I haven’t done one of these in a while, so I thought I’d share some of the things I love right now.
1. Yves Saint Laurent’s Paris Premiere Roses. I bought this fragrance a few months ago, just so I could rack up $250 worth of YSL purchases so I could get the free cosmetic bag (with samples) {it was cheaper than buying a YSL wallet/clutch/case which rings in at $450}.
I usually don’t buy fragrances so blindly without sampling it, but I liked the name “PARIS” (who wouldn’t) and the bottle. What I didn’t expect was how much I would love it!
The scent of roses reminds me of the riad I stayed in when I was in Marrakech, Morocco. The woman who owned the place had the entire riad smelling like roses. It was so fragrant that I had to ask my driver and guide to ask the owner what the fragrance was. We then set off on a mission to find the bottled scent of roses.
I walked away with the wrong bottle of ‘roses’ and ended up with jasmine instead (which I love just as much), but this bottle of roses makes up for buying the wrong fragrance in Morocco.
I love YSL’s Paris so much that I spray it on my sheets every morning so that when I go to bed later that night, the bed will smell like roses. The scent isn’t too strong or parfumey. It’s the right scent to make you smell just like roses.
I highly recommend! Price is $95 per bottle.
2. Vintage Gucci. I am a little beyond obsessed with Gucci right now. I mean…vintage Gucci handbags.
It’s interesting to read the history behind vintage Gucci handbags from the 80s and 90s. Gucci used to cost $125 and every girl wanted one.
Here I was squirreling away Saks gift cards and savings for a $1,690 Gucci tote bag! $125 for Gucci???? Please give me a time machine!
THIS is the Gucci lust in question:
Well, thanks to Bonanza.com, I don’t have to invent a time machine to purchase Gucci for $125. I can pay vintage prices today. The vintage Gucci bag in the first photo was in excellent condition. I got that baby for $55.
When I opened up the box to reveal my newest vintage Gucci addition…it was so beautiful I almost cried. This is my second vintage Gucci that I’ve purchased for under $100. The first one was for $35 because the girl wasn’t for sure if it was authentic or not…oh, it was alright. I inspected that bag to make sure all of the Gucci details were there. Number one sign it’s probably authentic…it’s leather, not pleather.
I really, really love this new addition to my purse closet. I really can’t wait to start carrying it around. You never know how wonderful Gucci is until you open up a box and you’re so happy to have Gucci in your hands, you almost start crying.
3. Pangea Organics Lip Balm in Egyptian Fennel Grapefruit & Sweet Orange. There is something strange about this lip balm. It will enamor your pleasure sensors when you put this on your lips. It actually produces a happy rush that gets the happy endorphins flowing in your brain. Then it gets your addiction senses going that you just have to have this on your lips all of the time.
No lip gloss, Chapstick, lip balm or whatever you want to call it rivals that addictive power of Pangea Organics lip balm.
And it’s organic!
Birchbox sent me the Egyptian Fennel Grapefruit and Sweet Orange ‘scent’ in my box last month. I tried it as soon as I took it out of the box and it was like a “WHOA! I LOVE THIS!” moment. Not too many beauty products get that kind of reaction out of me.
The next day I went online and ordered another one…just in case the one Birchbox just sent me would run out in the next day or two (yep, I loved it that much).
The rational side of me now has one at home and one that I carry in my purse. It’s replaced my love for Body Shop’s Watermelon (or Pink Guava) lip balm.
This is a highly recommended product for those girls who prefer lip balms over lipsticks.
4. The Last Apprentice book series. If you loved Harry Potter and just want to get your hands on a new book series for kids, I’d like to introduce you to the Spook Series from Joseph Delaney.
His first book in the series: The Last Apprentice (Revenge of the Witch), drew me in. I am so hooked that I ended up heading to the library and requesting the books from all of the other libraries.
It’s a story about a boy from England from centuries ago that is sent to be an apprentice of a Spook. A Spook is a demon hunter, ghost buster, witch hunter, and master over taking care of things that crawl out of the shadows. They are the soldiers against the dark. Little does Tom Ward know that he has a knack for this job…and he doesn’t know why.
He befriends a young girl who turns out to be a witch. She becomes his only friend as the books progress (and I think she’s starting to turn into his love for life). Together, along with the Spook, they go out and fight some of the most frightening creatures of the dark.
What I love most about the book, there are always little lessons in forming the minds of kids. Like this quote: “If we could only change the hearts of men and women, the dark would be weakened.”
There is so much truth in that quote.
At any rate, I highly recommend this series, especially if you like those scary kinds of books. If you don’t, this isn’t the right book for you. Try FableHaven…that was equally as fun of a read with loads of adventure and fairies and unicorns and all of that. {There were scary creatures, too.}
5. Fashion By Alicia. I always like to leave off my Friday Loves with a blogger who has a site that I love to stalk. Let me introduce you to Fashion By Alicia. I’ve been following her blog for a long time now. I always like to see what she finds and puts together for her site.
Recently, her site (and Twitter) has really peaked my interest because she’s been running and working out! You can definitely see the change in her photos and she looks fabulous.
For any fashionista, it’s kind of cool to watch someone’s look change when their life changes. Even her hair is different! You can tell that she’s much happier about her new look and her new physique. She’s working hard, doing marathons, and sharing with us how she’s changing.
It reminds me that I should probably follow suit and start working out more. Sure, I have a contest with my boss to see who can stick to a push-up mentality for the next year. It’s our challenge to work on our bat wing arms and challenge our bodies. As for Alicia inspiring me, she just makes me feel like going running more often.
Take a look at her site. She has contests, fashion finds, and many upon many ideas to share. You’ll grow to love it just as much as I do. 🙂
