Ed Hardy Energy Sticks!

As promised, here's the Ed Hardy Energy Sticks!  

Take a peek at that photo up there. Orange and Pomagranate flavored Ed Hardy Energy Sticks! Before dumping one of these in my mouth, I was scared as Hubert Hamster when the cats stalk his cage! OK, not that scared, but my eyes were bulging in the way that Hubert's tend to do when he sees kitty lick her lips. 

These cute, colorful packs have several powder sticks inside. Have you ever seen Crystal Light, those little sticks filled with powder? That's what the Ed Hardy Sticks are like, only shorter and with far more of a punch! 

After tearing one open, you simply dump the powder onto your tongue, which I recommend doing slowly, rather than dumping it all at once--unless you like making the pucker face--too much at once is really tangy.

What I done was just lick it first as I was sure it would taste awful, most energy products do unless you're awesome enough to shop at Chemical Evolution for your energy boost. Are you wondering if it tasted bad?

Nope! Tastes great! You can keep dumping the powder into your mouth kind of like you would with those pixie sticks. I would describe the "powder" to be more like tiny crytals--they're slightly crunchy and I like em' crunchy! 

The taste is somewhat strong, but not funky like you might expect from a tiny stick filled with a** kickin' energy! Sorry, I get carried away, but saying booty kickin' energy just doesn't fit these energy sticks.  

The first Energy Stick I tried was the orange flavor. I was on my way back from the dentist who kindly drilled the hell out of 3 teeth and temporarily filled them. Nice huh? Of course any good girl would prefer temporary fillings rather than real, permanant, last you long time fillings! But then again, why give me permanant fillings when you can schedule me to come back for a whole nother expensive visit to permanantly fill them, right? You think I ain't on to you, you teeth drillin' son of a gun? 

So, after 4 shots in my mouth and 2 hours of non-stop drilling, there wasn't a more perfect time to have the Ed Hardy Energy Sticks in my purse--the one Mr. Dentist had previously just emptied! 

After that first little lick, I just dumped the whole thing in! Also, ironically enough, these neat energy sticks contain NO sugar! After having cavities drilled from my teeth minutes before, this came as quite a relief. In you go Energy Stick!

Unfortunately for my boyfriend, and for my sore mouth, the Energy Stick kicked in while we still had an hour left of driving! Ha Ha Ha. My mouth was so numb and in pain, but I couldn't shut up! Since my tongue also was numb, it was leaning to the side of my mouth that was drilled and made me have the worst lisp ever! It was awful! Pretty embarrassing too. I had an appointment later that day at my regular doctor and I ended up skipping it because by the time we made it back, the numbness and sexy lisp was still not worn off! I was too embarrassed to go in. Imagine how sexy it was when I had to yell "Patsie" (my cat) for ten minutes! My neighbors were probably scared. It sounded more like "Pasheee."

I normally would've came in and taken a nap, but nope. That one little energy stick had me kind of wild. I certainly had a clean house before that thing wore off!

Which brings me to the "crash." I have only one Energy Stick left (time to restock?) and haven't experienced the "crash." I usually just taper back down to normal human being level. This could have something to do with the ingredients being better than your average energy product, which I'll talk about in a minute.

Yes, if you're wondering, I have had an Energy Stick within the past hour! Just to see how well these babies work, I was totally exhausted today. I slept for 4 hours then had to get up since my lovely 2 year old neice comes to visit me on Sundays. Whew! Talk about wearin' me out. She had me all over the yard, in the pool, in the sand box. By the time 3 PM rolled around, I wanted to cry. She went to visit her mom and my mother and I took a couple hour nap and woke up still exhausted. I still had a lot of cleaning to do and I stupidly promised Hubert (hamster) that he'd have a shiny clean hamster mansion before tonight... definitely wasn't feeling up to that. 

Turns out, I had an Energy Stick and a little coffee combined with that and Hubert's mansion is like brand new, my own bedroom's like brandnew and I've managed to get a few hours of work in and now it's 3AM and well, here we are! 2 Energy Sticks and baby, I'm still goin'! I considered even re-highlighting my hair since it's in dire need, but figured I should quit while I'm ahead.

TASTE

The pomegranate flavor is fantastic, but I think I'm loving the orange more. I'm an orange fan. I usually don't like berry or pomegranate flavor, but I really enjoy these. The flavor is sweet and slightly tangy if you dump a whole bunch in your mouth.  Pomegranate is fruity tasting and I'm not 100% sure if it tastes much like the actual pomegranate fruit as I forgot what they taste like. 

The orange tastes, well, probably about how you'd expect it to. Like sweet orange flavored candy. It seems less tangy to me. 

At times, I've noticed a slight almost bitter taste after dumping in the powder, but there's no aftertaste and nothing that'd make you say "eww!" If I like the taste, I believe most people would as I'm super picky about energy products and their tastes. I can't even stand the taste of Red Bull or Monster. It has a funk to it. These taste candy-like and that's it. 

 INGREDIENTS

Remember, I was grateful that this contained no sugar since I had just been drilled at when I first tasted the energy sticks? Guess what that means? It means the Ed Hardy Energy Sticks contain no sugar! They also contain no fat and no calories! 

Each stick contains 80 MG of caffeine! That's enough to perk up even the laziest bastard. Sorry, carried away again. And if one stick doesn't do the trick, have a couple and those eyes will be wide open.

You'd get about the same amount of caffeine from an energy drink only better because these are t-t-t-asty and quick. Open, dump, go! Wait that's wrong! Open, dump swallow, and then GO! 

 Erythritol, (Encaff caffeine), Natural Flavor, Citric Acid, Silicon dioxide, Salt, Sucralose, Acesulfame-K, Niacinamide (B3), Pantothenic Acid (B5), Pryidoxine (B6), FD&C Yellow #6 Lake, Cobalamin (B12)

Now, I hope you're headed to Chemical Evolution for an energy boost! Let me just say, I think they are fantastic. You can't find such fun, energy-causin' energy products like they carry anywhere in my area. They have such a uniqe, fun selection--remember my Crackheads post? Also from Chemical Evolution! 

Now, while you're over at Chemical Evolution checking out their wonderful selection, I'm going to be ironing a Mountain Dew can! This should be interesting! Maybe I'll even post what I end up doing with it.

*This review is in compilation with the FTC guidelines. See my disclosure page for more info on sponsored reviews!*

Dental benefits of Xylitol

Hey ya'll! I've been taking longer breaks in between my reviews just to share whatever is on my mind with you and since I've talked a lot about my recent dental problems, I wanted to share a brief bit with you about Xylitol. Since you probably know, I have been spending a lot of time in the dentist's chair since around January! I had posted a bit about how my root canal went back in February, and then I had my wisdom tooth extracted and a couple days ago I had 3 fillings--only the temporary ones for now. The day I had the 3 fillings, I reached my limit... the straw broke the camel's back--or however that saying goes. 

At this point I'm so fed up with being drilled at and given shots in my mouth. I never really had teeth problems growing up and my teeth actually are pretty nice-looking considering I've never had work done. Anyways, after the root canal and wisdom extraction, it came as a surprise when my dentist said he wanted to fill 8 teeth. I had been researching my butt off trying to find ways to help my teeth, things that would restore them or at least give them some kind of benefits. 

I found some information on Xylitol and was interested in trying it. As of today I've been using the gum and mints from Xylipro, and I wanted to share it with you. 

According to xylitol.org, 
Studies show that 4 to 12 grams of xylitol per day are very effective and can reduce your chance of cavities as well as repair the minor ones. Also, since Xylitol is natural and safe, you don't have to worry about trading one health condition for another.




So, I'm going to continue with the gum and mints from Xylipro for better teeth. I've tried the bubble gum and lemon flavored mints so far and was surprised that the taste wasn't bad at all! The lemon flavored mints have a cool feeling in my mouth and aren't minty. The bubble gum tastes similar to original Bubble Yum. You wouldn't even know that they're healthy if you didn't know any better.

Humboldt Blend-perfect!

 
  Now that I've been crazy on caffeine all week, let's get back to the Muddy Waters coffee . I finally got got to the Humboldt Blend and am wondering why I didn't try it first! It has topped them all. My absolute favorite now and I doubt any coffee could live up. Of course I was very fond of the other blends, this one fit my tastebuds like customized undies!

  Something I've noticed over the last couple of months is that drinking the coffee on the day I have IBS flare-ups, it isn't getting worse. You see, for years I've not been able to touch coffee on the days I have stomach flare-ups. It would make it much worse so I'd often be skipping coffee every month for a week. I've been able to drink all the Muddy Waters blends without a single problem! It must be that their coffee is organic. I had no idea that was my problem. I had a terribly flare-up the Sunday before last. I was running on no sleep from being up all night and morning feeling sick. I was so exhausted at the end of the day from lack of sleep, having the kids all weekend and being sick. I refused my coffee all day, but was desperate by nighttime because I had to work. So I had a small cup in fear that it would make things worse as coffee usually does, but I actually have been able to drink Muddy Waters just fine! Who'd have known?

Besides that, I want to talk about the flavor of the Humboldt blend--fantastic! First though, I wanted to share my grandmother's little testimony. Ha-Ha. We fixed her and my aunt some of the Blue's Blend--they're both major coffee nuts and my grandmother insisted that I share her comments here and with Muddy Waters. She said "it's the best coffee I've ever tasted. You be sure you tell them all I said this, OK?" She said it also had her wired. Ha. Ha. She said she hadn't had coffee give her energy in years! 

As for my aunt, she loved it but said it was making her too energetic. I have no idea what it is about this coffee, but it must be stronger than most. When my grandmother visited again last weekend, she asked for more of the Blue's Blend.

 The Humboldt blend is the perfect mix of acidity and nutty flavor. It's got more of a really strong flavor than an acidic flavor though. You can smell the acidity in it, but it's subtle enough that I can drink it straight and totally love it! I have a cup right now--well, a half a cup now. It has to be my favorite.


  There's the hint of nutty flavor in the Humboldt blend and what I love about it is that you can add a bit of sweetener and stick it in the fridge without it watering down and losing it's flavor. It also has a sweetness to it, enough that I can drink it with no sweetener at all. I do like to add 3 caramel creamers sometimes though. That's what I like best, is you can add to it without it taking away from the actual flavor. 


  The strength is just enough where you can drink it straight without it overpowering your tastebuds as well as put it on ice without it watering down. It's a fabulous blend. The aftertaste is great. I would describe it as potent, but not bitter. 


  The aroma is stronger than what I noticed with the other blends. It smells bitter while it's in the coffee maker and the aroma lingers all throughout the house--just what I love.


 
 

bath buzz

  You may remember my recent post about the Crackheads 2 candy, from Chemical Evolution. Now I'm here to introduce the most awesome body products from the lovely, highly caffeinated Chemical Evolution. You read it right, Body products with caffeine! You're in luck this time. I didn't use the caffeinated product immediately before writing this post this time--like I did with the Crackhead candy. This time I've decided to write long after using the body products so I'm not too off subject and scatter brained. Both products in the above photo are from Chemical Evolution, the one I'm talking about here is the Bath Buzz pictured on the right, in the round tub.

  Lucky for me, I will be slathering this creamy, highly moisturizing Bath Buzz all over after I'm done with the post. I thought my words may be a little easier to understand this way.

  
   Once I screw the lid off of the tub of Bath Buzz, the scent of lavendar is noticeable. To me, it smells very much like lavendar. L, who is my nephew says that it smells to him like Dial bar soap. Ha. Ha. It is a really pleasant scent. 

  The scent isn't exactly strong, maybe mild. It isn't overpowering or bothersome to my sinuses--I'm migraine prone so many things bother me. This scent smells strongest when I open the container. While applying it to the skin, it's only mild and shortly after, is almost undetectable.


  Bath Buzz is made with lavendar essential oils and is infused with caffeine. Bath Buzz is a very creamy, rich body cream. The consistency is more creamy and to the touch, feels similar to a high quality body butter rather than a lotion or your average body cream. 



Benefits


  Lavendar has calming properties, hence why it's often used in bedtime soaps and lotions for children. The scent of lavendar calms your nerves and relaxes you. Lavendar can also reduce anxiety, which is helpful when you're trying to unwind.

  You may be wondering where the caffeine part comes in. Well, lucky for you I like to go into detail about these things.


  Unlike caffeine in your coffee, when it is used in a topical product, it has skin toning/firming properties. Caffeine is a common ingredient in cellulite reduction products. Massaging Bath Buzz into the skin leaves you with firmer, more toned skin and leaves it smelling nice! And with a 6 oz jar full of this calming cream, you have plenty to slather all over your legs, arms and other body parts.


  Other ingredients in the Bath Buzz cream include Vitamins A, C and E, which help aid in nourishing skin. Vitamins and caffeine along with camomille, aloe vera extract promote healing and hydration. These impressive ingredients all have great benefits for the skin. If you've been with me for long, you probably know that I'm an aloe vera fanatic! I've used it both topically and internally (in the form of a pill) and believe strongly in it's healing powers. 

  Texture/Consistency

  Besides the wonderful benefits of the Bath Buzz Body Cream, the silky, softness on my skin is also quite impressive, especially for someone who's extremely picky about the feel of lotions on her skin. That's me, I'm picky. I can't stand the sticky-ish residue that's often left in between my fingers. That makes it hard to find a lotion that I completely love. The Bath Buzz feels so different than a cream or lotion. My skin is left soft, smooth and firm without any traces of greasy or sticky residues. 

  Dipping my fingers in the Body Cream, it feels so cool and creamy. It kind of reminds me of whipped butter. It's a very luxurious feeling kind of lotion. One of my favorite things is how easily it spreads and absorbs into the skin. Unlike most lotions, where you need to massage, the Bath Buzz feels silky and absorbs quickly into the skin rather than sitting on top. This also means better moisturization benefits! 



  



 

*This review is in compliance with the FTC guidelines. See my disclosure page for more info on sponsored reviews*

CrackHeads 2 What did I just do?!

    

According to Caffeine Fiend.com, it would take 10.41 of these Crackheads 2  candies to kill me! Only minutes before reading that--about 5 minutes to be exact--I consumed 4 of these simply because they tasted so good! I couldn't help it. Earlier, about 3-4 hours ago, I ate two Crackheads candies. Yikes! I'm cutting it close, huh? No more for me. I don't know how accurate the Caffeine Fiend results were, but I ain't tryin' to do myself in! I don't think I'll be eating anymore tonight though since it's after 1 AM! I had a chocolate/coffee craving, OK?

I've never shown signs of being sensitive to caffeine so I should make it through this review. However, if you are sensitive to caffeine, DO NOT even look at a box of Crackheads, please. You see, there's Crackheads candy and Crackheads candy 2. I have been eating the 2. The difference in a box of Crackheads 1 and 2 is 400 milligrams of caffeine, which could probably have something to do with my typing 3 of each letter right now! Spell check will come in handy for once.

So, are these Crack Heads actually effective?

Yes! Yes! Yes! Now picture me, hair sticking up, jumping straight up and down. Ha Ha. I only wish I was kidding. I don't know what I was thinking! I was thinking 'these are so good, one more ain't gonna hurt me!' 

Energy products affect different people in different ways. For me, a 93 pound, 5'2" girl, they're super duper effective. Just to give you an idea of how effective-- well, I started snacking while writing a response letter to my lovely prisoner pen-pal Lillie and half way through, ended up online writing this and editing a student's work at the same time! 

To be honest, I didn't exactly think these little Crackheads 2 were going to turn me into a fast-typin' geekin' Crackhead! I thought I'd be slightly energetic. Folks, did I tell you, it is 1 AM here and I slept for 6 hours last night. Six hours isn't hardly enough for this girl. I need at least nine. Thankfully, Chemical Evolution was to the rescue, shipping Crackheads quickly and safely right to my door.

Previous to my introduction to the Crackhead world--about 6 hours ago--I was tired, falling asleep in the car on the way home. No, I was not driving. WOULD YOU GET OFF MY CASE! Ha. Ha. I'm kidding, promise. These innocent looking candies won't make you that crazy, but even the most addicted coffee lover will be amped. So, what I was saying was I was tired earlier and now I am the furthest thing from it. I think I contain more caffeiene than what's left in my box of Crackheads right now!

All crazyness aside, Crackheads 2 candy is great. It's a cute box full of 600 fierce milligrams of caffeine. 

I read the Crackheads 2 box... after I ate em'! You didn't know I was such a rebel did ya? According to that box, it would take 6 cups of coffee to equal the amount of caffeine per box of CrackHeads! It would take 7.5 energy drinks to equal this bad boy's caffeiene content. And finally, it'd take 11 whopping colas to equal the amount of caffeine per box of Crackheads. What's that Mellow Yellow? Feelin' slightly  insecure?

TASTE

 "Crackheads2 is gourmet 60% cocoa dark chocolate covered espresso bean with a crunchy candy shell with a big caffeine boost added! Gourmet meets functional."

Like I said earlier, Crackheads candies have an outstandingly rich, "gourmet" taste. Yes, the box labels them "gourmet," and that it certainly is. I'm thinkin' about slipping Fuzz one right now. Kidding! Fuzz is my red cat, I've introduced her before. She's grooming her little head on the stool beside me now. 

So, I won't go turning Fuzz into a CrackHead, but I'm sure she'd be just as pleased with the rich, dark chocolate taste on top of a crunchy fresh roasted coffee bean. Guys, I've had coffee beans covered in chocolate before and I did not like em'. I don't know why because I love coffee and love chocolate. Maybe it was just the brand of chocolate coffee bean I ate? Anyways, CrackHeads are covered in smooth dark chocolate. I hate dark chocolate. I'm surprised I love the taste of these so much, but they're hard to stop eating! 

Think peanut M&M's. They have that crunchy coating and then a thick layer of chocolate over a stupid peanut. That's why they do it. The peanut isn't good or special. Cover it in chocolate and crunchy stuff and bam! You made a stupid ol' peanut taste good. That's pretty much how the outer shell and layer of chocolate tastes right before you get to that crunchy coffee bean. Only difference is, the coffee bean actually tastes fantastic. Peanuts do not. Cashews do. 

The coffee bean isn't strong so if you're not a fan of the coffee taste, it may not be a big deal to you. OK, the coffee bean is kinda strong. Ha Ha. I lied! It doesn't taste bitter like taking a sip of strong coffee. 

Coffee haters, I can't say how you'd love these, but if you're OK with a coffee flavor, this may be something you'll like. Coffee lovers, no doubt. You'll love em'. 

My CrackHeads came from the fabulous Chemical Evolution. Talk about an outstanding collection of energy products and a really fun energy while shopping the site. If that even makes sense? Not to mention the really great prices--I checked and haven't been able to find these priced as low as what Chemical Evolution offers!

DO check out Chemical Evolution! Then let me know what your favorite kind of energy is. In the meantime, keep on the lookout for my other Chemical Evolution reviews!

Mayonnaise in hair-results and benefits

 Above is a photo of Dax Roots Hair Mayonnaise from no other than the fabulous Imperial Dax! Now, take a look at the below photo--that lovely, wonder working mayo!

 

Have you ever heard of putting actual mayonnaise on your hair before showering? Have you ever tried it? I have! I had heard that mayonnaise--the kind you eat--was great for hair so I went to the kitchen and slathered it all over, nice and thick. When I went to shower, I had one heck of a time trying to get the greasy stuff out of my hair and off of my neck! I never tried that again until I used Dax's Hair Mayonnaise, which isn't the kind you eat and doesn't require lots of washing. 

The second photo is the packet of Hair Mayonnaise with the product being pushed out so you can see the color. Funky bright yellow/orange like color! It's really neat.

The Hair Mayonnaise is part of Dax's Mineral oil and petrolatum-free haircare line. 

Dax Roots Hair Mayo is rich in vitamins, moisturizing and strengthening. It contains natural oils and emollients to help strengthen and nourish dry, damaged hair while preventing more breakage and damage.

Soothes dry scalp. Protects against free radicals, enhances shine.

 INGREDIENTS

  Behentrimonium Methosulfate -which is a Super conditioning moisturizer.

• Almond Oil, Avocado Oil, Sunflower Seed Oil, Jojoba Seed Extract, Sesame Seed Oil, Wheat Germ Oil, Safflower Flower Extract, Cotton Seed Oil, Urtica Dioica (Nettle), Rosemary Leaf, Arctium Lappa Root, Betula Alba Bark, Rosa Canina Fruit, Carrageenan, Dandelion Root, Horsetail Extract, Wild Cherry Bark, Echinacea Purpurea, Sambucus Nigra Flower, Coltsfoot Leaf, Rumex Crispus Root, Brewers Yeast — Specifically blended oils to maximize moisturization, shine and overall strength of hair and minimize breakage, allowing hair to grow long and full. 

• Wheat Protein — helps strengthen hair

• Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride — Adds slip and ease of combing through hair minimizing breakage when combing or brushing. 

• Hydrolyzed Collagen — Helps rejuvenate hair. Albumen (Dried Egg Whites) — helps strengthen hair                                                     

  Taking a close look at the ingredient list above, you'll see that the Hair Mayo has so many amazing ingredients that will benefit your hair. 

                            How to use     
  The Hair Mayo can be used as a deep conditioning treatment/mask or as a regular conditioner.      

  For use as a deep conditioning treatment/mask: 
 Shampoo and condition as usual. Apply DAX Hair Mayonnaise generously, massage into scalp and comb through hair. Cover head with a damp, warm towel or plastic cap for 15 minutes. Rinse hair with cool water to seal cuticle and style as usual. For best results use at least once weekly as a hair mask.


 For use as a regular conditioner:
  After shampooing, apply DAX Hair Mayonnaise generously, massage into scalp and comb through hair. Leave on hair for 3 minutes. Rinse hair with cool water to seal cuticle and style as usual.

For hair that's recently been extremely damaged, you can massage Hair Mayo into scalp and from root-tips, then wrap in plastic wrap or a shower cap/scarf and leave in overnight. This happens to be my twin sister's preferred method. Her hair always looks so shiny in the morning, after she's washed it out. I however, don't usually have time to do all that so I apply before a shower and while I'm waiting, I'll do some work and then shower. When I'm in a hurry, I'll apply it right before my shower and let it hang out in there while I bathe and rinse last. That way it has some time to soak in. 

                                           Results
 At the moment, I've just used the Hair Mayo a few hours ago and rinsed it out, shampooing with the Removing Shampoo and flat ironing a few minutes ago. I don't experience greasyness with the Hair Mayo like I had with regular food mayo. However, if you're prone to oily hair and are nervous about using the Hair Mayo, I recommend shampooing afterward with DAX'S Removing Shampoo as it cuts away all grease and grime and you can be sure that any residue will be removed. I doubt the Hair Mayo would leave any hair type greasy, but for extra assurance, the Removing Shampoo doesn't hurt.

What I noticed after using the Mayo and flat ironing my hair is that my hair is left much softer, but without static, which is what even a light conditioner does to my hair. Major plus that the Mayo doesn't! My hair feels lighter rather than weighed down. It also seems to be less fluffy and curly than it usually is after washing. I let my hair air dry and when it's finally dry, I'm a poofy freak! I have to flat iron asap or the poof gets worse. The Hair Mayonnaise has totally diminished all poof, static and frizz and I just finished ironing my entire head or hair in less than 10 minutes. I normally spend almost an hour. I find that the Removing Shampoo also helps tremendously with styling and ironing a poofy head.

 Post Hair Mayonnaise, my hair is extremely soft, lightweight and has some shine! My hair is dull, never shines unless I've used something to help that along. At this very moment, my hair is so super shiny! It has never had this much shine.

If shine is your goal, the Hair Mayo is absolutely the best. If you're looking to tone down some poof and frizz, this will be a God-send! If you have dryness, dandruff or itchy scalp, massaging the Hair Mayo into the scalp for a few minutes will soothe and relieve flakes, dryness and itch.


                            Who can use?

 The Hair Mayonnaise works wonders on dry and damaged hair, but can be used to enhance moisturization and shine in already healthy, non-dry hair as well. It's great for overprocessed, frizzy, static-y,extra dry and color treated hair. Since most of my damage does come from bleaching and ironing, I am seeing big changes. 

  DAX Hair Mayonnaise can be used on all lengths and textures of hair. It's also good for those who use alcohol based hair spray as alcohol dries out hair severely and the Mayo will replace lost moisture/nutrients.

 

  





 

Short & Neat hair styling with benefits

  These are two different products from Imperial Dax. Since I've already posted on the Hair Shaper--the white one--now I'm going to talk about the one in the blue tin can--Short And Neat.

  You probably remember my raving about the Dax Removing Shampoo and the Gel-It. These are the other hair styling products from Imperial Dax. 

  Short And Neat works similar to a pomade only thinner.One of the amazing ingredients in Short And Neat is coconut oil! Ya'll know I'm a coconut oil fanatic. I use it on my skin, in my hair, nails, to eat and I even "oil pull" with it--which I just started back up today! Coconut oil has miraculous benefits. What's strange is as I was dipping my fingers in Short And Neat today, my Lovie asked what the stuff was for and I told him for hair. I had just "oil pulled" with virgin coconut oil and said that this stuff felt a lot like the way coconut oil does in my hands. Must be because it actually contains coconut oil! Oh, the strange part about that story was that I didn't know it contained coconut oil at the time.

 I can't help but talk just a little about coconut oil's benefits to hair. It most definitely will add shine and heal damaged hair. Since coconut oil is an oil, it leaves my hair greasy so I wasn't found of using it in my hair very often--it seemed hard to rinse out and left me slightly greasy in the locks. A wonderful alternative to that solution is Imperial Dax's Hair Mayo--an outstanding product. I will be posting seperately about it though. Now, it's Short And Neat's turn.

THE INGREDIENT COCONUT OIL AND ITS BENEFITS

Coconut oil gives hair a shiny complexion while also preventing dry skin and dandruff. Coconut oil is has anti-fungal properties--very strong ones I might add. Since dandruff is said to often be caused by a fungus, coconut oil will heal this and your scalp will be soothed and free of dry skin! Many people use coconut oil to promote hair growth.

While using Short And Neat to style your hair, your hair will be benefiting from these ingredients. 

Do you ever notice your hair having a lot of static, usually after flat ironing or blow drying? Apply Short & Neat using your fingertips all over your head before blow drying or ironing and static is gone! Sometimes I forget to use it before, but it can also be applied after you've blow dried or ironed. Usually my static is at the ends. Short & Neat will keep things under control without leaving sticky residue in your hair. And if it tames the static, you can probably guess that it'll also hide your frizz.

Here's Short & Neat's description straight from the Imperial Dax webpage:

"DAX Short & Neat is the perfect light hair dress for the short, natural look. It's enriched with a blend of oils to nourish your hair and add shine. Great for all hair types and short to medium length hair. "





Other ingredients and their benefits


  Like coconut oil, castor oil is said to promote hair growth as well as promoting thicker hair. Short & Neat contains castor and mineral oil as well. Castor oil is a natural ingredient that contains Omega-9 fatty acids-- which help nourish hair and prevent dryness. Mineral oil prevents frizz and enhances curls as well as shine. Castor oil also reduces damage to your hair so for those of you who tend to go wild with the hot products, this is an outstanding product. Also like coconut oil, castor oil prevents scalp dryness.



Short & Neat Benefits
 With ingredients that are so beneficial, you can expect to see a significant change in your hair's moisturization, frizz and all around health when using Short & Neat. If you use it regularly, you could probably even expect to see more hair growth. I can't really say for sure since I cut my hair every month, but I have a feeling I'll be needing a trim sooner than usual. 

 When styling my hair, I like to use Short & Neat on the ends of my hair as well as throughout the back. 
 

 
  In the photo above you can see my hair cut. When I had it trimmed this time, a new stylist did it and was shy about adding so much layer to fine hair. I normally have lots of choppy layers in the back, but she limited those. However, Short & Neat works wonders at bringing the little layers that are still there out. The hair that frames my face is longer than the back and I like to have those hairs totally straight, but they often curl under as you can see. I apply Short & Neat, using my fingertip throughout the ends of the hair to help keep it straight. 

 Short & Neat is a great solution when you don't want your hair product to show. Sometimes I like for my hair gel to make my hair hard and sometimes I like to add extra gel to my layers, but Short & Neat leaves it looking natural as if you hadn't used anything. A great product for those who like low-maintenance product. Short & Neat isn't detectable to the touch/feel. When I run my fingers through my hair, I never feel clumpy, sticky, hard or greasy residue. It also leaves no scent. 

  Short & Neat gives hair some shine. You can run a bit through hair from root to tip if you desire and shouldn't have any greasy appearance, but use minimally.

Usage Instructions
Rub desired amount of DAX Short & Neat between palms. Apply to clean, damp or dry hair. Style with fingertips until desired look is achieved. 

Who can use Short & Neat?
As long as you have hair, you can use it. It works with straight, curly or coarse hair types. Obviously, it does well with fine hair--mine is super, super fine! 


If you like a messy, subtle spiky look, Short & Neat does well for that style on fine hair. It's not only for straight hair, it will benefit your curls too. It will  prevent frizz from curls and add shine to them. Here's a good example:

 

One thing I love about Short & Neat is how easy it removes from my hair and that it leaves no sticky, slimey or hard texture to my hair. Pomades often do leave some kind of glue-like residue and it can be hard to remove, but Short & Neat doesn't. The good thing is, if you do have trouble removing any hair product, Dax has the wonderful Removing Shampoo that I now swear by! It'd remove super glue from your hair it's so good.

A list of different porn filters and what each do

 

 OPTENET PC Porn filter

5 Steps to Filter Porn on Your Computer

• Download the porn filter software for FREE
• Install Optenet PC porn filter on your computer
• Follow the on-screen instructions and go to Filter Configuration.
• Set the software for your family's exact Internet needs. Each user can be different.
• Go to the Porn Filter configuration and choose which type of content to filter, schedule time permitted online, control what each user can download, etc.

How the Porn Filter Helps You

• FILTER porn and other bad web sites - choose from other content categories
• No workarounds! - Password controlled
IMPROVED
• Eliminate the temptation to view porn
• FREE automatic updates
• Reduce worry and the need to monitor Internet use
• CONTROL downloads
• SCHEDULE and limit time online

Optenet has a 30 day money back guarantee.

Choose from the free installation which allows everything you need to setup a kid safe comp in seconds or choose Maximum protection which requires you to purchase it. With max protect you get multiple user protection, it is fully customizable and full social networking monitoring.

Featured on NBC

PornBlocker:

-Quick download
-Filters out adult sites.
-works with most browsers sch as firefox, IE, Chrome, Opera, Netscape and more. 

-Has a high anti-rate over 99%!

-Multinational language filtering, websites whitelist, websites black list, keywords black list. 

-Porn blocker uses a special technology to uninstall, meaning your child won't be likely to uninstall the program.

-Keeps a complete log of all sites visited whether filtered out or not.

-Keeps track of all material emerged on compter including files, images, music and more.

-You can have the inventory of your child's computer history.

-NOTE: Adults with password can surf internet UNLIMITEDLY.









The third porn blocking software I want to add is Covenant Eyes. I've spoken with them personally and even promoted their software by handing out fliers. Doing that, I spoke with many people who said they were already using Covenant Eyes. This particular software had amazing feedback from the strangers I had spoken to. I think it seems to be one of the best so far as it comes with so much and you can start with a free trial!

COVENANT EYES

 First, here are some facts copied and pasted straight from Covenant Eyes' webpage:

• 67% of children admit to clearing their Internet history to hide their online activity
• 79% of accidental exposures to Internet porn among kids take place in the home
• 56% of divorce cases involve one party having an obsessive interest in online porn
• 29% of working adults accessed explicit websites on work computers 
• More than 1 in 8  web searches are for erotic content!

 Covenant Eyes keeps a web log of ALL sites visited 
-Sends a report to you (or whoever you set up to be the receiver of the report) 


-Allows you to set time limits on how long the PC can be used.


-Customizable parental controls for each kid.


-Free installation on up to 5 different computers!

-Customizable sensitivity levels and allow/block lists

- Automatic overrides

The Filter Guardian can optionally turn on automatic overrides, so in a situation where someone needs to visit a website that would normally be blocked (such as a teenager doing research for a school report), they can visit the site without needing the Filter Guardian’s password.

 

Lavendar Natural Bar Soap with Hemp

  The photos aren't of the best quality, but this happens to be another mini soap bar from SunFeathers. This particular one is the Tea Tree Lavendar and Hemp soap bar. 

  As the photo shows, the bar of soap has tiny little flecks of hemp in it. These allow for gentle exfoliation when rubbed across the skin. Up close, they look similar to your cereal bowl when you've just finished eating frosted mini wheats. They're small and not abrasive so they're gentle enough for sensitive skin. This however may not be the perfect exfoliator for extremely dry skin, but to fix that, run your mini soap bar under the faucet and then dip it in sugar or cornmeal right before a shower! Then you have a perfect bar of soap with the perfect amount of exfoliant. Works wonders! Sugar works nicely, but I tend to like using corn meal for better results. Either will work.

  Incase you don't remember the history I posted on my last bit about the company SunFeathers, I've copied and pasted straight from their site. You can read it in full here.  

  "Our Story

PHOTO CREDIT: SunFeathers.com

SunFeather’s history began in the fall of 1979, when founder Sandy Maine blended a passion for fragrant and medicinal herbs with a fascination and skill for soapmaking. With a core value that a business can deliver positive products to consumers, Sandy pooled her talents and started SunFeather in her backyard with a vat of bubbling oil and $15.00 worth of local cedar oil.
For five years (while the business grew), Sandy hauled water in 5-gallon pails from a nearby spring to her farmhouse, which provided a peaceful setting and crystal clear water for making soap. Because she lived beyond the power lines (utilizing only a small generator and no telephone), all business was initially done by mail. Sandy visited the nearby town twice each week to place phone calls to customers. During that time, Saturday nights with her husband Louie were often spent wrapping and labeling soaps for shipment.

As the business grew, employees joined the business to help with the increasing workload. Eventually, Sandy gave up her role as soap maker and focused on product development, sales and marketing. Sandy’s work expanded to include authorship of numerous articles and books on soapmaking, herbal homekeeping and succeeding in business. Sandy’s work has expanded the appreciation and use of handmade soaps in ways she never anticipated. Sandy continues her product development legacy as we maintain the company’s founding philosophies. Great soap is here to stay!"


The Tea Tree Lavendar Hemp Soap is righ in fatty acids and possesses antibacterial properties of Tea Tree Oil. Remember all my Tea Tree Oil raving? Well, using it in soap is also beneficial to skin. Tea Tree Oil can be healing for cuts, scrapes, bruises, dry skin, and so many more!

Using the Tea Tree Lavendar Hemp Soap will rejuvenate and heal dry skin as well as sun damaged skin.

This is a great soap for those who are sensitive and suffer from breakouts. Tea Tree Oil alone is great for breakouts and I hear Lavedar is calming/soothing for inflammation.  

 

• Paraben free, gluten free, soy free & vegan soap.
• Scented with essential oils and natural aromatics. 
• Plant based soap with all natural colorants

  INGREDIENTS:

Saponified Oils of Olea Europaea (Olive) Oil*, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil* and Elaeis Guineensis (Palm) Oil*, Lavandula Hybrida (Lavendin) Oil, Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree) Oil, Cymbopogon Flexuosus (Lemongrass) Oil, Lemongrass Herb, Cannabis Sativa (Hemp) Seed Oil, Titanium Dioxide (Natural Color), Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract*. *Made with certified organic oils. 

 Also note the other ingredients listed such as coconut oil. You all know how I feel about that miracle from nature! It's also amazing and perhaps the best thing for skin. Lemongrass is always a favorite of mine when using bath products. The smell is lovely and clean.

SCENT

The Tea Tree and Lavendar Hemp soap has notes of lavendar, a slightly minty note and lemon. I think the Lavendar smell stands out most and that's what makes it a soothing, calming soap that's great for using right before bed. The scent of Lavendar soothes and calms. That is why it's sometimes used in baby and children's bath products. However, I want to say you should be VERY careful before introducing any new ingredients into the life of a child as they can be allergic. So can you so always look at the list of ingredients before using.

My skin isn't very sensitive, but I still feel that this soap is gentle enough for sensitive skin. It's a very relaxing soap to lather up with in the bath tub right before bed. Tired and achy bodies will rejoice. I'm extremely relaxed while soaking in a lather of this soap. 

I love the lavendar scent and for those of you who hate the pungent odor of tea tree oil, rest assured, you can barely smell it in this soap! I for one have been used to using tea tree oil since I was a kid so it doesn't bother me either way.

SunFeather always has amazing smelling soaps. I've yet to be unhappy with any of them. Keep one in the shower and store the rest of the bars in your clothes drawer or closet for a super fresh, clean scent! It isn't so strong that it overpowers or irritates. I can use it in the shower without problems and storing them in my drawers leaves just enough scent on my clothing that I get a nice  whiff when I put them on or open the drawer.

GEL-IT with Imperial Dax for non flaking curls!

  Several days ago, I posted about Dax Removing Shampoo--and how much I love it, still am! Now that I've been using Gel-It, I've re-gained my love for my natural curls! I once embraced them in high school and ended up turning to flat irons only because it seemed my curls were only weighing down or frizzing out with anything I used. Now, I've got it going on again! 

  By using Gel-It, I can jump out of the shower, rub in the gel and go. I don't have to make strict plans to spend an hour ironing my hair when I don't feel like doing it. 

HAIR TIP: If your looking to curl your hair or "scrunch" it, apply Gel It to hair while tilting your head down, looking at the ground. Similar to the way you would do when blow-drying. Scrunch the roots while your head is down. This adds extra volume to your roots! You can even stand in front of an air conditioner or blow dry while scrunching to roots--this allows Gel It to dry to your now voluminous roots.

  Not the best photo of me--hence why it's small! This is me today, right now as I type actually. I have just showered and Gelled It! I used a lot of Gel It today so it's taking a few minutes to dry. Using Gel It can give you results ranging from medium natural waves or as they call it "beach waves"--to hardcore curly. The feel of your hair also depends on how much you use. Most days I use a palm full and get less of the hardness to my hair like I have today. Today, I've used a couple of handfulls of Gel-It to get maximum curl, maximum hold and hairspray-like hardness. I mostly just wanted to see if Gel-It had the potential to be used in place of an exra-hold hairspray. You know, when you use a lot of hairspray or mousse and you get hard, crunchy hair? Well, if you happen to like that--sometimes I do-- Gel It delivers!

When compared to mousse, Gel It is my preference. It takes less time and I don't have to use near as much hair product to get results. Using mousse, I'll use a half of a can just to hold my natural curl.

In my photos, this is actually my natural hair, only with Gel-It. This is what it looks like when I don't flat iron! I used to go through unbelievable amounts of mousse back in high school to get this hair!

CONSISTENCY

Gel-It feels and looks like a clear gel. It comes in a  16 oz tub with plenty of lovely clear colored gel. Simply screw the top off and dip in! 

To the touch, I'm sure you can guess what Gel It feels like--gel! One thing I really appreciate is that it doesn't leave a residue all over my hands after using. Another thing all of us girls can appreciate is that Dax's Gel-It is non-flaking! Believe me, it really doesn't turn flaky in your hair. I left my hair gelled and un-washed over night and still had no flakes the next day. 

Gel-It is labelled as a "soft-medium hold" gel, but like I said, you can expect your hair to hold it's style/shape all day. I put my gelled hair in a pony tail and when I took it out, it was still nice, plump and curly! 

Benefits:

• Medium to soft hold
• Non-flaking
• Added shine 
• Clean and healthy looking hair

 WHO CAN USE IT?
 Gel It can be used on any hair type, any length.


HOW TO USE IT
Gel It can be used on wet or dry hair by rubbing between palms and applying anywhere you want with as much as you desire.


If you aren't sure that this will have enough hold for you, Dax also carries Gel-It in Extra Hold. For someone with very damaged hair, you may consider trying Protein Gel-It. 


Gel-It can be used to scrunch and curl hair, to add shine and hold before ironing hair, for a messy look, soft natural waves and even for men who like to spike!


Using Gel-It before flat ironing hair can add a nice shine and keep your hair sleek longer. I like to add a bit to my ends in the front, keeps them from curling under. You can also use Dax's pomades for things like this.


The Dax products I've used have never frizzed my hair. When scrunching/curling your hair and using a gel, a lot of us tend to get frizz. I've scrunched my heart out with this gel and even drove with the window down and no frizz! That brings me to another point--if your hair frizzes around the edges of your face, especially when wearing it up in a pony tail, slick a dab of Gel-It to keep the frizz low.

*To learn more about sponsored reviews, see my disclosure page*

Help free Sara Kruzan!

Photo courtesy of Change.org

 As some of you may have seen, a lot of people are working hard to save Sara Kruzan, free her from being a prisoner--all for protecting herself. I recently joined the Faces For Sara group and want to ask you lovely readers to take a minute to get to know the situation and join! It's simple. You'll send your headshot/photo to FacesForSaraKruzan@gmail.com 

Our photos will be put in a book-style petition and delivered to Gov. Brown. This is a fantastic way to go about this. Sara will be able to see all of the faces of the people who are on her side and asking for her freedom!


You can also sign a petition to help free Sara by going here.

There are a few easy rules that are asked to be followed if you're going to participate. These are copied and pasted directly from Elizabeth Ohara.com. 

-
"1) Send 1 to 3 pictures of yourself that are clear, HIGH-RESOLUTION PHOTOS (over 500k, preferably 1MB or higher). Also No photoshopped images or otherwise doctored images. [No exceptions on the image size]. If you do not have a computer or much internet access, please email me for my mailing address to snail mail me your picture.

2) Send a statement of a few words to a short sentence or two stating your feelings about Sara's case, desire for her release or condemning her imprisonment. You can send me a sentence of what you'd like me to quote along with sending your photo. Please do not photoshop the statement into the photo. Pictures with you looking into the camera are stronger for this project.

3) Group photos are absolutely not accepted without my direct permission. Each person must be individually photographed.
Got it?

Three Simple Rules: Large Photo, Something to quote & no group photos."

So all you have to do is send your photo, leave a brief sentence or two asking for her freedom. I left a few sentences saying something along the lines of trafficking and how her body should be her own, she's a woman, a human and not a sexual object... You can go with something simple like "Please free Sara! No human deserves this." Anything you'd like.

Email your photo and quote to the address provided above. You can also learn more about the project here.  Remember, you're free to join on Facebook to keep up to date! Also, join our group Anti-Pornography to keep up to date on how to take action for Sara as well as hundreds of other cases!