4 Hour Beauty Break Deal at Ulta

I really love Ulta's specials when it comes to samples. Sometimes I feel like their sample selections trump Sephora's. Until 2 pm today, you can snag this awesome Smashbox 4 piece sample gift with any $50 purchase. I personally love the Photo Finish Primer and the BB Cream. Take a peak at their weekly ad because they have quite a few things that are priced well. As usual, they also have a good little discount code that you can use on most items. (308014 is the code that will get you $3.50 off of $10+) 

Some of my personal favorites $30 and under: 

Left to right: 

Anastasia Beverly Hills Shadow Couture World Traveler Eye Shadow Palette: $30

Benefit Cosmetics Real Sexy Steal: $24

Maybelline Volum' Express Colassal Mascara: $6.99 with BOGO half off 

Smashbox Double Exposure Travel Palette: $24 

J Brand Jeans for Over Half Off

So this morning I got a Hautelook email that was featuring J Brand jeans on sale. While the sales seemed decent, when I checked elsewhere, I found the same jeans CHEAPER on J Brand's website where you could get more sizes, free shipping, and 4% cash back from Ebates. These jeans are really well made and will last you forever. I've been into the super distressed look lately so of course I found quite a few pairs I loved. I feel like there's something for everyone in this sale.

620 Mid-Rise Super Skinny, 620 Coated Close Cut Super Skinny

8226 Cropped Skinny, 9077 Ellis

9044 Jake, 1214 Aidan

Anmari Trouser, 1221 Alex

Now is a good chance to grab a pair or two for the upcoming fall. The skinny jeans will look perfect tucked into some boots, or even with a cute pair of flats. I love those Anmari black trouser pants so much. I think they're a good option for a business casual look but they can also be worn more edgy with a denim jacket and band tee. (I'm still a big fan of band tees, even at 26) For the few pairs of crops/cuffed jeans I found, they can be worn into fall with some Birkenstocks and a hoodie for a quick trip to the farmer's market, throw some Converse sneakers on with them and it would be a comfy outfit to go apple picking in, or pair them with a good pair of heels and a statement necklace and you have a great outfit for a girl's night with dinner and drinks. 

School Shoes for a Great Price

Sometimes I forget about them but Famous Footwear has impressed me again. They have their buy one get one half off sale as well as a 15% off coupon that helped me snag two pairs of sneakers for Braxton this year for less than $50. Their prices are comparable to other online retailers, they have either free shipping with orders of $75+ or really reasonable shipping prices if you don't reach the free shipping minimum. The code to use for the 15% off is SCHOOL28 and it's good until September 2nd. 

Classic and simple for Braxton's upcoming UPK year

There's a pretty good sale on kids' Vans as well as a few good deals on kids' Sperry shoes. For myself, I'm really loving these boots and the bright Nikes. Their men's athletic shoes sale has a lot to choose from so there's really something for everyone. 

OshKosh and Carter's Sale for Basics/Layering Pieces

So there has been some buzz happening with sales the past few days but I have to say, I haven't been *too* impressed lately. With the Gap sale that happened on Wednesday/Thursday ($25 off of $50 purchase plus 30% off sale) I had multiple people messaging me, asking if I had seen it, which I had, but I wasn't jumping on it. For some reason I haven't really loved the selection that Gap has had for toddlers this summer/coming fall season. Usually I get almost all of Braxton's clothes from there but when I started looking for back to school clothes for him there, I couldn't really find a single thing that I wanted. (That never happens!) I'm hoping they come out with better fall/winter clothes coming up because you best believe I want to be spending money there on Black Friday. As for that sale I mentioned up there, apparently Gap is canceling orders due to people stacking those codes together. Boo to you, too, Gap. 

Braxton starts UPK full time in three weeks. I'm not used to him being out of the house 5 days a week, let alone him being gone from 8:30 am until 2:30 pm each day. With that being said, back to school clothes shopping this year is a necessity. The less laundry we have to do immediately, the better, right? Yesterday I found a great deal at OshKosh and Carter's and I actually love their selection of clothes this year, especially for boys. The straight jeans and skinny jeans for boys are all great looking and at a price point that is affordable. Also, did you know that they had cheap suspenders?! 

That's the haul that I got for Braxton for this coming school year and I spent less than $120 on it all. I chose not to focus too much on shorts/short sleeve shirts because it'll be cold sooner rather than later, unfortunately. Braxton really enjoys graphic tees and I think he's going to love the glow in the dark ones from OshKosh the most. 

With the girl's selection, I wanted pieces that would mix and match well. It makes life easier on all of us when you can do that. All of that was less than $150. That's 18 pieces that can transition you perfectly from late summer all the way to late fall/early winter. The leggings would be perfect to go under the dresses with some boots once it's chilly and you can add either the cardigan or denim jacket. 

The codes to use for the sale:

Carter's: 15% off entire purchase* COLOR15

Carter's and OshKosh: 20% off $40 purchase* COLOR20

Carter's: 30% off $60 purchase* COLOR30 

If you buy from both OshKosh and Carter's you automatically receive free shipping, normally their free shipping minimum is $75. This weekend only, in store and online, OshKosh has buy 1, get 1 free shoes along with an extra 20% off clearance. 

If you use Ebates, they have double cash back to Carter's, so if you link through them to Carter's you can get 5% cash back. I believe even if you also buy stuff from OshKosh, you still get that 5% cash back. 

*Not valid on clearance or doorbusters

Gap Friends & Family Sale

It's one of my favorite times to shop...Gap's friends and family event is always a big deal, at least for me. Now is the time to get 40% off of everything. Everything as in no exclusions, in store and online, AND you can use it at Gap Factory stores. The code to use is GAPFAM and you're good to go. They also have 50% off up to 5 regular price items in store and for every $50 you spend, you will receive $25 in Gap Cash to spend later on. 

I went to a Gap outlet yesterday to see if I could get anything good for back to school and I came across those dresses. I asked some friends if anyone wanted one, because they're adorable, and so I ended up buying almost all of them. Why? Because #outfitsandseasons that's why. They ended up being $10.80 and the little cat loafers were only $10.40 after the discounts. The dresses are a thick material so they'll be PERFECT for the upcoming fall/winter. One other favorite from yesterday was this raglan top. Yes, more black and white stripes, but I'm pretty sure it's the softest shirt I have ever bought. I think it'll look perfect with some jeggings and some Mini Melissa Ultragirls. 

Back to Preschool outfits

As usual, I really love Gap's jeans/jeggings for girls and boys. 

Back to school outfits: Girls/Boys

If you have a baby shower to go to anytime soon, might I suggest grabbing some newborn essentials because they are so classic and so comfy.

Back to School Savings with Ebates

I think everyone knows by now that I love Ebates. I have earned over $300 in cash back in the time that I've had an account and it comes in handy! I've been able to buy extra Christmas presents with it, I've been able to shop small with it because it gets deposited into my PayPal account, and I've used it as a way to buy myself stuff that I normally wouldn't spend our regular money on. Ahh, treat yourself, right? Ebates also has a referral program that is awesome and gives you money for the people you refer! 

Clothes: OshKosh, Shoes: Toms/Converse, Backpacks: Skip Hop Zoo/Wildkin

One big bonus to the company is that they often have double cash back days/promos that can be a big deal, especially when it's around the time that you're already shopping at those places. They normally do them around holidays and also now, for back to school. I like to do a lot of back to school shopping online because taking both of the kids out to get stuff is a little exhausting. Plus, where Braxton is the only one going to school, and he isn't picky/I know his size, I can get away with not taking him store to store to try things on. 

Here are the stores with double cash back, and I found some codes and sales for just about everyone...

Amazon: 5.5% cash back on backpacks/luggage, 3% back on kid's clothes/women's clothing/men's clothing, and 5% cash back at My Habit.

OshKosh: 5% cash back, 15% off all orders using code 15OFFAUG, spend $40+ and you can get free shipping plus get an extra 25% off with code EXTRA25. They have some pretty great new arrivals for toddler boys/toddler girls (sizes 2T-5T) as well as some perfect outerwear for girls and boys. (Ppsstt look how cheap their jeans are!)

Kohl's: 6% cash back, 20% site wide using code SMARTYPANTS, $10 off of your $30 kid's/toddler's apparel purchase with code BTSKIDS10, $10 off your $30 junior's/young men's apparel/accessories/handbags purchase using code SELFIE10, and 15% off of furniture/decor/storage/organization with code REFRESH15. 

eBags: 12% cash back plus an additional 10% off backpacks using code SCHOOL. I'm a big fan of Wildkin backpacks. 

Nordstrom: 6% cash back plus free shipping and returns on any order. They have a great Nike sale right now, even price matching quite a few styles (which I love about Nordstom). I love when there's a sale on Kate Spade. There are even a couple Maxi-Cosi convertible car seats on sale. Doing a quick google search of the two seats, Nordstrom's sale price is around the same price as some other retailers but with the cash back, it's a pretty good buy. 

ShoeBuy: 12% cash back plus 20% off any order using code AUGUST20 and they have free shipping and exchanges no matter the order. (They have great prices on Keens, Uggs for the winter as well as The North Face...it's never too early to prepare for the cold!)

PacSun: 8% cash back and then you can take 15% off your regular priced purchase using code 15THANKS, free shipping on any order using code PACFREE, or 15% off your entire order using code 15OFFEBATES. I love their BullHead denim which you can find a lot of them 2 for $69. 

Converse: 12% cash back plus free ground shipping on all orders, excludes custom orders. You can't go wrong when you go classic. 

Macy's: 6% cash back and use code BTS for 20% off all regular/sale/clearance clothing for juniors, guys and kids as well as 15% off all sale and clearance shoes. Some great buys: Carter's clearance pajamas, kimonos, and deals under $16.99. 

Toms: 10% cash back and $5 off any order of $50 with code TOMS5OFF, $10 off any full priced order of $100 (excludes bags) using code TOMS10OFF, and free US shipping on orders of $25+. How cute are these cheetah print mary-janes?

I'm going to keep checking Ebate's double cash back deals because they change all the time and if I see something good, I'll make sure to post it. Keep an eye out! 

Perfume Sale, Anyone?

Apparently, back to school time is a great time to buy perfume. Who knew? Right now, The Perfume Spot has an additional 15% off all fragrances using code BTS15. I actually love shopping through them to begin with because their prices are always pretty low and they're a legit seller. Ebates gives 6% cash back with them, which I love, because most perfumes I buy are on the higher side of price usually and 6% starts to add up! Shipping is normally $5.95 or it's free when you spend $79 or more. 

Some of my personal favorites: 

Left to right:

3.4 oz Daisy By Marc Jacobs: $49.29, 1.7 oz Very Hollywood By Michael Kors: $39.94, 3.4 oz Miss Dior by Christian Dior: $84.99, 2.5 oz Chloé by Chloé: $63.74, 3.4 oz DKNY Be Delicious: $45.04, 3.3 oz Stella by Stella McCartney: $79.04

The sale is good until August 18th, or while supplies last.