If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, STYLECASTER may receive an affiliate commission.

This year, Bath & Body Works’ Semi-Annual Sale is a post-holiday blowout to help you refresh your fragrance and candle set-up without breaking the bank. You don’t have to drop major coin this year to pick up 3-wick candles, multi-use fragrance mists, heavenly scented body lotion and aromatic shower gels. And that’s not even the half of it. You bought presents for your entire family this holiday season. Now’s the time to get some goodies for you, like the dozens and dozens of candles currently on major sale.

Shop 50-75 percent off everything, including half off select 3-Wick Candles, select body care for $3.95, select Wallflower fragrance refills for $3.50, select hand soaps for half off, select single-wick candles for $6.50 and half off select hand sanitizers. It’s not all Christmas products, either. These candles, hand soaps and more you’ll be able to use and leave out all year round, such as Strawberry Daiquiri 3-Wick Candle and Island Papaya Deep Cleansing Hand Soap.

This Bath and Body Works sale literally has something for everyone (especially if you need a post-holiday gift!). If you haven’t tried the scented hand sanitizers yet, now’s the time to add several to your cart while they’re on sale. Happy shopping!

Bath & Body Works.

Fresh Balsam 3-Wick Candle

With fragrance notes of woodland balsam, crisp eucalyptus, fir branches and cedarwood.

Bath & Body Works.

Vanilla Patchouli Body Wash and Foam Bath

With fragrance notes of relaxing vanilla and harmonious patchouli.

Bath & Body Works.

White Barn Coffee & Whiskey 3-Wick Candle

With fragrance notes of Irish whiskey, vanilla and a hint of coffee.

Bath & Body Works.

White Barn Tree Farm 3-Wick Candle

With fragrance notes of crisp pine needle, warm cedar and spiced apple.

Bath &. Body Works.

Mango Mai Tai Gentle Foaming Hand Soap

With fragrance notes of mango nectar, grapefruit and sugarcane.

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, STYLECASTER may receive an affiliate commission.

This year, Bath & Body Works’ Semi-Annual Sale is a post-holiday blowout to help you refresh your fragrance and candle set-up without breaking the bank. You don’t have to drop major coin this year to pick up 3-wick candles, multi-use fragrance mists, heavenly scented body lotion and aromatic shower gels. And that’s not even the half of it. You bought presents for your entire family this holiday season. Now’s the time to get some goodies for you, like the dozens and dozens of candles currently on major sale.

Shop 50-75 percent off everything, including half off select 3-Wick Candles, select body care for $3.95, select Wallflower fragrance refills for $3.50, select hand soaps for half off, select single-wick candles for $6.50 and half off select hand sanitizers. It’s not all Christmas products, either. These candles, hand soaps and more you’ll be able to use and leave out all year round, such as Strawberry Daiquiri 3-Wick Candle and Island Papaya Deep Cleansing Hand Soap.

This Bath and Body Works sale literally has something for everyone (especially if you need a post-holiday gift!). If you haven’t tried the scented hand sanitizers yet, now’s the time to add several to your cart while they’re on sale. Happy shopping!

Bath & Body Works.

Fresh Balsam 3-Wick Candle

With fragrance notes of woodland balsam, crisp eucalyptus, fir branches and cedarwood.

Bath & Body Works.

Vanilla Patchouli Body Wash and Foam Bath

With fragrance notes of relaxing vanilla and harmonious patchouli.

Bath & Body Works.

White Barn Coffee & Whiskey 3-Wick Candle

With fragrance notes of Irish whiskey, vanilla and a hint of coffee.

Bath & Body Works.

White Barn Tree Farm 3-Wick Candle

With fragrance notes of crisp pine needle, warm cedar and spiced apple.

Bath &. Body Works.

Mango Mai Tai Gentle Foaming Hand Soap

With fragrance notes of mango nectar, grapefruit and sugarcane.

Open to the idea of living with a roommate to save on monthly costs, but worried about charting the unknown on internet listing sites? Having a hard time keeping up with all of the latest scams that may pop up during an online roommate search? You’re far from alone, but you can be prepared.

Affordable housing is basically an oxymoron these days, pricing people out of the rental market and prompting more Americans to move in with roommates later in life. According to the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, over a million older adults are house-sharing with a non-relative – double what it was 20 years ago.

Living with a roommate can save you money on rent, utilities and household expenses, but finding one online can open the door to potential scams. Knowing what to look out for can help protect you during your search for the perfect roommate match.

Recognizing Suspicious Behavior

A scam or hack can take many different forms, so it’s wise to be on the lookout for warning signs during your rental search. You may have good intentions, but that’s not true of everyone on the internet!

It’s common for bad actors to create an artificial sense of urgency to prompt you to act rashly. They may also take advantage of your politeness to pressure you into providing details that you would not otherwise share.

Many of us try hard to avoid offending others, even when they’re acting suspiciously or pressuring us to do something that feels uncomfortable. Just like we tell our kids and grandkids, it’s okay to say no!

Here are some behaviors to look out for that may indicate a scam attempt:

Urgent or Changing Requests for Money

• Rushing you or putting pressure on you to act quickly to send money.
• Insisting that you wire or otherwise send money to hold a room/rental space.
• Asking you to re-send money because there was a problem with your account or the transaction.
• Pressuring you to share details or send money without an executed lease or homesharing agreement.
• Making last-minute changes to an agreed-upon payment method or rental terms.

Evasiveness

• Refusing or repeatedly delaying your attempts to meet in person.
• Turning down requests to talk on the phone or video chat.
• Refusing to sign a lease, homesharing agreement or other binding paperwork.

These behaviors may not always indicate a scam attempt – sometimes there is a legitimate reason to make a last-minute change or reschedule a planned meeting. But if your gut says something is wrong and you see one or more of the red flags above, you should trust your gut.

5 Ways to Protect Yourself Online 

No matter who you’re interacting with online, you should take the following simple precautions to protect yourself and reduce your risk of being targeted by scammers during your search for a roommate or place to live.

Postpone Sharing Your Contact Details

In most cases, initial communication between a homeowner and potential renter takes place via email or through a listing website. Listing websites with built-in messaging allow you to start the conversation with a potential roommate without revealing any of your personal information. If you want to keep a conversation going, you can choose when (or whether) to share this information.

If you’re communicating with a potential roommate via email (rather than messaging them through a listing website), don’t share your full name, location or phone number until you’re comfortable moving forward. Remember – you don’t owe anyone that information!

Avoid Sharing Sensitive Information

There is some personal information that a roommate simply won’t ever need to access. This includes:

• Your credit card or debit card numbers
• Your Social Security number
• Your banking data (routing number, account number, password, etc.)
• Details about your identity that can help guess passwords (birthday, pet names, grandkids’ names, etc.)

If someone is asking you for any of this information, stop communicating with them and, if applicable, report them to the website where you found them.

Insist on a Background Check

Background checks are a good way to screen a potential roommate, identify possible red flags and have general peace of mind about the person you could be living with. Even if you believe you’re a good judge of character, a background check can help you cover your bases.

You can request that the potential roommate provide you with a copy of their background check showing their criminal record, and even take one yourself to show transparency and a commitment to the roommate relationship.

Meet Face to Face

Never let a potential roommate pressure you into putting down a deposit before you have a chance to meet them in person and see the property. Choose a neutral and public spot such as a coffee shop for your first meeting.

You might also consider going for a walk to encourage a more natural getting-to-know-you conversation. If all goes well, arrange a visit to the property so you can look at it closely. You can also ask the homeowner if you can do a video call or virtual tour, if that’s your preference.

Sign a Lease or Homesharing Agreement Before Making Any Payments

Before any money changes hands, both parties should sign a lease or a homesharing agreement that captures the important details of your arrangement in writing. It’s for the protection of both parties. Free lease templates can be found online and you can customize them with your own specifications.

Every state has its own general template, so be certain to select one for your state to ensure it meets all the criteria to make it acceptable under legal conditions. Engage a lawyer to review your lease, if you have any special clauses or requirements.

If you experience any of these warning signs, never feel obligated to continue the conversation. Keep your eyes out for the telltale signs of a scam and always trust your gut if something feels off.

In the unfortunate event that you do become a target of a rental scam, you can report it to your local law enforcement as well as to the FTC or your state consumer protection office. You should also contact the website where you found the ad and make them aware of it so they can take the necessary action on their end.

Please take a moment to fill out Sixty and Me’s short annual survey.

Let’s Have a Conversation:

Have you looked for ways to share your home with others – or find a shared home? Where did you look? What was your experience like? Have you stumbled upon suspicious ads/individuals?

A recession is a big drop in economic activity that happens all over the economy and lasts more than a few months. In real life, a recession is when unemployment increases, more businesses fail, and the economy is generally in bad shape.

When it comes to money, recessions can be very scary for the average person, and they can be more frightening for boomer women.

Since they are retired, boomer women don’t have to be worried about losing their jobs during a recession. But they do have to think about how to protect their retirement funds.

Tips to Help Boomer Women to Thrive in a Recession

Save Some Money

Retirees taking money out of their savings should keep enough cash in their retirement account to cover their costs for about a year. Most stock bear markets last for about a year. If you have a choice, you shouldn’t sell stocks when the market is going down. If your investments lose 10% and you take out 5%, that means your account has lost 15%.

The more you can cut costs that aren’t necessary, the more money you can save.

Not everyone can do it, but it’s best to make a plan to save enough money to cover basic needs for three to six months.

Know How Much You Spend

It’s essential to know how much you spend every month. Write down how much you spend every day. This will show you what money is coming in, what money is going out, and where you can reduce expenses.

If you know how much money you get and how much you spend, you can make changes that will help you get through hard times.

Pay Off Debt

Don’t get any more loans until you’ve paid off the ones you have. As interest rates increase, you should consolidate your debt into one fixed-rate payment plan and pay off your debt as much as possible. You can enroll in a debt consolidation program for an affordable payment plan.

When there’s a recession, money gets tight, so it’s not a good time to get into debt. If everything else stays the same, paying off a credit card with a 16 percent interest rate is the same as making 16 percent on your money.

Change Your Grocery Shopping Plan

Usually, women are in charge of grocery shopping in most households. I have a few tips for grocery shopping. The first one is to make a meal plan. Second, buy generic products instead of brand-name ones and buy in bulk.

Many stores will match a competitor’s price if you show them that the same item is being sold for less somewhere else. You should also look at the stores near you so that you spend the money you’d save on gas on something else.

Spend Less for a Short Time

Spending less means you won’t have to take as much money out of your investments. The cuts don’t have to last forever. Even so, every dollar you save can help the rest of your money grow after the economic downturn.

You could wait a year to go on vacation or keep your car for a couple more years than you had intended. Putting off these big bills can be very helpful.

You should cut your costs even more if things get worse. You can also look for ways to earn more money to help pay for things.

Having a temporary part-time job is a good thing. Another way to help pay the bills is to turn a hobby into a small business.

What Would Be the Best Advice to Boomer Women Preparing for a Recession?

My best advice to people preparing for the recession is to start negotiating bills. That can help you reduce monthly expenses, boost savings, and build an emergency fund that you can use during a recession.

Calling service providers to negotiate bills can save you a lot of money, whether it’s for utilities, cable, internet, or car insurance. You can ask for competitive rates, discounts, or rebates that could lower your monthly payment. If a service provider is competitive with other companies, it’s even more likely that you’ll get a discount.

If you say, “I’m looking around,” that helps. If they realize you’re thinking of leaving, they’ll offer you the lowest rate.

Check out federal programs like the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and Lifeline, which can help you pay your bills. If you’re not sure you’re eligible for a federal or state program, you can call 211 and talk to a local expert who can help.

Conclusion

There will be a lot of scary news stories on TV and on investment websites. These news stories are used to get more people to visit a website.

Even though scary headlines are good for business, they might push you to make poor decisions about your money.

Instead, you should pay attention to investing, so you don’t make bad choices during a recession.

Have you taken our end-of-year survey yet? Please do and help us improve Sixty and Me!

Let’s Have a Conversation:

Do you think the recession will hit in 2023? Have you started planning to protect your retirement funds? Do you have any other tips other than what is mentioned above?

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, STYLECASTER may receive an affiliate commission.

When lipstick goes viral on TikTok, which it does pretty often, it’s usually from a brand that’s pretty expensive. We’re talking Tom Ford, Hourglass, even Charlotte Tilbury. So when we saw TikTok’s latest viral lippie was from the drugstore, we jumped at the chance to try it. But it’s pretty much sold out everywhere. We got you, though. We found Revlon’s Super Lustrous Glass Shine Lipstick available on Amazon in all the trending colors. It’s all over TikTok for a reason — it looks amazing on everyone.

We first saw the lipstick on TikToker @catherine.abreu‘s page, in a video that now has more than nine million views. “If a lipgloss and a lipstick had a baby,” she captioned the video while applying Super Lustrous Glass Shine Lipstick in 008 Rum Raison. This isn’t a new lipstick or even a new shade. Many fans in the comments say they’ve been wearing it for years.

@catherine.abreu

If a lipgloss and a lipstick had a baby ✨🫶🏼 @revlon glass shine

♬ have of yall not even big chile – 🆘

Catherine goes on to try multiple other shades, all of which look incredible on her. And she’s not the only one. Hundreds have stitched the video trying a shade or two — or three — of Revlon’s Super Lustrous Glass Shine Lipstick. TikToker @ecbells tries shades Glaze Mauve and Nude Illuminator and says they’re “so creamy” and “beautiful” and remind her of the much pricier Hourglass Phantom Volumizing Glossy Balm ($35 at Sephora).

Revlon.

One of our favorite beauty TikTokers, @golloria, says she ran to the store to find out if these would look good on dark skin. She tried shade Black Cherry and says it “glides like butter” and is “absolutely gorgeous and stunning” on dark skin. We couldn’t agree more.

All the colors are a different price on Amazon right now. You know how that happens sometimes. The pretty Cherries In The Snow is just $5.90 while Glistening Purple is $6.99 and Glazed Mauve is $14.09. Hurry and grab yours before they’re gone from there, too.