So, it really is Murphy’s Law. No really. Today Candice and I headed to the mall for no reason other than to browse and go to Sephora to use the 15% off coupon. Remember a few weeks ago I said I never find what I’m looking for? Well today I was looking for nothing in particular, and ended up coming home with some of my most beloved purchases of all time.
We stopped at Zara on the way to Sephora and I’ve never been so impressed with their stock. They had so much stuff I loved I actually had to stop myself from buying a few of the items. I would have to say today was one of my best shopping trips in recent history.
Two of the three items I bought at Zara were pricier…but so versatile that I justified them.
Firstly, here’s what I wore shopping (my tried and true Forever 21 Tunic and GAP always skinny destroyed jeans):
This is one of my favorite go-to outfits. To be honest, I usually wear LuluLemon pants and whatever workout top and zip-up I wore to class that morning when I shop, because we tend to shop after Pilates…but today we decided to skip class and wear normal clothes to the mall!
OK, back to the purchases. I’ll start with the most amazing dress ever (ok, I say that about a lot of dresses, but this one makes that list!) Don’t be fooled by the pictures- they don’t do it justice. ON, it looks amazing. Flattering, beautiful print, vibrant. It cost $79.50, which is pretty good for a dress like this, IMO. I haven’t seen anything like it elsewhere and when I put it on, I felt incredible.
Sigh. So stunning. Candice and I both got this dress because it was just such a must-have.
My next splurge was this tunic for $89.50. I know, that’s a lot…and believe me, I debated it over and over. But my love for it won me over…and it’s versatility cannot be denied. I can wear it with a slip underneath as a dress, either loose or belted, I can wear it as a swimsuit cover-up, with jeans, with leggings, the list goes on. The print is beautiful and the details are pretty too. Overall I just couldn’t part without it. It’s one of those pieces where I had to ask myself “are you going to totally regret it if you don’t buy this?” the answer was yes.
I just love it. I’ve been looking for the perfect dress/tunic like this for a very long time but none have ever appealed to me as much as this one…so yay for finally finding one I love! I can’t wait to style this in different ways and post pics 🙂 I promise I will!
My final item from Zara is this simple, yet sexy black dress. It has a low back and high neckline and is very fitted. I think it might even be Spanx-worthy (which I don’t own.) It cost $29.50. I really like the way it fits and I don’t own anything like it. I think it would look sexy with a pair of heels for a nice dinner date.
So many great purchases make me a VERY happy girl…I even told my husband I won’t have to buy clothes for awhile and in a moment you’ll see why…(there’s more!)
But before I get to my money-saving binge at Marshalls, I’ll cover my Sephora purchases and also give you a definite thumbs-down on a certain product I’ve been wanting for awhile.
I used my 15% Sephora discount to buy: Anastasia Brow Powder in “medium ash” and her eyebrow brush, FRESH lemon lip conditioner and a mini version of Josie Maran’s Argan Oil stick.
OK so here’s the bad review. I’ve wanted to purchase Dior’s Lip Glow gloss for awhile now but could never justify the $30 price tag. Once I discovered that the gloss makes lips a pretty pink shade (kind of like O-Glow) I was sold because it wasn’t just a clear gloss anymore. So I bought it at Sephora with my 15% off and opened it the moment I got out of the store and happily applied it to my lips. Within seconds Candice said “wow, your lips are super bright pink” and I looked in the mirror and sure enough they were a brighter pink than I’m used to, but it looked cute. A couple of minutes later I started to feel a tingling sensation on my lips which by the minute turned to a burning sensation. Not good. I know lip plumpers like Too Faced Lip Injection can make your lips feel this way (which I why I never use plumping glosses) but I didn’t expect this from the Dior gloss since it is not a plumping gloss. I basically immediately returned to Sephora and though I hated to return it (because I wanted to love it)…I’m also not going to pay nearly $30 for something that HURTS my lips. So I got the FRESH Lemon Sugar Lip Conditioner instead. I will report back on that once I’ve had the chance to use it more. Anyways, big thumbs down to the Dior Lip Glow, but love many of their other products (in fact, Candice just got their AirFlash foundation and is going to write a review for the blog!)
I also wanted to get Stila’s baked eye trio shadows in “Champagne” but they were sold out. I might try another location tomorrow so I can use the discount on it. It has 3 colors and they are all amazingly gorgeous. You’ll notice above that I also got MAC’s “blanc type” eyeshadow for my quad (the other color is “brun” which I use to line my lower lash line.)
After going to the mall I wanted to stop by Marshalls because I’m looking for decorative and practical accessories for our new West Elm 2 x 2 Console Desk (which I don’t want to photograph yet because it has like nothing on it.)
Of course, as always, when you’re looking for something you won’t find it…but somehow I ventured to the clothing section and of course I was completely stunned by the amazing deals I found…and not only that, I was able to find two cute dresses that I have been looking for everywhere and unable to find for less than $100!
I got these two adorable summer dresses for $14.99 each. They fit perfect and are so versatile. I could wear them with flip flops for running errands during our hot summers or wear them with heels and a chic belt for a dressier look. I love them and the ruffle detail at the bust is flattering and oh-so pretty.
I realize they kind of hang weird, but they look totally fantastic on!
Then I got this dress (also in two colors) for $12.99 each ($12.99!!!!!!!). I actually wore one of them tonight so here is a pic of it on:
Sooo cute! I love the zipper-front and the ruffles. I also got it in black. These are pretty short…so I’d opt to wear them either to the pool, with tights or over skinny jeans, or even tucked into a skirt as a cute top. I like to use too-short dresses as tops sometimes and a good way to do this is to just tuck them into a pencil skirt.
Finally, I got this adorable superlong tee for $7.99
Perfect for workouts or with tights or over skinny jeans since it’s long enough to cover my butt!
I did find two cute items for our desk at Marshalls which included this storage basket for $16.99 and the monogrammed mug for $3.99 which will hold pens.
That’s everything for my weekend shopping. Did you have as much luck shopping as I did this weekend?
Also, for anyone interested, I wrote another story for Houston CultureMap. Check it out here!
Happy weekend!
xoxo,
Veronika.
All the dresses you found at Marshall's are so cute & pretty! I love the ruffles one, and they're all a steal! Time for me to head to my local Marshall's to see if I can find the ruffles one 🙂
Great haul, but you are scaring me. I bought that same exact dress with the zipper and ruffles in black AND I have that same exact initial mug, but with an "s". We have great taste. 😉
I ADORE everything that you bought! To bad about the Dior thing…By the way, just have to mention that I just found your blog, and I love it so much! You are one of my new favorite reads!
I love the unexpected shopping sprees! I do love your style Veronika!
The Sugar lip treatment is my fave–hopefully you will love it too!
Cute clothes!!!! Now what do you use the Josie Maran oil stick for? Your face? Love your blog!!!!
Great job cutie! I love the feeling of a score, and it's even better when it's several scores! 🙂
I had the same experience at zara a few days ago- I haven't walked out of there with anything in months and this time I had to limit myself and put back a couple of pieces so I didn't go overboard. They have a really cute spring line out!
anon- the argan oil stick is for anything- dry spots, cuticles, you can use it on the ends of your hair, etc. It's multi-purpose.
couture and crayons- great minds think alike! 🙂
You really cleaned up! I like everything you got, but especially that first Zara dress. You've got to post a modeling pic of it! I think I might need it myself… 🙂
Love that floral dress especially V! Bet it will look amazing on you, can't wait for an OOTD with it. Everything you got is great, looking forward to your review on the Argan Oil stick, I've been wanting it for a while.
Wow, what an AWESOME haul! I can't wait to see how you style all that stuff!! I'm really looking forward to seeing those ruffle dresses with a cute belt. And the black dress looks a little…boring on hanger, so I can't wait to see how to looks on.
I love this blog. Thanks so much for the daily fashion inspiration!
-J
I need to go shopping like now. I love the Marshalls ensemble you are wearing. Yay for great finds!
nice new buys the dresses looks great
Wow you found some awesome things! I love the tunic/dress from Zara… its so pretty! I can't wait to see it on.
I really think you should do another post of you in these dresses because I can wait to see them on! especially the first one, I wonder what it looks like on?! I can't picture how it will fit at all.
You make me so jealous – my Marshalls sucks!! Maybe the one here in Orlando will be worth a try.
Steph
BTW I think you can definitely get away with wearing the last two dresses as dresses, without leggings or whatever. They seem to more than pass the Catholic-school finger tip test.
Veronika I am so happy for your amazing haul this weekend!!! The two Zara pieces are just GORGEOUS. Can totally see why you justified the cost of them. The tunic especially!
And Marshalls is always so great for things like that – dresses, basic tees, etc. I typically do a Marshalls trip at least a few times a month. I can't wait to see your West Elm desk all dressed up with decor!
i love reading your bog and you are so pretty!!! I wanted to know what was the link to Candice's bog because I can not find it. Thankss!!!
exoticmakeup- Candice doesn't have her own blog, she just writes blogs for my blog sometimes 🙂
You are so right about the Murphy's Law thing – I need a dress for a wedding coming up and because I'm looking for something specific I can't find anything anywhere! So frustrating. But I'm glad you had a successful shopping trip 🙂
The last two dresses with the ruffles and zipper down the front remind me of my Lulu's dress! So cute! And versatile too. Great stuff!
BTW I just read your article and its great! Nice job! very fun read.
thanks steph 🙂 I loved writing it!
i went on a little marshall's spree yesterday too! your store has different merchandise! if only i could shop them all 🙂 cute grey dress!
YIPEE! What a haul! You did well.
The decorative box and mug are so nice.
A.Co @ A.Co est. 1984
PS – Congrats on the article!
Wow great finds. Love all the dresses, especially the floral one. Love your style!
I went to Marshalls yesterday but they didn't have any dresses in my size. Maybe next time 🙂
I love everything you bought. That tunic is so pretty…i cant wait to see an OOTD post when u wear it!
Taylor- I definitely plan to post pics! I just need to find the right belt for it…I'm thinking something woven and summery.
Went to Marshall's tonight & found the black strapless dress with the ruffle! Love it!!
tina- isn't it precious! it's so cute and flattering!