Sugar 'n Spice VoxBox

So yet again I got another one of Influenster's VoxBoxs, this time around it's the Sugar 'n Spice box. I'm so excited, I love getting the email saying I qualified to receive one of these free and them, very impatiently waiting for it to show up in my mail. They now have upgraded their packaging so it is very noticable, a bright orange box with their name, logo and website plastered on it. Which I like, I think it shows they are growing as a company and that means more for their members!

As you can see from the picture us Influensters are being spoiled with some sweets and more. 
The box includes: 
Vaseline Spray & Go Moisturizer Total Moisture 6.5oz can. Which is supposed to be able to be applied and able to go within seconds without feeling greasy or sticky. Definitely look out for a full review on this after I've had time to try it, as I have pretty dry skin and always neglect putting lotion on my body because I'm lazy and don't like waiting for it to absorb. 

Nectresse 40 count box, from the makers of Splenda. This is made from monk fruit and is supposed to be a good zero calorie sugar replacement. I'll see how I like it and if it has any weird taste of after-taste, which is my biggest issue with most sugar replacements. They were also kind enough to supply a small recipe book with a few ideas. 

Dickinson's Original Witch Hazel Oil Controlling Towelettes 20 count box. I am super excited to try these out, I love using witch hazel as a toner and as a girl with an oily t-zone these sound awesome. Plus if I like them I got like 5 $2 off coupons for any Dickinson's product, double score!

Colgate Optic White Regimen: a 4oz tube of the toothpaste, an 8oz bottle of the mouthwash and a toothbrush. So, yeah a full set of their optic white stuff! Which is perfect because I just ran out of mouthwash, lol. I will try these all out and let you know if I see a difference. 

belVita Breakfast Biscuits, I got the cinnamon and brown sugar. When I opened them to take the picture both me and my mom though they smelled like those windmill cookies, for the life of me I can't remember the name. They kind of tasted like them to. I'll do a full review of them later. 

So I am really excite to get to trying all of these out, thank you to all of the brands that supplied their products for us to try free of charge and to Influenster for being awesome enough to put this together for us. 


"I received these products complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes."

Kiss Nail Dress

So at the beginning of the month I received my VoxBox in the mail and one of the things I got was Kiss' nail dress in Chemise. Now that I have finally gotten around to playing with it this is what I did.

Simple? Yes! But I like it. I applied the gold to my pinkie as an accent finger and then tipped the others with the black studded sticker. I'm not a big nail person, I do them every so often but not that much really anymore. I tried to think of something really cool to do, but I settled with something basic and classic to test.

How I've liked them so far, its hit and miss. They felt really bulky at first but that quickly passed. I have felt a couple times like the stickers are catching on my clothes, but I am pretty sure that is because I didn't file those ones down all the way. I like them, they have lasted about 5 days so far and still holding on strong. With how easy they are to apply and the fact that they have 21 different styles so far makes them pretty appealing. Would I purchase them? Yes!

Kiss claims that these last about 7-10 days. They come in 21 styles and cost about $7 at most drugstores.
For more information check out Kiss's website and/or Influenster's review page.

*Product was sent to me for my review by Influenster. All opinions are my own. 

The GOODY® QUIKSTYLE™

Okay so I received one of these bad boys in my VoxBox a few weeks ago, and now that I have had the chance to really test it out I am ready to burst. I am in love! This brush is awesome! Okay, enough fangirl...sorry about that.

But really this brush really does help dry my hair faster than normal. I was very skeptical, and a little upset as I use a paddle brush normally so I kinda wanted the paddle brush version of this one, but I really like the half round style. I have now used this every time I have washed my hair in the last few weeks so I finally have a good grip on how well this works. For reference I have thinner but not fine hair, and it is about half way down my back at the moment. I like to just let my hair air dry and only really blow-dry it if I absolutely have to. For me it takes about 30 minutes to an hour to air dry. Using this brush it cut my dry time to about 20-40 minutes. It may mot seem like much but, it is pretty substantial if you take about 20 minutes to get ready, your hair is almost done by then.
 
So I give this a big thumbs up. I'm thinking I know what my sisters are getting as little gifts for thier birthdays. It is about $11-12, not including taxes and you can get either the Half-Round or the Paddle brush. The only downside I would say, would be if you had thicker hair, this might not work as great.
Goody  Influenster

Influenster Holiday VoxBox

So earlier this month I received my very first Influenster VoxBox, the Holiday VoxBox to be exact. In it I received a bunch of goodies. Here I give you a preview of what I got and first impressions.

First up was the Goody® QuikStyle™, I recieved the half-round version.
I was a little apprehensive that this would really do much, but so far I have been pleasantly surprised.

Next up the Eboost Natural Pink Lemonade Energy Mix. I really tried to like this but I think it tastes horrible. I know most energy drinks have their hangups in the after taste department, but I was not a fan. It had a really noticeable rind or vest taste, which I am apparently not a fan of, so if you don't like that I wouldn't recommend this for you.

I received the Chocolate Masque from Montagne Jeunesse, and to be honest, haven't tried it yet. Maybe this weekend.

I got the Kiss Nail Dress in Chemise, which as you can see by the picture is very black, gold and blingy. These are getting put on this weekend as well, for a small family get together. Can't wait to make my sister jealous, lol.

I was rather interested in this one, NYC New York Color Liquid Lipshine in Nude York City, as I haven't every owned a nude lipgloss.

The Quaker Real Medleys sounded good at first until I seen what was in mine, I received the Apple Walnut one. Sounded good, really good, then I seen it has dried cranberries in it and lets just say me and dried cranberries do not go together well. I'm not sure why because I can eat the fresh versions and drink the juice, but dry them and they make me feel stoned. So my husband got this and he absolutely loved it. So thumbs up from him!

Lastly I received a gift code for half off of my first pair of shoes through Sole Society. Honestly I am not sure I will use this, I looked through the site and nothing really caught my eye. Maybe later.

I am really pleased and happy about my first VoxBox. Really happy about the brush, lip gloss and face mask. Disappointed by the Eboost, and sadly couldn't eat the oatmeal. Hoping I qualify for more in the future. *fingers crossed*

*All of these products were sent to me by Influenster. All opinions are my own.

Dollar Store Eyeshadow Finds

So while I was randomly at a local dollar store with a couple family members, I decided to check their makeup out. Just to see what they had and if I could maybe find a hidden gem, so to speak. I was pretty pleased with what I found. They had three eyeshadows from L.A. Colors. The only one not pictured was a white one that I didn't get because I already own a couple of whites, but the other two were just beautiful.

The first and my favorite is the Teal color, it is insanely pigmented to the point it stained my finger when I swatched it for the pic. It goes on relatively dark with just one swipe (the right side of the swatch). I am seriously in love with this color, I love blue/greens and this is the prefect teal in my opinion. A definite win in my book.

The purple while a gorgeous color is so hard to get to show up. The pigmentation is so light that the swatch seriously took me forever to get it even that dark. While it is a soft and silky as the teal it doesn't share the dark coloration I was hoping for. It is a nice light purple color but it looks as if it could have been much better. Not as much of a win but at $1 not horrible, I guess.

This does show that while a hit and miss, cheap makeup can be great (the Teal). So you don't have to spend a ton of money to buy your makeup, you just have to be willing to try looking in unexpected places.

Winter Favorites!

So now that Spring is officially here, at least according to the calendar, I figured I would run down a few of the things I found this last winter and am currently in love with.

I'll start with lip balms. I have been using Blistex for awhile now, but when my lips got really bad my mother turned me on to their Silk & Shine version. It is so smooth and silky feeling, it calmed my chapped lips amazingly quick. One of the plus side for this is that it gives you a nice light glossy look almost like a lip gloss but not as extreme, so it's a nice highlight or pick-me-up for you face after a long day. It has an SPF of 15 so it will come in handy now that the sun is shining a bit more as well.
The other lip balm that I have been using for a couple of months now is EOS Summer Fruit. It smells so yummy and is so incredibly softening, I am seriously in love with this little egg. Plus the packaging makes it fun to play with when your bored, it wobbles around if you roll it. This one also has the added plus of being natural and organic. Both are readily available at drug stores, grocery stores and of course supercenters (like walmart). EOS runs for about $3 and Silk & Shine for about $3-4.

The next products are all for your hair. This is mostly going to be for thinner hair (my hair type) so if you have thicker or curlier hair sorry. Maybe I'll ask my sisters about some good thicker hair products for you. Like I said having thin hair I decided this last winter to finally try some thickening treatments. I bought Beyond the Zone's Thick Enuff Creme back in Sept/Oct during a sale at Sallys. It has a nice almost soapy smell, it's a little weird and sticky feeling but once you put it in you hair it doesn't really feel sticky. I apply it directly out of the shower on towel dried hair. The biggest down fall for this one is while it does make my hair feel thicker it makes it crunchy until you brush it out. So as my hair dries it dries is crunchy clumps, now I usually shower before bed so by the morning it's dry and when I brush it the crunchy clumps break up. This could be a turn off for some of you. This runs for $7.50 at Sallys. The other one I got back in Feb. is Got2B's  Fat-tastic Instant Collagen Infusion Mega-Lift Root-Boosting Spray, it's a mouth full but it's worth it. This is also used right after a shower but it doesn't leave my hair crunchy or clumpy. It is easily sprayed on and brushed through. I have also tried this one on dry hair and it had an instantly noticeable difference. They both seem to work equally well, though I would say Got2b for me is better, though I like both. It's easier to apply, it doesn't leave your hair crunchy and is a little cheaper at $5.99 from Walgreens.  

 Lastly are two random hair products. Beyond the Zone's Last Call. I bought this back when I bought the thickening creme and between the two this is the most amazing. It's a hair masque, for people with either naturally dry, dyed or fried hair. You put it on towel dried hair and let it sit for 5 minutes and then rinse it out. It has a nice fruity scent, which is a plus for me. I don't really do much in the way of heat damage to my hair I do dye it, but my two sisters not only dye their hair but fry the crap out of it with straightening and curling. So I figured I would try it out and if it worked for me maybe it could help with their hair. My hair has seriously never felt as soft as it does after I use this stuff. I will definitely be passing this on to them to try. It is sell for $9.50 at Sallys, but I would say if you have dried, dyed or fried hair it's worth a shot. The other product is Got2b's Guardian Angel Gloss Finish Blow-Out Lotion, they like huge names apparently. This is just a nice heat protection spray, they have another one for flat ironning but like I said I don't really do that. I barely blow dry my hair unless I have to or randomly feel the need to. My hair doesn't really have that dry crunchy feel it used to after blow drying without this. I don't really know how this stacks up to other heat protection sprays but it could be worth a shot at only $5.99 at Walgreens, it won't break you to try it out.

If anyone has any recommendations for me for hair products for thinner hair I would love to hear them, also any for heat protection.
 

The Crisis in Japan

Today Japan has been hit with not one but two natural disasters. The first to hit was a magnitude 8.9 earthquake 80 miles off of the eastern coast of northern Japan. Followed by a 30 foot deep Tsunami. The two together have caused hundreds of deaths already and massive property damage to the majority of the northern part of the country. To help you grasp what is going on, basically Japan has experienced one of the 5 biggest earthquakes to happen in the last hundred years. The earthquake that hit India back in 2004 was a magnitude 9.0 and tsunami and that caused hundreds of thousands of deaths and untold damage to the cities it hit. 

The little red triangles are active volcanoes

Japan is located on the "Ring of Fire" a volcanically active and earthquake prone ring. This is where most of the worlds active volcanoes and 90% of the biggest earthquakes occur, but this is the largest earthquake Japan has seen since 1923 when they dealt with an 8.2 hitting Kanto.

One thing that Google is currently running is a Crisis Response page that is keeping an up to date feed on information as well as a Person Finder. The Person Finder can be used to either help locate or tell the location of people currently in Japan. If anyone has loved ones that they have not been able to contact you may want to try this. Crisis Response Person Finder

Others that may be wanting to help or trying to find ways to help there are numerous organizations looking for support to help the people of Japan:
The American Red Cross is currently accepting donations through their website and by phone just text REDCROSS to 90999 to donate $10.

The Salvation Army  is working on sending a team to help out Sendai, Japan and is taking donations via their website and also by phone just text either JAPAN or QUAKE to 80888 to donate $10.

Save The Children is accepting donations to it's Children's Emergency Fund to help out kids and their families affected by the disaster.

International Medical Corps is taking donations via website and phone text MED to 80888 for a $10 donation as well as trying to get volunteers for response teams.

Global Giving is taking donations to help the Japanese people.

Doctors Without Borders is looking for donations to send in medical response teams to Iwate and Miyagi.

Operation Usa is looking for both monetary donations as well as medical supply donations.

This may look like a huge list of people asking for money but even helping out one of these organizations will make a difference to people who currently need major help right now. Even posting in a blog or on Facebook about helping will get the word out and make a difference. Think of it this way if something like this happened where you live or someone you loved lives, wouldn't you want everyone to try and help?
If you have any questions, ask and I will try my best to answer them.

Starry Pillow

This is an update from one of my fabric haul posts, early in February. I didn't get to take pictures for a tutorial because this was a quick last minute gift for one of my sisters. It was really simple to throw together. I used cardboard forms for the stars, I have a tutorial up for how to make those. The pillow was just two big square pieces sewn together, and it's stuffed with foam remnants. I just stitched the stars randomly onto each side of the pillow. Both the stars and the base for the pillow are flannels. I wanted something soft that didn't need a cover, for her to use. I thought it turned out pretty good and she absolutely loved it, so it was a win for me.

DIY Cardboard Patterns

Ever wanted to make a cute flower for your shirt or put a star pattern on a pillow, but can't draw for crap. You are not alone, I can barely draw a straight line let alone draw a cute pattern, free-hand, to cut out for my projects. Luckily I figured out a great way to make my own patterns while using up some of those old boxes lying around from x-mas.

Items needed: Printed out pictures, Cardboard boxes, Push pins, and Scissors and/or an X-Acto Knife. 
Difficulty and time to complete really depend on the the design.

Step 1: Find pictures of the design you want. I just Google image search for what I want until I find what I like. Once you have the pictures you want Copy/Paste it into Word and resize to what you want. My clovers are all just resized versions of the biggest ones. Print off you pictures.

Step 2: Cut out a piece of cardboard to the same size as your picture.

Step 3: Secure you picture to the cardboard. I'm using two push pins and the split in my table to hold it securely. You could use a little bit of tape or whatever works easier for you.
Now start poling holes in the cardboard following the line of the picture until you have completely traced the design.

Once your done lift up the picture to make sure you got all of it. If you did it right it should look exactly like the original picture.

Step 4: Use your scissors or knife to cut along the dotted lines. I found that for the more detailed designs or smaller designs it is better to use the X-Acto or utility knife.

Once you are done you should have an almost perfect replica of you original picture.

I like to use cardboard as it is a little way to recycle and it also makes for a nice sturdy pattern. Don't worry if you edges are a little rough, when you cut out the pattern on the fabric you can always sharpen or soften any edges as needed.

P.S. The clovers seen in this tutorial will be seen in the upcoming weeks, for St. Patrick's Day and possibly some Spring crafts.

Another JoAnn Haul

So I may have gotten myself into a bit of trouble, but when one of my favorite stores has a big sale, it's hard to ignore. One of the biggest draws for the sale, for me at least was that thread was 50% off. So I decided to expand my thread collection. Ever since I got my new sewing machine I have only really had basic black and white. I have other colors for hand sewing projects, but nothing that could fit my machine. I tried to aim for something from each color choice, in a shade I figured I would use more, so instead of getting hot pink I got soft pink, etc...*side note all of the thread is Coats & Clark*

From left to right I got: Light Slate, Pink, Atom Red, Ultra-Violet, True Blue, Icy Blue and Caspian Sea.

Same as before: Ming Teal, Kiwi, Leprechaun, Hunter Green, Yellow, Pumpkin, Beige, and Espresso.

If you are first starting on a thread collection my suggestion is to aim for the colors that you are going to use the most. For me that is blues and greens. Basic black and white is also the best to have as they have the most utility. If you want to aim for other colors try to think what you might make in that color, if you find yourself buying darker purples than it wouldn't make sense to buy a pale purple thread. Of course, you can always buy specific colors for specific projects. This is just my opinion, as always do what works the best for you.

 

 I also got a couple of patterns. Two pajama patterns, which I figured I could get some utility out of these. I was thinking about using these for pjs as well as dress, pants and shirt patterns. With a couple of variations to the pattern, I could make whole outfits out of just these pajama patterns.

 

This purse pattern seem, to me, to have the biggest range and utility. I wanted something that I could use to make numerous different bags in just one pattern pack. The Victorian one is one for me and my cousin-in-law. I am thinking about making a dress similar to this and he has been dying to figure out how to make the cowl, so it works for both of us. Plus my family is big fans of the Renaissance Festival and this could come in handy for then.

 I also picked up this magazine while I was waiting in line for the cloth cutting. I has a few interesting ideas, with handbags and a dress pattern I want to try out. Also it has a cool zipper flower tutorial I am gonna try out.

Some of the cloth I got was for my cousin's birthday. He loves music and cosmic patterns, so I picked him up a yard of each. Here's hoping he can think of something good to do with them.

I also got a sheer overlay for a dress I am working on for this halloween, I couldn't say no considering it was 50% off and I need it. The Basketballs are for my brother for some pj pants I will be making him for his birthday.

While I was out I found out Hobby Lobby was having a big sale on their ribbon so I ran over and got some stuff from them as well. I got this really cool black cording with silver beads in it, I though it would make a really cool necklace or even earrings. The white cording is for a costume project for my husband for later in the year. The other one up there is a blue and black ribbon that almost looks like stuff for a garter, but I was thinking a nice choker.

The other two I got are straight up ribbon. The one is really cool duo color blue and green-almost yellow. Haven't figured out what I am gonna do with it yet but I can't wait. The other is a really fun double sided lime green and purple, my baby sisters two favorite colors. You'll probably see this later pop up in something I made for her.

Overall I didn't spend as much as I thought I would so that is a plus side. Most of the stuff I got can be used for more that one purpose so that is another plus. Can't wait to see what comes out of this haul.

Bath & Body Works Spring Candle Review

The spring candle line from Bath & Body Works this year has tropical inspired scents. For me, who's a sucker for fruity fragrances, it was only natural for me to try them out. So I took advantage of their 3 for $5 mini candles (1.6 oz.) and my 20% off coupon, and instead of $3.50 a piece I spent $1.30 a piece. I ordered one of each of the new candles, the only problem is that they sent me two of one of the smells, so I will not be reviewing Calypso Sun.
I will be giving each of the candles a 1-5 rating. This is my opinion of each candle as to how I like it, this doesn't me that if I give it a low rating, the candle sucks and you shouldn't try it. Not everyone likes the same things and what I like you may not and vice versa.
1/5 = I will not buy this again, just not my cup of tea.
2/5 = I wouldn't buy it again, but if someone else gave it to me or burnt one it wouldn't bother me.
3/5 = I might buy this again, if I was in the mood for it.
4/5 = I really like this and would definitely buy this again.
5/5 = I absolutely love this and will probably buy again the next time I can.

4/5

So this is obviously the one they sent me a double of, and that is Island Nectar. This one claims to have vanilla, rum and musk mixed with its tropical fruits. I really only get a strong tropical fruit punch smell, there really no hint of the other scents, just a very nice mixed fruit smell. 

3/5

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tropical Spice is a definitely the warmest smell out of all of the candles. Honestly this seems to be more fitting for the autumn or winter. You get a nice vanilla cinnamon smell with small hint of rum. It's truly a nice scent just doesn't really seem to fit in the collection.

5/5

 

 

One of my favorites is Caribbean Salsa, I think it kind of smells like a starburst. You get a sweet peach smell with bit of a tang from pineapple. Their is supposed to be Yuzu flower in it, I do smell a sweet flower scent, but I don't know exactly what I am looking for so I can't say for sure if it does the Yuzu flower justice.

4/5

Caribbean Escape is really hard to describe because I can't really point out one particular scent. It claims to have melon, raspberry, lemon and coconut milk. The strongest and most noticeable thing is the raspberry, so it is a sweet tropical berry scent.

3/5

Seaside Escape smells like a bathroom air freshener. It's not bad but it has a strong flowery smell mixed with a tiny bit of citrus. I don't mind it but for me it is stronger on the flower side than I would prefer. 

5/5

This smells like its namesake, Pineapple Mango. It smells like you just cut fresh pineapple, then the mango gives you a sweeter citrus smell to cut some of the pineapples tartness. Very simple but very yummy smelling. 

3/5

Vanilla Coconut kind of smells like a cookie. You get a strong vanilla smell with a coconut milky hint. The thing that makes it smell like a cookie is that you get a little hint of a nutty smell in there. It's nice but I hate the taste of coconut and I am not really a fan of the smell. It's good but not hugely for me. 

5/5

Pink Sangria smells like fruit loops. You get a huge hit of citrus with a nice mix of other fruit smells. It is supposed to have mandarin, apple, grapes and berries, that work amazing together. Honestly I am so tempted to take a bit out of it, it smells so yummy. 

4/5

Pineapple Orchid smells like Sweet Pea's sister. It is a very sweet flowery smell. The pineapple is really muted under the flower scent but it lends perfectly to the sweetness of the orchid. If you like sweet pea you'll like this candle. 

5/5

Island Colada smell just like a pina colada. A nice mix between the tart citrusy pineapple and orange with the creamy coconut. Another wonderfully yummy candle.

1/5

This is the only one that I don't like. It is trying to smell like its namesake but the mint that they added really just fights with the fruity smells. It just makes for an awkward smell, not a pleasing one. 

5/5

Passionflower seriously smells like Sweet Pea and Starburst had a baby. It is a very sweet fruity smell with the vanilla working together to make for an almost flowery scent. Which is odd because there is no flower in the blend, but it works well together. This is another were if you like Sweet Pea your like this one. 

4/5

Island Margarita smells like its name. There is the fruity citrus scent with a small hint of flowers. It works really nicely together, and almost smells exactly like a freshly mixed margarita. 

Hope this helps anyone who is thinking about trying out some of the new candle collection. If anyone as bought or tried Calypso Sun let me know what you think about it, I'm quite interested.