Half Off Tarte Lipglosses

I just came across another great find at VictoriasSecret.com. They have select shades of Tarte Lipgloss Duos on clearance for only $9.99! That's half price! This is truly a rare occurance because these are not discontinued shades; nor are they ugly shades that no one in their right minds would want to purchase. Right now, they have Ferris & Sloane, Luke & Laura, Westley & Buttercup, Jake & Samantha, Danny & Sandy, Johnny & Baby, Tarzan & Jane, Bonnie & Clyde, and Elle & Emmet in stock and available at this price. This deal has made my day. I picked up Ferris & Sloane, Johnny & Baby, and Elle & Emmet.

Every now and then, Victoria's Secret has great deals on some great beauty products that they probably just have an overstock on. Right now they also have a bunch of Vincent Longo products on clearance, many of them are more than half off! If you see anything you like, I recommend you snatch it up right away. As I was checking out, they actually sold out of something that I had put into my cart only minutes earlier. Happy Shopping!

****EDIT****

Edited to add that right now they also have Tarte Cheek Stains for only $9.99!!! That's is just crazyness! Three shades available at the moment: Cloud 9, Tipsy, and Flushed. Great deal. I stocked up on a bunch of them to have on hand for gifts.

Let's Do Lunch Thursday At Smashbox

It's time for Let's Do Lunch Thurssday at Smashbox.com. Today's freebie is another full size product. Get a FREE MINI SOFT LIGHTS IN TINT with any purchase during lunch. It may not be a full size product, but the Soft Lights are great. Dust it over your fact for that romantic Hollywood look that you see on all of the celebrities.

Smashbox.com is also having a Beauty Blowout Sale. Save 25-50% on all Curtain Call items. They currently have items from the Toki Doki line on sale, including the eye palettes and the lip glosses. Smashbox must have stock piled some of these because most stores were sold out of the entire Toki Doki line. I highly recommed all of the palettes and lip glosses.


Another item I highly recomend is the Sunset Blvd Body Bronzing Set. This huge mirrored compact features 3 shades of powder bronzers that have a sweet kind of coconutty smell to them. It comes with a fabulous kabuki brush to bronze yourself from head to toe. Spring and Summer is right around the corner so we'll all be showing much more skin in the coming weeks. This is a great time to take advantage of getting your hands on this product at a great discount.

$5.99 Bikinis At Victoria's Secret

Thank God! Summer must be nearing because most websites and stores are starting to advertise swimwear. I found a great deal on a String Bikini Set at VictoriasSecret.com. This cute bikini set is only $5.99! $5.99 for the whole set! You don't have to buy the top and then buy the bottom...you get them both for this one low price. The set comes in 11 colors. You cand find this bathing suit by clicking the link or picture or by searching for item number 8S-219-044.

• Top ties at neck and back

• Low-rise side-tie string bottom

• Moderate back coverage

• Fully lined

• Imported nylon/spandex

Let's Do Lunch Tuesday At Smashbox

It's time for Let's Do Lunch Tuesday at Smashbox.com. Today's freebie is another full size product. Get a FREE FULL SIZE CREAM EYE LINER TRIO IN BLOCKBUSTER with any purchase during lunch. The colors in Blockbuster are gorgeous. From the picture, it looks like there is either a black or brown shade, a beautiful olive shade, and a perfect peachy-pink shade. All complimentary to each other, but all gorgeous enough to wear on their own. I do use Smashbox Cream Liners and do recommend them. Happy Shopping!

Getting Gum Out Of Jeans

Sometime last month while I was in the library at school I sat on somebody's used chewing gum. This person didn't even try to hide his/her nasty gum underneath the chair; no, he/she put it right on the seat of the chair. No, I'm not in Kindergarten. You would think that at the grad school level one would be able to find a garbage can to throw used gum out. To make this even worse, the chairs in the library have fabric on them, so the heat between my butt and the chair practically melted the gum into my jeans. So I had to sit through a two hour class and drive all of the way home with "gum ass." Since then I have been trying to pick the gum out of my jeans. It never fails that you always wear something new when things like this happen! I've had little luck removing the gum.

Yesterday I was reading the newspaper and there was actually a tip for getting gum out of fabrics. I figured what the hell, I'd give it a go. Simply take a can of compressed air (compressed gas duster), spray it directly on the gum, the air will freeze it, and then pick the gum off. Lo and behold, it actually worked! I can't tell you how happy I am. I'm sure almost everyone has had some kind of mishap with gum, so hopefully this tip will help you out. It's been a long time since I've had gum in my hair, but I wonder if this tip will work for that too?

Bra-llelujah!!!

I'm watching The Rachael Ray Show at the moment and they are doing an interesting segment on bras. Every now and then they have a Human Lab segment where they do tests of different products. Today the products were bras. They featured 3 bras, including the brand spanking new Spanx bra. Let me just tell you, I was blown away by the results of all three of the featured bras and am quickly placing my order.

First up, the Chic Shaper. This isn't exactly a bra, it's more of a bra accessory that you wear in addition to any one of your favorite bras. It promises to lift your chest up to creat cleavage while at the same time improving your posture. The woman who tried this one on was rather flat chested and I must say it did give her cleavage. She also noted that she could feel that her posture was better, but that it wasn't an uncomfortable contraption. I'm not lacking in the cleavage department, but I think everyone could use some help with posture. There's just something about a woman who has great posture. You'll seem more confident and comfortable in what you're wearing and in turn it will make you look fabulous. Although, I'm not lacking in the cleavage department, I will say that this product would probably be a great pair up with a favorite bra that just doesn't enhance your cleavage as much as other bras may. I am a Victoria's Secret addict and have tons of different bras in different cuts, styles, shapes, etc. Obviously, some of them are better at creating cleavage than others. But it never seems to fail that your favorite bra is the one that doesn't create va-va-va-voom cleavage! Maybe this will change that.

Next up, something that I've been looking forward to for a long time. From the lovely people at Spanx, Bra-llelujah! Front-Close Underwire Bra! Spanx creator Sarah Blakely took five years to develop this amazing bra. It promises to make back fat disappear. The woman who tried this bra on in the Human Lab was a size 36D (Let me just say, it is so nice to see that large chested women were used in this experiment. Too often I find that girls with size A cups are used for things like this. No offense to girls with smaller chests, but when you have the luxury of being able to go bra-less when necessary, it's safe to assume that you don't have problems with the weight of your chest pulling a bra down into your skin; nor do you have to deal with then trying to pull the straps out of your skin and constantly re-adjust. That's just my opinion.) and once she put this baby on, NO MORE BACK FAT!!! It was unbelievable. This front closure bra looked so smooth on her back, it almost looked like she didn't have a bra on. Looking at the front side, it lifted this woman's chest and offered full coverage. A little research shows that this bra is made of a unique hosiery fabric that allows it to adhere to your body like a second skin. I ordered this one off of BareNecessities.com just before I wrote this post. I'll definately post an update once I get this bra in my hands.

Lastly, we have the Breakthrough Backless Underwire Bra by Maidenform. Never in my life have I been able to wear a backless outfit. Although they've always had the boob tape or those little pastey things to wear with a backless dress, as a 36-38D, I also have the problem of saggage. The thought of my boobs swinging around in the front, just so that I could show off my back was obviously never a possibility for me. Those days may be over. This new bra is essentially a bra without the back strap. So you "hook" the straps over your arms and adjust them to be as tight as you need them to be to give you the support you need in the front. The woman who tried this bra on was a 34D and she looked fabulous. She talked about how she too has been unable to wear backless dresses, in particular on her wedding day, because of the lack of support. With this bra on, she definately had support. I don't have any plans for a backless outfit as of yet, but with the warm weather approaching, I will be on the lookout for a backless outfit. When I do, I will definately be picking this bra up. If you're interested in this bra, BareNecessities.com currently has it available at 20% off making it $25.60. Well worth it if you ask me.

A final note about bras, I think that one of the worst things that all women do with bras is keep them too long. I am totally guilty of this! Come on, they're broken in and comfortable, of course I want to keep them. The problem is that many of the times these bras have lost their elasticity and as such have lost their support and coverage. Just something to think about.

Free Sample Of Jergens Natural Glow Express

I must admit that I have drastically fallen behind in my self-tanning regimen. I was religious about using my Bare Escentuals Faux Tan for months, but as the Chicago winter quickly rolled in I got lazy. Afterall, I'm going to be bundled up in jeans and sweaters for months to come, who is going to see my skin. Lately the glimpses that I'm catching of myself in the mirror after a shower are frightening. Not only am I suffering from pale winter skin, I'm also suffering from dry winter skin. It's time to get back on the self tanning bandwagon.

As luck would have it, I've come across a free sample of Jergens Natural Glow Express. This product claims you will "see more than a full shade of color in 3 days." Just what I need! I am definately curious to try this product out. The last time I used a Jergens self tanning product the smell almost made me puke. It will be interesting to see if they've done something to mask that odor. This sample is available while supplies last.

Let's Do Lunch Thursday At Smashbox.com

Let's Do Lunch Thursday is currently going on at Smashbox.com. Today's freebie is a goodie. Get a FREE FULL SIZE LIP GLOSS IN TREND with any purchase during lunch. Trend is a gorgeous sheer, iridescent pink that I personally own. I love it when the freebie is a full size product. It totally justifies picking up more make-up.

Also, I've noticed that Smashbox has added a day to their Let's Do Lunch campaign. Now, not only is there Let's Do Lunch Thursday, but there's also Let's Do Lunch Tuesday. Happy Shopping!

Sephora Coupon Codes

Just wanted to share a few new Sephora.com coupon / promo codes with you. They currently have two coupon codes for FREE SHIPPING. Use coupon / promo code BEAUTYFULL to get FREE SHIPPING on orders of $25 or more. This coupon code is supposed to be good until the end of February. Use coupon / promo code SHIPPING50 to get FREE SHIPPING on orders of $50 or more. This code is supposed to be good until the end of March. Happy Shopping!

Coral Lip Color

I've actually been really good with keeping up with the countless magazines that I get. One common thing that I've noticed in all of the beauty and fashion magazines and columns is the love of coral lip color for the Spring. WHAT??? Are you serious??? Old lady coral lips??? Many of the top designers have featured this shade on the lips of their runway models. It seems that a lot of the new collections are offering a coral shade. Most of those brands with new or newer collections that don't feature this shade are rumored to be releasing island themed collections that really play up the coral lip colors. Top brands down to drugstore brands seem to be loving this shade. I'm not talking subtle, sheer coral; I'm talking about bright coral. I for one will not be jumping on this bandwagon. The mere thought of coral lipstick makes me think of a senior citizen facility packed full of old ladies with caked on coral lipstick that has found its way onto their teeth that matches their gaudy coral jewelry. What does everyone else think? Please post your comments.

more at twiigs.com...

Fafi For Mac

So last Friday I decided to meet my bestest friend for lunch. Of course I got their way too early. To kill the time, I ran to the Macy's that was across the street from the restaurant we were meeting at. Big mistake. I tried to browse from a distance. Glancing at clothes and shoes from a distance, and only getting close to the racks that were 75% off or more. After just plopping down $2500 for a pool, I was feeling guilty about the spending and trying to avoid spending even more! I must say, I actually did a really good job of walking away from some gorgeous new Spring dresses. Walking away from the make-up department was another thing.

Just as I was about to walk out of Macy's, my eye was drawn to the MAC Cosmetics counter. Prominently displayed was their new Fafi Collection. I had heard about this collection for the past couple of weeks. I will say that at first, I didn't give it a second thought. For those of you who don't know, Fafi is some sort of French graffitti artist. All of the hoopla about this line seemed to focus on her artwork on the packaging and the compacts. That made me think that maybe the make-up itself wasn't that spectacular if all these people were focusing on the packaging. Let me just tell you, I was so wrong.

The first thing that caught my eye was the Iridescent Powder/Pressed. Talk about shimmer. The first thing that I thought of was that it was very similar to Bobbi Brown's Shimmer Bricks, but in one color. Available in 3 colors, I was immediately drawn to the middle shade, Verve-Acious. Since we're quickly approaching Spring/Summer, this shade called out to me. Perfect for giving a beautiful sun-kissed sheerness to your face, it is also a must have for your neck, shoulders, and chest. Not one to shy away from shimmer, I was really suprised at how much building power this product has. Dust it on for a barely there kiss of color with not much shimmer. Add layers to give you more of a party girl shimmer. This product is also versatile in the way that it can be applied. Brush it on, buff if on, swipe it on, use a brush, use a sponge, use your hand, etc. Each type of application gives you a different look. At $21, I really think that this product is a steal.

After talking to the free lance make-up artist that was working there that day, I was convinced to let her try the eye palettes on me. There are two palettes to choose from with one featuring shades of pink, brown, and black and the other featuring shades of peach, yellow, green, and blue. Not being afraid of color, I let her go to town and do whatever she wanted on me. Although she was excited to hear that I wasn't afraid of color and would have loved to use the greens and blues, she opted to use the colors of Palette #1 to give me a killer smokey eye. She told me that with my blue eyes and blonde hair, I would "rock" those colors. Oh my God was she right! She didn't give me vamped up smokey eyes, she gave me a daytime smokey eye. It was gorgeous. Using the pink and browns as bases and the black shade as a liner, my eyes totally popped. I needed to have this palette!

My last purchase that day was one of the powder blushes. Although I loved both of them, I chose Hipness. The shade description notes that this is an intense coral with white pearl. I guess that's a pretty good description. Putting this shade on top of Verve-Acious powder, I looked like I just got home from a great tropical vacation. Not the I spent a week in the islands and came home with sunburn look, but the I limited my time in the sun and got sunkissed look. Fashion Frenzy was also a gorgeous shade, but it had much more pink in it.

Although I only purchased those three items that day, I am currently placing an order online to get some of the Fafi lip colors. As most of you know, I am lip gloss obsessed. Many times, I don't give lipsticks a second glance. This line has changed that opinion! I cannot believe how packed with shimmer these LIPSTICKS are. It's almost as if they took their lipglosses, put them in a freezer and made the lipsticks. They give you so much shine it is unreal. Pair it with a Lipglass and watch out.

As usual, some of the pieces in this collection are already sold out. I've counted 6 items as sold out on the MAC website, but as of right now Macys.com has every product in stock. If you are interested in any of these pieces, my suggestion is that you don't wait. We all know how fast the Barbie Loves MAC Collection flew off of the shelves. Also, the make-up artist who worked on me told me that supposedly the compacts and pieces that have Fafi artwork on them are supposed to be collector items that will be worth a lot of money. She said that's the word around MAC. Just something to keep in mind once you use up the products housed inside of them!

Sale At Kohl's

Hey Girls! There's a big sale at Kohl's starting today. There Home Sale is still going on so it you have a Kohl's charge you can save 15% with coupon / promo code MVCHOME15. Also, if you have a Kohl's charge, you should have gotten a coupon in the mail letting you save from 15% - 30% off. The coupon / promo code for 15% is FEBTAKE15. Coupons at Kohl's are usually stackable. Check out the clearance sections...there's tons of great things to be found. Obviously this sale is going on in store too.

Free Sample Of NV Perricone Ceramic Eye Smoother

I came across a great sample that I am so excited to share! I found this one in Glamour Magazine. Get a FREE sample of NV Perricone Ceramic Eye Smoother simply by clicking on the link. Although I have never purchased any NV Perricone products (way too pricey for me), I have snagged every free sample from this company that I can. I have found that every product that I have sampled has worked so I'm very excited to try this one out. My eye area is the area that I know I will have "problems" with in the future so I'm hoping to try as many products as I can to help fight those problems now.

I have no idea how long this offer is good for. I'm assuming it's until they run out of samples. Pass this one on to all your friends, your mom, your daughters, etc. They will love you for it.

My Ladybug Boots Have Arrived!!!

So, I placed my order atEndless.com and picked up the Western Chief Ladybug Rain Boots. When I got home yesterday I was thrilled to find them waiting for me. They came just in time too because Chicago is about to get hit with yet another Winter Storm Warning tonight. And to think I was worried that once I finally got around to getting a pair of rubber boots the snow would stop and I wouldn't need them anymore. The boots are too cute. I am so glad I went with the fun boots as opposed to the more serious pair. So far they seem pretty durable and they have a very soft flannel feel lining inside that keeps my feet nice and toasty. I'll have to post an update once the snow starts to fall later tonight and I have to go out with my Sweetie and shovel. If you saw my previous post about these and were on the fence about them, I highly recommend them. They are so cute!

Endless.com is still having a sale on rain boots. Besides the negative $5 overnight shipping, they are giving you $20 off rain wear purchases of $80 or more. Plus, you get another bonus when you place an order soon. In honor of Valetine's Day, Endless.com is giving you a free box of Godiva chocolates while supplies last. I actually got a box with the boots I ordered, which was a nice suprise since it wasn't being advertised on the website when I placed my order.

New Sephora Coupon Code

Apparently the people over at Sephora.com don't think that women are into the Superbowl. Thinking that you'll be bored out of your mind while your guy is watching the Big Game, Sephora has decided to lure you to shop by offering a new coupon / promo code that is only valid during the Superbowl. Use code DELIVERY25 to get FREE SHIPPING on orders of $25 OR MORE. The email I received says that "When the big game ends, so does this offer." So I don't know if that means that the code is currently good or what. Happy Shopping!

Go Red For Women At Macy's

Sorry this one is so late, but I just came across it myself. February is American Heart Month and Macy's is kicking it off in a fashionable way. Today, February 1st (can you believe it's February already), if you wear RED and go shopping at Macy's, you will receive an exclusive All-Day Savings Pass for an extra 15% off apparel and accessories–all in support of Go Red For Women. If you're not wearing red, don't worry. Just stop by the Accessories Department and make a $2 donation to the American Heart Association's Go Red For Women movement and receive a Red Dress Pin and All-Day Shopping Pass! Click Here for all of the information. It's a great way to raise awareness and it's another excuse to go shopping!

Rubber Rain Boots

How do you guys feel about rubber rain boots? About 2 years ago or so, Coach came out with a collection of rubber rain boots that I thought were kind of cute, but couldn't imagine wearing them out and about. I mean come on, I was living in downtown Chicago at the time, not the marshlands of the south. With the exception of one girl that I go to school with (who, by the way is one of those people who come from money and likes to flaunt everything), I never saw anyone wearing the Coach rain boots so it seemed that most people (at least in Chicago) had the same mind set I did.

Fast forward two years...A few weeks ago a friend and I were on our lunch break and as we waited to cross State Street we see a woman wearing rubber boots. Only they weren't Coach rubber boots nor were they Payless rubber boots. Nope, these babies were by Rubbermaid. That's right, bright yellow Rubbermaid boots that a janitor would wear while cleaning up a toilet that has overflowed. So as my friend and I tried to contain our laughter we got to talking about rubber boots. Is it a fashion statement you would want to make?

I'm still on the fence about these. After all of the snow fall we've had in the Chicagoland area this winter, it has made realize the functionality of these types of boots. Specifically, since we now have a house and a driveway that needs to be shoveled when it snows it makes me want to have a pair of these to wear while shoveling. My gym shoes keep getting soaked as do my jeans. A cute pair of rubber boots would solve this problem. But would I wear them around town? Maybe if I got a pair of sleek black ones or even a black pair with cute white polka dots, that might not be so bad. Oh what to do, what to do.

Endless.com has got a bunch of really cute rubber rain boots. With the negative $5 shipping, I was thinking of picking up a pair. The dilema I'm facing is whether I should get something really crazy and fun that would make me only wear them around the house when I'm shoveling or having to walk through my muddy back yard because it isn't sodded yet. Or whether I should pick out something that can also be used for around the town stuff. As far as the crazy pair goes, I really love this pair of Western Chief Ladybug Rain Boots. They also have a cute frog pair. Needless to say, I don't think I would be wearing these on the streets of downtown Chicago. On the other end of the spectrum, I think this pair of Chooka Seaside Dots Boots. These seem more appropriate for wearing around town.

So what do you guys think? Right now, I'm really leaning towards the Ladybug Boots just because I think they are really fun and I really don't think that I will ever be wearing any type of rubber boot around town. If there is some type of natural disaster wear I do need to wear boots, I really don't think I will even care what kind they are! Post some comments and let me know that your opinion is.

Also, if you're looking for rain boots, Endless.com is having a sale. Besides the negative $5 overnight shipping, they are giving you $20 off rain wear purchases of $80 or more. They've got rain gear for men, women, and children. Some of the children's wear is just too cute. The jackets and hats are adorable.