Pizza Hut France

Style: In the Ngo: Beauty stylists can help you face the makeup counter

We asked readers to send in their shopping and style questions. From newcomers looking for local flea markets to beauty and fashion tips for seniors, readers had plenty on their minds. Here are the answers.

Q I am a 72-year-old active grandmother who needs some simple makeup tips. We don't go out often, but I prefer to look my best when we do. I swim three times a week and obviously don't wear much makeup on those days. I understand that when you sign up at the makeup counter in a department store, you are only introduced to one brand. Is one brand better for my situation as a senior?

— Paula Nessa, St. Paul

A You don't have to stick to one brand! Department stores such as Nordstom have designated stylists who specialize in beauty products across brands. The service at Nordstrom is free. Just call the Mall of America store and set up an appointment with a "beauty stylist."

We also checked with Laksmi Sam, Nordstrom beauty director for the Midwest, who offered some beauty tips for mature skin types:

- For those wanting lighter coverage, a tinted moisturizer might be a good alternative to foundation. Sam likes Philosophy's "Hope in a Tinted Moisturizer" with SPF 20 because it "protects and evens out skin tone."

She tells our reader to avoid matte and powdery foundations. "It really ages the skin and brings out the wrinkles," she says.

- For eyes and cheeks, Sam is a fan of "multiple stick" cream color by NARS. The makeup stick can add a healthy glow to eyelids and cheeks while providing a natural look. "Use products that are creamier," Sam says. "(Makeup with) shimmer accentuates textures - aka wrinkles."

Q We are new to the Twin Cities area and looking for some flea markets. Can you help us?

— Gary Zweig, White Bear Lake

A Summer is a great time to spend an afternoon at open-air markets, sifting the aisles for antique jewelry, toys, home goods and deep-discount items. And there's good news for everyone who wants to track the local activity - a group has just started a listing of area flea markets at mnflea markets.com .

On the local scene, the Excelsior Flea Market is relocating this year and promises to be bigger and better. The west metro market, which opens June 4 and runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays through August, has moved from Lyman Park to a larger area in the former Pizza Hut parking lot downtown (Lake and Water streets).

Pizza Hut…yeah right. | Mays China Business Study Abroad Blog

Today a few of us decided to be adventurous and go to Pizza Hut for dinner. It did not turn out as we planned. We thought it would be a great idea to ask Jack, our tour guide, to write down a few restaurant names in Chinese so that we could show the taxi drivers. We took the list and a few of us went to the street to get a taxi to take us to Pizza Hut. Every taxi driving by already had somebody in it so we decided to cross the street and almost got hit by a bus, a car and a bicycle. It took us 20 minutes to find a taxi and when we did the driver did not know what the paper with the Chinese letters on it said. We tried to explain to him that we wanted Pizza Hut, but he did not speak any English whatsoever. Instead, the driver could read the Chinese signs for McDonalds. We decided to just go to McDonalds because we saw earlier that the Pizza Hut was right beside the McDonalds. We get in the car and go two lights down and the driver lets us out. The McDonalds he took us to was just down the street and there was no Pizza Hut beside it. We did not know that there was a closer McDonalds. We were all too hungry to figure out how to get to a Pizza Hut so we just decided to eat at McDonalds. We all went inside and I wanted a hamburger with only cheese and pickles. I thought the cashier knew enough English that she would understand what I was saying. She definitely did not know what I was saying because I got a hamburger with no meat and everything on it. Now I truly understand the language barrier and how difficult it is to communicate with Chinese people who know zero English. This is an experience I will always remember.

Black Enterprise

Marketing in Europe

Who owns whom, Continental Europe

Food culture in France

Dynamics of International Advertising, Theoretical and Practical Perspectives