Bath & Body Works - Free tote and lotion with purchase 4/30/11

Here's a cool promotion if you like shopping at Bath and Body works...maybe you can add the free tote and lotion to your mother's day gift?

Check it out here

Old Navy Coupon Code- ONBOGO

Visit Old Navy here

Saving money as a college student: Books!

Hey everyone, this might be helpful for some of you.  I’m graduating this coming June and I wanted to share some tips and tricks on saving money as a college student (I wish I knew of them when I first entered college).

First things first: Books

-It's no secret that course books are getting more and more expensive.  Having a full time course load can mean buying several books spending hundreds and hundreds of dollars.   I’m ashamed to say it but in the past the highest amount I spent on textbooks was over $460 for one quarter!!! Yikes!  (I get sick to my stomach whenever I think about that day, haha…I think I’m having heart palpitations right now).

Nail of the day - Need some oxygen?

Today I'm wearing 2 thick coats China Glaze - Oxygen.  I used Seche Vite as a top coat.  This is definitely a sheer polish and therefore not that easy to apply.  I got kind of frustrated when applying this polish because I had some streaking issues going on.  Would I recommend this polish? Not really because you get spots of less "opaque-ness" and you have to apply the nail polish really fast so you won't get streaking.  I shook the bottle a lot but the formula seems to have some separation :( I applied it super fast but I still see little brush lines that I know is going to bug me within a few days.  The nail polish looks a lot better in photos than in real life (in my opinion).

This color is definitely not any where near what I thought it would be close to, which is Essie - We can do it pink.

With flash

Yay, Nivea lip balm coupon

These Nivea lip balms are by far my favorite, I like them way better than Carmex and those were my favorite for over 10 years!  If you keep an eye out, sometimes stores like Rite Aid have these lip balms on sale for $0.99, so you could get 2 for free! Awesome!  I'm not sure how long this coupon is going to last, they tend to go out of prints quickly.

Print here

My ring collection

I was organizing some of my jewelry and I figured I would make a blog post on my rings.  I definitely didn't start wearing rings until the past year or so.  I like wearing thick-banded rings if that makes any sense, haha.

40% off at Hollister Clothing Store

A little fact about me, the first job I ever got was working at Hollister.

Visit Hollister here

40% off at Abercrombie & Fitch

Whoa, I'm getting some good emails this morning.  After all, it is Good Friday :)

Visit A&F here

Tarte Cosmetics - 25% off w/ code earthday2011

I just got this email from Tarte Cosmetics so I thought I would share it with you guys.

Visit Tarte Cosmetics here

Woohoo free Starbucks coffee or tea on Earth day!

Yay, here is another Earth Day promotion I found.  Bring any reusable mug to Starbucks on Earth Day (Friday, April 22, 2011) and you can get free coffee or tea (hot or iced).  I'm not much of a coffee drinker (surprisingly) but I love drinking iced tea (with sweeteners of course, haha).

Click here for more info

UPDATE: Free Origins Cleanser on Earth Day

Hey guys so I was looking for more info on getting a free Origins cleanser if you trade in an empty product container on Earth Day.  I finally found some info on the Origins site that I thought I would share with your guys.  When I called my local Origins store, the associate did not mention anything about filling out a form.  She also said it could be any empty beauty container of any brand.  The website says "skincare" which usually refers to products used on the face.  I'm just going to bring a couple of empty products to be safe.  Hopefully I'm able to get a cleanser tomorrow.

Click here for more information

FREE - Disney reusable shopping bag on Earth Day!

Yay, check out this awesome promotion going on.  The bag is sooo cute!

Click here for more information

$1 off coupon for the May Issue of People StyleWatch Magazine

If your into reading magazines and checking out the latest trends, you might be interested in this $1 off coupon from coupons.com (one of my favorites site, lol).

Are any of you guys subscribed to StyleWatch Mag? I'm contemplating if I should.

Find and print coupon here
(You won't be able to access the coupon if your browser is google chrome)

Ulta Haul - NYX and China Glaze Nail Polish

Here's my latest Ulta haul, I spent about $52 for all of these which I think is a good deal.

Check out my youtube video:

Helping others without going broke :)

Ever since I was little, my parents have always taught me to give back to others.  I'm in college now and I don't have a ton of cash but I don't want to let that limit me from helping others.  So aside from volunteering, I like to use coupons to get things for free or cheap so I can donate them :)

This is what I got for 2 bucks! It would have been free and I would just have to pay sales tax but my last coupon didn't go through for some reason...but I still saved a little over $40! Yay!  All of these items are going to Honduras.  At my school we have a student organization called Dental Global Brigades.  Every summer students travel to Honduras with Dental professionals to offer free dental services to those in need. Double yay for that :)

CVS had these on sale for $1 each

Get a limited edition cosmetics case

I saw this free gift offer in the May 2011 Cosmopolitan Magazine (Hayley Williams is on the cover).  It says if you made any kind of Olay purchase, send your receipt and a mailing address and Olay/Cosmo will send you a limited edition cosmetics case.  I just bought some cleanser so I mailed in my receipt and a return address.  It says it will take about 8 weeks for delivery so I'll take pics for you guys once I get it.

Nail of the day - Sea Spray

I just got my ULTA order in the mail today and I was super excited to try China Glaze Sea Spray.  I used one thick coat and Seche Vite top coat.  I'm sooooooo loving this color.  I pretty much love any shade of blue but this one just puts me in like a cleaning mood, haha...I love it!

No flash

Article: Sneaky Little Ways to Save Cash

Hey everyone, here's another interesting article I found on Yahoo.  There's some cool tips in here like refrigerating your nail polish to make it last longer...I would have never thought of something like that...it also sounds kind of weird to have nail polish in the fridge, haha.

http://shopping.yahoo.com/articles/yshoppingarticles/582/sneaky-little-ways-to-save-cash/

Article: What not to buy at Forever 21

Hey everyone, I saw this article on Yahoo, I thought I would share it with everyone.

http://shine.yahoo.com/channel/beauty/what-not-to-buy-at-forever21-2458568

My favorite songs of the week

I've been sick for the past 2 weeks :( So I've been lying in bed trying to rest and get better.  I have been playing these 2 songs like non stop.

Bruno Mars - Just the way you are

Kina Grannis - Valentine

Nail of the day - minty fresh!

One of my favorite nail polish is China Glaze Re-Fresh Mint.  I used 2 coats and Seche Vite as my top coat.  Please excuse the messiness, I painted my nails really fast right before I went to work.  If your looking for a darker, opaque mint colored nail polish, I would recommend Orly Gum Drop.

no flash

Awesome jewelry finds!

One of the best places to find awesome discounts is the flea market/swap meet/open market.  This is a place where a lot of vendors are found selling all kinds of items from old junk, clothes, to furniture, etc.  I happen to stumble upon a women selling jewelry commonly found at the mall.  I asked her what was the price on the earrings and she said "pick how many you want and we'll make a deal."  I was like...sweet!

Yay! More free items at CVS :)

Whoa I am just finding awesome deals lately.  Here's another CVS trip.  Once again, I combined sales, coupons, and extracare bucks to get a low price.  If your wondering if I keep all the items for myself, the answer is no - I usually give it to family and friends or I donate them :)

So here's the breakdown:

I spent $6.56

I saved $29.39...I love coupons!

I got $9.98 back in extracare bucks, Its like I got paid $3.42 to buy these items for free :)

Free Origins Cleanser on Earth Day?!?

Free? Whats the catch?  Supposedly according to my coworker, on Earth Day (April 22, 2011 - Friday), if you bring in any brand and any kind of beauty item/packaging/container - you will receive a FREE Origins cleanser in exchange for your item to be recycled.  I'm not sure if you can pick any of the cleansers or if you can get only a specific one offered.  My coworker said they did something like this last year and now she uses nothing but the Origins brand.  I've been wanting to try Origins for a while now and I may finally get a chance to.  I would recommend calling into your local Origins store to confirm if this deal is indeed going to happen and to find out all the details.  I'll update you guys if I find out any more information :)

*UPDATE 4/20/11 - I called my local Origins store and the associate confirmed with me you can bring in any beauty container to recycle and you can pick from only a set of cleansers offered and they only have limited amounts of cleansers to give out.

If you want to find out more about the brand, here is the Origins website.

              

Getting paid to shop at CVS?!?!

Yay, today was such a good day.  I scored awesome deals at CVS.  I combined sales, coupons, and extracare bucks together to save big time.  I wish I got to record a video on this trip but I just got out of work and was soooo tired...but these good deals quickly woke me up, haha.

So here's the breakdown:

I spent $4.45

I saved $42.82...yes that's right...saved $42.82!!!!

I got $7.50 back in extracare bucks, its like I got paid $3.05 to buy these items for free :)

I had a coupon for every item except for the Revlon lash glue (that was my splurge item).

Savings Alert: Tarte Cosmetics - Today only 30% off with Promo Code

Darn, the item that I want is sold out.

Visit Tarte Cosmetics Here

Flashback Friday!

Have any of you guys tried Pocky before? Its like a Japanese snack - pretzel like stick dipped in chocolate - that I used to always eat when I was a kid.  I went to visit my parents over spring break and my mom bought some just for me :) I love you mommy!

NYX cosmetics - 100% for Japan

On Friday April 8, 2011 from 12pm to 5pm PST, all of your purchases made will benefit Japan! 100% of the profits made will be sent to Japan through American Red Cross. 

I'm for sure going to buy something, most likely eyeshadows.  Thanks NYX Cosmetics for being so generous!

Savings Alert: Old Navy Spring Sale

I'm not sure how long this sale is going to last but I figured I would just spread the news anyways.

Visit Old Navy here

March 2011 - Hits and Misses

Check out my video here:

Items mentioned:

Misses

Sonia Kashuk - Gold Mine - 7 piece brush set - Find it here

-these brushes were okay to me but I couldn't stand the smell (even after I washed the brushes)

-I like some of my Eco tools brushes way better than this brush set

-3 of these brushes were really stiff and didn't feel too great on the sensitive eye area

Nail of the day - Teal with a Twist

Check out this nail polish, I'm sooooo loving it.  Its kind of hard to describe the color and finish but its like a blue teal, with some fine glitters that look so incredible in the sun light.  It was really hard to take a true picture of this nail polish.  Its called Techno Teal by China Glaze.  I only used one coat and I used Seche Vite Top Coat.

With flash: the shimmer/glitter is soo pretty

Clearance Alert: Cheap Jewelry at Target!

Target has a pretty good selection of fashion jewelry.  One brand that I have been eyeing for a while is Catalyst.  Every time I go to Target I check to see if its on sale or on clearance, and what do you know...this week I found a good portion of the items on clearance!!! whoop whoop!

Here's what I got: