Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Weekend prints

Tuesday, April 30, 2013

We spent a casual Sunday at Discovery Green.  The weather was comfortable at 78 degrees. We strolled and drank coffee.  It was a pleasant afternoon.  Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!

 Don't forget to check out Architects of Air at Discovery Green going on until Sunday May 5th. 

OOTD details: ALC Willow Ribbed sweater,Very J pants, similar style here, Miu Miu wedges no longer available, similar style here and here. Oliver Peoples sunglasses.  Celine mini luggage available in stores only.  David Yurman pave heart ring.

 
 

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Ballin' on a budget

Thursday, April 25, 2013

My friend wanted me to tell her how I find all my stuff on sale. I rarely pay full price for anything. I take that back, I may pay full price for shoes or hand bags. Even my diamonds are discounted (my engagement ring was custom made in the Philly diamond district and appraised for more than what my husband paid!). Costco.com has really nice jewelry for a fraction of the price!

Bloomingdale's is also a good place for buying nice jewelry on sale and sometimes they offer 12 months 0% financing.  

The website I use all the time to shop or search for things online is Shopstyle. You can type something as simple as gold cuff and all the gold cuffs available online show up (as long as the retailer is registered with shopstyle). See exhibit A, B and C. I have the app on my phone so it's super easy. I sign up for sale alerts.  I choose my favorite designers and whenever they go on sale shopstyle sends me an email. 

Another way to get the best deals is to register your email online. If you register with Neiman Marcus you get access to Midday Dash or Evening Dash sales. If you register your email with Saks you have access to their FASHIONFIX.

That's basically all I do. I search shopstyle and I register my email with online websites. They send me new arrivals but they also email me when things go on sale and sometimes they email me coupon codes. Last week Juicy Couture emailed a 20% off code that I used to buy two necklaces that were already on sale.

I try not to pay full price for trendy items because I probably won't wear them much.

When shopping at the store or online I usually only go to the sale section; if I was a normal person with normal shopping habits then maybe I wouldn't have to shop sales all the time but because I am a shopaholic I have to make adjustments.

Don't forget to check RetailMeNot for coupon codes to your favorite stores.  I also have an Ebates account.  You have to go directly from the Ebates website to the shopping website to get credit and get your cash back.  It's super easy to sign up.  You don't get that much back but if you're already shopping you may as well get a little something in return. 

I also like to shop on eBay and websites like Rue La La, Ideeli, Gilt, etc. etc.  They offer designer pieces at discounted prices.  The Outnet, the sister outlet to Net-A-Porter, is amazing! Yoox is cool too.  There are so many sites out there! The ones stated above are some of my favorites. 

Marshall's has a great selection of work out clothes and I love their HomeGoods section.  I love The Runway at TJ Maxx.  Loehmann's, Last Call Studio by NM, Last Call NM and Off 5th are some of my favorite discount stores.  You'd be surprised at how current their stuff is.  T.J. Maxx claims that 85% of their merchandise is from the current season. 

That's it! Pretty simple stuff.  Where do you get the best deals?

Thanks for reading! Here are two coupon codes I received today.  Save 20% off at Old Navy online only with code ONSAVE20.  Valid until May 6, 2013.  Here's another for ASOS save an additional 10 % off sale items with code SALESCORE. 

Enjoy!



 Exhibit A.  General Gold Cuff search on shopstyle




Exhibit B.  General search for Christian Louboutin Sale


 
 
Exhibit C: Option to buy sale item
 


 

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Back to basics

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

I'm trying to clean out my closet.  It's so hard.  I have too much stuff.  I am trying to rebuild my wardrobe with some key investment pieces.  Some things are worth investing in like a nice coat, a nice pair of boots, a white top, a black top, a pair of nice jeans.  Anything that is versatile and that you can wear over and over.  My favorite white top is from Vince and I wear it all the time.  It was on sale for $114 but I've worn it over 50 times within the last year and no one would know because I always pair it differently.
 
This is what I have so far . . .

Building blocks (ON SALE)!

white top-vince zippered placket blouse    rag & Bone/JEAN Midrise Basic Denim Skinny
     WhiteVince top                 Loeffler Randall tall boots       Rag and Bone jeans
 
christian louboutin sale-christian louboutin pointy pumps    halston heritage sale-halston heritage offtheshoulder dress blazer-ponte boyfriend blazer
    Black pumps (Christian Louboutin)      Halston Heritage LBD        Boyfriend blazer        
 
nude pump-jimmy choo nude leather cosmic platform pumps trench coat-hard days night trench black tee-womens black oversizes modalsilk tshirt from viaggio collection
 
  david lerner sale-david lerner womens zipper leggings
                    White tee                 Black leggings
 
 
In my opinion these are the building blocks to any wardrobe.  You can style a simple white tee with a cute pleated mini and you walk out the door.  Simple and effortless.
 
blue pleated skirt-alice olivia box pleat leather skirt
 
or
 
metallic shorts
 
 
or with a leather skirt a la Kim Kardashian
 
 
The possibilities are endless!
 
Don't forget to throw a chunky chain in the mix.
 
 


I'll see what else I come up with.  In the mean time I'll be posting a lot of my stuff on eBay!

What do you think? What's in your wardrobe?
 
 


Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Rosemary lamb/chicken recipe!

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Here's the long awaited recipe for the rosemary chicken and lamb!

Dinner consisted of rosemary marinated lamb loins, rosemary marinated chicken breast, parmesan asparagus, greek salad and mashed potatoes.  It was DELICIOUS!

Here's the recipe.  Enjoy!

Marinade:
8 oz of italian dressing of your choice
fresh rosemary (to taste)
Mix together and use to marinade the lamb and chicken (I marinated each seperately)
I like to mix it all in a large ziploc bag and leave it in the fridge for at least an hour

Bake the lamb at 350 degrees for 40 minutes
Bake the chicken at 350 degrees for 40 minutes

Asparagus:
Drizzle with olive oil, garlic salt and parmesan cheese.
Bake for 12 minutes at 425 degrees.

Greek Salad
Dice and mix cucumber, tomato, onion, feta cheese and green pepper
Drizzle with red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper and oregano.
All to taste.

Super easy right?
Enjoy!






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