Tarte Cosmetics from Ideeli

A few weeks ago, Tarte was on sale at ideeli, a sample sale site.  With an in-store credit to spend, I decided to order a few items since they were great deals.  The order was placed on April 24th and I received the final package on May 13th (two sets were shipped separately).

Tarte Vitamin-Infused Lipgloss, regular retail price: $21 each
Liquid Sunshine (nude) and R&R (plum) were sold as a set on ideeli for $14.  For reviews of the lipgloss, check out Sephora.

Tarte hEYE Impact Waterproof Creaseless Shadow/Liner Duos, regular retail price: $36 set
Also sold as a set in Bronze and Plum, these duos were $19.  I swatched these babies at work and I couldn't rub them off (even with a wet tissue)!  For half the day, I was stuck with makeup swatches on my hand.  I would say they are definitely smudge-proof.

Here's a swatch in natural light...

Bronze (top)

Plum (bottom)






Total regular retail price: $78

Total purchase price (including $10 shipping): $43

Total savings = $35!

Sample sale sites are great ways to shop luxury brands at a discount!  Sites that I've also purchased beauty products from include Gilt Groupe (another Tarte sale!) and HauteLook (scored an Emjoi Soft Caress Epilator for $47).  There are a ton of sample sale sites out there now.  Follow them daily as sales change every 24-48 hours.  Good luck!

Oh, how I love Ulta!

I made several stops into Ulta over the past week to check out some goodies.  Armed with coupons and their weekly circular, I think I experienced some savings success (although I'm not quite as good as Nouveau Cheap or Er1ca).

Beauty trip #1:

Here's a breakdown of the goods...

NYX Eyeshadow Palette, regular retail price: $9.99
NYX palettes were on sale for $7.49.  I picked up the Smokey Eyes palette during this trip.













L'Oreal True Match Foundation, regular retail price: $8.99
L'Oreal Studio Secrets Magic Perfecting Base, regular retail price: $12.99
L'Oreal True Match Foundation and Studio Secrets Primer were on sale for 2 for $16.  I picked up the foundation in W4 and the Primer only comes in one color -- pink, which applies transparent.  I had a $2 coupon for each product (total $4), so I picked up both products for $12.

Nivea A Kiss of Moisture Hydrating Lip Care SPF 4, regular retail price: $2.99
Nivea lip balms were on sale for $2.54 each.  I clipped a coupon from All You magazine for buy one, get one free... that's $2.54 for two Nivea lip balms!

Total regular retail price: $37.95

With a $5 coupon from Instyle magazine, total purchase price including sales tax was $18.24.

Total savings = $19.71!


Beauty trip #2:
















After watching Fafinettex3's video, I went back to Ulta for NYX's Jazz Night palette -- sale price $7.49 (reg. $9.99). 

I also picked up three jumbo eyeshadow pencils -- Cottage Cheese, Pots & Pans and Slate ($4.19 each).

Regular retail total for these four products -- $22.56.  I paid (including sales tax) $12.51!  Savings = $10.05! 

There was an Ulta Reward Certificate/coupon attached to the mailer that I had received -- either Level 1 reward or $3.50 off $10+ purchase.  NYX was on sale for buy 2, get 1 free (excluding the palettes).  Redeeming the reward during the NYX promo, I ended up getting three jumbo eyeshadow pencils for the price of one! 


Beauty trip #3:
I purchased nothing during this stop into Ulta, which was the 3rd trip in one week.  My mother and sister wanted to pick up a few things, so I just tagged along -- for moral support. :)


Now, I am officially banned from buying makeup until I have completed "Project 10 Pan" (finish 10 products before purchasing new products).  I've already failed miserably at this Project as I first started it on April 4, 2010.  It is now May 5, 2010. 

Savings at Ulta

The other day I tweeted about major savings at Ulta.  It was a small haulage, but I saved buku bucks with a combo of current promotions and coupons.  This whole coupon clipping and shopping smart thing is really starting to pay off! LOL

Here's the breakdown of the products...

Maybelline Great Lash Clear Mascara, regular retail price: $4.99
All Maybelline cosmetics were on sale for 40% off.  The Clear Mascara (aka brow gel) was only $2.99. 

Revlon Colorburst Lipstick, regular retail price: $8.99

All Revlon cosmetics were also on sale for 40% off.  With a $3 coupon from a magazine, I picked up the new lipstick in Blush for only $2.39.  What a pretty color!

N.Y.C. Matte Bronzer, regular retail price: $2.99
Several N.Y.C. products were on sale and I picked up Sunny (the last one in stock!) for $2.39.  Numerous beauty gurus (including KJ Bennett) have raved about this bronzer, so hopefully it lives up to the hype.

Curel Continuous Comfort Body Lotion (13 fl oz), regular retail price: $6.99 each bottle

All Curel products were buy one, get one 50% off plus each bottle had an attached $1 coupon!  I ended up paying only $8.50 for both bottles (that's $4.24 each!).

Total original retail price: $30.95

With a $3.50 off $10 Ulta coupon (clipped from their weekly circular), the total purchase price including tax was $13.66!   

Total savings = $17.26!

Sephora Spring Madness Sale

In case you didn't get the memo, Sephora is having a sale.

Online:  Use code MADNESS.
In-store:  Print this coupon.

Happy savings!!

A Successful Visit to The Cosmetics Company Store

A few weekends back, my sister and I made a visit to the local outlet mall (one-hour drive door-to-door!) with one goal in mind --
The Cosmetics Company Store (a.k.a. CCO)!

The CCO houses over-runs, discontinued or slightly damaged goods from the Estee Lauder family brands (Estee Lauder, Bobbi Brown, MAC, Clinique, Prescriptives, Origins).  Products are marked down 20%-80% from retail.  It's paradise for a beauty junkie such as myself!

Our local CCO's shelves were fully stocked!  With so many products to choose from, I tried to be a smart shopper... it was a total FAIL!

Here are the products I ended up with during this trip...

MAC Prep+Prime Transparent Finishing Powder (9 g/0.32 oz) - $14.75 

Org. retail price: $22.  Savings = $7.25!

A permanent product of MAC's Prep+Prime line, this powder can also be found at MACcosmetics.com. 

For a review, check out Musings of a Muse.

MAC Cremesheen Glass (top: Boy Bait; bottom: Partial to Pink) - $12.75 per lipgloss

Org. retail price: $18.  Savings = $10.50 total!

Also part of the permanent MAC line, check out KarlaSugar for watches.

MAC Cream Colour Base (left: Fresh Morning; right: Crushed Bougainvillea) - $11.75 per CCB

Org. retail price: $16.50.  Savings = $9.50 total!

Limited edition colors with the Emanuel Ungaro collection (Fall 2008). 

For a quick review of the whole collection, head over to Makeup and Beauty Blog.

And last but not least...

Clinique Take the Day Off Makeup Remover - $14.00 

Org. retail price: $17.50.  Savings = $3.50!

Not great savings, but I was running low on eye makeup remover.  Lancome Bi-facil is my holy grail of eye makeup removers 

but it's $26 for the same size product!

Please note:  Savings calculation didn't include sales tax, which is 7.125% in that part of town.

Check out your nearest CCO for even greater deals!  Inventory is varies from store to store, but if you're looking for limited edition products or discontinued products (Prescriptives!), it's definitely worth a visit.

On another note...

I stopped into my local Ulta in search of the infamous Ecotools Bamboo Bronzer Brush.  They were completely sold out and have been for several weeks!  I wasn't going to leave empty-handed -- especially since I had a $5 coupon to use (check your InStyle magazine!).  So, I ended up with these...

Maybelline Define-A-Brow (Dark Brown)

Maybelline Stylish Smokes Quads (Natural and Charcoal)!

Buy 2, get 1 free promotion + $5 coupon = $7.80.  That's $2.60 each!

Benefit Cosmetics Deals

Feeling the Benefit Cosmetics itch as I have been?! 
Last week, I stumbled upon some great steals & deals at BenefitCosmetics.com. 

Girls' Night In!!! - $33.60
Org. retail price: $48.  Savings = $14.40!

Three full-size products plus a brush, collectible magnets and a cute bag to throw everything into!  Total value $82!!

Full-Finish Lipstick in La La Land - $9
Org. retail price: $18.  Savings = $9!

Still available at Sephora for the original retail price.

 High Beam - FREE!!

Orig. retail price: $24.  Savings = $24!!
I received High Beam for free using a discount code I found on RetailMeNot.

On another note, I went shopping with my mother at a local designer outlet store, and I found a pair of navy blue Hunter rubber boots for only $37.50! 

However, I passed on the offer.  Reflecting back, I probably should have purchased the boots, which are originally $115.  Darn!

Photo Credits:  Benefit Cosmetics, Zappos

Beauty Bargains @ TJ Maxx

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NARS Duo Lip Gloss Trio

I don't often wear lipstick or lip liner. I'm more of a tinted lip balm/lip gloss kind of gal (MAC Tendertones are my fav!).

So, when I discovered the NARS Duo Lip Gloss Trio, I thought, "I have to get it!" However, after looking at my stash of unopened lip glosses, I figured I may not need it now... plus the steep price tag is a good deterrent for an impulse buy.

The Lip Gloss Trio is available at Sephora, Beauty.com and directly from NARS for $49.

Yesterday, en route to do shop for cars with my mother and sister, I took a detour into my fav place for beauty bargains -- TJ Maxx!

Good thing I made the stop... look at what I found...

At only $29.99, I did not hesitate to purchase the NARS this time around -- just saved $19 off original retail price!! In comparison, NARS duo lip glosses retail for $28 each, so this means I just scored three duo lip glosses for the price of one!
The colors included in the NARS Lip Gloss Trio are...





Chihuahua is my current fav of this set!






I did swatch the colors, but the only camera on hand was my Palm Treo 750 (which, as you can see, isn't really good). For nicer swatches and a detailed review on this Trio, click here.

As you can see, it pays to shop at discounted retailers like TJ Maxx and Marshalls. You never know what great bargains you'll find!

Happy shopping!! :)

Sally Beauty Supply Haul (6/30/2009)

Who knew that paying $5 for a Sally Beauty Club Card could save someone so much $$$!?!? I've had my card for a few months, but the savings haven't been significant -- that is, until last week!

For the month of June 2009, Sally Beauty Supply offered a great GiGi wax package -- purchase a Gigi Wax Warmer for the club price of $29.99 and get three wax accessories ($30 value) for FREE (coupon required)! Having regularly paid $60 for a full leg with bikini wax at The Refinery, I figured owning a waxing kit would be more convenient and save me buku bucks (probably won't save me any amount of pain when ripping hair off my body).

Luckily, I was able to snag the last GiGi Wax Warmer in stock at my local Sally Beauty Supply store -- on the very last day of the month (of course!). The FREE products included GiGi All Purpose Honee Wax (14 oz.), GiGi Natural Muslin Strips - Large (100 count) and a GiGi how-to-wax DVD... all for only $30!

On top of the wax warmer and its free products, I also picked up:

• GiGi Large (Wax) Applicators
• GiGi Small Accu (Wax) Applicators
• GiGi Post-Epilation Lotion
• GiGi Wax Warmer Clean Collars
• Nail Magic
• Seche Vite Top Coat
• Seche Clear Base Coat
• Face Secrets Touch Up Puffs

With my Sally Beauty Club Card, 5 in-store coupons and additional savings for being a patient customer (human error on the cash register), my total savings were an incredible $48.05! Granted, I did spend $53... but I saved almost 50% off retail price for everything.

Now, it's time to perfect those waxing skills...

Clinique @ TJ Maxx

A few weeks ago, I made a pit stop at TJ Maxx en route to the gym. I thought I'd just take a peek at the selection for the week (new arrivals each week!) before my Body Works class. Walking into TJ Maxx with no intention to purchase anything (much like most shopping trips), I left the store with a bag of golden goodies!


Boxed kits from Clinique!

(Left) Touch-Up kit - $16.99

(Right) Eyes & Brows kit - $29.99




Clinique's Touch-Up kit included:

• full-size Stay-Matte Sheer Pressed Powder in Invisible Matte (original retail price $19.00)
• mini (0.16 fl. oz.) Full Potential Lips & Shine lip gloss in Sugarplump (full-size retails for $17.50)
• green zippered pouch (super cute!)

Savings of over $10!!

Clinique's Eyes & Brows kit included:

• full-size High Impact Mascara in Black (original retail price $14.00)
• full-size Cream Shaper for Eyes in Black Diamond (original retail price $14.50)
• full-size Superfine Liner for Brows in Soft Brown (original retail price $13.00)
• full-size Brow Shaper in Shaping Taupe (original retail $15.00)
• white zippered pouch (fits all the goodies!)

Savings of over $25!!


Perfect kits to just throw in your work tote -- which is exactly what I've done! :)