Retail Therapy Thursday

Technically, there's not really supposed to be much to this week's edition of RTT but alas...damn you Victorias Secret.

Ready, set, go!



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Side note: sorry for the weird hybrid photo. I purchased both pieces in BLACK. Only half of VS stuff on the website can be viewed in alternative colors by clicking on the swatches.

To Top it All Off!
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The perfect nude. Period.
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And because I can't wear swimmies all the time...
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This is how the breakdown of my will power happened: I'd been eyeing these items for some time (except the first swimmie and cover-up: those bad boys have been on my radar since last season!) and never bit the bullet because A) I wanted a promo code and B) VS doesn't do flat rate shipping (BOO VS. BOO.).

I receive emails from VS all the time, so much so that I don't read all of them. I was already aware of the $15/$30/$75 off promo they had going (which made me put things in my cart on a few different occasions but then ultimately not purchase) but then, by happenstance (or destiny???), I happened to click on an email that said there was one day left for free shipping with any bra purchase. Oh happy day!

I threw the 'must haves' in my shopping cart and came up to $167 after the $30 off $125 was applied. Then I realized that the $75 off $250 coupon would give me $250 worth of lovelies for only $175- $8 shy of what I was already spending. I can tell you are understanding how the downfall happened...I added a few more items (ultimately the cover-up and lipstick) to bring me to $251. Side note: do you have any idea how hard it is to find things that equal a specific amount? I DO. Literally, like, 45 minutes of my life was dedicated to this endeavor.

Annnywho...cheers!

Window Shopping Wednesday

Hello pretty readers! It's been two whole weeks since my last post. My bad. I do have a good excuse though. I was on a family ski vacation up until Sunday and it's been crazy playing catchup at work. Now that I'm back, let's kick off with this week's edition of Window Shopping Wednesday!

Ann Taylor Loft
         Shimmery Wristlet  | Shimmery Cosmetic Bag
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We all know I love me some leopard and this is such a glam take! I'll take both at only $16.50 a piece. Sadly, none of my local ATL stores carry these. Road trip anyone?

Express 1-Button Cotton Sateen Jacket
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Express had a similar structured white suit jacket several months ago that I really like the look of and I saw it pop on several blogs. However, when I tried it on in store, the fabric was really heavy and stiff. I felt a little too restricted wearing it, although the amount of tailoring was impressive given that for petites, it can be hard to find pieces from Express that fit.

See you tomorrow!

Retail Therapy Thursday

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, my Retail Therapy Thursday series is getting an attitude adjustment and I will now be sharing any purchases made during the last week.

Here's this week's Therapy:

Aldo Cyphert Bag in Midnight Black
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On one of my many blog hops, I stumbled across this adorable bag. I've expressed my love of tassels many a time so add that to the classic black and gold combo and we had a winner! I watched this bag online for about a week without making a move. I called my local Aldo and they only had it in the color "Rust" which based on the website, I didn't care for but I figured I could judge the quality in person and then order it from the website through the store since you get free shipping that way. On the day I planned on going down there, I checked the website and the black was sold out. :( I thought I  might like the "Beige" so I went anyway. In person this purse is SO cute. It's a little on the small side (good for petites) but overall it looks a lot higher end than it really it. The only thing I could say that was a con was the interior fabric. It's nothing special, just some basic black (assuming the other colors have matching monochromatic interiors) canvas. I wished it was something a little more substantial but no one is going to see that anyways so who really cares. I haven't worn it yet but I'm looking forward to making the purse switch soon. Does anyone else find purse switching a daunting task???

A few things to make me pretty:

Stila E! Red Carpet Series: Breathtaking Beauty Palette
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This was actually a gift from one of my besties for my birthday a few weeks ago. The colors in this palette are beyond gorgeous and the eye shadows are super pigmented!



MAC Viva Glam in Gaga (as in "Lady Gaga!)
Sold out online - check your local counter!

 I cannot say enough about how gorgeous this lipstick is. I typically don't wear lipstick because they dry my lips out a bit but this hasn't. The color is the most beautiful shade of light, hot pink. You can dab it on for a subtle flush of color like I do, or go full blown for a Gaga inspired look. Either way, you will be super hot!

I've got several purchases coming my way so stay tuned for next week's Retail Therapy Thursday!

I Just Got Naked!

No dear readers, not that kind of naked.

This kind:

Urban Decay Nakey Eye Palette

I've been lusting after this palette for months, much like some of you I'm sure, and after waiting and waiting for it to come back in stock, the miracle happened! Apparently the UD, Ulta and Sephora websites all got this back in stock and as of right now (ok really Friday night at 6:06 PM), Ulta was the only one left.

Score!

Lip Service

While trolling the blog world yesterday, I stumbled (why do I always say this? Like I'm electronically clumsy??? Anywho...) upon this:

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Are you kidding me with this cuteness?

I have been on the hunt for a cute container to put my makeup brushes in and I think this fits the bill perfectly.

Merry Christmas to me.

Window Shopping

So as I've already shared, my bank account is on serious lock down this month due to my BF's upcoming birthday extravaganza. It's going to be A-Mazing! As a consequence, there is pretty much zero shopping allowed. I did 'splurge' and purchase the Bobbi Brown Corrector and Concealer kit since Sephora was having their Friends and Family promo. The products actually arrived yesterday so during this morning's beautification, I tried my hand at applying them. I've already shared the colors I chose to order but when I opened up the Concealer, my heart sank. The color I ordered looked very orange in the pot. I told myself that I was sure it had looked alright during the dry run and that it would be ok. I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say nothing is worse than ordering something online only to have it suck in person. Moving on, as I said, I tried both products on this morning and low and behold, success! The Corrector countered the blue in my under eye circles just fine and then I swept on a light application of the Concealer and the color looked great!

Hmmm, I totally did not mean to go on and on about that. This post is really supposed to be about these:

Topshop Flats
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These are so cute! I love that these are nude but you get a glimpse of shiny metallic through the cutouts. I've never ordered any shoes (or anything period) from Topshop so I'm not sure of their sizing. If it's anything like Aldo (I'm drawing a comparison since their sizing standard is UK) then they run small so a 5.5 (smallest) might fit.

A girl can dream...and spend imaginary money...

Undercover Lover

Sadly, the weekend is almost over but I did have a productive one so I'll make it.

I've been on the hunt for a new undereye concealer recently. I currently use some cheapo from Neutrogena and it's not quite cutting it. It's a little drying and both the color and coverage is a little too light. Sad thing is, it's my second tube. I know. I said it was sad.

I've been hearing a lot of good things about Bobbi Brown products but have never had the opportunity to try any of them. Sephora began offering BB (again I believe?) but unfortunately, my local one doesn't carry it in store yet. This poses a problem. You see, as much as I shop online, I can't shop for makeup. Well most makeup. Since I moved to Florida, I've developed some sort of eye allergy or sensitivity and the vast majority of products out there cause serious redness. This means if I have a 'reaction' to something I've had to order online, I can't return it in most cases. This causes an empty bank account and a pissy Cari. Such a bad combo.

I was on the BB website this weekend and checked out where the closest BB counter was (I was expecting it to be Miami or Tampa, both of which are about 2.5 hours away). Wouldn't you know it there's a counter in Saks which happens to be literally 5 minutes from my house. As a side note, Saks has the worst hours ever! They close at 6 every day but Sunday which is 5. WTH.

I hopped in the car and headed over to try these two products (the colors shown are actually 'my' colors):

The Corrector is sort of a pinky primer and as the name implies, corrects any discoloration issues for dark under eye circles. The Concealer set goes on top of this and is more yellow (to match foundations) and then there is a little pot of transparent setting powder underneath. Am I crazy for looking at trading in one step for three? Hmmm.

The girl at the counter was very nice. She had me sit down while she matched me with the correct color and applied it. After she was done, she handed me the mirror and I had some mixed emotions. The coverage was A-MAZING and the colors were a great match BUT the poor girl's application was awful. It was incredibly thick and poorly blended. I kept thinking, "Who wears this much makeup?" This of course is coming from someone who wears concealer and bronzer for her 'face'. Maybe I'm just out of touch with the norm?

Anyways, despite these distractions, I really liked both products. There has definitely been some creasing but I think that's because there was just too much product. Also, its been a few hours since then and my eyes don't seem to be bothered. I think overall we have some winners!

These items aren't that expensive, 50ish for both, but there's no need not to take advantage of a little promo action going on at Sephora. It's Friend's and Family time till November 3rd so there's 20% off, plus free shipping on orders over $50 PLUS I can throw Ebates in there. Score!

Hope everyone had a beautiful weekend!