There are only 365 days a year, but only one of them is solely dedicated to YOU. To help you celebrate, many stores and restaurants offer special discounts and even free items to rewards members and frequent shoppers! The best stuff in life is free and if play your cards right, you can celebrate your birthday all month long. Don't miss out!

Like the true Virgo I am, you better believe that I was up early on my birthday morning, ready to cash in on my free Starbucks drink and had my shopping charts at Sephora and Victoria's Secret needing only to press "confirm". The key to maximizing birthday discounts is picking the few that you are truly interested in and having them set up well in advance.

In order to make the most of the various discounts, note a few tips:

• Make sure you are a rewards member and don't wait until the last minute to sign up. Your email subscription might not kick in immediately, so give yourself some wiggle room.
• More often than not, you usually need to be signed up for a company's e-newsletter (especially for beauty and clothing rewards) in order to get your birthday freebie. And sometimes, you might even be required to purchase something in order to get the freebie.
• Company newsletters do have the potential to spam your email account, so opt to sign up with your "spam email address" and check for discounts 1-2 weeks before your birthday arrives.
• Companies can and frequently change their promotions without notice. Another reason to check in on a particular freebie or discount you are interested in a few days before.

The discounts below represent the most recent offers listed on the respective company websites. Pull out your planner and bookmark some of these special offers. Here are 30 beauty, clothing, and dining discounts you can get on your birthday.

Beauty Specials

From Beauty Bakerie to Sephora, these beauty companies want you to look your best on your special day. Treat yourself to free and discounted cosmetics or even an eyebrow arch on your birthday:

Anthropologie – Birthday Coupon for 15% Off

Bare Minerals – Free Birthday Gift

Beauty Bakerie – Free Birthday Gift

Benefit Cosmetics – Free Brow Arch

Lancome – Free Birthday Gift

NYX Cosmetics – Free Birthday Gift

Sephora – Free Birthday Gift

Smashbox – Free Cosmetics

ULTA Cosmetics – Free Birthday Gift

The Body Shop – $10 Rewards during your birthday month

Featured image by Todd Plitt via Getty Images