Chanel hits the street
The typical working girl has no reason to think about Karl Lagerfeld during the day, but he's certainly thinking about her, the Chanel designer having devised a "Ligne Cambon" series of streetsmart totes, "bowling" bags, multi-pocketed reporter's purses, and mini pochettes for girls on the go.
COURTESY IMAGE Who says fashion can't also be practical?
The purses come with such amenities as a leash for your keys, a corner pocket for your metro card -- or for us, parking stub -- and a mini pocket in back for spare change so there's no need to "go fishing."
(The purse is based on a 1955 purse designed by Coco Chanel, who came up with the pocket for handing out tips throughout the day.)
The sacs are fashioned from sturdy calfskin with Chanel's signature quilt stitch and logo, with lightweight leather-tube straps, and in color combinations of pink and black, white and black, beige and black, and black solo.
The purses, starting at about $700, were an instant hit when they arrived at the Chanel boutiques Saturday.
Woe for the sales staff now on the wait list; customers get first dibs.
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MAUI WATERWEAR
Sun worshippers have a new place to suit up at Ala Moana.
WaterWear suited
for every figureAfter 20 successful years of provided swimwear to kama'aina and visitors on Maui, Maui WaterWear has arrived on the Diamond Head end of Ala Moana Center, on the Mall Level, near Macy's.
Sun and water worshipers will be able to choose from a variety of brand names, including Athena, Tommy Bahama, Aaron Chang, Gottex, La Blanca, Lucky Brand, Bebe, Jag, and many more.
But the boutique's biggest focus is on separates, because not everyone can be a perfect size 2 or 8 through and through. Separates cater to "hard-to-fit" figures with different sizes and styles in tops and bottoms, whether you feel most comfortable in a tankini, bandeau, padded top, string top, high-waist bottom, thong or boy shorts.
For more information, call 944-9191.
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BETHBENDER.COM
Eyeliner made easy via a kit.
Stay inside the line
When it comes to eyeliner, you can look like Cleopatra or a disheveled raccoon. Most tend to resemble the latter so opt not to use eyeliner at all. But darn it, eyeliner has come back in a big way.
Have no fear. Celebrity makeup artist Beth Bender, CEO of Beth Bender Cosmetics, is in town to demonstrate her products, including her popular "Get in Line" compact, from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday at Blush, Kahala Mall. Eye makeovers will be performed on a first-come, first-serve basis. Call739-6200 for more information.
The compact, $36, comes with a custom-designed brush, three shadows (Coal, Indian Brown and Latte), and directions for creating four looks, including the sultry smoky eye and wicked cat eye. Another kit with French Vanilla shadow is also available for darker skin tones.
The secret is in pliable plastic eye stencils, patent pending, guaranteed to help those who never learned to stay inside the line when attacking a coloring book, much less their eyes.
"Most women can't do eyeliner," Bender said, rattling off a list of whys, including, "They have shaky hands, they don't have time. I show them how to do it in less than 5 minutes."
That's especially handy for touch-ups if you happen to be in a club or diner when Mr. Right walks in.
It took Bender two years to perfect the stencils that she said can be used on any eye. Just to be sure of that, she's applied her stencils to everyone from her 5-year-old nephew to her 12-year-old son, her mother and father.
"My dad thinks I'm totally crazy, but my family has been extremely supportive," said. Bender, who is a frequent visitor to the islands
She lived here briefly in the early '80s before moving to L.A., where her parents worked in the film industry. As a child she was fascinated by the dramatic transformations made possible through a simple application of makeup, and took up the artform herself.
She later moved to New York where she joined makeup artist Bobbi Brown's team of artists, working for fashions shows, editorial shoots, television and touring nationally to help women learn more about makeup application.
While celebrities such as Beyoncé and Jessica Simpson are among Bender's fans, she says she wants to help all women and is touched to hear from cancer survivors who tell her how her products have helped them to feel beautiful again.
That is important to her because she recognizes that society is often unkind toward women who are anything other than model "perfect," and heaven forbid they pass the age of 30. At 42 going on 43, she said, "I believe in women feeling beautiful as they get older."
For the most part, women are surprised by how little it takes to look good. Bender said, "I would never sell anyone on something they didn't need. I'm very honest because I want people to trust me and come back to me."
Earlier on Saturday, check out Kahala Mall's "Les Fleurs Couture" competition featuring mannequins dressed in fresh floral arrangements by University of Hawaii at Manoa apparel and merchandising students. The contest runs 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with judging at 2 p.m. The mannequins will be on view through Sunday. Free.
By Nadine Kam
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