The holiday season is fast approaching and I know what is on many of your minds; how can I get the best present for [insert person here] for the best deal!  One of your options is going out on Black Friday and being trampled by other shoppers. Or you can shop online and find coupon codes! One of the ways to get more bang for your buck is with a coupon code. There are many websites available that gather coupon codes for various online stores so it is always a good idea to search for coupon codes before you buy anything from clothes, to books and even electronics! There are codes for pretty much anything, that is one of my main shopping tips for anyone.

Once you find a good coupon the next question is...'what do I get?!'  Well, if you are shopping for a friend or sister, you can't go wrong with beauty products or accessories! Here are some great choices from Nordstrom, all of them are under $50 with the exception of the YSL set which is $59. And don't forget to save with a Nordstrom coupon!
[I highly recommend the L'Occitane gift set, the scent smells like Lemon Pez, I love it so much (I got it from a hotel last November at the Harry Potter premiere)!]

[Hopefully I will do some more gift guides over the next few weeks. Anyone have any categories they would like to see me feature? Ex. coats, hats, for girls, for geeky guys, etc.]

I'M LEAVING FOR LONDON TONIGHT!!! AHHH!! No outfit for today since I have no idea what I'm wearing yet...probably just jeans, a tank top and a hoodie so I'm comfy on the plane.  I'm leaving my house around 11 so I can get to the airport and then wait around for my flight at 6:30...

So yea...this week was pretty much me being crazy excited about my London/NYC trip. I also took a half day on Wednesday to go to an event in NYC, so I posted that outfit too. But of course I had tons to do at work so everyone can survive without me ;) (just kidding, I'm sure they will do perfectly fine without me, but hopefully not too well that they decide they no longer need me)

Monday: Dress: Splendid (TJ Maxx) $15?, Sweater: Urban Outfitters: $0, Wedges: Crown Vintage (DSW) $45	Tuesday: Dress: Calvin Klein (Marshalls) $30, Sweater: Hollister gift, Booties: No.704b (DSW) $20, Owl Watch Necklace: Etsy $8
Wednesday: Dress: McQ by Alexander McQueen gift, Sweater: Urban Behavior, Flats: Chaps $8.50	Thursday: Jeans: Hollister $15, Top: Rumors (TJ Maxx) $12, Sweater: ? $? [really old] Flip Flops

Here's my outfit from the NYC event held on Wednesday, which was an afternoon tea & cocktails with one of my favorite stores, Net-a-Porter!  I had so much fun and the team was amazing and so funny! I also need to thank (again) Meaghan from PurseBlog for helping me brave a cab on the way back to the train station. I had walked from Grand Central to the event and it took an hour! But I was too scared to get my own cab so she and her husband Vlad shared one with me! They're amazing!

Last week Towne and Reese sent over this gorgeous necklace and pair of earrings for me to style for the blog! I put together an outfit that I hope accentuates the beauty of the pieces. It was actually quite nice out yesterday when I took my photos, so that was fun! [I'm going to post a few bloopers/extras on my Facebook later]
Towne and Reese was founded by friends Christi Pack and Jessica Stanfield and named for their daughters, Towne and Reese.  Each piece of jewelry is named after the daughter of a friend. How cute is that?!

Some more of my favorite pieces are below [I added the earrings I have on too so you can see them better]:
Also, the wonderful ladies at Towne and Reese are offering one of my readers a choice of any piece of jewelry they desire! To enter the giveaway all you have to do is:

• Follow Closet Fashionista with google or Bloglovin (make sure to let me know which you follow with)
• Head over to Towne and Reese and pick out your favorite piece, then come back here and leave a comment stating what piece you like.  Make sure to leave your email so I can contact you if you win!
• The giveaway ends a week from today: May 29th

For bonus entries (each of these equals one extra entry, leave a separate comment for each)

• 'Like' Towne and Reese on Facebook (make sure to leave me your Facebook name so I can check, you can just state your last Initial if you don't want to say your last name)
• 'Like' Closet Fashionista on Facebook (same as above)
• Follow Closet Fashionista with google AND bloglovin
• Follow Closet_Fashion on Twitter (make sure to leave your Twitter name)
• Tweet about the giveaway (leave a link to the tweet)
  Ex. I just entered @Closet_Fashion's Towne and Reese Giveaway! http://bit.ly/mabU9M
• Post about the giveaway on your blog (leave a link to the post)

LASTLY, they are offering all my readers 15% off using the code CLOSETFASHIONISTA15. This is only good for the week of the giveaway.

As per the FTC's "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising", I must inform you all that I received some of these products free for the purpose of reviewing or advertising the products.  I was not, however, paid to write a positive review.

I was kindly sent this very cute dress from a new store, álainn • bella (run by a New Yorker named Megan), to style for the blog.  Its not much of a winter piece but I've styled it so it can be worn now.  I don't normally do strapless dresses because 1. I'm nervous they'll fall down and 2. They make my shoulders look even wider than they are. But this one stays up quite nicely because of an elastic that goes around the top; it is also VERY soft, the fabric is great.  It will be perfect for wearing over a bathing suit for the beach.

Anywayyyy...here are a few looks I put together with it:  (pretend my leggings are grey tights...haha)
Megan has also given me a coupon code for all you lovely readers to enjoy!  So enter code closetfashionista to receive 15% off full priced merchandise! Here are some other items from the store that I have my eyes on...maybe I'll use the code too ;)
Finally, here's a mini interview I had with Megan.

1. Why did you decide to start your store?
The decision to open the store was actually a snap decision. I wanted to be able to work for myself, and it was really the only thing I could imagine myself doing considering I am a shopaholic.

2. What do you look for in the items you stock?
Whenever I’m choosing the items for the store, I really only pick things that I personally would wear. But my style is diverse so I don’t ever intend to have all items that would be considered one type of style (i.e. Tough, feminine, etc). I try to get a good mix of classics and trends as well, but even when buying trends I try to get refined ones so the even when the trend is long gone you can still wear it. Because who wants to spend money on something that will be out in a few months time? I want my money to be well spent and I know I’m not alone in that.

3. What are your long term goals for the store?
Eventually I would like to open a brick and mortar location, ideally in NYC.

4. Who do you imagine the girl that shops at Alainn Bella is? Girly? Grungy? a Mix?
I think a mix. I don’t know too many people who are 100% style specific.