Tag Archives: vanilla

Sep1

Bath & Body Works August Freebie

Posted on by
Standard
Bath & Body Works August Freebie

Howdy!! I always get so excited when a Bath & Body Works coupon book arrives in the mail because ninety-nine percent of the time it contains a percentage off and a freebie coupon. The latest one I received was for ringing in all of the autumn scents and was actually one of their better ones. There was a free travel size product as well as twenty-five percent off your purchase. Usually it’s only twenty percent so hell yeah because every little bit helps. During my break on Tuesday, I stopped in to cash in my free product and will definitely be back for a reup of my foaming hand soap soon. I don’t need a restock quite yet but that twenty-five percent off is too good to pass up! Let’s take a look at my freebie and discuss:

If I am not rocking a fruity fragrance, I am a vanilla girl through and through. Ever since I was little, my mom and I would revel in all things vanilla because that’s her favorite too and our sentiments have yet to change. So whenever a new to me vanilla scent is on the market at Bath & Body Works, I always have to see what that’s all about! Is Vanilla Romance the best vanilla scent I have ever tried? Not especially lol but it is nice enough just not nice enough to eventually purchase a full size body wash or lotion.

Vanilla Romance features fragrance notes of “fresh cardamom, vanilla absolute, and captivating woods”. I can’t speak for the captivating woods and I swear B&BW just throws anything in their scent notes. The first two notes are usually right on the money and the third one is a kitchen sink addition and it never ceases to make me laugh! Also are they referencing vanilla absolute like the vodka or saying it’s absolutely vanilla? But I digress. Vanilla Romance is more spicy and musky than what I prefer, which is a true vanilla that’s soft and sweet. It’s not pungent enough to be overpowering but it’s definitely on the fence about it. If you are looking for a vanilla scent with some oomph, you might like Vanilla Romance. If you are a fan of pure vanilla, then this is not the scent for you or me!

Although this is not my favorite B&BW fragrance by a long shot, free is free and it gives me a chance to try something new sans commitment. Not mad about it!

Are you on the market for fall fragrances? How often do you restock your bath and body care? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Apr3

Bath & Body Works Hand Soap Haul

Posted on by
Standard
Bath & Body Works Hand Soap Haul

Howdy! The foaming hand soaps from Bath & Body Works are a staple at chez moi and Johnny. We absolutely love them and so do all of our guests – especially our nieces! We were running low on our supply and it couldn’t have happened at a better time because I just got some coupons in the mail. During one of my work breaks, I hit up B&BW for a re-up and ended up with five new soaps and a freebie item for twenty bucks. You can’t beat that! I picked out several new to us scents and this was truly Johnny’s time to shine. He is a tropical boy and the store was jam packed with beachy, fruity, summery scents for days. Check it out:

Pink Kiwi Berry: One of my favorites of the bunch! The Pink Kiwi Berry soap seriously smells like candy – almost like a watermelon Jolly Rancher and it is delightful. I can literally smell the sugar crystals, which makes sense as this scent offers notes of “sweet kiwi, candied citrus, and sunny orchids”. I can’t speak to the sunny orchids lol but if you are looking for a sweet/tart scent that is primarily sweet, you are going to LOVE Pink Kiwi Berry!

Peach Bellini: You already KNOW I had to get me a Peach Bellini – one of my tried and true scents. In fact, this was one of the first hand soaps I purchased when I moved into my own apartment! It has been a go to of mine for over six years and I don’t plan on not getting it anytime soon. If you are a fan of all things peach and haven’t tried Peach Bellini from B&BW – what are you waiting for?! It is like biting into a juicy peach with every use.

Mango Papaya Paradise: Let’s hear it for the boy because this scent is one hundred percent Johnny. I have to admit, I am not a huge fan of mango fragrances because I always thought the mango line from The Body Shop smelled moldy lol. However, the Mango Papaya Paradise is pretty nice! This scent features notes of “succulent mango, golden papaya, and warm tropical breeze”. It is my least favorite in the bunch strictly for my preferences but it does smell fresh and zingy and I know my main squeeze will love it!

Sweet Kiwi & Starfruit: Now, this tropical scent, I like! The packaging also really pleases me! The Sweet Kiwi & Starfruit is more subtle – it actually smells reminiscent of a toned down version of the Pink Kiwi Berry. As that was my favorite scent from the haul, what’s not to like?! This soap offers notes of “golden kiwi, juicy starfruit, and solar woods” (Whatever solar woods smells like). If you are looking for a fragrance that packs a punch, this is one you could skip on. Should your tastes match a subtly sweet scent, you are in for a treat.

Vanilla Swirl: This is a new vanilla scent from B&BW and as a HUGE fan of all things vanilla, I had to hop on it! Vanilla Swirl is what it is. If you, too, live for vanilla fragrances then this is a must buy. If not, then definitely skip on it because this is a true vanilla scent through and through.

As I actually shopped in store for this haul, it was a wildly successful one with a little something for me and my Johnny!

Do you like tropical scents? What is your favorite fragrance? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Nov23

Cake In A Can

Posted on by
Standard
Cake In A Can

Howdy!! Johnny and I have been on a sparkling water kick for a while now and we really enjoy testing out different brands and flavors. My Top Three are Orange & Vanilla by Polar, Peach Bellini by Bubly, and Fruit Punch by Waterloo. Johnny, on the other hand, is fondest of the Pino Colada by Waterloo. Out of all of the popular brands, the one we don’t drink too frequently is La Croix. After this week, however, we experienced a major game changer because we are obsessed with their Limoncello sparkling water!

IMG_1445

The only time I have had real Limoncello was years ago and I thought it tasted just like lemonade. I was expecting a lemony flavor during the taste test of the La Croix rendition and my thoughts were confirmed when it smelled exactly like Mr. Clean lol. You can imagine my surprise when I took my first sip and it didn’t taste anything like lemon at all. In fact, it didn’t taste like any type of beverage I have ever had before. Johnny described the flavor as “cake” and I truly can’t think of a better way to say it!

The La Croix Limoncello has a really full bodied vanilla flavor. It seriously tastes like drinking ice cream! If you are not a fan of vanilla, you are going to hate it. If you’re like me and can’t get enough of vanilla flavor, you are in for a huge treat. I have been looking forward to cracking open a La Croix after work every day for the past week and my deepest regret is that we drank the last one yesterday. This flavor has flipped my original Top Three on its head and has skyrocketed into the lead as the best sparkling water I have ever had. I cannot recommend it enough. 😀

Love sparkling water? Love vanilla? You simply HAVE to try the La Croix Limoncello. You will thank me later!!!

Are you a sparkling water fan? What is your favorite brand and flavor? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug30

Bath & Body Works August Freebie

Posted on by
Standard
Bath & Body Works August Freebie

Howdy! Last week I received some Bath & Body Works coupons in the mail which included a percentage off of your purchase and a free hand cream. After a recent hand soap haul and stocking up on other products during the Semi Annual Sale, I really didn’t need anything. This was a great exercise in self control because their Halloween and fall collection this year is just too cute! However, I’m never going to pass up on a freebie so I stopped in during a work break to grab a hand cream. I could take or leave the B&BW hand cream, but free is free! 😀

IMG_8915

I’ve got to admit that as soon as I stepped foot in B&BW, I wanted to leave immediately. As someone who worked retail for a long time, I can always tell when a district manager is in the store. When I stopped in was most definitely one of those days lol. The DM was on the floor and the employees swarmed upon me before I could blink. That day, I was not in a particularly chatty mood and was in a get out and go state of mind. However, with the knowledge of all that a visit from a district manager entails – you know your girl played along. A baller has gotta ball and I wasn’t going to let my pissy mood effect anyone’s day!

After escaping what felt like endless conversation, I made my way to the travel size products and snagged whatever sounded good. Vanilla is always a safe bet for me so I went with Vanilla Romance. This fragrance offers notes of “fresh cardamom, vanilla, and captivating woods”. Whatever the notes were, it all smelled like vanilla to me and that is perfect. I am a huge fan of true vanilla scents and this was easily the best one that B&BW has had recently. No bells and whistles, no captivating woods, just pure vanilla. If you feel the same as me, you will love Vanilla Romance without a doubt. 😀

With my freebie in tow, I couldn’t wait to get out of the store lol. A lot of chit chat is a small price to pay to not pay a dime for a nine dollar tube of hand cream! (Also how ridiculous is that price?!)

What is your favorite fragrance? What is your biggest pet peeve while shopping? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Mar8

Bath & Body Works Hand Soap Haul

Posted on by
Standard
Bath & Body Works Hand Soap Haul

Hello! During my first in store shopping trip to Bath & Body Works in forever, I got an amazing deal on the foaming hand soaps that Johnny and I love so very much. They were $3.50 each AND I got twenty-five percent off of my purchase to thanks to my coupon. It doesn’t get much better than that and now I am well stocked for months to come in the hand soap department of my stock pile. Check it out:

image_50411265(2)image_50392833(1)

Would I Buy Again?

  • Pink Pineapple Sunrise: YES
  • Cozy Vanilla Almond: YES
  • Turquoise Waters: MAYBE
  • Mango Papaya Paradise: YES
  • Blueberry Bellini: MAYBE
  • Peach Bellini: YES!! (My favorite!)

Shopping in store at Bath & Body Works was such a treat because it had been so long since I could actually smell the products that I was going to buy as opposed to just crossing my fingers with online orders. However, after a while of smelling literally everything the store has to offer, everything starts to smell the same! Most of these soaps were ones that I took a whiff of before adding them to my basket but some of their names sounded good enough that I didn’t bother.

Johnny is very partial to tropical scents, which B&BW had a lot of in their new spring line. The Pink Pineapple Sunrise and Mango Papaya Paradise are both delightful and definite safe bets if you are ordering online. The Turquoise Waters was just okay, though, and I wish I would have went with another fruity soap rather than beachy. If you are a fan of the sandy beach scents, you will love it!

The Cozy Vanilla Almond was also a really nice one that I picked out more for me because I love anything vanilla. It has a light scent but still smells so lush and, dare I say, COZY. This one and the Peach Bellini would make great gifts because it’s hard to picture someone not liking it. The Peach Bellini is my all time favorite scent so maybe I’m a little biased but I always have to purchase one during my soap shopping. 😀

The Blueberry Bellini soap was one that I didn’t test out in store because it had the word Bellini in it lol so I figured how bad could it be. It didn’t blow me away but I also didn’t hate it. It just smelled blue if that makes any sense! This is one that I probably wouldn’t buy again but am fine with using it or being gifted with it.

Overall, I am really pleased with my haul because I consider it a GREAT SUCCESS when all of the soap scents are tolerable. The awesome deal for them also made this purchase even better!

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

Oct24

Bath & Body Works Haul

Posted on by
Standard
Bath & Body Works Haul

Hello! When it comes to my beauty hoard, I like to keep it very well stocked. This means having at least two backups of my most used products on hand at all times. Johnny and I are both extremely partial to the hand soaps from Bath & Body Works so when I saw that we only had one left, a restock was definitely in order! Check it out:

Would I Buy Again?

  • Island Papaya: YES
  • Ghoul Friend: YES
  • Afternoon Apple Picking: YES
  • Blueberry Maple Pancakes: NO
  • Peach Bellini: YES
  • Let’s Get Nuts: MAYBE
  • Spooky Hand Sanitizers: YES!

Despite a couple of misses during this B&BW haul, I am still pleased with it. The Island Papaya was a huge success with Johnny who loves all things tropical and I am always happy to get another Peach Bellini hand soap – it’s my favorite! Afternoon Apple Picking was also a scent that we both really liked because it smelled strictly like apples without a touch of cinnamon, which we both hate lol. Now, let’s move on to the not so liked buys:

When I saw the Blueberry Maple Pancakes soap, I thought that it would smell amazing and was looking forward to its arrival in the mail. Unfortunately, it missed the mark big time. Instead of a delicious blueberry bakery scent, it just smells like straight up syrup and is almost sickeningly sweet.

Let’s Get Nuts is another scent that I could probably do without. It is your basic vanilla and, don’t get me wrong, I am a huge vanilla fan. However, vanilla can be kind of boring when there are so many other fun hand soap scents to explore. I actually didn’t plan on buying the soap but almost all of the Halloween scents were sold out so I added it to the shopping cart to make the most of the six soaps for twenty-four dollars deal.

The biggest success of this haul was not the soaps but the hand sanitizers! Last month, I got a coupon for a free sani and I absolutely loved it. The scent was nice and light and it made my hands feel clean without drying them out. Since we couldn’t get many Halloween scented soaps, we settled for the five for eight dollars spooky sani pack which is a great deal. Johnny and I are both currently using Vampire Blood and the only thing that would make it perfect is if we had the hand soap too – it smells SO good!

Hit or miss, you can never go wrong with the foaming hand soaps from Bath & Body Works. I am already looking forward to the next restock! 😀

What is your favorite B&BW scent? What is in your beauty stock pile? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Sep28

September 2021 Finishes

Posted on by
Standard
September 2021 Finishes

Howdy! September was a super exciting time for Lil Red as I completed my 1,000 day streak of writing! It was also a hugely successful month for product empties because I got to finish up a lot of the skin and bath and body care that I had been using for a while. Some of these products were new to me too, which is always fun! Take a look at my empties and let’s discuss:

Would I Use Again?

Why/Why Not?

B&BW Body Wash: Other than apple, vanilla is one of my favorite scents and I was really eager to try Bath & Body Works interpretation of Vanilla Bean. It definitely didn’t disappoint and this is actually one of my favorite scents that I have tried from them. While I love vanilla, I hate when it is scented too strongly or too sweet. B&BW’s Vanilla Bean was nice and light and wasn’t sugary in the slightest. It took me a month and a half to finish one bottle.

Tree Of Life Serum: For some reason, Amazon has stopped selling the Eclat Vitamin C serum that I was using and I was so disappointed! The Eclat serum had an unbeatable price (seven dollars) and my skin had never looked better when I was using it. The Tree Of Life Vitamin C serum was the next cheapest alternative (ten dollars) that still had good ratings so I gave it a shot.

This serum is much thicker than the Eclat one, which is nice because you don’t need to use as much of it. Most importantly, it worked well on my skin and gives an extra boost of brightness and radiance. My main qualm with this product isn’t so much the product itself as it is with the dropper. It is so short that by the time you finish two thirds of the bottle, you have to start tipping it out into your hands because it can’t reach the rest. Annoying? Totally. Deal breaker? No.

LANEIGE Mask: I so enjoyed using the Berry Lip Sleeping Mask by LANEIGE, which you can read about more in the linked post. It took me almost four months to complete the tiny sample sized jar!

TBS Mask: The Japanese Matcha Tea Pollution Clearing Mask was, easily, one of the worst products that I have used by The Body Shop. That is really saying something because I have a deep love for most of their products. After twelve or so uses of this mask, I still didn’t notice any type of difference in my skin afterwards. Whomp Whomp.

TBS Eye Cream: On the contrary, the Vitamin E eye cream from The Body Shop is the absolute best! My favorite thing about this eye cream is that it literally lasts for forever and it took me about three months of morning and night uses to complete the tube. This eye cream makes the delicate skin around my eyes feel so moisturized and stronger too. It also does wonders in decreasing the designer bags under my eyes which isn’t so bad, either. 😀

Like I mentioned before, I finished a lot of products this September and almost all of them were a success. Here’s to pampering products for all in October!

Which products did you finish up this month? What is your favorite eye cream? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Aug3

Bath & Body Works August 2021 Freebie

Posted on by
Standard
Bath & Body Works August 2021 Freebie

Hello!! I love shopping bath and body care at Bath & Body Works and recently had a huge haul during their semi annual sale. B&BW always runs the best promotions and I love that they send coupon packets every few months for freebies and percentages off your purchase. This month, I ran into Bath & Body Works to pick out my free travel size hand cream and it smells just as good as the name of it sounds! Check it out:

When it comes to freebie coupons, B&BW usually offers a travel size lotion or shower gel. I have never had the option to pick out a hand cream before so I am definitely excited to test this Vanilla Butter Cream scented hand cream out. This product smells exactly how you are probably imagining it smelling right now – a rich, sugary vanilla like a birthday cake. While it does have an absolutely delicious aroma, it is a tad overpowering. I would never wear this hand cream during the day but I’ll be happy to lather some on before bed!

It is also worth noting that the Halloween fragrances are already out at Bath & Body Works and the scents and packaging are divine. It took a lot of self control for me to leave the store without buying multiples of each Halloween themed product. My favorite things to look out for were the spider shaped hand sanitizer holder and the spooky snow globe candle holder. SO. CUTE. 😀

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

Sep15

Feeling Snacky

Posted on by
Standard
Feeling Snacky

Hi! It has always been important to me to have healthy food and snacks in my apartment. I rarely eat sweet treats as I prefer the savory but Johnny, on the other hand, requests something in the dessert department whenever I go grocery shopping. And, when that time of the month rolls around, I am oh so happy when there is chocolate or cookies handy compliments of Johnny’s sweet tooth! ❤

When Aunt Flo comes for a visit, my primary craving is ice cream. However, I can’t justify buying a tub of ice cream that I’m barely going to eat. My solution? Frozen Greek yogurt!

Living that #YOGURTLIFE in the words of Terry Crews from Brooklyn 99!

My newest snack craze has been sticking a yogurt in the freezer and crumbling a chocolate chip cookie for the topping. I love the ice cream like texture of the yogurt once it freezes and with that extra bit of cookie it feels like I am eating a low calorie sundae.

Your topping preference is up to you but for the yogurt I definitely prefer the Light & Fit by Dannon. The vanilla Greek yogurt is so rich, creamy, and flavorful and it’s seriously hard to believe that it’s only eighty calories! I like how filling it is and sometimes, if I’m not snacking sundae style, I will have a yogurt with my medication before bed.

The Dannon Light & Fit yogurts were actually not my first choice but Johnny brought them home from the grocery store as my primary option wasn’t available. He is always getting me to try new things and this one just happened to become a staple at chez moi!

What is your favorite snack? Do you crave sweet or salty? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jul11

Bath & Body Works July Freebie

Posted on by
Standard
Bath & Body Works July Freebie

Hello everyone and happy Hump Day! It’s no secret by now that 99% of the time that I go into Bath & Body Works is because I have a travel sized freebie coupon. That certainly rang true when I ran in last week to pick up this here mini shower gel! Take a look:

sugarrr

In my humble opinion, you can NEVER go wrong with vanilla scented anything. Candles, perfumes, lotions, and, of course, shower gels! I’ve been a bit underwhelmed with the freebie fragrances that I’ve been getting lately, so I decided to go for an old standby this time around with Warm Vanilla Sugar. It combines the decadence of vanilla that I love with the sweet warmth of brown sugar, making for a totally delicious scent during shower time!

What is one of your go to fragrances when it comes to bath and body care products? What is your least favorite scent? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah