HomeGoods, How Do I Love Thee?

HomeGoods, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways…

Since being introduced by my mom a few years ago, HomeGoods and I have grown quite close. HomeGoods has become one of my favorite retail destinations – especially since moving into my new house (movin' on up, Jeffersons style). Every room in my new abode has somehow been touched by HomeGoods – from the baskets I bought to organize my arsenal of beauty products to the artwork in my bathroom to the jungle-themed growth chart and bookends I bought for Westley's nursery.

Besides furniture and decorative home accents, Home Goods has some wonderful bath and body products. My favorites are from CST (Commonwealth Soap & Toiletries), a Massachusetts-based company that develops products for HomeGoods and its sisters, Marshalls and TJ Maxx. I've been crushing on this company for years, thanks to their high quality/reasonably priced beauty products. I've blogged about them before, but I recently discovered something new that warrants another mention.

A few weeks ago, my mom threw me a fabulous baby shower. We played some fun games, and one of the prizes was this soap set my mom found at HomeGoods. The soaps smelled so divine, I felt greedy for coveting a set of my own…especially considering the generous gifts my guests had given me. After the party ended and everyone went home, I was chatting with my mom about the soaps, and she admitted she kept a set for herself. Now, I was super jeal.

But I must have good kharma because, last weekend, Mom and I went to a random HomeGoods in New Jersey and found a set of the soaps. AND they were marked down to $3.50!

So if you're in a HomeGoods, TJ Maxx or Marshalls anytime soon, look for a round box of soaps that looks like the one pictured above. Though it's difficult to accurately describe the scent (I've never been great at that), I would say that it has a subtle, floral/powdery, feminine fragrance. Go get you some. You'll thank me later.

Recessionista's Fabuless Pick Of The Week: Cashmere Mist Deodorant/Anti-Perspirant

Since when does a deodorant turn you on to the corresponding perfume? Since now.

A month ago, Amber and I met up in suburban Philly for a Marshalls/TJ Maxx raid. While perusing the beauty selection, Amber turned my attention to a mini tube of Donna Karan Cashmere Mist Deodorant/Anti-perspirant. Its powdery vanilla scent fragrance had me at hello. But, for some reason, I bid it adieu and sat it back on the shelf.

And from the moment I got in my car and drove out of the parking lot, the fragrance haunted my olfactory senses and I cursed my retail restraint.

Then last week, while making a routine pit stop at Sephora, I spotted my little friend (the deodorant, not Amber) in one of those bins near the register. So I scooped her up and took her home.

There are no words to describe how enamored I am with this deodorant. I find myself raising my arms more often than necessary, just to get a whiff of my ambrosial armpits.

Now while $10 may seem a bit absurd for a 1 oz tube of deodorant, let me assure you that this is a sound investment. Not only is it the the best smelling deodorant I've ever tried, it's the perfect size to stash in your purse (or clutch, even) for a mid-day refresh sesh.

And once you buy the deodorant, just try not to buy the perfume. Impossible.

Freeze 24-7 PlumpLips - $9.99 at Marshalls

You could spend $42 for a .28 oz tube of Freeze 24-7 PlumpLips gloss here. Or you could spend $9.99 at your local Marshalls. Yesterday, while shopping the Willow Grove, PA Marshalls with Mama Spoiled Pretty, I spotted a basket full of PlumpLips near register #1.

About a year ago when I reviewed PlumpLips, my sister also fell in love with the lip plumper; but $42 was a little too rich for a college student's budget. So, being the best big sis a girl could ever wish for, I tossed a tube into my mom's cart and told her that Lauren would be forever grateful.

Today, Lauren called me to gush about her new gloss...marveling that A) I remembered how hard she tried to find it, on the cheap, circa 2007...and B) that I even recalled which shade she had been searching for (FirstFrost).

I'm good.

One More Reason To Love Marshalls

Like many women, one of my favorite shopping destinations is Marshalls. I could spend a few hours in Marshalls – and I have, on many occasions. I take my time combing the racks, so I’m sure not to miss any hidden treasures. When other women approach my aisle, I get territorial and send out subliminal messages - warning them not to disrupt my flow. I even scour the racks that aren’t my size, because sometimes shoppers are sneaky and hide things so they can come back and snatch them up. And let's not even get into how the adrenaline courses through my veins when I find a designer piece on the clearance rack! I'm getting all excited just thinking about it.

Just when I thought I couldn’t love Marshalls any more, they go and surprise me. All new Marshalls stores and over 20 select locations across the country now feature The CUBE, an in-store boutique with a collection of contemporary fashion.

Intended for young women who are looking for trendy, yet sophisticated styles, this ‘boutique within a store,’ presents the hot trends from all the departments in the store - including apparel, shoes, handbags and jewelry...so it's easy to shop and accessorize. And rather than being arranged by size, apparel in the CUBE is organized by style, so shoppers can find what they’re looking for and create a stylish, head-to-toe outfit more easily.


Click here for more info, and to see if there's a CUBE near you.

TJ Maxx Is My New BFF

You all know that I heart Sephora. I’m also a fan of department stores and specialty boutiques. But my new favorite places to shop for beauty products are retail chains like TJ Maxx and Marshalls. To me, there’s something so satisfying about rooting through shelves of crap and spotting the perfect product – as if it was put there especially for me to find.

This weekend, I went to TJ Maxx – and was amazed at what I found: GapBody body lotion for $5.99; a gift set of three Jaqua Shower Syrups for $9.99; and Lucky Chick Mandarin White Orchid Sugar Body Scrub for $4.99. I’ve also spied products from Peter Thomas Roth, Juice Beauty, Davies Gate, and N.V. Perricone on shelves at TJ Maxx. And you’d be amazed at the fragrance selection…not too long ago, my Mom bought a 1.7 ounce bottle of Hanae Mori Butterfly Eau de Parfum for $29.99 (retail value $85)!

Spoiled Pretty Tip: On your next trip to TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and similar retail chains – be on the lookout for products from CST (Commonwealth Soap and Toiletries) and Asquith & Somerset. These bath and body products are high-quality at a low price (most items are under $8). Right now, I’m loving CST’s Tangerine Vanilla Sugar Scrub…it gently polishes my skin, and smells just like an orange creamsicle!