Tag Archives: tjmaxx

Mar29

On The 6th Day, She Rested OOTD

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On The 6th Day, She Rested OOTD

Hello! Normally, Johnny and I spend some time on Saturdays taking OOTD pictures during one of our outings. This past Saturday, however, was an incredibly shitty one and by the time we got home around four o’clock, I wanted nothing more than to sink into the couch, watch TV, and play the demo of Diablo IV with my main squeeze. To add salt to the wounds, we came home to no power that didn’t get restored until later the following day. It sucked! On the bright side, it was still bright enough in the apartment to snap some pictures of my too tired to care, makeup free OOTD lol. Check it out:

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Who? What? Wear?

The Office Hoodie: TJMaxx

Leggings: Express

Makar Plushie: Best Buy

Sam Plushie: Ordered from Amazon

Obviously, this OOTD required no thought in the slightest so we don’t really have to go into further detail about that! But, we can talk about the evening where Johnny and I time traveled back to the good old days when TV and video games didn’t exist. Wind storms blew trees down in good old Timber Top, which resulted in the power outage that left us to our own devices; all while not even being able to use any of our own devices! See what I did there? 😉

After we took these pictures, we had about two or so hours until the sun started to go down. During that time, we stayed downstairs and called upon Melvin and Penelope to provide us with some evening entertainment. We must have sat there for over an hour just watching them explore and frolic around our bunny proofed area. Honestly, it was great lol. Melvin and Penelope are our babies and it’s hilarious to see what kind of mischief they find themselves in. They have so many toys, but they both prefer Chewy boxes the best and Johnny and I cheered them on as they shredded, climbed, and zoomed around during their “box time”. Johnny even treated us to his charming rendition of a song about leafy greens set to the tune of “Here Comes The Sun”. So cute!

Once the bunnies had tuckered themselves out and went back into their hutch, there wasn’t much left to do. It was getting dark, the power was nowhere close to coming back on, and our options became limited. We toyed with the idea of a board game, then vetoed it since we lacked flashlights and candles. So, we just went upstairs and listened to what I jokingly referred to as our “Fireside Chats”.

Johnny had the ingenious idea to play some stand up comedy shows on our Bluetooth speaker. After about twenty minutes of the first guy we listened to, I expressed my distaste so Johnny put on someone we can always agree on; Patton Oswald. We love him! Despite laughing our heads off, I knew that it would be short lived because Johnny falls asleep as soon as he gets comfortable. Within forty-five minutes, he was fast asleep and since I wasn’t trying to sit alone in the dark, I joined him. I got ready in the bathroom by the light of my phone and thus concludes the tale of how we were both asleep by nine o’clock on a Saturday night!

On The 6th Day, She Rested; mainly because I didn’t have a choice in the matter! I guess going to bed early on a weekend isn’t always so bad, but I’ll be looking forward to an evening set in 2023 next Saturday. Keep it posted for the blooper reel from this mini shoot tomorrow!

How do you entertain yourself during a power outage? Who is your favorite comedian? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Mar28

Vitamin C Skin Care Routine

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Vitamin C Skin Care Routine

Hello!! My skin type would definitely fall under the “normal” category. I don’t experience oil, acne, or sensitivity and my woes usually only come from dry skin in the winter. Thanks to this, I get a lot of free range to try new skin care products; I can’t think of any adverse reactions my skin has had from testing new skin care and I don’t need specific products for my skin type. As you all know, I love to try new products out and the skin care I use at a given time ranges from brightening and hydrating to firming and fine line repair. However, I literally just noticed a major difference in my current routine after several weeks!

I wouldn’t say my skin has a “dull” appearance, but I can tell when I am feeling more tired than usual, which is basically all the time lol. For the past few weeks, I have found my skin to be much brighter than normal despite being a chronically sleepy gal. After examining my skin care routine, I realized that I have been using three Vitamin C products and I know I have them to tip my cap to for the brightening boost:

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It has been a good long while since I stacked like skin care products. Honestly, the last time was probably when I was a teenager and trying to figure out what would work for my skin. Individually, I could see that the Clinical Works cleanser, Spa Cosmetics serum, and Bellyssima moisturizer worked well. Then, after other products got used up and their forces combined, I felt like the sun had nothing on my radiance!

With Vitamin C times three, I feel like a whole new me and it has turned what I used to think was a very solid skin care routine on its head. And, dare I say it, I might just begin limiting myself to like products when I restock at TJMaxx to see what happens! Let’s talk a bit more about the skin care that I am currently using because I think you will love them if you are looking for an extra dose of brightness:

Clinical Works Cleanser: This cleanser is divine! It smells very citrusy and is so invigorating to use every morning. A nickle sized dollop goes a long way and it lathers well, turning into lush bubbles instantly. Not only does this cleanser brighten, but it really does cleanse too. My skin feels squeaky clean after each use and I can feel the grime and yuck scrubbing away, leaving nothing but soft, radiant skin in its wake.

Spa Cosmetics Serum: I have been enjoying this serum a lot. It has a fairly light citrus scent and is thicker in texture. Normally, I don’t like products with a thicker consistency, but I never mind if it’s a serum. Once again, a nickle sized dollop of this product is all you need for full neck and face coverage and the bottle I’m working on is lasting me a long time. It is the perfect serum to activate the work the cleanser put in even more as well as the moisturizer during the next step in my routine.

Bellyssima Moisturizer: This moisturizer is one of the best ones that I have tried in months. I was instantly enamored with the whipped orange scent and the texture is rich and creamy, but absorbs quickly. It also sits so well underneath makeup. The Bellyssima moisturizer locks in all of the good stuff from the cleanser and serum and my skin is left looking like peaches and cream. I can’t get enough of this moisturizer and am keeping my fingers crossed to find it again at TJMaxx!

It has been grey and rainy in my neck of the woods, but my skin feels like sunshine and rainbows with my new Vitamin C routine. I highly recommend each of these products and they are all cruelty free. Check them out if you get the chance!

What is your skin care routine like? Do you stack like products or use a bunch of different things? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Mar23

Oh So Cozy OOTD

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Oh So Cozy OOTD

Hello everyone and welcome to a brand new OOTD here on lifewithlilred!! Although the weather has warmed up significantly this week, spring was still nowhere to be found over the weekend. It was SO cold with lots of snow flurries so I knew that I would have to dress warmly, despite shorts weather being on my mind heavily. For hopefully one of the last times until fall, I went shopping in the cold weather department of my wardrobe and this is what I came up with:

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Who? What? Wear?

Knit Poncho: Loft

Chartreuse Sweater: For The Republic, TJMaxx

Coated Skinny Jeans: Seven Jeans, TJMaxx

Platform Boots: Forever 21

Pendant Necklace: Urban Outfitters

Creating weekly OOTDs for lifewithlilred was my goal for 2023 and I have been crushing it so far. At first, selecting outfits was a simple feat because I have so many clothes that haven’t been featured on OOTD posts before. However, it definitely got more challenging as time went on and new to all of you pieces dwindled. This meant that I had to begin getting even more creative with my choices to breathe new life into older clothes and things that you have seen before. Thankfully, Lil Red never shies away from a challenge and I have been having a blast with it. I love what I came up with this past weekend!

Due to the weather, I was limited to fall and winter clothes and that really narrowed down the outfit building process. I played around with different sweaters, wraps, and button downs but was left feeling bored. So, I decided to clear my tunnel vision and explore options that I might have vetoed in the past for OOTD posts by deeming them “too old”. Afterwards, the inspiration came and I knew I was on the right track as soon as my eyes landed on my knit poncho from Loft.

This poncho is an oldie but goodie and is about seven years old. I got it on a family vacation while outlet shopping with my mom, but never wore it as much as I originally thought. Now, I am kicking myself in the butt for it because it’s so great! The shape is, honestly, perfect and is more form fitting than any poncho I have ever seen in stores since. I like this because something cozy doesn’t always have to mean oversized and the thick cable knit still left me plenty warm.

Because the Loft poncho fits more snugly, I had to be careful about what I chose to wear underneath it. Anything too bulky would make me look like a marshmallow and I really didn’t want to lose the poncho’s close to my body shape. My solution was to pair it with one of my favorite sweaters by For The Republic. It is super light with not too much wiggle room in the torso and bell sleeves. It was an ideal combination because the poncho laid so nicely over top of it but the flowy sleeves were exposed and added lots of movement. Also, I can’t get enough of the striking chartreuse shade – one of my favorite colors to wear.

For the jeans, I went with my pair by Seven Jeans to add some variety in the texture department. With cozy knitwear featured on top, I wanted the coated snakeskin patterned skinnies to liven things up. I loved the way that the sheen in the pants played against the more matte hues on top and it added much more visual interest than a regular old pair of jeans. One of my goals when styling outfits is to create looks that makes the eyes dance; incorporating different textures is one of the best ways to do this.

With the base of my outfit settled, it was time for shoes and accessories. For shoes, I wore my Forever 21 platforms to create a long leg line with the skinny jeans. The flame detailing on the back of the heel also added a fun pop of color to a minimal palette. For accessories, I didn’t want to wear dangly earrings as I wanted my neck exposed since almost all of me was covered up. The blank canvas of the poncho, however, was begging for a necklace! To complete the look, I put on a long gold pendant by Urban Outfitters and I was out the door!

My Oh So Cozy OOTD kept me snug as a bug and totally feeling myself all day. It was also a fantastic reminder to explore every single option in my wardrobe because, apparently, that’s where the magic happens. Keep it posted for the blooper reel tomorrow!

How old is the oldest thing in your closet? At what temperature do you start wearing spring clothes? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Mar16

Peek A Boo Pop OOTD

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Peek A Boo Pop OOTD

Hello everyone!! Ohio went from a really mild winter with fairly high temps to freaking freezing these past two weeks. I thought spring was just around the corner and I’m beyond over it! Because the weather has been less than amazing, fall and winter clothes are still the move. However, I want warm weather so badly that I styled an outfit with a peek a boo pop for some summer fun. Remind me of this statement in a few months when I start complaining about how hot it is! Lol, check it out:

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Who? What? Wear?

Army Green Button Down: Beautiful Stories, TJMaxx

Embroidered Crop Top: Target

Skinny Jeans: American Eagle Outfitters

Heeled Boots: Free People, TJMaxx

Hoop Earrings: Argentino Vivo, TJMaxx

With summer on the mind but nowhere to be found, I wanted to create a look that would be appropriate for cold or warm weather with a few modifications. When the Beautiful Stories button down is buttoned up, you still get an adorable pop of the red violet crop. But could you imagine this outfit styled for the heat? All you need to do is keep the button down open and trade the jeans for shorts and BOOM – you have a perfectly summer OOTD. 😀

I have several army green button downs and decided to start building my outfit from there. I chose the Beautiful Stories one primarily for its shape. It is a standard cut and style whereas the other ones I have are either too long or or too bulky. Not only is the one I selected ideal for what I needed, but it really is gorgeous. The pattern on the back is so striking and the colors used closely mimic the orange and yellow on the crop top underneath.

When I picked out the Beautiful Stories button down, I instantly thought about my Bollywood inspired crop from Target. Everything about this combination worked in my favor. Purple and green are complementary colors so pairing them together was no issue and, of course, the colors in the patterns helped too. The crop top also had the wow factor I wanted once the button down was open. Sure, I could have worn a simple black crop underneath but where is the fun in that?!

Since I refuse to wear anything but black skinny jeans, we will move right onto accessories. For this look, I wanted to keep these to a minimum because the bold patterns on top served as an accessory in themselves. My Free People heeled boots spoke to me immediately as the winner in the shoe department. These are one of my faves and the cream base and tan heel paired beautifully with the color palette I was working with.

To complete the look, I put on my huge gold earrings by Argentino Vivo. These were such an amazing TJMaxx find and I love them so very much. The oversized style brought attention back to my face, which was needed as the tops were both fairly loud. And, obviously, the gold color was just right to enhance the patterns and jewel tones featured in this OOTD!

My Peek A Boo Pop OOTD is a look that is very easy to recreate, whether in the snow or sunshine. I can’t wait to rewear this outfit with summer modifications as soon as winter finally decides to be over!

What is the weather like where you live? What are you looking forward to as the seasons change? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb26

Pacifica Rainbow Watermelon Lip Balm Review

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Pacifica Rainbow Watermelon Lip Balm Review

Hello!! During the wintertime, I like to switch up my skin care and use more nourishing products to combat dryness. In Ohio, our winter has been super mild and, other than my hands, I experienced minimal dryness overall. However, that cannot be said for a new to me issue that cropped up over the past month and change: My lips have been permanently chapped. Around the beginning of January, my lips went from completely fine to totally awful. And, it was TOTALLY AWFUL!!

My lips were so dry and flaky and they were constantly cracking at the sides. It was annoying and, honestly, a little painful because they were so sore and tender. I tried at least three different chapsticks and all of them literally did nothing and that was frustrating because it just kept getting worse. At the beginning of February, I decided I needed to up the ante and headed to TJMaxx to see if I could find anything with more oomph. There weren’t too many options to choose from and I walked away with a lip balm by Pacifica and the hopes that it would help:

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^^^ Can we please talk about how my nails match this lip balm perfectly?!

I wasn’t expecting much from this lip balm at all, if anything. Then, I used it and ate my words. The Pacifica lip balm is, hands down, the absolute BEST balm that I have ever used. In fact, after just a few short weeks of having it, I already had to order more because I refuse to let chapped lips be a problem for me again. And, now I know that it won’t be!

Let’s start off with the scent, because it is delightful. The Rainbow Watermelon smells exactly like the Watermelon Lip Smackers of my youth and nothing pleases me more than that fun dose of nostalgia! It’s also nice to have a touch of summertime even in the winter. Even if this balm didn’t do jack, I would have been happy to use it based on scent alone lol.

But guess what? This balm did do jack. It did A LOT of jack! After using this balm religiously since buying it, I will never use a standard chapstick again. It wasn’t until using the Pacifica balm that I noticed how a regular drugstore chapstick just sits on top of your lips. When I used the Pacifica balm for the first time, I could actually feel it absorbing and working on a deeper level to rid myself of perma-chap.

I figured that it would take a while for my lips to heal fully because they were pretty bad, but I began noticing results so quickly. Within a few days, the dry and flakiness were eliminated. By the end of the week, the cracks on the sides of my mouth healed completely and during that process they didn’t break open once. The Pacifica balm moisturized so well that even when I didn’t have a fresh application on for a while, my lips didn’t feel in danger of resorting back to the way they were before. I can’t believe I went so long suffering from chapped lips when my solution was just a trip to TJMaxx away!

If regular chapstick is failing you, then I cannot recommend the Pacifica lip balm enough. I’m so excited for my multipack to ship so that I can try the Coconut and Vanilla scents! 😀

What is your favorite chapstick flavor? What is the best product for chapped lips? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb18

Valentine’s Day Date Night OOTD

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Valentine’s Day Date Night OOTD

Hello! This past weekend, Johnny and I enjoyed a wonderful Valentine’s Day date night seeing Hadestown at Playhouse Square. Dressing for the theater is one of my favorite things and Playhouse Square is, arguably, one of the fanciest places I have ever been to. This means that it is essential to show out and it is such fun to see what everyone else deems as theater appropriate at the show. For my V-Day/theater OOTD, I wanted to create an ultra sophisticated look with a few sexy surprises to keep things interesting. This is what I came up with and I felt like a star:

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Who? What? Wear?

To begin styling this look, I started with my maxi skirt from Target. This little number is as old as the hills but it is one of my favorites and I love the slip to sheer set up. The slip cuts off at the mid thigh and the bare legs added some sex appeal without taking away from the overall romance of the skirt. While I love a sweet and cute V-Day OOTD, I wanted a “dark romance” theme for a nighttime look and this skirt as the base allowed me to accomplish it.

I wanted this skirt to read more like a dress and the obvious choice was pairing it with my cami top from French Rooster. Now, I am well aware that I use this top in many an OOTD… And I have yet to see a problem with it! There was a time when I wanted to wear all new to my viewers pieces for each OOTD post and that was fine but not necessarily true to the way I get dressed. I do have a lot of key pieces that I not only love wearing but are easy to build outfits with and the French Rooster top is one of them. Believe me, I rolled my eyes when I selected this top yet again but it’s not a bad thing. Rather, it just shows its versatility as it can compliment a multitude of different styles.

One of the best things about Playhouse Square is that after a brief walk in the parking garage, you aren’t outside at all as a connecting bridge takes you to the theater. Knowing this, I decided to throw caution to the wind and not wear a coat once the base of my outfit was settled. Yes, it was a bit cold out but there are some outfits that I just hate to cover with a coat and this was one of them. I also wanted to let my tattoos air out since they have been covered up all winter! So, all I had to do was move onto accessories.

For the shoes, I went with my pointed toe kitten heels by Nine West. Although these are not the most exciting pair that I own, I think that they are so sweet and the skirt blended effortlessly into them. The bejeweled band going across the top is also everything and added some blingy fun. These heels were the perfect height and got me at the ideal level off of the ground so that my skirt wasn’t dragging. What a faux pas that would have been, amiright?!

To complete the outfit, it was time for final touches. First, I chose my faux fur collar by St. Tropez. There is nothing like some faux fur to elevate a look for the theater. It brings the drama from the stage to the outfit and bonus points if it is in a unique color like this dusty lavender! Since the fur took up a lot of real estate near my neck and shoulders, I went for small dangly earrings to add some movement and bring attention back to my face.

There still felt like there was something missing after most of the accessories had been decided on, though. While the faux fur collar does do a fairly good job of covering things up on top, it still comes open. So, for a peekaboo surprise, I added my gold lock necklace by Michael Kors. It fell at just the right length and the flash of gold was exactly what I needed to feel fully satisfied with this OOTD!

Johnny and I have spent two Valentine’s Days at Playhouse Square and it is my new favorite tradition. Two date nights, two shows, two fabulous looks. So there for it!

How did you celebrate Valentine’s Day? What is your favorite thing to dress for? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

 

Feb8

Galentine’s Day OOTD

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Galentine’s Day OOTD

Hello!! This past Saturday was a fairly busy one because I was pet sitting and going back and forth to take care of a sweet pup named Luna. Afterwards, I had plans to take Johnny out for dinner because he did such a good job cleaning the apartment this past week! Since we had a date night, I decided to put together a little look more appropriate for Galentine’s Day to take some pics and go out in. Granted, we ended up just DoorDashing because tired but we did go to a different bathroom brick wall at another local park so it was still a successful day! Lol, check it out:

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Who? What? Wear?

Although we should be celebrating our lady friends every day, there is something about Galentine’s Day that just hits different! Whether you’re brunching with your besties or hitting up happy hour on G-Day, I wanted to put together some outfit inspiration so you can look your best with your best girls. For this look, I wanted to use pieces in my wardrobe that were both cute, cozy, and would open up the conversation of “where did you get that?” to initiate shopping talk – a very important Galentine’s Day component!

When I first started styling my Galentine’s Day OOTD, I had my plaid skinnies by Sound & Style in mind. Afterwards, everything came into place easily because it just took a little common sense. While I love a patterned pant, they are not the most versatile and all I did was draw from the plaid to build the rest of the outfit. The base of this look pretty much had to be navy because of the base color on the pants. Then, I turned to the pinky mauve hue of the plaid to accessorize.

For the top, I chose my unicorn sweater from Loft. This was a gift from my mom a few Christmases ago and it is one of my favorites. You might notice that the navy on the sweater, pants, and peacoat is not a perfect match and that is okay! When you are styling a more monochromatic look, do not let yourself get bogged down by something like that or you will end up scrapping everything. The variants in the color you are working with will add some interest to a minimal outfit palette. As long as it is close enough, you are all good!

Because there was a pattern on my pants and top, I wanted to keep the accessories to a minimum. I went with my glittery pink hoops from Target, which I love. No Galentine’s Day look is complete without a little sparkle! These earrings added brightness around my face and note how I simply used the colors in the plaid pants to make my selection. The same process was used for the shoes. These heels are god knows how old from Plato’s Closet and were actually one of the first pairs that helped stoke the fires of my shoe addiction! The color of the heels is essentially the shade of the detailing in the pants in its brightest form and it added a poppy touch of fun to the look.

Finally, all that was left was a coat or jacket and I knew just what I wanted to put on – my peacoat from ModCloth. This was one of my first ModCloth purchases and I have had it since I was a teenager. Despite its age, it’s one of my favorite coats because it is just so adorable! The cobalt blue heart patches and piping are the girly sweet details that are a Galentine’s Day essential. While super cute, the cobalt also helped break up the sea of navy and was the perfect way to complete my outfit!

Celebrate your Galentine’s Day in style with the outfit inspo above and have the best time celebrating with your best friends! ❤

Do you celebrate Galentine’s Day? What are you going to wear and do? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Feb6

TJMaxx Mini Haul

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TJMaxx Mini Haul

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:

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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

Feb1

Be My Valentine OOTD

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Be My Valentine OOTD

Hello everyone and welcome to a brand new OOTD here on lifewithlilred! Valentine’s Day is right around the corner so I thought that I would put together a little date night inspiration for your viewing pleasure. This year for V-Day, Johnny and I are attending Hadestown at Playhouse Square which will be delightfully reminiscent of last year’s date to Jesus Christ Superstar. I’m very excited and can’t wait to spend a night on the town with my main squeeze! While I plan on heavily showing out for Playhouse Square, here is a sweet and simple V-Day look to help get your outfit planning wheels turning:

From Day:

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To Night:

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Who? What? Wear?

I try to create a new OOTD post every weekend and as I began thinking about what I might like to wear, I remembered that Valentine’s Day is approaching. This was both a shock and great news for me because a V-Day fit drastically narrowed down my wardrobe options, making this outfit a piece of cake (or chocolate!) to style. When I think about Valentine’s Day outfits, the first word that comes to mind is always “sweet”. I’m talking delicate details, silky materials, and frilly touches that make for a perfectly girly OOTD and I tried to incorporate all of that into this look.

For my Be My Valentine OOTD, I already had my Jun & Ivy skirt from Francesca’s on deck. It is one of the few pieces of holiday themed clothing that I have in my wardrobe making it both the obvious and one of the only choices lol. This skirt touches on everything that I want for Valentine’s Day clothing. I love the just above the knee length to show some leg without being too revealing. The way it flutters out on the edges is also one of those “frilly touches” that I was talking about to enhance adorableness. And, of course, you can’t go wrong with the hearts and kisses pattern which truly speaks to my Lil Red heart.

I wanted to give the illusion of wearing a dress with a tucked in top and chose one of my favorite silky camis in a gorgeous oyster shell hue. This mittoshop number is one of my favorites and the lace detailing is to die for. What is a V-Day OOTD without some lace to it, amiright? I also really like the sheen of the material to add some flare and brighten things up on top. I would classify the color of this cami as a neutral, which is why it paired with the skirt without a hitch. Remember, two neutrals together always makes a right – or however that saying goes!

With the base of my outfit sorted, it was time to accessorize. Sometimes, things just click when I’m building an outfit and the remainder came to me quickly. The red Kenneth Cole heels were a must and note the cute detailing around the buckle. So fun! Normally, I wouldn’t pair these heels with socks for fear of breaking up the leg line. But, I was showing a fair amount of skin on top as well so I gave it the go ahead and still felt like I was walking tall. You’re also not going to not wear ruffly socks on Valentine’s Day – it’s all about the frilly touches, after all. 😀

For jewelry, I first tried out a dangly pair of pearl earrings because I think pearls are a classic V-Day staple. The earrings weren’t doing anything for me, though, so I switched them out for a smaller pair. This worked much better as I felt the super dangly ones made things look crowded around my face. Then, I turned my attention to a necklace and chose my grandma’s pearls, instead. This is one of my favorite necklaces and its length was just right. It hit perfectly between the tattoos by my collarbones!

One final note on this look is that you might have noticed my red bra straps were slightly showing and this was intentional! This is me, personally, but I don’t like it when my bra straps are visible. However, I thought the peek a boo of the red worked well and was really cute. With that, my outfit was complete for taking pictures in, at least, because I changed into comfy clothes ASAP afterwards!

What are your Valentine’s Day plans? Do you own any holiday themed clothing? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

 

Jan28

January 2023 Finishes

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January 2023 Finishes

Hello everyone and welcome to the first beauty finishes post of the new year! I used up a lot of new to me products this past month and also got a lot more to try out from TJMaxx thanks to my Christmas gift cards. 😀 My beauty hoard runneth over! We have much to discuss from our empties roundup for January so let’s get to it:

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Would I Use Again?

Why/Why Not?

SpaScriptions Scrub: I started using the SpaScriptions Hyaluronic Acid + Sugar Scrub at the beginning of November and it took me until the end of January to finish it. At five dollars for the bottle, it was a great value and you only needed a small amount for full coverage on the face and neck. I liked this scrub because it was gentle enough to use every day. It was really creamy in texture with only the slightest touch of exfoliant and it smelled as sweet as candy. My skin felt well hydrated and looked radiant after every use and it is a perfect scrub for the cold winter months.

SpaLife Serum: It took me about six weeks to finish the SpaLife Hyaluronic Pearl Serum and I was unimpressed by it. The pink hyaluronic pearls were pretty and that was pretty much all that this serum had going for it. The SpaLife serum was quite runny in texture and I never noticed a difference one way or the other in how my skin looked or felt. While I love a longer lasting product, this serum missed the mark completely and I definitely wouldn’t use it again.

Elf Sleep Mask: I was so excited about the Elf Dope Dreams Sleeping Mask when I got it because sleeping masks are my fave. Using them is literally the easiest way to achieve great skin because all you have to do is go to bed! It took me about three weeks of every other day use to finish the Elf mask and I thought that it was a massive dud. I was expecting ultra soft and hydrated skin every morning when I woke up and that was never the case. In fact, my skin felt better after returning to my normal nightly skin care routine.

Clinique Eye Cream: My aunt gave me a makeup bag full of Clinique skin care samples and I couldn’t wait to test them out because I have never used Clinique products before. The moisturizer and serum that I tried didn’t blow me away but I actually really liked the Smart Clinical Repair Eye Cream. It took me two weeks of twice daily use to complete the tester jar and a little of the product went a long way. After each use, I noticed that the skin around my eyes looked so much better and brighter. This eye cream helped diminish my designer bags and I definitely didn’t look as tired as I felt! If I got this eye cream for a good deal, I would probably buy it. However, I still wouldn’t pay a full price tag for it so it is a “maybe” for me.

SkinLab Moisturizer: I like the SkinLab brand and purchased the Hydra Moisturizer during a past TJs haul. I was expecting a good experience with this moisturizer because I am familiar with the brand and that, unfortunately, wasn’t the case. It took me three weeks of twice daily use to finish the jar because a lot of moisturizer was required to fully cover the face and neck. For value’s sake alone, I wouldn’t buy this moisturizer again. It also did nothing for my skin to improve its appearance or feel so this is a big fat no from me!

Although there were a fair amount of duds in this month of empties, there were several winners too. Whether I would buy the product again or not, it’s always fun to pamper myself and my skin felt surprisingly well taken care of regardless of the chill and snow!

Which products did you use up this month? What are your thoughts on any of the above products if you have used them before? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah