Something I’ve been meaning to do for at least a month now is sell my clothes to some of our local shops that buy/sell gently used clothing (you know, the Plato’s Closet, Buffalo Exchange, Crossroads of the world.) The only problem? I haven’t done it. That’s how this Shop My Closet idea was born.
for the month of May, Rebecca from Hello Pretty Bird! challenged herself, and anyone else interested, to wear a different fragrance everyday, and called it the #HPBScentOfTheDay fragrance challenge. as you can clearly see above, i have the most ridiculous stash of fragrance sample vials ever. some of them i’d already tried, some of them i haven’t. here are the first fifteen samples from the month of may.
Day 1 / Basier Vole by Cartier
Notes: Lily Petals, Green Lily Leaves
very green, very floral. quite strong and smells great, also long-lasting. i get compliments every time I wear this. Continue reading
i’ve been a Julep subscriber for several months now, and May’s box was totally different from anything i’ve received before. several months ago, Julep asked current “mavens” (their fancy name for subscribers) to crowdfund this box to “secure” our place in line and make sure they had enough to pay for a brand new product, the 
i was thrilled to score the latest Influenster Voxbox collaboration with Mary Kay Cosmetics. who doesn’t love to try new makeup? but really, this was a fun opportunity to change-up my everyday makeup look (which admittedly doesn’t change much, i’m kind of boring like that.) what was even better about the products and colors sent is they were definitely not too dark and ended up complementing my complexion easily.
on the left, i’ve prepped with Dr. Jart BB Cream, L’Oreal TrueMatch Concealer, Urban Decay Anti-Aging Primer Potion, and Benefit Gimme Brow, since neither eye nor foundation/concealer products were represented in the box. on the right, is my finished look with Mary Kay products + my own that were part of the “prep”. Continue reading
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well, that was a flop. i definitely failed my budget challenge this month.
we’ve had a lot going on, and i’m totally a stress shopper. with that said, i didn’t do that bad. i went over by about $30 when all was said and done.
so here’s a recap of my “rules”:
– things that I have already signed up for do not count towards the total
– anything I sell adds to my budget.
– whatever is earned or saved can roll over to the next month
– purchasing gifts or giveaway items for the blog do not count, since it’s not for me
– gift cards, credit card rewards, etc. do not count against my total budget
i had $236.50 to spend. what i actually spent was $267.70.
1 / Golden Tote – i denied myself March’s tote to wait for April. i bought the Macroflower Dress, and received a tank top as a surprise item. love Golden Tote! -$49
2 / Sephora – the Sephora Beauty Insider sale just about killed me. after way overdoing it, i shipped back the majority of my order, but not before keeping Benefit’s Gimme Brow ($18.70) and Cartier Basier Vole Essence de Parfum ($85) -$107
3 / Kohl’s – i satisfied my kimono fix ($12) and picked up a replacement Denim Jacket ($13) for the one I didn’t end up keeping from Old Navy. -$0 (store credit)
4 / Nordstrom – my all-time favorite rain coat was on mega sale and mine is looking a bit “well-loved” so I decided to pick up a replacement for next season (see it in action on this post). i also picked up the white midi skirt you saw in this post to wear to the fashion show I attended the weekend before last. i also had to pick up some replacement black tights after mine got a snag. -$122
5 / Fabletics – i signed up for Fabletics on a recommendation from a fellow blogger after my leggings fell apart! i found these tiny holes after laundering them, and I can’t live without a good pair of black leggings. problem solved, and their leggings (and the rest of the outfit!) are seriously legit. get your first outfit for 50% off if you sign up! -$24.99
6 / Express – to go along with my new skirt from Nordstrom, i picked up this cute lace top that i wore here.
7 / Returned – last month I bought a few things from Old Navy. after some deliberations, I returned the items. none of them really fit right. +$66
these next couple months are going to be crazy. we have a remodel we are going to be starting on any day now, a trip to Disneyland, and our usual day-to-day hectic schedules to keep so it should be interesting. financially, i think i’m going to take the pressure off “budgeting” but there are a lot of really great things i have learned:
– don’t buy something immediately. wait a few hours or a few days. you most likely won’t “need” it anymore.
– be picky! if you buy something and it doesn’t make you feel good, take it back. having things in your closet you never wear is not doing anyone any favors.
– keep track of your basics and don’t get caught with items that are ruined! i got stuck with snagged tights and holey leggings. don’t be like me! :P
– purge your closet! then take it to plato’s closet, sell it on poshmark, ebay it, donate it, whatever. get it out of there if you’re not wearing it!
linking up with franish, steph, funday monday, and look what i got
did you set a budget for yourself this month? how did you do?
