Luxor Special Edition December 2015 Review

I had completely forgotten I had ordered the Luxor Box Special Edition. I was very happy to see it arrive. Luxor box is $125/month. They send out 5-7 premium luxury items, just like the name says. They also have a mini "petite" box that 2-4 of the full size products for $39/month. I paid $95 for this box.

The items arrive in a nice high quality box. The infor cards are printed one item per card. Wrapped in stamped paper.

Deepa Gurnani Claire Fantasy Flower Skinny Cuff - $90. I like the unique design of this. I have already swapped it, but I do like the originality. This is hand crafted in India.

Tatcha Polished Rice Enzyme Powder - $65. I have really been wanting to try this, heard many wonderful things. I have gotten this several times before but each time it ends up with K. I'm happy I finally get my own. ;) This is basically a powder and you mix with a little bit of water and it becomes a cleanser. It's a great exfoliator that does not includes harsh abrasives. It works great and really left my skin feeling soft.

Jesse & Co Hope & Love Catchall - $130. This Catch All is handcrafted in a Metallic Platinum leather lining inside and a contrasting Taupe pebbled leather on the outside. It is embossed with inspiring words Hope & Love. It is perfect a place to just toss stuff. I really do like Italian leather, but this is not something I can fully appreciate. It will make a great gift for a guy though.

1951 Maison Francaise Clutch - size L - $130. I have never gotten one of these, and I've seen many subs had them, so I'm happy to join the club. I now want black/Noir, instead of the Leosilver one I picked, because I'm more likely to use it.  I'm going to attempt to trade over on MSA. I know people are really picky when trading these, so hopefully someone is looking for silver. And by the way, hand made in France and it really is the nice quality it's rumored to be.

 

eInvite Hello Correspondence Card - $29.95. These are nice quality cards, 8 cards 8 envelopes were included. Stationary is not my favorite item to get, but these are pretty nice. Very elegant.

Graphic Image 2016 Notebook - $70. I found he silver metallic leather version, but I could not find the gold version. This is a really nice planner and I totally love it. However, I already have a planner I use, so this would be completely wasted on me. I have traded so that it can go end up with someone who will use it. I needed to get it out before the start of the New Year and I hope whoever ends up with this loves it as much as I do.

The overall value of this box is around $415, which is a great value. I really loved the curation, I just wished I'd liked some of the items better. Nonetheless, getting the Tatcha has made this box for me. And the rest? I will trade for stuff I've had my eye on.

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Allure Beauty Box December 2015

Allure Beauty Box is curated from the editors of the Allure Magazine. This is the only editor curated box that I know of. It promises at least 5 sample, deluxe items ever month. $15 monthly. It comes with a great info card "mini magazine" that tells you why they picked what they picked, how to use it, and why they like it.

Klorane Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk - This is one of the more popular dry shampoo brands. It does have a floral type scent, but I hear that doesn't last too long. It applies like a white powder, but brushes out easily.

Illume Blackberry Absinthe Candle - A scented paraffin-and-soy wax candle. Blackberry and orange with a hint of patchouli and sandalwood. Oh this was so promising. Up to the point of "patchouli". Bleh! I like getting candles, but they are really hit and miss with me since fragrance is important.

Pop Beauty Kajal Pen in Inky Purple - We get a lot of eyeliners in sub boxes, but I'm happy this is something other than black. One hint from allure, the sponge on the end that is meant for smudging works better as an eraser. Good to know.

Eau Thermale Avene Body Oil - I love getting body oils, we do not get them often enough, and when we do, they tend to have a terrible fragrance. This fragrance isn't the worst, but it's not sweet smelling either. My elbows and knees want to try it. Also, I just found out I have been pronouncing this brand wrong. I can't tell you the correct way to say it, only that what I have been saying was wrong.

Skinceuticals C E Ferulic - An antioxidant serim with a blend of vitamin C, vitamin E, and ferulic acid. Protects against free radicals. Full size is $162, just to give you an idea. I heard that were three different items that could be included this month, this is the exact one I really wanted so I am extremely thrilled I got it. I seriusly love this brand! Absolutely my favorite item this month!

Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer Oil Free - I have gotten this many times before. It really does work well to help your makeup stay put all day. It is very light and not noticeable. If your skin is oily prone, use this instead of a moisturizer. I would not call this the top brand primer, but I would say it's a very good product.

Chap Stick total Hydration in Soothing Vanilla - Love getting chapsticks, lip balms, I really go through them. My car chapstick is almost out so this is replacing it.

I really loved the curation this month. I think this is one of the best Allure Beauty boxes I have gotten. We just recently started up again, and I'm happy we did. I think the total hydration chapstick really did it for me, LOL. But thank you for the skinceuticals!

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Zero Water Review

We were sent the Zero Water Filter and 12 cup Pitcher to review. I hadn't heard of this company or product before and was really interested in testing it out. I had only heard of the Brita filter pitcher and was curious how this one stood up. I am thoroughly impressed with this product and excited to write this review.

This system is a five stage Ion Exchange filter system which claims to remove 99.63% of all total dissolved solids in tap water, and it is certified to reduce lead, chromium, mercury, and hydrogen sulfide. As an undergraduate who studied Environmental Science I learned all about the bottled water industry and I refuse to purchase bottled water as much as possible. It produces a lot of waste from the plastic containers, and health standards aren't even regulated so many have lower water quality than tap water. I highly recommend watching the story of bottled water on youtube if you are interested in learning more. So, I am a firm believer in drinking tap water but I do like to have extra filtration to lower my exposure to contaminants even further. 

Here is the pitcher assembled. The one drawback to this product is the lack of instructions for assembling the filter properly. It wasn't too hard to figure out after a few minutes, but it was tricky at first. The filter actually screws into the top water containment at the top. This tight screw in assemblage ensures that all water going into the actual pitcher is filtered. I think that this is where you can really see a quality difference between this system and Brita. The Brita system is not as tight and you know that some of the water isn't getting filtered. With Zero Water's pitcher I have confidence that all of the water is getting filtered. As first I didn't understand why they added the extra spigot on the back when all you have to do is pour throughout the top, but I have really come to love this feature because instead of taking the whole thing out and wrestling it back onto the shelf we just have to push on the spigot to get water in the middle of the night. However, I do wish the opening of the spigot was more visible or the spout was longer because it's not easily seen so there has been a few times I missed my cup and got it all over. 

Tap Water: 62ppm

Filtered Water: 0 ppm

The coolest feature of this system is the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) meter which measures the TDS in the water. I was excited to try the meter out on the tap water and the filtered water. The pitcher also came with an informative map of the US that gave the average TDS of tap water for each state, which you can see online here, to see how your state measures up. Washington has pretty great water quality but I was still nervous about measuring it because I did not want to see high numbers. I was pleasantly surprised when it only read 62ppm. However, when I measured the water that came out of the pitcher I was amazed when it read 000 ppm. That is amazing! This product has even gotten me excited about drinking water again, and I have consumed a lot more since we received this product. I think it might be the inner geek in me that finds this fascinating!! It is so nice to always have cold filtered water in the fridge. Overall, I highly recommend this product to anyone. It saves on money to switch from bottled water to tap and with this system you can have a higher confidence that you are drinking clean water from your tap.

-K 

SleepPhones Review

What I'm Raving About This Week!

I just bought a pair of SleepPhones, I paid $29.95 for them. If you are unfamiliar with this, as I was, SleepPhones are designed to be comfortable to use while sleeping. They are made of a soft fleece headband, which is very lightweight. The speakers are in the headband that is easily washable. They are padded, yet flat and you really cannot feel them. Regular headphones and ear buds are simply not comfortable to wear all night long, or even when you are drifting off to sleep. These are listed as a top 10 travel gift by Gayot.com, and since I was unfamiliar with them, I really wanted to try them out.

I used them while listening to soft music and trying to sleep one night. These were indeed something that was very easy to sleep with. They did not disturb me at all, not even a little bit, and frankly I barely noticed them. The cord did not get in my way, as it's at the back of the head. They do offer a version that has bluetooth, but I don't really want those waves that close to my head while sleeping so I did not opt for that version.

 

They are not noise-cancelling however, so you will be able to hear things in the background. I like my noise cancelling headphones on planes mostly because I like to tune out other conversations and crying babies. I often sleep on a plane as well, so I do plan to toss these in my handbag while travelling. I wasn't fully expecting to like the SleepPhones as much as I actually did, so I'm a little thrilled to find something new.

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Cyber Monday Tone It Up!

I have been following the Tone It Up girls since we received thier workout DVD in a subscription box last year. I am totally obsessed with thier program and hope to try it soon. You pay a one time membership fee of $150 and you get the complete meal program and updates as well as join the community that is really supportive. They also send out weekly workouts. I really love thier approach to healthy living and the positivity they and members project onto eachother. I was really excited for Black Friday deals because I heard they were 50% off last year. This year they had awesome bundles instead of sales on the membership. For the nutrition plan bundle you get the membership with the nutrition plan as well as the new workouts, a water bottle, measuring tape, necklace, resistant bands, a cute gym bag, journal, multi vitamins, and a vanilla chai latte protein mix for $230. I am so in love with the bundle but it is completely out of my price range this season. I hope they offer the pieces individually after the weekend sale of the bundle closes, and I hope to try out the program soon! Have any of you guys tried it out? 

-K

Allure Beauty Box November 2015 Review

Well here it is the end of the month again, and I'm trying to cram all the November box reviews in tonight. Allure Beauty Box (formerly Sample Society) is a $15 monthly subscription box service. They send 5-7 trial & deluxe size beauty products each month, with the occasional full size.

Hanai Mori Perfume - $1.75. Meh. All fragrance is wasted on me and I wish I could just opt out of it.

Crabtree & Evelyn Verbena and Lavender de Provence Bath Gel - $6. This fresh scented, gently cleansing gel creates a smooth lather in the shower, brilliant bubbles in the bath and a splash of indulgence in your daily routine. This has Lavender so it's going to swap.

Kevin Murphy Anti Gravity Oil Free Volumizer - $10.54. Supposedly you can use a lot of this product and it will never weigh your hair down. It does contain lavender, so this is also going to swap.

Mally Beauty High Shine Lipstick in Blossom - $15. These four-in-one Liquid Lipstick Pens condense the whole process into a quick swipe of the lips, creating an effortless, lasting shine. I do like this brand for shiny lipsticks.

L'occitane Divine Youth Oil - $14. This is designed for the skin to improve visible signs of aging including fine lines and wrinkles while hydrating and refreshing. I bet it works just as great on hair!

Klorane Floral Lotion Eye makeup remover - $2. I hear this is a pretty good eye makeup remover, but since the word floral is in the title I'm just going to skip.

There seemed to be a lot of flowery ingredients this month, which doesn't excite me. I do like the oil and will be using that for sure. The overall value this month is approximately $46.

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GlossyBox November 2015

Glossybox is $21/month and you get five beauty products. I think I've discovered more brands that are new to me than any other box. They include a mix of deluxe trial and full size products. They have a nice rewards program. You have the opportunity to complete surveys for points called Glossydots, and then when you reach 1000 you receive the next month's box free.

Glossybox has the best boxes in the business, serious high quality boxes that are great for gifting.

florapy blackberry primrose deep hydration mask - $8. I love face masks, and I especially love hydrating masks this time of year. You just leave them on for about 20 minutes.

Crabtree & Evelyn La Source Ultra Moisturizing Hand Therapy - $9. Lock in lashings of moisture with our La Source Ultra-Moisturising Hand Therapy. Infused with shea butter, macadamia nut oil and seaweed and algae extracts, this intensive cream nourishes skin so it's noticeably smoother after each luxurious application.

Estee Lauder Revitalizing Supreme Global Anti-Aging Crème - $9 This high-performance, multi-action moisturizer dramatically reduces the look of multiple signs of aging: lines, wrinkles, loss of firmness, dullness and dehydration. This is my favorite item this month.

Beauty For Real D-Fine Perfect Lip Pencil  - $14. The only lip pencil you'll ever need to define and enhance your lips. It is a true lip tone, which works with all lip gloss shades and on all skin tones, taking the guesswork out of choosing the correct color.

Marsk Mineral Eye Shadow in Your Toast - $22.50. MARSK Mineral Eyeshadows are 100% natural, mineral based loose powder that are strictly cruelty free (not tested on animals) and available in a range of striking shades that offer endless colour possibilities for a professional makeup effect. Featuring a creamy texture, these highly pigmented powders are easily blendable and offer you the ability to create depth and intensity around the eye. This is a very pretty color.

This box had an approximate value of $62. The variety of products was great this month, so I'm happy with the curation.

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