Birthday Freebies - Shopping Discounts

I turned older again. HOWRUDE. Let's just pretend that didn't really happen.

The only good thing about turning older (once you're past 21) is that you can get things for free, even from people who don't know you. WHAAT. We've written about the freebies before (and you should check them out if you haven't already), but I'm here today to tell you that there's also shopping discounts to score. Perhaps not as exciting as completely free, but you could get a good deal on something you've been eyeballing.

Here's some of the discounts I received by email. Let us know if you have any to add to the list!

Free birthday gift set from Philosophy with $25 order
$10 off $50 at Old Navy
$20 off $50 at Alloy
20% off GOjane
25% off Dr. Dennis Gross Skincare
10% off Spanx
20% off at LovelySkin.com
$5 off $30 at Hot Topic
20% off $50 purchase at Urban Outfitters
Free shipping, no minimum at Macys

It's a Pizza Cake

See what I did there? With the title? BAM.

SO our dear ol' Vanessa celebrated another birthday (forever 29) and I thought to myself, "what better way to celebrate than with a cake that looks like pizza?"

It's easy, my lil readers, let me tell you how to make one for yourself.

First, get a nice, clean box from a pizza place. Or you can use a dirty box, but who likes a dirty box?

Next, buy or borrow a pizza pan. LTRLY, a pan for pizza. I was rull scared to use it since it was going to bake the cake so thin, but trust me. I suppose you can use a deep dish or regular round cake pan as well... but it's not as fun. The pan I used was about 1/2" high - just enough to keep the batter in.

Preheat the oven 25 degrees lower than the recipe calls for.

Make whatever cake batter you choose and only add a small amount to the pan, spreading it thin and even. I only used maybe 1/5 of the mix I had made and added enough to fill about 1-2 mm short of the top of the pan.

Pop in the oven for about the amount of time it takes for cupcakes. I don't know exactly how long it was in there for, I just kept a close watch on it. You may also want to keep a big piece of foil underneath the pan, just in case it was overfilled.

If it doesn't go right you still have enough batter to try a few more times!

Once cooled, very carefully transfer to the box (hardest part of making the cake).

Sauce:  Dyed frosting. Or I suppose you could be fancy and make some sort of berry sauce.

Cheese: Grated white chocolate.

Pepperoni: I started making fondant, but it wasn't going well (new recipe) and I was over it, so I ran to the store and bought natural fruit rolls and cut them with a shot glass. Perfect!


PIZZA PARTY.

Another Year Older and More Free Stuff

As I do every year, I turned another year older a few days ago. I love my freebies, so of course I signed up with a bunch of companies on Charlotte's post from a few months ago, and anxiously awaited my prezzies. To my surprise, there were a few extras I wasn't expecting!

A few of these are specific to my area, but this made me realize that all of you should look up your fav local eateries and mom and pop stores to see if they have a sign up sheet for an account, rewards program, or mailing list. If they ask for your birthday on the sign up there's a good chance they'll send you something, even if it's just a shopping discount! Hey, I like discounts, too!

How to Spoil Yourself on Your Birthday !

Visit all of these links and sign up for the free stuff you deserve! Because we know that there are more people out there that want to pamper and dote on you, we recommend that you check out all of your local eateries and shops for possible birthday freebies and/or e-mail clubs.

Acalpulco E-Club - Free Entree

AMF Bowling Club - Free Bowling

Anthro - Coupon and a cute little carrying case!

Applebee's - Free dessert

Arby's E- club - Free Birthday Surprise (Roast beef I'm guessing...)

Atlanta Breads - Free Cookie (none in CA)

Auntie Anne's - BOGOF Pretzel