We’re kickin’ it old school today in two ways: for one, you might recall the Little Luxuries column I used to do all the time back in the day. And second (and even more fun!), I’m participating in a Link Up! This one is being hosted by <em>press, the WordPress themes shop I run with Lisa. You might not know this, but not only are we selling WordPress themes and plugins, we’ve also regularly been publishing content over on our blog there. Our goal is to build a community specifically for bloggers! Several years back, when I ran The B Bar, we hosted Link Ups similar to this, and it was one of my favorite aspects of that shop. I thought I’d bring it back with <em>press, and today is our first link up!
Basically: we published an open prompt, and anyone who wished to join in was invited to answer it! This month’s Link Up prompt is:
What are 5 things under $50 you can’t live without?
I couldn’t keep mine to just 5, so hooray, you’re getting my top 8. Read on to find out what they are, and be sure to check out the other blog participants in this month’s Link Up to see what they selected too! You can find their links at the end of this post.
One. I’ve written about Herbivore’s Pink Clay soap before, but it is consistently the facial cleansing bar I come back to over and over. I’ve deviated here and there, to try something I found on sale, or if I was having a specific skin concern (like my breakout this past winter). But by and large, this is the facial soap I’ve used for years now. I love how gentle it is! It doesn’t strip the skin, it’s super mellow, and it has a light, non-perfumey scent. I also love that when I travel, it can double as body soap if you need it to. Shop it
Two. You’ve probably noticed I listen to a lot of music around here. I don’t know what I would do without Spotify Premium (to upgrade to premium is actually only $9.99/month, but we pay more to have multiple accounts in our household). There are rare occasions Joe has put on Pandora in the car, and I’m actually pained to listen to commercials, AND that I can’t cultivate playlists the way I want. I mean, Spotify’s radio is good too, but there is just nothing like creating your own playlists. I do not think I could live without Spotify at this point! Get it
Three. The productivity app so good, it’s making two appearances. I’ve used ToDoist for YEARS now, but I upgraded to Premium a couple of years ago. Having the ability to add comments to asks and set reminders on them has been a gamechanger for me. I mean, I felt pretty productive before, but all the extra features with Premium have allowed Lisa and I to collaborate in better, more efficient ways. I always tell people, if it’s not on my ToDoist, it’s probably not happening. Maybe it’s bad that so much of my life is run by this one app, but I’d be lost without it! Get it
Four. I’ve waxed poetic about Kari Gran Lip Whip before (an entire post about it, actually), and the love affair is unending. I’ve repurchased this stuff multiple times! I’ve tried the Radiant color, Marsala, the Tinted Peppermint, and the naked as well. I have a pot of this in my office, in my bathroom, two in the small pouch I move between purses…it has to be with me wherever I go, that’s how much I love it. Note that the colors look totally different on your skin than they do in the little pots! Shop it
Five. Each summer, I try to stock up on new linen tees from Everlane. They have two colors in stock right now, but guaranteed in late spring, they’ll have a ton more. On any given weekday, the likelihood of finding me in one of these is probably 90%. I have four or five of them, and find them so easy to wear! They have an amazing drape, and I like that the fabric feels both heavy, but cool to the touch. They look awesome tucked (because they are linen, they just flow better around your curves), and the wide scoop neck is flattering on me. These are an everyday wardrobe staple for me. Shop it
Six. I discovered this scrub wayyyy back in 2012 (LOL at this post), and despite trying others since, it remains my favorite. When we moved to NY in 2013, I couldn’t find it anywhere, so trust me when I say, I tried many a facial scrub in between. I like that it doesn’t have beads as the exfoliant (not only can they be bad for the environment depending on what they’re made of, I’ll cop to it —I like my scrub to feel rough and like it’s doing something). Despite that, I don’t find it irritating at all. Lately I’ve been applying it on TOP of my facial soap and giving myself a gentle massage with the two together. Rinse, serum, moisturize and glow. Shop it
Seven. So I’ve mentioned this product before and though I took a short break from it last fall, it’s one I recently came back to. I think I’ve decided it’s my fave brow product just because it’s so easy. I’ve tried other brow gels where I felt I had to apply lots of product, OR fuss with powders and pencils to get the right level of fill. This particular gel has great coverage, and it lasts foreverrrrr. I’m on the same tube as I was when I wrote this post, and just now starting to run out! Shop it
Eight. If nothing else, writing this post made me realize we were stupidly paying $12.99/mo for Amazon Prime, when we should just pay $99 per year so the per month cost is only $8.25. Thanks, Link Up prompt! In any case, I’m still filing this as under $50…and something I definitely can’t live without. We are recent Prime converts (like within the last year) and I honestly don’t know what I was doing with my life beforehand. Living in a city, and without access to a car during the day, it is so insanely easy to place last minute orders for things—especially for Lucy, or simple household supplies.The piles of boxes we accumulate almost made this fall from my absolute must-have list, but then I remembered that we were out of some medicine for Lucy this past Monday and it was available for delivery the same night, so… Get it
What about you? Any things under $50 you have to have in your life?
Read on to see what these gals said were their must-haves under $50!
I’m all for new-to-me lip products and this one sounds amazing!
http://bedknobsandbaubles.com/
Thanks so much for hosting the link up! Love seeing what products made the cut! Going to check out that soap!
xo, Kimberly
Thank you so much for participating! Embarrassing moment when I woke up and realized I had done allll the work to get the Link Up ready…and forgot to update my own post.
The lip whip!!! Ever since I tried it after the first time you wrote about it, I have gotten so many people hooked. Me, my husband, a few co-workers, and my oldest daughter’s entire softball team. Kari Gran should be paying me at this point!
Haha, love it!!!
I’m pretty sure I first heard about Kari Gran lip whip from you…and it made my list too! I just repurchased the naked and radiant. I need one of each on hand at all times!
I go back and forth on Everlane after having bad experiences with their tee shirts, but you’ve convinced me to check out the linen ones this summer!
Amazon Prime is a must have for me too! And I’m with you, I hate all the boxes. Fortunately, the place where we live picks up recycling for us which makes me feel a little better.
xo Grace
beautyandburberry.com
Ooh I’m definitely going to have to try the ToDoist app!
I neeeeed the lip whip! It looks amazing and the colors are so so cute! Becky / http://www.rosenadbrose.com