325 I can borrow?