Tag Archives: mini haul

May31

Mini Mall Haul

Posted on May 31, 2023 by lifewithlilred

Hello!! After a very long tenure of working retail in the mall, I tend to avoid it like the plague now lol. I can probably count on ten fingers the amount of times I have been to the mall since being employed there and that is fine by me! You know your girl is a TJMaxx frequent flyer at heart. This past week, however, I crossed the threshold into Summit Mall because my brother had some birthday gift cards. I told myself that I wasn’t going to buy anything for myself, but that changed when I saw the most perfect T-shirt I have ever seen at Hot Topic. I also had a freebie coupon from Bath & Body Works to cash in! Check it out:

Bath & Body Works has recently switched up their freebie options and it has been most exciting! For the longest time, a free travel size product coupon left you limited to shower gel and lotion. Then, they upped their game to mini fragrance sprays, bar soap, and hand cream and they are all fair game for the free coupon. It is awesome and turns every time I get a B&BW coupon in the mail into an “I need to go there right now” event!

Johnny’s mom gifted me with some bar soap this past Easter and I forgot how much I enjoy a good ol’ bar of soap every now and again. With plenty of B&BW shower gel and lotion in my stockpile, I decided that trying out their bar soap for the first time would be the move. There wasn’t a huge selection of bar soap scents to pick from and I went with Coco Paradise to welcome summer with. Coco Paradise is a combo of coconut (obviously lol) and the softest hint of tropical flowers and it is lovely. It also is a shea butter based bar so I’m sure it will be ultra lush and hydrating. I can’t wait to try it out!

After browsing at other stores, my brother and I ended our rounds at Hot Topic. As a reminder, I truly had no intention of buying a single thing… Until I saw the AFI T-shirt that I just had to have. AFI’s album, Sing The Sorrow, was the first album I ever bought with my own money. It was and will always be in my top three favorite albums and seeing them live was one of the best moments of my life. I was so lucky because they only had one size small in this shirt among a sea of XLs and believe me when I say, I literally snatched it from the shelf!

The last T-shirt I bought from Hot Topic was from a few years ago and now I understand why almost all of Johnny’s T’s come from there. When I sported my AFI T the following day, I was blown away by how soft it was! It felt like a hug when I was wearing it and I honestly regretted not buying a few more! The fit was also perfect – not too loose and not too tight but just right. I am freaking obsessed with my new favorite T featuring my forever favorite band. 😀

After this trip to the mall, I don’t think I will go again for another handful of years lol. But, I was able to treat myself with an awesome pick me up purchase and for that I am grateful!

What was the first album that you ever bought? What is your favorite band? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb6

TJMaxx Mini Haul

Posted on February 6, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! Thanks to lots of Christmas gift cards to TJMaxx, I have been able to enjoy completely guilt free shopping trips for goodies and necessities. But let’s be honest, gift card or no – I never feel guilty when I’m getting my shop on lol! What is buyer’s remorse, anyways? This past week, I stopped into TJs because I needed a few trash cans and I was on the hunt for a new chapstick for my constantly chapped lips. I ended up walking away with all of the following for only thirty dollars:

The trash can situation for the bathrooms in my apartment was a unique one. We only had one bathroom at our old place and this might be TMI but I ended up ralphing in the trash can we had and threw it out. Rather than invest in a new one, I decided to repurpose the brown paper bags that Giant Eagle used to use to pack up curbside orders. We seriously had a ton and we brought our supply to our new apartment with two bathrooms. The brown paper bag trash can was working well when, suddenly, Giant Eagle quit using them and our collection quickly began to dwindle down. Buying new trash cans was finally in order and I got the two seen above for under twenty dollars. Johnny and I are officially living the high life. 😀

For skin care, I was mainly looking for a new chapstick and ended up walking away with a few extras. For my lip chap, I got the Pacifica Rainbow Watermelon balm and it is really nice! It definitely has a lot more oomph to it than the drugstore brand I’ve been using and it smells exactly like the watermelon Lip Smackers from back in the day as an added bonus. I also decided to give the lip mask by Dr. PawPaw a try partially because the brand name is hilarious and I also never say no to a product that has the potential to soften, smooth, and plump my pout!

Finally, I got an extra serum by Pearlessence to get my skin care hoard back to fully stocked status. I have used a few Pearlessence products before and like the brand well enough and went with their Vitamin C and Ferulic Acid serum. I have no idea what Ferulic Acid is but the sunset coloring of the serum was so pretty that I decided to go for it. Clearly, it doesn’t take much for me to give something my stamp of approval lol.

While this wasn’t the most exciting TJs Haul, I still got everything I needed and then some. I can’t wait to go back when their spring clothes finally hits the racks!

What is your favorite chapstick? What are essential ingredients in your skin care? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb4

Bath & Body Works January Freebies

Posted on February 4, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hello! I got two freebie coupons from Bath & Body Works last week for a full and travel size item and I couldn’t believe my good luck. Free full size product coupons are a rarity from B&BW and I couldn’t wait to cash them in. Tuesday afternoons are usually when I run errands so I stopped in to pick out some goodies and ended up walking away with twenty-three dollars worth of completely free product. It was awesome! Check it out:

I decided to go for a shower gel for my full size product because I recently bought a few lotions from B&BW on the cheap. I was in the mood to try a new scent out and was instantly drawn to the dreamy packaging for one of their new fragrances called Among The Clouds. I loved the sparkle and sunset colors – it just looked so sweet and girly and I knew that it had to smell good. And it did! Among The Clouds features fragrance notes of wild berry and whipped vanilla and it is divine. It kind of reminds me of the Mixed Berry Lip Smackers from back in the day and I think that it will be a perfect scent for the spring and summer. I highly recommend giving it a shot!

For my travel size item, I chose a hand cream in Gingham, which is one of my favorite B&BW fragrance lines. I have used the Bath & Body Works hand cream before and I can’t say that I was overly impressed by it. Their hand creams are fairly greasy and don’t absorb well. However, you can’t beat free and I suppose it doesn’t matter all that much when I only use it before bed!

As I was driving home with my free mini haul, I was blown away by the coupons from B&BW. In total, Johnny and I probably spend less than one hundred dollars per year at Bath & Body Works for our hand soaps and wallflowers. The rest of the products that I get are free nine times out of ten and I receive a coupon for more at least once per month. A monthly free travel size product coupon results in over one hundred dollars of free per year. Essentially, B&BW matches what I spend with freebies and I am so there for it. 😀

This coupon cash in session was one of my best yet at Bath & Body Works and I was riding the high of twenty plus dollars of free my whole way home. I can’t wait to go back next month because I think that I will definitely be getting more Among The Clouds products!

Which stores offer the best coupons? How do you save money on your must have products? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan21

Bath & Body Works Mini Haul

Posted on January 21, 2023 by lifewithlilred

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Hey! I have been running low on lotion in my beauty stockpile and have been looking forward to getting my next freebie coupon from Bath & Body Works in the mail. Unfortunately, the coupon I received this past week was for a free wallflower and not a travel size lotion! It was all good, though, because I use the wallflowers too so I stopped in B&BW after work to cash in my coupon. In store, I was so happy to see products marked down seventy-five percent and couldn’t pass up on such a great deal. I ended up getting all of the following for just ten dollars after an additional twenty percent off. GREAT SUCCESS!!

I have a love/hate relationship with the wallflowers from Bath & Body Works. I started getting them this past fall because I adored the Halloween plugins. At first, I was amazed by how good the wallflowers made my apartment smell. However, the scents seem to dissipate really quickly and within a few days, I turn completely noseblind to the fragrance. I, honestly, knew that the wallflowers were going to be a money trap as soon as I got them. Even though I receive free coupons fairly frequently for wallflowers, I have two plugins so I always end up having to buy another one!

I decided to go with the Aloha Kiwi Passionfruit and Raspberries & Whipped Vanilla for my wallflowers. With the dreary January weather, I thought something tropical would be a nice change of pace and the Aloha Kiwi Passionfruit is just right! While Johnny is a huge fan of tropical scents and flavors, I am not. I know we will both be able to agree on my wallflower choice, though! The Aloha Kiwi Passionfruit is bright and sunny without being overpowering. Softer notes of kiwi and passionfruit paired with zingy pineapple made for a pleasing scent that will have me feeling summery despite the crap weather.

My other wallflower selection was Raspberries & Whipped Vanilla, which I really liked. As you can tell from the lotion I purchased, I love the raspberry scents from B&BW. The Raspberries & Whipped Vanilla is such a classic sweet/tart fragrance combining bold raspberries and lemon with decadent strawberries and vanilla. I am actually pretty excited to use this one and it will be perfect for Valentine’s Day!

To conclude my mini haul, I bought two Sun-Ripened Raspberry body creams at just four dollars apiece. This is one of my favorite old school B&BW scents and I was bummed out that they didn’t have the fragrance spray and shower gel! Even though I already got a dose of raspberry with my wallflower, I needed more and I love that the Sun-Ripened Raspberry features a purely tart scent. The body creams from B&BW are so rich in texture and fragrance and I am really looking forward to using mine. 😀

You just can’t beat four Bath & Body Works products for ten bucks and I am very pleased with my mini haul. The seventy-five percent off items and throwback scents also have me daydreaming about the semi-annual sale already!

What is your favorite Bath & Body Works scent? Where is your favorite place to shop for bath and body care? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct3

Bath & Body Works Mini Haul

Posted on October 3, 2022 by lifewithlilred

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Hello! I had a couple of free coupons to cash in at Bath & Body Works and they couldn’t have come at a better time. My lotion supply in the stock pile has been running low and you can also never have too much shower gel! Because of my fear that I would be rang up by an employee who followed the “limit one free coupon per day” rule, I decided that it wouldn’t hurt to buy two more wallflowers too. *Spoiler alert* the cashier didn’t care lol and I got all of the following for six bucks:

A little fun fact about me is that I don’t really like birthday cake (It’s a texture thing) but I LOVE birthday cake ice cream and anything scented like it. I had never seen the Happy Birthday scent at Bath & Body Works before and was all over it like bees to honey. The scent description is “frosted vanilla” and it most certainly is! It smells just like a freshly made rich vanilla cake and I’ve already taken fifty plus whiffs of it while writing this. I am SO happy that I was able to get both the lotion and shower gel for free so if you catch scent of a freshly made pastry while out and about, it’s probably just me. 😀

As you all know, prior to purchasing my Halloween themed wallflower holders from B&BW, I was very much against buying them. This wasn’t because I didn’t like the idea of the product itself because I did. It was more of the fact that I would like them too much and it would just be another item that I’d have to keep up with buying. However, here we are now six wallflowers in and I ain’t mad about it. They are an absolute delight!

Johnny and I are currently using the Wild Berry Tea Spritzer and Honey Crisp Apple wallflowers. As expected, my favorite scent of apple is divine but we both can hardly smell the tea spritzer. I would have bought another Honey Crisp Apple if it was available but, alas, it wasn’t so I settled for Mahogany Apple, instead. There wasn’t a tester open of this scent so I’m not sure what it smells like but I’m hoping that the woodsy fragrances won’t overpower the apple. We’ll find out soon enough.

Since the tea spritzer wallflower was a bust, I decided to go with something that I knew I would enjoy and that is Gingham Love. I am obsessed with the Gingham line and when they added Love I almost lost my shit – it was my favorite scent this summer! With all of the original crispness of Gingham and juicy berries thrown in for good measure, Gingham Love is the sequel scent that I didn’t know I needed. It is the perfect summer in fall fragrance and I can’t wait to use the wallflower!

You just can’t beat six dollars for four products and I am thrilled with this B&BW Mini Haul. Is it bad that I’m already daydreaming about their holiday scents?!

What is your favorite Bath & Body Works scent? What is your favorite B&BW fragrance season? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct1

Mini Halloween Haul

Posted on October 1, 2022 by lifewithlilred

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Hello! It is spooky season all year long in mine and Johnny’s world and the decor in our apartment reflects this. We love all things horror and true crime and Halloween is the happiest time of the year for us. Now that we are settled comfortably in our new apartment, we really wanted to upgrade our spooky decor since we have so much more additional space.

After a wildly successful haul at Marc’s, a discount store in my neck of the woods, I was itching to go back. I got all kinds of cool Halloween goodies and the best part was seeing the same items I purchased at Walgreen’s for triple the cost. The haul below costed me a whole ten bucks at Marc’s and from the Akron Zoo when I went with my nieces and sister. You can peep the OOTD from our outing tomorrow! Now, let’s take a look-see at my new Halloween treats – no tricks necessary!

^^^ The little ghost and pumpkin are from the zoo, the rest is from Marc’s.

My Johnny has a huge collection of Halloween themed socks and he actually just bought a ton more from TJMaxx when we went last week. I was so proud! I’d be a liar if I said that I wasn’t a tad jealous so I was so happy to find some socks of my own at Marc’s. They are also the same brand of the Frankenstein socks that Johnny surprised me with last year and that I’m currently wearing right now! While my collection will never achieve Johnny level, it’s a pretty good start. 😀

The skull candles were a whopping two for a dollar and I am obsessed with them. 1) Talk about a STEAL and 2) they will be perfect for our scary movie marathons every weekend! The piece de resistance of my haul, however, is the skeleton hand candle holder. This costed me two dollars and I couldn’t believe my good luck. It reminded me so much of this year’s Bath & Body Works Halloween line and probably would have been selling for twenty or more bucks from there. Talk about an amazing find!

And, finally, who knew you could find some Halloween cuteness at the zoo?! At the Akron Zoo, you have to exit through the gift shop and it’s a total money trap lol. I love spoiling my nieces with a new stuffed animal every time we go, though, so what can ya do except buy a treat for yourself too! Every year, Johnny and I work on instilling a love of Halloween in our oldest niece, Val. It’s definitely working and she picked out the pumpkin for herself. She also plays with the decorations on our spooky shelf whenever she comes over. Proud aunt and uncle alert!! ❤

Not bad for a ten dollar haul, right? Mine and Johnny’s apartment is filling up nicely with Halloween decor and it is what we have always wanted. A local discount store with the coolest spooky treats is really helping the cause!

What is your favorite discount store? Do you have your Halloween decorations out yet? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep26

Halloween Treats (No Tricks!)

Posted on September 26, 2022 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! Last weekend, Johnny and I went to TJMaxx AND got Mexican food after an OOTD shoot (Keep it posted for that!). It was literally all of my favorite activities in one morning and it was a HOOT! Of course, whenever I go to TJs, it is physically impossible for me to leave without a little treat for myself or someone else. My purchases included an amazing houndstooth vest by Sincerely Jules as well as these fun Halloween goodies:

When it comes to my own personal philosophy on fashion, I place style over comfort every single time. If I like something enough, I will make it work even if it is slightly uncomfortable. In fact, other than pajamas, two pairs of leggings, and a couple of hoodies everything I own is runway ready. This is just me but I would rather spend my money on a great pair of jeans over a pair of sweats any day of the week – sue me for it!

The Better/Together cropped Halloween sweater broke this mindset clean in two because it is quite possibly the most comfortable thing that I have ever owned. It is the softest, coziest little number and, oh yeah, it’s cute too! As soon as I saw it, I thought that it would be just perfect for snuggling up in and watching scary movies. It will also be great for a brisk day at the pumpkin patch with Johnny, my nieces, or clients for some Halloween fun.

Once I completed a super quick once over of the clothing department (I knew Johnny wouldn’t approve of my standard two round process), we headed to the home decor section. I couldn’t believe my luck that another Royal Stafford plate pattern was available because I am obsessed with them. I have quite the collection of their spooky themed plates and always have to buy one if they’re there. This new addition might just be my favorite yet and it’s basically me and Johnny! Although they are way too pretty to eat off of, I like having them just to have them lol. I’ll find out some cool way to incorporate my plates into my apartment decor… eventually. 😉

There were no tricks to this mini TJMaxx Haul, just lots of treats! Stay tuned on lifewithlilred for a brand new OOTD and more Halloween happiness! 😀

Do you have any scary movie recommendations? What do you value more, style or comfort? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug30

TJMaxx Mini Halloween Haul

Posted on August 30, 2022 by lifewithlilred

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Hello! In terms of shopping, I think that right now is the most wonderful time of the year. I love when fall clothing starts making a comeback and, of course, all of the Halloween goodies! This past week, I couldn’t help indulging in the former and the latter during some much needed retail therapy. I went to TJMaxx at just the right time when they started putting out their Halloween decor and walked away with the following:

Johnny and I keep our spooky decorations up all year round so I was excited to get some new additions for our little slice of Halloween heaven. I freaking LOVE the snow globe featuring a skull and striking snake. The best thing about it, of course, is the little bats floating around in lieu of glitter. It is just so cute and looks great on one of the shelves in our book nook. It was also the only one in the store. 😀

I also just had to get two new plates by Royal Stafford with his and hers skulls on it. When I saw these on display, I literally clutched my pearls because I have several plates from this brand already. I purchased them almost three years ago and have never seen anything like it at TJMaxx since so I felt lucky to find more to add to my collection. They are way too pretty to use for its intended purpose of eating off of but I like having them just to have them lol.

Halloween is in my home all of the time but is officially in the air in stores and I am so there for it. Johnny and I plan on having a Halloween shopping crawl soon for more decor and I can’t wait!

What is your favorite holiday to shop for? Which stores have the best holiday decor? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug29

Bath & Body Works Mini Haul

Posted on August 29, 2022 by lifewithlilred

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Hello!! This past week, I had a bunch of errands to run and decided to partake in a little retail therapy. You can peep a new TJMaxx Haul soon but, today, we are going to chat about my finds at Bath & Body Works. I had two freebie coupons to cash in for a travel sized product and a hand sanitizer. I also decided that I should probably buy some more of their wallflower fragrances while I was there! Check it out:

Prior to my last haul at B&BW, I had never used their wallflowers before. However, I had a coupon for a free one and their Halloween plugins were too cute to pass up! Now that I have two in my apartment, one upstairs and one down, I can’t believe it took me this long to join the bandwagon. They are DELIGHTFUL! The wallflowers provide the perfect amount of fragrance without being overpowering. They are also super long lasting and after over twenty days of use I still have half a vial left.

Aside from freebie coupons, I also had a twenty-five percent off one so I bought two wallflowers with it. I went with Honeycrisp Apple and Wildberry Tea Spritzer. As you all know, I live for apple fragrances and the one I selected is so fabulous for fall. It smells like a just bitten apple and I can’t wait to use it. The Tea Spritzer fragrance is nice but it is not my favorite – I just happened to like it the most out of the available options. It actually smells exactly like the summery beverage I imagined but it is just a little too sweet for my liking. We will see what it’s like when I try it!

I am a huge fan of the B&BW hand sanitizers and was excited to be able to pick out a free one. Their PocketBacs leave my hands feeling so clean without drying them out and have become a must have when I’m on the go. I decided to keep with the squeaky clean vibes and chose Sunshine & Lemons. It’s zingy, tart, and will be a nice reminder of summer come fall.

For my free travel sized item, I got the old standby scent of Japanese Cherry Blossom. Not because I wanted to but because I was running low on lotion in my stockpile and it was the literal only option there lol (I was shopping at a pop up store because they are adding a White Barn to a nearby location). We all know the scent, we loved it in high school, and that’s all I have to say about that. But, hey, a free lotion is a free lotion!

For twelve bucks, I got four products and you just can’t beat that. I also contained myself and didn’t buy anymore Halloween goodies so it was a GREAT SUCCESS of a Mini Haul!

What is your favorite Bath & Body Works scent? What was your favorite fragrance in high school? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

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