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Showing posts with label My Favorite Things. Show all posts
Showing posts with label My Favorite Things. Show all posts

Monday, July 12, 2021

Buyer's Remorse & Buyer's Joy

**I've been having a rough couple of days here and I have some appointments coming up. It might be a minute before I can post anything else. This is one of those posts I put together quickly just for days like this.**


I thought I would share some of the photos I send back and forth with a long-time G= pal. We keep in touch and are both just too silly. We both like to do our own Siskel & Ebert routine when we discover new stuff. Yeah, we are silly. And we really miss Google Plus. We've been doing this off and on for about a year and it's our quirky little way to kind of stay in touch. I will only share my photos because my buddy doesn't want theirs posted. I almost hate posting my own because we both use crappy webcams that don't produce the most flattering photos...

Chicory for my coffee when 
I'm out of Cafe Du Monde

This is better (and cheaper) than the G.M. pods

I wanted to try this SO badly and...
YUCK!

Not only was WTRMLN WTR hard to track down in my area (Target had it) but it was overpriced and badly flavored. If you are going to do watermelon water - and it is almost pure melon with a touch of lime, I think - then use tasty melons. When I eat an actual melon, there is nothing worse than getting one of the weak, watery, almost tasteless ones. There is a reason people study the choosing of a good melon. If this had been an actual melon, I would have returned it. I ended up dumping this out and using the bottle for a while as an apple juice container.

This was both pricey & subpar.
Big-time buyer's remorse...

If there is one purchase I regret more than WTRMLN WTR is this Blue Monkey sparkling juice. I don't care about the stereotype. I LOVE watermelon-flavored beverages. Aldi's has the absolute best one around but it doesn't ever stay around very long. As soon as it's available, it's sold out. It's under 4 bucks for 4 almost 9-ounce cans. And it's yummy-licious.  Which is why I wanted so badly to try the Blue Monkey juice. What a mistake that was. 



Now, this is a tasty sparkling beverage right here...

Accept no substitutes, people.
This is the Neo of beverages.

I think I have already reviewed or talked about the chocolate tea craze I'm on. JusTea makes my favorite. When I told my buddy about it, they ordered some in the cheaper, compostable package, then they order more in a tin. They are now more hooked on it than I am.


Sadly, I could not recommend this one from JusTea. It's a total Nope. For my taste, it's far too weak and I can't find any flavor notes. My friend is a real tea freak so they might try this small, cheaper bag. I think their palate is more sophisticated. Hah.


And we don't just talk about food or beverages. Mostly but not all the time. This is the latest thing I am sending. It's kind of overly floral and feminine for a guy, but the brand has them in other designs.


This is the cutest and most useful pocket-sized planner ever. And it's just around 5 bucks. I have to keep something like this around for doctor appointments and the notes I take there. I got this one because I splashed coffee on my old one that I got as a freebie from the pharmacy. It was very, very basic and pages were already falling out of it. This one has so many features that I still can't believe the cheap price. (**The seller of this product infuriated me. They offer a "free" pen but ONLY for a 5-star review. I didn't leave a review. I hate coercion.**)

Anyway. There you have it. Maybe I will start sharing these "shares" more often. I usually don't like showing photos of myself but, with age, I care so much less about stuff like that.

By the way, if anyone can recommend a juice as good as Aldi's, do run tell dat! LOL

Peace

--Free

Wednesday, April 14, 2021

A List of my Favorite Products 2021

 NOTE: You might want to skip to the bottom

and just check out the photos. This 

post is kinda... long!



I don't think I have done this for a while. The lists I share on Amazon are not something the get a lot of views. I forget they are even there sometimes. But I wanted to think about some of the many products I blog about and pick some stand-out favorites. Here goes. (By the way, photos are just randomly placed throughout.)

Hair & Beauty

  • Honey Hydrate. I trashed it in a review, then fell in love with it. It's not cheap but it's worth every penny.
  • Taliah Waajid's Intense Moisture & Coconut Milk Leave-In Conditioner. Like the Honey Hydrate, it has the power to soften the crunchiest hair. I like to use it as a twisting cream after a fresh wash.
  • Joah Beauty makeup brushes. I might actually use brushes over silicone blenders after using these angel-kiss tools. I got to sample the large brush and the blender brush and, yeah.
  • Blistex Conditioning Lip Serum. This is the best lip product I have that's also very affordable.
  • Neutrogena Hydra Boost Lip Treatment. It's one of those really effective products that you only have to use every now and then, so that makes it affordable. I think it's the hyaluronic acid that smoothed my old-age lips!
  • Dermalogica Melting Moisture Mask is a product I got to sample & would probably have to skip a few meals to afford. HOWEVER... this stuff is amazing. Like some of the other products on this list, I have to use this sparingly because it works that well.
  • Dashing Diva Gloss Ultra Shine Gel Manicure. I don't like going to salon manicures - they are too expensive for a regular treat - but I love pretty nails. I wore the nail wraps from this inexpensive kit for probably 15 days.I could have gone for longer but the edges on a couple were lifting and snagging my hair when I was styling it. I'm getting more sets and plan to have cute nails more often!
  • I'm going to include a couple of fragrances here: Angel Nova by Mugler is just... divine. Eros by Versace made me want to be in love. Then there is Gorgeous! by Michael Kors which is more playfully sexy. They are from the samples I get in the mail from Macy's on a regular basis. 
  • The Tangle Teezer. Oh. My. Goodness. My nappy hair loves this brush/detangler. Best thing that's happened to my hair in a while.
  • Making Cosmetics makes a few things I heart. Their Almond, Apricot and Nourishing Oil are must-have-arounds. 

Home - Kitchen - Pantry - Office

  • The Lemon Poundcake scented oil from Candle Science will probably forever be a favorite. I had to give up the Iced Lemon Sugar Cookies wax melts because the price got stupid. When I found the Lemon Poundcake, I stopped missing the ILSC melts. 
  • I love, love, LOVE my Bissell Bagless. It's almost 3 years old and still a workhorse.
  • My Electric Kettle is life. I got the cute gooseneck one & I use that thing at least 3 times a day - more now that I am drinking instant coffee.
  • The Brother HL-2300D that I have had since 2016 and dragged from Alaska to Iowa to Alaska and back here to Iowa. That thing uses cheap toner and cheap paper and just never stops.
  • My Echo Smart Pen that I still use and love, love, love. For someone with my memory issues, it's sometimes a real lifesaver.
  • The Instant Pot. You know what it is.
  • Cascara Tea. I need to drink it more often but it makes me feel great. It's full of antioxidants.
  • My first food sealer just keeps going and going. I hate the 2nd and more fancy one I got.
  • The set of cast iron I never want to be without. I am still thrilled with the Dutch Oven/Skillet combo.
  • Cavender's All-Purpose Greek Seasoning is right up there with my Lawry's Seasoned Salt. The Cavender's is actually better because their low-sodium version tastes better than low-sodium Lawry's.
  • Of course, I am going to add the Beaumont and Nescafe instant coffees.
  • Banquet Fried Chicken. If you don't want to fry chicken but you want it crispy & seasoned, this is it. Plus, you can fix one piece at a time.
Vape Products
  • Since my Smok Veneno gave up the game a while back (poor thing just gave out one day!), I rely on my Sigelei Shikra. It didn't start as a fave but the tank is the main thing in a vape and this one uses my Voopoo UForce tank.
  • I just discovered the best Juul-like disposable ever: Simple Sticks. I only tried Peach and Mango Freeze. They can keep the Mango but that Peach is a juicy gem.

So, in your face, Oprah. You don't have to be rich and have rich tastes to have a nice list of favorites.

I'm sure I could add a few more things but I wanted to stick with the real highlights. If I wanted to be silly, I would add the Banquet Chicken I've been craving lately. KFC lost me when they wanted about 20 bucks for an 8-piece bucket. Banquet not only is more affordable, it tastes better and I can cook one piece at a time. Girl, bye.

Some of the things on these lists were given to me as samples to try. You all really need to hop on the samples wagon. Use an email address separate from your main one and sign up. My free Macy's sample fragrances are such a mood-lifter. Also, some places online let you get to try luxury-priced items that you might otherwise skip. The Dermalogica is something I probably would never have looked twice at. Now it's going on my Birthday & Christmas Beg lists for my family! The Diva nail wraps were in my cheapo Walmart Beauty Box. Do you know how excited I am that I can spend less than 10 bucks and 10 minutes to end up with a really pretty manicure? And no messy brushes involved? I'm on that.


Photos of all the ones I might 
or might not
have been too lazy
to categorize!





Better than ~gasp~ Aussie Moist


The most awesome primer


                                                                        







                                                                                                                 

Fresca - the non-diet-tasting
diet soda







Best nappy hairbrush
                                                                                                  














The dream bread
machine







Must-have cast iron
Dutch oven/skillet combo










Milk for single people











Best honey EVER









If you are gonna drink
it black, this is the one

too pricey but so 
worth it
 



Smells like You

Yes, chile, yes
My shade match











Never clean up 
a pot's boil-over again
Cascara Coffee


 

I will never pay for a salon manicure again




Last but never least is my sugar bear. I can never do a "favorites" list without the most important, all-time, numba one:


This is all of my heart!

Next, I will do a list of my favorite online shops (and tell you why they made the list).

Peace
--Free


Saturday, April 03, 2021

Favorite Things (on the sidebar there)

 I'm adding some things to the sidebar. I wanted to showcase photos of whatever current favorite things I/m enjoying. Sometimes, I start writing a review or post about a product and it sits in the Draft folder while I deal with life. It's easier to add these photos to keep up until I get around to doing the postings. Just like for today, I have several Draft posts that I just haven't had the energy to deal with.


My hands look my age but those nails
are fabulous!



That's my first set. The Diva Nails are my new obsession. The other things are just as wonderful in their own way. I will get around to finishing the posts about them. Someday. Until then, the pics will be hanging out there for your viewing pleasure...

Peace

--Free