Lush and Bath & Body Works Haul

Posted on by Cindy

Tonight I thought I would share with you a quick Lush and Bath & Body Works haul that I purchased just before the Christmas holidays started. I know I probably should have waited until this week to buy them since I heard both stores had amazing sales happening but honestly the mall near me that has both these stores in it is crazy during boxing day and week. So I knew there would be no way I would be going there.

The first stop I made was into Lush. I have once again rediscovered my love for their bath bombs. I used to be a huge fan but I think after awhile I got tired of them so I stopped buying them but perhaps this time I will space it out and limit myself to one a month or something like that.

What I picked up was So White (I love the apple smell) and the other is Father Christmas (another one I love)
 
 
After Lush I quickly ran into Bath & Body Works with a list in hand and a coupon for $10 off to purchase the following:
The hand soaps were 7 for $25.00 which I have discovered is a much better deal then the last time I purchased the soap. We are actually loving the foam soap much more then the other kinds. I stuck with the holiday scents.
This is the first time I noticed that they had hand soap for the kitchen so I picked up Kitchen Lemon and Citrus Garland. Looking forward to trying these out very soon.
Then for the bathrooms (main and powder room) I picked up Holly Berry of Wreath (currently using), Iced Gingerbread (which is my favorite), Snow Frosted Apple (another scent I like), Fresh Sparkling Snow ( we have on in the powder room) and Sparkling Pink (this was something I picked up when I didn’t see anything else holiday) and in the front are cute shea infused socks in polar bear design. Love them

So this is just a small haul, what is your favorite thing from Lush and/or Bath & Body Works?

 
copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

Secret Santa Exchange 2012

Posted on by Cindy

I have to send out a huge thank you to the girls over at The Broke & Bookish for organzing the 3rd annual Secret Santa Exchange. I was a little late in signing up but thankfully I was still able to take part in the exchange. I was so thrilled.

Every since I have been book blogging I have always taken part in a Secret Santa. They are so much fun and I love doing them.

This year was no exception. I sent an awesome package to a fantastic YA blogger and I saw her post and I know she really liked the jammed packed box I sent her. Not sure if she knows who it is yet or if it will be revealed?

Now onto my package. I was so thrilled to have gotten my package because I had no idea who had me since there was a few others that signed up late. But in true Secret Santa karma, my secret santa was Alita from Alita Reads. Does that name sound familiar? Well it should because for the last few years (this is the third to be exact) it has always come full circle with us. The first year she had me and then the following year I had her and this year she had me.

Alita is another Canadian blogger and blogs from out west and I was really lucky to have gotten to meet her at BEA this year. When I found out that she was going I quickly emailed her telling her that we needed to meet. It was almost like no ands ifs or buts allowed. Its too bad that we didn’t have more time to hang out but hopefully one day soon.

Here is the awesome package she sent me:

I got two books. One is A Tale Dark & Grim by Adam  Gidwitz and Anna Dressed In Blood by Kendare Blake. Both  are books that have been on my wishlist for a little while now so its nice to get them.

She also included four pouches of Stash tea in the flavors of Christmas Eve, Cinnamon Vanilla, Holiday Chai and Cranberry Pomegrande. They are all ones I enjoy drinking.

I also got some cute Page Markers. The funny thing is that everytime I go to Chapters I have been picking them up (yes that is an owl in the red one) but putting them back down and now I know why. Its like she has read my mind.

Thank you Alita that was so nice of you to send me this fantastic Secret Santa gift. I can’t wait to sit and sip one of those teas and curl up and read one of these books.

 
 
copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

November, December and Birthday Edition of Starlooks

Posted on by Cindy
This is my third and fourth Starlooks box I have gotten and I will explain why they are all in one post in just a moment but just a reminder that Starlooks is a monthly subscription service based out of the US that does ship to Canada. Its $15 a month and you can expect 3 to 4 full size make up and beauty items each month.

This is my third and fourth box and honestly I am quite pleased with them to date. If you are interested in subscribing please feel free to mention me as a referral.

 
I don’t have pictures for the November box because I was one of the subscribers that encountered problems with their box in shipping and the eye shadows were damaged. One quick call to Starlooks and replacements were sent at no charge and I thought that this was really nice of them to replace them all. They were very sympathetic about the whole thing. This is one of the reason’s I love this company. They have totally amazing customer service reps.
So the replacement shadows came like this.
This is the packaging of the shadows.
Top Row: i163 Celestial and i242 Please me
Bottom Row: i204 Almond me27 and i166 Wicked Wink
Sadly after taking these pictures I had banged my arm and dropped the palette and darn it all  Wicked Wink  was the only one that damaged and it wasn’t salvageable. There is currently a little chunk left. I will eventually replace it once I try it out and if I like it.
This is the swatches on my arm as you can see they are very neutral. All shades I normally wear and looking forward to playing with to create some looks with.
In the November box I also got this lipstick. Its from their Tender Gloss collection. As you can see its very nude and it gives your lips a barely there look which is really nice.
I love the formulation of this and this will be something I will be wearing alot of I am sure. I loved that it didn’t go on greasy like some do.
Another item included in the box was this mascara contraptions. This isn’t something I will be using only because i am not that talented to do two things at once. This is what the palette looks like closed.
This is the December box. Love the packaging. I think the boxes are very simple but elegant looking.
I was super excited for this month because I already knew what it was going to be. But before getting to that I love how cute the product cards look. I think this is the owner of Starlooks. Along with the card was a ton of glitter which I thought was a nice little holiday touch. Even though it got all over the place.
This is the 15 shade palette. Its perfect on its own or you can use them with the November palette for a pop of color. These colors are inspired by Christmas lights.
This is what the palette looks like and its taken from the Starlooks website. Not sure of the names of the colors. Although I am very curious to what the names are. The palette sales for $99.
Something I recently found out was that during your birth month you will get a special box from Starlooks and well this is my birth month so I got a nice little package in the mail.
 
This is the first time I have gotten one and honestly out of all the beauty boxes I get they are the only one who does something special for your birth month. I think that says alot about this little company and one of the reasons I will remain a subscriber.
I got this cute little card with a hand written note inside. Another nice touch on their part.
The first item I pulled out of the box was this lip liner. It went on super smooth and nice. There was no dragging or tugging. It literally went on nice.
I got it in the shade Tipsy. Its coral like in color. Which is a perfect summer shade.
I also got a lipstick that is a moisture rich and it was very moist and nice on the lips. Nothing cakey or sticky about this. This would be the perfect thing for the spring & summer months. I actually really like it and at first I was a little scared but once I put it on I was like oh yea this so will be nice in the warmer months.
This is also in the shade tipsy. The top swatch is the lip liner and the bottom is the lip stick.
Specking of summer this is going to be so nice in the summer its a glimmer glam loose mineral eye shadow. As you can see I just put a dollop on my hand and below is when its blended out.
Its in the shade bb pink and its very sheer and shimmery.
The value of the birthday box is roughly $35 and its at not additional cost me to.

I am really impressed with Starlooks and I find that their make up is really nice and honestly very affordable when you look at it online. Their customer service is amazing and this bonus they do for us in our birth months is truly amazing and very generous of them.

I am looking forward to trying out many more awesome products from them. This is one box I love getting each month.

 
What do you think?
copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

Merry Christmas

Posted on by Cindy

Wishing everyone a Very Merry Christmas from my house to yours.

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

MEME/ Sunday’s In Bed With…#29

Posted on by Cindy

The awesome blogger behind this is Kate from Midnight Book Girl   not only is she an awesome blogger but she is was one of my roommates for BEA. YAY!!

Midnight Book Girl

Sundays In Bed With….is a meme I’ve started to share the book we’re spending the morning in bed with, or the one we’d like to stay curled up in bed with all Sunday if only our busy lives would allow! For fun, take a picture of the book in your bed, or simply write up a post or comment below sharing your Sundays in Bed With book. Quoted from Kate’s blog.

Sadly my lovely blog readers I am not in bed with a book this morning. I am in a cold arena watching Michael play hockey this morning (the team is in a tournament). I am hoping that the team can pull together and get a win.

Last weekend Michael was forward and he almost got two goals. I love watching him skate.

Now that we are on Christmas break I am hoping to get some mornings of sleeping in and perhaps getting back on track on my reading. What would you say is the number one book I should read this holiday that will make me want to stay up all need and read?

Hope you are in bed reading this morning. Merry Christmas.

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

Vitabath Contest Win Arrived just in time for the holidays

Posted on by Cindy

You might remember that in November I got a full size of the Vitabath Gelee in my box. I was so excited because it was a new product I have never tried or heard about and it smelled really good.

Well this monthVitabath and Glossy Box organized a twitter party where we could talk to a rep from Vitabath and ask them questions about Vitabath, the products, the scents, future ideas etc. Then at the end of the chat there would be a give away for a $50 Vitabath gift bag and I found out that I was one of the winners. I was so happy because I love discovering a new product and knowing that I can actually buy this in a store is great.

Thankfully my local Pharmaprix (Shopper’s Drug Mart) is now carrying a few of the items such as the gelee’s and I believe the body mists. I went and bought a gelee for myself and two for gifts. Next time I will have to make it a point to really look at the section and selection that they carry.

It was so hard to pick a scent because they all sound so good it was a toss up between Original, Plus (for dry skin), Fresh Citrus Twist (which is the one I picked finally) and Spa Skin. They were all full sized items.

This is what they sent:

  • Moisturizing bath & shower gelee 10.5oz/300g
  • Exfoliating sugar scrub 10oz/280g
  • Moisturizing Lotion 20 fl oz/800ml
  • A shower puff (love that it matches the labels orange and white)

Then if that wasn’t enough a make up bag that has a silver shimmer with the black vines and leaves (so very pretty and quite roomie which I love and will be using when I travel) and inside was:

  • Moisturizing Gelee soap 1.5oz/42g
  • Exfoliating Sugar Scrub 2.5oz/70g  (this is perfect for when you travel and you don’t want to bring the bigger size. This will be going with me when I go on vacation
  • 20% Shea Butter hand creme 2.1oz/60g

I am totally blown away with this gift bag and I want to thank Vitabath for offering such a fantastic prize and it arrived just in time for the holidays and to Glossy Box Canada for hosting the event. honestly this is why I love Glossy Box.

They offer monthly tweet ups that none of the other boxes do and I think that says alot about them.

I will be doing a review of these items in the new year so please come and check back for that. I will also include the one I got in my Glossy Box as well as the one I bought (and perhaps a few others if I buy any more…hmmm perhaps I can put this in a little birdies ear and ask for some at Christmas.

Sadly the only down part of this box was the fact that it was left sitting out on the steps in the pouring rain. Who ever delivered it didn’t ring the bell and I’m not sure when it was delivered because there was nothing there when the pizza guy rang the bell at 1:30 pm (it was the last half day of school for Michael and we always do a pizza lunch) and it was sitting there when I opened the door at 5pm. Needless to say the box was soaked right through and I am just thankful that it wasn’t books because they would have been ruined.

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.

Seasons Box December Edition

Posted on by Cindy
 
There is a new subscription service hitting the blogosphere and its Seasons Box.

Each month you will receive 3-5 luxurious full size seasonal must-have products for your home, body, and spirit. Each month’s box is completely different and each box is tailored to one season (Winter, Spring, Summer, or Autumn), or Seasonal Holidays and Occasions (Halloween, Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, etc.)

 
 

Choose Subscription

Subscriptions are offered on a month-to-month recurring basis ($29.95) and on a 3 month, 6 month, or yearly pre-paid subscription basis + only $4.95 shipping!

Price Structure Below (prices include shipping)
  • Bill monthly for $34.90
  • 3 months for $99.70 (save $5)
  • 6 months for $174.50 (save $34.90)
  • 12 months for $250 (save $69.80)
  • One time purchase or gift for $34.90

Some might find this a little pricey but I guess it will depend on what you are looking for. I believe this is the very first box and its a Canadian company.

If you are interested I hope you will use my referral link:  http://curebit.com/x/3WH8W I would truly appreciate it.

So lets get onto the box shall we. This is how it arrived from UPS. I loved how the box isn’t labelled apart from a shipping label so you can reuse it again.

Opening the box I was greeted with another unmarked brown box tied with a big red ribbon. I thought this was such a nice touch. Not sure if it will always be this way but its very festive and all can be used again.
Upon opening this box we are greeted with this…
The top card is basically talking about December  and why the items were selected. On the flip side of the card is the product description. Under that card was another card just welcoming me to Seasons Box.
As you can see they used red crinkle paper and the box is filled with it to secure the products so nothing moved around and kept it safe and sound. I think this is such a neat idea and I was in need of some crinkle paper.
I love the packaging of this and its so perfect for Xmas. I actually ended up putting some crinkle paper in this and hung it on the tree.
Inside the pouch was a Mint Truffle Lip Balm from Evergreen . This smelled so good and its made with organic Shea butter and all natural beeswax.

As I was writing this post I realized that on the product card they talk about the product and there is a why they love it section and they said that this is not tested on animals, no yucky oils and no bad preservatives. Things I love about a lip balm.

 
This is a full size product at 0.25 ounces for $4.00
I love the packaging of  the Soak Essentials Aromatherapy Bath Salts. I mean how cute is this? The bath salts are all handcrafted from essential oils that come from plants and flowers. This is to help sooth the mind, body and soul. Plus they are a Canadian company.
 
From the website: Muscle and Joint Relief – Refreshing and uplifting, this therapeutic bath soak is packed with a natural blend of mineral salts and essential oils. Enough to rejuvenate any ol’ bag of bones!! This is the ULTIMATE Muscle and Joint Relaxant. Eucalyptus is known as an effective anti-microbial and is said to stimulate circulation, warm the body, increases concentration, and to be useful for relieving rheumatic aches and pains. Camphor Essential oil can be used in the treatment of nervous depression, inflammation, arthritis, muscular aches and pains, sprains, rheumatism, bronchitis, coughs, colds, fever, flu and infectious diseases. Peppermint essential dual action warming/cooling sensation is reputed to be beneficial for relieving inflammation and muscle ailments and energizes the mind and body. All of these combined are the perfect cure for all the bodies aches and pains.

The reason this is a loved item is because its a muscle and joint relaxant and its got ingredients that fight of colds and infectious diseases. I am thinking of soaking in a tube now because I have a sinus thing going on.

The size is 5.5ounces and is considered a half pint and sells for $5.00

When I opened the box I could smell this right away. Its Bambuearth ‘s Natural and Responsible Soap. The one I got is Pine with Parsley.
 
From the website:
Your dream forest oasis. The fresh crisp morning air lingers as does the dew on the grass underneath your toes. You take in a deep breath to fill your lungs with the smell of fresh pine. There’s nothing but the sounds of nature and you drink in it’s beauty. Our Pine soap is a dream. With a heavy yet fresh woodsy scent that is crisp and earthy, you won’t be disappointed. You might even start to confuse the shower with your own dream forest oasis.

Ingredients

Extra Virgin Olive Oil*, Coconut Oil*, Sustainable Palm Oil*, Unrefined Shea Butter^, Cocoa Butter*^, Parsley Powder, Pine Essential Oil

 
This is a full size item and its 4.5 ounces and it sells for $8.00
 
Another great thing about this product is that you can plant the label from the soap and it will grow into some wild flowers. How neat is that?
The last item in the box was Tisano Cacao Tea.  Its a chocolate tea and its suppose to be the world’s first real chocolate tea. There is no artificial flavors and its 100% organic Venezuelan cacao.
 
It smells so good ….
and it looks so good. This is a full size item its 4 ounces for I think  $14.95 I haven’t made it yet but I think I will tomorrow since I tend to avoid drinking teas in the evenings.
 
As you can see the box paid for itself with $31.95 in products and they were all full size items. I am excited to try everything out and to perhaps do some online shopping in the new year at these fantastic businesses.

Then if that wasn’t awesome enough we also got these bonus gifts.

They are both from Bath & Body Works. Which I happen to love as you probably know if you read my blog. We got a mini Twisted Peppermint candle ($3.50) is 1.3 ounces and the other item is a anti-bacterial pocketbac sanitizing hand gel. Its in the scent Jolly Gingerbread ($1.50) . Which is always nice to have in your purse or pocket for a quick clean up.

Thats a $5 bonus gift.

 
I am truly impressed with this box. I am so excited to try everything out. Plus they delivered what they said they would and that is impressive. Wishing great things for this Canadian company.

Did you subscribe? If so what did you think of it? What do you think of it? Would this be something that you would subscribe to?

copyright 2010, Cindy (Cindy’s Love Of Books)
If you are reading this on a blog or website other than Cindy’s Love Of Books or via a feedreader, this content has been stolen and used without permission.