Cult Cosmetics Summer Essentials Beauty Kit Review

We are on the mailing list for Cult Cosmetics, because they have (had?) a nail polish subscription box. However, as neither of us wear a ton of nail polish, we haven't tried it yet. When they sent an email about a sale happening, though, I decided to look around the site. I was happy to find a full kit available at a reduced price and I ordered right away!

This is technically the Summer Essentials Beauty Kit, but I was looking for something basic and this fit the bill. The kit includes a 7-piece makeup brush set, an eye shadow and blush palette from BH Cosmetics, a top coat, mascara, and lip matte from Cult, a makeup bag, and hair ties.

Try the World Paris Box Review

I have to admit I'm confused. I signed up for Try the World back in December, and the deal was that I would get the Paris Box and gift card, as well as start my subscription with their Venice Box. However, clearly something got lost in transmission, because they didn't send me anything, didn't know I wanted the box, and basically had no idea I even had an account. So after a nightmare with customer service, I got my money back and was done with them. 

Needless to say, I was therefore surprised when I got an email with tracking info on my Paris Box. It's been almost two months, and I never got Venice and ended up canceling. So why were they sending me anything? To confuse matters even more, lately Try the World has been favoriting my posts on Twitter. I thought we had clearly had a breakup, but they don't seem to know we did.

I'm all for second chances, and I might have tried again down the line if it looked like they got things together. However, I witnessed something unacceptable yesterday. Several customers had posted complaints on their Facebook wall. A couple hours later, they were gone. Try the World sends endless messages promoting themselves and talking about how Huffington Post loves them, yet silences paying customers with legitimate concerns. One woman has waited three months for shipment and can't get a reply via email. Another received broken and expired items. It is not ethical or reasonable to present your business so falsely.

Anyway, I did get the box out of the blue, so here's what was in it and what I thought. 

Oscars 2015: Best Picture Reviews - American Sniper

Clint Eastwood is usually one of my favorite directors, mainly because I feel like he's not afraid of controversy when making films. So I was terribly disappointed in American Sniper, because it felt like everyone was afraid to shift the film in any direction out of fear of alienating another side. To me, that's dumb. Movies aren't about whether you agree with the politics of the story or character; they're about showing you the world through someone else's eyes.

I always liked Bradley Cooper when he was on Alias, but then he made The Hangover movies, which I hated. I held out hope, though, and I was so happy to see him in Silver Linings Playbook. I loved him in that movie and really wanted to see him win an Oscar, but he unfortunately was up against Daniel Day-Lewis. I feel like he's in the same situation this year, with much better performances likely to outshine his (and this wasn't as good as Silver Linings Playbook). Still, clearly the man can act and I am so happy he's taking on these more challenging roles, because I want to see him in movies like this. I will admit, though, that I dislike Sienna Miller, for no real reason but I don't like her acting very much, and there's basically no one else in this movie with anything resembling a character or traits.

Francois et Mimi Stacking Mug Set with Rack

I received the Francois et Mimi stacking mug set with rack for review in the mail the other day. In our house, we LOVE coffee, hot chocolate, and even tea on occasion. Having more mugs in the house, therefore, is never a bad thing, and one that comes with its own rack for holding them is awesome.

This set comes with four mugs and a metal wire rack to store them. Each mug is 12 oz., which is bigger than the mugs we have that came with our dishes. I really like the fact that they are larger since it seems like we never have enough coffee in one of the regular mugs.

One of the other things I really liked about these mugs were the colors. They are each uniquely painted, with a different color for the mug, the handle, and even the bottom of the mug.  The colors are not too bright, and they add a little excitement to your kitchen counter.

Love with Food Deluxe Box Review: February 2015

Love with Food is one of the most popular snack subscription boxes out there, and there's a reason for that. With the box, you get a sampling of all kinds of snacks and for every box sold, a meal is donated to a hungry family in the US. I love subscription boxes that give back - and I upgraded to Love with Food Deluxe, because now they give out two meals!

Graze Box Review: February 16

This was our first Graze double box, since we have switched over to the double box every other week now. It was also probably my favorite so far!

On the first row, the four snacks were Banana Caramel Shortbread Dippers with Caramel Sauce, Black Pepper Popcorn, Pomodoro Rustichella, and Tropical Daiquiri. The shortbread dippers were surprisingly the only snack I didn't love in this box. I say surprisingly because I like shortbread and Graze does an awesome job with dips and sauces. However, I think the banana flavor was too much, and it was that weird banana flavor that's natural but a little too not natural, if you know what I mean? Anyway, these are okay, but I would have liked plain shortbread more.

Popcorn is popcorn, but it's always welcome! The Pomodoro Rustichella was made up of garlic croutons, little tomato breadsticks, and tomato and herb almonds. This was extremely tasty and the perfect savory snack!

Tropical Daiquiri is a mix of lime raisins, dried pineapple, and green mango and was just sweet enough without being a sugary rush.

Academy Awards 2015: Best Picture Reviews - The Grand Budapest Hotel

It's hard not to like Wes Anderson. There are not many filmmakers out there these days who have such a clear vision and a unique one at that, who also refuse to make anything but their own quirky brand of films. Everything Wes Anderson does is refreshingly different and, love or hate him, you can't deny he is one of a kind.

I think I've seen all of Wes Anderson's films except The Darjeeling Limited so obviously I was going to see The Grand Budapest Hotel. I saw this when it came out, so it's been a while. I loved this film and although it's not my pick for Best Picture, it would be well deserved if it won. I really want to see Wes Anderson win Best Director regardless, because I would love to see the Academy reward a director who has such a distinct style. There are only a few directors you can pick out within thirty seconds of a film, and that is worth praising.

South Beach Diet Good to Go Bars Product Review

I was sent a box of South Beach Diet® Good to Go bars to review as part of a promotional campaign. This is a new product aligned with the South Beach Diet®, but you don't have to be on the diet to enjoy them.

For anyone unfamiliar with the South Beach Diet®, it's really about a lifestyle. They claim to be "devoted to eating healthy and living life to the fullest," so the introduction of new products to help you do that makes sense.

All of the NEW South Beach Diet® Good to Go Bars are high in fiber with extra protein, contain eight grams of sugar or less, and have no artificial flavors or sweeteners. I was impressed at the fact that they're actually tasty, since usually diet bars taste like it. These won't replace my junky granola bars, but they're definitely tasty and would be easy to integrate into a healthier lifestyle.