Foodie Pages June box

The Foodies Pages sampler box shipped pretty fast and I got it in the first week of June. Lets unpack the box.

The box featured samples of buckshots, granola and salad dressing. In addition, I also received a bag of beans for chili and a full size bottle of North Indian Chutney. I used most of the items in the box. I used the chutney on some baked pork ribs.

The chutney imparted a slightly sweet and spicy glaze on the ribs that I liked.  I felt that the addition of beans to didn't add a lot of value to the box; the bag of beans didn't include any spices. However, I used the beans for nachos.

The mango-papaya dressing lacked any sweetness and was overpowered by the olive oil and rice wine vinegar. But I used all of the dressing for my salads for the week and it paired nicely with my spring mix/apple/blueberry salad. I haven't tried the buckshots or the granola but I'm looking forward to using them soon. This is a great deal for $11 for a nice mix of sample and full-size artisan goods. I can't wait for the next box!

Subscription Box Review: Ipsy May Box

I got my Ipsy package while on vacation in New York City. I liked the $15/month price for 4-5 sample/full size products in a unique make-up bag. Here are the products that were featured in my bundle.

My bundle included cards with discount offers for the full-size versions and an offer for curling iron. My products included a Zoya nail polish in Gie Gie (pink), a Mirabella Colour Sheer lipstick in Posey, an Anastasia clear brow gel, a Pacifica Island Vanilla Perfume roll-on gel and two Yaby concealers in Buff. If you notice that there is no picture of the concealers, I will explain their absence later in the post.

I like the make-up bag that came with the bundle since it reminds me of a Missoni print. Anything Missoni is always good. The Zoya nail polish isn't completely bad since I don't wear nail polish on a regular basis but the color is sheer enough for me to tolerate. The lipstick is very moisturizing with a Mango Butter base but the colour did not suit my skin tone. It might be better if I got a completely sheer color rather than a tinted lone. I will try to use it as a base for my other lip glosses. The brow gel is practical and after I get my eye brows trimmed, I will definitely use the gel. The roll-on perfume is a sweet vanilla scent. I will get some use out of the roller ball.

Why didn't I include the Yaby concealers in this picture? After I completed the profile and specified that I have dark skin, Ipsy still sent me not one but two concealers in buff, a very light color. Why complete the profile if I'm going to get products that do not complement my skin tone? I gave the concealers away to a grateful co-worker.

The total value of the bundle is approximately between $60-75 since some of the products were full sized (lipstick-$22, roll-on - $12, nail polish- $8, concealer-$5.22 x 2, brow gel-$22(based on it's full size equivalent)).

Will I keep Ipsy? Some of the items were nice but if they keep giving me things that don't match my skin tone, I will have to rethink the subscription.

Subscription Box Review: Wantable Jewellery May Box

I just got my Wantable Jewellery box a day before I returned from my New York vacation. I opened up the box and found five pieces of jewellery. I did not sign up for the make-up box since I have dark skin and make-up boxes tend not to offer the best products for my needs. Let's look at the box for more details.

The necklace in the middle is truly a statement piece with the use of pearls, glass jewels and a chain link. I would never chose this in a store but I like the silver finish. The black bracelet with the clasp has a punk/glam feel. It's simple with a textured and shiny finish with a silver-finish clasp. This will get plenty of use as well.
I don't put a lot of emphasis on earrings since I have sensitive ears and I tend to only wear gold or silver studs. I like the crystal earrings and the silver-pearl earrings that came with the package.

The only piece of jewellery that I did not like was the big chain link hoops. I did put the option to have hoops in my profile but I did not anticipate such large hoops with clasps that look painful. I will be passing these earrings to my cousin.

In summary, I liked my Wantable box. The total cost was approximately $50 but since this was apart of the Canadian launch, I really paid $13. The retail value of the box according to the invoice found inside is $96. Will I continue with Wantable? It's too pricy every month, so I will probably skip every other month.

A brief break from politcs and art

I apologize for the lack of blogging lately. I've been busy with a new course in Project Management and my car dying multiple deaths. Right now, I've jumped on the subscription box trend. These boxes appeal to any interest, ranging from fitness to men's grooming to adult toys. I initially joined Loose Button with $26 box every three months of beauty samples. Then I kept researching this trend and signed up with Bulu Box, a health and fitness box with $18 for three months, down from $30 for three months. Then, I joined Ipsy with $15-a-month box with four to five beauty samples. I'm also eying Little Black Bag, a monthly fashion/accessories box with swap meet attitude. There is a Tasting Box from Canadian artisan producers for $11. The Wantable, a jewellery/cosmetic box popular in the US has come to Canada with a free month offer. It's becoming too much but very tempting. So for now, I will be reviewing the boxes, seeking feedback and settling to subscribe for one food and one fashion/cosmetics box per month. What's with this trend? A tough economy combined with the need for consistent income from subscriptions and the idea that people like celebrating a mini-Christmas each month with a cute, low-cost box filled with goodies.

Kathleen Wynne-Kim Campbell Part Two?

The Liberal party of Ontario recently elected a new leader of the party, Kathleen Wynne. A MPP representing Don Valley West riding of Toronto, she beat out Sandra Pupatello in Saturday night voting. There are some similarities with Wynne and another Female party leader, Kim Campbell. Both women were elected through a party convention and after the previous leaders had to resign under a cloud of failure and difficulty. Wynne became the Liberal leader after Dalton McGuinty resigned after difficulties with the teachers' union and the ORNGE scandal. In Campbell's case, she was elected party leader after Prime Minister Brian Mulroney resigned from office with two failed constitutional amendments (Charlottetown Accord and Meech Lake) and the despised GST.  Kathleen Wynne needs to take notes from Kim Campbell's experience. If you are elected party leader after the previous guy had to leave in disgrace, be sure to define yourself apart from their failures. Kim Campbell failed to define herself from Mulroney's failures and did not get elected as Prime Minister. If Wynne can succeed defining her own leadership away from Dalton McGuitny, she will not repeat the failures of Kim Campbell.

Happy New Year

Happy 2013!

I'm feeling old and very aged. I can't believe that we are in the second decade of the 21st century. It was just yesterday that we were celebrating the year 2000. As I get older, I'm starting to realize that your 20's are the best time for reinvention and making major changes in your life. If you pick the wrong career, change is pretty easy and straightforward; just go back to school and take another unpaid internship. When you get to your 30's, a lifestyle change is difficult and time-consuming. You have debt and responsibilities that won't wait while you are trying to reinvent yourself. My own advice for change is to think it through and start gradually.

Obama's inaguaration:

Lovely Family......policies, not so much

autopsy

In my previous post, I assumed that a high unemployment rate and a terrorist scandal would make Obama's re-election impossible. I was wrong in his win but not by home much if he won. Obama got a slightly lower amount in the electoral college, which confirms my theory that if Obama won, it would not be at the high levels of 2008 (365 in 2008 vs. 332 in 2012). The Republic party is now engaged in examining what went wrong. Why did Romney lose? I won't look at why Obama won because frankly he is an incumbent and familiarity makes it easy for people to vote for a current president. Romney's loss is an examination into the role of messaging and strategy in a political campaign. Romney's campaign made some strategic errors:

1. Never let the other side define you:
Obama's narrative of Romney as a corporate raider with no soul never went challenged. Romney never countered that when Bain Capital turned around a company, the company thrived and grew. The insults piled up and were never disputed by Romney's Camp.
2. People don't want to vote against something but for something:
The economy and unemployment doesn't work in Obama's favour. Romney campaign assumed that people would vote for him just because of Obama's bad numbers. But voters needed a narrative/plan/theme that gave them hope in voting for Romney. Unfortunately, Romney only offered a weak five-point plan late in the campaign that didn't give people a reason to vote for him.
3. Never take any group for granted:
Romney presented himself as a turn around artist but his gaffes gave the impression that he did not care for middle class or the poor. The gaffes on the 47% and his concern for the middle class at the expense of the poor only fed into the class warfare narrative. Romney's campaign should have emphasized that allowing businesses to flourish empowers and uplifts the middle class and the poor.

I could go into the other problems with the campaign but these are the major problem that I can see. Romney strikes me as incredibly decent and honorable. But maybe that decency makes it hard to get elected in the shark-infested waters of American politics.