W.3rd St. Holiday Street Party: December 9th: The shops of West 3rd St. in West Hollywood will be offering great bargains & refreshments to create a holiday party atmosphere to shop in! Plan to find some pretty unique gifts in the many small shops, or just go to browse and dine at some of the yummy restaurants on 3rd (yes, they will have specials too)!

Holiday Walk on the Avenues: December 10th & 11th: Similar to the W. 3rd shopping party, the Melrose Village area of West Hollywood will also be throwing a party of their own! Even if you’re not looking to do much shopping, this sounds like a fun event to check out to get in the holiday spirit. There will be food trucks (duh), carolers, live entertainment, and refreshments for all!

Stila Warehouse Sale: December 11th: I’m a big fan of Stila Cosmetics but their stuff is just WAY too pricey for me. Luckily, the annual Stila warehouse sale is a great opportunity to stock up on some of your favorite quality make-up at crazy discounts (up to 80% off)! Sale starts at 8am but the line was a couple blocks long last year so get there early if you want the good stuff!

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Unique LA: December 11th & 12th: Check out LA’s ultimate independent design & gift show for a guaranteed way to get all your holiday shopping done in one swoop! And what’s more guaranteed is that your gifts will truly be one of a kind  and you’ll be supporting local independent designers. There will be hundreds of independent vendors to choose from! Admission is $10 but that includes free drinks (cocktails & soft drinks).

Renegade Craft Fair: December 11th & 12th: This free craft fair takes place at the LA State Historic Park and features indie-craft artists selling their goods. There will also be fun holiday themed craft workshops running throughout the day… from make your own mistletoe and ornaments to DIY shopping bags. Let’s hope the weather looks good for next weekend, because this outdoorsy event sounds like a great time!!

You may want to consider checking out Downtown Pasadena’s newest hotspot , Noor Restaurant & Ballroom. Noor features a unique menu of Mediterranean cuisine made with fresh, localy grown ingredients. The official grand opening party features complimentary champagne and hors d’oeuvres, specially prepared by four-star Chef Patrick Ramsey.  There will be live entertainment by the Afro Cuban-Jazz-Brazilian group Embellishment Music Project and celebrity DJ, Kamakaze.

The only thing I love more than grand opening parties is complimentary champagne!

It is required that you RSVP if you plan on attending. Simply email info@quintessentialpr.com with your name & number of guests attending with you.

Saturday, November 13th
7pm – 12am
NOOR Restaurant l Ballroom
260 East Colorado Blvd. Suite A209 Pasadena, CA 91101

LACMA

That’s right folks, this weekend (2/6-2/7) Bank of America account holders enjoy FREE museum admission! Just flash your BoA debit card and an ID at any participating museum and get in for just a smile! (note: smiling is not actually mandatory) So take your girl to the museum and tell her it’s an early Valentine’s Day present because “Someone as special as you shouldn’t have to wait”.

On Thursday January 14th The Elephant Theatre on Santa Monica and Vine will play host to a live version of the classic TV show The Dating Game. The only difference is the questions are a little more raunchy and there will be an open bar before AND after the show! There’s a $5 cover but really, can you put a price on finding true love?… or free booze? Doors open at 8pm, show at 9pm and only the first 100 people get in so sign up on the Meetup page and make sure to get there early!

This Magic show features host Derek Hughes, Rob Zabrecky, Michael Rayner, The Platt Brothers, and a mystery guest! This show ran for 2 years in London and features artists who perform at The Magic Castle (a much pricier show). The show is usually $20 but one of our readers let us in on the secret! Use the promotional code “Meetcode” and get your ticket for $10! Buy your tickets soon because who knows when you’ll get another chance to see a show like this without making your money disappear! Click here to get your tickets and read a little more about the show!

WANT A FREE TICKET??  Follow us on Twitter and tune in tomorrow (12/16) at 11am PST for your chance to win!!

Thanks to our lovely magician’s assistant Katy for letting us in on this one and providing the free tickets for the twitter giveaway!

I’m not even going to get started about theaters that make you pay way too much to PARK  (Yes, I’m talking to you CityWalk AMC)!

Thus, I present to you the LA Decostified pick for best (value) movie theater in LA…

ACADEMY CINEMAS in Pasadena!

The Academy is a dirt cheap 2nd run theater that had me at “$2 matinee”.  It’s not as big and fancy as your standard theater and you may have to wait a few weeks to see the new releases- but your ticket is a fraction of the price and street parking is abundant!

Admission Prices:

Matinee- $2  (6pm and earlier)
Evening- $3 (After 6pm)

Your best value is to go on Wednesday night for the Academy’s  “date night” special. $10 gets you 2 movie tickets, 2 sodas, and 2 popcorns! WHAT?! I know, insane. I’m pretty sure if your date is halfway decent they’ll be impressed by your bargain-hunting skills and like you more. If they don’t, you’re probably too good for them so stop selling yourself short…

The Academy isn’t perfect though. And while we love it this post wouldn’t be complete without mentioning a few of the theater’s cons.
-some of the screens are really scratchy
-everything is cash only
-the theaters are pretty small, so you have to get there early for a good spot on a busy night

All that aside, The Academy has more than earned itself LA Decostified’s stamp of approval and it’s A Better Idea than your average LA theater. For more info. including location and show times, visit their handy website.

We know there are some pretty close runner ups in this category, so we encourage you to comment on this post telling everyone about your favorite cheap LA theater! Share the wealth!

This smokin’ hot Halloween party is open to everyone and features the following:

*Free Tequila Tastings from Tequila Rack, Teteo Tequila, Angel Bendito Tequila, Alquimia Tequila, Playa Real Tequila, Caramba Tequila, Tequila Revolucion
*Belgian-style brews from Unibroue
*Refreshing drinks from Jarritos
*Mini spa treatments
*Face-painting and masquerade mask-making with Handmade Brigade OC
*Tacos, BBQ, and more from Long Beach and OC’s top yelpalicious restaurants.
*Free ice cream from The Ice Cream Man
*Fire dancing, mariachis, and a kickass DJ

The party will take place at the Museum of Latin American Art (628 Alamitos Ave. Long Beach, CA) from 8pm-10pm on Friday October 30th.

Space is limited so if you want to get in on the action, you’ll need to RSVP soon to: oc@yelp.com.
Your RSVP  must include your full name, a link to your Yelp profile, and the full name of your guest.
Don’t fret if you don’t have a  Yelp profile already- they’re super easy and fun to set up! Definitely worth it for all the free tequila tasting, partying, and free ice cream you’ll be getting at this party. Yay Yelp!

Can you spot Paul the Ghostbuster?

The Federation is screening Ghostbusters at Hollywood Forever Cemetery to raise awareness and food for the hunger problem in LA. Your admission is 5 cans of food, although I’m sure they wouldn’t mind if you brought a few extras. The screening will take place this Sunday (10/11) at 7:30pm. But gates open at 6pm, and there will probably be a line even earlier then that!

As with all Hollywood Forever screenings, you are welcome to bring your own food, drinks, and alcohol to the screenings. But make sure to also bring a blanket to sit on (or super low chairs) and a good coat…it’s getting cold out!

More info on the event…