Monday, June 29, 2015

Swift & Supersonically Snappy Short Review #81: Vintage Chic Scents' High & Tight

When was the last time you got a haircut?
Mine was over a year ago.
OVER A YEAR AGO.
I am a rebel. Without a cause. ;)
Vintage Chic Scents' High & Tight
Cold Rating: 6/10
Lit Rating: 6/10
Throw Rating6/10
Overall Rating6/10; smells like a barber shop. Shaving cream, new car leather, a slight sweetness, fresh faces. I can almost hear the stubble being shaved when this is melting! Verrrrry leathery. A bit too masculine for my liking. The shaving cream has a tangy note, like actual shaving cream does. Not for me, but others would like this. Throw was a solid medium, but the tart lasted 7 hours in a pleasant background scent. Gray coloring is not very used in the wax world, but it's a nice color, weirdly enough! One scent shot is the perfect amount not to have to cut. Lovely design aesthetic from this vendor, great packaging, haven't ordered in a while because I am not the biggest fan of stalking sites anymore. A really tremendous vendor!!

Saturday, June 27, 2015

Swift & Supersonically Snappy Short Review #80: Candles from the Keeping Room's Toasted Marshmallow

Marshmallows are making a comeback this summer in our house. I can't get enough!!
Toasted Marshmallow - best way to describe this scent is...when you are making your sweet potato dishes, and spread the top of the dish with marshmallows....and run it under your broiler..the nice sweet toasted aroma of marshmallows....so yummy, sweet and yet still a comfort scent
Candles from the Keeping Room's Toasted Marshmallow
Cold Rating8/10
Lit Rating: 8.5/10
Throw Rating9/10
Overall Rating8.5/10; cruller tarts are the cutest. Gooey, ooey, yummy, sweet, a little toasty, not overly so, wonderful. CFTKR has one of the best marshmallow scents out there. 1-2 tarts per melting session. A bag lasts forever. Paraffin wax seemingly lasts years. Lasting! Simply, elegant labeling, always accurate, descriptive scent descriptions. Images of Thanksgiving because of the above description. Very strong throw, excellent while melting smell. Lasted 8+ hours in the bathroom on multiple occasions.

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Swift & Supersonically Snappy Short Review #79: Sniff My Tarts' Peppermint/Spearmint/Lavender

MINT EXPLOSION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11111111111111111111111
Sniff My Tarts' Peppermint/Spearmint/Lavender
Cold Rating: 8.5/10
Lit Rating: 7/10
Throw Rating: 9/10
Overall Rating: 8/10; this smells amazing on cold sniff, but the lavender comes out much more while warming, and while I don't hate it, I don't love it compared to other lavenders. Lavender is powdery, more like a laundry than a sweet lavender. Do not love. Cool peppermint and refreshing spearmint are such a wonderful combination. Blended mints are basically my fav. Cool color combination in the wax! Real pieces of lavender on top of the wax are both an awesome touch and a pain in the ass to clean out of the warmer. Large chunks that need to be cut even when already cut, ugh. This vendor is not opened all the time, but an opening is coming up soon. Never had a problem with throw from SMT. Chunks over loaves. Cutting wax is the devil.

Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Random Post: A Little Bit of Lotsa Brands o' Nail Polish Haul!

I have a confession to make.

I. CANNOT. STOP. BUYING. NAIL. POLISH.

I have accumulated quite a bit in the last 2 years, and I'm sort of having a problem putting them places, LOL. The purge of my polish will happen soon! I have made a couple smaller hauls over the last few months, so I wanted to share them with you all in one place! I have purchased a mix of spring and holiday polishes, so there is some variety here. Have you bought any polishes lately? What are you loving to wear right now??

*WARNING: PICTURE HEAVY*
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Liquid Sky Lacquer is an indie polish brand I had heard a lot about online. After looking up some swatches, I decided to buy a couple of mini polishes from her shop. Now, when I say mini, I mean mini, about 4 oz. per polish! I absolutely love that this vendor gives the option to buy smaller polishes because sometimes, when you get it in person, it looks way different than it does online. 4 ounces isn't that much, plus, they are cheaper, so they don't break the bank at all! Now, let's get to lookin', shall we?
I've had my eye on It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year ever since a swatch of it was posted to the Liquid Sky Lacquer Instagram account. It's a really shimmery gold polish with little tiny round/dot/hex glitters in it. This polish is SO unique! I haven't seen anything like this (or the silver one) before. I love it and can't wait to wear it, and I feel like this is more of a year round polish, too. Holly Berries boasts green bar glitter, reeeeally tiny gold glitter flecks and red "berries," too. Such a cool polish. This will definitely be worn closer to Christmas. Cotton Headed Ninny Muggins (LOVE THE NAME, "Elf" for the win) is a medium green polish with tons of different colored and shaped glitters, including stars. This might be my Christmas Day manicure color. Love! (PS: these polishes look much bigger in the photo, I assure you, they are tinier and a normal polish bottle).
Each polish came individually wrapped in bubble wrap...
...and a cute little sachet bag in a like color. This attention to packaging detail is one reason I will come back to LSL!
XTC is a really bright pink. My favorite!
Turn Up is a lime green holo explosion. SO COOL!!
Sugar Skull is a Halloween polish, but I think it can be used any time of the year because of its all purpose look. So cool! I have worn this 2 times over white polishes and it looks fun and funky.
Trick Or Treat is another Halloween polish and one that looks like a colorful romp, huh? Full of greens and blues and blacks and little glitters and bit circle spots. I can't wait to wear this and I have been waiting for the right summer-early fall time to wear it. Really neat-o looking!
This is an on the nail shot of "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year," can you believe how incredible this looks? Wowza...I am speechless. That blurry shot though...
Superchic Lacquer is another polish brand I heard about on Instagram. Her branding is freakin' awesome, especially if you like superhero stuff. I bought a couple of polishes a while back and never shared them. Heeeeeeeeeeerrrrre ya go!
Like I said, adorable branding! AND 5 FREE!!
Dumb Luck, a really lovely, muted neon green! I have been obsessed with greens in life lately. The site describes this as "retro."
Happenstance, a poppy, bright, teenybopperish lovely pink with a slight sheen!
Cause & Effect, a muted, gorgeous light tangerine orange. Love this color!!
They also sent me a key chain emery board with my order! Neat-o!

Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Subscription Box Corner: June 2015 Flicker Box Review!

I am seriously loving Flicker Box these days. I have really been into candles more lately, and though I love my wax tarts to death, there's something special about the warm glow of a candle when I am blogging! The June subscription did not disappoint. Let's take a look inside!
In all its glory, the box! Again, classic and simple and elegant labeling, minimal packaging (for a huge box o' candles!)
The box, upon opening the lid! (The box came with a matchbook as usual, but I didn't take photos of it since it's always there...if anyone needs matches, lemme know, LOL).
3 months into my subscription, I just realized I was forgetting to include the theme of the month (I think???). This month's theme is: Silly Scents & Funny Fragrances. How wacky!
Midnight Owl Candle Company is a new-to-me vendor. That's the best thing about this subscription box, finding new candle and wax vendors! I HAD to include their business card in full, front and back, because LOOK HOW CUTE IT IS. I love owls, so I am thrilled to know about this company, lol.
Monkey Farts - This unique fragrance begins with top notes of fresh bananas and juicy grapefruit, middle notes of kiwi, juicy bubblegum, and strawberries; and a hint of vanilla as a base note. A Best Seller!!
Whenever I see the word "monkey" in wax, I automatically assume banana, which I have been known to dislike. Midnight Owl's Monkey Farts is no exception, but here, when mixed with other notes, it's not nearly as bad as some of the wax I have smelled in the past! The banana is definitely tones down by a bubble gummy sweetness and a vanilla creaminess. I really like this! The throw started as lighter, but built the longer it was lit into a pleasant, sweet experience. See? Expectations and likes changing already! This is about the same size as a "medium jar candle" from Bath & Body Works. Very generous of them to send a candle this large!!
Grass Stain - Simple & unfussy. Just like a perfect spring day. Grass Stain brings back memories of days spent outside, the whir of a neighbor's lawn mower, and green knees. It's a single note fragrance of fresh dewy grass. Crisp, sweet and green.
Big White Yeti is another Etsy vendor from Milwaukee, and another new to me vendor. Wow, who knew there were so many candle companies!? LOL. I LOVE this company's labeling! How unique! And their company name is awesome, too. Anyways, Grass Stain came in a nice little tin candle, almost 5 ounces in weight. It smells really nice and fresh, very outdoorsy, but I have not burned it yet. I have been too obsessed with burning the other two, so I apologize to this company, but I will get to it soon and report back when I do! If you like fresh, grassy scents, this one will be for you.
La-la Land - a scent of warm vanilla, oak, and cedar. A customer favorite! It'll make you daze off and day dream.
La-La Land is absolutely not the type of scent I would ever pick to burn for myself, but because of this, I am glad I received it. I love vanilla, but oak? Cedar? Trees? Nah, nah. Happily, I am blown away by this candle as a whole: the scent is amazing, the throw is tremendous, the wax pool is great and goes all the way to the edge of the jar, WOW!! It is WONDERFUL!! And the smell, oh, the smell...I have had The Burlap Bag on my radar for a while and now, even more than before, I want to capitalize on this company. Look at the clean, crisp packaging! They have since came out with new, screen-printed labels that I like, but I just love the look of this one. Plus, they have a candle called Unicorn Puke???!! I basically HAVE to own it.
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That's my June Flicker Box unboxing and thoughts! I am SO impressed with the items this month! Do any of these pique your interest? Have you tried any of these companies? Let me know, and enjoy your week!!

Friday, June 19, 2015

Subscription Box Corner: May 2015 Treatsie Box Review!

I am way behind on my Treatsie box review YET AGAIN, but I want to get it out here now, so let's dive right into it!
The box, as usual. The same box as always!
Summary of the box's contents. They always have a monthly deal and an Instagram contest of some sort!
The dark chocolate brownie from Fudgeez Gourmet Brownies is a slap in the face to the words "dark chocolate." Wow, this was disgusting. Seriously, I almost threw this away and threw this up. You can see how dry it is from these pictures. Josh hated this, too. I am at a loss for words as to how gross this was. I don't know if I just got a bad one, or if it's supposed to taste like this. It tastes like a nutrition bar that someone walked on with dirty, crusty toenails. The frosting on the top is the "best" part, but that's like saying the choice between eating vomit, dirt and stale, curdled milk is good. Obvs, you'll pick the dirt, right???  I appreciate the effort to use organic cacao, but DAMN. Icknast. It's even more insulting that the brownies on the site are $8.99. WHAT? Plus, using a Z in your name? UGH. 0.5/5.
The Hard Crack Toffee cookies were both hit and miss. The first bite into these different flavors was good, but after that, they got stale and sort of flimsy real quick. Luckily, we ate most of these while they tasted good. Be prepared for a buttery cookie. The normal version was our favorite, 4/5. Sweet, concise, the the point, good. The, the mocha toffee and chocolate chip. 3/5 each. Pretty flavorful, but sort of weird.
Bequet Caramels are not a new product to this box as a brand, but the flavors offered this month were new and welcomed! The chocolate caramels were really great! A good combination of chocolate and velvety caramel, but nothing too fancy. 4/5. The salted butterscotch flavor was insane. SO GOOD. The salt was overwhelming in 2 out of 4 of the candies, though. The butterscotch flavor was spot on. 4/5. The cinnamon swirl caramels were my favorite. These had an excellent, strong spice flavor and it mingled well with the luscious caramel. Mainly, if the caramel is bad, you're sorta screwed, but this caramel is delicious. 4.5/5.

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While the caramels were good and the cookies were decent, nothing makes up for that dirty tasting brownie. Yeesh. I am still reeling from it. Treatsie has been on the decline for me, and every month, I am tempted to cancel my standing order completely. I keep thinking something wonderful is coming, and this has led me to a couple of new favorite brands, but overall this month, I am unhappy with this box. Any thoughts on this month's box?

Thursday, June 18, 2015

Subscription Box Corner: May 2015 Love With Food Review!

I enjoyed my April 2015 Love With Food box so much, I figured I'd stay on as a member for a couple more months. Let's see what my May box brought, shall we?! (SORRY FOR THE DELAY, I AM TRYING TO BE BETTER).
The signature red box!
Upon opening the box.
This month's box tasting box was themed "Fiesta! Fiesta!" Probably for Cinco de Mayo, eh?
The pamphlet displaying the box's contents!
Vintage Bee's Creamed Honey with Hibiscus scared me. Honey and flowers? Ehhhh, weird. I was SO wonderfully surprised by this! It was DELICIOUS. The texture was a little bit grainy, but not distractedly so. I ate this on my finger. With nothing else. No toast, no drink, no nothing. And I am not ashamed. 5/5.
Close-up of the honey. Lovely color and viscosity!
HomeFree's Mini Lemon Burst Cookies were also wonderfully delicious, but unfortunately, there were only 3 in the bag! LOL! I was annoyed about this because I wanted MORE!! The lemon burst was zesty, sweet and tasty. The cookie was crunchy and fresh. Apparently they are gluten, egg and dairy free, so that's good for those of you who have such restrictions in your diet! 4.5/5.
Close-up of the chips. Very green, huh? These even LOOK healthy. These are The Better Chip's Spinach & Kale and Sea Salt chips were very crunchy! But, they also smelled like kale, LOL. They were good and almost made me forget I was eating kale. I, unlike most people, don't hate kale, but I couldn't eat it all the time. These felt healthy, had a hefty bite and a nice amount of salt. 4/5.
Dick & Jane Baking Co.'s Spanish & English educational snack cookies were okay, but not special. Sort of like animal crackers, but not really. Sort of stale, but crunchy and fresh enough. Here's a close-up of the cookies, fishies and stars! I really like the look of these, but the taste? So so. 3/5.
These Inka Corn bits were SO tasty. There were like giant corn nuts, but softer and puffier and more delicious, even though they were basically just corns. I loved the chile picante flavor, but they were quite salty. 4.5/5.
PBThins Peanut Butter Crackers are ADDICTING! The best thing about these foodie boxes is trying new products and this is one I could see myself buying for years to come. *drool* So tasty, very peanut buttery, very light, crunchy, and a bit sweet. YUM. 5/5.
I haven't eaten this Coconut + Pink Guava Fruit Ice from Smooze yet, so I am passing on this! I am excited to eat it, I just keep forgetting it's in the freezer! I like that this has no HFCS and no preservatives.
The Iced Minto Mango candy from GoOrganic is something I didn't like at all. It was off putting and weird to have mint and mango together in a candy and it didn't work for me at all. It tasted pretty gross. 1/5. The blood orange candy, though, was wonderful and perfect and juicy and great!! 5/5.
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Despite one really awful item, this box was a huge success! I really, really liked it! I am still a member and will continue to be for a few more months. Have you seen or tried any of these products ever? Let me know!