Momma Told Me: In ribbons and curls.
The definition of feminine is certainly one that is tested more and more each day. Half of the time you'll find me in pajama short and a baggy t-shirt of 'his' lounging around the house. However, when I go out, sometimes I like to turn heads as well, and sometimes I'm satisfied just being comfortable in my jeans and a tank. You don't have to deck yourself in the color pink and wear frilly things to make a statement of femininity, but the media does tend to have their own concepts of the idea, don't they? I received yet another collection of goodies to sample from
+Influenster in my #JAdoreVoxBox, and some of them pushed my boundaries of frilly, while others were certain to speak to a woman of any heart.
It's no secret that I'm a tea addict, so I was only left longing for more when a single brew pouch of Red Rose Simple Indulgent Lemon Chiffon tea wound it's way into my cup, erm, hands. I grew up with a lot of brands of tea, from Bigelow to Lipton and value names in between, but was no familiar with the Red rose brand. Thankfully this is a travesty that has been righted, as I sat down to #SimplyIndulge in a steaming cup of Lemon Chiffon, decaf, black tea. Not only was this naturally flavored tea blend decaffeinated, but it had a wonderful depth of flavor and natural sweetness that truly made it a guilt free indulgence (and ever gal needs a few of those, right?) Jay referred to the flavor as 'a sweet lemon shortbread cookie' and really took to the tea, consuming the majority of my mug. With a wide range of naturally sweet flavors like Cinnamon Bun and Peach Cobbler in the Red Rose Simply Indulgent collection, I'll definitely be stocking up on more soon!
Influenster must know me personally, because they sent me a Valentine's love letter that couldn't have been better suited in the Boots Botanic Shine Away Ionic Clay Mask. I may have tried more masks than teas in my lifetime (and that's saying something), so I didn't wait a day to slather some of this cool mineral-rich concoction on my face. The mask itself was thinner than I'd expected and I promptly closed the container to give it a good shake. Afterwards, it still dispensed a little thin, which turned out to be a good thing for easy coverage and product value. I had no trouble with the mask adhering to my skin, nor drying, and found it surprisingly easy to rinse off, even at the hairline. My skin was immediately more vibrant and soft, without being dried out (as some clay based masks can do). It's amazing what the #powerofplants can do!
Then we have the product that made this girl a little uncomfortable; #KISSlashes, Looks So Natural false lashes. Now, I haven't dabbled with falsies since I was a little girl playing
Pretty, Pretty, Princess, so these immediately intimidated me, whilst intriguing me. The feather-soft lashes with the tapered ends did indeed look natural, but the thought of gluing them to my lids was a bit scary. None-the-less I persevered in the name of good journalism and let my eyes be the guinea pig for every woman curious, but too afraid to try.
As it turns out, the experience was much less of an inconvenience as I'd imagined. A small adhesive bottle was includes, which went from blue to semi-translucent in 30 seconds of application, to let the wearer know it was ready for application. A clean lid is a must for proper adhesion, so put your #KISS lashes on before applying makeup. The lashes were a bit long, even for my big eyes, so be sure to trim them before applying, if necessary. I found my left eye more tricky than the first, right, eye- but that was sue to spacial recognition as I worked the corner of the falsies along my own lash line. The end result was fairly comfortable to wear (though long enough to sweep against my glasses), and a photo perfect natural lash that could be enhanced with my own mascara (to blend in my own lashes), and even re-used again.
There were two final products in my J'Adore Vox Box, one of them that truly didn't require any 'testing,' and a second that is being tested by a girlfriend for me. The Frizz Ease 3-Day Straight Flat Iron Spray from John Frieda helps extend straightening efforts for up to three days, even in humid weather. My hair will naturally dry a frizzy, wavy, mess, but drys pin straight with a blow dryer, so I felt this wasn't the best fir for my locks. I have since been told that it is actually a 'lifesaver' product that uses Keratin to strengthen locks from heat treatments, while helping hold styles successfully up to two days. My 'informant' has also told me that the product is a little slick to apply, and benefits from a fine tooth comb, and reminds that the effects only last from one cleansing to the next, but the product is dry shampoo friendly.
When it came to the large Family Size bag of Hershey's Kisses, milk chocolate, that seemed to have busted open en route (even the Vox Box couldn't wait to get it's hands on these little kisses), no testing was needed. I still have fond memories of playing checkers with my father, as a young girl, in which the 'red' kisses were hugs, and the 'black' kisses were, well, kisses. It was the most delicious game I've ever played, and I still crack a smile to see these little foil wrapped confections today.
What Daughter Says: Find your own sense of pampering, and indulge.
