September Vogue 2013

Is it just me? Or is this years issue just blah? Every year I look forward to getting the September issue of Vogue, it's like a holiday!

But this year, everything from the fashion to the photography to Jennifer Lawrence as the cover model is just not doing it for me. I know she is a super talented award winning actress but if she worthy of  being on the cover of Vogue? 

Anyways, I will add it to the collection and hopefully the other five September fashion magazines I am getting will inspire.

I did get the color forecast for fall 2013 from Pantone and I was impressed and excited. If only the weather would cooperate and start feeling cooler so we can start wearing our cozy clothes after Labor Day. 

I personally love the fall, it is my favorite time of year!  What trends are you planning on trying or skipping this year? So far I am loving the color story and the embellishments and I will probably be skipping the colored fur...but you never know...;)

Product Review: Clear Shampoo

Confession: I have dandruff. It is an issue I have delt with for years. I have always had to use medicated shampoo and last year I started using Garnier Fructis Anti-Dandruff Shampoo and absolutely loved it. Unfortunately it has been discontinued and I have been desperately  looking for a replacement.

I actually thought my issue was getting better, I have been using Wen cleansing conditioner since February and had not had any issues until I recently colored my hair. Then the dandruff came back with a vengeance so out of desperation I bought Selsin Blue Naturals thinking that it world not be as harsh as the the original formula. It was not as harsh but it didn't do anything for the flakes or the itching. 

I had heard of the line of Clear shampoos & conditioners but not until I did some research did I learn they had a dandruff control formula with pyrithione zinc. This is the same active ingredient found in the Garnier shampoo!

I only bought the shampoo because I am still using Wen, but so far I have been thrilled with the results. I washed my hair on Saturday night, the shampoo is a white thick gel that lathers up to almost a mousse texture that really coats the hair and scalp. It has a pleasant smell not the typical medicated odor that most dandruff treatments have. 

I typically wash my hair twice a week so the real test was to see how long I could go with out any symptoms. When I woke up Wednesday morning I had a few very small flakes on my hairline but they were so small I couldn't tell if they were actually flakes or if it was residue from my hairspray. That was 4 days, not bad! 

I washed my hair last night and went to bed with towel dried hair and woke up with no flakes again.  

I feel confident in recommending this product especially if you used to use the Garnier shampoo. I would also say to try the shampoo & conditioner together for best results.

For my fellow Wen girls...I use the Wen Cleansing Conditioner as instructed after washing my hair with the Clear shampoo and it has not changed the results I am used to getting from the Wen products.

Great finds at the 99 Cent Only store

I am always able to find great name brand products at the 99 Cent Only store. Check out their website for locations and weekly specials www.99only.com 

The only downside is that they may not have the same items all the time. I usually find produce, cleaning products and snacks that I need on a regular basis. The picture shows just some of the yummy goodies I purchased on Saturday and they were all only  $.99 cents!! 

CVS Revlon Extra Buck Deal

So today I wanted to take advantage of a deal they are having at CVS that when you spend $15 on any Revlon products you get six dollars back!

I've  been wanting to show how to use the CVS extra rewards program but I wanted to start by showing you a deal where the only thing I had was a coupon from the Sunday paper and a CVS coupon from my receipt that way I can show how you can save without having any extra bucks. I had a $1 Coupon and a $3 coupon for any Revlon product from CVS.

Now the first thing you need to know about using the reward program at CVS is that every time you go to the store make sure you swipe your card at the red coupon machine because you never know what may come out!!

I got lucky and received a $4 off of any $12 cosmetic purchase! And yes CVS lets you use multiple coupons!! So I ended up buying my Revlon Colorstay Whipped foundation for $9.49 and a Revlon Just Bitten Kissable lip balm stain that was also on sale for $9.49. With my coupon savings of $8 my total was $10.98 plus tax!

Plus they gave me $6 for next time!!

There is actually a way I could have saved more money on this purchase. There was a $2 off any Revlon foundation coupon in last weeks Sunday paper but I didn't get the paper and I couldn't find a printable one online. There were also lip products that were less than the one that I bought or I could have bought two lip products and I could have used an additional $1 off of a lip product coupon. There are so many possibilities. 

I hope this gave you an idea of how to stack your coupons at CVS. I will be posting more savings tips and I will let you know how I use my $6 extra bucks on my next CVS trip.

Sunday Project: Mod Podge comic strip shoes

Saw these on Pinterest and had to give it a try.

What you'll need: 

Comic book

Mod Podge

Shoes - I got these at Rue21 for $3

Scissors-  I will use an ecto knife next time to get a better result

Sponge or Brush-I used a clean cosmetic sponge

After the first coat I should have let it dry completely before putting on the 2nd coat because I think I rubbed some of the color off of some of the pictures. 

Also I cut the pieces out as I went, next time I will cut them 1st and have some cute words or bubbles to have as fillers and to overlap on the edges.

For the first try I think they came out good. I wanted a pair of NKOTB shoes so I got this comic book off eBay for 99 cents but the colors were not as bright as I would have liked. 

Next time I am going to try a pair of heels. I still have more NKOTB comic pages but I wouldn't mind a pair of Wonder Women  high heels! 

Happy St Patrick's Day!

I used twitterfeed.com to link my blog to my new Facebook page and my Twitter feed......does it work?