Tag Archives: b&bw

October Bath & Body Works Freebie

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October Bath & Body Works Freebie

Hi everyone and TGIF! Another month brings another Bath & Body Works freebie to add to my body care hoard. I’ve grown pretty fond of using my coupon for a free travel sized product to get a shower gel mini as of late. They are perfect (obviously) for overnight trips and vacations but they are also nice for when you feel like switching things up from your normal full sized body washes. Take a look at my mini shower gel steal and let’s discuss:

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Lol. Yeah. I did get Japanese Cherry Blossom. Despite this scent reminding me of my grade school’s locker room at gym class, I just couldn’t help myself from grabbing it. This soft and pretty but not too sweet floral fragrance spoke to me for some reason and I just couldn’t resist the bright red coloring of the shower gel!

I normally select my freebies with gift giving in mind, because they make for perfect present add ons. However, this shower gel is all for me. It would be sinful for anyone but Lil Red to use it, after all. 😉

So there you have it, my October Bath & Body Works Freebie. What is a scent that you love to hate? Which B&BW fragrances are your faves? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Bath & Body Works September Freebie

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Bath & Body Works September Freebie

Hi everyone and happy Monday! I hope that all of you had a fabulous and relaxing weekend. While running errands this past week, I had to stop into Bath & Body Works to grab my freebie for the month of September. I knew that I wanted to get a mini shower gel because I had sent my not so baby anymore baby cousin off to college last month with a few from my hoard among other gifts. A restock was definitely needed, so I ended up with a shower gel from B&BW’s scent, Endless Weekend. Take a look:

weekend

I have so many travel sized goodies from B&BW in my freebie hoard that it’s hard to keep track of all of the scents. Now, I just pick whatever I think looks the prettiest in the bottle or the label and go with that. I loved the pale blue color of this gel and who doesn’t want an Endless Weekend?!

I actually am just now taking a whiff of this body wash, because I didn’t bother in the store and it smells like total fun in the sun. It seriously smells like an ocean breeze passing through a giant fruit salad made of pineapples and raspberries with an edible flower garnish. I always prefer fruity scents, so I’m definitely happy that I randomly grabbed one that I like instead of something super musky or flowery. But hey, the unloved scents are great gifts for other people! Mwahaha. :*)

So there you have it, my Bath & Body Works September Freebie! What is your favorite scent from B&BW? Who is excited for all of the fall fragrances in stores now? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

August 2017 Finishes

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August 2017 Finishes

Hi everyone and welcome to my August empties! Today, we have quite a few skin care and bath and body products, as well as a mascara to discuss, so let’s get to it:

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Would I Use Again?

  • Softsoap Juicy Pomegranate & Mango Infusions body wash: YES
  • Bath & Body Works Mango Mandarin body spray: YES
  • Simple Micellar Cleansing Water: MAYBE
  • Bath & Body Works Pretty As A Peach lotion: YES
  • The Body Shop Vitamin E moisturizer: YES
  • Lancome Monsieur Big mascara: MAYBE

Why/Why Not?

Softsoap Body Wash: I would absolutely use this industrial sized body wash again. It lathered well, smelled amazing, and was great for bubble baths. Not only that, but the value was excellent, as it took me three months to go through it. I think that Softsoap shower gels are underrated and I always really enjoy using their products, so more for me, I guess!

B&BW Body Spray: You guys know that I love me my Bath & Body Works! Whenever B&BW has their summer sale, I always stock up on my Country Apple and Mango Mandarin body sprays because you can’t beat three bucks a pop for five months of use! I like layering this scent with my Satsuma body spray from The Body Shop for a longer lasting fragrance. The Mango Mandarin scent was perfect for the summer time, but now it’s all about the Country Apple with fall coming in hot.

Simple Cleansing Water: I feel very meh about Micellar Cleansing Water. I genuinely don’t understand what the big deal about it is, so it just makes using it kind of disappointing. It took me a month of daily use to finish this product and I can’t say that I noticed any differences in my skin or even remotely enjoyed using it, for that matter. I labeled this product as a “maybe” for using again because it acts as a pretty good makeup remover, but that’s about it. Whomp whomp. -___-

B&BW Lotion: Anyone who is a true lifewithlilred fan will know that my two favorite scents are anything apple or peach. With that in mind, of course I would use this lotion again! I got this product as one of my B&BW freebies so it didn’t cost me a penny and I got about six full body uses out of it. I love the sweet and fresh scent of this lotion and it left my skin feeling creamy and hydrated. The Ultra Shea ingredients for Pretty As A Peach were no joke, and my body felt like peaches and cream perfection after a nice, long bubble bath. Freaking love!

TBS Moisturizer: You guys know the drill for this product already. It took me a month to finish, I would use it again, blah, blah, blah.

Lancome Mascara: I got the sample size of Lancome’s Monsieur Big mascara from Ulta for my birthday and I really liked using it. It took me a little over a month to finish up the tube, which I would say is pretty good for a sample size. I thought that the length and volume that it gave my eyelashes was excellent, but I do wish that it would have been more black in color so that’s where points get taken off, for me. Regardless, if given the opportunity to use this mascara again, I would, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy it.

All in all, August was a really successful month for finishes. I got to use up a lot of products that were taking me forever to complete, and I got to start some goodies that I’ve been looking forward to using because of that. Here’s to more amazing empties in September!

So there you have it, my August 2017 Finishes! What products did you finish up this month? Has anyone used any of my empties before? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

July 2017 Finishes

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July 2017 Finishes

Hi everyone and TGIF! My goodness, the months are just flying by, which brings us to another wrap up post for all of the beauty goodies that I used during July. This month brought to an end some products that I’ve been using for what seems like forever as well as some short lived lotions that were still enjoyable, just the same. Take a look at my July Finishes and let’s discuss:

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Would I Use Again?

  • Bath & Body Works Beach Nights lotion: YES
  • The Body Shop Satsuma Body Puree: YES
  • Destiny Boutique Charcoal face wash: YES
  • The Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Boost: YES
  • The Body Shop Amazonian Acai Energizing Radiance Mask: NO
  • Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara: YES

Why/Why Not?

B&BW Lotion: You guys all know that I love me some Bath & Body Works so, of course, this lotion was no exception. I got this full sized lotion as a freebie months ago and just now got around to using it and am so glad that I did! The Beach Nights scent smells amazing!! It literally smells like vanilla mixed in with the crisp sea breeze scent of the ocean and marshmallows roasted over a big bonfire. It’s absolutely delicious. A fair warning, though, – the lotion is quite pungent. I never wear lotion unless it’s at night, but even if I were a day time wearer, this would be my last choice to use. It took me about six full body uses to finish this product.

TBS Body Puree: I looooooove all things Satsuma from The Body Shop. To me, it is the most divine citrus scent on the market and I am always so happy when I can snag some of its energizing deliciousness. I would never buy The Body Shop bath and body care products from there because the prices are absurd, but when TJMaxx is stocked with their items, it’s hard not to indulge! I got this lotion for four bucks and it was such a wonderful treat. The Body Purees are so much lighter than a normal lotion – it feels like using a lush, aquatic gel and it feels so nice on the skin. The Purees also absorb almost instantly, which is another amazing touch! It took me about seven full body uses to finish this product.

Destiny Boutique Face Wash: Destiny Boutique is a brand that I discovered through TJMaxx that I freaking love. I am obsessed with all things charcoal and loved using their charcoal face bar so much that it seemed silly to not buy their cleanser. This face wash was well worth the ten dollar price tag as it took me OVER FIVE MONTHS to finish it. Every day, this cleanser left my skin feeling fresh, clean, and blackhead free – which is a fantastic way to feel! I’m so happy that I have another one of these washes in my hoard for another five months of beauty bliss!

TBS Skin Boost: I don’t need to explain my love for this product anymore, you guys already know all about it! It took me over two and a half months of daily use to finish my Vitamin C Skin Boost from The Body Shop.

TBS Face Mask: I really enjoy using face masks but, unfortunately, this Amazonian Acai Energizing Radiance Mask from The Body Shop really missed the mark. In its title, this mask has everything that I look for when selecting a product – something invigorating that provides bright radiance to the skin. This mask did none of that and my skin was left looking and feeling no different after about a month and a half of using it two times per week. The product smelled lovely, but it was far from effective. Whomp whomp.

Too Faced Mascara: I rarely write about makeup finishes during my monthly empties posts, but this mascara is a different story. Too Faced’s Better Than Sex mascara has been a complete game changer to my makeup routine. My sister got me hooked on the stuff and after using this mascara for close to FOUR MONTHS, I had to get more to feed my addiction!

This mascara is AMAZING. It does for my lashes what using multiple different tubes of mascara during my routine couldn’t even come close to doing. Better Than Sex gives you gorgeous fanned out, jet black, lush, plush lashes that stay in place but still feel soft to the touch. There is literally nothing better and I am so willing to shell out the twenty-three dollar price tag for a mascara that does what the classic drug store brands can’t. It’s worth every penny and then some.

Besides for my face mask from The Body Shop, July was a very successful month for my finishes. I am so happy with the empties that I did like and would happily purchase them again in a heart beat!

So there you have it, my July 2017 Finishes! Which beauty products did you finish up for the month? Has anyone used any of my empties before? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Bath & Body Works July Freebie

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Bath & Body Works July Freebie

Hi everyone and happy weekend!! I hope that all of you are up to lots of fun and excitement today! So, just when I thought that Bath & Body Works was over sending me freebie coupons, I finally got one in the mail this week. It had been a PHAT minute since I received anything and I figured that I finally got blacklisted for never buying anything and only cashing in on my coupons. Haha, smh. Despite this retail faux pas on my part (Because I’d totally be annoyed at me.), I was not, in fact, blacklisted so I got to add on to my B&BW freebie arsenal, once again. Check it out:

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Because I have literally more lotion than is humanly necessary in my hoard, I’ve taken to snagging travel sized shower gels, instead, when I get my coupons. I am very fond of using these goodies as add ons to gifts, so tying a lotion to its shower gel counterpart with ribbon makes a great ten dollar extra that I didn’t pay a dime for. I absolutely love the Love & Sunshine fragrance, which offers soft hints of daisies mixed with strawberry lemonade for a scent that’s a perfect combination of sweet and tart. I like it so much, that I just might have to keep this one for myself!

What is your favorite Bath & Body Works scent? Which store offers the best coupons? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Monday Update: June 2017 Finishes Edition

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Monday Update: June 2017 Finishes Edition

Hello everyone and happy July!! The month of June brought about a massive amount of beauty finishes for yours truly. As I try to be as detail oriented with product reviews as possible, this post will definitely be a long one! Not only did I finish a bunch of products but I actually liked ALL of them this time around, which doesn’t happen often. Take a look at my June empties and let’s discuss:

june

Would I Use Again?

  • Suave Everlasting Sunshine body wash: YES
  • Paul Mitchell Color Protect Locking Spray: YES
  • Simple Micellar Cleansing Water: YES
  • Bath & Body Works Sweet Pea lotion: YES
  • The Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Boost: YES
  • The Body Shop Vitamin E moisturizer: YES
  • The Body Shop Drops Of Youth Bouncy Sleep Mask: YES
  • The Body Shop Vineyard Peach body butter: YES

Why/Why Not?

Suave Body Wash: I think that Suave shower gels are incredibly underrated. They smell amazing, they hydrate, lather well, and leave your skin feeling supple and fresh. And they’re so reasonably priced that it seems like a no brainer to use their products. Everlasting Sunshine is one of my favorite scents by them. It’s floral and bright without being overpowering and it’s such an invigorating scent to hop into the shower with in the morning. It took me a little over one month to finish this product.

Paul Mitchell Spray: As a fake redhead, protecting my color at all costs is crucial. This Paul Mitchell spray kept my red looking bright and shiny throughout the month until I dyed it again. I would spray a generous amount into my hair after dyeing it and would use it before straightening my hair, as well. No matter what color you dye your hair, using a heat protecting and color locking product is essential in keeping your color looking freshly dyed until you hit the salon or boxed dye again. It took me over six months to finish this product.

Simple Cleansing Water: I’ve wanted to try Micellar water for a while but never felt a strong desire to buy a bottle. My mom snagged the Simple brand Cleansing Water on sale for me and I like it well enough. I’ve never seen a huge need to use a toner but I like that this product doubles as a super cheap makeup remover. Every day I dab this product on my face and neck after showering. I haven’t noticed a difference in my skin but it does feel good to use after I wash my face. It took me over a month of daily application and makeup touch ups to finish this bottle of Micellar water.

B&BW Lotion: Bath & Body Work’s Sweet Pea fragrance is fresh out of grade school but I don’t mind! My best friend got me this for some gift giving occasion or another and I just now used it up. I do love me some B&BW goodies so, of course, this lotion was no exception. I think that their lotions are the bomb. They are SO moisturizing while still feeling quite light and that’s really important to me. I’m a very tactile person, so when a lotion doesn’t absorb well or leaves behind a greasy residue, I have a really hard time with that. Bath & Body Works lotions have never given me a problem in regards to it not absorbing quickly or making my skin feel slimy after so it always has an A+ in my book! It took me about six or seven full body uses to finish this lotion.

TBS Skin Boost: Lol, I don’t even need to go into detail about my love for this product. You guys already know that. Anyways, it took me over two months of daily use to finish my Vitamin C Skin Boost.

TBS Moisturizer: Yeah, you guys know that I love this stuff, too. It took me a month of daily use to finish this moisturizer.

TBS Mask: I LOVE THIS FACE MASK SO MUCHHHH. The Body Shop’s Drops Of Youth Bouncy Sleep Mask is the truth. The texture of this mask is unlike anything I’ve ever used before. It’s such a thick, gel-like product but it absorbs like a dream. You would think that because it feels almost “gooey” that it would leave your skin feeling heavy or greasy after but that’s just not the case in the slightest. This mask sinks into your skin so quickly and a little bit of it will easily cover your face, neck, and cleavage.

This mask smells amazingly clean and crisp and damn does it make my skin feel good after using it! Hydrated, supple, smooth, radiant. After letting this mask soak into your skin as you sleep you will notice a difference as soon as you see your reflection in the morning. Your skin just glows. I cannot recommend this product enough and everyone should go get it STAT! It took me about two months of using three or four times a week to finish this mask.

TBS Body Butter: Vineyard Peach is my absolute favorite scent from The Body Shop. I really just love all peach everything. It’s such a sweet, crisp scent but it has this little bite of tartness to it and that’s what I like in a fragrance. This also explains why I adore apple scented products, too. ANYWAYS, I got this body butter at TJMaxx for a whole SIX BUCKS and I was so overcome with joy at that find. A general rule of thumb for me is that I would never pay the whopping twenty-one dollar price tag when it comes to The Body Shop’s body butters, so when TJ’s started carrying them it really was a godsend. The Vineyard Peach scent is to die for and it took me about seven full body uses to finish this product.

HOLY MOLY. Okay, so many finishes so little time amiright?! June definitely was a successful month when it came to using some amazing beauty products and I had a blast applying all of these goodies to my skin and body care routine. Hopefully July will be just as fabulous!

So there you have it, this week’s Monday Update: June 2017 Finishes Edition! What beauty products did you use up this month? Who has used some of the products that I just finished up before? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

May 2017 Finishes

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May 2017 Finishes

Hi everyone and happy weekend! If you can believe it, we’re already at the end of May, which means that it’s time for my monthly beauty finishes post! This month has been somewhat of a drag and a waiting game. My boyfriend is coming up to Ohio from North Carolina at the end of this month for my birthday so the entire month of May has literally been spent wishing for the days to go by faster! This month didn’t even bring me a lot of beauty empties to look forward to getting through so, needless to say, it’s been a pretty blah May (despite thoroughly enjoying all of my used products!). Take a look at this month’s finishes and let’s discuss:

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Would I Use Again?

  • Bath & Body Works Country Apple body spray: YES
  • The Body Shop Himalayan Charcoal Purifying Glow mask: YES
  • Angie’s Bath & Body Goat’s Milk moisturizer: YES

Why/Why Not?

B&BW Spray: As I’m sure that all of you know by now, the Country Apple body spray from Bath & Body Works is one of my favorites. I love anything apple scented – lotions, shower gels, you name it. To me, apple is the perfect fruit fragrance. It’s crisp and refreshing and has the perfect balance of a sweet and tart bite, which results in a clean, freshly picked from the orchard scent. This B&BW spray is no exception. I always purchase a half a dozen or so of these sprays when they’re marked down to THREE DOLLARS during B&BW’s summer sale. It takes me about five or so months to finish one bottle, which is a cost of a whole sixty cents per month. Such a steal!!

TBS Mask: I absolutely LOVED the Himalayan Charcoal Purifying Glow mask from The Body Shop!! I purchased this for fourteen dollars when The Body Shop that I live by closed down and it was worth every penny. Seriously, I wish I bought ten of these bad boys so that I could have a year’s supply! I am obsessed with all things charcoal so I just had to give this mask a try and I am so glad that I did!

The first time that I used this cool, invigoratingly scented mask, I noticed a difference on my skin. As you all know, I am constantly battling blackheads on my nose next to my five piercings, and this mask annihilated them in ONE USE. Not only that, but it left my skin feeling tingling, soft, and totally radiant. I cannot recommend this product enough and I would definitely use it again! It took me about one month to finish this mask.

Angie’s B&B Moisturizer: My dear friend, Angela, the owner of the Etsy shop, Angie’s Bath & Body, gave me a sample of this moisturizer in my last order and I thought that it was fabulous. First of all, it smelled AMAZING. It had such a rich and creamy scent and it was such a delight to put on every morning. Second of all, it was effective. This moisturizer left my skin feeling smooth and hydrated and it looked peaches n’ cream perfection. And finally, a little bit of this moisturizer goes a long way. It took about two weeks to finish the sample pod and I used it every morning on my neck and face, so I can only imagine how long a full sized jar of this would last!

Although I didn’t finish too much this month, I really liked all of the products that I used up. I was happy to use old and new favorites, alike, and all three empties left me feeling nice and pampered. I am confident in recommending all three of my finishes this month and am looking forward to using more from my beauty hoard in June!

So there you have it, this month’s May 2017 Finishes! What beauty products did you use up this month? Has anyone ever used any of my empties before? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Bath & Body Works May Freebie

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Bath & Body Works May Freebie

Hi everyone and TGIF! This past Wednesday, I went to the mall so that I could pick up a birthday gift for my brother and while I was there, I figured that I would grab my freebie from Bath & Body Works, too. I also thought that it would be a nice break for the people who work at the one that I usually go to, considering I always just get my free item and leave (smh!). For this freebie, I restocked a shower gel that I had just given to a friend as part of her birthday gift in one of my favorite scents. Check it out:

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My best friend gifted me with the lotion of French Lavender & Honey a while back and ever since then, I’ve been hooked. It seriously smells SO. GOOD. I legit can’t get enough of this scent, which is glaringly obvious because I feel like I write about it constantly! These past few months of freebies, I have taken to getting shower gels instead of lotions. I honest to god have a lotion hoard that could keep a family of ten moisturized for the year, so it didn’t make much sense to continue adding to this stockpile just for me!

I think the mini shower gels are great and I can’t wait to use them for travel purposes this summer. The shower gels also make a wonderful addition to a gift that you’re giving, especially if you match the scent of the gel and lotion together. That’s what I did for my friend’s birthday this past week and it added ten extra dollars value to the gift that I didn’t pay a dime for. Sounds like a sweet deal to me!

So there you have it, my May Bath & Body Works Freebie! Who else is guilty of gifting bath and body care items for your girlfriends? What is your favorite B&BW scent? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Bath & Body Works April Freebie

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Bath & Body Works April Freebie

Hi everyone and happy Sunday! I hope that all of you are having a wonderful and relaxing weekend. This Friday, I ran into Bath & Body Works to collect my April Freebie and I am not very jazzed about it. I originally had a Sweet Pea shower gel picked out but apparently you could only use the coupon for lotion. Beggars can’t be choosers and I wasn’t in the mood to hunt down a good scent so I just grabbed something and ended up with Hello Beautiful. I thought the name was cute and the packaging was pretty so I thought “why not”. But, unfortunately, I think I should have taken the .3 seconds it takes to smell a product because I discovered that I hated it upon my arrival home! Take a look:

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A Lil Red Fun Fact is that I just don’t do floral fragrances. Like, ever. And I really should have examined the packaging closer to put two and two together that something with a flower on it is going to be floral scented, lol SMH! Hello Beautiful is just too heavy for my liking since I am all about fruity, flirty, fun fragrances. Bath & Body Work’s website describes Hello Beautiful as a: “perfect blend of white gardenia, jasmine petals, and magnolia blossom”. And guess what? I hate all three of these things!

Thank gawd this is just a travel size and I can probs pawn it off to someone or another for a gift giving occasion! And next time I grab a freebie, I will be much more attentive to what I’m picking out! #SHAMEFUL

What is one scent that you simply can’t stand? Are you a floral or fruity fan? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Lifewithlilred’s FIRST GIVEAWAY!!

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Lifewithlilred’s FIRST GIVEAWAY!!

Helloooo everyone and welcome to a super exciting Hump Day post here on lifewithlilred! After over two years of my blog being a thing, I have yet to do a giveaway and I think that that is an absolute shame. BUT, there’s no better time than the present, and with the recent launch of my fragrance, Ruby Tulip, now seems like a perfect time for a giveaway! So, take a look at what one lucky reader is going to win and then check out the rules for your entry:

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The Prize:

  • One roll on bottle of Ruby Tulip from Angie’s Bath & Body
  • Two travel sized lotions from Bath & Body Works, Pink Cashmere and Japanese Cherry Blossom

Unfortunately, this giveaway is limited to US residents only, but here is how you can enter:

  • Like lifewithlilred on Facebook
  • Follow me on WordPress
  • Reblog this post
  • Leave me a comment to let me know that all three tasks are complete

Lifewithlilred’s FIRST GIVEAWAY will conclude this upcoming Monday, April 17th! Yayayayay! Much love. -Sarah