Aug17

Last Call For Fall Guest Bloggers

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Last Call For Fall Guest Bloggers

Hi everyone and happy Hump Day! I hope all of you are having a great week so far! This is a friendly reminder post that I am still looking for a few more guest bloggers for my fall series! If any of you are interested in participating by creating a post that celebrates all things fall, please email me at sarah.mush6794@gmail.com! I have a great list of gals who are included thus far but I’d love to add a few more bloggers to the series. After Friday, I will no longer be adding anyone else. Thanks a bunch! –Sarah

Aug13

Urban Outfitters Haul

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Urban Outfitters Haul

Hey everyone and happy weekend! If there’s one store that I love but can’t afford, it’s Urban Outfitters. I think that I actually admire UO from afar more than ModCloth and that’s really saying something but their clothes are just so me. I love that their clothes are grungy chic and edgy which is definitely more my style as opposed to the girly and sweet ModCloth. I only have a select few pieces from Urban and I had to be head over heels, can’t live without it in love with them to even consider making the purchase. But, thanks to an amazing thirty percent off the sale section sale that Urban was having on the Fourth of July, I was able to snag some amazing pieces at a fraction of the price. Take a look:

I’m honestly not sure what made me check out Urban Outfitters on that fateful day that I was able to get two amazing jackets and the coolest pants ever for a cool one hundred but I am so glad that I did! I think I was just in the mood to online shop that day, AKA fill a shopping cart with stuff and then exit out of the page. However, knowing that all of the on sale items were an additional thirty percent off made me bite the bullet and order my cart full of goodies because I knew that I would never get them for any cheaper.

I am so obsessed with all of my purchases and have been making great use out of all of them. My new black skinnies have been my go to-s since I received them in the mail. I think that they are just the coolest and I love that they’re an actual denim material as opposed to the stretchy jegging fabric that my skinny jean collection is filled with. I think that this keeps the color looking pitch black and perfect for much longer and I am so happy that the color hasn’t faded even a little since I got them.

I have also been enjoying the days that I can break out my new slouchy blazer when I’m at my internship or other job. I have been looking for a blazer for months now but all of the ones that I have encountered have just seemed so blah. I love that this one is more of a menswear style and fit because it adds a little extra something to it while still looking uber professional. I like this blazer because it’s great for wearing to work, running errands, or a night on the town.

It has not been cool enough in my neck of the woods to break out my knee length camouflage jacket but rest assured that I love that, too. A camo jacket or pants has been something that I have been on the hunt for recently, as well, but I have never been able to find anything that I liked enough to buy it. The trick is, is that I like dark camouflage as opposed to the classic shades of green that I usually come across. That’s why I just had to buy this UO jacket when I saw it because it’s literally the camo color combination that I’ve been looking for. I love that the deep green and grey color choices are nontraditional and that it is still a camo print without screaming “look at me, I’m wearing camouflage”. Although, if it was effective camo, no one would be able to see you anyways! 😉

I am so pleased with all of my new clothes from Urban Outfitters and can’t wait to wear everything more when the weather finally cools down. Thanks to an amazing sale, I was able to buy some pieces that I would never have gotten for myself otherwise and I am so happy for that. This haul makes me even more dedicated to my ballin on a budget lifestyle and I plan on continuing to scour Urban Outfitter’s website for more sales in the future!

So there you have it, my Urban Outfitters Haul! What store do you dream about purchasing from? What store have you gotten the best deals from? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. –Sarah

Aug12

Amazon Freebie

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Amazon Freebie

Hi everyone and TGIF! I am finally getting up to date on all of my summer purchases posts and this one pertains to my new favorite sweatshirt that I got on Amazon for FREE! Thanks to completing surveys on IPoll, I received a twenty-five dollar Amazon gift card in April or so. Since then, the card has been burning a hole in my pocket but after watching Animal House with my parents last month, I knew just what to spend it on. Take a look:

Animal House is one of my favorite movies because it’s basically the original Old School – which happens to be another one of my favorites! In Animal House, the “COLLEGE” sweatshirt that Bluto sports while downing a bottle of Jack always cracks me up. The shirt is just so ridiculous and as soon as I saw it while watching the movie last month, I knew that I wanted one of my own.

After the movie was finished, I turned to Amazon and hoped that they would have one for a reasonable price. I was in luck because they had a great selection and all of the sweatshirts seemed to be in my gift card budget and had excellent reviews. I was able to snag my Animal House style sweatshirt for twenty-seven bucks but thanks to my gift card and the points that I accumulated from my Amazon credit card, I got it FO FREE! Now that’s what I call ballin on a budget!

So there you have it, my Animal House Amazon Freebie! What is your favorite crazy college kids movie? What is your favorite quote from Animal House? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. –Sarah

Aug10

ModCloth Haul

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ModCloth Haul

Hey everyone and happy Hump Day! I recently just received the sweetest ModCloth Haul of all time – a box that went up to my shoulders filled with shoes for me! That’s right, I got FOUR pairs of ModCloth shoes for SEVENTY DOLLARS thanks to their end of summer sale. I stocked up on cute boots and killer wedges for a fraction of their original cost. I could not be happier with my purchases so take a look and let’s discuss:

^^^ PRETTY!!!!

My relationship with ModCloth is for the most part, nonexistent. Their prices just do not fit into my Lil Red Lifestyle of ballin on a budget so I just admire all of their gorgeous clothes and accessories from afar. I constantly lust over all of the prettiness that ModCloth has to offer and when the end of summer and winter come around, I religiously check the site to see when their amazing end of season sales take place. Usually around these times, the out of season items are marked down and an additional percentage is taken off, too. So, needless to say, when I learned that ModCloth’s sale items were an extra FORTY PERCENT OFF, homegirl just had to jump on the opportunity.

Jump on the opportunity? Psh, more like a pounce on said opportunity. I scoured the sale items and clicked on anything that tickled my fancy. After all, the prices were right! I ended up with two funky pairs of wedges, a penny loafer wedge, and my beautiful, beloved, gorgeous star studded booties. Said booties are actually what I would like to discuss today because there’s kind of a funny story behind them considering this was the third time that I ordered them. Let me explain…

I’ve been hungrily staring at these amazing booties on my laptop screen for the better part of two months. As soon as they got marked down, my mom generously offered to pay for them as an extra birthday present. As soon as “extra birthday present” traveled from my mom’s mouth and into my ears, I was on the computer and ordering the boots as quickly as my little fingers could. The boots arrived. They were perfect. End of story? Eh, not quite.

Literally three days after my order was placed, the boots were marked down further. *Sigh* So I had to do the old rebuy and return trick to get the better price. The boots arrived, again. They were still perfect. And the more expensive pair got returned. End of story?! Still no.

While browsing the sale pages, there they were. My star studded boots were marked down even further. *You’ve got to be freaking kidding me* Thankfully, I was still within the thirty day time period for a refund and was able to buy the boots one more time and return my current pair. The boots arrived, yet again. You already know that they were perfect. And that is the end of the story. The moral being: That I will do anything to save some extra moolah, even if that means buying the same pair of shoes three times to get the right price. #SMH

I have worn all of my new shoes except for my star booties which is funny considering the trouble I went through to get them. Reason being: It’s too damn hot in the AK-Rowdy to be marching around in skinny jeans and boots. So for the time being, I’ll march around in skinny jeans and wedges instead.

So there you have it, my latest ModCloth Haul! What is your favorite site to online shop on? What is your favorite ModCloth purchase? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. –Sarah

Aug9

Sephora Surprise

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Sephora Surprise

Hey everyone and happy Tuesday! Last week, my sister and I had a wonderful shopping trip to a nearby mall to get her some cute new outfits for her weekend trip to Chicago. We spent all evening in and out of different stores trying on and modeling new clothes, shoes, and accessories. Our final stop during our shopping outing was Sephora so Kristen could pick up “one thing”. Yeah, right. We spent at least forty-five minutes in the makeup emporium swatching everything from lipsticks and blushes to eyeshadows and foundations. Kristen ended up with a great makeup haul and also surprised me with a gorgeous Clinique treat. Take a look:

Once upon a time four or so years ago, my sister and I took a trip to Chicago. During one of our outings, we went shopping at the Watergate Mall (or whatever it’s called) which is eight stories high (or however many). Our first stop in the mall was at the MAC counter where I found an absolutely beautiful lavender colored blush. I was in love and it quickly became one of my makeup favorites.

I vowed to myself that as soon as I was out of the blush, I would purchase it again. I had every intention of doing so but unfortunately, when that day came, the MAC counter at my mall did not carry the shade. I was crushed. Since then, I have searched high and low for a similar shade but nothing, NOTHING could compare to the MAC blush that I loved so very much. Lucky for me, this all changed last week at Sephora…

I’ll be honest with you guys, I’m really not a big makeup girl. I literally wear the same makeup look every day and I don’t plan on changing it any time soon. My sister, on the other hand, is the polar opposite. She could spend an entire day in Sephora if she could. This is why I answered her testimony of only needing one thing there with an eyeroll because I knew that we would be there for a while.

The beauty must have that Kristen needed was a new blush from Clinique that was called “Melon Pop”. It was a beautiful peachy pink color that was going to look fantastic on her. I wasn’t very interested in any of the high end makeup that I was surrounded by, until I decided to further inspect Clinique’s new blush collection. That’s when I locked eyes on the shade called “Pansy Pop” and a montage of all the good times that I had with my MAC blush flashed before my eyes.

Kristen urged me to have one of the makeup pros that was working apply it for me but I knew that if I were to try it, I would buy it. Normally, I would be fine with this, but I have a hefty stack of textbooks that need purchased for the upcoming fall semester and those aren’t cheap! It made the twenty-two dollar a pop price for the blush seem ridiculous. As I was having a mental debate in my mind of whether to try it on or not, Kristen basically said that if I don’t, she will.

Within seconds, there was an employee, applying the blush… my blush to the apples of my sister’s cheeks. I caved instantly, and asked the worker to do mine next. The blush was divine. It layered perfectly on top of the pink blush that I was already wearing and created the most lovely field of flowers color on top of my pride and joy…my pasty pale skin. 😉

Of course, I wanted the blush badly, but I told my sister and the worker that I would think about it. All the while, I knew darn well that I should not be buying a twenty-two dollar blush at this time. I then made the solemn swear to myself that when I receive my next paycheck, I would come back for it and treat myself. The blush was not brought up for the rest of our Sephora excursion and I was glad because it hurt too much to think about it.

We finished our browsing around the store just at closing time and as far as I knew, Kristen left with two new lipsticks and the “Melon Pop” blush. As we began our walk through the mall to get to my car, Kristen told me, “by the way, I got that blush for you” and my jaw dropped. Instantly, “you really didn’t need to do that” came out of my mouth. She then answered with, “well, I knew you weren’t going to buy it for yourself” and left it at that.

Kristen seriously knows me so well because she was right. Even though I promised myself that I would get the blush soon, the chances of me following through with that were slim to none. I was so blown away by her generosity to her little sister and it just confirmed what I already know – that she is truly the best sister on the planet. Our trip to Sephora felt like I was reliving our time at the MAC counter in Chicago all of those years ago and it was so special to me to reminisce on those memories as well as make a new one.

We are still talking about how much fun we had during our most recent outing and it makes me feel good that she enjoys her time with me just as much as I do with her. Here’s to a great time and the best sisterhood a gal could ask for. I love you, Kristen! Thanks again! ❤

So there you have it, my Sephora Surprise compliments of my fabulous sister! What is your favorite item to splurge on at Sephora? What is one of your most loved makeup products? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

PS: For lots of fun beauty posts, check out my MyLikes page! 🙂

Aug8

Bath & Body Works August Freebie

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Bath & Body Works August Freebie

Hey everyone and happy Monday! So I know I just recently wrote about my July Bath & Body Works Freebie but they have been hooking it up with their coupons lately so I already got to cash in on two free products for the month of August. I received another free full sized item coupon as well as a free travel sized product and I was eager to put them to good use! Take a look at my freebie picks for this month and then let’s discuss:

lotion.jpeg

As you guys already know, Love & Sunshine is one of my B&BW favorites. Since I have wrote about it so frequently before, I don’t plan on saying anything else about it other than that it’s fabulous! Instead, I’m here today to talk about the deliciousness that is their Summer Marshmallow scent from their Beach Nights collection. I decided on this scent on a whim and I am so glad I did because I am simply gaga over it.

While browsing the beautiful, newly remodeled B&BW in my area, I thought I knew what I wanted for my free full sized item. I planned on going for their Limoncello lotion because last month I was debating on getting it but settled for a full sized Pretty As A Peach cream instead. I had the bottle of Limoncello lotion in hand and decided to spend a few more minutes perusing the store to get an idea of what scent I want for next month’s freebie.

This is when I stumbled on the Summer Marshmallow fragrance. As soon as I read the label, I immediately thought to myself, “ew”. I hate marshmallows so I made the assumption that this lotion was going to smell nasty. WRONG. I took one whiff of Summer Marshmallow and instantly put the Limoncello lotion back to its proper place on the shelf. This. Lotion. Smelled. AMAZING!

The Summer Marshmallow cream smelled nothing like the sugary scent that I had in mind, thank god! This lotion smelled like toasted vanilla, the salty ocean breeze, and a campfire that is lightly smoldering after a huge bonfire. All you had to do was take one sniff of the fragrance and you could tell exactly what they were trying to do with this scent. B&BW created the aroma of an ideal Beach Night in a bottle. A night under the stars, with a warm and gooey s’more in hand, and the ocean waves lapping in the distance. It is just perfect.

Normally, I never go for a scent like what I described (even though I made it sound delicious!) because I am such a lover of fruity fragrances. But obviously, B&BW’s Summer Marshmallow is the exception. I one hundred and fifty percent recommend this fragrance to everyone. If you are in need of ideas for future presents, I suggest making a gift basket with this Bath & Body Works fragrance along with all of the fixings to make a fresh batch of s’mores.

You can shop the Beach Nights collection in stores and online, just make sure to include your email address so you can snag Bath & Body Works freebie coupons, too! What is your favorite B&BW scent? What is your must have summer fragrance? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

PS: Pretty please check out my MyLikes page and help me get paid! THANKS. 🙂

Aug6

American Horror Story Airing Of Grievances

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American Horror Story Airing Of Grievances

Hey everyone and happy weekend! This week, the teasers for American Horror Story season six have began to surface, leaving everyone to wonder just what the theme is going to be. This usually would be a time when I would start to get very excited for just what lies in store for AHS, but unfortunately, I just can’t get on board for this upcoming season. Take a look at the teaser trailer and then let’s discuss:

If you recall from my posts about last season, AHS: Hotel, I had to quit watching after episode seven or so. I just couldn’t take it. I thought Coven was bad but last season really really sucked with a capital S and a capital UCKED. From the very first episode I could pick out what the problem was and a lot of people will probably disagree with me but that’s okay. My number one issue with AHS: Hotel was…Lady Gaga.

That’s right. I said it. I genuinely believe in my heart of hearts that Lady Gaga was the worst thing to happen to AHS so the fact that she is coming back for an encore in season six instantly turns me off to the show already. Unpopular opinion? Probably – but let me explain!

The major issue with having someone like Lady Gaga cast as the lead is that every. single. scene. has to revolve around her. I just couldn’t take it anymore in Hotel. I was sick of her soft core sex scenes, her dull performance, and the fact that she was now the queen bee of the show when she wasn’t doing much of anything.

Lady Gaga single handedly took away the ensemble effort of what made American Horror Story so special in the first place. When every character was committing to the story in a way that did not directly revolve around one character *cough cough* is when the show was something amazing. But when you take away the ensemble effort, you just end up with a program that isn’t even worth watching.

I feel like every scene was directed in a way that would make all of Gaga’s “little monsters” stick around to watch more and this resulted in a season that was campy, trashy, and an all around hot mess. I stand firmly in my beliefs that 1) The show is nothing without Jessica Lange. 2) They should have went with an unknown to become the new AHS queen bee. 3) OR if seniority and talent were an actual thing being considered, Sarah Paulson should have became the female lead.

So, am I going to tune in to the new season of American Horror Story? Yes, I will because I am curious and because I want lifewithlilred to maintain its status as a one stop shop for all things AHS. Am I thrilled about it? Absolutely not. After this rant, how could I be?! But as always, rest assured that when the new season airs, you can always find the latest AHS scoop here on lifewithlilred!

So there you have it, my American Horror Story Airing Of Grievances! Who has any ideas on what season six’s theme is going to be? Does anyone feel similarly to what I described in this post? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug5

Wanted: Fall Guest Bloggers

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Wanted: Fall Guest Bloggers

Hi everyone and TGIF! Similarly to my summer time guest bloggers series at the beginning of June, I would love to have a series to kick start the beginning of fall during September. I will be looking for seven to ten guest bloggers to create articles about anything from fall beauty and style to autumn inspired crafts, food, and drinks. If this is something that might be of interest to you, please shoot me an email at sarah.mush6794@gmail.com with your information as well as a topic that you would like to write about. I look forward to hearing from all of you soon! Much love. -Sarah

Jul30

July Finishes

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July Finishes

Hello everyone and happy weekend! The month of July has been an uber busy one and it left me with only two measly finishes. Although I only got through two products this month, I was happy because they were both fantastic. Take a look at my empties and then let’s discuss:

finished.jpeg

Would I Use It Again?

  • Softsoap Citrus Splash & Berry Fusion shower gel: YES
  • VU Skin System Hydrating Body Lotion: YES

Why/Why Not?

Softsoap Shower Gel: I absolutely freaking LOVED this body wash. Softsoap gels always lather really well which is something that I like a lot. But, most importantly, the Citrus Splash & Berry Fusion scent was to die for. It seriously smelled like blue raspberry lemonade and it was the best scent to wake up to every morning. Sadly, I finished this body wash within a month because I used it as bubble bath soap and may or may not have put an obnoxious amount in the tub each time. -_-

VU Lotion: This lotion was SO NICE!! My mom and I actually got this for free with a purchase of a VU skin care product months ago and I was happy to finally get around to using it. The lotion is so light that it absorbs almost instantly and it left my skin feeling so fresh and velvety smooth. The best part about this lotion, though, was that it was unscented and the actual product stayed true to that. I cannot tell you the amount of times that a fragrance free product that I have tried has a scent to it. It was really refreshing to use a lotion that stayed true to its claim and left my skin feeling beautiful, to boot! I finished this lotion in about two weeks.

I am so pleased with my small but mighty list of July empties. Both products were successful because 1) I enjoyed using them. And 2) I would definitely use them again!

So there you have it, my July Finishes! What products have you guys finished up this month? What beauty or skin care product do you need to restock? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah