Wednesday, December 7, 2011

How I Scored AWESOME Samples at Sephora!

I am so excited about some of the great samples I got today at Sephora!  I am thinking about changing up my foundation routine soon, so I stopped in Sephora today "just to browse."  The nice gentleman working there was so helpful and sent me home with three awesome samples:
  • Stila One Step Primer
  • Dior Hydra Life Skin Perfect Moisturizer
  • Dior Skin Flash Concealer
Check out my video for tips on how to get great samples for yourself and see the other fun things I picked up at the mall today!


BTW, what's up with the crazy face shadows???  I am seriously never filming in my kitchen again!  So sorry about that!

XOXO

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Ulta Haul and How I Saved Money!

I love this YouTube thing!  Haha!  I guess I'm just a few years late on the trend but seriously, it is so cool!  You can learn about ANYTHING you want and it is FREE!  I have a feeling I am going to become addicted to filming my own videos.  Originally, I said I would try to do one each week, but I have already made two in two days! 

I hit up Ulta today and I wanted to share what I found and how I saved some ching-ching!  Enjoy!


XOXO

Saturday, December 3, 2011

I'm a YouTuber!

K-Dubblicious is officially a channel on YouTube!  Woot woot!  Check it out at TheKDubblicious!  I decided that I am a better talker than a writer and I can review and show products better on YouTube.  Especially since my photography skills are seriously lacking.  Hope you like it!



XOXO

Friday, December 2, 2011

Christmas 2011 Wish List

The following are the items I hope Santa drops down my chimney on Christmas Eve.  I promise I was a good girl this year!

MacBook Air (With Printer)

The new, faster MacBook Air. Everyone should have a notebook this advanced. And now everyone can.



Tory Burch Reva Flats in Black Leather with Gold Logo




Lisa Taubes Rose Fill Link Chain Necklace (42 Inch)

Rose Gold Fill Link Chain Necklace (Available in all  Lengths)



Gold Bangle Bracelets

Gold Fill Set (1 Small, 1 Large)



Louis Vuitton Keychain





Hot Tools 1 1/2 Inch Curling Iron

1-1/2" Curling Iron for extra-large curls and deep wavy styles



1 Year Subscription to InStyle Magazine

Instyle Cover



Victoria's Secret Pajamas




Pretty Little Liars Book Set

Pretty Little Liars Box Set: Books 1 to 4 [Book]

XOXO

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Deals and Steals

Have I mentioned before that I love saving money?  Really, is there anything better?  I stopped by the mall this evening after work and I am so very pleased with my purchases!

Victoria's Secret

A few weeks ago I purchased a couple new bras at VS (review to come) and I also received a gift card, but I had to bring it in during the month of December to find out how much it was worth.  It could be worth $10, $20, $50 or $500!  Obviously I only got the $10 gift card but I'm not complaining.  In addition to that gift card, I received a coupon in the mail for $10 off any purchase (with no spending requirement).  I wasn't sure if it would work, but I asked the nice girl working the register if I could use both $10 cards for two different transactions.  And believe it or not, she let me!  So I chose two different shower gels for $10 each.  It ended up costing me a whopping 84 cents! 




The scents all smelled very similiar to one another so I had trouble picking ones I liked.  I finally decided on Ravishing Love and Be Seduced which are both lovely.  I have been using Target's Up and Up brand body wash for a long time so it will be nice to switch it up a bit.  As you can see, my receipts prove my total bill was a mere 84 cents!

Banana Republic

Banana has awesome sales and coupons!  I have trouble ever paying full price for anything there because as soon as I do, it moves to the sale rack OR they make the entire store 40% off!  That is frustrating!  I have needed new black pants for a while now but I was waiting for a good sale or a good coupon, which I finally had today.  I received a coupon in the mail a couple weeks ago for 40% all full priced items but it didn't start until today... so I've been hanging on to that puppy and couldn't wait to use it.  Not only was I looking forward to 40% off, but I also had my $20 rewards certificate.  I believe you get one for every $200 you spend on your Banana Republic card. 

So of course I found more than JUST black pants...

These little gems were on the sale rack for $74.99, so I figured with $20 it was a great deal.  Originally, these pants were priced at $89.50.  BTW, they are much cuter on than they look in these photos.



And here are the black pants I went in search of.  I needed a new pair of simple black slacks that I can wear with flats.  This is embarassing to admit, but my very favorite black pants are almost 5 years old and they are busted up!  They are Tahari brand, purchased from T.J. Maxx and fit PERFECTLY.  Unfortunately, they look terrible so I knew it was time to replace them.  The replacements are very simple, straight leg with nice fabric and a thick waist band (which helps with the muffin top situation).  The style is the Sloan Fit which has some stretch to it, which I like.  These were originally priced at $89.50 as well, but with my 40% discount I got them for $45.35.  CANNOT beat that!




Christmas 2011 Wish List to come soon!

XOXO

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

My Happiest Place On Earth

If I could pick only one store to shop at for the rest of my life, it would probably be Costco.  Well, that may be a bit of a stretch, but I LOVE myself some Costco.  When I am bored and have nothing to do, I will go there just to browse the gigantic aisles.  Target used to be the place that I could never make it out for under $100, but now that place has become Costco.  Unfortunately the oversized items equal an oversized bill as well. 

So why am I talking about Costco, you ask?  Because I found the deal of the SEASON there this past weekend!  Allen and I had been planning to drive out to the boonies to cut down our own Christmas tree this yeat, but with the craziness of Thanksgiving and various holiday parties, it just wasn't going to fit into the schedule.  My mom, sister and I popped into Costco on Black Friday for a couple items and I saw they had Frasier Fir Christmas trees on sale beginning November 26th.  $29.99 for an 8-foot Frasier Fir... can you believe this?  I saw the exact same trees at Whole Foods on Sunday for $59.99!  God, I love saving money and outsmarting retailers!

Here is our Christmas tree story in the form of pictures.  I am very proud.







BTW, getting this sucker up was a lot harder than it looks.  We were complete rookies when it comes to setting up a real tree so it took several hours to get it right.  It's a miracle we are still speaking to one another! ;)

I am so pleased with my decorating skills this year.  Never again will the Williams household have an artificial tree!

XOXO

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

November Favorites (Part 2)

For part two of my November favorites, I have two beauty products that I have absolutey fallen in love with!  What took me so long to find these things?  I seriously don't know how I survived 27 years of life without these products!

L'Oreal Infallible Never Fail Lipgloss

This stuff literally blows my mind.  I have never, ever found a lipgloss that stays on like this stuff.  And believe me, I have tried a LOT of lipglosses.  Anyone that knows me knows that I have a slight obsession with all things LIPS... glosses, sticks, balms, anything.  The longest I can go without reapplying a lip product is probably 30 minutes - I HATE the feeling of dry lips. 

My very favorite thing about this lipgloss is that it is easily accessible since the brand is L'Oreal.  I believe I purchased mine at Ulta but you can pick it up at any drugstore.  AND, the price point is unbeatable at under $10.  I hate to even think about what I have spent on expensive glosses in the past that end up completely disappointing me... 

The color I chose is called Bloom and it is a really gorgeous color.  In my opinion, the level of pigmentation is perfect.  I am pretty difficult to please in terms of color but this shade does the trick.  It goes on smooth, the color is flattering, and it stays super glossy for hours!

The first time I wore the Infallible Lipgloss was before a busy day at work.  I had a meeting first thing in the morning where I was talking a ton and drinking coffee and water.  By the time I got back to the office it was almost noon and the stuff still looked amazing.  This has never happened before!  I was in total disbelief and thought it had to be a fluke.  So, the second time I wore the gloss I paid close attention to what I was eating, drinking, how much I was talking and how well it stayed on.  Same thing - the stuff did not move!  Needless to say, I plan on stocking up on every single shade of this stuff and will probably never buy another lipgloss again.




Benefit Instant Brow Pencil

This product is something that I picked up as an impulse buy during an Ulta haul and I was pretty hesitant to spend $22 on something I knew nothing about.  I despise my eyebrows and am desperate to find something that helps my pathetic eyebrow situation.  I'm not sure exactly what has happened over the years, but extensive tweezing and waxing has left my eyebrows thin and disfigured.  I cannot, for the life of me, get my brows to fill out so that I can reshape them.  I hate getting them professionally waxed because the esthetician is forced to thin them even more than they already are to get even the slightest bit of an arch.  Well, I think my eyebrow problems have been solved.  This little pencil is a miracle.  I chose the darker of the two color options and it seems to match my hair color perfectly.  I know people say your brows should be a shade or two darker than your hair color, but because my hair is already pretty dark, I prefer to just match it. 

The pencil end is super soft and pigmented.  It goes on very smooth and is so easy to apply.  The only thing that surprised me is that the pencils dulls after just two or three uses and you will have to sharpen it frequently.  The opposite end of the pencil is a little spoolie brush that is used to soften and even out the color.  When I tested the product at Ulta, I didn't read the instructions and I used the spool end first and then the pencil.  Doing it the other way around makes a huge difference.  The spool does a great job of smoothing the color and makes your new brows look so natural. 

I never pay too much attention to my eyebrows until they look great... the right brows make such an incredible difference to the overall appearance of the face.  I am completely sold on this product and I am so happy that I made the last minute impulse buy!


I am working on improving my photography skills so I can post photos of myself with the products I am reviewing.  Especially for the Benefit Brow Pencil, I would love to get a good before and after photo to show how much of a difference it makes.  I never realized just how difficult it is to get the right lighting, angle and all that stuff to make a self photo look decent.  Hopefully I will master this skill soon and can start posting more photos!

XOXO