Tag Archives: Macy’s

Book Review: Dark Visions

L.J. Smith is known for the Vampire Diaries, but she has some other amazing books as well. Dark Visions is one of them. It’s a trilogy which focus on Kaitlyn Fairchild, who has psychic abilities and is believed to be a witch. She’s offered a place at the Zete’s institute along with the other 4 top psychic teenagers in the country. While there she and the other students uncover a plan to use their abilities as a weapon and spend the next two books trying to escape and defeat the head of the Zete’s Institute, Mr. Zetes.

I really loved these books when I read them, they’re YA books and I went through a phase a few years ago where I was obsessed with Supernatural YA books. This is one of the few books I kept from that phase, and one of the even fewer that I’ve made the time to reread.

My Final Verdict: I definitely recommend this for my younger readers. The trilogy is probably just a bit longer than the longest Harry Potter book, but doesn’t drag at any point.It’s a quick and fluid read.

This week’s outfit is a Cable Knit Sweater from Macy’s, Black H&M pants and Red booties from Old Navy.

How is wearing a Glow in the dark Boo Tee from Martha Stewart’s Petsmart line.

On My Face: Nars Sheer Glow in Siberia, Nars Radiant Creamy Concealer in Vanilla, Nars Blush in Deep Throat, Lancome Shadows, Benefit’s Watts Up, Benefit’s They’re Real and Pomme Cider lipgloss from BBW.

My bracelets are two Da Vinci charm bracelets, available at Hallmark Stores and my Alex & Ani October Birthstone Bracelet.

These booties are very recent from Old Navy, they actually still have them. My best friend got these for me as a belated birthday present and I kinda really adore them. Despite the heel they’re really comfortable and I love the way they look.

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Valentines Day Gift Guide For Him

I promised a gift guide for him for the upcoming Valentines Day. I had a bit of input from my husband on this one.

First up if you’ve got a bit of cash you can spend and he didn’t get one for Christmas an iPad is a pretty sweet gift. They can be a bit pricey though so on the less expensive end of the spectrum I recommend a Nook HD or a Kindle Fire.

If he’s already got one or he’s one of those rare technophobes then you could go with the always classic guy gift a book. Which book you buy depends on what he’s into though. A big seller right now would be The Hobbit, because it’s out in Theaters and since it’s in 3 parts he might be a bit impatient to see how it ends. If he’s a big reader though he’s probably already read it though, so you could go with something off the best seller list, or a humorous book such as the Ask a Ninja book or the Monster Hunter’s Handbook. Those last two are iffy and not very romantic.

A more romantic gift would be a cologne, and I’m definitely recommending Spicebomb by Viktor and Rolf. It’s the companion fragrance to Flowerbomb, and like Flowerbomb it smells absolutely amazing. If he’s not into Spicebomb, then I recommend Burberry Brit for Men, it’s another personal favorite of mine and if you haven’t then I recommend you go smell it, immediately.

Tickets to a future show it a pretty sweet gift, or if you’re the sort of couple that prefers nights in, then I suggest a “Movie Night In” kit complete with a snuggly blanket, popcorn, and a movie, my husband recommends Kill Bill, but my favorite Tarantino movie is Pulp Fiction.

A skincare set is always nice and you can go for the Core Collection from Jack Black or a classic brush shaving kit from The Art Of Shaving. You may think he wouldn’t use it or he’s already settled into a routine, but you’d be surprised how many men are willing to try something new, and better shaving cream really does make a difference. I bought my husband the Surpreme Clean Shaving Cream in the Jet Set Traveler Kit from Jack Black a while a go and a tube lasts him nearly a year and he says he prefers it to drugstore shaving creams “by far, it’s a whole other level”.

If you’re looking for something simpler, or you haven’t been dating long a nice sweater, or quirky tee from his favorite brand is a good idea because he’ll think of you every time he pulls it on, and whenever someone asks him where he got it. ThinkGeek has some great quirky tees and if you’re looking for a good sweater I’d hit up Macy’s or Nordstrom.

Or you can follow the old proverb “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach” and give him an IOU to take him out to his favorite place on you, or if you’re handy in the kitchen you could whip up his favorite meal or dessert for him.

Finally if you’re short on cash or none of these ideas are hitting the spot an Itunes, Amazon, Barnes and Noble or ThinkGeek gift card is a great option. It lets him know that you’re thinking of him, but wanted to make sure he could get exactly what he wanted, or if you know for certain he really wanted the new “so and so” album then you can mention that in a note on the Itunes or Amazon card to let him know this wasn’t just a last ditch effort gift. Awhile ago I bought my husband a Barnes and Noble Gift Card so he could pick out his own nook case because I just couldn’t decide.

Bonus Note this is my 100th blog post and I’m quite proud of myself for keeping up with it. For awhile I was really bad about posting consistently but I think Blogmas cured me of that. Now if I go more than 4 days without posting I feel like I’m being neglectful.

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Blogmas Day 3: Holiday Traditions

It’s Blogmas Day 3 and for today’s post I’ve decided to write about my family’s Christmas/Holiday Traditions. I am a huge fan of Traditions and doing things the way they’ve always been done. I’m not opposed to progress either. I support Gay Marriage wholeheartedly, but family Traditions, if they work, I think they should be kept.

Our Holiday Traditions start with putting up our Decorations on Black Friday. They start with putting up the tree, and the lights, running out for more lights and finishing with The Grinch. We always put it up in the same way with the most special ornaments going on the tree last.

Then the very next weekend my husband and I take our son our local mall. First we go to Macy’s to mail his letter to Santa and then we always buy one of the Yes Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus ornaments. Next we make a stop at the Angel Tree to pick out a child’s name to buy a present for. This is probably my favorite part of this Tradition, because then my son picks out a present for the other child, and I get warm fuzzy this is so adorable feelings. After all this is done we go see Santa for his pictures. Sometimes this gets down out of order, and depending on how people feel and how busy places are.

Another favorite Tradition I have is one that’s all my own. A few days before Christmas I stay up after everyone’s gone to bed and wrap presents and watch my favorite Christmas movies. This usually involves spiked eggnog and is usually done on a Friday so I can sleep in the next morning.

Somewhere in here is ABC Family’s Harry Potter Weekend, and when that comes around I cancel all my plans and curl up with my son to watch as many of the movies as we can cram in. I love Harry Potter and the first movie makes me feel so Christmas-y. I’ve watched this every year since the movies started coming out. Surprisingly I don’t own the movies. I really want them though and you can buy all 8 here for $33.

Then comes Christmas Eve and the pajama exchange. I love this, we’ve done this every single year since our son was born and it’s definitely my favorite. I love picking out different pajama’s for my son and husband and I love seeing the pajama’s my husband picked for me. It makes me feel warm and cozy to go to sleep in fresh pajamas and wake up on Christmas morning.

Another tradition from when I was growing up, that has held out and my family loves is the one where I fall in the tree every year. It always happens no matter how hard I try not too. Last year I even sorta caught it on video, fast forward to about the 8:30 mark, it happens soon after that. This has to do with how klutzy I am and somewhere along the way members of my family noticed it happening and started waiting for it.

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Quality over Quantity

It’s a cliche for a reason right? Quality over Quantity. In theory it’s great because it’s true, buying less items for more money really is the way to go. Your things will last you so much longer and work so much better. But in practice, so hard. I personally don’t have a lot of expendable money. I’m no stranger to saving up for things, but the sudden idea that I will essentially be saving up for everything is daunting. The past few years I’ve been guilty of some major H&M Shopping with a bit of Macys and Limited thrown in, and before that was Forever 21 (I haven’t shopped there for 2 years now but that’s still 2 years more than I should have, as I should have stopped at 22). But now I’m 26 and it’s time to shop like a grown up.

I already know how to budget shop, properly, and I have been for some time. But I really want to start investing in my wardrobe. I’ve reached a point where I want to buy things I truly love and will wear for the rest of my life. This isn’t to say that I plan on buying Chanel and Armani. Just that I’ve realized I really need to think about what I’m going to buy before I buy it, and I need to save up and wait on items rather than spending $50 at H&M on a bunch of things, I need to wait and buy maybe 2 or 3 things for $100 instead so they’ll be better quality.

Being expensive doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a quality product. The saying “You get what you pay for” isn’t as true as we’d like it to be. Sometimes you get less than what you pay for, and sometimes you get much more than what you payed for. You should always pay attention to a garments quality when shopping. If you can’t see it or touch it in person you should always check the reviews online, and make sure the company has a decent return policy. Taking the time to research your items will ensure that you get the best quality for you money.

Quality over Quantity, sounds easy in theory, and I will be keeping you updated on my attempts. First attempt, I’ve bought 2 sweaters from Hollister instead of 3 or 4 from H&M I’m very excited.

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Budget Shopping, you’re *probably doing it wrong

I know that most of us are on a budget, and most fashion guides or magazines we read are aimed at those with a much more disposable income. So we resort to cheap and cheerful places and end up with what is essentially a pile of crap after just a few washes. Which is actually a giant waste of your money, because now you’re stuck wearing threadbare, misshapen, holey clothing. If you are over the age of 22 you should not be shopping at forever 21 or Charlotte Russe, or Aeropostale. Don’t worry I’m guilty of it too, I have a pair of jeans from Aeropostale that I love. Though I think those jeans I just got really lucky with, and I don’t wear them often, or when I’m leaving the house if I can avoid it. The quality just isn’t worth what you’re getting and it probably isn’t made for your body shape. The reason those places are inexpensive is because they have a high turnover rate, and they’re trend stores. They’re there for teenagers who get bored or grow out of their clothes to quickly to make it worth it to buy quality garments. This is where so many people go wrong, they think because the stores are inexpensive and trendy that they’re shopping smart. In reality you’re just tossing your money away.

It’s far smarter to spend your time and money buying things that will last you a while. Once you’re in your mid 20′s you should begin to build the wardrobe you’ll have for the rest of your life. There is a reason it’s called building a wardrobe, it takes time and effort, and little bit of money. If you purchase one quality item that fits you amazingly here and there that will last you 5 to 10 years, then you’ll be far better off than if you head to forever 21 to buy $50 worth of items that are of low quality and will be misshapen after you wash them. It may take you longer to build up your wardrobe this way but you won’t have to be replacing items as often. Not only will you stick to your budget, but you’re more likely to think about your purchases and make sure you really love them before you bring them home.

So where are you supposed to shop? Well there are actually a list of places, but I’ll start with the general rule of invest in your classics. Not your basics, your classics, there is a difference. You shouldn’t pay $70 for a white tee that you’ll wear a bazillion times because chances are it won’t stay white. Especially not if you have young children. But your classic pieces that you will wear and want to wear for the rest of your life, those you should invest in. Trench coats, Little Black Dress, Handbag, those are investment pieces. If you only bought one you could easily use it for the rest of your life.

Your basics can be picked up at mid-range like Macy’s, JCPenney’s and Nordstrom. TJ Max or TK Max if you’re in the UK is a great place to get your basics. Macy’s especially is great because they almost always have sales going on. JCPenney lowered their prices and not their quality when they revamped themselves earlier this year. I know a lot of people wouldn’t consider Nordstrom a mid-range store, but they do have a lot of great sales, and not everything there is outrageously priced.

Then there’s chain stores, such as Loft, The Limited, New York and Company, and H&M. Starting off with H&M there prices range from insanely low prices to really insanely expensive. I really love H&M for their trendier pieces, they’re decent quality and usually lower priced. The other 3 stored are great for their sales, and if you see something there you like you can either splash out a bit, since their prices aren’t too insanely high, or you can wait for the sales where you’ll really get more bang for your buck.

These are just example stores, ones that I personally shop at. If you’re wondering what it is that you should be buying there are tons of “Items every women should own” lists out there. I’m not going to make one of those lists now, and really they’re just guidelines. I might make one down the line, containing the items that I feel are most applicable to my life, but I’m still working on building my closet up after my closet clear out.

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