Tag Archives: treat yoself

Dec19

Treat Yoself! My Grown Up Wishlist From Spring

Posted on December 19, 2015 by lifewithlilred

Hello everyone and happy weekend! I recently got invited to create my own “Treat Yoself” Grown Up wishlist with the amazing products from Spring, an online boutique for all of your fashion needs! I have to say, if I treated myself to everything that I wanted from their incredible selection of clothing and accessories, I would be in severe debt because it’s basically the entire website, which is: Spring . Click on the link, shop along, and see what Lil Red likes the most as well as what you can send my way for the holiday! 😉 ❤

Silk Gauze Parka by Laveer: Oh. My. Goodness. This jacket is fabulous. I’m a huge jacket girl and this piece really caught my eye. As I scrolled through Spring, I noticed a lot of gorgeous leather jackets as well and perhaps if I wasn’t a strict vegetarian, one of those would be on my list. But this Laveer piece is just to die for. If there’s one thing my readers have learned about me, it’s that when I purchase clothing it must fall under the criteria of: black (usually), edgy, and super chic and this jacket fits that to the T.

Blazer with Bones Crystals by Libertine: Okay, the thing about this blazer is that if I talk about it for too long I’m going to start to cry because that’s how badly I want it. I LOVE Libertine so when I saw this piece I instantly started to drool…metaphorically speaking. This is hands down my favorite item on the website, and that’s really saying something. It’s perfect. I can’t say more than that.

Mollie Box Pleat V Neck Flare Dress by Alice + Olivia: Surprise! A non black item! I adore this dress! Some people are shocked that I love dresses but the funny thing about my style is that I love either really edgy or really girly pieces, there’s no in between. What I like the most about this dress is the color because I love wearing burnt orange. Rich fall colors make up quite a bit of my wardrobe so this dress would fit in perfectly. And the fact that it’s Alice + Olivia is a plus – their clothes are darling!

Multi Blue “OH ROY” Pump by Pierre Hardy: Soooo…I really like shoes. I tried to go through all of the various categories on Spring but I got stuck on their selection of heels, boots, and flats. These. Are. FABULOUS!! I love pieces that are so unique and out there that the only question people can ask is “where did you find something like that?” These pumps by Pierre Hardy scream quirky to me, therefore, I’m in love.

Comet Mid Heel Ankle Boot with Removable Bracelet by Freda Salvador: Yes, these are leather but that’s why they’re part of my wishlist…because I wish they weren’t leather! These are the coolest pair of booties ever! And everyone knows that Lil Red loves her booties. There comes a point in the world of ankle boots when they all start to look the same but these are such a loud and cool statement and I can’t get enough of it. Size 6 1/2 pleather, please.

Embellished Tiger Sweater by Nicole Miller: The thing is…is that I’m kind of obsessed with this sweater. I scrolled through the entire section of tops on Spring and fell in love with their silly slogan-ed shirts adorned with phrases like “Namastay In Bed” but I couldn’t stop thinking about this piece! It’s so quirky, but it’s still sharp and chic and I can’t pinpoint why but I really like it. I’m not exactly one to walk around with an embellished tiger on my tops but I can definitely picture myself rocking this one!

I had a complete ball making my Treat Yoself! Grown Up Wishlist From Spring and I encourage all of you to check out their site at: Spring. What is your favorite piece from Spring? What are you going to add to your holiday wishlist from their site? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Dec15

Treat Yoself! Schofferhofer Edition

Posted on December 15, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Helloooo everyone and happy Tuesday! I hope you’re all having a fantastic week so far. So usually I’m not a big beer drinker, I’m definitely more of a wine kind of gal. But over the weekend I just had to pick up a special alcoholic treat from the grocery store, Schofferhofer’s grapefruit beer. It was one of the first drinks that I had at the bar when I turned 21 this past summer and it’s remained one of my favorites ever since. Let’s discuss:

Right now the weather in Akron, Ohio has been insane. It’s the middle of December and we’ve had temperatures in the high 60s, which is completely unheard of in our neck of the woods. Last year around this time, I can vividly remember brutal snowfalls and way below freezing temperatures. With the warm winter time weather, I developed a taste for summer over the weekend that I just couldn’t shake.

While grocery shopping with my mom at the local Giant Eagle, I swung by the alcohol department to pick up some Christmas gifts. As I browsed through the different seasonal beers, a four can pack of the Schofferhofer grapefruit beer caught my eye. I had no intention of picking anything up for myself but I just couldn’t help it! I had summer on my mind and my favorite summer time drink was calling my name.

When I saw the beer I was taken back to this past summer – my first summer of being 21. I was a big fan of ordering the tasty grapefruit flavored wheat beer at the bars, compliments of the suggestion from my sister. I love all things fruity and sweet so it was the perfect beer for me to sip on during summer nights out. What I love about Schofferhofer is that it tastes carbonated, to the point that it feels like drinking a soda. It’s SO good. After the montage of sweet summer time played through my head, I couldn’t not grab a pack of Schofferhofer from the shelf!

Over the weekend I enjoyed two cans of my favorite beer per night and it was just the little Treat Yoself pick me up that I needed. The best thing about being 21 isn’t going out to the bars to get completely white girl wasted – it’s being able to have a nice casual drink at home without having your parents jump down your throat about it! If you’re of legal drinking age and are looking for a new (super girly) beer to try, I can’t recommend Schofferhofer’s grapefruit beer enough! It’s delicious!

So there you have it, this week’s Treat Yoself! Schofferhofer Edition. Every once in a while you need to get a little something special for yourself and that’s exactly what I did this past weekend. Who has tried my favorite beer before? Are there any super fruity beers that you recommend? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jul21

Pampering Party!

Posted on July 21, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Helloooo my loves and happy Tuesday! I had a lovely weekend of head to toe pampering starting with dying my hair with my beloved Vidal Sassoon Runway Red dye from their London Luxe collection. My brother is getting married this weekend so best believe that my hair has to be nice and fresh. I’ve been coloring my hair with Runway Red for close to a year now and it has saved me a buttload of money because the color perfectly mimics what I was paying a lot of cash to get done at the salon. While I was waiting for the dye to set I had a half hour of TV time so I figured a selfie was definitely in order! Take a look:

^^^ Lol, I always joke that I feel like Heatmiser from the Christmas cartoons when I dye my hair so it was absolutely necessary to do a side by side PicStitch! My color turned out beautiful as usual and on Sunday I got my angular haircut shaped up for the wedding so it looks sharp and sleek. I plan on curling my hair and pinning it for the big day so if any of you have some hair styling tips, please let me know!

To keep my red at its brightest at all times, I only wash my hair about two times a month. I’ve been blessed with locks that don’t get greasy or oily so all I need is a dash of dry shampoo to keep it feeling clean. I usually use Batiste or Dove dry shampoo but my mom brought home a can of Herbal Essence’s “Color Me Happy” dry shampoo and I just had to try it. Let me tell you, I’m so glad I did because I absolutely LOVE it! For one, it smells awesome. For two, it makes my hair feel infinitely cleaner than Batiste or Dove. With just a quick spritz of this new product my hair goes from a weeks worth of not washing it to freshly scrubbed in a matter of seconds. If you’re a dry shampoo girl like myself then I can’t recommend this product enough! So fabulous.

If you recall from an earlier post “Lil Red Shopping Tips: Freebie Edition” then you’ll remember my recent steals from Bath & Body Works. At least once a month I get a free lotion coupon from them in the mail and every time I redeem it I go with my favorite scent called “Beautiful Day”. My go to fragrance is anything apple-y and “Beautiful Day” is the perfect combination of both floral and fruity. Not only does it don my must have scent of apples but the name of the lotion is also the name of my all time favorite song “Be,autiful Day” by U2. You can’t beat that! Every night before bed I lather myself up with my freebie lotion and it’s such a fun treat. The sweet smelling moisturizer goes in so smoothly – you can’t even feel that you have lotion on. That’s a big plus for me because I hate when I wear lotion and it feels greasy. If you’re looking for a new perfume spray or lotion to try, definitely consider “Beautiful Day” from Bath & Body Works!!

If there’s one thing that Lil Red can never recommend enough, it’s TREATING YOSELF! Nothing makes me feel better than taking some extra time to pamper and love myself. Whether that be a deep conditioning hair treatment or a spritz of a new perfume, I think it’s so important to take the time to make yourself feel good. With small pick me ups throughout the week like a rub down with a new lotion or a stylish new hair cut you’re in for a better mood and an even more fabulous appearance. So to all of my lovely readers: Take ten minutes out of your day and TREAT YOSELF!!!

So there you have it, my Pampering Party post! I hope all of you are having a great day so far! Does anyone have any tips for curling hair? What’s your favorite Bath & Body Works scent? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jun9

Break Time!

Posted on June 9, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Heyyy everyone and happy Tuesday! It’s been a solid morning of homeworking and coffee drinking, so I figured now would be a perfect time to take a study break and touch base with all of you before I continue on with my day. I’m really REALLY fucking tired today. Did I tell you guys that I’m completely out of both my sleeping pills and my antidepressant? If not…I’m completely out of my sleeping pills and antidepressant. -__- So I haven’t been sleeping much these past few days and now that I’m not on any of the pills that I’ve been taking daily for the past few years I’ve been feeling some awful withdrawal symptoms. Now on top of being exhausted from not having a decent night of sleep since last week, I feel like I have the flu but really it’s just medication withdrawal. I feel dehydrated, weak, and really disoriented…It’s not a good feeling. I’ve been up and running since nine o’clock this morning, but I already feel like I’m ready for bed and it’s barely after noon. #FML On the bright side, I treated myself to some Starbucks this morning after getting my brother to work compliments of the gift card that my nail tech got me for my birthday. If you haven’t tried the cold brewed coffee from Sbux then you need to get on it pronto. It’s a little bit more expensive than the classic iced coffee BUT it’s a million times better so it’s so worth it! When you get iced coffee from Starbucks it can be a very hit or miss experience. Sometimes your drink is awesome and other times it tastes like you’re drinking coffee that’s been sitting in a toilet for a week straight. Lucky for me, I haven’t had a disappointing drink experience ever since Starbucks introduced the cold brewed coffee and it was a nice pick me up to start off my day with coffee that I didn’t have to make. #TREATYOSELF

My Social Psychology course started yesterday and I can’t complain too much about it. Like a lot of my other classes it’s just a lot of text book reading which can get kind of boring, but that’s okay! It gets the job done and I’m still learning a lot! After this little check in I have quite a bit more to do and then I’m going to meet up with my darling Lea for a quick mid afternoon hang out. Seeing her will probably result in us getting coffee because I feel like a straight up zombie. It’s so frustrating because sleep is something that comes so easily to most people but unfortunately it’s a struggle and a half for me. Last night for example, I was totally exhausted but I couldn’t catch a solid few hours of sleep to save my life. It seemed like as soon as I dozed off I would wake up and then it would take an eternity to get myself back to sleep again. This vicious cycle has been occurring every night since last Wednesday and it’s complete hell. Whatever. -___-

Alrightie, I need to get back to work but I will talk to you all soon! Does anyone have any tried and true methods that help you fall asleep? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -A very sleepy Sarah

Mar27

Happy Friday!!

Posted on March 27, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Heyyyy everyone and TGIF! To celebrate one of the best days of the week enjoy one of the worst songs in the world and then we’ll chat!

FRIDAY FRIDAY GETTIN DOWN ON FRIDAYYYY……oh you’re done already? I…uhh…whoops. 😉

I’ll be out of office today because I’ll be spending a lovely afternoon and evening at Crocker Park with my best ladyfriend, Kate. I’ve wrote about Crocker Park before, but if you’re unfamiliar with it, it’s a beautiful outdoor shopping mall in Cleveland. It has the absolute best stores, like H&M, Urban Outfitters, and Express. Going to Crocker Park is one of my favorite things to do in Ohio and I’m so excited because I really need to finish assembling my spring and summer wardrobe. All I really need now is some shorts but I also have my heart set on finding an awesome mustard yellow piece to add to my collection. Mustard yellow is probably one of the only colors I don’t have a piece of clothing or accessory in so I hope I find something! Preferably a blazer or light jacket – I feel like a mustard yellow outerwear item would be super cute for spring. I also wouldn’t say no to a new pair of gladiator sandals either! I would love to find a knee high pair, but I’ve been having no luck finding any in stores. I’ve seen them online before, but a shoe like that is something I would definitely need to try on before purchasing so I can make sure that it’s completely perfect. Last night I downloaded the Retailmenot app on my iPod so I could get a feel for all of the sales going on at the stores in Crocker Park. There seems to be a lot of good deals going on which is great, because you know I’m all about ballin on a budget. ALSO, if you’re an H&M fan, you can go on their website and sign up for their newsletter to receive a twenty percent off of one item coupon. I love H&M so much so if I find something there today, the twenty percent off will make it even sweeter! #ballinonabudget Today is sure to be a beautiful perfect day full of fun, fashion, and of course: treatin yoself!!

I hope all of you have a fantastic Friday and weekend! Do you have any fun plans coming up? I wanna hear all about them, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

PS: If you know of any stores that sell knee high gladiator sandals please holla atcha girl!!!

Mar5

OMG Shoes!

Posted on March 5, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Shoes. Make. Me. Happy. Seriously, nothing makes me feel better than adding a new pair of kicks to my ever growing collection. In the immortal words of Madonna “we are living in a material world and I am a material girl,” damnit! But lucky for my wallet, this material girl knows how to ball on a budget, because I got a gorgeous new pair of Madden Girl combat boots for twenty dolla holla today! Special shout out to Journey’s and their amazing winter sale for providing me with a guilt free splurge on an originally sixty dollar boot! Here’s a pic of my pretty new babies:

Ahhhh I love them so much it hurts! Tonight I hit up the mall with my sisters boyfriend Ramon to visit her at work at The Body Shop. It made my retail goddess heart swell with pride to see Kristen in my previous employment stomping grounds! After we hung out with my sis for a bit, Ramon and I did some shopping of our own. I contained myself on making any purchases at any of the clothing stores, which was super hard because everything was so damn cute! I thought that myself and my bank account were home free as Ramon and I started walking towards our exit, when of course, I got sidetracked at Journey’s. A few heels caught my eye and some of the sandals were cute, but when I saw my boots I had heart palpitations. I love Madden Girl shoes so much and when I saw the $19.99 sale price I knew that it was meant to be. When I slipped these bad boys on it was true love. The love was so pure and beautiful and stronger than I feel about most people. (Ha!) In my mind I was thinking “Sarah, you have like five pairs of combat boots at home.” BUT in my defense, my beloved favorite pair in the whole wide world is no longer wearable because the bottom of the shoe is tearing off completely. (I can’t bear to part with them though.) AND all of my other pairs are worn to the ground as well, and Lil Red refuses to wear them. They’re grungy in the gross way at this point, not in the cute 90’s grunge way. Anyways, once I mentally defended purchasing the shoes, I happily treated myself with my new addition to my collection. Best twenty dollars spent EVER! #treatyoself

I have the most delightful apple scented candle burning as I write this post and happy thoughts of all of the outfits my new boots can take part in….it’s glorious! Tonight was absolutely lovely, it was a perfect start to my spring break!! To officially kick off my week long freedom from school, white girl wastedness will probably take place tomorrow! AYYY!

I hope all of you have sweet dreams and make sure to sleep as much as you can since we’re losing an hour this weekend. -___- #UGH Do you guys have any wild and crazy plans coming up? What was your favorite ballin on a budget purchase? I’d love to hear from you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! I leave you with a thought from one of the worst rappers alive, Riff Raff: “I was born to ball (on a budget!), whether it be hoopin or two door Bentley coopin.” The parenthesis were added by me, of course! Goodnight and much love! -Sarah

Feb15

Treat Yoself! Valentine’s Day Edition

Posted on February 15, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Hey guys! So yesterday I had an absolutely lovely day of Valentine’s Day shopping – TJMaxx and Target were very good to me! I had to treat myself like a princess yesterday because no one else did (lol) and no fucks were given…because no one loves Lil Red better than Lil Red! So here’s the purchases that set my bank account back a little farther than I’d like, but it was so worth it!!!

As usual, here’s a list of the brand names of each item. (All of the pieces pictured above are from TJ’s.)

Pointed toe ankle boots: Vince Camuto
Quilted tall boots: Rampage
Lace peasant skirt: Flying Tomato
Harem pants: Japna

I was SO excited when I found my pair of Vince Camuto’s. These beauties were on the clearance rack and I got them for twenty-nine bucks as opposed to the original one hundred and twelve! Such a steal!!! I have a feeling that these are going to be my new go to booties, I seriously plan on wearing them with everything. I’m looking forward to wearing them with my new harem pants, dresses and tights, and of course my black coated skinny jeans (I only wear black coated denim!)! But the beautiful thing about these booties is that they can easily be worn in the summer time as well (which is a nice thing to fantasize about considering it’s a whopping zero degrees in Akron, Ohio -___-). I can’t wait to pair these bad boys with cute little shorts, maxi skirts, and sun dresses all summer long! At Target I found a plain black crop top and a really pretty white lacey one that I tried on but didn’t buy. Naturally, I couldn’t stop thinking about them when I got home, so I went to Target’s website and was so happy to see that the tops were twenty percent off online on top of the extra five percent I get for using my Target Red Card. With all of these deals I got both crop tops for twenty dolla AND I got free shipping. #fabulous I’m pretty hyped about the white crop top because it’s going to match perfectly with my new lace peasant skirt!! It’s gonna look so pretty! :*) I’ve been meaning to get a plain black crop for forever now, so I figured “why not” and bought that too. You can’t beat two for twenty! #treatyoself

^^^ Best shopping themed song EVERRRRR! Jupiter Rising is such a guilty pleasure!

So there you have it, my special Valentine’s Day treat to my favorite gal in the world…ME!!! How did you guys celebrate V-Day yesterday? How did you treat yoself or your significant other? I wanna hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much Love. -Sarah

Feb9

I’m Baaaack!!

Posted on February 9, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Guess who’s back? Back again. Lil Red’s back. Tell a friend.

Whatsuppppp guys. Sorry that I’ve been M.I.A. this past weekend, I was and still am extremely under the weather. I have absolutely no clue what’s wrong. 😦 On Friday night I went to an excruciatingly lame party and got a little too white girl wasted. Naturally I woke up with a hella hangover the following morning, but it wouldn’t go away as the day progressed. I was achy, nauseous, and dizzy all day AND unfortunately, I’ve been achy, nauseous, and dizzy all day today. #fml The only good thing about feeling sick is that you have a really valid excuse to lay in bed and watch Netflix all day. Today I indulged in watching over half of season two of The Following and it was fantastic! I really enjoyed season one but never got around to watching the sophomore season. About a week ago I saw somewhere or another that season three will be airing soon, so I thought today would be the perfect day to get myself all caught up. Kevin Bacon and his chiseled features definitely helped me feel a little bit better! Hubba hubba! Prior to this suck ass weekend, I was having a pretty suck ass week. -___- I’ll tell you guys, Lil Red can NOT catch a break! But it’s whatever, because amongst all of the bullshit, I treated myself to a princess day on Thursday. #treatyoself

Mama needed her nails done DESPERATELY, so I decided that I would hit up the salon after my math class on Thursday morning. I got to class, annihilated a quiz, and then sat through more than half of my two hour lecture until I decided to dip out. Yes, I peaced out of my math class to get my nails done – SUE ME FOR IT! I haven’t said too much about my college classes lately, because they’re all going pretty average so far – BUT, I will tell you that my algebra professor is not my cup of tea. The thing is, is that she seems like such a nice person, but she has one major downfall….she has the worst monotone that I’ve ever heard in my life. Math bores me enough already, so when I have to deal with that on top of listening to a robot lecture the class for an entire two hours I naturally am eager to leave ASAP. So I leave class and take my sassy ass straight to the salon to see my beloved nail tech, Vinny. Vinny has been doing my nails for almost three months now and he is absolutely fantastic. This last visit he spoiled me rotten – he spent TWO hours working on my nails, bought me Starbucks, AND told me he was going to take me to see 50 Shades of Grey on Valentine’s Day! Ha! It felt so amazing to have an entire afternoon of pampering and my nails turned out perfectly, as you can see from the picture below:

So obsessed. Red like my hair and black like my heart. ❤ And here’s a few pics of me and my sweet Vinny, who keeps my nails looking fresh all day every day! #pronails

^^^ Lol, I had to!!!

So there you have it, a quick little update on everyone’s favorite Lil Red before I hit the hay. I promise that I’ll be back in action on the ol’ blog once I’m feeling better this week! Btw, who watched the Grammy’s tonight? What did you guys think of the performances? Who got snubbed out of an award? I’d love to hear from you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Goodnight! -Sarah

Jan23

The Single Sarah’s Guide To Valentine’s Day

Posted on January 23, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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The Single Sarah’s Guide To Valentine’s Day

So last night as I was brainstorming new post ideas for lifewithlilred, it occurred to me that Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. As usual, I’ll be single as fuck this Valentine’s Day. This is the twentieth V-Day in a row that I’ll be wining and dining myself, because getting an extra lollipop from this little boy in kindergarten who wanted to be my Valentine doesn’t count. To elaborate further on that, I’m pretty sure I kicked him in the shin and ran away. I’m not going to mention his name, but you know who you are and if you’re reading this – call me! So what do the people who are forever alone on Valentine’s Day do other than sob and eat chocolate from a heart shaped box in bed? Well contrary to popular belief, being single on Valentine’s Day is just as if not MORE stressful than being in a relationship because you have to think of ways to make yourself feel not pathetic all day. So here’s my without fail guide to making myself feel like the only girl in the world on Valentine’s Day, because I’m a strong, independent woman WHO DON’T NEED NO MAN!

Waking Up: Good morning, single lady and happy Valentine’s Day to you! First things first, you need to work up the inner strength to get yourself out of bed. This is a struggle in itself, so take as much time as you need, pray on it if that’s your thing, take it nice and slow and hoist yourself out of bed while whispering “you can do this, you can do this” to yourself. As soon as you’re out of bed, pat yourself on the butt because no one else is gonna do it for you today and congratulate yourself on a job well done.

*V-Day Pro Tip: Make your alarm clock ring tone Beyonce’s single girl anthem “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It).

Have A Pep Talk With Yourself: It’s time to get ready for the day, so make your way to the bathroom to take care of your daily beauty routines, be careful not to over exert yourself. Once you’re safely in the bathroom, it’s time to give yourself a Valentine’s Day pep talk. Look yourself dead in the eye in the mirror and repeat after me: “I am single. I am sexy. I will eat as much Taco Bell as I want today. I will get wine drunk and watch Legally Blonde. I don’t need a man to complete me.” Cry, and repeat. Once you’re all hyped up or possibly more depressed, get yourself looking fierce as hell because you have a hot date with yourself for the day.

*V-Day Pro Tip: There’s nothing wrong with listening to “Eye Of The Tiger” as you give yourself your pep talk.

Lunch Time: Alright sassy girl, it’s time for lunch, so make your way to the nearest Taco Bell immediately. Strut your sexy self to the cash register, and flirtatiously tell the cashier that you’ll take one of everything. If you really are ordering one of everything, I commend you for having a stomach and will power that is far greater than my own. If not, proceed with your order. DO NOT feel ashamed at how much you order from TBell, because the beauty of that place is that you can order hella food and no one will ever really think anything of it. It’s such a blessing. Get your food, and enjoy. You deserve it. Savor the glorious artificially cheesy taste and take shots of mild sauce. Feel free to get seconds or thirds, this is YOUR day.

*V-Day Pro Tip: If you flirt hard enough with the Taco Bell cashier, you might get free Cinnamon Twists.

Afternoon Of Sass: My number one rule for Valentine’s Day is and feel free to take notes: Get all of your out and about activities done before the evening. The evening is when the couples come out of their happy relationship nooks and crannies and display their boyfriend/girlfriend status for all to see. And honey, you don’t have to witness that. Anyways, it’s the afternoon, you’re probably still bloated from Taco Bell, but that’s okay. I’m an avid believer in treating yourself no matter what the day, but since you’re your very own hot Valentine’s Day date, you have full permission to go crazy for yourself. Get a manicure AND pedicure, buy that Michael Kors purse you’ve been lusting over for three solid weeks, open a bottle of wine in Giant Eagle and drink the entire thing in one gulp then run away. ANYTHING GOES. This Valentine’s Day I plan on getting some major shopping done in the afternoon and possibly getting my hair dyed at the salon instead of doing it at home. #treatyoself The afternoon is a perfect time to start drinking as well, so throw back a few cosmos and give the death glare to anyone judging you.

*V-Day Pro Tip: Give yourself a spending limit for the day, because two bottles of wine in and online shopping can lead to bankruptcy.

Friendly Reminder: While you’re having your out and about afternoon it’s crucial that you remember to get a few things:

Chick flicks
Wine and/or hard liquor
Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate
Chinese take out for dinner

*V-Day Pro Tip: Make sure you have an abundance of tissues handy. You’ll thank me later.

#Datenight: Alright my single ladies, it’s time for your evening of solitude. NOT THAT THERE’S ANYTHING WRONG WITH THAT!!! So it’s time to get into your comfiest, coziest pajamas or just get completely naked, whatever makes you happy. This is your day! Prior to your Valentine’s night rendezvous with yourself, I’d recommend getting one of those super soft fleece blankets if you don’t have one already – they’re great to cuddle with! Now is the time to bring everything into bed with you – your dinner, chocolates, alcohol, ice cream, tissues, tampons, and gossip magazines because it’s chick flick time! Legally Blonde is always one of my all time favorites to watch, but other good ones include The Devil Wears Prada, Clueless, or the Jennifer Lopez classic: Gigli. (Please PLEASE know that that was a joke. Do not, I repeat DO NOT watch Gigli.) Avoid romantic movies like The Notebook at all costs and steer towards some feel good female empowerment flicks. You don’t need a Nicholas Sparks movie to remind you further of your singlehood. Crack open the vino, shovel chocolates down your gullet at a rapid speed and enjoy!

*V-Day Pro Tip: You are GORGEOUS and I would date you!!!!

Alright my lovely single ladies, there you have it – my guide to Valentine’s Day! Please know that this post was all made in good humor and that there is nothing wrong with being a single chicka on V-Day or any day!

What are some humorous Valentine’s Day activities that I missed? What’s your favorite single girl activity to do on V-Day? I’d love to hear from you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Happy Friday! -Sarah

Jan8

Recommendations From Yours Truly ;)

Posted on January 8, 2015 by lifewithlilred

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Helllooooooo everyone and happy almost weekend!!! I’ve had a really fabulous week doing a bunch of fun stuff that I’d love to share with you guys. Maybe these ideas will give you something fun to do this weekend! Let’s discuss!

Cook Your Favorite Meal: Honestly…this one is just for my own personal enjoyment…but everyone likes food so WHY NOT let it be a group effort? During the week I had a really lovely evening with myself preparing my personal favorite meal. For about six years now my mom has made this absolutely delicious pasta salad. It uses red pepper, red onions, sauteed zucchini, mozzarella cheese, garlic, and balsamic vinegar. (You can also add herbs of your choosing and spinach if you’d like!) I could eat this salad for breakfast, lunch, and dinner…well maybe not breakfast…but it’s THAT good…so breakfast? Sure, why not?! I used to really love cooking and I’m not really sure why I ever stopped. (Maybe because my mom’s food is so good! 😉 ) I thought it would be fun to try my hand at making my favorite dish for a change, and I’m so glad I did! I really enjoyed just hanging out with myself, playing some music, and preparing a meal that I know my entire family enjoys. And guess what?! It turned out great! You know how food that you make on your own somehow always tastes better than when other people cook it? That’s exactly the experience I had when I tried out my rendition of my beloved pasta salad. My dad told me that I’ll never starve now that I know how to make my favorite dish…and he’s absolutely right! Here’s a pic of how my pasta salad turned out, and if you’d like the recipe, please let me know!

YUM!!!!! ^^^^^^

Make Some Candy: I had a glorious best friend afternoon today with my darling Lea, who you guys know all about! It’s very cold in Akron, Ohio (#REPRESENT) right now. Early this afternoon I heard on the news that it felt like -17 degrees outside. Lea and I were supposed to go sledding this afternoon, but when I heard about this drastic cold I thought “oh hell no!” So we opted for a nice, cozy day indoors cooking up some yummy treats. Once we were armed with Dunkin’ Donuts coffee, we began browsing through Pinterest, our activity destination. After ten minutes of scrolling through pages, we decided on making chocolate truffles. We raided the pantry for the we ingredients needed, then ventured back out in the cold to hit up the grocery story for what we didn’t have. The recipe was very easy to make, literally all you had to do was melt your chocolate and other ingredients together, put the chocolate in the freezer to let it stiffen, and then once the mixture is hard enough you roll them into balls and put whatever topping you would like on them. While our chocolate was melting and stiffening, we played Pentatonixs (or however you spell them), looked up the world’s largest body parts on Google Images, and hung out with Lea’s twin brother Bill. When the chocolates were stiff enough to shape them we had a silly time getting our hands dirty, because the chocolate was still gooey! We used peppermint candy that we crushed with a mallet, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips for the toppings on our truffles. They turned out so yummy! You can’t do much to mess up chocolate! 😉 Here’s a picture of us with our finished product! We’re just a bunch of regular ol’ chocolateers!

Once again…YUM!!!! ^^^

Go See Unbroken: This week I had a lovely date night with my other partner in crime, Kate, who you guys also know all about! We went to see Unbroken, which tells the courageous tale of Louis Zamperini as directed by the stunning and gorgeous Angelina Jolie. In the film we see Zamperini, the Olympic track star survive a plane crash in World War II. Unfortunately he doesn’t land to safety in the crash and ends up stranded at sea with two other soldiers. (One of them happens to be Finn Wittrock, who plays Dandy on American Horror Story: Freak Show!) The sailing in the emergency rafts are anything but smooth, and our heroes end up in a Japanese prisoner of war camp and eventually concentration camps. Zamperini suffers under the hands of a sadistic camp leader, which are some particularly difficult scenes to watch. However, the story tells an amazing tale. The screenplay by Joel and Ethan Coen was fantastic and the cinematography and sound effects in the film were truly awe inspiring. Not to mention my dream woman, Miss Jolie directed the film to perfection. The movie is quite long so I’d recommend peeing a lot before hand. Most importantly, the film really covers some heavy and disturbing issues which might not be suitable for everyone. Fun fact for ya, a man from Stow, Ohio had a few lines in Unbroken, which is a hop, skip, and a jump from where I’m at. So way to represent, Ohio, brother man!! If you’re looking for a powerful and extremely well made movie to go to this weekend, I can’t recommend seeing Unbroken enough!

Listen To Cayucas: I know, I know so typically PacSun-y of me, BUT I CAN’T HELP IT! I love these guys! They’re seriously so beachy fun and I just can’t even. My absolute favorite thing to do is play these guys while I’m taking a bubble bath or shower, because they make me feel like I’m just chilling on the beach with my little toesies in the sand. I’ve never been to the beach before (Lake Erie doesn’t count!) but this group of surfer dudes helps me make believe that I’m there. All of their songs off of their album “Bigfoot” are crowd pleasers, but my particular favorite song is “High School Lover”….and YES we did play it at PacSun, ha! This track is very fun though. It definitely will make you think about that one guy or gal in high school that you wanted to be with so desperately or maybe was the one who got away. A charming sentiment set to a soft surfer rock vibe? It’s a win win. (Soft surfer rock?…I believe I just created my own music genre right there!) 😉

Have A Facial Night: Earlier this week, my sister asked me to give her one of my famous around the house facials, which I happily obliged to. After working at The Body Shop, I developed a love for skincare that will last me a lifetime. Here’s my tried and true step by step guide on how to give a fabulous facial to yourself or a friend:

Remove any facial makeup with one of those terrific cleansing wipes from your brand of choice.
Wet the skin with lukewarm water and if you have a clay, honey and oat, warming ginger, blue corn, or any mask in particular that you like to use, apply and let it sit for the amount of time instructed.
Now it’s time to use a cleanser. If you have a bristle brush, I highly recommend using one of these to give your pores an even deeper clean. If you don’t have a brush, make sure you use circular motions with your hands while using your cleanser.
I like to finish the facial treatment with a scrub. If you happen to use a soft buffer pad I would recommend using a rough, gritty scrub. And if you’re a fan of a more cream based scrub I would opt for an exfoliating loofah pad.
(Apply a toner if you’d like. But I never do.)
After your skin is nice and squeaky clean apply any acne topical treatment you use if needed and a moisturizer.

All of those steps listed above may seem like a lot for the skin to handle all at once, but you have the Lil Red Guarantee that all it can do is help if you use these tips every once in a blue moon! Facials scream “girls night” to me, so plan a fun night of pampering and break out the wine, chocolate, and chick flicks!

Treat Yoself: Annnnnd if you’re looking for a few fun treats to pamper yourself with, here’s a few products from The Body Shop that I’ve been obsessed with lately, which can be found in stores and online at http://www.thebodyshop.com!

Items shown from top to bottom:

Smooth and Renew Loofah Pads
Vitamin C Midrodermabrasion
Warming Mineral Mask
Glazed Apple Bath Jelly
Honeymania Bubble Bath Melt

So there you have it, my Little Red Recommends segment for the week! What are your weekend plans? What did you think about Unbroken? What band should I check out next? I’d love to hear from you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Have a great weekend! -Sarah

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