Bath & Body Works Haul! :)

Well, it's been awhile since I've posted!  (Notice how all of my most recent posts seem to have that in common?)  I have been crazy busy over the past few months.  Lately I've been immersing myself in so many new projects that I haven't been as crafty as usual.

However, I've decided to start also doing product reviews more often, since that way I can still touch base with all of you, and share tales of my amazing adventures! :)

My latest and greatest in the world of mail-order has been a purchase at Bath & Body Works.  I have never actually bought anything from B&BW, but my friend Dax loves their antibacterial hand soaps. They go on sale quite frequently, and this time they were going 6 for $20, so I figured I'd give 'em a whirl.  My plan was to keep a few and share some with her.  Don't they look lovely?

I kept the Italian Lavender, Fresh-Picked Herbs, and Bella Flora.  She received the Sweet Pea, Fresh-Picked First Blooms, and Aqua Flora.  The lavender has a lovely light scent, more sweet than medicinal.  (Frankly I love medicine-y lavender and I like it strong!  But this will be nice for the kitchen or bathroom.)  Fresh-Picked Herbs hasn't been opened yet and used on my hands, but a whiff of the bottle is pleasant and green, with a mostly mint vibe.  I haven't even opened the Bella Flora yet.

However, I also bought myself (not pictured!) a 10 fl. oz bottle of Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin shower gel, along with an 8-fl.oz body splash spray in the same scent.  Strangely enough, the two present so differently!  The shower gel is spicy and pumpkininny (thanks, Mr. Show!), whereas the splash doesn't seem to have as much pumpkin power.  There's definitely cinnamon and vanilla-like sweetness, almost like an apple pie, but also I detect a deep musky note as well.  It's not a bad fragrance at all.  The sillage is good and few sprays lasts a nice long time.  I like putting it in my hair and a halo of fragrance all around me for hours!  The best part was the price: The full-sized shower gel was a measly $4.75 on clearance, and the big bottle of scent was just $5.25.  I guess this is because it's last year's fall lineup, but it's great to enjoy such a fab scent in the middle of summer -- and dreaming of those pumpkin picking days to come! :)  So if you're a pumpkin lover like me, get thee to the Bath & Body Works website and grab some pumpkin goodness! :)

Also, I want to mention that the lining of the B&BW shipping box was super cute.  So of course, being the box-hoarder that I am, I couldn't just toss it.  I HAD to use it, because hey, free box!  Instead, I have turned it inside out and taped the box back together, so now it's gracing my bedroom bookshelf in all of its gingham glory:

I may try placing it on a shorter shelf so that it's more like a drawer type thing instead of just a pretty box.  In fact, I'm enjoying the box so much that I might just wait 'til fall and buy some more B&BW to share with Dax (or purchase early for Christmas!) and see if they have a sexy fall-themed box liner for me to enjoy heartily. :)

Halloween Shopping Tips

If you're anything like me, you get a special thrill out of going to the store to shop for Halloween stuff!!! (This is because you'll probably use it all year, and not just until Halloween's over.) Here are a few tips on what to look for, and what to avoid, this Halloween when you're out scavenging for goodies:

* CLOTHES: Anything non-seasonal that you can use all year 'round. Look for skeletons, spiders, bats, skulls. If you like pumpkins and will wear pumkin-themed clothing all year, go for it. Buy stuff in any colors you like... I like black & purple, which are easy to find at Halloween!

* MAKEUP: Hit the makeup section and see if you can find anything interesting. Always seek black lipstick and nail polish. Also worth having: Lip or nail colors in dark, dramatic, or unusual colors; jewels or other cool accents for the face; "normal" cosmetics in cute gothy containers; special-effects cosmetics or theatrer-type makeup items that are hard-to-find normally (such as eyebrow plastic or spirit gum).

* ACCESSORIES: Halloween is the best time of year to find accessories with bats, skulls, or other spooky themes. You can find just about anything you need, with a spooky style... hair accessories, purses, hosiery (gotta love striped stockings!), shoes, wigs, jewelry, and more!

* HOME DECOR: Be very careful of items offered in this category, lest you get overly cheesy items in your enthusiasm! You can find some good stuff, though... like skull/death themed pieces, even spooky or cool-looking kitchen ware. DEFINITELY look for candles, as you can get fantastic styles and colors during the season! Be careful of plastic, cheaply or badly-made items. Remember that many of these are meant to be used only for a short time and then tossed away. It may take awhile to find quality items that will last in your home for years, but the efforts are so worth it!

* EDIBLES: I like Halloween candy and treats all year 'round. Some of my favorite treats are things like General Mills Monster Cereals, Pillsbury Halloween cookies (just cut and bake), and of course, Halloween Pop Tarts. Many companies are beginning to release special Halloween edition things with either special packaging, or unusually-decorated versions of their regular products, so this is the perfect time of year to stock up!

* CRAFT ITEMS: Absolutely nowhere is more fun than a craft store at Halloween... but take my advice and DON'T wait 'til the last minute! You can find all kinds of wonderful things here, to fulfill your crafting fetishes well into next year!! Look for fabric, notions, beads, ribbons, even cool accessories and must-have crafting essentials in creepy Halloween styles! Some craft stores do pre-season Halloween sales in September or even August, as crafty folks will often make their own costumes and come looking for their ingredients in advance. The early bird will catch the cutest stuff!! Latecomers may be surprised by a fantastic rare find or two, but I'd try to hit the craft shops as early in the season as possible.


More tips...

1. Timing is key. It's always best to start browsing as soon as the Halloween stuff goes up, usually around the middle of September. If you see something that you absolutely MUST have, snap it up at your earliest convenience -- it may not be there next year, or even next week! You can also try to wait until November 1st to make the most of clearance sales (one of my personal missions in life!), but remember that Halloween stores typically close before then. My favorite place to try on November 1st would be drugstores, as they're practically giving the stuff away. (The best stuff may be picked over -- or gone entirely -- if you wait too long!)

2. Location. If you see something that you absolutely MUST have multiples of, in a chain store, try visiting the same stores in different cities. For example, this year I found an awesome coffin container in the Target near my New England home; a few weeks later I visited my in-laws in NYC and came across the same one! (I should have bought it the second time around, but fortunatley coffin number one is in my office now!)

3. If you're picking through clearance stuff, don't be afraid to haggle. Lots of Halloween stuff is going to be seriously marked down come the first of November. Some pieces will just be thrown into the clearance bin without even being tagged! One year I found a thick faux dungeon chain (it was made of styrofoam and painted to look metallic and old/rusty) just sitting around with a bunch of cheap Halloween makeup, and even though it wasn't tagged, the checker "decided" to sell it to me for 99 cents. A true Halloween find!

4. Plan ahead. Make lists of what you need, who's having sales, or of where you got the best hauls in Halloweens past. Try your favorite "haunts" but don't be afraid to plunge into uncharted territory. You never know what you'll find! (My favorite discount store to Halloween shop is definitely Target, as their stuff is high enough in quality to last for many years... as for drugstores, it's gotta be either CVS or Rite-Aid for their wide selections of makeup and costume-y pieces. I tend to avoid Wal-Mart, which sells cheesy "rustic" fall crap, and Halloween-themed shops, which are mostly filled with overpriced junk. I did get a nice ceramic skull-shaped serving tray at the Halloween store last year, though, so as I said... be flexible, and don't be scared to travel off your beaten path!)

I've gotten some good stuff this year so far, but will be making my last Halloween run on November first. Happy hunting, all!