Study Space-Saver

I made a schedule I made a plan, to wave high those feather dusters and paint rollers to squeeze in a little late spring cleaning. I vowed that all household clutter be banned. I've had enough of the paint fumes and magnolia and moved on to the attic and study, which is filled to the brim with unwanted and unused CD's and DVD's from way back to my early teens. Once I decided to rummage through the CD's, a mini karaoke session transpired, minus the mic and some muddled lyrics, there was plenty of nostalgia going back to those good old days, but I can't use all these CD's as tea coasters...particularly since I don't drink tea!

Music Magpie - Trade in your CD's and DVD's 

I'm hoping my junk is someones else's treasure.. but listing each CD on eBay is a pain in the butt and car boot sales generate little profit! so I was gonna drop them all off at my local charity shop where I've handed my old bike yesterday. Then it occurred to me that I could sell stuff for cash elsewhere and Music Magpie seemed the most convenient to me. They could take my Cd's and DVDs off my hands immediately and I know I'll get a little spending money in return. 

I scanned the bar-code of my DVDs and CD's for a price valuation with my phone and found they wanted largely music albums which suited me fine since I had far too many. Feels pretty liberating once it was done, a space-saver, Sending your items to Music Magpie is free. You can either use free-post labels or arrange for a courier to collect them for free. 

Whilst I was on the verge of sending my CD's and DVD's to Music Magpie, irony would have it I received an email from Music Magpie for a sponsored post. Which killed 2 birds with one stone, but not a Magpie! I hope to use the cash to: wait for it...buy a new can of paint! yup, another 3 rooms to go including the skirting boards..good times! 

Review: The Gob Stopper

Click ‘N’ Mix allows you to fill a traditionally stylish Kilner jar full of the retro sweets you love and get them delivered straight to you.

Pick 'n' mix in my bloom days was like a wonderful bag of tricks, back when penny pick and mix sweets were actually closer to costing pennies, but now I don't have to save pocket money for a week, no more. Yet scouting around I rarely see family run independent businesses who are thriving amongst the big chain supermarkets, displaying their beloved glass sweet jars.

Courtesy of The Gob Stopper I tried the Click ‘N’ Mix, which is an online pick n mix, catering towards your nostalgic sweets buds but you also get to keep the beloved Kilner glass jar too with the delightful nifty clip top. I got to choose three or more specific types of sweet from the long list of favourites and they arrived in a couple of days packaged neatly and securely. 

I chose my faves White Chocolate Mice.. Icy Chocolate Cups & Black Jacks. Opening the jar unleashed the classic retro sweet aroma. My jar is sat in the study and it looks so nice that I almost didn't want to eat the sweets, but that didn't last long! I think it makes for a thoughtful gift sending a jar of memories, from a family run business, rekindling our love affair with retro sweets. 

Thanks for the stroll down memory lane! What is your favorite sweets in a pick and mix ? 

Review: Chocolate by Genevie

Blighting my harbingers of spring, as it's began to snow once again, I guess it's expected, after-all it is February, the month where chocolates are also very much desired. I don't know about you..but I crave them whenever the opportunity calls for it. So was thrilled to review the valentines box from Chocolate by Genevie. I wasn't sure I'd be in to receive the package, but what was super, that these chocolates are letterbox friendly!

I welcome little cocoa cabins through the letterbox any-day! I liked the variety of chocolate that came in the valentine decorated box, had my fave's with truffles, pralines and pistachio. All the flavors complimented each other well, whilst I was in my chocolate fun maze. I would personally go for the classy black satin box with a heart shaped window outer packaging.

I have to say I'm not a fan of the commercial side of Valentines Day, but Chocolate by Genevie are a small family business and I'm all for championing smaller, local businesses who are dedicated to creating a more personal & warm touch whilst sourcing and supplying chocolate that is second to none, that is one of the advantages of not buying store brought, as well as knowing your other half put some thought in buying you chocolates.

Review: Chamilia silver bracelet

Our collection of premium beads and accents, bracelets, necklaces, earrings, and rings celebrates individuality, letting women personalize every design to reflect their own lives and styles. We use only the finest materials to create our expertly designed collections, including 14k gold, .925 sterling silver, crystal Swarovski® Elements, handmade Italian Murano glass, and natural and colored gemstones. 

I have a habit of over washing my hands, hand wash pump dispensers are addictive, but where am I taking this... I tend to spoil most of my rings and bracelets, since they are not made out of real silver and gold. Green skin is not pleasant. I'm making a real effort to invest in some sterling silver and gold. So fittingly I was offered to review a Chamilia sterling silver bracelet. I was also lucky enough to pick out a bead or charm to add to the silver snap bracelet.

I chose the double baguette black and white crystal bead, reminding me of a hexagon industrial nut, you can create a bracelet that is unique to you or your loved one through your choice of charms and bracelets. The delightful bracelet came in a soft pretty pouch and gift bag. I have very small wrists so was pleased to hear they have custom sizes to provide a perfect fit.

This bracelet is a keeper! I plan on adding more beads and charms, If you have a passion for modern charm jewelry I feel this brand is worth checking into, particularly with Christmas around the corner!

Full disclosure: For this review I received this bracelet and charm from http://www.chamilia.com at no charge.

Ask her friends Review

Buying a gift for someone special should be one of the most natural things in the world, right? So why when we try to get something for our wife, girlfriend, sister, friend or mum is it such a struggle - with countless hours of searching, browsing and agonising? 

How often have you heard this? 'Men are from Mars and Women are from Venus', I usually never buy into this Mars vs Venus notion, but can't help, but feel sorry for the opposite sex, when it comes to gift buying for those special occasions, that is, until NOW! .... Ask her friends is a unique gift-giving experience aimed largely at clueless males, and of course anyone could make use of this nifty service now, not just the men. 

Courtesy of Ask Her Friends I was given the opportunity to review the site and find a suitable gift for a friend at no charge. I found if you use the nifty idea map, it is super helpful, 1. select the person 2. select the budget 3. select their interests, which goes on to recommend several products that should suit the person you are gifting. Here is what I chose :

GIFT CHOSEN :  ROTARY APPLE PEELER

The advise list is my FAVOURITE : pick items which you think would work and then ask her/his friends via the button, for a yay or a nay, pretty foolproof.  - The Rotary Apple Peeler via Labour and Wait was the WINNER! Since my friend loves to bake!  

I've always been curious to see how a rotary apple functions! and the gift was a big hit ! I now look forward to tasting an indelible supply of Apple Turnovers!! Yes Guilty!! my secret ulterior motive to giving this gift :) 

Forget dropping hints so big, just drop Ask her friends on them!   

Baker Days: Letterbox Cake Review

Small enough to slip through a letterbox, but large enough to celebrate the big occasions 

I buy all my greeting cards online and prefer to personalise them, and send them directly to the recipient, without having to leave the house. But I've often wondered ' wouldn't it be great if you could slip a cake through a letterbox like you can with a card!? ' without leaving the house, it could be a perfect remedy for last minute gift/cake buying?! Turns out Baker Days have done just that! Yay!  

Courtesy of Baker Days I was sent the letterbox cake that I personalised via the online store options, the cake had arrived through the letterbox, my postman, decided to attach the small sturdy A5 box with a pile of letters with an elastic band. Here I began to think the cake could arrive a little roughhoused, but my fear was completely unfounded. The cake arrived, well packaged in a pretty stripey tin, along with some fun party goodies seen above.  

I chose the all congratulations perfect evening cake, with Madeira sponge, once I sampled the cake it tasted lovely light and moist, beneath the not too sweet and sickly icing, better than most store buy products, it is large enough to serve 3-4 people at a push.

Above all, I am impressed with the surprise factor this gift would bring. No one in their right mind would assume a personalised cake along with balloons, candles, card and tooter could arrive through the letterbox along with their letter bills and correspondence.... until now! I give my hyena howl of approval :) 

Amara Baobab scented candle : Review

Good candles... really, really GOOD candles... are just the cat's pyjamas. They need to be functional, soothing and it helps if they look aesthetically appealing. I use to think most candles are of all relatively the same quality, until I was prone to headaches from the overpowering synthetic scented candles, I wasn't aware that the wrong candle could be toxic, if they weren't 100% pure. 

    

I have been given the opportunity to put the Baobab Madagascar Vanilla, one of Amara's most luxury candle brand to the test!

How is the packaging & aesthetics of the candle? 

For a luxury brand I expected good packaging and appearance, once I opened my package, I was able to see a beautiful black textured elegant sturdy box shown above in the photo. Making for an ideal wedding or birthday gift. The monochrome label around the box clues you as to what's inside.

The candle itself was larger than expected, it came in a hand-blown glass vase providing a telling high finish, with a monochrome printed ribbon and tag.

What did my candle smell like?

The scent description for Boaobab Madagascar Vanilla is as follows:

Its pure white wax and beautifully sweet scent. Inspired by Madagascar, or the 'big island' in the Indian Ocean, which is the largest producer of vanilla beans in the world. Madagascar bourbon vanilla is considered the highest quality, it has a creamy sweet smooth and mellow flavour which gives a tropical aroma, with the exotic scent of Frangipani tree held down by the base notes of Sandalwood. 

Immediately without the candle lit I was happy with the scent, it's pretty much everything you could want out of a great vanilla bean. It was creamy smooth authentic and comforting. The strength scent was just right, not too overpowering but pretty good for the size of the container. Best of all I had no headache !

How did my candle burn?

First of all I was happy to see 4 wicks on this candle for even burning. This was a relatively slow-burning candle, which I really appreciated. Longer for me to enjoy the scent! I didn't see any smokey black soot nor was there any around my candle rim when lit for less than 3 hour periods. A clean burning candle to say the least! Approx 60 hours of burn time.

Would I buy Baobab scented candle on a regular basis ? I would like to.. but it is a luxury range, though makes for a perfect gift for a friend or family or why not the occasional treat for yourself, I know I could get use to it! 

Zalando Shoe Review

Have you heard of the online store Zalando? Well neither did I .. until a month ago when I received a certain email kindly offering the chance to pick an item from a store called Zalando. Shoes were numero uno on my list and Zalando has more than plenty of them, I was surprised to see they stock my fave Jeffrey Campbell and the likes of sigerson morrison, united nude, Surface to Air, Dr Martins etc but whom am I kidding I can't afford them this month and the month after, so I was content to see they stock high street ranges as well as the off-beat brands, which always seems to peek my interest. Ultimately the platform Sandals below were the stealer.   

I like any online store that can provide a Free Delivery and Free Returns service and Zalando does so Kudos to them, so no matter what happens you only ever pay the amount that is stated on the website, I love this, as I like to try things on before I commit. My delivery took 4 days, I felt it is suffice since it's free postage. Zign Platform Sandals - brown

These were, one of the few platform styled heels I can muster to walk in, because I'm anything but ladylike whilst walking in agonizing shoes. I’ll take solace in the fact that balance is not my strong point.

xx

Feel Good Treats- Misguided Splash Nails

The narrative moves rather sluggishly, that narrative being moi over the past two weeks. I've never really shared with you my enthusiasm towards organic health products. Sadly my enthusiasm for such items is not shared by my purse strings. Buying organic chemical free items is time consuming and pricey, so I always look to what I have in the fridge and kitchen, items such as honey, ginger, lemon and tumeric for home-made concoctions. The only problem is, it can sometimes get messy and whoever is in the kitchen is normally shoving me out of the way to make room to bake.

Trying on the MissChievous Vibrant Coral

I've been known to have ample's of enthusiasm for creating my own pharmacon lair in the home, until the daily grind digs in and its tick tock, and it has been this way since I fell stagnant and so I've decided to take things one footprint slower and treat myself inside and out, with some wheat-grass and krill oil and some good old home-cooking, banning any ready meals and feeding some massage oils for the skin. And perfect timing! I was entreated by Misguided womens fashion, to try out their new nail polish range called 'Misguided Splash', and it positively helps to feel good on the inside if you feel good on the outside.

            

But do you know what I was mostly satisfied about? was that these nail polish range are all Formaldehyde and Toluene free! Formaldehyde can cause irritation of the skin, eyes, nose, and throat and may also cause asthma, and so it has none of those toxic element's, proving to be a good pick me up to banish my blues. Here's hoping more beauty industries take the same initiative.

Reebok Easytone Trainers Trial

EASYTONE CURVE

I was able to fleetly grab a friends camera to take a quick snap of my REEBOK EASYTONE'S which was long overdue, in order to share my Reebok Easytone Trial with you folks, that commenced over two months ago. Brief update for those of you who don't know, I received a charming surprise through my inbox, inviting me to trial the new Reebok Easy tone trainers along with receiving a few Reebok goodies. I was thrilled to get the opportunity to evaluate these trainers and to get down to really exploring whether these Reebok Easytone's developed for toning the glutes and legs whilst walking veritably 'Walk the Walk'! excuse the pun.

If you get to know me, It's a thumbs down to the gym, the odd moment I've been determined to tone up and visit the gym, I end up feeling like a guinea pig rotating on the wheels of the gym machines. The only natural way I can tone up my legs is by running and walking, (have I mentioned I dislike running too haha) the only running, I can muster is either if someone is chasing me or by playing sports! This was why receiving the Easytone Trainers was an idealistic way of making the most of the situation and getting my glad-rags on by instantly trailing out on walks near the canal side and hills.

One of the element's I was cautious about was, I have never really been an apostle of trainers, only because I've brought an odd pair or two trainers purely based on the aesthetic factor, I confess! I was attracted and lured by the designer trainer. The only problem was, I suffer from flat feet which put a strain on my muscles and sent waves up to the ligaments, whenever I wore flat trainers. The only trainers I was snug in were boxing trainers. But I don't hardly wear them any more.

When I battened on the Easytones, my concern was allayed by past problems and the EasyT's provided a bouncy spring every time I took a step forward, like you probably do when you're having a good hair day or something. In all honestly not only do I care about the comfortability factor, I needed to know whether they work and tone the glutes and legs, and after wearing them for over the past two months, I can noticeably say, I can feel them working the legs and glutes by the pull and burn sensation experienced. If I'm honest, the Easytones are not some magic potion for the legs, but naturally getting in plenty of walking in this nice weather, is giving me a more greater esteem about my legs and glutes, and I would positively say its not a placebo, seeing as it straightens my posture and propels my walking steps.

If you're further curious about the Easytones, have a meander at the Reetalk Toning community, where I and many fellow bloggers, are trialling these shoes and providing feedback. I will be sure to post some more pics of the shoes once my DSLR is fully functioning.