mish mash

goPure Natural Face Wash – Anti Aging Cleanser with Vitamin C, Rosehip Oil, Organic Aloe Vera

A face wash is not able to change your skin as much as this claims, or at least I’ve never found one in the hundreds I’ve tried. I did not notice any decrease in clogged pores or any change to my skin visibly. It did, however, clean my face very well, even when wearing makeup, and didn’t leave it feeling dry. Some cleansers do. My face was soft to the touch as I finished my face routine with toner, Vitamin C serum, eye cream and a few drops of rosehip oil. Products that claim to do a lot are generally ok at a lot but not great. I really just want something that cleans my face well without drying (I have normal skin with slight wrinkles and blackheads on my nose) This fits the bill. Just don’t believe it’s some kind of miracle wash =) I do like that it’s mostly natural and sulfate free. The price seems steep for not organic items.

Mason Jar Soap / Liquid Dispenser By Smiths

This is a super cute addition to my kitchen. I’ve had it for 11 days so far and used it every day with no issue. I have 3 kids who are fairly rough on things and this has had no issue holding up to that. It seals tightly and pumps a good amount up each time. I use diluted Dr. Bronner’s castile soap for hand soap, and while that usually works better in a foaming soap dispenser, it is just fine in this as well. I imagine it’s even better with thicker soap. All in all, a nice little soap pump that makes my kitchen a little happier.

MIREN One-piece 18/10 Stainless Steel Compact Tactical Pen

This kicks butt. All my friends think it’s really cool. I have been able to easily demonstrate some techniques to them. It’s easy enough for anyone to use. The machine work is great and the pen end fits in so flawlessly you can barely tell until it’s unthreaded. The pen works fine but no one is buying it for that. It’s a great tool to keep handy in case you’re ever in personal danger or need help in an emergency situation. It’s easy to hold onto and about the length of an iphone +. All in all, it’s a useful tool and self defense weapon. Protect yourself.

 

*this is a full price item I regularly buy-no discounts here*

Chebe Bread Original Cheese Bread Mix (gluten free)

My family eats gluten free for many reasons. I have tried many, many pizza dough mixes. Most of them are soggy and have a super weird texture when baked. I found Chebe at my local food discount store the first time and decided to give it a try. It is super easy to mix up, only requiring egg (or egg substitute) and milk or water, plus a hard cheese (I usually use cheddar). It’s super easy to press out into a very thin pizza crust. I know they make a pizza crust mix as well, but my kids didn’t like the seasoning of it.
It bakes nicely, and gets firm without being too hard or overdone. It’s the perfect amount of crispness. My family won’t eat any other gluten free pizza mixes after this.

A boy’s present and lovely organic soaps

 

 

Rev (2 Cars Included) RC cars with multiplayer/AI mode

video and pics to come

These things are great! The multiplayer with CPU is quite challenging and very impressive in its operation. The controls and operation are very well developed. Speed and turns are precise and can be very fast, but the car is well balanced and stable so it doesn’t flip or crash even during the quickest of turns. They operate great on a hard floor surface (didn’t test carpet).
An improvement that might be possible is to have an option on the app to turn down the speed (a speed reducer) on the controls to allow this to be easier to operate for kids or just with initial users. It can be difficult to control at times but with some practice you can easily improve.
They are sturdy and well constructed.

The next 3 soaps are all from the same company and seller, just different scents.

Certified Organic Lemon Grass Soap

I love lemongrass. It’s one of my favorite essential oils. I don’t know if they’re just not using enough oil or if they’re adding it too early (If the soap is hot, it burns it off) but this is a complaint from someone who has a super sensitive nose and complains about artificial and too strong fragrances. It probably does still promote a bit of the lemongrass properties, but I like it to smell a little as well.
The bar is super hard, which means it will last longer. It provides a nice amount of lather for a handmade soap bar. The packaging is pretty and would look nice in your guest room or as a hostess gift. The price is higher than I probably would normally pay for this kind of thing, but I’m hoping since it’s so hard, it lasts forever, which would make it worth it. It leaves my skin feeling clean without feeling dry.

Certified Organic Tangerine Soap – Organic Aura® – 100% Pure, All Natural, Aromatherapy Luxury Herbal Bar Soap

This soap is a really nice, hard, organic bar, but there’s an awful lot of unprovable hype in the description. No bar of soap can simultaneously prevent wrinkles AND acne. However, it has a very nice lather, and leaves my skin feeling very smooth and hydrated after a shower. It’s such a hard bar, I’m sure it will last for a long amount of time, making it worth the price. I don’t like to use a lot of crap and chemicals on my skin, so I love that this is all natural, organic, and VEGAN if that matters to you! =)
The only problem I have is that even with my sensitive nose, I barely notice any scent when using this.

 

Certified Organic Tea Tree and Calendula Soap

This was my favorite of the three types of soap I reviewed from this company. I have pretty sensitive skin since having children, and found this to be the most soothing of them. It’s not as moisturizing or lathery, I suppose, but calendula and tea tree oil are so so so good for my type of skin (I grow and make my own calendula salve for skin irritations-I think I’ll add tea tree oil to the mix after trying this soap) It is the only one that almost has enough fragrance, but could still use some tweaking.
The bar is on the smaller side for the price, however, they do feel quite harder than regular handmade soaps, which is generally a good sign for how long a soap will last. I love that they’re all natural, and just read on the packaging that they donate 10% of their profits to St. Jude’s Hospital, so that makes me willing to spend that extra little bit. I like that it’s all ethically and organically sourced as well. These things are super important for our children’s future world.

soap, oils and more!

Certified Organic Lavendar Oatmeal Soap

I love the way this soap lathers up-not too much, but not so little that you overuse it. It’s a smaller size bar, which is usually the case with organic soaps. It doesn’t have nearly as much smell as I like, and I have a pretty sensitive nose. It smelled great in the package, but you can’t really smell it in the shower unless the bar is right under your nose. The ingredients are all super high quality and great for keeping your skin soft and moisturized (oatmeal is wonderful for your skin! especially if it’s sensitive). If you’re looking for a great bar that makes your skin clean and soft, without leaving behind any smell, this is perfect for you. It’s a really hard bar so it will last a while (don’t be fooled by the low price of supermarket soaps-they’re made with crap and terrible for you)

 

Tea Tree Oil (Australian) 4 Fl.oz

I like the vintage style labeling of the jar. I broke my dropper trying to get it out of the package =( so I’m stuck using it without one. I wish it also came with one of those plastic inserts that lets you drip it out drop by drop, in case you break your dropper like me! It’s a lot harder to use without wasting/spilling it everywhere.
The oil itself is a bit runnier than others I’ve used, and that combined with the large size leads me to believe it’s a bit diluted. You can’t beat the size for the price, diluted or not. It smells and works just like other tea tree essential oils I have used. Don’t be fooled by therapeutic grades or any of that BS from MLM companies-it’s a made up term and means absolutely nothing. I’d buy this for the cheaper price and just not ingest it (which you’re not supposed to do anyway!) Works great for cleaning too-there are a lot of natural cleaners you can use this in.
I used it on my 3 year old’s stinky, stinky cast to keep odor and bacteria away.

Vaincre Handmade Premium Waterproof Canvas Case Bag for VR goggles

This is a well constructed, durable bag. I got my VR goggles for free from Samsung when I bough my S7, so I’d like to keep them nice so I don’t have to buy a cheap pair (mine are way better than the cheap cardboard ones you find for sale) This fits my Samsung VR goggles, and an off brand I got. It would be great if I could fit in 2-you almost have enough room to, so you could add in some extras for travel, like headphones (ugh it’s so annoying listening to other people wear VR goggles, am I right?) I like that it has a long strap so I can wear it crossbody which makes me feel more secure. If you want to keep your expensive goggles safe, this is a great investment.

Herb Garden – Organic Herb Seeds – Non GMO, Heirloom, Non Hybrid – 10 Culinary Varieties Including Basil, Cilantro, Fennel, Parsley and More

I wish they gave specific varietal information, because I enjoy knowing that information. These are great for a beginning gardener with a small garden (you don’t get nearly as many seeds as you do in a seed packet you buy separately) There is a nice variety, as long as you like most of the popular types of herbs. I gave the ones I didn’t want to a friend! So far, not as many as I had hoped have sprouted, but it really hasn’t been long enough. I will try to report back with how the seedlings/plants grow!

 

 

Bar none, super lighter, belly fat buster!

Bar none soap (brother to the Hose off body wash I posted earlier this week)

This soap smells SO AMAZING! I’ve got the shower gel as well-same scent. Vetiver, lime, and nutmeg essential oils give it a slightly musky spicy scent that is not too strong, and works for men or women (I know this says “men’s soap” but really?) It’s a huge bar, and lathers easily, so it will be very long lasting. It’s a well cured bar of soap. I love the natural ingredients. I usually take bentonite clay internally, and this was my first time using it externally. My skin feels fantastic (especially as soap is usually pretty drying-this isn’t)

Tobacco Pipe Lighter and Czech Tool – All in One

 

I love this lighter. It has a nice weight in your hand. It’s very solid and durable. The butane level was easy to adjust and to refill. It’s cool that it shoots the flame out of the side-quite a difference from most lighters! This looks luxurious and expensive, and comes in a nice giftable box.

Forskolin belly buster fat burner

To be honest, as a gardener, this seemed weird to me-coleus being something you can ingest? Coleus as a health supplement? Hmm. So I did some research and found out that the reason I like it so much as a gardener (it roots easily and quickly from cuttings) are because it is a part of the mint family, and pretty much all mints are known to be digestive aids. It has been shown to be good for your heart, so even if you’re not losing weight, you’re strengthening your heart.

As you may have noticed by now, I have a new affinity for ayurvedic herbs, of which this is one. I have noticed an increase in belly fat lost, but that is literally the only point on my body that I have to burn fat on now. I’ll keep taking it, because it appears it’s working (I’ve had 3 kids in 6 years and had a diastasis that worsened with each one. My stomach is awful)