Shopper's Stop Sale August 2011: Overview

This was one sale I was waiting for.. I love the fact that they accept gift vouchers even during sale and this time I had a lot of them in stock! Though I ended up picking some items on which there was no sale, I did spend quite some time there hunting. Here is a brief overview.

Offers on Make Up Items
I don't the brands can't keep a discount on any purchase. I was disappointed about the fact that most of the brands had gifts on making a purchase of a certain value. Here are a few offers.

Revlon
Buy any three items and get a gift. This is still better than having a value associated with the purchase for a free gift. I mean if nothing then buy 3 nailpolish bottles may be ;). Well not sure if that would qualify.

The gifts however were not that attractive. There were 3 choices.
1. A bath set (comprising of a loofah, pumice stone, back scrubber, a massage aiding thing (I don't know if I am missing anything here). This was the best of the gifts, but not something I would die for :)
2. A make up pouch, empty of course
3. Another make up/ toilettories pouch

Maybelline
Shop for 1500, get a lip balm free. Really sad..Recently in the Pantaloons sale they had a 10% off, which was far far better than this! Probably they oversold and ran into losses ;)

Chambor
Again, there was some gift on a purchase of 1500, but I didn't feel like asking what :(

Other brands like Lakme etc also had similar (and not so useful) offers. I did not explore the higher end brands though. I will keep updating this section.

Offers on Women's Clothing

• There was 10%-40% off on mix and match salwar kameez as well as pre-assesmbled sets.
• Van Heusen, Allen Solley, Arrow, Wills Lifestyle also had upto 40% off, in facts quite a lot of items in the 40% range. Unfortunately I did not like anything!
• Remanika, Noi had upto 51% off and I think most of the items were flat 51%.

Offers on Lingerie

• Most of you would be aware that this is one section in which there are hardly any offers during sale. Most items were still on the MRP. 
• B'witched was one brand that had 40% off on a few items. They also were giving away a voucher of Rs 250 on purchasing things from the nightwear section.
• The other offers were mostly on unsold and unusual sizes. There was no offer on Lovable or Triumph (except some items for 299) or Jockey.

Most of these had an additional 5% off for Golden Glow members.


Offers on Bags
There were the usual 10%-40% off on bags too. Rocky S had some interesting stuff. In fact planning to pick something up from there.

Conclusion
Overall the sale isn't bad at all....They have enough discounts of enough items. It was unfortunately not my day :(. I was a little disappointed with the make up section offers though.

So what are you waiting for, the sales on for everyone from tomorrow, August 6, 2011... and so is the weekend.. It definitely worth a visit.

My 'Nudes' Shopping - Colorama Nail Polish, Colorbar Lip Color, TBS Lip Protector

All posters are screaming 'Sale' and hence I couldn't stay without going to the mall at least once. I headed to the South City Mall with my mom and aunt. But it looked like the whole world was already there! In a 5 storeyed parking, we managed to get a slot on the roof, the last one!! But it wasn't such a bad thing, the view was very nice and I got to see the sunset, something that happens everyday and yet escapes our eyes because  either we're watching TV or at working at office or there are just too many buildings in front of the balcony :).

I stepped into the Van Heusen store and as usual, it was crowded and I can never find anything in a crowded shop. I start feeling claustrophobic actually. There was 30% off and a buy 2 get 1 free offer which wasn't bad.

Eventually I thought of checking out the Pantaloons cosmetics offers because the clothes section had to be super-crowded. They had 15% off on most of the brands like Colorbar, Maybeline. Faces etc. Almost every brand had some kind of an offer going on. I focused on the first two because had been thinking of buying a long-lasting lip color for a really long time and was swaying between these two brands. Finally these are what I picked. Hopefully they will not disappoint me. I have not even opened the pack. Will definitely review once I use them.

Maybelline Colorama Nail Enamel: Nude - Rs 85 for 8 ml

This is a pinkish nude shade. I generally like Colorama nail enamels because they have a nice range of colors, stay on pretty well and are very easy on the pocket. I don't wear nail polish very often and most of them dry out. So I generally don't go for expensive ones.

Colorbar Extra Durable Lip Color: Candid - Rs 450 for Color and Gloss (4.5 ml each)

This is also a pinkish nude color. It comes with a gloss and is expected to last till you remove it. From the swatches I have a feeling, it will be true. Rest, time will tell :) The review will come soon.

TBS Hemp Lip Protector - Rs 275 for 4.2 gms

Just like I complained of dry and chapped lips, so did my mom. TBS had 3 types of lip protectors sticks besides 9-10 perfumed lip balms. This one is fragrance free and is supposed to be the best for dry, flaky lips. 

The Hemp lip protector  is enriched with Community Trade beeswax from Zambia to moisturise and soothe even the driest lips. Rest mommy will tell.

Sunset from the South City Mall Roof, Kolkata

And here comes my inspiration! It's the pinkish nude shade of the sky that made me buy those things :)

Shoppers Stop Sale 2011: Shoes & Bags Deals!

Weekend's here! Sale's here! Time to shop!!

As promised I am here with my take on the Shoppers Stop Shoes and Bags deals in their End of Season Sale 2011. And this time I have a few pics, not great ones though. Am I a bargain addict? Kind of yes, but my credit card bills speak otherwise :)

I have already talked about the make up deals here. This is what they have in the shoes and bags section for the 'sale-aholics' :)

Shoes:
Catwalk: Selected stuff at Rs 599. Not much variety
Enroute: 51% off on most! This was good, worth looking at!
Charles & Keith: 30% off on all. Not bad!
Inc. 5, Lemon, Haute Curry: Lots of stuff at Rs 499-699.
Not the greatest designs on sale, but you could like something cos there are a lot of them!

Enroute

Lemon/ Haute Curry

Inc. 5

Bags:

Esbeda: 30% off on some bags

Rocky S: 20% off on most. Some have 30% off. And some have 50% off too!! 

               The Rocky S lovers must check it out!

Charles & Keith: Flat 25%, Not Bad!!

Blue & Blues: 10% off

Hidesign: None :(

Guess: None again!

They had some discounts on clutches as well.

Rocky S: Rs 1565 1278

Rocky S: Rs 1995 1600

Shoppers Stop Sale 2011: Make-up Deals!

The Shoppers Stop End of Season Sale started this weekend on 12th February and will be on till 6th March 2011. They claim an 'upto 51% off'. In this post, I will be talking about the make up deals they have. In my upcoming blogs I would talk about deals in bags, shoes and other things.

 I surveyed most of the cosmetics brands in Shopper's stop about the deals they offered. I know make-up blogs are boring without pictures. But since photography was prohibited inside the store, I had no choice. Not that I follow all the rules. But my phone camera has the flash and capture sound permanently activated. So, couldn't help it. This post is more informative than interesting. I could almost paste an excel sheet here, but don't worry I wont :). So here we go..

Chambor: I love their eye colour and had to buy a purple pencil. So I headed to their counter straightaway. Unfortunately they didn't have it in stock. But here's what they had:

• Buy for 1500, Get a make up pouch free. (But the pouch was plain white in color, not very appealing).
• Buy for 1200, Get an eye pencil free. (Basic pencil, not water/ smudge proof)

Revlon: They had a range of gifts to offer for various purchase amounts. Again, I wish I could put pics but alas!

• Spend 850, Get a gift set of 2 candles
• Spend Rs 1000, Get a make up bag. (This was better than that of Chambor's).
• Spend Rs 2000, Get a watch
• Spend Rs 3000, Get a trousseau box

The saleswoman was actually willing to give me a deal even if I did not cross Rs 850!
They had a purple but was lighter in shade shown in the picture below.

Maybelline:

• Buy for 600, Get 100 off.
• Buy for 1000, Get 200 off. Pretty cool.

Loreal: 15% off on purchases above Rs 600. Not Bad!

Lakme: No special offer :(

Kaya: Free sunscreen on a purchase of Rs 1500 or above

Yves Saint Laurent: Buy any two products, get a gloss worth Rs 1570 free. They have 7-8 colors to chose from. Not bad!!

Elizabeth Arden: I am not a 100% sure on this one. What I can remember is that on every product they offered some beauty treatment like a facial etc.

So, why wait? It's definitely worth taking a look at!

Wills Lifestyle Sale!

Wills lifestyle was one of my favourite brands when they were new. But over the years I felt their collection was getting weird. Even 'Small' size was too big. There were hardly any designs. Gradually I stopped going to their stores completely. But after a long time I thought of looking at their collection with a fresh mind. And I picked up the year end sale.

I must say I was pleasantly surprised with the stock they had at the Select City Mall store. They had 30-50% sale on everything - shirts, trousers, jackets, tops, capris. Size 26 is generally hard to find, but they had enough! I was specifically looking for lowers, and this is what I have to say.

• Trousers: They had 3-4 designs. But the fit was not good. Tight from the waist and loose otherwise. Did not like anything.
• Capris: They had some cool linen capris, ideal for summer which is almost here. If I remember correctly, they had it both in white and black and in the range of Rs 1200-1300.
• Cotton Pants: I was lucky to be able to find a pair of beige ankle length cotton pants. I didnt't see too many of them. This was for Rs 1400 with a 50% discount.

They had a pretty huge collection of tops and winterwear as well, but I did not check them out well enough (cos I did not know that I would actually blog about them in the next weekend :)). One of my friends at office visited the Gurgaon store and this is what she picked up!

Grey Business Blazer. Price: Rs 4000. Discount: 30%

What I hated at the Store!!
The wait for the trial room!! Yes, it is understandable that sale season sees a lot of rush. But the stores must restrict the number of items to be tried to say 3. Infact that's what most stores do. Not Wills though.

Overall Rating
This review was not as thorough as that of Van Heusen Woman Sale posted in my earlier blogs. But based on the items I checked out I would rate Willl Lifestyle Yearend Sale a 3/5.

1: Don't waste your time 
2: Okay! Could find something if you're lucky
3: Certainly worth taking a look
4: Pretty good, must check out
5: Fabulous, Don't wait!

Van Heusen Sale, Some Stuff that I Bought..

I bought around 9-10 items from this sale over 2-3 visits. The best part was that they were adding stock regularly. This is quite a rare trend for most of the popular brands during sale. I am going to talk about 4 of my favourite items from the newly acquired collection.

I also reviewed this sale in my previous article here and rated it 4 on 5.

            Flared Low-waist Skirt

* Image from Van Heusen Catalogue

No, this is not me. I have taken this picture from the Van Heusen Catalogue. This is an evergreen black flared kneelength formal skirt. In fact this actually has been in their collection since 2007 (or may be even before). But I guess they are still selling it well to last even after almost 4 seasons. The fit is perfect, you don't have to worry about it being too tight for office. The skirt in a snapshot:

• Perfect flaired fit for office; not too tight, not too loose
• Soft fabric with a satin lining inside
• Available in 3 colors: Black, Light Brown and Grey
• You can also team it up with blazers of the same fabric and color (available in Van Heusen stores) to get a perfect business suit
• Reasonably priced at Rs 1195

Patterned Dress

 I had promised myself: No grey/ black/ white in my wardrobe any longer. But I guess these are the colors you simply cannot do without, especially when they are combined in a vibrant pattern with a couple of bright colors like this dress that I am talking about. Besides the pattern the other thing I really like is the bold black belt that the dress comes with. You can use this belt for any other pretty dress or top that you already have to give it the chic look. The dress in a snapshot:

• Bright patterns with a bold black belt
• A nice cowl neck, not too deep
• Soft fabric with a good fit
• Priced at Rs 1995. Sale price Rs 1077!!! (I think its a bargain for this price!)

Here are a few other items that I purchased.

Straight Mid-waist Skirt

* Image from Van Heusen Catalogue

Striped Cardigan

Van Heusen Woman Sale!

This is the sale season and we all want to make the best of it. But this is not an easy thing to do and can actually get a little frustrating. The good items are discounted by just 10%, and the 40% stuff is not even worth looking at! This is the most common experience that we all have.

But Van Heusen Woman is not exactly the same story. Being a Risk Management Proffessional with a leading MNC, I have to have a resonably good collection of office wear. (What is reasonable is always debatable in case of girls). Unfortunately there are very few brands in India for good office wear for women. Van Heusen is my favorite amongst them. They have a good collection of skirts, dresses besides the usual trouser and shirt, Not to forget, they have some nice casual wear as well.

Specifically talking about the sale, they have a decent stock on discount: 25% and 40% off. The best part is that for the Diva members, they are offering an additional discount of 10%. So the 25% becomes 33% and the 40% becomes 46% sale. Here is a brief description of the items on sale.

I have also uploaded the pictures some stuff that I bought from the sale in another post here.

25% Discount:
Dresses: 4-5 designs. Price range: Rs 1795-2195. Easy to like atleast 1 of them.
Blazers: 2-3 designs. Price range: Rs 4995
Trousers 2-3 designs. Price range: Rs 1395 approx
Skirts: 2-3 designs (Mostly straight): Price range: Rs 1195-1395. Some of them pretty nice.

40% Discount:
Casual Tops: Many designs, wide price range
Shirts: Many designs Price range: Rs 1295 approx. Stock clearing, could find some good stuff.
Blazers: 2-3 designs. Price range: Rs 4000 approx. Good bargain.


Overall rating: 4/5
1: Don't waste your time 
2: Okay! Could find something if you're lucky
3: Certainly worth taking a look
4: Pretty good, must check out
5: Fabulous, Don't wait!