Seeing Stars

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Seeing Stars

Hello darlings!! Starting at the beginning of December, I began a very fun project that I am stoked about. I became the social media manager for a local metalcore band called Constellations. The guys welcomed me into their circle with open arms to kick start strategizing for a content schedule to build up to the release of their debut single RIP. It has been an absolute blast getting to know all of my new besties, spitballing ideas, and enjoying their music. My favorite thing is our group chat, which one of the members created for all of us for social media chatter. It makes me feel so legit and like a real part of the team. ❤

It would mean so much to all of us if you gave Constellations a follow and like on their Facebook page: ConstellationsBand. We will also be releasing their other social media pages soon! Even if metalcore isn’t your thing, this band has a fantastic array of additional content including their “hot takes”, a band game, and clips talking about all things music. They are SO endearing and funny and I just know all of you will love them too. 🙂 Thanks in advance for helping support Lil Red on her latest work adventure!

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Who is your favorite local band? What is your preferred genre of music? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

All Better OOTD Bloopers

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All Better OOTD Bloopers

Hello everyone and welcome to the blooper reel from my All Better OOTD! I spent the majority of my holiday break being sick AF and only started rallying over the weekend. This couldn’t have come a moment too soon because my family celebrated Christmas late when the whole crew could be there. On Friday, we enjoyed a wonderful family meal at Hibachi Japan and I was stoked! It is one of my favorite restaurants in my neck of the woods and also the last time Johnny and I went I dropped my leftovers all over the stairs leading up to our apartment. SMH! Anyways, let’s get to these bloopers:

When you literally can’t pop your foot

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Lol, SO over it!

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She sticks the landing!!!

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Making sure no one saw that…

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Lol my eyes look terrified, my mouth is smiling, and I have no idea what’s happening

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I LOOK GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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I had grand plans for my holiday break. Sure, I was going to rest and spend some time reading and watching my favorite shows. In between the R&R, I had dates for outings with friends and family and a few shifts that I didn’t feel like missing. That all went up in shambles and it turns out that I would be spending my break in its entirety recuperating and watching endless episodes of My 600 Lb. Life. It was a massive bummer but, on the bright side, I really love watching My 600 Lb. Life so I guess it wasn’t all bad? lol

Come this past Tuesday, I was honestly so ready to go back to work. I’m sure many of you didn’t want your holiday break to end on account of all of the fun you were having. Myself, on the other hand, was willing every day to go by quicker because it would be one less day of being sick! Returning to the grind after a solid week of vegging out wasn’t ideal, but I couldn’t wait for the change to my routine – especially considering I could breathe out of my nose again. All I know is that I am taking a whole week off for my birthday in June to make up for this dud of a break. Start crossing your fingers now that I don’t get sick for that too!

It’s never fun feeling under the weather, but it is even worse when it’s over the holidays. I am SO happy to be back on my bullshit and not sounding like Napoleon Dynamite anymore. Bring it on, 2024!

What are your tried and true remedies for a cold? When was the last time you got sick? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

All Better OOTD

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All Better OOTD

Hello!!! Unfortunately, I spent my holiday break under the weather. I had the worst cold, aches, and fever and chills and was feeling pretty miserable. It was such a bummer, but at least I had an entire week off of work to rest and recuperate! By the time this past weekend rolled around, I was doing a lot better and was able to attend a family dinner at Hibachi Japan. It had felt like forever since I put on makeup and got dressed up so I couldn’t wait to finally take some OOTD shots! I kept my look for the evening comfy and cute and this is what I came up with:

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Who? What? Wear?

Moto Jacket: Zara

T-Shirt: Misny Merch

Coated Skinny Jeans: Seven Jeans, TJMaxx

Vertebrae Platforms: Dolls Kill

Cross Earrings: EmLeigh’s and Mama B’s

Normally when I style an OOTD, I begin with a completely blank slate. This time around, however, I already had the base of my outfit established with the T and jeans and decided to keep it that way. The coated Seven Jeans inspired me to play with texture and I wanted to incorporate more of that through shoes and a jacket. While it is fun to experiment with texture outside of a neutral palette, I kept things simple and used all black clothing and accessories to do so. This is a lazy gal technique because it’s never going to be “too much” when your textured pieces are all the same color!

Next on my agenda was a jacket and I knew exactly which one I was going to go for – my embellished moto jacket from Zara. This is quite possibly one of my favorite moto jackets that I have ever owned and I think it is perfect. I love the stud details, the grey hood, and classic shape and it is one of my go tos during the winter. This jacket was also ideal for introducing another texture because the faux leather looks matte in comparison to the sheen of the jeans. Although these two pieces were completely different textures, it still flowed seamlessly because they were both black. Lazy gal, or just really smart? lol 😀

Finally, it was onto shoes and accessories. For jewelry, I chose a pair of dangly bejeweled black cross earrings. I wanted the pop of color to come from the burgundy T-shirt so I decided to let the earrings blend with the rest of the outfit. I also planned on leaving my jacket on during the evening so there was no need for anything additional. The last step was shoes and I went with a killer pair of platforms by Dolls Kill. These boots speak to my spooky soul and and they were just what I needed to complete the look. They tied this outfit together from top to bottom as they appeared matte but still offered a bit of shine and, with that, I was ready to hit the town!

Last year, my goal was to shoot as many OOTDs as possible and my goal remains the same this year too. I was able to shake off the yuck in my All Better OOTD and I can’t wait to see what outfits I put together in 2024!

How was your new year celebration? What did you do over your holiday time off? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Spring Cleaning Tips You Need For 2024

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Spring Cleaning Tips You Need For 2024

We’re moving into a new year which means that you have to start thinking about how you want it to begin. Some people want to start their new year with a huge bash but who wants to start with a house they have to clean up?! Getting your home cleaned at the beginning of the new year can make a huge difference to your health and well being but it can also make a difference to the way you choose to get organized.

We may still be in the midst of winter and spring is a few months away, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t get the house cleaned up and ready to go for the season. In fact, with the tips below you can ensure that every inch of your home is cleaned out and is ready to feel great. Let’s take a look at some tips that’ll help you to kick off well:

Start from the ground up:

The first thing is to get the vacuum cleaner and rid your home of dust and that starts with the floors. You need to vacuum everything from carpets and tiles to window tracks and skirting boards. Cleaning along all of these areas prevents the dust building up any further than it already has. Go cordless if you want to get everything done but always have a corded vacuum cleaner in the background just in case!

If your carpets have ground in stains or are a far cry from their original color, vacuuming alone is not going to give you the deep clean you are looking for. If this is the case for your home, simply enter a search for “Carpet Cleaning in Round Rock” (or your local area). You will be amazed by the results when your carpets are looking as good as they did when you first moved in.

Wash the walls:

Not many people think that their walls need to have anything done to them but washing the walls down is a great idea. Mixing a sugar soap solution in a bucket of warm water is the first step, the next is a flat mop. This will help you to wash the walls top to bottom without streaks being left anywhere.

Clean the bathrooms:

Bathrooms are germ cesspits and yours is no different no matter how often you clean it. Don’t just clean the bath and shower or the toilet, but clean the extractor fans, too, as this will stop any dust flying through the air and misting your bathroom with more dirt.

Bring in the cleaning experts:

Getting help with your cleaning can be a smart move if you’re short on time and energy. It will help keep things in order while giving you time to relax so it is well worth the money. Look into apartment maid services or cleaners locally, or you could hire specific help like an oven cleaning company or an ironing company.

When it comes to carpet cleaning you can either hire someone to do it for you or you can hire a carpet cleaning machine and do it yourself. This should be done every three to six months because of dust and mite build up in the fibers. Cleaning out the carpets can also be done with steam cleaners and shampoo, but you need to make sure you don’t over wet it. The last thing you need in your quest to clean up is mold growth in the carpet and that musty smell that follows.

Sparkling windows:

When was the last time you had your windows professionally cleaned? It could be a great gift to yourself this year to have them cleaned on the inside and the outside. You won’t really notice how dirty the windows have become until you give them a proper clean. You can vacuum the tracks and then go through with warm water and detergent to scrub the windows, tracks, and the windows themselves. Always use a squeegee to remove any water so that you can get rid of any streaks.

Kick start your spring cleaning now for a squeaky clean home to welcome the new year with!

Featured Image By: Pexels

Merry Merry OOTD

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Merry Merry OOTD

Hi darlings!! My Christmas break did not really go accordingly to plan because I was sick during a majority of it. Luckily, my family celebrated the holiday later in the week and I was able to rally enough to go and stay in my bubble. We had a wonderful day because my family in its entirety was there. All four kids, our partners, and my three nieces and sweet nephew. It was amazing and is what Christmas is all about! For my holiday outfit, I didn’t want to go too all out because I was wiped out. I did throw a little something something together, though! Check it out:

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Who? What? Wear?

Feliz Navidad Sweater: Walmart

Skinny Jeans: American Eagle Outfitters

Platform Boots: Dolls Kill

Hoop Earrings: Argentino Vivo, TJMaxx

Johnny and I have loved being able to sport our Tim Misny holiday sweaters throughout December, so I wanted to wear something different for this look. We have quite a few Christmas sweaters to choose from, but my absolute favorite has to be the Feliz Navidad one. Sorry, Tim!! We purchased this years ago from Walmart and I’m not really sure why lol. I think we both just liked it a lot because I can’t recall ever wearing it to a get together with friends! This sweater is everything. It is festive, fun, and bright and I will never not be over the beads, tassels, and hot peppers hanging off of it. 😀

With a sweater this bold, I really didn’t have any other options for pants other than my go to black skinnies. So, we’ll move onto shoes and accessories! For jewelry, there wasn’t any open real estate for necklaces or bracelets. Of course, even if there was I wouldn’t have worn them because of all the bling on the sweater! I opted to keep things simple with my go to pair of gold hoop earrings by Argentino Vivo. My sweater offered a lot of movement and so do the earrings so that complimented each other nicely. These earrings are also big enough to hold their own against the sweater and added some lovely length to my neck.

Shoes were next and I was sick of wearing my red Bamboo boots for holiday OOTDs. I decided to go a very different route by wearing my devil horn Dolls Kill platforms instead for a little heaven and a little hell. Mainly, I wore these for the red glitter but privately I wore them to laugh about it in my head lol. I think they added perfectly to the pure over the topness of the sweater and they are definitely the Lil Red version of Dorothy’s ruby slippers. Once these babies were on, I was ready to celebrate the holiday in devilishly good style!

My Merry Merry OOTD put me in the holiday spirit, but that was nothing compared to how my spirits soared when I was together with my whole family. I hope all of you had a fantastic holiday too!

How did you celebrate the holiday season? Do you have any fun holiday sweaters? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

A Very Madea Craft

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A Very Madea Craft

Hello!!! This past Halloween, Johnny and I watched “Boo! A Madea Halloween” for shits and gigs. Little did we know, we would end up LIVING for the Madea franchise and have worked our way through almost the entire collection over our holiday break. What can we say, we love Tyler Perry in a mumu! During one of our viewings, we noticed a welcome sign outside of Madea’s home that says “Hellur” and I decided I wanted to make one for our apartment. So, we went to Walmart, purchased supplies, and went home to watch more Madea movies as I painted away. I’m not the most crafty gal in the world, but I think I nailed it! Check it out:

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It has been a long while since I have crafted anything and it felt really good to make this sign and bask in its awesomeness. I am SO proud of how it turned out and it made me happy to hear Johnny’s raving compliments as I completed my project. I created my own little painting station on the floor with a trash bag as a tarp, prepared my paints and water, and paper towel then painted the base of my sign yellow. My goal was to make this sign as close to the one in the movie as possible. We also plan on making a goth version of it in black, red, and white. Johnny already spray painted the base of his, but I have a feeling I will have to do the painting portion lol.

Once the yellow paint had dried, it was time to get started on the pattern. I started with the leaves going around the sides of the sign, which was most helpful. This allowed me to set up the space for the flowers on the top and bottom and the “Hellur” smack dab in the middle. The leaves were easy peasy, but I definitely ran into some difficulty with the flowers. Despite how simple they look, mine just wasn’t going accordingly to plan. The extra colors in the petals gave me the most trouble and my first attempt ended up looking so muddled that I had to cover it up with yellow paint.

As I waited for my “whoops” coat to dry, I had to figure out what to do next because I knew I wouldn’t be satisfied with my second go at the flowers if I tried again. Rather than another attempt to replicate them, I switched gears and went for roses instead. As the paint dried, I practiced the technique to make watercolor roses. Of course, this is much different with acrylic paint but it was basically the same idea. This was much more like it and I love how it turned out! The roses were a time consuming process and it was well worth it. I loved how it added my own personal touch to the sign!

After the flowers were done, all that was left to do was paint a big, friendly “Hellur” and let the sign dry. This painting costed me less than fifteen dollars in supplies and it is one of my favorite things that I have ever made. I can’t wait to hang it up in the apartment!

What is your favorite Madea movie? Have you made any crafts recently? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Happy Haulidays: Second Family Edition

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Happy Haulidays: Second Family Edition

Hello!! Prior to me getting sick on Christmas day, Johnny and I had a wonderful holiday celebration with his parents and aunt over the weekend. It is such a joy to be able to spend Christmas with both of our families and I love the traditions that Johnny and I participate in every year with his. We have a delicious meal, open presents (Including a stocking for each of us on the mantel, which I adore!), and have our annual viewing of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation – our favorite! I had never seen that movie until my first Christmas with Johnny’s family and now I think I can out-quote all of them lol. 😀 As always, Johnny’s family is way too generous with their thirty something year old kids and we are so enjoying everything that was waiting for us under the tree:

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Every year, Johnny’s mom gifts me with amazing goodies from Hope Soap, which is a local business in Cuyahoga Falls. These products couldn’t have come a moment too soon because I was literally all out of lotion! In fact, I just started using the jar of Fruity Loops Body Nectar last night and it is divine. It smells exactly like Fruit Loops, as I’m sure you all guessed, and I am so there for it. I also received two bottles of the body cream from Hope Soap in Grapefruit & Bamboo and Honey & Almond. The grapefruit scent is zingy and refreshing and the honey one is SO lush and rich. I am very partial to a Honey & Almond fragrance and I can’t wait to use it!

As always, Johnny and I received lots of chocolate to satisfy our sweet tooths and we have been in heaven! Every night since, we have had a piece or two during our viewings of Criminal Minds and it is with sheer willpower and determination that we don’t have everything in one go haha. My favorite gift of all, though, has to be the sweet leopard print shawl that Johnny’s mom got for me. It is just SO damn cute and I am most eager to wear it with my French Rooster cami top. The shawl is soft and cozy, perfectly unique, and such a fun cold weather accessory. I don’t own anything like it whatsoever, making it the ideal gift for me. ❤

Two holiday celebrations make for twice the holiday joy for me and Johnny on Christmas and it is the best gift to be able to spend time with our amazing families!

How did you celebrate the holidays? What is your favorite gift you received? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Happy New Year!!

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Happy New Year!!

Helloooo darlings and Happy New Year!!! It’s 2024, baby and this is a most exciting year indeed. Come September, it will be lifewithlilred’s TEN YEAR blogiversary spectacular!! I have never been one for making New Year’s Resolutions and, honestly, is anyone really? I feel like no one makes them anymore and the ones I have made in the past were broken pretty much immediately lol. However, I am bringing nothing but good vibes into 2024 because there is so much to look forward to!

As you all know, I formed a partnership with one of Ohio’s most well known local celebrities, Tim Misny, this past November. In the New Year, we will be taking our content creating to the next level with lots of fun adventures and I couldn’t be more excited. We have grand plans of podcasts, videos, and merch photo shoots and it is such a thrill for all of my hard work to pay off in such a major way. lifewithlilred has been an almost decade long journey and this is, easily, the coolest thing my blog baby has ever done for me. 😀

From taking on new clients in my work as an Independent Provider as well as some social media management gigs, it’s safe to say I like to keep myself busy. This is a wonderful thing and I love all of my many jobs more than words can say. However, after getting pretty sick on what should have been my holiday vacation, I realized how damaging the “grind don’t stop” lifestyle can be. I guess I do have a resolution to be more lenient with myself when I need to take a break as well as recognizing my own limitations. I am only one person and definitely need to treat myself better as my own employer! The grind should stop sometimes and whether that be taking a long weekend or clearing my schedule for a day, I plan on doing that more this year.

Last year was for lack of better words, a shit show. There was SO much going wrong and I feel like I am finally getting a grasp on normal life again. One constant in my life is my blog and I am so thankful for all of you because I think I would go nuts without lifewithlilred! I hope each and every one of you has a New Year full of smiles, success, and joy. Let’s make 2024 our best year yet and thank you for joining me on another trip around the blogosphere. I love you all. ❤

Happy New Year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bath Bomb Blitz: Rusted Acre Soap Co. Jason Voorhees Edition

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Bath Bomb Blitz: Rusted Acre Soap Co. Jason Voorhees Edition

Hello! Unfortunately, my holiday was less than holly jolly because I was sick AF. This was so incredibly disappointing to me because I took a whole week off of work to relax and visit with friends and family. I mean, I guess I did relax because I watched So. Many. Episodes. of My 600 Lb. Life lol. I also very much enjoyed using the bath bombs from my BFF Christmas gift. My darling Kate of Live In The Nautical treated me to the most amazing set of horror themed bath bombs by Rusted Acre Soap Co. They have been such a blast to use and it was so soothing to be able to soak my troubles away. After using the Knife bath bomb, I decided to use the Jason Voorhees one the following day. Check it out:

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^^^ Note how the final formation in the second to last picture kind of looks like the Jason mask!!

After the great success of the Knife bath bomb, I couldn’t wait to try more! Johnny and I watched all of the Friday The 13th movies this past Halloween and even though those movies suck, it was still a lot of fun. Nothing about this bath bomb sucked, however, and I was shook from the show this bath bomb put on! While Jason Voorhees is our least favorite slasher star, this is one of my favorite bath bombs I have ever used. As I watched this bath bomb do its thing, I found myself wondering at every surprise just how Rusted Acre Soap Co. created something so freaking cool!

Like the Knife bath bomb, the Jason one really didn’t start doing anything noteworthy until a few minutes in. It took well over five minutes (maybe eight?) for this bath bomb to fizz out entirely and this is both a blessing and a curse. While it does look awesome, it isn’t ideal for my situation because we do not have a lot of hot water at our apartment. By the time the bath bomb was done, the water was less than steamy, but I digress. Like any good slasher, the climax had a slow build up and the end result was phenomenal.

Out of nowhere, streams of blood red and forest green water began to shoot out of the eyes of the mask. It went this way and that throughout the tub and began changing the water to the inky red that the Knife bath bomb produced. This went on for a fair bit of time and I was honestly mentally willing it to go faster so the water would still be hot. Then, I noticed what the bath bomb was actually doing. It was replicating the Jason mask in the water! It took a good while for this to happen, but what a thrill when I realized it!!

I am going to rate the Jason Voorhees bath bomb with an eight out of ten stars. Yes, it took a minute to get to the grand reveal. BUT, this bath bomb accomplished something I didn’t even know was possible and it was fabulous. I can’t wait to see what the remaining three slasher stars in my gift set does!

Who is your favorite slasher star? What is the best bath bomb you have ever used? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Face Mask Festivities: GlamUp Nourishing Acaiberry Sheet Mask Edition

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Face Mask Festivities: GlamUp Nourishing Acaiberry Sheet Mask Edition

Howdy!! After I enjoyed a super hot bath with the amazing bath bomb you saw yesterday by Rusted Acre Soap Co, I decided to go all out and do a face mask too. After being stuffed up and sick for several days, I was very much in the mood for some pampering! Even though the relief of something so pleasurable was short lived, it was nice to be able to take my mind off of the foul mood I was in for just a little bit. It sucks being sick over the holidays! For the face mask portion of my self care, I went with a Nourishing Acaiberry Sheet Mask by GlamUp. I figured my face could use all of the nourishing it could get after blowing my nose every minute of the past few days lol. Take a look at some pics and let’s discuss:

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^^^ I LOOK GREAT!!!!!!!!!

I am not a huge fan of sheet masks and find them to be a bit of a chore. They never fit well and I like the convenience of continuing to go about my business while a clay face mask sits. In this case, I had no issues with having to lay down to let this sheet mask do its thing because it’s not like I was doing anything but laying in my own misery anyway. This sheet mask by GlamUp fit a lot better than other ones that I have tried, smelled delightful, and was loaded with serum to get the job done. Dare I say, too much because it was dripping everywhere!

I let this mask sit for twenty minutes and at that point it had began to dry and I was over scrolling through Facebook to see all of the Christmas fun I couldn’t participate in. I can’t say that I noticed any real difference in the way my skin looked or felt, which is pretty much par for the course of every other sheet mask I’ve used. This wasn’t surprising to me so it wasn’t disappointing. The act of having the face mask on was the most pleasing thing to me because it felt good on my feverish brow and it felt like I was taking care of myself even if it was in a simple way. I wouldn’t buy more from this brand, but the experience was soothing and you can’t ask for much more when you’re sick.

I am going to rate the GlamUp Nourishing Acaiberry Sheet Mask with a two out of ten stars. If it didn’t bring me some type of relief, I would have given it a zero lol. I still have several more GlamUp masks to use and I don’t expect any of them to be any better, but we’ll see what happens!

Do you prefer a clay or sheet mask? What is your favorite form of self care? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah