Monday, December 17, 2012

Whitening...Crest 3D White Professional Effects Whitestrips

Back in November, I was invited to take part in the Influenster VoxBox for Crest 3D White Professional Effects Whitestrips! Now, I've explained a little about Influenster in one of my previous posts... but let me explain a little more. Influenster gives it's members opportunities to try products and give honest reviews (this is dependent on a lot of different criteria, see the website for more on that ). There are also places on the website to do reviews of other products you've tried.

Anyway, I was really excited to try out the whitestrips! I'll show you a before and after picture. The pictures were on my cell, and aren't really clear, so you may not notice a huge difference, if any (I was also in different lighting...).

This is before...

This is after.

Like I said, you probably can't tell a lot of difference, if any. In a way, I almost feel the second is worse. But keep in mind the lighting, angles and the cell!

Now for my honest opinion on the Crest 3D White Professional Effects Whitestrips: I honestly had pretty good results, even after a couple of days! My teeth were not really bad to begin with, but I did start to see a difference, and so did my husband!

Now, I failed to put these things on EVERY day for 20 days straight. I used them a couple of days, but then on mornings I was in a rush, I wouldn't. I kept telling myself, "I'll do it tonight". So I'd skip a few day in between. Not a big deal, I still saw results.

There are a few cons to using these: first of all, they aren't the easiest to attach to your teeth. Granted, they stay put once they are on, but I looked hilarious trying to stretch my lips out to get them in place. Also, be VERY careful about putting them on your gums. I had MAJOR sensitivity. I even had a few times where my teeth would just hurt. I wasn't a huge fan of that. And there was one day (only one though) where I must have either done it too soon after brushing my teeth, or my teeth were too wet, because the bottom strip did not want to attach. It was sliding around. I finally just wrapped it over my teeth and it stayed well enough I guess.

Overall, I enjoyed getting to try the whitestrips. Because my teeth weren't super yellow to begin with, I didn't see HUGE results, but I did notice a difference. For instance... this picture:



It was taken after 3-4 days of starting the whitestrips. When I uploaded it to Facebook, I thought, "Wow, my teeth look really white!"

I really think that these would be beneficial for someone who has more stains than me. The cons I mentioned above aren't permanent... And it's a much more affordable option than going to a professional for whitening!

As Crest says "If you're not whitening, you're yellowing!" For more information about Crest 3D White, visit their page:

I'd say give these a try if you're really wanting to see some improvement in a short amount of time, then use a whitening tooth paste to maintain.

These opinions are ALL 100% my own. I received the product from Influenster for free.

Friday, December 14, 2012

Coffee shop style... my way!

What comes to mind when you think of Salted Caramel? What about Pumpkin Pie? Well, for me... I'm thinking about ALL the different things I could really add delicious flavor to. I had the wonderful opportunity to try Torani syrup in Salted Caramel and Sugar Free Pumpkin Pie.

I haven't yet tried the Pumpkin Pie... and that's really because I'm not a HUGE fan of pumpkin flavored things... but I'm still going to look at some recipes. I know a lot of people love Pumpkin spiced lattes/coffees/etc. So I WILL try it. I'm just living in my comfort zone... SALTED CARAMEL!

And this is where the coffee shop style comes in. I couldn't wait to try out this flavor. I love caramel! I immediately thought of one thing: Salted caramel hot chocolate! I am not a huge coffee drinker, but I LOVE some hot chocolate. So one cold Saturday morning, I heated up the milk (if you do instant hot chocolate, use milk! It makes it MUCH creamier and delicious), added the hot chocolate packet (store brand, with marshmallows), poured in the Torani Salted Caramel syrup, topped it with whipped cream... and fell in LOVE! I swear it tasted like some fancy drink you'd pay like $4 for at coffee shop. But this, it was coffee shop style, my way, and on my budget. I can enjoy this delicious treat as often as I want, without breaking the bank!



I have also added the Salted Caramel syrup to coffee. Now, I require lots of cream and sugar in my coffee... and adding in the Salted Caramel made my normal coffee even better. My husband has also used it in his coffee some too. I love the smooth, sweet caramel flavor!

I am really interested in trying these syrups out in some recipes... and with the holidays here, I have plenty of opportunities! I'll keep you posted. As for now, I'm hosting a Mary Kay sale tomorrow, and we'll be serving some crockpot hot chocolate, and yes, I will have my Torani syrups on hand for my guests to try! I know they'll love it as much as I do!



*This post is sponsored by SheSpeaks and Torani. I received these products to test for free. All opinions, however, are 100% my own!*

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Influenster

I'm sure many of you know that I love to try new things. I love being able to have a say in new products, and to give my opinion on things!

I'm a part of this AWESOME website Influenster, and they've just revamped their site. It's easy to use, and a great place to learn about a lot of awesome products! You can also earn opportunities to try products! I recently have gotten to try Crest 3D White Whitestrips. For free!

You can go on there and find info about products, and also share your own expertise! The new setup is really great. If you're not a member already, head to www.influenster.com to check it out!

If you have any questions, please ask. Influenster is definitely one of my new favorite sites, and I'm excited to be a part of their community!

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

It's been a while...

It's been quite a while since I've posted. I kept saying I was going to, but a lot of things got in the way.

A lot has changed since the last time I wrote!

Back in February, I was offered a job-- in radio! Finally, back in my field. My husband and I had been talking about it for quite a while as we waited to hear back about the job... It was going to be a big change for us, why? Because it's in Georgia-- 5 1/2 hours from the wonderful island we called home.

I wanted the job, badly. I had prayed about it and thought about it constantly... so when the call came in February, I was so excited... and scared. Moving to Georgia wasn't so bad, I would be closer to my family, and my wonderful sister had a house we could move into. Everything had fallen into place. Neither of us were having any luck finding decent jobs in Florida, my sister had the house, I got the job offer... It was like God was saying, here it is-- take it!

I was in shock after the phone call. I was like, did that really just happen? And then panic sunk in-- I had TWO WEEKS to get my whole house packed up and moved. Talk about a stressful two weeks. I had NEVER had to pack a whole house before (I'd only packed my room up before).

We arrived safely in Georgia on February 15th. And since then... time has FLOWN by. I've now been at my new job for 3 months! I can't believe it. We're still in my sister's house, although we're hoping to find our own place by August. My Cody-dog has settled in nicely, and gotten over the anxiety he had when we first arrived. Louis has a job, and even though he's not always crazy about it-- we're finally making some money! It's definitely been a God-thing. This whole experience has been an eye-opening one. Louis and I have had the joy of going through this journey together. It hasn't always been the greatest, but we're learning and growing together and accomplishing things.

We celebrated our 1 year anniversary earlier this month. Again, time has FLOWN! I can't believe a year has passed. It's amazing to look back and see what the year has brought us. So much has happened. There has been laughter and there has been tears. There have been good times and bad times (yes, even newlyweds have the occasional argument). It's been an incredible journey, and I'm glad we're in it together.

So back to my job... I've settled into my new role, although I was a bit overwhelmed at first. I am the Program Director for three radio stations out of Newnan- Fox Sports 1400 AM, Magic 98.1 FM and 720 AM- the Voice. I've already learned a lot in my 3 months here. I love being back in radio. I've been told that it gets in your blood-- and I do believe that to be true. It's a passion. I have my days of doubt where I think, "What the heck were they thinking when they hired me to do this job?" and I have tons of questions and still feel like I'm walking blindly into things... but overall, I'm really happy with my job. I get to do what I love. I get to voice and produce things, I get to interact with listeners, and then of course, I have my "program director" duties. It's a new adventure each day as I learn my job.

Overall, life is going great. I do miss the beach with every ounce of my being. I honestly hope that in a few years I will have gained enough experience that I can find a job somewhere near a beach. But for now, mid-west Georgia is where we call "home". And that's ok with me... because it's just another page in our book. It's just another day, another stepping stone in this journey of life. And that, my friends, makes for a beautiful thing.

Have a wonderful day! I know this blog isn't THAT exciting, but I was trying my best to squeeze in an update... without going into EVERY little detail! I hope to write more soon! Until then!

-B

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

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