Valentine’s Day Tip #3

Tip #3: Grab the coffee beans.

Perfume is one of the most popular gifts on Valentine’s Day. (It’s always been one of my favorites!) I tried to look up the origin of perfume for Vday gifts, but I got fed up from sorting through all the terrible “Valentine’s Day Gift Suggestion” websites. So to that question, I will never know the answer.

Since this is a gift, I suggest you picking out a different perfume than the one she usually wears. This is a gift from you and I’ve always thought there was something very sweet about wearing a perfume that a guy picked out especially for me!

With that being said hop in your car  and head to the department store of your choice. Ask the salesperson for a canister of coffee beans and several of their best selling perfumes. Smelling one scent after another can really confuse your nose so take a big whiff of the coffee beans to reset your sense of smell after sniffing out each scent. Narrow it down to the two or three you like the best and then ask a few salesgirls for their opinions.

I’ll suggest a few of my favorites to help get you started.

It’s no secret that I love Bond No. 9 fragrances. They have about 40 different scents and pretty much all of them are fantastic. My top three are Union Square, Scent of Peace and Astor Place.

They are each $150 for 50 ml and $210 for 100 ml. The perfume comes with a postcard to fill out and send in and the company will send the recipient a travel size of each new scent launched.

Another perfume that is always a winner in my book is Chanel Chance.

It runs between $60-115 depending on the size of the bottle.

My last recommendation is Chloe. It is between $85-110.

Again, those are just suggestions. Pick the one you like best. And don’t forget to smell the coffee beans!

All the above are available at Saks.

Valentine’s Day Tip #2

Valentine’s Day comes at the same time every year. It always falls on the same day. Yet somehow, men always put things off until the very last minute. The procrastinator NEVER GETS THE WORM! Nothing good can ever come from waiting until the day before to decide what you’re going to do for Valentine’s Day.

Tip #2: Plan ahead.

Last year I was really lame and contracted a cold on Valentine’s Day. First thing that morning (Okay, it may have been around 10) I ran to CVS to pick up some medicine. The pharmacist suggested Zicam– which is, BTW, a miracle drug. However, you would not believe the number of men in the drug store trying to pick through the left over Valentine’s Day cards and candy. If they had just thought ahead, they could have actually gotten the good cards and candy, not just the one’s everyone else didn’t want.

If you know you are going to get her flowers, go ahead and place your order with a florist.
NOTE: If you don’t want to shell out $50+ on flowers, stop by Whole Foods and place your order with them. They do a great deal every year for Valentine’s Day- $20 for two dozen roses. And these are really good quality roses!

You can plan ahead and get really pretty flowers or you can run to the closest Piggly Wiggly the day of and spend the same amount of money on roses that look like they got ran over by the Whole Foods flower truck.

FACT: Restaurants do book up. If you know you are want to go out to dinner MAKE YOUR RESERVATIONS EARLY!

RECAP

WAITING
STRESS, Shitty cards and candy, wilted flowers and no dinner reservations.

PLANNING AHEAD
PROS: Your pick of the litter, good flowers, good food.

Valentine’s Day Tip #1

With the end of January nearing and Valentine’s Day right around the corner, it’s definitely time to get the Valentine’s Day posts ready.

I will begin by saying that I think too much emphasis is put on Valentine’s Day. A girl wants to feel special and loved every day of the year. However, busy work schedules and daily stress often wear us down and we sometimes forget to let our loved ones know just what they mean to us– which is where Valentine’s Day steps in.

Don’t: Go all out and plan some crazy Valentine’s Day date.
Do: Go the extra mile to show her what she means to you.

Tip #1: Put in your man hours.

One of the biggest ways you can should a girl how you feel about her is to spend some good ole fashioned time on her. Make her something!

Bake some cupcakes.
If you have no talent in the kitchen, run to the store and pick up a box of cake mix and some icing. It’s fine to go with a Betty Crocker or Pilsberry mix, but if you want to do something special I suggest skipping over to Williams Sonoma and picking up a box of Sprinkles Cupcake mix. (My favorite is Red Velvet– perfect for Valentine’s Day!)
Once you’re done spreading on the icing spell out “I LOVE YOU” on tops of eight cupcakes with red icing or decorate with some heart shaped sprinkles. And Voila! Valentine Cupcakes!

Refinish a piece of furniture for her.
Is she using some cheap-o, super lightweight side tables from Target? (–Oh wait, that’s just me–) go to the Salvation Army and find an old set that needs some TLC. Strip it, sand it and stain it and you’ve got a set of side tables that are good as new. (But better! Because it was made by Y-O-U!)

Make her a card.
NOTE: A white sheet of paper crease down the middle with Happy Valentine’s Day written in pencil, with a piece of hard candy taped to the front does not constitute as a handmade card. (You laugh, but I’ve seen a guy do it.)
Get out your scissors, architecture triangle and some construction paper and have at it.

The main thing to remember is that it’s important for her to know that you care enough about her to spend some time doing something nice for her. She will recognize it and appreciate it.

Champagne Season!

With the holiday season quickly approaching, To Do lists triple in size. One check point that makes its appearance across the charts is entertaining (See Example Below).

Buy Presents

Test New Recipes

Throw Christmas/ New Year’s/ Hanukkah Party

I love entertaining guests. Most women do. Good food, good music and
good– wait for it– drinks!

What would the holidays be without champagne?? Do people really ring in the New Year’s with Beer? (“Shiver”) A great gift to kick off the holiday season is a set of champagne saucers.

FYI- It’s rumored that champagne saucers were created from a mold of Marie Antoinette’s…  (How do I put this politely?)… best assets.

Along with it, though.

My favorite champagne saucers out now are the Starry Champagne Glasses from Anthropolgie.

They are absolutely adorable.

The gold rim with tiny gold stars and bubbles sprinkled around make this the ultimate champagne glass.

Any girl would shriek for a set of these. (A good sized set would be somewhere between 8-12– just depending on how many friends you usually have over.)  $14 a glass is a great price for such unique glassware, too!

Enjoy the Champagne Holiday Season!

Put Your Money Somewhere Useful

Lauren Merkin is known for her high quality, everyday bags. The Tile Embossed Lamb wallet is no exception.

It is so soft too! The embossing gives the wallet a great texture. This wallet is perfect for the girl who isn’t into labels being splashed all over an item but still loves quality products.

It’s the perfect size to fit into any purse at 4×8″ (a little longer than a standard photo.) Two cash slots (who carries cash anymore?), a zippered change compartment and nine card slots will hold anything and everything. (Anything and everything a normal person would try to fit in a wallet anyways.)

Best part? Lauren Merkin will donate 50% of every wallet purchased to the Young Survival Coalition. (The YSC is an organization dedicated to all issues that affect young woman and breast cancer.)

$175 at Lauren Merkin.

Buy at Saks, Do good.

Shop at Saks

There are several reasons you should shop at Saks this weekend.

1. It’s Friends and Family Weekend. 25% off all purchases with coupon below.
2. Saks is donating 2% of every purchase up to $250,000 to local charities.
3. And every girl loves a gift from Saks.

Baby it’s cold outside!

It’s 56 degrees today!! And I’m in the hot south!! Personally, I prefer cold weather once a year, for one week, in Colorado.  However, I don’t always get what I want.

This fall, one of the main things on my fall wish list is the Tory Burch Colin Vest.

This puffer vest is ideal for fall. The quilting provides extra warmth without looking too puffy.  (Your significant other isn’t a snowman, and you don’t want her to loon like one, right?)

I’m sure you’ve seen your 7 year old niece running around in something similar, but the buttons on this vest set it apart from others and  make it “grown up” approved.  The gold tone snap buttons have the Tory Burch logo stamped on the front.

The best part about this vest? 15% of the proceeds go to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. At $295 that’s almost $45 of the purchase going to the foundation.

Save the TaTa’s, one good hair day at a time.

It’s October! The leaves are falling, the air is crisp and love is in the air.

In order to show our love this month, all our posts will be focused on products benefiting Breast Cancer Awareness. (After all, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.)

My first product is one that I’m dying for! It’s the Hana Professional 1″ Flat Iron- Breast Cancer Awareness Edition.

This flat iron does more than just straighten hair: it can create curls and waves too. (Which means that this one tool can replace all those other tools she has laying across her bathroom counter and vanity.)

The Hana flat iron heats up between 140-450 degrees farenheit!  It’s great for all hair types– so you don’t have to worry about figuring out if your girlfriend has course or fine hair.

It also has a two year warranty (Good if the lucky lady is anything like me– ole butterfingers over here.) It comes with a heat proof silicone mat (No burn marks on the antique wooden vanity) and travel pouch sweetly packaged in tin case.

The straightener is $124.99 for Misikko. $25 from every purchase is donated to Susan G Komen.

Carry on..

No seriously.. It’s a carry-on.

The Juicy Couture Retro Luggage is the perfect present for traveling gal. (I should know– my parents just bought it for my birthday present!)

While it is girly it is not obnoxious. It is pale pink with brown leather handles and a brown and white stripe around the sides.

The bag is very durable. It has a pullout handle so it can be wheeled around behind you.

With heavy-duty silver hardware this bag is truely a showstopper. It is a smaller piece of luggage, but it’s the perfect size for a carry on or weekend trip. (Mine is getting plenty of use this month between visiting my brothers, going to New Orleans and several Auburn games– in case you were wondering.)

She’ll be more than glad to haul her own bag through the airport.

Revolve Clothing for $550.00

All wrapped up

With fall quickly (and even quicker in my cold office) approaching I am dying to get some cold weather accessories.

I know how much guys love those late night football games that get so cold a girl might freeze her little hinney off! In steps the loved gold bag tied shut with a matching gold ribbon. (Burberry, duh.) The perfect gift for the fall is the Burberry Merino Wool Fringed Serape.

I am obsessed. It’s the perfect snugly wrap for cold weather!  It’s pretty big, at 51″x55″.

I know what you are thinking. (Because I think my boyfriend would be thinking the same thing.) Probably something along the lines of “I don’t want my girlfriend wearing a blanket!”

The beauty of this wrap is that you can pair it with tight jeans without looking like you are trying to show off the goods.
<—-PS. Does she look frumpy? Don’t think so.

This Burberry wrap will make the perfect present for her (she’ll love it) and for you (you won’t have to leave the game early because she’s too cold!)

$325 from Saks