Black Friday, Cyber Monday Hauls and Disappointments

I'm back again! Thanksgiving was hectic, as I was cooking all Thursday. I got to break my meat fast for a bit by nomming on some turkey. I hope everyone got to spend some time with other loved ones! :)

I didn't think I spent that much money until I tallied it all up just now, lol. 

Here goes: 
I didn't buy much on Black Friday. I am super scared of big crowds and the cold. Black Friday's for the true fanatics! I stayed warm all day and ventured out to my local stores just to browse around. I picked up the N.Y.C. limited edition rose glosses Rite-Aid. Learn more about the collection here. The collection never showed up in the East Bay, but they found their way to my hometown. I was so excited to find them, because it's been a while since they've been released. And there was still one of each! I felt soo excited... until I got them home and realized that someone broke the safety seal on one of them and swatched it. Gah, but I decided to keep it and sanitize it with rubbing alcohol on the surface. Check the safety seal, it should be on all unopened rose glosses!

After dinner, I check out the local Ulta. They stocked some new Freeman products, so I, of course, helped myself to a new clay facial mask. I glanced over the ingredients for this one and I see no parabens, woot! (EDIT: I didn't looked closely enough, it does. :/) I'll get a new review up for this one soon. 

When I got back to school, I proceeded to haul some L'oreal products that have been heavily discounted. Thanks Gianna and Lisa for the tips! Another thanks to Gianna for alerting me that the new Sally Hansen Nailgrowth Miracle nail colors were available at CVS.

CVS Haul

Here's the breakdown (yes, I made a chart)



I saved tons of money on the L'oreal sale, though I'm not a fan of L'oreal skincare or cosmetics. I've looked through the labels: way too much mineral oil/petrolatum and alcohol. But I'm pretty happy with my purchases nonetheless. Save even more money by printing out some L'oreal coupons. I found mine here. 

I kicked off Cyber Monday with e.l.f.'s 55% off sale on Sunday. It bugs me that it doesn't include free shipping, but $6.95 is manageable. Here's my forthcoming haul. 

The sale has been extended, so you still have a chance to get your haul on! Another way to save money is to spend over $30 on e.l.f., not including tax and not counting coupon savings. You'll then be eligible for a magazine. But if you forgo the magazine, you'll receive $12 rebate back. That's like super savings! Click here for more deets. 

Rants follow
The scary tax and shipping culprit belongs to Cinema Secrets. There were obvious great savings with their 50% off sale. But I found the tax/shipping excessive. I was charged 9.75% sales tax, which is the sales tax of LA county and the headquarters of Cinema Secrets. I reside in CA and want to help the CA economy, buuuut.

They charged tax based on price before the coupon. Yikes, $11.99 for sales tax! That plus the S&H fee shrinks the discount significantly. But a deal's still a deal. And I'm satisfied with my purchase and excited to get my products! 

The biggest headache of the night goes to Estee Lauder. I was floundering all day as to what buy for my mother. Then I found out about the Estee Lauder $35 Coach gift with perfume purchase. When I saw it, I thought yes! My mother likes Coach, and it would be a nice Coach addition to her growing collection. 

So I put a perfume in my cart along with the Coach GWP. The cart emptied itself midway through checkout! That was absolutely ridiculous! I understand that supplies are limited, but shoppers should be able to hold on to their items while they are checking out. I've given up on this for now. I refuse to be held hostage by makeup scalpers on ebay and the like. 

But that's totally cool, Estee. I found something else for my mother. 

Don't worry, Estee. I've totally moved on. ;)

She needed more Fekkai shampoo, so I took advantage of Bath & Body Works' 25% off. And who wouldn't love fuzzy socks and cream for dry skin? Hopefully my mom! 

Thanks to Muse for all her helpful Cyber Monday info. I couldn't have emptied my wallet without you! :P

Enough of the negativity, it was a great shopping day overall, but hopefully one I won't replicate in the near future!

And you, how'd you fare? Did you indulge or stay away? Any shopping headaches or steals? Your thoughts!