STYLE

CYBERSHOPPING

Apparel Mart Debuts on the ’Net

MOST LOCAL STYLITES WILL NEVER GET closer to the International Apparel Mart than its exterior. However, those with a little computer sawy can now find their way into the complex-without ever leaving home.

Unlike the physical building, the DMC World Wide Web site is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Best of all, no DMC-approved security pass is required. You don’t even have to be trendy. All you need is a computer and access to the World Wide Web.

The Mart’s Web site went online in June 1995, and includes trend reports, fashion industry news, a Clothiers Buying Group area, market previews and events, seminar information, and virtual showrooms.

“The DMC University area lists the seminars we hold for small retailers,” says Robbin Wells, senior vice-president of marketing for the Dallas Market Center. “If someone is thinking about opening a new store, they should check here first.”

By clicking on another icon, the stylish surfer can check out the fashion forecast six months ahead of season.

The DMC World Wide Web address is , Any questions, comments, or suggestions for the DMC staff can be sent via e-mail to dmc@the_center.com.



ALL THAT GLITTERS ON THE WEB

IF YOU CAN’T FIND THE PERFECT GEM TO GIVE your Valentine, get out your mouse. The Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange has created a World Wide Web site to allow people worldwide to buy and sell fine jewelry via die Internet.

Tagged The Computer Jewelry Exchange and run by industry professional Lary Kuehn, this site functions like a stock exchange. Jewelry items are offered by any registered seller at a pre-determined price. Potential buyers visit the site, review the offerings anonymously, then place bids against the offered price. When the offer price and the bid price match on a specific item, a “trade” is executed.

Those interested in visiting the site can find it at http://www.iminet.com/jewelry.

VALENTINE GIFTS

Present Tense



Those Cupids who have found true love, but not a Valentine’s gift, might keep the following mementos in mind.



TIE ONE ON: Okay, we know the tie has a reputation as an uninspired gift…but that’s only if you opt for a basic, boring tie. Since its launch in the United States two years ago, Italian Nazareno Gabrielli’s hand-finished silk ties have garnered rave reviews from those with business class. Check out the selection at Pocket s and at the Tie Coon Trading Company.

A HANDY GIFT: No need to send your Valentine to a salon for an intense hand-moisturizing treatment, thanks to Dallas-based Bowdio Enterprises, Inc. The company offers disposable gloves pre-lined with a vitamin-enriched lotion. Use the gloves as a special spa-style treatment or as a manicure-maintenance product. A decorative box of Mains de Soie Skin Care Gloves comes complete with 10 applications and costs $33, plus shipping and handling. To order, call 1-800-747-2974.



LOVE CONNECTION: Dallas designer Foree Hunsicker, winner of the 1995 Dallas Fashion Awards, combines a sweet selection of hearts, angels, and pearls into charming jewelry that’s perfect to wrap up your heart’s desire. Bracelets range in price from $18-$35. Hunsicker’s Medalias line is available at all Accente, Pappagallo, and Harold’s locations.

RETAILER ROUND

Nordstrom Cornes to Dallas on a Retail Boom



THE MARCH ARRIVAL OF SEATTLE-BASED Nordstrom to the Dallas Galleria brings questions about the retail economy in the city. While the rest of the country proceeds at a sluggish pace, Dallas appears to be booming.

“The Dallas area economy mirrors the national economy, which is growing in a balanced, sustainable fashion,” says Dr. Jared Hazleton, director of Texas A&M’s Center for Business and Economic Analysis.

“However, Dallas is doing somewhat better than the rest of the state because of its young, dynamic population. And Texas is leading the nation in growth. As a result, Dallas has one of the better consumer markets in the country.”

A look at some of the moves made by Dallas’ retail community in the past year seems to cement the city’s shop ’til you drop reputation.

Since announcing Nordstrom’s impending arrival, the Galleria has added 700 parking spaces and 75,000 square feet of new store space for 37 shops, including Abercrombie & Fitch, The Docker’s Shop, The Custom Shop, and the KERA/KDTN Store of Knowledge, as well as Tommy Hilfiger, Gianni Versace, and Mary Engelbreit’s namesake stores.

At NorthPark Center, Abercrombie & Fitch, and Personal Pair by Levi’s opened, as did the flagship Florence Cromer boutique. The shop, launched by luxury goods company MCM, features the designer’s collection of upscale women’s wear.

MCM opened its own namesake emporium the same month in the Galleria. The boutique, the company’s 16th shop, offers a luxe line of handbags and accessories.

Highland Park Village also has seen some reshuffling, adding Aspen, Colo.-born Checquers, a shop specializing in high-end home furnishings and accessories, and natural skin care emporium. Garden Botanika. Also in the Village, Collector’s Covey remodeled and Ann Taylor added 3,000 square feet of space.

“Our consumer is a lot smarter, and much more ready to pan with their money for value and quality consumer goods, than they were five years ago,” says Henry Miller III, of Henry S. Miller Interests, Inc. The company leases retail space in Highland Park Village and Preston Royal Village.

Carter Malouf Collections tossed open its doors on Preston Road in November 1994, featuring the jewelry of such designers as Dian Malouf, Raoul Sosa, Stephen Paul Adler, Mitzi Lynn, and Victoria Maase Stoll.

Brenda Schoenfeld opened a namesake jewelry shop in Preston Center. Veteran retail exec Louella Hundt also chose the Preston Center area to open a Joan Vass boutique. The shop is the exclusive Texas location for Vass couture and Vass Ludacer, the jewelry collection.

Hundt says he can’t think of a better place than Preston Road to open the state’s first freestanding Vass emporium. “The Dallas economy has staying power because of our location and the industry dial we have here,” he says.

Women’s retailer Giorgio’s has relocated to Preston Royal Village, as has the Lingerie Collection and gift emporium Confeti.

Del ann’s, a Dallas fashion institution launched by Idelle Rabin, changed hands in 1995. Owner Phyllis Walker moved the boutique to new digs in Snider Plaza.

“(Former owner) Idelle Rabin was in business for 49 years,” says Walker. “We are carrying on a tradition in a new location. The response has been very good both from [old] and…new customers.”

The trendy who live in the Far North environs of Dallas already know the intersection of Preston and Park in Piano rates raves as the hot new shop stop. The list of Dallas retailers who’ve opened outposts there reads like a retailing Who’s Who: Harold’s, Barnes & Noble, Ann Taylor, Williams-Sonoma, Banana Republic, Bath & Body Works, Gap Kids, Pottery Barn, The Hockey Shop.

BEAUTY

Make-up for a Valentine’s Night on the Town



A ROMANTIC RENDEZVOUS for Valentine’s Day demands a great look. Having the perfect make-up is the first step. The next step is knowing how to apply it properly. The key to success? Choosing the right brushes to do the job.

Trish McEvoy, nationally reknowned make-up artist and skin care specialist, offers the following tips to help you brush up on your technique.



For precision blush application, opt for a tapered blush brush. Gently stroke the brush through the powder and apply it to the cheek in a sideways sweep.



For a more sun-kissed look, choose a fluffier, round blush brush. Instead of stroking the blush, dip the brush up and down into the product, then use h to lightly pat on the blush like a powder puff.



Shadow liner can be tricky. For mistake-proof eye definition, McEvoy suggests using a small, flat-tipped brush. Dip the flat tip up and down in die shadow. Lower eyelids and press die edge of the brush to the outside corner of your eye, as close as possible to the lash line.



The most professional make-up applications depend on a pat of powder and plenty of blending for that final, finished touch. Assign a larger, softer pressed powder brush to this job. Pat on powder to the cheek area. Lightly dust the brush over the face to blend.