Steal Alert!

Two fashion posts in a row, I know, but these are just too cute to NOT post about.

Yesterday I received a piperlime promo ($15 off - MPLHRQC983MT code until 3/12) and ran across these while I was looking at their "Wedding Chic" section:

image source: http://www.piperlime.com/

Um, how fabulous are these? AND they come in fire-engine red. AND the kicker - they are only $49!!! What a steal. Can you imagine a more affordable shoe for a bridal party? (or yourself).

Unfortunatley the promo only works on orders over $75 but Banana/Piperlime/Gap is having their friends and family discount next week - 30%. These then become $34. Now that's a steal!

Happy shopping!

Lust of the Week

So I am going to come right out and say that I am a total J.Crew junkie. I love the style of everything they do, and I am probably on the website once a week. My bridesmaids are getting their dresses from J.Crew (adorable) so I have been stalking the site almost daily to see if any deals pop up for them (or me) and then last week, I stumbled across this:

(image source jcrew.com)

How gorgeous is this for a rehersal dinner dress?? Or anytime dress for that matter. It is simply fabulous, and it is my number one lust at the moment. But I'm not going to buy it. At least not yet....

Why? Because I am a J.Crew bargainista. I would estimate that approximately 30-40% of my wardrobe is from J.Crew, but I have probably only paid full price for one or two items. Ever. The reason being that this store is pricey - the trick is to know when to snatch the items up at the primo time they go on sale. JCrew's sale section is quite extensive. The site just had a makeover in the last 4 months, and the sale section is now much easier to navigate (although they are still working through some "bugs" - like if you try and specify size 2 pants, color yellow, sometimes you get mens pants and sandals. Annoying. But just suffer through it.)

The sale section is amazing. $88 silk tops will get marked down to $40; dresses $200 and up down to $70. The trick is to get these when they have one of their 3-day "All Sale additional 20%" deals. I have gotten some amazing dresses for less than $40. There is nothing wrong with the dress - the season has just changed. And most of the time, they are so AHEAD of the seasons anyways, you can scoop this stuff up with plenty of time in the Spring/summer/fall left anyways.

The extra 20% (and lately with the fun economic crisis - extra 30%) deals will pop up after J.Crew announces Free Shipping on their final sale items. Once the free shipping deal ends, the 20 or 30% deals start. I told you, I'm a J.Crew Junkie.

So what to do about the dress? Nothing now. I can't wear it until June anyways. My strategy is to wait until May when the summer collection will roll out and they will be anxious to get spring out of the house, and snatch it up then. In the meantime, I can focus on finding the perfect pair of shoes :)

First Glass

Whenever I think of cucumber water, I think back to my first spa experience. I was 16, sitting in the waiting area before my first "real" massage, and was given a glass of cucumber water. I thought it was the most delicious, refreshing thing in the entire world. At the same time, I was amazed by the simplicity of it and the difference such a small change could make to a plain glass of water.

The wonderful feeling of refreshment that surrounded that day has always stuck with me. Its that amazing feeling you get after you finish a gut-wrenching workout. The feeling you get after picking fresh vegetables and herbs from a garden and whipping them into something totally delicious. And the feeling you get when you are putting the fresh flowers you bought on a whim into your car to take home.

And that is how the title of this blog was born. I've been meaning to start a blog for awhile now...I'm getting married in three months and have to confess I'm totally obsessed right now with wedding blogs. But it seems so silly to start one this late, and I honestly enjoy reading about (and totally borrowing) other people's ideas moreso than blogging about my own.

But in the last week, three different people have told me I need some sort of blog or outlet for my ideas/tips/finds. Had to be a sign! I have always had a passion for writing, healthy living, cooking, and guilty pleasure bargain shopping (its not always a bargain but I have ways of justifying!) so that will be the content of this blog - healthy living tips, amazing recipies and all of the guilty shopping pleasures that are just begging to be shared.

So thanks for visiting - I can't wait to get started!

xoxo