Wednesday, December 30, 2009

2 for 1 gift box/sets at Lush

I was browsing the mall while waiting to pick up my dad and I walked into Lush and what do I see there? 2 for 1 Christmas gift sets. If there are products you like and you could care less that the box has a little tag that has some Christmas cheer on it, I think it's a really great deal. I bought some for some friends who I know like their stuff. The best part is they come wrapped in nice looking wrapping paper!

In other news, I need to figure out what I am doing with my RRSPs for the year! I have finally decided that I have the savings cushion I wanted and that it is time to lock some money up till I retire years and years away. The thing is I don't know what to invest it. Mutual Funds? GICs? Stocks? bahh!

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

2010 is around the corner

The holidays seems to have come and almost gone. I am back at work for a few days before new years and then it's back to normal next week. These last few weeks of the year are almost the best for work because it's quieter and the drive in is bearable.

I took a little trip to the states & did a little shopping. It beats boxing day here. Some of my purchases included the Urban Decay Ammo Eye Palette which is good because it has all the colors I would use in one palette. The one bummer was the color I bought just a few weeks earlier at Winners is also in this palette.

I also bought the cutest frilly top at the Gap. All in all, I was quite the good girl. I spent most of my time sight seeing and spending time with the family. I think I'd have spent more going boxing day shopping here.

Up next, boots!

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Good idea/Bad idea

Did anybody else grow up watching Animaniacs when they were younger? One of my favorite segments from that show was 'Good idea/Bad idea'! My Christmas bonus reminds me of it actually. Why? Because while it's awesome that I even got a bonus this year when there are companies out there not extending bonuses out to their employees, it's a major drag when 37% of it is deducted because of taxes! Yup, thirty effin seven percent!'

Ahh well...it's come at a good time because my December spending has been up the wazoo.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Entertainment Book 2010 Toronto

I decided to buy the 2010 Toronto edition of the Entertainment Book. It's a book full of coupons with about 50% or more consisting of 2 for 1 foody type coupons. I paid $20 minus a $3 rebate for shopping through greatcanadianrebates.ca, so a total of $17. I was on the fence about buying it before because I wasn't sure whether I'd be spending extra trying to use the coupons going to places I typically wouldn't or actually save money going about my regular purchases. With the new discounted price, I decided to give it a whirl.

I just got the book last week and after looking through it, I think it'll be a winner. I saw a few coupons for places I regularly go to such as discounted movie tix (though I can get them for the same price at CAA) and 2 for 1 dining at restaurants I normally go to. I think it's safe to say, I'll break even but now the question is will I save money? I am going to try and keep track of when I use the coupons and see how much I end up saving in 2010 and see if it was a worth while purchase.

Does anybody have any experiences with the massive amounts of money they saved with the book?

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

First snow fall...

It was wishful thinking to hope that the snow free days would last through December. The drive into work this morning wasn't too bad because I imagine lots of people are on holidays with the Christmas season close by. There are a ton of people at work taking days off because they can't carry over them over into 2010 so it's either use it or loose it! That's why I think the roads weren't as crammed as it could have been. The snow also turned into rain half way through my drive, making things easier. However when I got to my parking lot and trekked into the building, my socks & pants were soaked from snow getting into my shoes, reminding me that I still need a good pair of winter boots

Last year I debated investing in a good pair of boots. I ended up going through the winter freezing my little piggies because I never bought that pair. This winter, I am in the same spot thinking about a good pair of winter boots that will keep me warm & dry.

I still really like the North Face Hailey Boot below from last year retailing at a whopping $165!

A new favorite this year is also the North Face Payton boot retailing for $140.
I still can't stomach the retail prices for these even though reality is if I want warm + waterproof, I am going to need to bite the bullet. The plan for the moment is to hold off for a few more weeks and see if I can get them in the US when I am there for the holidays. I am crossing my fingers for my wallet & toes.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Urban Decay at your local Winners!

I haven't posted in almost a month! Life's been throwing me things I didn't necessairly want to blog about to the whole world so I decided to take a break. Well the original break was going to be a week and that suddenly turned into weeks. It's like anything with life, once you fall out of the habit, it's a little hard to get back into it.

Now back to my regularly scheduled post. I was at Winners today and what did I see in the makeup section? Urban Decay eyeshadows for $4.99! These little guys retail for $16 at your local Sephora so it's a steal if you are able to get them at Winners. The only thing is the selection was small. I got Chains which is the colour pictured right. They also had some green colour that was not for me.

I plan on stopping by more often to see if they change their colours because at $5, it's even cheaper than most drugstore eyeshadows. They also had some Two Faced lip stuff, Bare Essential kits and Eco Tools brushes at good prices but none of those interested me.