Halloween Costumes In Charlotte Now

It’s never too early to get started on your Halloween costume. Off Independence Boulevard in Matthews in the Windsor Shopping Center (Burlington Coat Factory, Monkey Joe’s, and Boyles Furniture Clearance are there, too) you’ll find the huge Spirit Halloween Superstore (9925 E. Independence Blvd.) devoted to everything ghastly including pre-packaged costumes, accessories (think Scream masks or fairy wands), and decorations for your ghostly party. I went last year the day before Halloween weekend…not recomended. But going now means beating the “holiday traffic” and possibly getting your hands on more options for a cool costume.

Boyles Clearance Outlet in Matthews is OPEN!

I promised I would let you know when the new Boyle’s Outlet finally opened…so, head over this weekend to check out the selection of everything from Tommy Bahama and Jackson Carter to LaneVenture and Lexington plus oodles of home accessories (I personally love the selection of faux floral arrangements that look so real). The store is open seven days a week. Windsor Square Center, 10025 East Independence Blvd., Matthews, NC 28105-4619, 704-846-8470.

Keep Your Curls Smooth and Wavy! I Swear!

Until recently, I’d only ever worn my hair straight or pulled back. Nothing in between. It wasn’t until I tried using this great curly cocktail of hair products that I attempted going curly. Philip B’s Drop Dead Hair Straightening balm ($22) is amazing—no exaggeration. I put that in first and comb it through. Then I throw in a dollop of Philip B’s Styling Gel ($18), add a little heat from a diffuser and ta-da! My hair is now curly and wavy and smooth and, well, WOW. I wouldn’t have thought to post this except I’ve been asked so many times what products I’ve been using to get my hair just right that I felt I needed to share the “secret.” The only place you can purchase Philip B in Charlotte is at Jeffre Scott Apothecary (607 Providence Road, 704-339-0010). And it’s well worth it if you’re craving some wavy/curly locks that don’t look (or feel) crunchy and untouchable.

We Love BECCA Lip Color!

This weekend (September 8th and 9th) stop by Potion’s East Boulevard store and meet BECCA’s national makeup artist Lynn Furge. She’ll be introducing BECCA’s fall lip colors and they’re NOT to be missed. I’ve been obsessing over the Glossy Lip Tint in Amaretto from the fall line; and it’s not just me—I’ve been receiving compliments about the lip color since the day I started wearing it. It’s long-lasting (plus #1) and the colors work well on just about every skin tone (plus #2), which means when I lose my sun-kissed tan by mid-October the color will still look just as good. A $35 reservation fee applies for the event, but that also goes toward your purchase. Call 704-347-6841 for more details and to make a reservation. Check out their Web site, too, for details on their other makeup goodies and upcoming events.

The Vera Bradley Outlet Sale comes to Charlotte!

If you’re anything like the average Charlotte woman, you have at least one item from Vera Bradley (I have too many to count from a make-up case, wallets, clutches, and a sunglass holder to the Petite Villager in three different patterns). And if you really love you some Vera, then listen up—on August 30th through September 1st at the Merchandise Mart there will be Charlotte’s first Vera Bradley outlet sale. The sale offers up to 75 percent off a variety of Vera goodies plus the admission is free. And if you’re really obsessed with Vera, check out this travel deal, which has you meeting the preppy company’s co-founder Patricia Miller plus you get early-bird access to the sale (for more info. go to this site for more details).

Next week a great one for foodies

That’s right, a new Earth Fare AND a new Trader Joe’s are opening in Charlotte. The Earth Fare organic grocery store opens August 15 at The Morrison, at Colony and Sharon roads near SouthPark mall. There’s a party the night before from 6-9 p.m. ($10, benefits Second Harvest). Check out the menu: petite crab cakes with roasted garlic aioli, North Carolina pulled-pork sandwiches, cocoa espresso tri-tip steak, local marinated heirloom tomato salad, brie layered with local chutney, and a variety of wine and beer.

Trader Joe’s opens August 17 in The Shops at Piper Glen, at 6418 Rea Road. There will be a lei cutting at 8:45 a.m., and the doors open at 9. Personally, I am excited about Trader Joe’s. I’ve been to one in Atlanta, and I had a blast wandering the aisles checking out the exotic goods. The two-buck Chuck wine gets a lot of hype (it’s actually not bad), but I also enjoyed the coffee selection and the spices and ice creams. Just a fun store to which I will make a semiregular trip. —R.T. 

Great block party in South End; make sure you catch the next one

Last evening I attended the South End Summer Series Block Party. Apparently Social Push has been sponsoring this event each third Saturday since May. I didn’t know anything about the first two, but I made it out to this July one and I enjoyed it, increasing my fondness of South End.

 

The magazine’s office is located in the Design Center of the Carolinas in South End so I have the privilege of working in the area daily. I say privilege because I think South End is great. There are many cool buildings and stores there, parking is easy, there’s a stop for the soon-to-be-running light rail, and it’s less than five minutes from uptown. The block party celebrated the culture that is cultivating in South End.

 

Sponsored by clothing stores and boutiques Niche, Black Sheep, American Apparel, and Glamour Puss, all of which line Camden Road, the party was held in the block of Camden between West Park Ave. and South Tryon Street, with the street closed off. The event was advertised to be held from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. I, along with my brother and one of my friends, arrived around 7:30.

 

There was a DJ playing old-school hip hop the entire time (KRS One, Rakim, A Tribe Called Quest, etc). Word is that there was supposed to be free food; maybe it was all gone before we got there. I did, however, seem numerous bottles of Vitamin Water (on the ground unfortunately), which were complimentary as well. We ate at Phat Burrito, which was busy with people the entire time. We ate on the patio. The weather was perfect.

 

This was truly a block party. Several guys were skateboarding and performing tricks, including a kid who couldn’t have been older than nine years old. The skater scene was definitely present. It’s popular with both Black Sheep and Niche, which had their doors open for the event (and is where I assume a lot of the skaters buy their T-shirts and kicks). The B-boys were on hand, too. You know—the break dancers. I can never see too much of people spinning on their hands and head. There was even an artist creating a hip hop-inspired painting.

 

There was a good turnout. A lot of people walked through for a few minutes, while many others lined the street and sidewalks for quite some time. The DJ Jazzy Jeff concert was scheduled for later that night at Amos’ South End. I’m sure a lot of the people later made their way over for that. We ended up staying at the block party for about two hours. Afterwards, we went to the fight party at Allure, which was only about five minutes away on South Mint Street (coming from West Boulevard). I saw Bernard Hopkins win a decision over Winky Wright. The fight wasn’t very impressive, though. I think I saw a better battle between the break dancers.

 

You can catch the next installment of the block party on August 18.

Boyles Clearance Outlet to open in Matthews

In case you’ve been wondering, Boyles is set to open another clearance/outlet store on Independence Boulevard in Matthews (next to Furniture Row Outlet). The new store is really a relocation—apparently the outlet store on Sardis Road is now closed and has moved into this newer, bigger space on Independence. Though it’s not open yet, we’re pretty sure the new store will offer the same awesome discounts as the outlets in Hickory. Keep checking back for more on the store’s opening.

Lavendar Boutique set to open in Mooresville

Lavendar Boutique is set to open in August sometime. The store will feature a slew of stylish options from designer lines like Rebecca Taylor, Ella Moss, Diesel, YaYa, William Rast, True Religion, and Theory, among many more. We love one of the store’s concepts that’ll they’ll launch with its grand opening—the “BOYFRIEND” table will showcase the latest in denim for the guys in our lives. Perfect! Plus, you gotta love the fact that owner Sherry Pollex is the girlfriend of NASCAR driver Martin Truex, Jr.

Origami Ink, Soma, and Illuminations to open in SouthPark

It just keeps getting better in SouthPark. First we get Juicy Couture, Hermes, and Design Within Reach. Now we get high-end stationer Origami Ink, intimate sleepware and underpinnings boutique Soma, and premium candle store Illuminations. Internationally-known paperie Origami Ink is probably the most exciting news to me—besides Crane & Co. in the mall, there isn’t really much else in terms of a great stationer in SouthPark. You’d have to head out to Ballantyne to Salutations (one of my favorite stores out there) or to a place in town like The Buttercup. In addition to those new offerings be sure to check out nesting, probably the most adorable baby/children’s boutique in all of Charlotte (located between Williams-Sonoma and Elizabeth Bruns). The store’s decor alone will make you want to have a half dozen of your own little ones just so you can buy bedding and accessories for baby at owner Kristi Craig’s store.