Victoria's Secret: "Secret Reward" Card

I just stopped by Victoria's Secret last night for their 7/$25 panty deal and when I left they gave me an awesome "Secret Reward" card! Apparently if you spend $10+ through the end of the month they will give you this card that you can use from Dec. 1-19th with a secret value of $10, $50, $100 or $500! I thought this was a really fun promotion and I know I'll be back to purchase from their beauty section soon. You find out how much it's worth when you're checking out, but I think each card is worth at least $10 so spend $10 now and come back for at least $10 worth of free stuff later!

Check out the fine print on their website http://www.victoriassecret.com/. I'm definitely not sponsored or being paid to share this I just got the card last night and though maybe you guys would be interested too :)

ELF 50% off coupon!

ELF or Eyes Lips Face (eyeslipsface.com) always has really good coupon codes or free with purchase codes so it's always a good idea to either wait for a good one or check the front page of their site before you make an online purchase. Yes, yes, I hear you, most of the stuff is dirt cheap anyway so why wait for a coupon?? Well why not?! If you wait for/find a good one you can get everything for even dirtier cheap! hehe

So I had been waiting because I already have a decent amount of ELF stuff. I heard about a coupon code last year that was 75% off but when I saw a 50% off (only off of 25 of their popular items) I went for it. I have to say I love buying makeup online! It's really fun to wait for it and get all excited and then get a big box of it in the mail :) It's like Christmas! 

Here's what I ordered, just to give you guys some ideas. If you want any reviews when they come in, let me know! I think I'll post photos/swatches at the very least :)

Nail polish (reg price $1 each):

• Burgundy a shimmery cranberry color that I think will look really pretty for a holiday party!
• Mod Mauve a light grey/lavendar that has become one of my favorite color combos!
• Smokey Brown From what I can see it's a light taupey color but ELF is notorious for having different colors in person than online. I will definitely swatch this one for you all!
• Sunset a light shimmery pinky-purple. Another shimmery color maybe for a party or just when I feel like adding some shimmer to my life ;)

Mineral eye shadow (reg price $3 eacy):

• Celebrity a light yellowy-tan lid color with shimmer
• Glamourous pinky/purple with shimmer
• Golden a golden lid color with shimmer
• Sassy a tan lid color with shimmer
• Wild a deep chocolatey brown color with... you guessed it! Shimmer!

Miscellaneous

• High definition powder (reg price $6) I'm currently using bare minerals' mineral veil as a setting powder but I've heard some good things about this stuff and it's much cheaper (especially at half price it's only $3!) I'm excited to try this out!!
• Kabuki face brush (reg price $5) I've heard really good things about this brush too, that it's surprisingly soft. I am in love with my kabuki from the body shop though, we'll see how this stands up!
• Eye primer (reg price $1) I really love this stuff, I haven't tried the mineral line version so I can't really compare but at $1 this stuff is a great deal and it does what I need it to do :) It makes the colors of my eye shadows stand out, last all day (even through my hot yoga classes), and they never crease with it. I bought 3 backups for only $1.50 with the coupon code :)
• Medium (reg price $3) I don't remember what this is!!! Haha I keep trying to find it in the list of things that are 1/2 off but I can't. I guess it'll be a surprise when it gets in! Let me know if you know what it is lol

OK so the coupon code is "FAVES" and it lasts through Monday I think so get shopping!

Last point, I'm not getting anything special for writing this post from ELF or anything, I mean this is a new blog I'm not receiving any offers but if I ever do get some freebies I'll let you all know! I'll probably be so excited/honored that I'll want to blab about it like instantly! But I'll always give my honest opinion :) Otherwise what is the point??

Bath and Body Works Best Practices

Hello and welcome to my blog :)

The holiday season is pretty much here and one of my favorite things to do this time of year is fill my home with new scents from candles (one of my personal favorites), air fresheners, or new lotions/perfumes/etc. I'm not much of a baker and this blog is about beauty products so I need to find other ways to surround myself with holiday warmth.

One of my favorite and affordable places to get new scents to match the season is Bath and Body Works. I know, I said affordable...sit down, don't go running out to your nearest mall. BBW can be affortable but that comes with a few rules. If you don't know how to work that store you can end up spending way more than you have to. I have a few guidelines or best practices to help you maneuver the store and leave with that feeling I love of excitement to try new products and that high from getting an amazing deal.

OK so here they are:

1. Use a coupon!!! They give out so many coupons for REALLY good deals, like free X with ANY purchase (you can find things in there for as little as $0.50 for a little anti-bacterial holder or check out the 50% off sale items), or coupons for 20% off etc. If you don't have a coupon yet or all of yours have expired, see my next point.

2. Buy the least amount possible to make use of your coupon/get a coupon. Almost every time I've been to BBW they give you more coupons once you've purchased something. I'm always sooo enticed by a sale or a really yummy fragrance that I want to buy a million things, but chances are if I only buy the minimum I'll get a coupon which I can use to get the sale stuff EVEN CHEAPER! Just be patient, rome wasn't built in a day and neither was my home/body fragrance collection.

3. Take advantage of their buy 2 get 1 free/buy 5 for $X etc. deals but ONLY and this is important, ONLY if you actually want what they're selling. Take it from me, I've spent literally hours going through a store sniffing every fragrance wanting to like that 5th fragrance so badly so I can get 2 more free. Trust me, it's a waste of time and it will give you a headache. It is not a deal if you don't want it.

4. Occasionally they pull a fast one on you and discontinue your favorite fragrance but if you're lucky they may come out with that exact same fragrance just with a new name. Sometimes the store employees will know and be able to tell you but other times they have no idea. I have a story about this: I've literally come in to return a new fragranec and the employee looked at me like do we sell this? This is from another store. And I had to explain to them that no, it's from BBW it's a new fragrance replacing this one. The employee then smelled them both and said they smelled different but then the manager overheard and was like no, she's right that's the same fragrance. Sigh...

5. This is a tough one to carry out because I love buying new things, but if you have an empty drawer in your house or some storage space I'd recommend buying after a season has passed. They can have really great sales and if you have a 20% off coupon you might end up scoring big time. Just keep your products in the drawer until that season comes again and you'll be all set! Now would be a good time to buy halloween stuff. BTW this works especially well with candles :)

6. I would love to hear any of your BBW tips or home fragrance tips in general! Leave me a comment :) Also let me know if you want to hear any other best practices or if you want some BBW reviews! I have lots of their products and I definitely have some favorites I'd love to share with you :)