Influenster #SurfsUp VoxBox

                                                               #Influenster #GotItFree #SurfsUpVoxBox

I received these products for testing and review purposes, compliments of Influenster.

So I am finally posting about my first VoxBox I got it free this summer from Influenster. When it arrived I was surprised that I got so many products! It was like a fun late birthday present. Influenster wanted me to try out the products and let them know what I think. Some products wanted to be reviewed on Amazon and I sent a report to Influenster for some of the products.

 The first item that I looked at was the Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration after sun lotion. I really liked this product. It was not sticky or slimy going on. The lotion quickly absorbed into my skin. I remember years ago hearing that you should not use a thick lotion after getting sun. I think because it kinda acts like an insulator. Not sure if that is at all true but I always do try for more of a lotion and less of a thick cream for after sun. Well this after sun lotion is nice and smooth, it goes on easily and absorbs quickly. I love the light scent as it reminds me of the sun so it keeps the feeling of being at the beach going. I am not sure about using this for an everyday product but I really enjoyed it for after sun use.

 The next item I tried was the First Aid Shot Therapy Pain Relief. I was not sure of the results. I took it the day after a rough workout that left me super sore. I thought the taste was ok not amazing but definitely not a bad flavor. It seemed to do the trick as my aches were lessened within 20 minutes. I am very glad it worked. I am not sure about the price though. But I would probably get a few if on sale to keep at work.

 I also tried out the Sinful Colors nail polish in Aqua. At first I was unsure if I would like the polish. It goes on a lot thinner than I am used to in nail polishes. But oh my gosh the color lasts! I used three coats and after a week I did not have any chipping. This never happens with my nails. Eventually the polish was wearing off on the ends but that was due to my harsh wear and tear on my hands. I liked the aqua color for summer and it was a great polish for pedicures. I plan on getting some more colors for my hands to wear too.

 I got a coupon for a free at home smoothie kit from Jamba Juice. I really love getting a Jamba Juice but as they are not near my neighborhood I love that they are now at my local Publix to make on my own. I got the Mango-a-go-go to blend at home. I thought the flavor was the same at home that I made as when I go to a Jamba Juice store. I also got a coupon for money off my next one and tried the Caribbean Passion and made an adult version. Still tasty

The last item I received to try for free was the Covergirl Bombshell Curvacious by Lashblast Mascara.  Wow, that was a mouthful.  I am pretty particular with my mascaras as I have the worst trouble with racoon eyes after an hour. This mascara did stay on my lashes so that is great and made me happy. The issues I have are that first the tube is HUGE. I mean really something that I can not throw in my purse or make-up bag. The other problem that I had was my lash tips would brush together and snag every so often. I made sure to put on a light coat but that apparently did not help. I will continue to work on a thinner application as I do like that it does not run.

 

Well you can see from all this wonderful stuff that I am hooked, hooked, hooked on Influenster.  I just got another Voxbox and will post soon to tell you all about it.  

Crowdtap Advil Sample & Share

...so I got a Sample & Share pack from Advil and I wanted to post about it

 Advil® Film-Coated - #FastAdvil #Sponsored

                                                    Advil Film-Coated 

Through Crowdtap I was given a kit about the latest advance in pain relief by Advil

Advil® Film-Coated for faster pain relief than ever before.  Well okay, we will see about that.

My kit included the following items:

• 8 2-count samples of Advil® Film-Coated
• Sampling Instructions
• 4 Coupons 

I had hoped to have a lovely display of the package opening but I was not the one to get the mail that

 day so the pic is less than artistic... But hey, he did remember to take a picture so there is that...*facepalm*

I gave a couple to Mr Man to take to work and share and I handed out the rest on my end.  Mr Man

 has heel pain issues so he has to ice his foot regularly after workouts.  I told him to try this out next 

time and let me know how it worked.  He said that he was happy to get back to work soon after taking

 the  Advil® Film-Coated pills and gave a pack to his co-worker to try.  

I handed out my packs and coupons and my friends who said that this will come in handy soon enough.  I also

let them now I got these samples through Crowdtap and what Crowdtap is all about.  If you want a $3.00 off 

coupon for Advil® Film-Coated just go to their main page HERE

Thank you again Advil® Film-Coated and Crowdtap!

 I received free samples of Advil® Film-Coated in exchange for a sample review.

 The opinion expressed in this blog is solely my own and has not been influenced by any third party.  

Crowdtap What is it and is it fun?

So, oh dear.  I recently discovered my latest addiction.  Crowdtap.   Crowdtap is an online company that works to spread word of mouth advertising for brands.  It is a review forum and information panel where you can give your opinions and input to companies that have partnered with them.  Crowdtap has tappers(people like me who participate)  to interact with brands' social media platforms and then push the information out into our own social circles.  It is just another way to advertise and market their products to consumers.  I like that I can go at my own pace and participate whenever I have some downtime on my phone.  Sitting in a waiting room at the doctor or DMV is not a problem anymore.

You may ask 'So what's in it for me?'.  Well in addition to giving valuable consumer opinions you have the opportunity to Win Stuff!  Oh yea.  You earn points with each interaction you do on the website.  Maybe just 10-40 points for answering a yes/no question about a brand up to 450, 1200, even 2300 points for posting specific challenge tasks like answering questions, posting selfies with products, or making a recipe with a specific product.  At the end of the month each 100 points per category or brand gets you one entry ticket to their gift card drawings.  If you were really involved with a brand and were among the top 100 tappers in points you earn an additional 500 points/5 additional entries for drawings.  Giftcard prizes range from $5-$100.  My first active month I won 5 $5 Amazon gift cards.  Hey the holidays are coming and I am happy to have them.  Also some brands will mail out extra freebies to people that had a high  (top 100) interaction with the questions and tasks.

 Crowdtap will ask tappers like me quick questions about brands and how much we know or enjoy their products.  You also have the opportunity to chat in moderated discussion panels about new products or re-branding of products.  I recently was in a panel discussion about a couple new menu items for a national fast food chain.  We received information about the menu items and also got to put in our idea for the new menu items name.  I mean how cool is that.  I could actually name a food that will be sold everywhere in the country!

Crowdtap also will have periodic Twitter parties for the brands.  You basically answer questions via Twitter and really spend a fast paced hour earning and responding to the brand.  What you are actually doing is posting free advertising to your twitter followers 5, 10, or 20+ times in an hour.  Of course there is the chance you win a prize or gift card for your time.  Some people love them and some people can not get the hang of them or just hate them altogether.  I think they are kinda fun but I do not go out of my way to make sure I am available if the time is inconvenient.  You will never hear me say 'Oh I know we have been planning this lunch date for weeks but I just found out about this Twitter party for a brand of mascara so I need to reschedule.'


The last part of Crowdtap are the sampling opportunities.  I have been pretty active for the last two months and have gotten into 3 samplings.  My first has been an Advil sample & share.  Soon I will get cleaning products from Zap Cleaners and new Campbell's food products.  Super excited!  The requirement is that you should use and/or share the products with friends and report back on how the products worked.  Then you spread the info out to your social media circles #Crowdtap #Sponsored Pretty win-win if you ask me.

Well that is all I can think of about Crowdtap.  I know lots of people ask what it is all about.  I like it a lot and hope you do to.  They of course are on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.  They also have their own info blog at http://blog.crowdtap.com/  Their blog is not the easiest to locate but does have some good info.  Their Facebook page is very active and the posts from followers can be very helpful, humorous, and/or awkward.

You always have to choice to skip a category if it does not pertain to you or you have no interest.  You can also choose whether or not to tell your friends and followers about every category you interact with.  There are some products that I like it interact with but choose to not spread on my personal walls.  I'm looking at you feminine product brand.  There is no peer pressure.  You don't have to do anything you do not feel comfortable with.

Well I hope you have a great day.  I have to go do some tapping..

http://home.crowdtap.com/
#crowdtap   #crowdtappers

Influenster Post and what are VoxBoxes?

So as I have been finding new ways to find products I stumbled upon Influenster.  Your first thought is, well what is Influenster?

So glad you asked. 

Influenster is a company that companies work with to get their products into the hands of people like me who will spread the(hopefully good) word about their products.  Companies will give Influenster sample and full size products with the desired demographic needs.  Influenster will then in turn bundle several of these items into a theme and then send them out in VoxBoxes to people who fit the demographics.  It allows companies to quickly connect with their target audience in a way that will spread the word quickly.  Companies would rather pay a middleman to get their product into the correct hands.  To me it seems like a smart way to spend marketing dollars.  We the VoxBox receivers in turn will get these awesome goodies FREE.  Okay, well, they do want us to review the items and spread the word through social media channels and reviews on their website and sometimes Amazon.  You are not forced to.  I mean there will not be a corporate goon arriving on your door to kick you in the shins if you don't review.  But I am assuming that if you do nothing you will not be invited to get another VoxBox from them.  After getting your first VoxBox I am sure you will, like I did, want to get your hands on another post haste.  The brands in your VoxBox will have other giveaways, Twitter parties, and challenges to win even more cool stuff and that just drives more views and interactions with the brands.

If you have not you should look at the website.  On the www.influenster.com main page you can also see that a member can post about other products, brands, destinations, and other fun stuff.  They recently updated their website and I am still adjusting to the change but I think I have gotten the hang of it and am looking forward to my next #VoxBox!

https://www.youtube.com/user/Influenster  They of course have Twitter, a YouTube channel, and Facebook page to give you this and more information on that Influenster is all about.  You can put in as little or as much time and effort into this website.  Just try it out and have fun.

Not my VoxBox, bit it will give you an idea of the goodies inside.  

Another awesome VoxBox that is from a campaign before I joined.  How cool!

My 1st VoxBox!!!  Happy Happy.  I now know to get more pictures and frame it better.  Live and learn.

#influenster  #influenstervox

Birchbox Modern Mermaid Summer Special Box

So I finally decided to pull the trigger and order my first subscription box.  Well not a regular subscription box but a special summer edition one.  I saw a video on the Modern Mermaid summer 2014 Birtchbox and decided to give it a go.  I was going to be home for the summer and thought this summer beach theme would be great for my summer of relaxing.  So I ordered it along with a lot of other goodies, freebies, and treats to open when I got back home.

So when I arrived I was jet lagged and ready to sleep....except I had so many goodies awaiting me.
I immediately opened this one first.  I have to say I was pretty happy with this box.  What's inside:

A trio of Ruffian nailpolishes in summer metallics.  I like the small size for nail polishes that I did not seek out myself.  I have so many polishes that I used twice and then are hanging out for years in my polish basket.  I found these polishes to be pretty thick and smooth going on.  I am not sure if they will last until next year.  I do not think a third time using would have been possible in the champagne color.  Oh well.  Maybe the full sizes will last longer.

Next is the mermaid Mane Sea Salt Spray.  I can not believe how much I enjoy this.  Still using it in September on the weekends.  I may need to purchase more or at least dive into more of these sea sprays.  It is supposed to give beachy waves to hair.  Well it did keep my air dried hair from going stringy and limp.  Calling that a win!

The next product is the Lash Genius waterproof topcoat mascara coating.  I have a difficult time finding waterproof mascara so I was looking forward to it.  Problem is I can not remember to use it so not sure how helpful it is in the heat and humidity.

Kajal Vasanti's Extreme Electric navy Eyeliner is pretty.  The liner goes on super easy and smooth.  Something I am not great at getting right the first, second, or tenth time.  Unfortunately it is not totally waterproof/smudgeproof  for the deep south so unless I need it for halloween scary dead eyes I will not be able to use it again in the summer.

Liplux Coola lip balm in SPF 30.  Really happy with this lip balm.  It has a nice and high SPF which is great for summer and winter skiing.  Even though it is a higher SPF, it does not have a gooey opaque look to it.  It also stays on for hours without making me chew off my lips.  I will be taking this with me to Thailand for January!  This will be repurchased.  2 year shelf life

The perfume is an Atelier Cologne spray in Cedrat Eniverant.  I liked it even though it is not a scent I would gravitate to.  It is clean and citrus/woody almost to the point of a men's scent.

They throw in a mirror compact in an iridescent mermaid scales design.  I was looking forward to it but it does look like something a 7 year old would use for playing dress up.  I wish it was just a disk mirror instead of a childish snap close compact.

The box  was $44.  Shipping would have been another 5 I think, but they have free shipping over $50.  I searched around in the sale area and got a couple boxes of teas to get me to free shipping.  Also you get to choose a freebie when you purchase over $35 so I picked up a Michael Todd Cranberry Anti-aging toner.  Pretty happy about those add ons.

Not happy about getting my picture taken without makeup but my nails are looking great in the Ruffian Endless Love

It was a summer special addition but still for sale.  I think I will try another season again if I do not pick up a subscription to Birchbox.
www.birchbox.com

Wow so yea....first blog

Hi there.  I was one of those people who always said that I would never post on a blog, let alone write one up myself.  But here I am....posting.

Okay.  Well I never really said I would never post on a blog.  The thought never really occured to me. But when I would hear me friend-ish friends talking about working on theirs I would have to use every fiber of my being to not roll my eyes like a teenager.  I mean I just thought of them as open diaries where people were so self absorbed that they thought their ramblings were insightful.  I had read a page or two of some of them.  They were not insightful.  Or maybe the friend-ish friends just did not realize that reading about someone's experience on watching paint dry is far more boring than actually watching paint dry.    Side note- I have painted a house and you will actually enjoy those paint dry rest breaks.  I hate that paint drying gets such a bad rap.  Of course it could have been the fumes from the Killz.  That stuff is strong...

Eww.  That sounded bloggy.  sorry

Right.  Well I then moved to Korea and suddenly had a whole lot of time on my hands.  I have a passion for travel, a love of beauty products,  and a mild serious addiction to free stuff.  In order to get information on travel in South East Asia and Korea my web searches would point me towards blogs for information.   And holy moley, they can hold a lot of really useful knowledge!  oh, and a lot of self absorbed drivel.  but you gotta sort the wheat from the chaff I guess.  There are food blogs on eating non-Korean food in Korea which is a lifesaver!  It is only on blogs that you can really find information and good directions to find these gems in the culinary wasteland that is Korea.  You can also find great vacation spots and trip ideas from blogs.  And it is only due to bloggers that got myself and a few friends to visit Haeshindang Park. (you will have to look that one up if you are wondering. NSFW)

Then I discovered BzzAgent.  Oh my!  All the free stuff addictions that I had been repressing for 2 years while living in Korea suddenly reared its ugly head.  I hate that I would have to pass by an entry box because I could not participate or I would not get the sample gifts simply because I am a foreigner.  So I knew I would be back home for the summer and signed up for BzzAgent.  This was like a gateway drug.  It led to Influenster, Crowdtap, Chick Advisor and more.  So now I am pretty active on these review sites which leads me to where I am today.  Blogging.

I hope to be informative in my coming posts.  A lot of review posts with travel, beauty, and food sprinkled throughout.

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Thanks for reading and have a great day!