The Budget Fashionista

Ann Taylor is branching out, adding a beauty line to her already bountiful offerings just in time for the holiday shopping frenzy.

We like Ann Taylor for her willingness to admit that real folks like good fashion, too (evidenced in her Loft division, which isn’t quite as budget as we’d love but definitely a step in the right direction). It appears - we’re happy to report - that her approach to cosmetics and fragrance will reflect the same, including plans for items to be available at all levels of the Ann Taylor brand.

According to Women’s Wear Daily, Ann Taylor Body Care will feature body wash and body lotion at $12.50 each, and a body mist for $16.50. On the fragrance end, “Possibilities” (with ads to feature the ridiculously gorgeous Petra Nemcova) is expected to include eau de parfums with prices ranging from $42 to $62, a .25 oz-sized purse spray for $25, and a 6.7 oz. body lotion for $20.

And if you like your products to do something even more important than smell pretty, you’ll like this—$2 of every fragrance purchased between Thanksgiving and New Years will be donated to the Helping Hearts Fund, founded by Nemcova to support kids impacted by the 2004 tsunami in Thailand, as well as other children in need.

We can’t vouch for the quality of any of the above just yet, but we’re hopeful, and for the record—we think that the “Possibilities” bottle (at left) is really, really pretty.

Look for scent strips coming soon to a fashion mag near you, and holiday gift sets are right around the corner, with release set the week of Thanksgiving.