ENTER NOW to win a FREE BOTTLE of Purex Plus Oxi!

The lovely people at Purex Insiders have once again sent me an amazing product to try out.  Purex is already great but Purex PLUS Oxi?  Phenomenal.

Today, in true clumsy girl style, I managed to coat my office kitchen, sweater, shirt and pants in oily salad dressing. (Please be sure that the top to your salad dressing bottle is screwed on tight before you decide to shake it up.) After walking around for half the day smelling like an Italian bistro I finally got home and was faced with the decision of how to best wash these clothes.  I knew I was going to need to bring in the big guns so I chose Purex plus Oxi. Purex plus Oxi  uses 3 stain fighting enzymes that work on over 101 different stains!  

I am so pleased with the results.  No oily stains, no lingering smells and no spots!!!  Fresh and clean! The "Fresh Morning Burst" scent is so refreshing. I couldn't be more pleased.

More info about Purex plus Oxi from their website:

•      Can Purex plus Oxi detergent be used in High Efficiency Front Load washing machines?
  Yes, the formula in Purex plus Oxi has been specifically formulated to work equally well in both High Efficiency washing machines as well as Standard Top-Load washing machines.
•      What makes Purex plus Oxi different from base Purex?
  Purex plus Oxi has even more stain-fighting power than regular Purex detergent because it combines the proven performance of Purex detergent plus the stain-fighting power of Oxi.
•      Can I use Purex plus Oxi on all types of laundry?
  Absolutely! You can use Purex plus Oxi on all clothing that is marked as machine-washable. As always, be sure to follow the directions on the clothing label.
•      Is Purex plus Oxi hypoallergenic?
  Yes, it has been tested and found to be hypoallergenic and safe for sensitive skin.

Would you like to try Purex plus Oxi for yourself?  I am giving away 3 coupons for a FREE bottle!!! (Up to $6 in Value.)

Visit our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/TheSavingsSpot) and SHARE the post about the Purex plus Oxi giveaway. Be sure to make your share a PUBLIC post!  Winners will be chosen on December 2, 2012!

Dollar Store Design School #3 and #4 - Last Minute Halloween Fabulousness

2 quick (and of course inexpensive) ideas for Halloween decor!

First up... #3 - MUMMY PUMPKIN!  I know this isn't anything new but it's crazy cute and I'm telling you that you can find everything at The Dollar Store... at least I did.

Buy:
1 faux pumpkin (I saw them at the store when they first got their Halloween items in but didn't grab one then so I had to buy a real one.  I got one for $3.50 at Walgreens.)
1 roll of white gauze (buy 2 if you have a large pumpkin)
1 pack of "google" eyes (The pack I bought has 125 eyes in a variety of sizes.  125?  In case you are making a cyclops or a purple people eater?)

Items I already had:
black paper
tape

I found what I wanted to be the front of my mummy pumpkin and taped the gauze to the back and just kept wrapping it around until I was happy with the way it looked.  Then I slid the large google eyes behind the gauze and pulled the gauze a bit until you could see them but they were still held in place by a few strings.  Then I cut a small little mouth from black paper and tucked the corners in.  DONE!

#4 - Creepy Centerpiece!

To buy: 
3 cups/glasses/votives... whatever you like the shape of.
3 candlestick holders
1 pack of flame less candles (3 to a pack)
1 bag of Spanish Moss (I already had this from the Halloween Wreath I made)
Spider webbing and plastic spiders

I already had: 
hot glue gun
cute little ghost

This one is easy too! Just add glue to the top edge of the candlestick holders and then place the votive/bowl/glass on top of the candlestick holder. Make sure it is centered on the holder.  Wait for them to dry completely.   Then add some Spanish moss and one flame less candle to the bottom of each bowl. Place the 3 candle holders where you want to set them up and then stretch some of the spider webbing over them. Place the spiders on the edge of the bowls, around the base... anywhere you'd like. You can also add any other little items you might have. I put the little ghost on the edge of one of the bowls. That's it!  See my finished project here:

You could also use these as a little candy holders or use in a dinner buffet or dessert bar.

Dollar Store Design School #2 - Halloween Wreath

Since I've started these Dollar Store Design School lessons I have learned a little something about shopping at the Dollar Store for craft items.  When they first get new holiday items in (You know... that time when you say: "Halloween already?" or "Christmas already?  It's not even Halloween!") you need to go ahead and buy items you will need for crafting.  If you wait, then all the good stuff will be gone!

That said... I will try to start posting ideas for Thanksgiving and Christmas decor soon since they already have those items in the store.

For now I have our Halloween Wreath tutorial.  It is inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven.  Listen to The Raven read by James Earl Jones HERE.

This is what I purchased from the Dollar Store:

Bag of Spanish Moss

Wreath
Black Bird
Black Roses/Spider bouquet

I had: tape, glue stick, hot glue gun, scissors, piece of thin cardboard (back of a legal pad) and a piece of raffia that I found in the yard.

I created the "NEVERMORE" sign and just printed it out on paper and then cut it out.

So the first thing I did was to glue the paper NEVERMORE sign down to the piece of thin cardboard and cut out around it.  It just made the "sign" a little more sturdy.  Then I poked holes in the sign and pushed the raffia through. I put a little piece of tape on the back of the holes just to hold the raffia in place. It doesn't look "neat" but I didn't want it to.

Moving on to the actual wreath...
I pulled out some of the moss and arranged it at the bottom of the wreath until I liked the way it looked (that leaf was totally in the bag with the moss). Some little pieces of moss shook loose and that's ok.  Keep those little pieces for our next project!!!
Then I used the hot glue gun to attach the moss to the wreath.  Again, this does not have to be perfect. It's supposed to look like a birds nesting place.

Now it is time to add the bird.  (Here is where shopping early comes in handy.  Some of the birds were a little worse for wear when I was at the store. I pawed through them until I found a decent looking one.)  This bird actually had wire on his feet so it was very easy to attach him.  I just found a place on the wreath that I liked and wrapped the wires around the wreath.  The thing I liked about this wreath was that it was messy... like a bunch of twigs twisted together.  Perfect for the birds nest look I was going for.

I attached one of the black roses to the wreath with hot glue and hung the sign from one of the twigs of the wreath.  I was concerned it might blow off the wreath though so I put a little hot glue on each side to attach it to the wreath.

Super easy and super cheap... $4 + what I had on hand at the house.  You could easily do this for $2.  Just buy the wreath and the bird.  Find items from your yard for the "nest" at the bottom.  If you wanted to get really crafty you could just buy the bird for $1 and make your own wreath from twigs.  I'm afraid I don't have that kind of time!!!

What do you think? I hope you all like the wreath and that it inspires you in your holiday decorating efforts.  

Up next on Dollar Store Design School... Creepy Centerpieces!!! 

“Red hair, sir, in my opinion, is dangerous.” - P.G. Wodehouse

The lovely people at VocalPoint offered me a coupon for a free box of Clairol Nice'n Easy Non-Permanent hair coloring to try out. I've always wanted to be a redhead so here was my chance and if I didn't like it then it would wash away slowly. I decided to take a chance!

I chose the Deep Mahogany (815R) online and then went out to the store to find it.  I should say... stores.  I went to Publix and they had some but not the right shade.  I went to Rite Aid and found more options but still not Deep Mahogany.  I tried again at CVS with no luck. Finally, Walgreens had it and bonus... it was on sale.  I noticed most of the boxes cost around $8.00.  This one was on sale for$5.99.

So home I go and read the instructions.  I've never, ever colored my hair before so I was excited and nervous at the same time.  I find out that I'm supposed to do a skin test for 48 hours and I'm supposed to do a hair test too.  Also, you aren't supposed to wash your hair right before you do it and you shouldn't have any product in your hair.   I decided to wait until the weekend to do it.I did the skin test on my arm and nothing happened and I skipped the hair test which I don't think it mattered but you can do it to get a better idea of how long to leave the color on your hair.

So here's a before picture of my hair...

Oh horrible. I just fell asleep looking at that blah colored frizz.  I also have about 10 grey hairs right on the top of my head at my part.  They are all clumped together... a grey spot if you will.  Stacy London has one too.  It drives me crazy.


I put on the fun little gloves and poured the color in the cream, shook it up and started applying.  Piled it all on top of my head and set the timer for 15 minutes.  My hair is past my shoulders but is thin.  The amount of color was more than enough.  I had a bit left over.  I do wish I would have put a little more around my face and by my ears.  I don't think the color took as well there (or now looking at this picture I think maybe I didn't put as much on there).  There was no horrible smell either.  It actually smelled quite nice!

15 minutes later I wash it all out until the water runs clear.  I started this in the sink but was having a hard time getting it all out.  I recommend just jumping in the shower and rinsing.  Then apply the conditioning cream and wait a couple of minutes and rinse that out.  It was a very nice cream but I felt like it might have been bit heavy for my thin hair.  I also felt like it was hard to rinse out. Anyway... I hopped out of the shower and styled as normal.

Here is my after picture... in the same spot as the before picture:

Hello,Gorgeous!

Here's a side by side.  I can't believe the difference!

Now it is a bit more red than I thought it would be.  I was shooting for more of a reddish brown color but I'm ok with how it came out.  I'm just completely shocked by the difference.  And the color did cover up my grey streak!  While those hairs are a bit lighter than the rest of my hair it blends in much better now.  My hair is so shiny and light feeling.  

Overall... I think this product is definitely worth the price.  If you are a regular colorer or just want to try something new for a month or two then I would definitely recommend it!  (Be sure to check the drugstores for sales!)

                                           Sincerely,

                                              Rachel (The sassy redhead)

Enter to win FREE Combat products!

The LOVELY people at Purex Insiders sent me two products to try! 

If you are interested in trying them yourself just complete the form below!

 One winner will be chosen at 2:45pm EST on 9/14/12.  Good Luck everyone!

This giveaway has ended.  Please keep an eye on our page for future giveaways.

Dollar Store Design School - Paper Flowers

As the seasons begin to change and Fall is right around the corner I start to think about different craft ideas to decorate the house for the upcoming string of holidays - Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and my birthday. Ok so that last one isn't technically a holiday but moving on...

My goal is to always have the perfect balance of mature sophistication and fun when decorating especially with the front of the house. I want people to drive by and say "Ooooo I love what they did with their porch!" and I want kids to walk past our house in October making a mental note to come back and hit up that awesome house on Halloween. Of course I am on a pretty tight budget and have most certainly not been to design school so I do the next best thing... scour the internet and hit The Dollar Store.

The other day we were doing an ice breaker at work and I was asked to share what my favorite store is. When I said Dollar Tree everyone erupted in laughter but I expected it. Sure it's full of a bunch of individual cheap items but when those items come together with a little imagination then you could have something amazing!

So to start off my new "Dollar Store Design School" teaching course I will walk you through how to create adorable paper flowers!

Items needed: tissue paper, pipe cleaners, scissors
Optional items: vase, ribbon, balloon

1. Choose one sheet of tissue paper, lay it out flat and then fold it in half 4 times.
2. Slide your scissors in at the folds and cut the paper. When you are done you will have a stack of 16 squares.

3. Make sure the squares are stacked neatly and then fold the stack of papers back and forth (accordion style) 8-10 times. Wrap a pipe cleaner around the center of the paper to secure. Be sure the pipe cleaner is in the center of the paper so your flower will be event. Twist the pipe cleaner so that it is tight around the paper so it will hold it will not move.

4. Next cut the ends of the paper into a 'V' shape or you can round them off. This will make a nicer shape for the flowers "petals".

5. Begin to open the flower by pulling each layer up towards the center. Do one side and then do the other.

Done! Beautiful flower! Just shape it up the way you want.

Now you can arrange them in a vase. These were both bought at The Dollar Store. The clear one is actually a glass. I added a balloon (also from the dollar store) to one. You could also tie together a bouquet of them with some ribbon.

Next time on Dollar Store Design School - Creating a Halloween Wreath!

Be Honest. Who wants FREE Purex Triple Action Detergent?

Summer time is play time around our house and that also means an assortment of stains. I use Purex Triple Action because it works, is less expensive and smells wonderful! Who can resist sniffing fresh, warm towels straight from the dryer? Not me!

CLICK HERE to check out the Let's Be Honest videos from Purex and be sure to register to win 1 of 3 coupons for a FREE bottle of Purex Triple Action detergent (up to $6 value). Earn up to 20 entries below! Good luck everyone and have an amazing time getting dirty! a Rafflecopter giveaway

I Have An Idea... A DRY IDEA!

The LOVELY people from Dry Idea (in conjunction with Purex Insiders) have sent me their Dry Idea AdvancedDry unscented and hypo-allergenic roll-on to try and tell you all about it.  

I was a little nervous about using a roll on. I had never tried one before and I always imagined that they would be messy.  I was pleasantly surprised it wasn't messy at all and it dried so quickly with no color or residue left behind.  (Apparently it has a fast drying MicroCotton formula!) I put it on right after a morning shower on a busy, fun filled day!  I knew it was risky... testing out new deodorant on such a long and busy day but what can I say?  I live on the edge!  ;-)

Here's how Friday went down for me:
Off to work (yay 1/2 day!)
Lunch date at an Indian restaurant - spicy!
Home for some blogging and Facebooking (Love to all you readers!)
Out to a local used book store for a Cash Mob (that place had people wall to wall and was working with what was clearly a struggling air conditioner)
Home again to make dinner, do laundry and of course more Facebooking!

And then I asked my boyfriend to smell my armpit.

Now, you know that man loves me because he did it... with only a slight hesitation.  Do you know what he said?  "I don't smell anything."  And there you have it.  I don't know what else to tell you.  I was dry ALL DAY and at the end of it I smelled what the boyfriend called "neutral".  SOLD!  So convinced am I of the awesomeness of this product that I contemplated for a hot minute that I would just keep all these coupons to myself and stock myself up for the summer!  But what a bad blogger I would be!  And you guys are fantastic and deserve to try out this product for yourself.  Who am I to deny you the joy of asking someone else to sniff your armpit?

Dry Idea AdvancedDry comes in 3 forms (Roll-on, Clear Gel and Invisible Solid) and in 3 scents (Powder Fresh, Cotton Dry, and Unscented).  All are hypo-allergenic and protect against wetness and odor for 24 hours.  Bonus points to the Invisible Solid for protecting against odor for 48 hours!

Good Luck on the giveaway!  There are a ton of ways to enter (some you can do daily) so get crackin'!



a Rafflecopter giveaway

Honey Bunches of Oats Giveaway! 3 Winners!

Good Morning, Spotters! Why is it a good morning? Because I started my day with Honey Bunches of Oats - Honey Roasted!

I have to say, it was delicious. The texture was great and it had the perfect touch of sweetness. I also feel good about starting my day with this cereal because it is packed with 9 essential vitamins and minerals, has 10 grams of Whole Grain and it is heart healthy - 0g Trans Fat, 0g Saturated Fat and 0mg Cholesterol. It also only has 6 grams of sugar (as compared to 9 grams in Honey Nut Cheerios). Honey Bunches of Oats comes in a 8 different flavors - Strawberry, Pecan Bunches, Cinnamon Bunches, Raisin Medley, Vanilla Bunches, Peach, and Almond. I can't wait to try the Raisin Medley!

The wonderful people of Honey Bunches of Oats have given me coupons to give away to you! Just enter below - up to 7 ways to enter and you can tweet daily for additional entries! Good luck everyone! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Register to win a coupon for FREE PUREX!

As promised... another Purex giveaway!

Enter to win a coupon for a free bottle of the new Purex Triple Action detergent! 2 winners will be chosen on February 12, 2012.

Good Luck, everyone!

Laundry Room Make Over Including New Purex Products!

Hello everyone!

With the beginning of a new year I like to organize and clean... making my world more orderly and neat. So as not to feel overwhelmed I started small with a little laundry room make over and what do you know? 2 Purex boxes appeared on my doorstep!

First I have to tell you about the Purex new Ultra Packs!

First, they are adorable. I know that is a weird way to describe a laundry cleaning item but they are the cutest little packs! See...

Also, you can smell the fabulous scent as soon as you open the little bag.

So cuteness and awesome smell aside... they work wonders and are so easy to use! Just throw one in with your laundry and you are good to go. No measuring, no spills! (A plus for me since I'm a bit on the clumsy side!) I also love that the packs dissolve completely - even in cold water washes! And you can use it in a front or top loading machine. Can't recommend them enough!

Equally fabulous is the Purex Triple Action liquid detergent! This new formula provides an even better clean and is still available at half the price of other leading brands! And it works in traditional and High Efficiency washers! The thing that surprised me most was how little you have to use to get your clothes clean. You don't even fill the cap up completely. It's pretty awesome for your clothes and your wallet! :-)

I hope you'll try these guys out. I love the scents and it last for days! Who knows... we might have a giveaway soon so keep your eyes on The Savings Spot!