Sunscreen, hold the scary
So maybe it’s just me, but ever since hearing about how benzone-containing sunscreens are basically the root of all evil, I’ve been devoting entirely too much of my life to finding affordable sunscreens that won’t cause my son to grow breasts or whatever. Ahem.
Here’s the Cliff Notes version: You want a product where titanium dioxide or zinc is the active ingredient. That means it’s a physical barrier sunscreen rather than a chemical barrier sunscreen. Healthier for the kids, but much harder to find. (And here’s a pro tip: There’s no such thing as a physical barrier spray. So that super-convenient spray mist? Yeah, that’s no good.)
You want something like this Banana Boat SPF50 lotion—benzone-free (titanium dioxide is the active ingredient), not to mention that it’s tear-free and “very water resistant.” Even better, Amazon’s price right now $14.84 for two, but drops to $14.10 if you buy via Subscribe & Save (which also gives you free shipping), and if you’re eligible for Amazon coupons there’s also a $2 off coupon to clip on the page. You get two tubes delivered to your door for just over $6/each, when the retail price is $10/each.
Nice, and no hormone disrupting worries, either.
Pamper your body, pamper your wallet
Oh, how I love The Body Shop. Their body butters make me weep, both because I love them and because they cost too much (and also, possibly, because I cry easily). But right now everything is on sale, with all sorts of specials like 3 body butters for $30!
Plus, you can use coupon code BODYSHOP for an additional $10 off any $20+ purchase. Shipping starts at $5.95, though if you spend $50+ it’s free. Now I just have to try to figure out whether I want to buy gifts, spend $50 and get free shipping, or if I want to maximize the theoretical percentage off by staying right near $20. Decisions, decisions….
It’s the Mother’s Day Sale, at Tulle
I’ll admit that Tulle is sometimes confusing to me—adorable dresses are interspersed among “trendy” clothing items which I would never wear (or can’t even figure out how you’re supposed to wear). I suspect I’m a little too old to shop there. But a few of my favorite pieces came from Tulle, and whenever they have a sale, I have to go look.
Right now, they’re offering up to 60% off items in the Sale section, in honor of Mother’s Day. True, most of their stuff is more appropriate for my daughter than for me, but this way I can pretend to be shopping for her while I check to see if there’s anything I want. Heh. Another word to the wise, here: Always check the size chart for each individual item as the sizing varies greatly. (I own an XS blazer and a M sweater from Tulle… both of which fit me perfectly.)
[Edited to add: There are a ton of wool coats at amazing prices—if you’ll need one next winter, now’s the time to shop.]
Girl, BOGO those jeans
Confession: I have never heard of dENiZEN from Levi’s before today, and I’m inclined to hate it just based on the goofy capitalization scheme, but I do love Levi’s, and you know I love BOGO.
So with that in mind (crucial to your buying decisions, I’m sure), I’m giving a thumbs-up to the deal on the BOGO deal on girls’ jeans in today’s Target Daily Deals, because—silly spelling or no—two pairs of fashionable jeans for your kiddo for $18 shipped is pretty good. Choose from a variety of washes and cuts (looks like they have skinny, straight, and bootcut), so you can mix and match as you please.
Of course, my rotten child has outgrown girls’ sizes, so I don’t even have anyone to buy them for. Hmph.
Not wine, coffee
While it’s true that Wine.Woot usually features wine and assorted accoutrements therein, today they’re ready to wake you up instead of putting you to sleep. (Uh, maybe wine doesn’t make you sleepy and I’m just projecting.)
Today’s deal is a 1000 Faces coffee sampler, and with the $34.99 price and $5 shipping, that’s 4 pounds of assorted artisan coffee beans for $10/pound. Why should you care? Well, first of all, 1000 Faces’ roasting facility is actual local to me, which means I can assure you that this coffee is ahhhhhmazing, because we buy it at our Farmers’ Market all the time. Second, when I buy it—having dragged my sorry butt out of bed extra-early on a Saturday morning, winding through the crowds trying to pretend I’m awake—it costs around $14/pound. And it’s worth it if you take your coffee seriously. So $10/pound without even leaving the house is a pretty sweet deal.
Of course, if you get it at the Market, when you buy beans they also brew you a fresh cup as a free bonus. That’s pretty nice. Or maybe they just do that for me because I’m always half asleep.
Three-day savings at Gap
I swear, every time Gap comes out with another coupon, there are more restrictions than the last one. It’s hard to keep up, and it kind of makes me want to shake my fist in their general direction. But then it still ends up being a useful discount and I shop anyway.
I fail at righteous indignation, sometimes.
Anyway! You have today, tomorrow and the next day to shop Gap and use coupon code GAPMAY to take 30% off… most thing. Denim is excluded, as well as a variety of other brands they carry, and some other stuff (see site details for exclusions). But! If you can find something you can use it on, bam—30% off.
They appreciate you!
Did you know that this is Teacher Appreciation Week? It is! And no one appreciates teachers more than I do, except possible Discount School Supply—they’re offering an extra 15% off just about everything, this week, with coupon code FAVORITE.
You don’t have to be a teacher to shop there, and they have way more than just conventional school supplies. (I particularly love them for sensory toys/fidgets, which can be hard to find locally.) As long as they’re spreading the appreciation, it’s worth a look.
An extra-special Kohls Wednesday
Hey, it’s Wednesday, and you know what that means—time to get your Kohls on!
Everyone gets free shipping on their $75+ purchase and earns $10 Kohls Cash for every $50 spent. Kohls charge card holders can use coupon code MAY30 for an additional 30% off, and those without the magic card can use coupon code SMS1327 for an extra 10% off. Free shipping on any order for card holders with coupon code MVCFS4FUN, too!
Here’s the deal to get: Right now they have the Presto Cool Touch Electric Griddle marked down to just $18 (from $40). That means card holders can get it with coupons for around $13 shipped! Craziness. (I own this griddle. I love this griddle. Sunday pancakes wouldn’t be the same without it.)
I love Wednesdays.
Why I love and hate Craigslist
Once upon a time, some people (possibly my husband and me) built a cool new screen porch and wanted some comfy furniture for it. But those people (again, not naming any names) may have finished up that project and realized that their funds for buying new furniture were… shall we say… depleted.
Enter Craigslist! No problem, thought those people—we will simply look for a used set of furniture.
They looked. And looked. And looked some more. Apparently patio furniture is in demand in the spring. (Who knew?) And one day a cheap set popped up, and those people pounced on the listing, called immediately, and made plans to drive over an hour to look at it. The drive was made, and the owners said, “Ooops, we should’ve called. We sold it already.”
On that day, I pretty much hated Craigslist.
Later, we, er, I mean, those people did find a set of furniture on Craigslist. They probably paid a little more than they should’ve (desperation!), but it was a decent deal and a relatively happy ending to the saga.
But today, I love Craigslist. We have been looking for a bike trailer to take camping, that our dog can ride in (stop laughing). I refuse to pay $100+ for a sidecar for the dog, y’know. Today, we snagged this Burley bike trailer, barely used, for—I hope you’re sitting down—$40. (In case you didn’t feel like clicking through, retail on that trailer is $529. I’ve owned cars that cost less.)
What’s your best Craigslist deal? Go ahead, brag about it.
Need a place to crash?
I think having an air mattress on hand is always an excellent idea; it means instant comfort for guests, and also makes locking your kids out of the house for the night seem less cruel. (Kidding! I would never do that. And if I did, I would never admit to it on the Internet.)
If you hop on over to Bon-Ton today, you’ll see the “Deals of the Day” sidebar on the right, one of which is a great deal on an air mattress with a built-in pump. I do think their original price is a little inflated (ooh, unintentional pun!), but still, now it’s $30 for a twin, $35 for a full, or just $40 for a queen. Not bad.
Spend $99 and your shipping will be free, and they just happen to have a bunch of other deals going on, and an extra 20% off sale items with coupon code MAY2DAYSL12, too (though that cannot be applied to the air mattress deal).
“Well, honey, I figured we could use the air mattress, but then I had to buy these cute shoes and a new dress to get the free shipping, see….”
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