Pick Up the Scum You WANT to Pick Up!

Through my blog posts, I try to let a little of myself shine through. Whether it's jokes, perspective, or quick little facts about myself. Well....here's a fact for you that deals directly with my title: I'm too nice to strangers. In fact, I'm amazed that I wasn't abducted multiple times as a child. I was that child that took candy from strangers...and that has transferred to me being adult and not knowing how to swat down advances from the opposite sex. Unfortunately, for me, even if a guy is scary looking, throwing the creeper vibe, and raising every red flag in me, I will STILL giggle awkwardly and carry on a conversation instead of shutting him down. I'm not sure why...I've always been this way. I can't tell anyone no! Thus, this product review is about picking up dirt that you want to pick up and not about accidentally picking up strangers that you desperately have to try to shake all evening!

Recently, I was sent a free promotional product: Day by Day Beauty's Facial Blotting Papers.

My initial thoughts was that these papers will last me a LONG time. Sheet-by-sheet comparison, you're getting 200 sheets for about $10. That's a fantastic deal when you compare them to other brands. 200 sheets is a LOT of blotting.

Next, I noticed the package. It is clean and easy to read/look at. It has a very simple design, which goes far. It is a very professional looking package.

When you open it up...SURPRISE! A cute little message! "Hello, Beautiful". How sweet! It's a pleasant touch. :)

Now...the moment of truth. I attempted to pull out a single sheet, but had difficulty. This is one of my few complaints about this product. An accordion-style dispenser would make it SO much easier to access the product. If I were in a hurry, I would be too frustrated to attempt to pull the sheets out with as much time as it took me to take ONE. If you decide to take multiple sheets in your hurry, you're wasting your product.

I think that the material is the reason for their sticking. They feel like the paper that you get with french fries in a basket. It's very hard to separate them. Now that I've made the connection, I'm almost 100% sure that it's the same paper. It makes sense...the purpose of that paper in food presentation is to absorb oil/keep it from leaking through the basket.

As far as oil absorption goes...I feel like I have to press too hard to my skin to get it to pick up. However, if I'm wearing foundation and powder, it doesn't bother me. If I'm going bare-skinned for the day, it would be a problem because I feel like I'm smashing the oil down into my pores more than I am having it absorbed by the paper (I'm very oily complected).

My conclusion: this product is fantastic if you don't plan to carry it with you. If you use blotting sheets once or twice a day in a no-rush setting, such as at your vanity, it's great. If you aren't very oily complected OR if you are and wear face makeups and powders, I highly suggest these papers. You won't find a better deal in quantity and price anywhere!

One for the Kitt-ays!

If you're familiar with Mc Chris or Aqua Teen Hunger Force, you'll know EXACTLY how to say the title of my blog post!

Skottie loves her new Kitty Cat Arch!

Typically, I'm reaching for beauty products to review because my skin is HORRIBLE on more days than not. However, because of mine and my husband's rescue efforts, I've decided that another section of my blog will be pets! Yes..pets. Although it's not necessarily up the same alley as health and beauty, I decided to go for these kinds of reviews because of the work that my husband and I put in to rescuing, adopting, and rehabbing animals. Our current brood includes: 12 cats (I believe we only took three or four of these in of our own initiative...the rest were rescues), four dogs (taken by our initiative from some TERRIBLE conditions), a bearded dragon, a chameleon, a Russian tortoise, two hedgehogs, four pythons, a rat snake, and a sand boa. Whew!

Anyway...I really wanted to try a product that I could recommend to those who visit our kitty clan or even those who adopt from our selection of rescues in the future. So in return for being able to test this scratch post, I've promised to provide the link and my recommendation to new cat-parents! It's easy to do with such an awesome product, honestly!

I didn't know what to expect, but I knew that I had high hopes that I would FINALLY get a quality scratcher for the cats. I've bought a few over the years from Wal-Mart and PetSmart and they ALWAYS fall apart after a while. If not that, they don't go together well in the first place!

The Davidson cats approve!

When the Kitty Cat Arch Self Groomer arrived, the first thing I noticed was that the box looked professional and was bright and eye-catching. Sometimes, with product reviews, the packaging isn't the best. Already, I liked it based on first appearance! When we opened the box, the pieces were easy to slide out and the scratcher was VERY easy to assemble. So far so good! BUT the real test came with one cat hesitantly approached the scratcher. Then another...then another. Soon, there were five cats clawing, scratching, rolling on, and trying to pull over the toy. And guess what? It survived! It didn't come undone and it didn't break! In fact, it has held up through daily use by all 12 of our cats! Another added bonus (besides the catnip you get with it!) is that the base of the toy is carpeted! My Sunshine LOVES sharpening her claws and NOW she has a place to do it BESIDES my couch!

Overall, I rate this toy at 5/5 for quality, affordability, and attractiveness to cats! It's very sturdy and much better than those other brands you find online and in stores!

Evergreen Nature, Hair Skin & Nails Supplement Feedback

Hello, again, everyone!! I've got another product review for you, but I first need to clarify something! Yes...I do a lot of positive product reviews. No...I'm not paid to give my good word. If ever the day comes that I get ahold of a truly terrible product, I WILL let the world know!

 The products that I "apply" to test are specific. I don't apply for anything and everything. I only apply to test products that I have a specific need for. If I have perfect skin, for example, I couldn't help a company by reviewing an acne product. It would do no good, because I couldn't give an accurate representation or impression on if the product actually works.

The products that I apply for benefit my life in some way or correct "problems" that I have. Another example: you've seen a lot of hair and skin products on my blog lately. I can honestly say that product reviewing has greatly improved how I take care of myself and these "problems" that I have. I've had issues with slow growing, breaking hair for as long as I can remember. Since I've started testing oils, masks, and conditioners, my hair has shown significant growth over a short amount of time. I'm VERY happy! So when I give a positive review, it's because I have tested and SEEN the product work.

It Ain't Easy Bein' Green...But It's SO Worth It!

Hello, hello, everyone! I'm baaaack! After a bout of being miserable and exhausted from some off bloodwork, I'm back to blogging and reviewing, so great things are to come!

 During this bout of exhaustion, I found that all I could do was the basics: sleep, move to couch, eat, shower, back to bed. Talk about miserable! I'm one who is gogogogogogoGO! Over time, my energy came back and one of the few days before it completely came back, I decided to have a spa day at home! Now, I had all of these reviews piling up on me, so I decided to pick a few products to test, and see how it went!

One of the products that I decided to work with was the Seaweed Kelp Mask by InstaNatural. If you've been reading long, you know that I LOVE this company. Not only do they have great customer service, but their products are extremely affordable and easily comparable in quality to products that I've used that are TWICE the cost!

 Would it be mean to do a side-by-side with one of those more expensive brands? I don't want to "slam" anyone, but InstaNatural products have really impressed me! To be honest, I wasn't expecting much because they are so affordable! Typically, you "get what you pay for" which equates to affordable=no quality. NOT HERE! Anyway...rant over.

Yumi Beautiful Signature Antioxidant Skin Care Serum Review!

To begin: first impressions. When I opened my package (which was shipped super quickly, by the way!), I noticed a VERY professional looking box. There are no home-printed inkjet labels here. The design of the box was beautiful. The box is simple, but very bold in it's simplicity. The letters are spaced nicely and the consumer can tell that someone with graphic design experience put the box design together. The ingredients and instructions are very easy to understand and read. One of my main concerns on the first serum I tested was that the label was unclear and written in broken English. Immediate relief!

As I've mentioned before, freebie hunting and free sample websites were my gateway into product reviewing. I spent HOURS looking for free, small, samples and coupons. Then, I stumbled upon a product review group and said "see ya" to free samples. After all...who would waste time with that when you can review FULL SIZED products? Through a Facebook group, I received a face serum. The serum did the WONDERFUL job of clearing up my skin...but it had a lot of drawbacks that I happily ignored with the results it brought.

When asked to review another Vitamin C serum, I had to consider a few things: what made this product different than the last serum I had reviewed? Did it seem better? Worse? Was it something that I could tell my friends about and stand behind? How were the ingredients different? What about the company that backed it? Packaging?

Clearly I had a lot of research ahead of me.

I won't bore you with all of the specifics on one serum vs. the other. But I WILL tell you what I liked about the Yumi Beautiful Antioxidant Serum.

Ingredients: The #1 listed ingredient is Aloe. Typically, the first listed ingredient is the main component of the product. I'm glad that it's something natural and not something I can't pronounce!

Upon opening the box, the bottle is beautiful! :) It looks just as fantastic as the box does! The print and label are very clear and professional looking. The directions are printed on the bottle as well as the box, so you don't have to keep the box around to reference it!

The serum comes in a pump-type dispenser. This is so much more handy than a pipet because you can control how much comes out! The lid is clear with a silver edge on the bottom. It's a nice touch, design-wise, in my opinion (can you tell I'm an art teacher?).

Now: the dreaded part: actually trying the product. The last serum I tested smelled DISGUSTING! Think rotten oranges. I expect a Vitamin C serum to smell like citrus, but this one was terrible. The first thing I did after pumping the product out was to smell it. NO SCENT! This is especially helpful to those of you sensitive to perfumes! Hooray!

The consistency is a lot more watery than the thick, syrupy serum I used before. However, I realized that this is FANTASTIC when it comes to absorption. It glides on easily, and absorbs SUPER quickly. I had to wait about an hour for the other serum to absorb. This one takes a matter of a minute or two. With the other serum, my face felt extremely sticky. With the Yumi Beautiful serum, I cannot believe how soft my skin is after I use it! And the benefits go beyond that! My makeup goes on SO much more smoothly now! It's as good as a primer! AND you're treating your skin to Vitamins, Antioxidants, and other good things!

A final observation is that this product doesn't sting when I put it on. I feel no discomfort whatsoever, and I can see the benefits. It has been less than a week, but my discoloration and irritation has subsided and my blemishes are healing. My problem dry skin is correcting itself, and I'm an extremely happy "customer"!

Thank you, Yumi Beautiful!


What do you think? If offered the opportunity to win this product, would you participate?