Black Friday is only 10 Fridays away, and DealNews has posted its list of predictions for Black Friday deals.

Here are a few:

• The best bang for your HDTV buck will be a budget 55" 1080p LCD TV. Prices are down 25% from one year ago. In fact, 55" LCD HDTVs are now cheaper than 52" LCD HDTVs, and have been since May. Expect to see a 55" 1080p LCD TV for $799.

• A cheap Blu-ray player is a guaranteed draw for Black Friday. Expect to find a deal at $45. A new type of Blu-ray player has emerged as a must-have item: Netflix-enabled Blu-ray players. For Black Friday season, we're predicting a price of $69.

• A Nintendo wii will probably go for $99 ... that's 50 percent off the current list price.

To see the whole list, visit here.

Boy, am I late.

In May 2009, I wrote about bevello, an online-only boutique that had just opened up in the Raleigh area. Now, it seems in that year-and-a-half time span, bevello has blown up, with four retail locations, two of them in our area: Blakeney and Birkdale Village.

The stores feature designers such as William Rast, Citizens, Rock & Republic, Max & Cleo,  Aryn K., Theme, RYU, Dolce Vita, TOMS, and much more.

In case you're curious, the name bevello is derived from "bella," the Italian word for "beautiful," mixed with a little "love."

bevello at Blakeney

9830 Rea Rd. Charlotte NC 28277 (across from Encore)

(704) 542-0504

blakeney@bevello.com

bevello at Birkdale Village

16805 Birkdale Comns Pkwy, Huntersville NC 28078 (next to Victoria's Secret)

(704) 896-1329

birkdale@bevello.com

Wow, has it really been almost a year since these sexy outfits marched down the catwalk at the Mint Museum?

This year's Charlotte N.C. Fashion Week promises to be bigger and better, this year to be held at Bank of America Urban Garden (1 Bank of America Center) and Founders Hall Sept. 23-25.

The theme for this year is titled "City Confidential: the Fashion Chronicles." “City Confidential will highlight the city’s growth and budding fashion scene and those within the community who have helped shape the city’s growth in the areas of fashion, art, culture and entertainment,” said CNCFW Director, Anthony Simmons.

Tickets are already on sale, $36 and up.

Note: Be one of the next 100 people to purchase your ticket to the show on any night and your name will be automatically added to a list to party with the most fashionable audience in Charlotte after the show. A valid ticket purchase must be made by August 21 to qualify. Click here for more info on that.

Creative Loafing's annual Best of Charlotte issue is hitting stands today — yay! Want to know what the critics and readers picked to be the best of the best in the Queen City? Click here.

In the meantime, here are the Consumer Culture picks!

BEST NEW STORE (OPENED IN LAST 12 MONTHS) LULULEMON ATHLETICA (Readers' and Critics' pick!)

Critics Picks

BEST CLOTHING STORE BORIS & NATASHA

BEST SHOE STORE BLACK SHEEP SKATE SHOP

BEST HAIR SALON MODERN SALON & SPA

BEST HEALTH CLUB HARRIS YMCA

BEST PLACE TO BUY CDS Manifest Discs and Tapes

BEST YOGA VENUE CHARLOTTE YOGA

BEST PLACE TO BUY DVDS Manifest Discs and Tapes

BEST SEX PARAPHERNALIA STORE THE RED DOOR

BEST PLACE TO FIND A PRESENT FOR SOMEONE ALL ARTS MARKET

BEST PET SUPPLY STORE PAWTIQUE

BEST HARDWARE STORE LOWE’S

Readers Picks

BEST CLOTHING STORE Boris & Natasha

BEST SHOE STORE Nordstrom

BEST HAIR SALON Modern Salon & Spa

BEST HEALTH CLUB (SPECIFY LOCATION) Dowd YMCA

BEST YOGA VENUE Y2 Yoga

BEST PLACE TO BUY CDS (SPECIFY LOCATION) Manifest Discs and Tapes

BEST PLACE TO BUY DVDS (SPECIFY LOCATION) Manifest Discs and Tapes

BEST SEX PARAPHERNALIA STORE The Red Door

BEST PLACE TO FIND A PRESENT FOR SOMEONE Paper Skyscraper

BEST PET SUPPLY STORE (SPECIFY LOCATION) Pet Supermarket

BEST HARDWARE STORE Blackhawk Hardware

The owners of Revolution already have a great thing going for them that sets them apart from their competitors — they're one of the very few retailers in Uptown, and one of two clothing shops in the EpiCentre (the other is Belle Ville).

But have you heard about their piercing spa, located in the "Confession" area? (Incidentally, I just don't feel like the words "piercing" and "spa" go together, but I'm scared of needles so maybe you should just ignore me.)

So, what's the appeal in having a piercing spa in the EpiCentre? Well, I suppose if you feel like your clubbing outfit won't be complete without a belly button piercing, you could stop by Revolution and get a quick hole, grab dinner at Enso and by the time you're in line for Suite, the blood will be dried up.

Last night my boyfriend mentioned to me that he wanted to start his Christmas shopping this week.

Christmas shopping? Excuse me, but Christmas shopping should be reserved for December, when it's freezing outside and the stores are crowded with people who bang their bags into you without apology.

OK, maybe I'm not helping my case. Either way, Christmas shopping in July just feels wrong to me, however economical it may be. I'm thinking about back-to-school shopping and summer sales right now, NOT what I'm going to put under the tree for my dad in December. I like to put off stress as long as possible.

But Toys 'R' Us and my boyfriend seem to be on the same wavelength, as the retailer has relaunched its "Christmas in July" sales event.

With only 164 shopping days left for Christmas and the back-to-school season almost around the corner, the toy retailer is resurrecting its “Christmas in July” sale, featuring discounts as steep as 50 percent on board games like Monopoly and Scrabble and items like Coby MP3 player.

The operator of Toys R Us, Babies R Us and FAO Schwarz stores held its “Christmas in July” sales event for the first time last year after many U.S. retailers posted 10 straight months of sales declines during the worst of the recession. Even Sears held wintry holiday-themed events last summer ahead of their back-to-school promotions.

This year, the Toys R Us sales event runs from July 18 through July 24. It comes as it takes on industry goliaths like Wal-Mart Stores, Amazon.com and Target, also trying to woo the nation’s youth with the latest gadgets.

Read the rest of this story on Reuters' Shop Talk.

So, I'm sure you've heard that Consumer Reports did not give the Apple iPhone 4 its stamp of approval. But I can understand why — left-handed users' natural tendencies block the antennae's reception. No stamps of approval for reception issues.

But today, Steve Jobs announced Apple would give away free cases to alleviate the issue.

Hmm. Is this enough to fix Apple's PR nightmare? Methinks not.

Shucks, I was waiting to get the new phone until after they had fixed the problem. Guess I'd be better to go ahead and buy it now so I can get my new ($39) case before the Sept. 30 deadline. Guess you folks who buy the phone after that will just have to suck it up.

Local fashion designer Lore Emelio has launched an E-boutique. Shopping for quality, locally crafted accessories from the convenience of home? Love it. Her site offers hats and headbands for women and ties and bowties for men, and trust me, the inventory is not lacking one bit. For example, she's got 32 different kinds of hats for sale, and all are perfect for blocking out the sun and looking great. Check out the site here.