Yuzen Summer Box 2013

It is that time again for the seasonal Yuzen Box! I love how packed the Summer box was goodies :)

The blue and brown color scheme of this box is so pretty!

I am still at a loss of what to do with these gorgeous strips of yuzen paper....suggestions are welcome!

Always so lovingly packaged :)These gauze-like bags are great to reuse for crafts or beauty products!

Sparitual Nail Polish and Multitasker Base and Top Coat- These mini's were in an earlier box in a fun shade of red, but this set with the bright green of Emerald City was perfect for the season! These polishes are vegan and 3-free. They have a great consistency, dry quickly, and are surprisingly durable!

Such a fun and bright color! It does end up being more of a green than it looks in the picture and with 2 coats it is not completely opaque but with short nails you can not really notice that it is semi see-through unless you are really on top of them. I bet this is going to look fantastic on my toes too!

JJ's Sweets Sea Salt Cocomels- These are caramels made from coconut milk.....and they are delicious! All natural, dairy/gluten/GMO free, and vegan....but all I cared about was how yummy they tasted. They are like a coconutty, sweet and salty party in your mouth!

Acure Oils, Marula and Argan Oil- I have never heard of Marula oil but the card included with these states that it is rich in antioxidants, proteins, and omega fatty acids. It can be used on dry skin, helps with skin redness and reducing the appearance of scars and fine lines....which is also what I have read about Argan oil. There is also a little pot of that in the bag too! I dabbed the Marula oil on some of my scars, and it kind of stinks! I will give it a shot though and see if it works.

PHYT'S Lait Hydro Nettoyant- That is French for Water Soluble Cleansing Milk! Or so they say. This feels amazing on my face and cleaned off all the make up. It left my skin feeling fresh and hydrated which was great. I have literally used it ever day since I opened the box and my face just feels clean and fresh and has not been as dry. I may have to order some of this!

Pritte Moisturizing Body Lotion- Mmmm this stuff smells fresh and lemony and makes my skin feel so soft! It has a nice, non-oily finish and leaves your skin feeling dewy. It is made with aloe vera, honey, grape seed oil, vitamin E....and lemongrass and orange peel! Must be why it smells so amazing :)

Suki Luscious Lips Berry Cream Trio- What a cute little idea! These creams can be used for both lips and cheeks and are in 2 very flattering colors and have a smooth lip butter. The colors are like a lip and cheek stain and are not sticky at all when applied to the cheeks. The lip butter made my lips feel smooth and hydrated. Such a cute idea putting it in a little compact! The company's products are 100% synthetic and cruelty free and they use environmentally responsible processing and packaging.

LEVEL Naturals Shower Bombs- These little guys are aromatherapy bombs that when dropped in the shower will release a menthol and eucalyptus blend that will clear your sinuses and help you relax. They smell fantastic in the plastic so I can not wait to try them out! They are all natural, vegan and cruelty and gluten free. Also included was a card for a free travel candle with purchase...may have to check that out!

Action Wipes- This is a body wipe made with essential oils like tea tree and eucalyptus. It is all natural and made of plant based ingredients. Kind of a neat concept! I could see myself tossing one of these in my purse and using it to freshen up after work and before going out with the girls.

JUIL Footwear- These sandals are made with copper conductors that are supposed to act like a conduit between your feet and the ground. They go for $125 for a pair and this card has a code for $40 off.












Another awesome seasonal box from Yuzen! I have to complain, yet again, that this does not come out monthly any more. I love the products that are included and the sizes of all the samples! Not to mention the pamphlet has discount codes if you want to order any of the products :)

Jenn

Petit Amuse- May 2013

May's Petit Amuse Box arrived this month with a sticker on the side that said "keep out of direct sunlight". Luckily the delivery people in my area can read....so they left it on my porch in direct sunlight. Thanks guys! I appreciate the effort.....

Nothing in my box was melted or ruined, so I was able to enjoy the 3 products that they included this month.

Jaali Bean Lentil Soup Kit- I am actually very intrigued by this! I love Indian food and this little kit comes with a little bag attached of a basil leaf, a cinnamon stick, and a red chili pepper. You can read and understand all the ingredients listed on the back (which is fantastic) and there are suggestions on the back on how to change up the soup (like making it with broth instead of water and adding sour cream).

Nuttyness Chocolate Covered Marzipan- I have no idea what marzipan is, but I ate this whole bar. After a quick wiki search, I learned that it is a confection made of sugar or honey with almond meal. That must be why my tummy was upset after. This thing was delicious, but rich as hell. It had a light lemon ginger flavor to it, but mostly you could taste the almond. This was amazing, don't get me wrong, but I think that I will have to wait awhile before my next marzipan experience.

Exotic Salted Caramel- This stuff is amazing! But I have had it before in March's Petit Amuse box. While I enjoyed the repeat of a fantastic sweet treat, I was really hoping for something new.












I decided a few weeks ago that I needed to cut down on my boxes and unfortunately Petit Amuse did not make the cut :( I have to say it has been a yummy monthly treat, but both my monthly box spending and my waist-line really need to be kept in check. Maybe I will come back in the future Petit Amuse!

Jenn

Kale Chips!

Everyone is doing it. You should do it too. Oh yeah, this is peer pressure. Just try a little of this green stuff and I swear you will be hooked......KALE!! What the hell else did you think I was talking about? ;)

I have been hearing from my co-workers how good this stuff is and I just had to try it myself. I kid-you-not when I say I took a bit of my co-workers salad and was craving this stuff. I think that there is a vitamin or nutrient that I am missing that kale is rich in which is why I literally have been eating it like most Americans eat potato chips or french fries.




I will let you find your own information about how good this stuff is for you and what all it has in it. My goal is just to tell you how I made it tasted freakin' amazing!

Pick up your bunches of kale at the grocery. In the picture to the left, there are 6 bunches of kale that I got for .99 cents each at the store. Less than $6 for a food that will make you live longer. Can't beat that.
 




Gather your ingredients!

• One bunch of kale
• Coconut oil
• Sea Salt
• Large zip-loc bag
• 2 cookie sheets

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Wash your kale. Tear it into large pieces and shake off any water. Make sure that you tear your fluffy green pieces off the white-ish stalk in the middle. You do not want this piece as it holds a ton of water and will basically "steam" your kale if you put it in the oven. Notice how tough it is? Don't worry, it will not be like that when you eat it.

Take about 1.5 tablespoons of coconut oil and put it in a glass bowl and melt it in the oven. It will only take a few minutes. (The first time I did, I followed some other directions where they said to use 3 tablespoons of oil and it was WAYYYYY too much. With the oil and salt, a little goes a long way- trust me.)

Load your kale pieces into the zip-loc bag, pour in about half of your oil and shake it up. Then pour in the rest and shake it up again. The goal is to get the pieces uniformly covered and not have any of it sitting in oil.

Break out your cookie sheets. You DO NOT need to oil them because the kale won't stick...as it is already covered in oil.

Spread your oiled kale pieces out over the 2 cookie sheets. Try to have them not over-lapping so they do not stick together.....if they do its not a big deal but if there is too much on the pan it will be too moist and again "steam" the kale. These things are going to shrink down a lot and you are going to flip them over so don't get all OCD on the placement :)

Shake a little bit of sea salt on them at this point. Remember, a little goes a long way.

Put both sheets in the oven at the same time. They will be fine and they will both cook the same. Bake them for 10 minutes on one side, then flip them over and bake them for another 10 minutes. Try not to eat them at the half time like I did. If you do, there will not be as much to share with your loved ones.

See how much they shrink? And the are so light! Weird...but delicious.

Just writing this is making me salivate! In my opinion, these are yummier than potato chips! I made them 2 nights in a row and ate an entire pan by myself.....both nights.

I am still experimenting to see how long these last after they are made. So far, they were still good the next day but 2 days after they had a different texture. Personally, I think right out of the oven they are the best and if you love them as much as I do, they will not last much longer than a few minutes.

So far I have tried my kale chips with sea salt, toasted sesame seeds, and chia seeds sprinkled over them. All 3 varieties were delicious!

Hope you enjoy! I also found that tossing some toasted sesame seeds on these was quite delicious as well!
I am going to try some "salad like recipes" with this stuff and I will post my findings when I get a good result.

Jen

PopSugar Must Have Summer Fun Box 2013

Well PopSugar really put together an awesome box for their Summer Fun Box! As compared to the Holiday Luxe Box, I really preferred this box....let's take a peek, shall we?

All the items in this box were geared towards Summer Fun and they were mostly things I have not owned before-which I love!

VITABATH Fresh Citrus Twist Exfoliating Sugar Scrub- I have tried the bath spray from this brand before and really liked it, so I was excited to get another product. This stuff smells deliciously like citrus and has vitamins A, B3, C and E in it. This is perfect to slough off dead skin cells and put my best skin forward this summer! This huge 10 oz tube goes for about $18 in stores.

Starbucks Via Refreshers in Very Berry Hibiscus- I have tried both flavors of these directly from Starbucks, but have not tried the little at home packets. These were a nice surprise addition to the box as they were not mentioned at all in the little pamphlet. Each drink has green coffee bean extract in it for energy and 14g of sugar, which in my book isn't so bad. A package of 6 goes for about $8 and while searching online I found a Strawberry Lemonade flavor!!!

House of Harlow 1960 Lynn Sunglasses- What says "summer" more than some sunglasses right? And I have to say I like the simple, chic packaging.

Well.... these are an interesting style. Not something that I would have picked for myself, but admittedly I stick with a more simple style. I visited the website to get more information on these glasses and was surprised to find that these retail for $148! If you don't believe me, check them out here.  The lenses are just plastic and they are not polarized, so I can not imagine why these would cost so much.

Here they are on my face! I am having mixed feelings about them. I am not quite sure if they are flattering or not. I will say that the lenses are so long they sit on my cheeks, so when I smile the glasses move up and down lol.

Henri Bendel Candle in Vanilla Bean- Oh my God, I am seriously in love with the scent of this candle....and it is so strong! I fell so hard that I checked these out online as well and they go for about $30 a piece. They have so many other scents that I want to try like mint julep, pink grapefruit, spiced vanilla and orange zest. Check them out here and don't blame me if you find about 100 other things on the site that you can't live without :)

S'WELL Bottle- This awesome bottle keeps drinks cold for 24 hours and hot for 12 hours! It is non-toxic and really durable and does not sweat! This will be the perfect water bottle to keep in my purse! Also, S'well has partnered with WaterAid in helping to bring water to the world's poorest communities. These are $35 a pop and come in a variety of colors and finishes! Check them out at Swellbottle.com

SACHIN+BABI Baroque Print Foulard Sarong- It is definitely a summer essential to have a nice sarong and this one does not disappoint! It is so soft and luxurious feeling and the print is gorgeous. I can not wait to play around with tying this around me and pairing it with some jeans for a night out with the girls! I could not find this anywhere else online which makes me thing it is something they did just for this PopSugar box....and I love having something limited!

TRUFFLE Classic Clarity Pouch- I really love clear pouches and I have for yeeeeears! I am so glad to see that they are actually coming into style now! Lol These are great for throwing smaller items in and then tossing in your tote. Truffle has a lot of different colors and sizes available on their website.  This one happens to retail for $38 and is a cherry cobalt blue!









I haven't actually tallied up the worth of a box in awhile, but I did for this one and it has to come in just over $300. I loved just about everything included in this special edition box and they really did include quality items that your friends will be jealous that they do not have!  This really makes up for the crappy box they send last month :) Thanks PopSugar!

Jenn

SquareHue Nail Polish Box- May 2013

The theme for SquareHue this month was "The Madonna Collection" in honors of Mother's Day.

And the color scheme is pink! I was sooooo excited to see this (especially after last month's box where I didn't like the colors).

From left to right:
Happy Creme is a light, baby pink creme color that was opaque in one coat, but smoothed out with 2 coats.

Mother's Pearl is a light magenta with a silver pearl finish. I'm usually not a huge fan of pearl, but this one is gorgeous on!

Day Glow is straight up hot, neon pink and it is my favorite! It's bright, it's fun, and it's loud.

I made a mess trying to paint my nails, so please forgive me. On my thumb and index finger I have 2 coats Day Glow. On my middle finger I have 2 coats of Mother's Pearl. On my ring finger I have one coat of Mother's Pearl over one coat of Happy Creme. And on my pinky is 2 coats of Happy Creme.

I really liked how all the colors complimented each other and they all went on so smooth. The brush for these polishes are really nice. They are not too coarse and they hold the perfect amount of polish and fan out to cover the nail for a nice, clean brush stroke.


If you have not tried this box yet, sign up and I promise you won't be disappointed! Three quality polishes for $21 a month and a portion goes towards a good cause :)  Check them out at SquareHue.com

Jenn

Glossybox- April 2013

April Glossy Box. No Glossymag in this box which was great.

The Honest Co. Organic Lip Balm in Sweet Orange Vanilla- This balm is so smooth and tastes fantastic! I have been using it every evening since I opened my box and my lips are nice and hydrated when I wake up in the morning. Usually organic lip balms are kind of gritty, but this one has a great texture. It must be the sunflower seed oil and the beeswax. I will be checking out the trio on their website! The other 2 flavors are lavender mint and purely simple and all 3 retail for $9.95.

Le Metier De Beaute Replenishing Daily Solution sample- I was able to get 3 nightly uses out of this packet. It was a pink cream color and it smelled fresh and pleasant. I did not notice any real changes in the texture of my skin, but I did break out a bit after using this. Yikes! At $225 for the full size, feel free to use my code to get some for yourself as I will not be purchasing this! :)

TIGI Glow Blush in Awaken- I have been absolutely loving this coral colored blush! It has a touch of shimmer and it is the perfect color for my tanned complexion. The powder is nice and delicate and blends into my BB cream very well and it lasts all day long.

Unfortunately, my blush looked like it had been used once when I opened it :( Yuck.
It is a fantastic product though, and I will definitely be looking into trying more TIGI cosmetic products! I have been loving their hair products for years so I do not know why I have waited so long!

Bvlgari Tea Bag for Bath- I have not used this yet, but it is a neat concept! It is like a tea bag that you put in your bath to make it smell nice.

Wash With Joe Coffeemint Body Wash- I was kind of expecting this to smell really gross, but I really liked it! It is more minty and less coffee flavored. It gets a good lather going with the loofa and I was left feeling minty fresh. 

Alterna Bamboo Style Boho Waves Texture Mist- I followed the directions on the bottle and misted my damp hair with the solution. It smells very fresh and much like what you would imagine bamboo would smell like. Then I grabbed one-inch sections of hair and started twisting them towards my face. Surprisingly, the twists held and started to curl by themselves! When they would loosen, I would give them another twist while they air-dried.

 Forgive my goofy expression, but I have not yet mastered the boho waves I guess. Maybe it is because my hair is naturally curly, but it just kinked up and felt kind of dry. I will need to try this stuff on dry hair and see if that works better.













It was another awesome Glossybox for April!

Jenn

Fancy Box- April 2013

April Fancy Box is finally here! I think it is green for earth day and this month it was a little beat up by the mail man :/

Active Arm Band by Merkury. I love that this is hot pink and even has a small pocket for a key. It fits the iPhone 5, 4s and iPod touch 5th gen which is great. There are even little holes on the back to stick the end of your headphones into the device and the neoprene that it is made out of makes it easy to slide it in and out of the back. I can not wait to use this while I am taking Bentley for walks downtown!
Goes for $25 here.

Clean & Connected by Quirky- I was so happy to see this little thing! My old Dell laptop (which I only use for iTunes) has only one working USB port so this is perfect! It has 4 ports on it and  little clips on the side to hold down the cables. Such a useful little invention!
Goes for $25 here.

Thumb-Lite is seriously the smallest little light attachment I have ever seen! Its slightly bigger than my thumb nail and is attached by a little adhesive patch. I am not quite sure where to put it yet and since it is an adhesive I am afraid that it will be a one-time-use type of deal.....hmmmm.

Fancy Nail Lacquer from Rainbow Honey- This little set was made specifically for Fancy Box and included 2 polishes and one cuticle stick.
Goes for $21 here.

Love the cuticle stick! It smells great and really hydrated my dry fingers. The Fancy Red is a jelly polish and is more on the pink side once applied. The Fancy Black is very opaque with a subtle silver shimmer. Both chipped pretty easily even with 2 topcoats. I am going to give them another shot with a different kind of base and top coat to see if that helps. I got a ton of compliments on both colors!

Lunch Box from Box Appetit- I can not wait to use this! It feels like awesome quality and I love all the little attachments like the fork and little sauce container. This will be great to pack my lunches in for work :) UPDATE: I packed mom's left over meatloaf in this and used one of the little containers for some BBQ sauce and it was awesome!! I liked it so much that I ordered another one in black :)
Comes in several colors and goes for $23. Get it here.






Another awesome box from Fancy Box! Definitely worth the subscription so far! All the products add up to around $100 for this box, and the cost is only $35 :)

Jenn