Ecocentric Mom

Let’s face it, life doesn’t stop just because you’re in college or busy with life. It would be great if it did, but you have to keep up with the shopping, homework, and maybe even squeeze in a social life somewhere in there. It can be a full time job just being you! One monthly subscription box by the name of Ecocentric Mom understands this and has the perfect solution. For $17 and free shipping you will get a box filled with al sorts of amazing products that are healthy, natural, and organic.

You will get the opportunity to try new products that are good for you and your child. You will get more than your $17 value in products and samples. From our experience there are even full size products included that not only allow you to try new and healthy things, but that also add to the overall value of this box. Think about it, you don’t even have to leave your house or dorm room, this is delivered right to you by the mail!

Perhaps you think that you know someone who would like one of these boxes, well your in luck. Ecocentric Mom offers the option for these boxes to be gifted. That’s right, if you’re a parent and you want to gift one of these nifty boxes to a college student in your life that could benefit from one then that option is there. These boxes are not just for Mommies, but the benefits for getting one of these boxes as a Mom are superb. The verdict, this box is great and well worth the money every month. The value of the items included is great, it’s packaged nicely, and shipping is free.

For more information or to subscribe or gift an Ecocentric Mom box visit them online at EcocentricMom.com.

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Objects With Purpose

Most everyone can appreciate the smell of a candle or the ambiance that they create, especially during the Fall of the year! However, what most people do not know is that most candles are toxic, that’s right, they are harmful to use. How then are you supposed to enjoy the benefits of a candle or give one as a gift and enjoy it with a clear conscience? The answer is simple, you need an alternative. Luckily, one business by the name of Objects With Purpose is working to make candles that you can enjoy in more ways than one and candles that are not harmful in the least!

How exactly is a candle from OWP different than a normal mass produced candle? For starters you can use them for more than just burning. You can use it as a candle (obviously), a body butter when they are warm, and a solid perfume when they are cool. Talk about a versatile product! Now onto what they are made of. Essential oils along with organic renewable coconut shea and apricot butters are what make up these candles that serve more than one purpose.

One very important for any candle though is how it smells. Don’t worry about the smell lacking because it doesn’t. In fact the scents are comparable to that of high end boutique candles and to be honest they smell even better than those. You can tell that thought was really put into these candles, from the scents to the uses of them. These aren’t just candles you burn once and throw away, these are the kind of thing that you want to give as a gift and perhaps get one or two for yourself while you’re at it. This holiday season don’t settle for a boring and harmful store bought candle, light something that will make memories and fill the air with cozy scents, then enjoy the other benefits that these candles offer. Do it all with a clear conscience knowing that you and your loved ones won’t be harmed by these candles.

For more information or to place an order be sure to check out ObjectsWithPurpose.com or their Etsy Shop!

ArtfulTea

It’s hard to find a good cup of tea in a market full of mass produced products. ArtfulTea is one company that is changing that. With a vast variety of teas to choose from, there is a blend of tea for just about everyone. This company takes the art of tea making and tea drinking and focuses mainly on that, rather than trying to sell you a cheap product. Each of their teas and tea accessories is of the highest quality and it truly is evident in the taste and smell of their teas.

There are some really cool features on their website ArtfulTea.com that help their customers better understand the art of tea and how to choose the tea that is right for them. The Tea Wisdom section of their website shares insightful information about their teas, how to prepare the perfect cup of tea and even information on how long you can store tea. Aside from a variety of tea offerings, they also have a nice selection of tea related accessories, everything is obviously designed to suit any tea lovers needs. It’s a one stop place to get your tea, accessories, and information about tea. Spend $75 or more and you even get free shipping!

ArtfulTea is one tea company that is making their name known by providing high quality teas that anyone can enjoy. They focus on their customers and providing a unique tea experience every time. Their slogan is “A creative mixture of luxury loose leaf teas and tea accessories” and they live up to that! This fall and holiday season be sure to get the tea lover in your life some ArtfulTea and bring back the true art of tea.

Donna’s Bounty Herbs and Spices

If you love tea as much as we do then you are sure to love Donna’s Bounty Herbs and Spices. They have everything from bagged tea to loose leaf tea in either decaffeinated or regular as far as their tea selection goes. Aside from their suburb teas, they also offer herbs, spices and extracts. One of the great things about this shop is that everything is super fresh because they only make small batches at a time, this means your not ordering something that has been sitting on a shelf for weeks at a time, it’s all fresh!

The natural ingredients in their teas really makes all the difference in the smells and flavors. There really is no comparison in a store bought bag of tea that has been mass manufactured to a hand packaged fresh bag of tea from Donna’s Bounty. The flavors in a single cup of their tea are robust and bursting with taste. One really cool thing about Donna’s Bounty is that they are a New York State Department of Agriculture inspected and licensed facility and they guarantee that their products will taste fresh, not many independent tea companies can brag about that!

Perhaps a fantastic cup of tea doesn’t interest you. If that is the case then you will be pleased to know that their mulling spices are also superb. Mulling spices are great for adding to juices and ciders, especially for the Fall season! They also offer a very large selection of herbs and spices that you can use to cook with. There really isn’t much that you can’t find at Donna’s Bounty Herbs and Spices. If you like fresh teas and ingredients and high quality products then you should visit them at their Etsy shop online or their online eBay store! For more information on the wide variety of products offered or to place an order outside of Etsy or eBay send them an e-mail at Dhonsing@nycap.rr.com!

ASOS

Affordable style is not a really common thing. However, ASOS is one store that is changing that. They ship to most anywhere in the world for FREE and offer a variety of vintage and retro inspired clothing. If you are looking for something that will help you stand out, or please your sense of fashion,then they are the place to look. While some of their clothing is a bit pricy, for instance $70 for a T-Shirt with a screen-printed design, they also offer a large selection of their clothing at discounted prices.

There always seems to be some kind of sale going on or a promotional code or two floating around for ASOS customers to enjoy. While shipping is not the fastest that we’ve seen, it is FREE and efficient. Their customer service is suburb and answers questions and offers support around the clock! One thing that we really love about ASOS is that they have a nice selection for both Men and Women, whereas many clothing companies target one gender.

They offer many methods that you can choose to pay for your order with, personally we love using PayPal, but if that’s not your thing then credit and debit cards are perfectly fine. There is a growing demand for the type of clothing that they offer, and so far no other company does as good of a job of treating their customers great, giving them the best deals, and offering such great prices and of course the FREE shipping is never a bad thing!

Now were not saying that we are in love with everything that they offer, some of their clothing may only be fitting for the more unique and individual, but for the majority they have something for just about everyone. From shoes to sweaters to jewelry and underwear, they literally have it all. The cool thing about ASOS is that they not only sell their brand, but they sell other independent and undiscovered brands as well so that you get the best variety and selection possible. So the next time you want an outfit that helps you stand out or start a new trend, check out ASOS.

Apps For A Healthier You

It seems anymore that technology is a permeant fixture in the lives of just about everyone. To some this may be an excuse to not live healthy or put health on a lesser priority, but it is actually a great way to stay healthy. Some of the most effective and popular apps on the market today deserve some recognition. If you own any iod device, basically an Apple product such as an iPod Touch, iPhone, or iPad, then you already have the base for what these apps are all about! Here are the best fitness and health apps on the market.

MyFitnessPal – Now you don’t need an ios device for this because they have a website that does the same thing, but this app makes it very simple to track weight loss, manage your diet, connect with other people wanting to stay healthy and loose weight, and it has just about every feature someone looking to stay healthy on the go would want. This app is FREE!

Couch-to-5K – Talk about an effective app! This app not only sets a simple to follow plan to get you healthy and ready to run a 5K if you want to, but it has a built in music player for when you are doing the plan, three different digital trainers to choose from to guide you along, and offers the option for finding 5K’s near you and even gives you a discount for registering for a 5K. This app cost $1.99.

Sleep Cycle – Everyone knows that you can’t exercise and be healthy if you are tired and exhausted to begin with. Sleep Cycle is an app that monitors your motion while you sleep and determines when you are in your lesser sleep cycle, meaning you aren’t in as deep a sleep, and it goes by the time you set to be woken up. It gradually wakes you up by playing your choice of sound, music, or regular alarm noise. This app is important because it wakes you up on time and does it in a way that makes you feel like you have gotten a great nights sleep every time! This app is $0.99.

Pedometer – There is a paid and free version of this app, both are great! This app takes the pedometer to the next level by allowing you to listen to your music while walking, running, jogging, etc. it also records spikes in how fast you are going, as well as time, and it does all of this while setting goals for walking with you. If you plan on having your ios device with you, then this is the app to get, but it is ment for iPod Touch and iPhone, sorry but I doubt you would want to carry an iPad with you while you go jogging.

These are some of the best health and fitness apps on the market, some are free, and some cost, but none are over $3. Health is such an important thing, so I have a feeling you won’t mind putting down a dollar or two to make your tech life a little more healthy.

SneakPeeq

We are all becoming ever familiar with online shops that are member exclusive. Especially those where you can join regardless of who you are, you just have to go through a pesky registration process. Well, one online shop is taking that marketing strategy, but adding in their own little twist. SneakPeeq is a new website where each day you get around 20 or so “peeqs” that let you peek at the price of the item you are interested in. You earn badges and in effect cool deals along the way. Get this, for signing up you get $10 + a free welcome gift that is a nice little ring. Now, I’m a guy, so I felt a little left out with the welcome gift, but I signed up for it anyway to test and see if it was in fact 100% free as a welcome gift, and in fact it was. Already got the ring in the mail, have no use for it, but if I may make one suggestion to them, add a welcome gift that works for guys or girls or an option for something else for guys. Regardless, it is free, even shipping. I also found that when you go to place your first order and use your $10 credit, you can do a quick option to post to Facebook and you will also get free shipping. I got a Bamboo Bottle that cost around $20+ for literally $4 after my credit, free shipping, and a discount for liking their Facebook page. So if you’re looking for some amazing items, on an affordable budget, check out SneakPeeq!

Calendars and Fun from Go! Retail Group

Need a calendar to track the New Year? Or fun activities for cold snow days? Then check out Calendars.com or Go! Calendars, Toys, and Games from the Go! Retail Group. 

At your local shopping mall, their stores are either a freestanding kiosk or an actual 6,000 square foot store space. Their merchandise includes calendars that can suit every need and satisfy any style. Wall calendars, desk calendars, agendas, and miniature calendars are offered in an array of subjects from sports, to pets, to religious themes, to kid-friendly cartoon posters. The games these companies carry include favorites like Scrabble, Apples to Apples, and Operation along with trivia, crosswords, jigsaw puzzles, and more! You can find games based on your favorite movies and TV shows or learn party tricks with magic cards and kits.

Enjoy the New Year with calendars and games from Go Retail Group! They’re in malls and outlets in all fifty states, so there’s sure to be one near you. Shopping online is also simple if you’re snowed in and unable to get out. You’re sure to find something everyone loves!

Chegg It Out

Chegg.com for those of you not in know is a website developed around in new trends in academic life. It’s a book store for college text books that not only allows you to buy these books but also gives you the option to rent. Renting text books is a trend that has grown quicker than the gremlin population at all you can eat buffet after midnight. Everyone is doing it know from the bookstores on college campuses across the nation to major corporations like Amazon. Now these website are useful for starving college students as they can save cash paying almost half price or lower for their text books, but there are several catches one must look at before deciding to rent books.

The first one is how responsible you are. You see me being the irresponsible college student I am, would forget to mail the books back to Chegg and since I used my irresponsible debit card to pay for it, the money gets taken out of my bank out when the due date hits. Putting people like my self out of money. The second item you have to look at when renting is whether you’re going to need the book in the future. College is supposed to get you ready for a professional career and further learning, as you might need to reference a text at your job because I actually didn’t learn anything like me. Go Me! So if I rented the book I can’t reference seeing as I had to return it, thus in my perfectly pessimistic world I lose my job. Anyway, so choosing whether or not to use Chegg ultimately depends on how responsible are you with time and money, with a little bit of foresight thrown in.

It’s All About The Packaging

How many times have you been out shopping and found yourself drawn to an item just because it has a cool design to it? Even if you do not realize it, the majority of things sold in our global market are sold based on design, not so much for productivity or purpose. I am not saying that something can’t look good and still be useful, take a Macintosh computer for example, it’s elegant and extremely useful! You may not even realize that you are buying something based on it’s looks.

In many aspects of our shopping endeavors the product with the coolest box or the most snappy phrases written on it win our money. I honestly believe that you can have a good product that will not be successful in its sales if the packaging is not worth looking at. Personally, I would choose a drink contained in a modern or newly designed bottle rather than a coke that is in the same old can we see it in on a daily basis. This is not always the case, in fact many people will choose a brand that they know because they are so used to it, but think about it, even coke had branded packaging back when it first came on the market with it’s beautifully crafted glass bottles. It’s all in the packaging, don’t believe me? Take a look at our gallery of amazingly packaged products and see if you can honestly say you wouldn’t want to buy it for the packaging!