Launch of Zac Posen for Target at Chadstone

I was actually contemplating on not going for the launch of the Zac Posen for Target today due to the cold weather, and if the crazy wind storm yesterday was going to come back again. It’s a 30 minute walk to Chadstone, with lots of trees around, and I sure as heck am not going to risk my life for this 😛

Thank God the winds weren’t as strong today, and the sun was up albeit pretty cold. With my woolies, I took a walk to the shopping centre, and reached there at around 10am.

The entrance of Target did not have any big banners or such declaring the launch of the new collection, but there were a few sales people, all nicely suited up for the occasion, welcoming customers into the store, and were carrying out questionnaires.

There were a LOT of women checking out the collection. They were simply taking the outfits out in stacks to have them tried out at the fitting room. The collection has a lot of black, white, red, brown and purple-yellow outfits. Not really my thing, but I thought I’d give ’em a try.

Please excuse the quality of the photos you see below. I had to sneak my camera in, because photography was not allowed in the shopping centre. I had to switch to my mobile phone’s camera next, as the digital camera was making too loud a noise everytime I snapped a photo. I tried out four pieces.

Zac Posen Red Dress
AUD99 (the quality of this dress is fantastic. Very heavy material)

 

Zac Posen White Blouse
AUD99

I can’t really recall the exact price of the dresses below, but they are in the AUD179.99 to AUD199.99 range.

Zac Posen Brown Dress
Bloody hell, my hips are massive 🙁

 

Zac Posen Purple Dress

The purple dress is really odd. There was this long piece of purple ribbon attached to the dress which you’re supposed to loop over the other shoulder or something. I think it looks weird, but I reckon it’s just me that it looks ugly on :p

I didn’t try the rest of the funny-looking purple-yellow outfits. It would be too obvious to the sales assistants that I was simply trying them on for fun without even buying. Any other time would be fine, but since today’s the launch and everyone’s busier than bees, I thought I’d cut them some slack.

I ended up buying nothing from the collection. Even the quality of the red dress was seriously good, I just couldn’t bring myself to buy it just yet. Plus, the more I looked at the puffy sleeves, the more turned off I got. Oh well. The experience was fun though.

My biggest disappointment (and I was really ticked off by this) is that they don’t stock the Zac Posen for Target bag in Chadstone! According to the Designers for Target website, Chadstone was supposed to stock the full range collection (except for the ottoman dress), but when I checked with the sales assistant regarding the bag, she said that there weren’t any. Gah.

Zac Posen Ottoman Dress
Photo Credit: Designers For Target

The ottoman dress is the red dress which was made famous by Katherine Heigl at the 2007 Emmy Awards.

At Zac Posen’s request, this dress was produced in limited numbers to maintain its exclusivity. You’ll have to register at the Designers For Target website in order to be in the waiting list to be able to buy the dress. Bear in mind that not everyone who registers with the site will be able to buy the dress, as they will have to match with the available stock. The ottoman dress is sold at AUD299.99.

The website now displays the entire Zac Posen for Target collection (this was not available before today). You can check out the collection here.

Oh, and please do not compare me with the model :p

27 comments

Review: Loreal Happyderm Skin Exhilarating Cleansing Mousse

I’ve actually never heard of Loreal’s Happyderm range. This range isn’t available in Malaysia (well, not yet anyway. I’m not sure if they’ll bring it to Malaysia). Oddly enough, I found this in the Loreal Paris Canada website, but not the USA, UK or Japan sites.

There isn’t much to the Happyderm range though, compared to the other more popular ones. There were only the cleanser (for normal/combination and dry skin) and the moisturiser. Since I’ve never tried any of the Happyderm range before, I thought I’d check the cleanser out. I bought the one for normal/combination skin.

Loreal Happyderm

Description:
1st skin exhilarating cleansing mousse with Phyto-Dorphins(TM) to boost the skin’s well-being
Effective cleansing agents perfectly purify your skin and remove makeup.
A 100% indulgent whipped cream texture to awaken the senses.
Smoothes easily onto your skin, and rinses away in just one step.
Supremely soft, does not dry your skin.
Deliciously invigorating, with an exhilarating fragrance.
Tested under ophthalmological conditions

How to use:
Morning and/or evening, apply to damp face and massage with light, circular motions
Rinse
One light press per application

To be honest, I don’t really have a high opinion on mousse cleansers. I think the amount dispensed is pretty wasteful when you actually don’t need all that much cleanser on your face.

On the cleansing side, I like it. Apart from all the promotional bull-hockey about exhilarating the skin and all that (yeah, was I supposed to feel “high” from washing my face?!), my skin did feel real soft after cleansing. The skin didn’t feel tight at all. It also removed all my makeup well.

Loreal Happyderm Spout
Check out the spout

The instructions say that I should do a light press per application. This is what a light press produces:

Happyderm Foam
Doesn’t it remind you of McDonalds’ sundae? :p

Good Lord, that’s a LOT of cleanser per wash! After rubbing the hands together, there was a lot of lather built up. But I reckon there isn’t much cleansing agents in bit of foam, because it just didn’t feel soapy. I bought this a couple of weeks ago, and I think there is still more than half of the cleanser left in the bottle. I think.

Nevertheless, it IS pretty fun washing my face now, despite the waste. I feel like I’m having ice-cream! :p

Loreal’s Happyderm Skin Exhilarating Cleansing Mousse is sold in Priceline at AUD14.35. I find it cheapest in Priceline, as other pharmacies and supermarkets sell it at a slightly higher price.

What I like about it: Cute mousse, leaves my face feeling soft and clean after a wash.

What I did not like about it: I’m still skeptical on how long this is going to last me, since a lot is used per application. Will update when I finish the bottle.

6 comments

Zac Posen for Target

April 3 marks the release of the limited edition designer collection for Target in Australia. It was designed by Zac Posen, which will be available at more affordable prices. Target has had previous designers for their Designers for Target line before, such as Issac Mizrahi, Stella McCartney, etc.

Zac Posen for Target

Just to show you what kind of clothing items will be available from the Zac Posen for Target line, I took a snapshot of a page in the April issue of InStyle Australia.


Zac Posen for Target Instyle
Click to enlarge

There’s a genuine replica (oxymoron, I know, but if Zac Posen did the replica, would it still be a fake?) of the dress Katherine Heigl wore to the 2007 Emmy Awards. It will be available in Target for AUD299.99. It’s one of the highlights of his collection for Target.

I’ll be in Chadstone on April 3 for the launch, just to see how well-received it will be (or not). A countdown is already going on in the store, giving the hype. This should be interesting. I might even find something for myself 😉 I just hope it won’t rain on that day though, or else it will be too cold and wet to walk a half hour. Fingers crossed!

Zac Posen for Target is available in the stores shown in the Designers for Target website. Some stores will have limited range of the collection, and some the full range.

4 comments

Review: Loreal Bare Naturale Powdered Mineral Foundation

I’ve never used mineral makeup before, and as Priceline is just a few doors away from my flat, I was pretty excited to try this one out.

Loreal Mineral Foundation

Description:
– Powdered minerals provide the coverage of a foundation but the soft, light feel of a powder.
– Perfect skin without the heavy, mask-like feel of many traditional foundation products, and allow skin to breathe.
– Safe for even the most sensitive skins and provides natural sun protection.
– Light to medium coverage.
– Contains Aloe and Vitamin B5 to soothe, condition and protect sensitive skin.
– Contains no unnecessary fillers, no unnecessary preservatives, and is oil-free and fragrance-free.

Ingredients:
Active Ingredients: Titanium Dioxide (3.0%), Zinc Oxide (5.0%). Inactive Ingredients: Talc, Boron Nitride, Dimethicone, Copernicia Cerifera (Camauba) Wax, Cetyl Dimethicone, Trimethyl Siloxysilicate, Triisocetyl Citrate, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice, Tocopherol, Panthenol, May Contain:, Bismuth Oxychloride, Iron Oxides

Even though it contains mineral makeup ingredients, but from the ingredients, you can see that this is not a pure mineral makeup.

I have rather mixed feelings about this one. It’s not bad, but not all that good either. Anyways, here’s my take on the mineral foundation:

PACKAGING
Contrary to a lot of comments about how bulky the foundation is, I’m actually quite pleased that it has a brush incorporated into the packaging. I think it would be quite swell to bring this around when traveling because it sure beats having to carry an extra kabuki brush and making sure it (the brush) doesn’t get smushed in my cosmetic bag. I’m also glad that it’s very easy and non-messy to apply (you know how mineral foundations can sometimes be a pain in the bum to apply; your dressing table gets more powder than you do!).

Loreal Mineral Foundation 2

The bristles are pretty coarse though. Still, it didn’t bother me that much; I’ll just use my own brush when at home, and bring the whole package (hehe!) with me when traveling. I gave the brush a bit of a wash and conditioned it, so it’s not that harsh on the skin :p

Loreal Mineral Foundation 3

FOUNDATION
This is the part where I have mixed feelings about. The powder went on really well and makes my skin look flawless (without the cakey, foundation-y look). It stayed on pretty long too (I wore it to a barbeque for a whole afternoon, and it didn’t run). The minerals also provide a sunscreen with a SPF of 19. Any product with sunscreen is good in my books.

I would be absolutely delighted with this product if not for the fact that after an hour or so, I looked very SHINY. I had to use quite a lot of facial blotters when I used the mineral foundation just to eliminate the shine when I was outdoors.

A reader alerted me on one of the ingredients used in Loreal’s mineral foundation, bismuth oxychloride, which is known to produce shine, and also clog pores. So far, I have no problems with clogged pores with this mineral foundation (but then again, I don’t use it every day) but I just can’t stand the shine. I have an oily T-zone, and by the end of the day, the “T” just blinds me if I don’t blot. Okay, I’m exaggerating there, but you know what I mean.

You can read more about bismuth oxychloride here. Bear in mind that the very-popular Bare Escentuals mineral foundation also contains bismuth oxychloride.


Loreal Instructions
How to apply the mineral foundation (click to enlarge)

As the foundation contains bismuth oxychloride, I’m reluctant to use this on a daily basis, but I wouldn’t mind using it once in a while, or bringing it with me when I’m traveling. I’d just have to remember to bring a lot of oil blotters with me :p

Loreal Bare Naturale Powdered Mineral Foundation is available in eight colours – Soft Ivory, Light Ivory, Nude Beige (I bought this one), Creamy Natural, Natural Beige, Buff Beige, Sun Beige and Classic Tan. You can get it at Priceline (and other pharmacies) for AUD33.95.

What I like about it: Gave me a flawless look without using a lot of foundation; handy packaging when traveling.

What I did not like about it: Shine, shine, SHINE! *shudder*

13 comments
Scroll To Top

Not another bloody pop-up! I know. But now that I've gotten your attention (because this is how I roll *ahem ahem*), come join the BA Insider community! Sign up for a weekly newsy letter for your beauty and lifestyle fix. Straight to your inbox.

Because I love you for reading this and not closing the pop-up just yet, you'll also receive a FREE Skincare Cheat Sheet where I share some of my tips for taking better care of your skin. Let's keep that gorgeous mug of yours glowing!

We hate spam as much as baked beans. We also won't share your details with anyone because we're selfish like that.