Making Time for Me at The Mall at Short Hills

I received a complimentary gift bag while shopping at The Mall at Short Hills as part of a Travel Campaign with New Creative Media. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own. All purchases and additional expenses incurred were my own. 

I can’t remember the last time I browsed a mall without a stroller or a hand to hold or the sound of “no more stores Mommy”. Or the last time I have rushed through a store because I had to grab one thing before the 2  1/2 hour window that is preschool passed. Or the last time I didn’t think “let’s go to Target so I can buy goat cheese and a new dress at the same time.

I love shopping, the browsing, the buying the experience of finding new treasures. And yet those experiences above are not shopping, they aren’t enjoyable, mostly they are just necessary and most definitely not fun.

That’s why my experience at The Mall at Short Hills was such a wonderful one. Not only did I have an afternoon of kid free, shopping with a friend, I also got to experience a lot of stores that my local mall does not have. Many of the stores at The Mall at Short Hills are more of an upscale shopping experience, than just browsing racks of products or clothes.

The Mall at Short Hills also offers the Passport to Style, which can be picked up at Guest Services. Just present your Passport to Style at any participating store to receive a variety of complimentary experiences from discounts on products to complimentary hand massages and facials.

On our trip we visited L’Occitane and after signing up for their Passport to Provence program we were treated to our choice of hand massages or facials. Being that we are both writers and work on computers for a living we both choose the hand massages. The massage was a fun relaxing experience and not something I’m accustomed to while shopping.

We had been told that we had to experience Lush, so we made that our way to Lush, a store that screams come in and play with it’s colorful bath products and cheerful decor. With products names like “Honey I Washed the Kids” and “Cupcake” face masks, how could I go wrong?

After telling the sales clerk that we had not been to Lush before we were given a tour of the store and had all the products explained to us. We were able to touch and feel all of the bath and body products that are handmade with natural ingredients. Some of the products are so fresh they need to be refrigerated. I treated myself to some bath bombs and used one of them my first night home. We had so much fun playing in Lush and the products definitely lived up to my fun in store experience. I think I may have a new obsession.

Next we hit up Teavana. I have been to Teavana before and every time I go I get home and tell John how cool it is and then he asks what I got and I say nothing. To me Teavana is a treat and while it’s not overly expensive, I can buy tea for much less at the grocery store. But grocery store tea is not Teavana. The sales clerk in the store let us smell a wide variety of teas and explained to my friend who was a Teavana newbie how Teavana works. I treated myself to a Chai blend of tea and was immediately happy that I did.

Shopping at The Short Hills Mall was a fun way to spend a girls day out. The shopping was higher end but accessible. Between Teavana and Lush I spent about $50 and was so happy with my small splurges. The sales people we encountered in the stores we visited were nice and welcoming. For me the ultimate highlight was being able to take some time and shop with a friend. The Short Hills Mall is a great place for moms to treat themselves to some much needed “me” time.