Birchbox Review

I've subscribed to Birchbox for more than a year now, and I must say, I love getting a little gift each month in the mail - it's like a little cutely wrapped birthday present filled with girly stuff.

For $10 (including shipping), you get a box with 4-5 deluxe beauty samples, plus a bonus, which may not be beauty related - I've gotten pretty greeting cards, granola, a fruit and nut bar, etc. When you purchase items through the site, you get a point per dollar you spend. You also get 50 points for referring others, plus 10 points for every product from your Birchbox that you review. Every 100 points = $10 off your purchase. Oh, and items from your box - if you decide to buy a full-size product - ship free!

Some months are definitely better than others, and I've had some duds - eyeliner stickers? Ick. This was a pretty good month, though - check it out:

Spring themed box!

5 products plus 1 bonus. From left to right - I Coloniali Deep Massage Body Cream with Myrrh (in a foil packet - this is the bonus), I Coloniali Invigorating Tibetan Shower Cream with Rhubarb (full size $29, sample size is 3.3 fl. oz), Miss Jessie's Quick Curls (full size $32, sample size is 2 fl oz), One Love Organics Waterless Beauty Balm (full size $68, sample size is .5oz), Color Club Nail Lacquer in Jackie Oh! (full size $8, sample size is .25 oz), and WEI Pomegranate Buffing beads (20 packets for $20, sample size is 1 packet).

All in all, I'm very pleased with this box. The hot pink nail polish feels very spring appropriate, and I'm hoping the Quick Curls cream can control my frizz. I'm also excited to try the shower cream after a tough workout! These are all nicely sized samples, too.

I give Birchbox a 7 on the Awesome Meter - I'm a fan. Although some boxes can be disappointing, I think the majority contain some great products, and it's a fun way to try out new beauty trends without shelling out a lot of money. Click here to enroll - remember, it's a subscription, so you'll be charged $10 per month, though it's easy to cancel.

Garlicky Goodness - Garlic Rocker Review

I absolutely love cooking, particularly Italian food. A key ingredient in many of the items I make is garlic. Now, don't judge, but after getting frustrated with garlic presses and sick of manually cutting the garlic into teeny pieces, we came up with a solution at our house. Peel garlic. Put a sheet of wax paper on top. Pound it to death with a hammer.

I SAID, don't judge!! It works, and it's a great way to get frustration out.

However, I came across a device the other day that has changed everything in the world of garlic smashing, which, granted, is a fairly small world.

May I introduce.... the garlic rocker.

Yeah, I don't like unitaskers, either, but this one is fairly small and well worth the space in your drawer if you frequently cook with garlic.

Just position a clove of garlic underneath, press down, and gently rock back and forth. The garlic comes out in neat little squares. The garlic doesn't get minced quite as small as it might in a traditional garlic press, but it works fine for me. It requires little effort and is very easy to clean - it's also dishwasher safe! Not only that, it's made of stainless steel, so it resists the garlic odor. You can also rub your hands on it to remove the odor from your skin. Amazing!

This little sucker has made cooking with garlic much easier. I bought mine at Vat19.com because I found a coupon over at (where else) RetailMeNot that gave me $5 off my purchase. Psst - use code "cookie" (no quotes) to get $5 off your $15 Vat19 purchase through 3/3/12. It's also available through Amazon, where you can score free shipping if you're a prime member. Without discounts, it costs about $15.

9 on the awesome meter. Great product at an affordable price!

Jewelmint Review

It's no secret that I love getting stuff in the mail. I know, I know, nowadays you can order anything online and have it delivered, but I still squee when I get a package.

I heard about Jewelmint a while ago and took a look at the site's offerings but didn't bite, even though I love jewelry, particularly fun statement pieces. Jewelmint, founded by Kate Bosworth and her stylist, works as a membership subscription service. For $29.99 per month, you get a credit you can redeem for one piece of jewelry - rings, earrings, bracelets, necklaces, and broaches. Jewelmint's designs are all unique to the site and limited edition, so if you really like something, you're encouraged to snap it up before it's gone. If, between the 1st and 5th of a month, you decide you don't want anything, you can skip that month. Otherwise, you are automatically charged, but you can save your credit and use it another month if nothing strikes your fancy. However, this IS a subscription site - your credit card WILL be charged $29.99 automatically if you do not select "skip the month" between the 1st and 5th. Shipping is included.

When you first sign up, you take a short style quiz to determine what jewelry will best suit your needs. You are then shown a personalized showroom. However, if you do not like what has been selected, you can click "see more recommendations" and scroll through other selections. Signing up and taking the style quiz is free and does not require you to put your credit card on file.

I resisted for a long time, but Jewelmint sent out a 70% off coupon for new members, and I decided that, for $9, it was worth a try.

I selected the Persephone pendant - a small silver-plated "perfume bottle" with a vintage look hanging on a 30" chain. I personally really like long necklaces; they're perfect for spicing up basic t-shirts.

Here's what I got:

This came in a timely manner in a bubble pack. The magnetized box is mint green with a black ribbon. Cute!

Inside the box, a little description of the product, "signed" by Kate and her stylist, Cher.

Nestled beneath a black sponge is the Persephone Pendant!

The top unscrews, though I doubt you could actually put perfume inside, unless you have an eye dropper. The screw-off cap is topped by a white enamel accent... a nice touch!

The pendant was fairly heavy and felt substantial, and the chain is high quality. Overall, I was pleased with my purchase; I think it will be versatile, as it will go with almost anything. The white enamel detail is a nice touch, and I love how unique it is. However, I don't know if it's necessarily worth $29.99; remember, I got this for $9 (including shipping). For $29.99, I feel like I could find something cool and unique on Etsy.

If you sign up for Jewelmint, peruse their selections, but wait until you can find a coupon to purchase your first piece - they do 50% off - 70% off, from what I've seen, and they'll send emails. I'm not sure how coupons work on subsequent purchases, but I'm determined not to buy anything else until I can get another coupon code! As usual, remember to check RetailMeNot for coupon codes!

BTW, Jewelmint has a sister site, Stylemint. Stylemint works exactly the same way, but features shirts instead of jewelry. Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen are the spokesgals, but I couldn't find anything I liked more than, say, the generic tees I pick up at American Eagle.

Jewelmint, for now, gets a 6 on the awesome meter.

Awesome Mascara Review

Hi there! Long time, no see! I have a bunch of fun reviews of random awesome things coming up, so stay tuned.

I'm not really a makeup person. I have a few techniques that I use over and over, but never anything complex. My eye makeup routine is particularly simple, mostly because I have sensitive eyes, an I desperately hate touching them. It creeps me out. I use eyeliner extremely rarely, and even so, I can't get close to the waterline, so I just line the corners or above the lashes. I use eyeshadow and brow pencil, and that's usually it... if I'm feeling fancy, I'll put on eyeshadow base.

I've found that one thing makes a big difference in how polished my makeup looks, though: mascara. I've had lots of issues with mascara. I hate fighting to get the waterproof stuff off. My lashes are pretty long, so when I put on mascara and blink, the lashes hit the area below my eyes and make for little black dots and smears. I also tend to get mascara flakes later in the afternoon. Not cute.

Through my Birchbox subscription, I discovered Blinc mascara. This mascara forms small tubes over each individual lash. You have to work fast, because it dries quickly, and you can't really "build" it in layers, but it's basically idiot-proof; just glide it on like normal mascara. It does not clump, which is awesome, because who wants spider eyes? Once it's on, it does not smear or smudge, and it really does stay all day. It's not waterproof, but to remove it, you apply warm water and gently push the tubes off your lashes. It's kind of strange, and it takes a little longer than just washing your face, but it's actually oddly satisfying to take off.

Anyway, this is the only mascara that has really worked for me. I've tried all the drugstore brands as well as fancier ones, but all the non-waterproof formulas smudge too easily; I'm always rubbing my eyes, and I end up raccoon-like by midday. It's also recommended for people who wear contacts. Blinc is an awesome mascara solution, and I give it an 8 on the Awesome Meter!

A quick note on Birchbox: it's a subscription service, and every month you get a box of 4-5 premium beauty samples. It's always packaged very nicely, so it feels like getting a gift each month, and I love surprises. Some months are definitely better than other months. You also get points for reviewing the items you get, buying items in their store, or referring friends, so I've gotten some awesome deals on products I've loved from their boxes - I saved up my points and got the mascara for $4. Plus, free shipping on their monthly picks. I'll review a full box next month!

Giveaway to check out!

I know some of you ladies were as enamored as I was over those dresses I posted from Shabby Apple - so pretty, so demure, so classy!

Well, if you're still drooling over their stuff, head over to Consume or Consumed, one of my favorite blogs, and enter to win a beautiful amethyst-colored dress. Gorgeous and work-appropriate! Well, now that I work from home, my pajamas are work-appropriate... but in my alternate reality, I could wear this dress to my office, where I busily harvest magic from unicorn horns. Yes, that's an office job, and yes, I have to dress up most days, but we do have biz-cas-fri.

Make sure to follow Shabby Apple on Facebook for copious coupon codes! See what I did there? Alliteration, suckas!

Swoon-Worthy Shabby Apple

At 5'8", I sometimes have trouble finding dresses. Cocktail dresses may look adorable on the rack or in the window of a Melrose boutique, but trying them on is a bit of a joke - everything winds up being unbelievably short on me. Perhaps that's why I like Anthropologie so much; dresses there almost always come to right above my knees, which is perfect for me. I've learned that stores like Bebe or Guess are pretty much never going to work - I prefer NOT to show my butt when I bend over, thanks. While we're at it, let me mention that it's also sometimes hard to find something that isn't too low cut. I'm busty, and there's a time and a place for cleavage, but it's definitely not ALL the time.

So enter Shabby Apple, a site I learned about through the Anthro blogs. Their dresses are all modest - no exposed shoulders, no cleavage, no high hemlines. Yet somehow, they are all fashion-forward and flattering; no frumpy baggy styles!

I won a contest through Shabby Apple a while ago and got some awesome artwork out of it in exchange for a pie recipe, but I still haven't gotten around to ordering a dress from them. Their new Academia collection has me swooning:

I looove those sleeves!! This one is my favorite, and the model is wearing amazing tights - she's styled SO well with a chunky necklace and marigold heels. Unfortunately, I can't find the tights on the Shabby Apple site. These are kinda similar (over at ModCloth).

That color is pretty amazing, and the cut is really classic. And how gorgeous is this model and her amazing hair??

This one is from the Sidesaddle collection... I love, love, love the Tiffany blue and brown combo, and the color blocking here is super flattering.

Since I haven't tried on any Shabby Apple dresses, I can't really vouch for their quality, but I've read lots of positive things about them. For now, I'll keep lusting after them, and maybe one day I'll pull the trigger and buy one! Follow Shabby Apple's blog for interesting insights and fun contests.

NOM NOM!

My parents have always been into Skinny Cow products, but I was never a huge fan of their ice cream sandwiches. However, when I saw that they had come out with a new line of candy, I decided to give it a try; I'm always looking for low-cal treats. I'm a HUGE sweets person, and I absolutely love dessert, so instead of denying myself, I try to find less "naughty" versions of things that I love. I'm a fan of the Jello chocolate mousse cups that weigh in at like, 60 calories each.

Anyway, I picked up a box of Heavenly Crisps the other day and found them quite good, particularly for only 110 calories. The milk chocolate is smooth, and the filling is sweet but not cloyingly so. They satisfied my sweet tooth, and I'm going to try the peanut butter variety soon.

But a few weeks ago, our supermarket got in Dreamy Clusters in both milk and dark chocolate. They're caramel clusters with crispy rice, coated in chocolate. They're packed in little bags, each of which contains about 5-6 candies, for 120 calories.

You guys, these things are amazing. They're chewy but not take-out-your-molars chewy, and the chocolate tastes rich and decadent. There's no hint of the chalky flavors you sometimes get with low-cal chocolate. Again, one package was enough to satisfying my cravings for chocolate. If I tried these alongside full-fat chocolates, I don't think I'd be able to tell the difference. And bonus, they have fiber!

These things get a 9 out of 10 on the Awesome Meter. Good stuff - thanks, Skinny Cow!

You can find 'em at most grocery and drug stores. Target and Wal-Mart also carry them.

Oh, and I just found a coupon for Buy One, Get One Free - click here!