Health

Skincare: Herbal Choice Mari SPF-15 Day Cream

August 26, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Herbal Choice Mari SPF-15 Day Cream

If you are even a sporadic Style Chicks reader, you know how strongly we feel about the daily use of sunscreen, 365 days a year, rain or shine.

I have become increasingly concerned about chemicals in sunscreens being absorbed transdermally into my system. A lot of chemicals such as oxybenzone are readily absorbed into your body and have been shown to cause allergic reactions in some people and cause toxicity. Synthetic fragrances and dyes can also get into your system, and can cause topical reactions as well. Trading sun protection for a rash or toxic chemicals in your system doesn’t sound appealing, does it?

That is why I like Herbal Choice Mari SPF-15 Day Cream. It is oxybenzone and octinoxate free. It is also free of chemicals and nano-particles, which can penetrate the skin and get into the system. It is also free from petroleum based ingredients. And from the Herbal Choice website, all the other things it is free of: “free from synthetic fragrances or dyes. Free from gluten, dairy, soy, corn, no GMO. Free from phthalates, parabens, preservatives. Free from beeswax, insects or animal ingredients”. And it is also Cruelty-free, vegan and vegetarian. Covers all the bases, doesn’t it?

While it comes in tinted shades (like a tinted moisturizer or a light BB cream), I selected the transparent shade. It does leave a bit of a white film. However, I’m finding of late that if you apply a sunscreen that leaves a white tint, then foundation is truer on my skin. I’m quite fair and have a cool skin tone, so consider one of the tinted shades if you aren’t quite as pale as I am.

So, the big question is, if it doesn’t protect the skin via chemicals, then how does it actually work? It contains Non-Nano Zinc Oxide, a well-known sun shield. It is a full-spectrum sunscreen, so you are protected from both UVA and UVB rays. It also has lovely skincare ingredients such as organic olive oil, organic lemongrass, organic lavender, and organic sage.

It has a delicate lemongrass scent that dissipates on the skin. The formula itself is incredibly emollient and makes my skin feel smooth and supple. It comes in a lovely purple glass jar to protect the formula, and it is quite pretty on its own.

I’m very happy to have found a sunscreen that not only protects and nourishes my skin but is also free of so many dangerous ingredients! I often hear absorption of chemicals as a reason women don’t choose to wear sunscreen, but there are alternatives, and this is a great sunscreen that won’t harm your body and is great for your skin! It also comes in an SPF 30, which is recommended by many dermatologists.

Find this great sunscreen at Nature’s Brands.

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XPTiXi78-0[/embedyt]

I received this product for testing and review purposes. If you have any questions about my experience with it, leave it in the comments section below, and Iâ€™ll do my best to answer it!

Travel: Embassyâ„¢ Design Genuine Leather Gym Bag

August 23, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Embassyâ„¢ Design Genuine Leather Gym Bag

I have never been one to pack light.

This travel bag seems like a standard to larger gym bag size and style of bag, but it fits an incredible amount of stuff. It is sturdy and has lots of inner pockets to hold items such as your camera, devices such as phone, chargers, tablets, laptops, hairdryers and shoes. There are also outside pockets for items such as water bottles, sunglasses, wallet, passport, keys and other items you need to access quickly.

QUALITY:
No loose threads or subpar workmanship, it looks more expensive than I expected. Handles and strap are robust enough to hold the contents of the bag. There are two handles but also a long shoulder strap for ease of use.

FOR TRAVEL:
I was able to pack the following with room to spare: one pair of 5″ stiletto heels, a pair of 2″ wedge museum/walking shoes, a pair of ballet flats and a pair of sneakers. Also, it fit three cotton skirts, a pashmina for chilly nights, six t-shirts, two pairs of jeans, two strappy tops, one silk long sleeve button down; two nice short sleeves knit tops, a pair of leggings, one pair capris and one pair of shorts. Also, my camera, my Kindle, my sketch book and pencils, my hairdryer, my makeup and toiletries bag, and a lingerie bag. This all fit into the bag with room to spare, plus all the pockets were empty for last minute additions (I always seem to remember items to pack as I am heading out the door!). I like having extra room for little gifts and items I buy along the way, and additional pockets for any extra little hotel soaps and shampoos I don’t use. This bag is large enough to hold at least two pairs of men’s shoes as well, so it works for both males and females. It held up well stored in the trunk and getting shoved around with the other luggage during my travels. By the end of my trip, it was carrying lots of extra heavy stuff and got the job done.

One thing I particularly like about this bag both for travel and for gym use is the compartment to store dirty clothes. I hate when traveling having dirty and clean clothes all mixed in together, or having clean gym clothes ruined by used gym clothing that needs to be washed.

This bag is not just for travel; it is sturdy enough to carry heavier groceries or bottles, equipment, or for use as a gym bag. It is a very versatile bag; I have no complaints, and I am very pleased to have bought it.

Find this great bag at Amazon.

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bf77hbnT_Xw[/embedyt]

I received this product for testing and review purposes. If you have any questions about my experience with it, leave it in the comments section below, and Iâ€™ll do my best to answer it!

The Whistling Kettle Tea of the Month Club

August 18, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Here at StyleChicks, we consume lots of tea. And like clockwork, every six weeks we make a large loose leaf tea order. This order consists of our favorite greens; some whites and oolong, a matcha and a vanilla black. It would be easier to be on an auto-order to keep our favorites coming and try some new flavors, but to date, we haven’t found a tea of the month club that meets our needs. An issue we have experienced with monthly clubs is not having the option to select the kind of tea you want.

There is some potentially appealing Tea of The Month offers out there, but when it comes down to it, there are three factors we particularly value that are make or break for us choosing a tea club:

The quality of the tea itself
Being able to choose the type tea you like
Terms of service that are acceptable to live with and not a hassle to change, pause or even cancel.

With these three criteria in mind, we examined the Whistling Kettle Tea of the Month Club. You may know them from their quaint Cafe in Troy, New York, or the Ballston Spa that serves their teas. Or Whistling Kettle may be new to you. When we had a chance to taste many of The Whistling Kettle teas, we were so excited to try them all, because all the teas smell truly knock your socks off fantastic! It was hard to decide which tea to brew first!

The Whistling Kettle Tea of the Month Club Endurance Flavor

THE QUALITY OF THE TEA

Whistling Kettle Teas are loose teas. The inclusions such as nuts, berries, dried fruit, or other petals are large or at times, even whole pieces. The tea leaves fresh are the full leaf or larger leaf pieces, not dust or remnants. The close up photos show the teas as they came out of the package: colorful, full and fresh quality. And as soon as you open the tea container, the first thing you notice it smells absolutely delicious. As we tried each flavor, one was better than the next. Even the black teas smelled delicious. For example, one black tea, the flavor “SnowFlake” had wonderful scents of cinnamon, vanilla, and almond. And the almonds pieces in the black tea were full almond slivers or larger chunks of almond, not ground up almond powder or just an almond flavoring. The color of the brewed tea as a lovely dark golden amber hue and the tea tasted delicious, even on a second brew. That is another nice feature of these teas, most of them can do a second brew as tasty as the first.

The Whistling Kettle Tea of the Month Club Snowflake Flavor

THE WHISTLING KETTLE TEA FLAVOR OVERVIEWS

The Whistling Kettle Tea of the Month Club

In addition to the Snowflake black tea described above, we tried several varieties of The Whistling Kettle teas to assess the quality of their products. Some of these teas included:

BANANA DULCE: I am not a fan of the scent of banana, but the aroma of the Banana Dulce in the container reminded me of these tasty candied banana chips I ate as a child and the brewed tea both smells and tastes like fresh baked banana bread, with flavors of coconut and graham cracker. It is a testament to a tea product that even a not well-liked flavor can be tasty if done right. Whistling Kettle Banana Dulce is an organic decaf blend and brews to a lovely pale shade of gold.

VANILLA SILK OOLONG: I am particularly fond of Oolongs, sort of a bitter but sweet champagne kind of taste. This Oolong has a delicate orange cream scent and has a mild sweetness to it that is not too sticky or overpowering.

SCOTTISH CARAMEL TOFFEE PU-REB: This is unlike other teas I have had, it has a pleasant toffee aroma and good sized toffee chunks that balance out the earthy tones of the pu-erh. It is sweet, but not overpoweringly so. Pu-erh is an aged, fermented red tea that is sometimes mistaken for a black tea. This one smells like a bakery or candy store; the aroma is fantastic. It is an energizing tea and a good alternative to coffee or colas for an afternoon energy boost.

EAST FRISIAN BROKEN TEA: This is a breakfast tea, it is malty, not sweet or flavored. It brews to a wonderful, dark color.

ENDURANCE: As the name implies, this organic tea is energizing and is intended to increase stamina. It is also a Pu-Erh tea and has fruity inclusions such as Organic Cinnamon, Organic Goji Berries, Organic Schizandra Berries, and Organic Nettle Leaf. The berries are whole, and the tea blend makes for a lovely looking brewing process, especially if you brew them in a glass teapot. Medium caffeine content and it smells absolutely delicious.

GOLDEN STARFRUIT: This green tea was one of my favorite of the bunch, with a notable aroma that is worthy of serving guests when you want to spoil them a bit with a delightful treat. There are big chunks of starfruit, and it has a wonderful tropical taste without being sugary sweet. If you want the benefits of green tea but you dislike the taste of green tea, this is a delicious way to enjoy the benefits of green tea. Lovely light golden hue upon brewing smells delicious to the last drop.

The Whistling Kettle Tea of the Month Club Golden Starfruit Flavor

LEMON SOUFFLE HONEYBUSH: A caffeine-free creamy Rooibos blend suitable for drinking at night and winding down and relaxing. A beautiful yellow-gold with a mildly tart lemon flavor that has lovely bright blue and yellow inclusions in the tea. If you are avoiding caffeine at night but want to drink tea, this is also tasty as a cold iced tea beverage.

I liked every tea I tried, and some of them such as Snowflake, Golden Starfruit, and Endurance I loved! These teas were amongst the best we have tasted, and after years of loyalty drinking the same brand, we were convinced to drinking The Whistling Tea Kettle teas.

The Whistling Kettle Tea of the Month Club

THE WHISTLING KETTLE TEA CLUB TERMS
While these teas and other flavors are sold individually on their website, there are 15 types of Tea of the Month Clubs available.

Something that sets this tea club apart from the others:

You select the types of tea you want, not a variety or mystery pack selections – unless you ask for a variety selection.
Amongst the 15 types of Tea Clubs, choose all green, all black, all chocolate, Endurance teas, Herbal teas, Discovery packs, amongst others. The Tea Tasting Club is a club for tea lovers who want to try as many types of tea as possible.
Get 2-4 oz of each of the Loose teas with big pieces of inclusions of nuts berries, and petals, not pre-bagged tea dust or remnants with artificial flavoring instead of the real thing.
FLEXIBLE TERMS:
Choose 3 or 6 months and your shipment dates.
You can cancel at any point
You can change the type of club whenever you wish. Drink Green Tea in the summer and switch to the endurance and stamina teas during the cold, dark winter months.
Free shipping
You won’t be billed on signup, rather just before shipment.
Reasonable prices without hidden fees

SUMMARY:
I enjoyed all The Whistling Kettle teas I tried, and The Whistling Kettle offers several rare, hard-to-find, and exotic teas within their subscriptions. It ‘s hard to locate an organic, fresh, tasty tea brand with lots of variety amongst their loose leaf teas. I also love seeing when a tea has a generous inclusion of berries, nuts, petals, and other flavorings. The teas look so attractive, smell divine and brew to beautiful golden hues. There was no “dust” or remaindered teas, everything was fresh, not an overstock. They have tea flavors I have never tried before, and the Endurance teas are surprisingly energizing. We would recommend giving them a try; the Tea Clubs offer a great way to drink your favorites or try some new teas!

Find the Tea of the Month Club at The Whistling Kettle.

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-V43l8MJkc[/embedyt]

I received this product in exchange for my unbiased review and received compensation for my time and effort. However, my experience with the product and the opinions expressed in this review are 100% mine.

Summer: Medella Naturals All-Natural Insect Repellent

August 12, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Medella Naturals All-Natural Insect Repellent

This time last years, I went to a picnic in a beautiful part of Westchester on a lakeside. It was absolutely beautiful. What wasn’t beautiful was the allergic reaction I got to the chemically laden bug spray. Not only did I get an allergic reaction, but I smelled weird (not great at a social gathering), it got on my clothes, and it took me two days and three showers to scrub the stuff off of me. Oh, and I still got three welt-sized bug bites.

This year I’m not having any of those problems thanks to using essential oils instead of chemical insect repellents. One of my favorites is Medella Naturals All-Natural Insect Repellent. It is all natural: DEET-free (yay!), chemical free, and contains all natural ingredients. The ingredients are all things I have actually heard of: Lemongrass Oil 0.5%, Water, Vanilla, Castor Oil, Soya Lecithin, Lemon, Vitamin E 99.5%. I think it’s great that not only are these natural, non-toxic ingredients, but they are actually good for the skin!

As to the scent, it is actually quite fresh and pleasant. The top note is Lemongrass, with a soft hint of vanilla. The vanilla makes it smell more like something from Creed fragrances than the standard Lemon Pledge smell that comes with some Lemongrass-based bug sprays.

And the thing that really matters: it works! I haven’t gotten any bites since I’ve been using it, even in this hot and damp weather of late. It doesn’t transfer to clothes, nor is it oily. It absorbs nicely into the skin and makes it so soft! I’m really happy to have found this insect repellent!

Find it at Medella Laboratories

Tea Week: Pratico Kitchen Iced Tea Pitcher

August 11, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Pratico Kitchen Iced Tea Pitcher

It’s Tea Tuesday all week here at Style Chicks!

After a short break from the heat, the Fahrenheit is back to the mid-90s. So after my one cup of hot tea in the morning, it’s time to switch to iced tea.

Iced Tea doesn’t mean that you have to give up the great health and beauty benefits of brewed tea. That is why tea brewers like Pratico Kitchen Iced Tea Pitcher are fantastic: they brew regular loose tea, and then you can put it in the refrigerator to cool down to a nice, refreshing iced tea.

This Iced Tea Pitcher is especially suited to Iced Green Tea as the ample sized mesh strainer isn’t made of stainless steel, which alters the delicate taste of the green teas. It lets the leaves unfurl in the strainer, so you get the full taste and benefits of green tea.

Something that stands out about this pitcher is that is stays sealed once it is closed. If you are chilling your tea in the refrigerator, you can even put the pitcher on it’s side, and it won’t spill. After going through several supposedly sealed pitchers and having them leak, I’m thrilled to find one that actually stays sealed!

I like adding some fruit, especially citrus fruit, to complement the taste of my tea. It is easy to let the fruit infuse in the pitcher, and if you would just like an infused water, you can put berries or whatever you infusion recipe of choice is in the strainer to get delicious infused water!

Find this fantastic Iced Tea Pitcher at Amazon.com.

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRSFDRQIxpY[/embedyt]

I received this product at a discount in exchange for testing and review purposes. If you have any questions about my experience with it, leave it in the comments section below, and Iâ€™ll do my best to answer it!