I don’t get ScentBird – Let’s Do the Math!

Tags

Arquiste, Brit Sheer, Burberry, Carven Le Parfume, Carven Parfumes, Commodity, Dolce, Dolce & Gabbana, Gold Perfume, Scent Bird, ScentBird.com, The Architects Club

I don’t get ScentBird, the monthly box subscription service for high-end perfumes. I can’t imagine spending $14.95 a month just for perfume, so I decided to do some math.

Moschino Fresh Couture sells for about $32 online which is 3.4 fluid ounces (100.5 ML). This works out to be about $9.41 an ounce. So why would I pay ScentBird $14.95 and get a .27 oz (8 ml) bottle?

Some argue that with ScentBird you can try out various high-end perfumes to find one you like. Okay, but if I wanted to find out one I like, I would do it for FREE by going to the mall.

Why in the world would I pay $14.95 a month to have you send me a high end “sample” and hope that I like it? No thanks.

Basically, any perfume you buy from ScentBird will cost you about $55.37 per fluid ounce, since they charge you $14.95 a month for an 8 ml bottle of your chosen perfume.

Moschino Fresh Couture is available online for $9.41 per fluid ounce.

So again, why would you pay $55.37 for something you could pay $9.41 for? That makes no sense. That’s just crazy.

Maybe that was just one bad example. I decided to check out some of their other options just to be fair. I took the top 5 best selling scents from the Scent Bird website and Googled just how much I could buy them from other online retailers.

1. The Architects Club by Arquiste $190 for 3.4 fl oz $55.88 per fluid ounce
2. Brit Sheer by Burberry $35.52 3.3 fl oz $10.76 per fluid ounce
3. Carven Le Parfume by Carven Parfumes $44.95 1.7 fl oz $26.44 per fluid ounce
4. Gold by Commodity $105 3.4 fl oz $30.88 per fluid ounce
5. Dolce by Dolce & Gabbana $35.01 1 fl oz $35.01 per fluid ounce

So it turns out you save money almost every time (but not always) by just buying the perfume you like online.

For example, Brit Sheer by Burberry, you can buy it online for $10.75 per fluid ounce or get it at Scent Bird for $55.37 per fluid ounce.

The only perfume I found actually cheaper in the top 5 best selling was The Architects Club by Arquiste which cost $190 for a 3.4 fl oz bottle which works out to be like $55.88 per fluid ounce. You only save $0.51 by buying it from scentbird. Not even a whole dollar!

So yeah, I stand by my original theory, I don’t get why so many people will pay so much more for something by buying it from Scentbird when they can just buy it directly for a fraction of the cost?

If you could buy something for $10 from one place, why would you go to another and pay $55?

 

The perfect gift for the fashionista

Tags

Amazon, Fashionista, Gift, Lace Crop Top, Timeless Gala

I have a 17 year old niece who is a Fashionista. She’s hard to buy for because the things she normally likes cost more than a normal person can afford or they are very hard to find, especially because I don’t live in Paris, New York, Los Angeles, or Milan.

After graduating high school a semester early, I wanted to reward her with a special gift. She deserved it. But the question was, what could I get her that wouldn’t cost me an arm and a leg, but that she would still absolutely love?

And that’s when I found it. It’s a lace crop top from this website called Timeless Gala. The shirt was $30 from Amazon.

They didn’t have rush shipping for some reason, but that was fine with me because I was still able to get it in time for her early graduation party in January.

In the end, she loved the top and it was the best gift at the party. Turns out I’m not the only person in my family that struggles to buy for her. 🙂

Anyway, I didn’t mean for this post to turn into a sales pitch for some company but I did want to share this with you because if you are like me and have a hard time shopping for the little fashionista in your family, you’ll want to check out this company. They have their products in an amazon store so if you are struggling like I was to find a great, yet affordable gift, you should check them out.

 

 

What are the official rules for wearing a tiara?

Tags

Black Tie, Tiara, White Tie

In America we usually associate a tiara with royalty but it got me thinking. Just what are the rules of wearing a tiara if you are a member of the royal family or a member of the aristocracy?

Tiara’s were a mark of rank but were usually reserved for married ladies. Young, single ladies almost never wore them. Tiaras were commonly given as a wedding gift.

At that those were the rules during the olden days, during the times of Downton Abbey. The only other rule back then was to make sure that the size of your tiara wasn’t bigger than someone who outranked you, especially a member of the royal family. In other words, it wouldn’t be appropriate for a daughter of an Earl to wear a tiara that was larger in size than a Duchess.

During the Victorian era, Tiara’s were worn all the time, well for events that took place in the evening. Obviously you would wear them to things like weddings, but also they can be worn during formal dinners, and a night out at the ballet or a play.

Today though, we have gotten far more casual about the rules of wearing a tiara.

Really any formal (white tie) event in modern day, is a time for a tiara. If the event includes an evening gown, then you could wear a tiara.

Black tie events, with a few rare exceptions usually mean no tiara for the ladies.

You don’t have to wear a tiara if you don’t want to or down own one. But if you want to, and I mean, who doesn’t? Then consider the event. If it’s a formal affair then you can probably get away with wearing a tiara.

And before you ask what the difference between a white tie and black tie event is, a white tie event is something you would wear a full evening dress or formal evening dress to.

White tie is the most formal style. It’s usually reserved for state dinners, formal balls and evening weddings. White tie events are only appropriate after 6 pm.

 

 

Why do they call it a pencil skirt?

Tags

A-line, Christian Dior, Fashion, H-line, Pencil Skirt

I often wondered why the call it a pencil skirt and it terms out the slim-fitting skirt is named for its pencil-straight appearance … you know because it’s long and slim like a pencil with no waves or frills.

There are several different looks for a pencil skirt but in general it is is a slim-fitting skirt with a straight, narrow cut. Generally the hem falls to, or just below, the knee and is tailored for a close fit.

The designer Christian Dior originally used the term “H-line”, in the 1940s to describe its shape, distinguishing it from the full-skirted “A-line” style (after the relative shapes of the letters “H” and “A”). But the H-line skirt then became known by the more popular name pencil skirt.

The pencil skirt quickly became very popular, particularly for office wear. This success was due to women’s desire for new fashions in the wake of Second World War and Cold War rationing, coupled with the austere economic climate, when fabrics were expensive.

Here are some samples of different pencil skirts.

Related articles

• The Timeless Pencil Skirt (thethreadengine.wordpress.com)
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• The perfect Blouse For any Pencil Skirt (ladydiorbag.wordpress.com)
• A Floral Pencil Skirt For Spring (roxyvintagestyle.com)
• 5 Fresh Ways to Remix the Pencil Skirt, Courtesy of Designer Rachel Antonoff (glamour.com)
• Bored With Your Pencil Skirt. Try This One. (forbes.com)

How young is to young for high heels?

Tags

Bling Heels, High Heels, Shoes, Sparkle Shoes, Target, Teenagers

I have a niece who is 14 years old, and a freshman in high school.  Her birthday is coming up and I asked her what it was she would like me to buy her.  While for the most part she knows I will get her anything she asks for, there are some exceptions and that is when it comes to fashion I tend to err on the side of conservatism.

So this year for her birthday my niece told me she wanted a pair of shoes but they were a little expensive.  No problem I said.  I was willing to go $100 or even as much as $300 for some nice shoes for her.  Truth is, she’s a great kid and makes perfect grades in school so she deserves a little something special for her 15th birthday.  So I had her forward me a link to the shoes she wanted me to buy her.

Imagine my surprise when she sent me a picture of these very high heels.

Now don’t get me wrong, I have no problem whatsoever with an adult wearing these shoes.  I would wear them if I thought I could pull it off.  I think anyone over 18 years of age can no doubt look great in these shoes, but she is a child and I’m not about to buy her a $700 pair of shoes with a 6 inch heel.   Even without the heel, what teenager really needs a $700 pair of shoes?

When I protested at her desire to wear such shoes she got very testy with me about it saying how old fashioned and out of touch I was with the youth of today.  Girls like Miley Cyrus from the Disney Chanel wore them when her Hanna Montana character was her age and Selena Gomez and Taylor Swift wear them as well.  I attempted to remind her that each of the three girls she mentioned are all over 18 but she didn’t want to hear it.

Instead I suggested one or two inch wedges.  Something still with a heel, fashionable but not inappropriate.  That if she could find a nice pair of shoes that aren’t more than 2 inches, I would be willing to pay as much as $400 for them.

She wasn’t interested in the compromise.  So she decided instead she wanted this top she found online.  The top as it turns out was from target and cost less than $20.  Which of course I gladly bought for her.  And the funny part is, she doesn’t notice a difference between $700 shoes and a $20 shirt.  To her they are both the same.  The only real dispute in her mind was the size of the heel.  Ahhh teenagers.  Don’t you just love them? 🙂