Happy New Year!!

Goodbye 2014. Welcome 2015. Hope everyone has a safe and Happy New Year!! See you next year!

Quarterly Co Rosario Dawson Box December 2014 Review

I just received my Quarterly Co Rosario Dawson box this afternoon. I was not planning on reviewing the spoilers for this one, but when you get your box weeks late it's inevitable. FedEx did not deliver my box to my house. I have no idea who they gave it to, but they did not bring it to me. I have been trying to get this worked out with FedEx, but they have not cooperated, so I finally contacted Quarterly Co directly, who was very kind and sent me a box with overnight shipping.

The box was just as long and big as we had heard. There was also a card from Rosario. It did not give a lot of information on why she picked the items she did, but we do know she was inspired by advent calendars. Which is very fitting for December. "31 days of December to close out our year, 31 gifts to enjoy while we reflect on it and prepare for a new one". There were a lot of items so I'm going to start with what I like, because everything else is just stuff.  

Coach Double Zip Leather Wristlet – $68 LOVE this!! I will for sure use it. I do have a black wristlet, but this one is smaller and more convenient. I'm super happy to see this.

Henry Lambertz Premium Chocolates and Cookies – $15. I was actually craving a cookie today so this was pretty good timing to receive. The cookies are just ok. I would not pay extra just to get this brand. 

 

Honest Hand Soap in Lemongrass – $5 I LOVE this handsoap. K has gotten it for me from Honest Company several times and I always use it up completely. I may place this one in my kitchen, not quite sure yet.
Honest Fruit + Veggie Wash – $7 We have not tried this and are looking forward to trying it.

Bobble Sport Bottle – Value $11 I like this. I'm keeping it. I'm going to try and get K one as well.
Under Armour Hair Ties – $10 - K grabbed these because she goes through hair ties as often as I do.

There are several Studio 189 pieces included in this box, so a little about Studio 189. Every piece of fabric from Studio 189 is Designed, Hand-painted and Handmade in Ghana with local artisans. Studio189 is a social enterprise created by Rosario Dawson and Abrima Erwiah that gives a platform to help promote and curate African and African-inspired content through an ecommerce shopping site, a supporting agency and an artisan produced fashion collection, called FASHION RISING COLLECTION, launched in support of V-Day's One Billion Rising. They focus on creating opportunities for empowerment, education and employment of artisans and creative.

Studio 189 Oversized Tote – $250. This one is not posted, as it was designed for this box. But there are similar ones on the Studio 189 website.

Studio 189 Sunglasses Bag – $30. Can't find an exact price on this so I'm going with what the bloggers are saying. I really do not have a use for this because I use hard cases.

Studio 189 Coasters – $15. I have really been on the lookout for coasters lately, because the ones I have do not match my décor. These don't match either so I'm not keeping them.
Studio 189 Bookmark - I don't know when the last time I used a bookmark was, because I tend to read books on my kindle nowadays.

 

Wooden Spoon and recipe card for Stuffed Peppers - K grabbed the recipe card, she loves to try new recipes. We have had this recipe before, someone made for us. We only ate the stuffing. I'm sure it's fun to make. We have no use for a wooden spoon as we are set on cooking supplies.

Pic of Rosario and Chris Rock - This is a real picture, printed on actual picture paper. It's a pretty good pic of both of them. Their reps said they are not dating, they are just friends. I'm not sure I totally believe that.

 

This next section is called "Stuff that is too random to try and label or price". I can't even figure out what most of it is. It's junk that did not need to be included.

 

 

 

The last item is the walnut decorations that go on the tree, that everyone was talking about. Not for my tree, but maybe someone likes these? This was quite a stuffed box. It was fun to go through. But it also included quite a few random and useless items. Quarterly could have saved themselves the shipping on this and gone with a much smaller box that only included the main items.
~A

Quarterly Co MSA #02

I really should have had this review done weeks ago, but I've been a little distracted. So happy to see the Quarterly #MSA02 box. We thought we had been signed up from the beginning, but we did not receive the 1st box. It was terribly disappointing for us, because wow, what a hit that one was. Fortunately, My Subscription Addiction.com has a swap site and we have been participating. We were able to get almost all of the items we had missed out on.

If you aren't familiar, MysubscriptionAddiction.com has been doing reviews of subscription boxes for a few years. She has started her own box through Quarterly Co, called the MSA box. The box is $50/quarter.  

Next Issue Exclusive Offer - $14.99. There is no pic for this because it was just listed. Next issue is a an App where you can access over 140 digital magazines every month.  MSA subscribers can receive the first month free ($14.99 value) and the next two months at 50% off. I only included the free month in the value.

Au Naturale Creme Eye Shadow in Addiction & White Quartz $40. I like crème eye shadows, however, I still don't wear eye shadow, so I will trade these with someone who can use them.

Yes to Carrots Fragrance Free Intense Hudration Night Cream - $12.99. I love that a fragrance free product was included. Yes, I know it's a drugstore brand, but it's also a good brand and is something I can actually use.

Bauble Bar Ice Circle Pendant - $32. This is very cute. I will be swapping because I don't tend to mix well with Bauble Bar jewelry, but I do like that a necklace was included.
Fuzzy Slipper Socks - $9. We always like seeing fuzzy socks in boxes. I think these are cozy. K ended up with them because that kid can't seem to keep track of her socks, so she is always in need of more.
Faribault Woolen Mill Co. Recycled Wool Throw in Red Whip Stitching - $65. This is a very nice wool blanket. It is also very stiff. K has gotten this item and has been washing it, and it really is softening up. I think this will be very nice when it gets a little softer. It's also very warm, since it's wool. I think a throw was an excellent idea for the box, we are never disappointed to see throws.

We are very happy with the box this month. The value is over $170. Although we can't use every item, we can tell that Liz really put a lot of thought into what to include in her box. We are going to continue with this subscription.
~A

Beauty DNA December 2014 Review

It's the last day of the year, so I thought I better get caught up on the remaining 2014 reviews. We are starting with Beauty DNA. If you aren't familiar, Beauty DNA sends you one full size item each month, for $25. You fill out a profile, and they send you a customized report each month with your product telling you why you have been matched with it. They do not guarantee the value of the product, but when I have had a month where the value is less than $25, they sent two full size items. They have been very good about matching me with products I can actually use and that I like!

Image Skincare Stem Cell Crème - $95 I was trying to capture in the photo how large this night cream jar is, it's full size 1.7 oz. But the product is so shiny and reflective it's hard to get a good photo. There is no conclusive evidence out to accurately state that stem cell creams work, but they do seem to be more effective than other similar face creams. Some of the stated benefits:

Prevention of cell damage

Reduces wrinkles due to facial expression

Relaxes crows feet

Paraben Free 

I like the slogan of Image Skincare: "Age later". That's great cuz I was busy doing other stuff now. Like blogging.
`A

Social Bliss Stylebox December 2014 Review

The Stylebox by Social Bliss was delivered this morning. It came by USPS, but showed up at my door sometime between 11pm last night and 6am this morning. Someone must be getting overtime this season. I had to skip the links this time, because I was only able to find one item online.

The Info Card was extremely helpful. There is a lot of custom handmade jewelry from www.seewhomadeit.com which can be hard to identify the value of the items if you can't find them. I actually like the idea of this website, "helping very talented small local jewelry designers share their inspired creations in a way they couldn’t do alone". It just goes along with the Holiday spirit.

Ornament Jewels Set - $20 I have two pics here because I was trying to get you a better look at the design on the earrings. I like that this came in a set, and I think it's cute, just not my style.

Snowflake Stencil Earrings - $18. These are both dye cut and hand painted. This might not be my style, but I really love the detail. I would actually wear this if it came in small size. I have posted the 2nd pic so you can see the size with the quarter there for scale.

 

Open Teardrop Bangle - $15. I Love the bag this came in, super cute. This bracelet is my favorite item this month.

Seasonal Statement Scarf - $27. This scarf has bejewels hanging off the ends. This is one that goes over your shoulders, to add personality to your outfit. It is not the type of scarf that you wrap around your neck. It's more like a statement piece of jewelry.

The Minaudiere Bag - $35. This bag is gorgeous. You can wear it as a cross body bag, or tuck the chain in and use it as a clutch. The chain has tabs that are specifically made to tuck in. The design is perfect for this Holiday season. I had to look this up on Wikipedia because the explanation is exactly what I was thinking but had yet to put words to - A minaudière is a women's fashion accessory, generally considered a jewelry piece, intended to substitute for an evening bag.

 

I will be swapping most, if not all, of these items this month. Although I think there are some very beautiful pieces, they are just not quite my style or K's. They need to go to someone who can find more use for them.

~A

 

 

Blind Surprise

*this post contains affiliate links*

Blind Surprise is a monthly subscription service. You get 1-3 items each month, totaling around $30. The subscription is $25/month, less if you sign up for multiple months. The products are beautiful, useful, and unique. You fill out a questionnaire, select categories that describe you, and you should hopefully get a match. For example I selected Fashion, Technology, and Travel. I did not select humor.

The package was delivered in a plain brown box, with the name on the top of it. The inside is stamped with Surprise. There was a card, but this was not an info card, more like a request for an FB review. The there was a little black box with the name Kitsch on it. this was the only item inside. I was expecting something a little bigger given the size of the brown box. I knew it was jewelry, which lately, I have not been overly thrilled with the jewelry items that have been showing up in boxes.

Kitsch Beyond The Stars Y Shaped Necklace, in Gold - $34. I LOVE it!!! Finally, a necklace that is perfect for me. It's on a 36" chain. Very happy with this item.
`A