Pratisphere Ice Molds Product Review

I was given the opportunity to test these Pratico Ice sphere molds, and part of that honor is posting a reviw on my blog. This post may also contain affiliate links. Disclosure Statement.

These ice sphere molds from Pratico Kitchen are a lot of fun to make.  I've been having a blast creating new designs with them.  As you can see in the above image, they are beautiful all on their own, but there are so many different designs you can make with these.  Think of them as creative ice art.  :)

One of the biggest benefits to these 2.5" spheres, is they keep your drinks cold
without watering them down.  So far, with my testing, these last around 4 hours. I plan on making a bunch of these up to keep in the freezer.  My pup also loves these!  I use 100% organic coconut water for his spheres, and he gets a nice cool, healthy treat and toy to play with for a little while. So cute!  I really must get a photo of him playing with one!

We have some edible flowers around our house, so I grabbed a couple.  Did you know columbine flowers are edible? Seem too pretty to eat! Just one clover, and one columbine in each sphere mold to see how they would look. I wasn't sure what would happen to them, but decided to take a chance.

You can see the clover peeking out of the center hole. 

After they were done, I opened up the molds. Look how pretty they came out! So simple, yet so beautiful. I also had done some blueberries and cranberries to see how they would look. The columbine flower came out amazing!

The designs you can create are unlimited. This would be a great project for kids to do at the beginning of class at school, and they'd be ready by lunch or shortly after. Would also be fun for a birthday party for any age. Just make sure you have at least 4 hours for them to freeze completely.  The floral ones would be so pretty for a bridal shower or wedding reception too!  Please make sure to use organic, edible flowers.

I have quite a few design projects up my sleeves, and I can't wait to try them out.  I will update this post with more photos as I get the materials to do them.  ;)

This particular set by Pratico Kitchen comes with 4 individual ice cube trays, which is great and saves time when you are trying to make a bunch of them up to keep on hand or for a party.

If you would like to purchase this set, please click on any of the links in this blog post or the image shown below.
 

 

I was given this product to test in exchange for my honest review.  Disclosure Statement.

Product Review Quality Encapsulations Omega 3 Fish Oil

I was given the opportunity to try Quality Encapsulations Fish oil Supplement for free, and part of that honor is posting a review on my blog. This post may also contain affiliate links. Disclosure Statement

My family joined a nutrition business when I was 4 years old.  Supplements, cleaning products, protein shakes, you name it, it's always been a part of my life. So, fish oil supplements are not new to us. In this house, we all know what a "fish burp" tastes like, and it's not something you look forward to!

I gave these to my father to try as it has soy in it, and soy can mess with female hormones.  My father is a type II diabetic. He also high cholesterol, high triglycerides, high blood pressure, and dementia. He hasn't been taking any fish oil supplement for some time, as I've been giving him chia seeds and ground flax seeds instead. I test his blood 4x's a day, and after running out of chia and flax seeds, his blood started to clot too much, and he was having to squeeze his finger to get enough blood for his glucose readings. The next morning, he had plenty of blood upon the lancet pricking him, no need to squeeze! That is a visual sign of it having a positive benefit in his body as it is a natural blood thinner. :)

They are a bit large, but he doesn't have any issues swallowing them at all. I think gel capsules make it a lot easier to take this size of a pill than a large, hard tablet. They seem to go down easier......they just float away. He likes the lemony flavor of them, and says there are no fish taste, or "fish burps" at all with these. We'll have to see if it helps his triglycerides and cholesterol after he gets some blood work done in a few months.

One of the best things I personally like about this product, is that it is Non-GMO. It's extremely important to me that it is not a genetically modified product. I don't want my family, friends or anyone else to be a lab rat for those companies! So, thank you Quality Encapsulations for having a non-GMO product!

The label says to take 2 a day, and that is a 30 day supply with this 60 capsule bottle.
The "other" ingredients which is a bit hard to read in the photo says:
Highly refined Omega-3 Fish Oil (Anchovies, Mackerel, Sardines), Capsule (gelatin glycerin, purified water and natural lemon flavoring), and Antioxidant (mixed natural tocopherols (soy)).

If you aren't familiar with fish oil here are a few of the more common health benefits:

*Improves vision
*Helps with Alzheimer's
*Helps prevent tumor growth
*Increases focus
*Anti-inflammatory
*Depression
*Arthritis pain
*Reduces Triglycerides
*Skin issues
*Natural Blood Thinner
*Heart health and so much more.

Dr. Mercola has a few articles on his site about fish oil, but this one in particular is quite amazing about a boy who his parents were told to "let go" after a severe brain injury following a hit and run car accident. The doctors gave no hope for recovery. After taking 20 grams of fish oil for 2 days he called his mom! Read about the story here.

If you are interested in trying a fish oil supplement,  you might want to give this brand a try and see how you like it.  If you click on the image, it is my Amazon affiliate link which will take you to the supplement's page on Amazon. At the time of this writing, the 180 capsule is the best buy in comparison to the 60 caps. I was given this product to try for free in exchange for my honest review. All opinions and words are my own. 

Test and Review Products with AmazingDealsGroup

AmazingDealsGroup (ADG),  is a site that brings reviewers and sellers together.  You like to leave reviews for products you've purchased, and they have sellers who need honest reviewers for their products. It's a win-win for both!  In the interest of full disclosure, there are affiliate links and referral links within this post. The referral link is one I've been given, but receive no monetary benefit from.

So, how does the site work?

ADG has what they call "Deal Coins".  When you join, you get a deal coin, and then when you share the site on twitter or facebook, you get a second deal coin.

In order to review products on the site, you need a deal coin.  If you see a product you would like to review, you click on it. If you decide you really want it, you click the continue button, and it will show you the promo code to get the item at whatever "deal" they have it listed for on the site.  It can be anywhere from FREE to whatever the company has agreed to. Typically, they seem to be FREE to a couple of dollars.

You put it into your cart on Amazon, and when you go to check out, there will be a place to enter a promo code. See example image below:

Then the best part comes......when you see the price change right before your eyes like magic:

Now remember, you start off with 2 deal coins (unless you don't share or tweet when you join), and if you choose a product to review, you now have 1 deal coin left.  You can save it to use another time, or if you see something else you are interested in, grab it!  I say that because, you never know how many of each item is available at that discounted price.  There may only be a handful or hundreds....you just don't know.

Once you receive the item in the mail, try it out, and leave a review ASAP.  Companies prefer you leave a review within a week. Sometimes you may need more time than that.  If I find I need a lot more time, then I go ahead, write my review as best I can, and then note that I will update if I find I need to. Just make sure when you write your review, that you state something to the effect of "I was able to purchase this item at a discount in exchange for my honest review" to make sure you stay within the guidelines of the site you are using, Amazon, and .COM Disclosure.

You've used up your deal coins, now what?

Once you leave a review, and submit it for verification, ADG will verify it, and you will get another deal coin back. You can use it that very instant if you wish. So, we all start out with 2 deal coins, spend them, get them back when a review is verified. Easy system!

How do I keep track of my purchases on ADG?

Your purchase history is called the "Deal Queue". You see it first when you log onto the site. The purchase history shows the items in the order they were purchased. It has the date, code used, and the amount paid.  I like that I can look at my purchase history there, and at a glance, see all the details.

Is ADG on any social sites?

ADG has a facebook page, and a twitter feed. They are active on both, but more on facebook. I highly recommend checking their facebook page often when you have deal coins available to use! Sometimes they give you a glance at what will be offered that day, other times it's good information, a sneak peek of a particular item, or are there to answer questions you may have.

PLEASE NOTE: If you have a question or issue with an order, contact them directly through their site, NOT the facebook page. They'll be more than happy to help you out. That advice goes for ALL company/site pages. Try to work it out behind the scenes first. If that fails, then go public with it.
By the way, ADG has AMAZING customer service!

What kinds of things are there to review?

Here is a sampling of just some of the products I've purchased and reviewed in the last few weeks:

These items I purchased from several review sites

I've been able to review a wide variety of items.  Some are:
Headphones
Cell phone accessories
Mouse pads
Exercise equipment such as Yoga mats, towels, ab rollers, foam rollers, resistance bands, jump ropes, bicycle gloves etc.
Supplements
Essential Oils
Teas
Jewelry
Pet items
Kitchen tools such as digital food scale, water bottle with infuser, silicone tongs, silicone cupcake molds/liners, kitchen gloves, coffee grinder, wooden spoons, veggie spiralizers, mandolins, teaspoon sets etc.
Personal items such as shampoo, conditioner, face cream, face serum, derma rollers, eyelash curler, miswak club (toothbrush alternative) etc.
Household items such as chalk markers, ceiling ocean projector, waterproof cases etc.
Baby items such as teething necklaces, bamboo changing pads, crib mattress protector, bibs etc.

Now, I've only been doing this right at 2 months, and between all the sites I am using, I have been able to purchase and review 121 items as of this posting.  It's addicting!!!  So watch out!  I think I might need a self-help group for testing products and review addiction!

Things you need to know:

1.  More than one person is allowed per household. However, additional ADG accounts
    require unique Amazon accounts. ie you can't create 2 ADG accounts from just
    one Amazon account.
2. If you purchase an item, and do not leave a review, you will more than likely be
    banned from ever using the site again.
3. You cannot purchase the same item more than once (not sure if that is per
    household)
4. Having Amazon Prime is a huge benefit for product reviewers/testers FREE S/H
5. You cannot purchase or receive any items with the intention of selling them to make
    money.
6. Your promo code they give for each product is a unique code that is single use only.
    **If you happen to be a seller participating with ADG, this is a HUGE benefit for
    you since there would be no "code sharing" to worry about.
7. You will need to enter your Amazon Profile link in order for them to verify your
    review. Log into Amazon, go to account, scroll down to profile, click and copy link.
    Enter on the site where prompted under "My Profile".
8. When writing a review be HONEST, and do not just write, "Loved it, I was able to
    purchase this item at a discount in exchange for my honest review".  That won't cut
    it!
9. It's FUN, and addicting, so be prepared!

I'm ready to test products and review with ADG, where do I sign up?
You can click here, or the image at the top or bottom of this post.

Interested in joining Amazon Prime so you can get FREE Shipping? Click here for your 30 day free trial.  Want to know more about Prime, click here.  Try it for 30 days, and  see how often you use it, and if it fits your lifestyle. I now purchase just about everything there, and you can read about that in my other blog post.

Ok, so what are you waiting for? Find some products to test and review, and have a blast!

*In the interest of full disclosure, there are affiliate and referral links posted within this blog. You can read more about my disclosure policy here.

How to Review Products for FREE or at a HUGE Discount on Amazon!

Extremely Small Sample of Products I've Reviewed. Total cost $14.73! Cost on Amazon presently $154.41!!!

Have you ever wondered how some people are able to do reviews on Amazon for companies? You know what I'm talking about? You've seen the reviews where people say something like, "I was able to review this product for free...", or "I was able to review this product at a huge discount in exchange for my honest review".  I always have wondered how they got to do that. Well, a couple of weeks ago, I found out purely by accident! Someone mentioned a site they belong to in a forum I participate in every month. I joined the 2 sites they mentioned through their links, and honestly, I didn't expect very much.

THEY. ARE. AMAZING!!!  Seriously!  They are FREE to join too!

See the image at the top of this post? That is just a VERY very small sampling of items I've reviewed, and received at significant discounts. Those are the first items I reviewed in the first week I started this new venture, literally just a couple of weeks ago. The items in that photo would've cost me $154.41 if I had purchased them outright. (and that is Amazon's sale prices, not retail!) Because of these sites that are an avenue to connecting companies to reviewers, I was able to only pay $14.73! I am an extremely frugal shopper, and that even blew my capabilities out of the water, lol.  Now, some items I needed, some I wanted, and some were just plain cool. :)  Since then, I've received and reviewed over 55 items! I haven't tallied it all up yet, but I will share it in an upcoming post with more photos of products I've been lucky enough to receive at amazing prices, and many of them completely free. You just can't beat FREE!

I have since found more sites that participate in connecting people with companies that have products that they need to have reviewed. I will list them all once I get permission from all of them to do so. I am still waiting to hear back from about half of them, and I am sure I will be adding many more to my list as I find them.  If you happen to know of some I don't have listed, please let me know.

So, what are the sites?
I'm sure you are ready to see what some of these sites have to offer, so to get you started, here are three of the sites I have joined, and participate with regularly:

*AmazingDealsGroup 
*EliteDealClub
*Snagshout

If you join any of them, please let me know how you like the sites in the comment section below.

Follow The Rules

Each site has its own membership requirements, so be sure to read their Rules/TOS/FAQ's. Some rules apply for ALL of the sites, such as:

1) You MUST leave a review in a specified period of time or you will be banned from ever participating again.

2) You CANNOT purchase the same item more than once.

3) You MUST include your Amazon Profile link somewhere...either in your account where it specifies, or in some cases, per item you request to review.

4) You CANNOT share your promo code with ANYONE, EVER!!!

5) You MUST mention somewhere in your review that you received the item at a discount or for free, in exchange for your honest review.

6) You CANNOT purchase or receive any of these items with the intention of selling them to make money.

Those are just some of the rules, off the top of my head, that I know they ALL go by. I will list more, as they become apparent.  If the rules are not followed, you WILL more than likely be banned, and possibly worse.

How is all of this possible?

Well, companies need reviews. Many of the sellers of these items are new companies, or have new products.  So, they join these sites, and agree to a certain number of items to be given away, or sold at huge discounts in order to get honest reviews for their products.

Sometimes it may only be 10 items, so they go fast. Sometimes it's 500 items. Some of the sites have time limits, will give hours of when certain products will be listed that day, or some are available all the time for a certain number of days. Another site, might have it so that the seller contacts YOU if they think your reviews you've written already are good and honest enough, that they want you to review their product. They all have their own way of handling this amazingly awesome opportunity. 
Oh, and all of the sites and sellers DO check your reviews. So, don't think you can just write a few words, and be done with it. They really check! Be honest, share your opinion of the product, and have fun!

PLEASE REMEMBER:

Don't forget, you absolutely CANNOT get the same item twice....even if it's from a different site. The seller is the SAME, and the item is the SAME. So, you can't leave a review on Amazon more than once for the same item. If you try to purchase the same item from multiple sites, you will most likely get banned. You also may have to pay full price to the seller for the items you bought. It's called stealing folks! So. Just. Don't. Do. It! Got it?!

FRIENDLY WARNING :)

These sites quickly become addicting!!!  You'll find yourself checking them multiple times a day to see if something new has come on. I know I do!
 I highly recommend you follow them on twitter, and on their facebook pages so you don't miss out on anything.

I will do a little summary on each one in an upcoming post that shows the differences between them. They all have their own unique way of doing things.

What about Shipping costs?

I must tell you, that unless you are an Amazon Prime member, you would still have to pay for shipping if you choose any items to review.  Amazon Prime members literally get these items for Free (as long as the item is a Prime item, which fortunately, for me, they all have been so far), or at insanely discounted prices!  So, if you are not an Amazon Prime member yet, it's truly worth your while to consider joining. Here is a post I did on it yesterday Amazon Prime There's an Advantage You Probably Don't Know About.
If you have thought about joining Amazon Prime, or just want to check it out, here is a link to the site where you can read up on all it has to offer. Just click on the image below, or click here: Try Amazon Prime 30-Day Free Trial

So, are you ready to see what products these companies have for you today? What are you waiting for?!  Have fun, and please feel free to share what you've gotten from them in the comments below. :)

*Note, this post and site may contain affiliate links. I only link to sites I use personally, as I would never feel comfortable linking to something I wouldn't use myself.

Amazon Prime....There's an Advantage You Probably Don't Know About

Shopping with Amazon Prime sure makes my life A LOT easier. I struggled with paying the $99 membership fee, but I have saved far more than that over the last 10 months just in shipping fees alone.  Truth is, I buy almost 75% of all of my purchases there now.  I used to try to only participate with survey companies that offered PayPal, because it helped me pay my bills. Now, I see the huge advantage to getting Amazon Gift Cards, and usually go for those.

If I need just one item, I look there to see what the best deal is, but I limit my search to only Prime deals. This takes a lot of the work out for me, making the transaction even faster. It doesn't matter if the item is only $1, $5 or $7, I still get FREE 2 day shipping.  No having to put more things in my cart that I don't really need just to make the free shipping limit. THAT, my friend, is why I buy so much there! FREE shipping, and 2 day shipping at that! You just can't beat it! I've gone and SPOILED myself.

I started the membership with the free 30 day trial. We were moving, and there was nowhere to put my new 21 speed bike. (that I also bought on Amazon, but it had free shipping anyway) So, we had 4 days before we moved, and my bike wasn't fitting into any of the pods we ordered. Off to Amazon I went, to see about a bike rack for the car.  I found one, and I could get it in 2 days with Amazon Prime, so I decided what better time to try it out.  It arrived within the 2 days, thank goodness! When the 30 days was up, I went ahead and splurged on the membership. It's been a whole different world ever since.  It opened my eyes to the world of 2 day free shipping, and better prices than I can get the items I need locally or on other sites.

People ask what in the world do I buy there, that I can't buy elsewhere cheaper.  Well, I am very picky about companies I buy supplements and health items from. So, I comparison shop the items I normally buy from other sites, and see what Amazon has them for. Whoever is cheaper gets my business, because every penny counts. I have been so pleasantly surprised when Amazon is cheaper (which more often than not it is!). Sometimes A LOT cheaper.
So, here is a short sample of items I get from Amazon:
*Organic scent free household cleaners
*Vitamins, supplements, herbs, homeopathics
*Personal Care items
*Gifts
*Home and Garden items
*Foods, spices, teas
*Kitchen tools/gadgets
*Unique items you can't find locally
*Diabetic supplies for my brother and dad (they are cheaper on Amazon! Even after Medicare prices at Walmart!!! Seriously!)
*Pet supplies, toys, food, supplements, shampoo etc
*Exercise equipment
*FREE or next to FREE items for doing reviews!!!!!!!!!!! (Thanks to the FREE shipping!)

Did you see the last line? FREE or next to FREE items for doing reviews?  YES! I'm serious! The best part is, MANY of the things I do reviews for, are things I actually have on my wish list or need anyway!  Some are just plain cool items that would make great gifts, or things that I want that I would never buy for myself.
Watch for the next post, cause I am going to tell you how to do this too! THIS is the advantage the post is leading to.

Amazon Prime also has other benefits, such as:
 *unlimited ad-free access to over a million songs with Amazon Prime Music
 *unlimited streaming of movies and videos with Amazon Prime Instant Video
 *unlimited storage for photos in Amazon Cloud Drive
You can read more about the benefits of Prime membership here: Amazon Prime Benefits

If you have an Amazon Prime membership, you are already in the best position you can be for what I will be sharing with you!  If you haven't joined Amazon Prime yet, but have thought about it, I HIGHLY recommend you do, and give it a try, and see how often you use it during your free trial period.  Especially, once I tell you how to get some items for FREE or nearly free, or at the very least, a HUGE discount!
Interested in giving it a try?  Just click the image right down below.

*Some of the links in this blog are affiliate links. I get a very small percentage of sales from products purchased, but every little bit helps.

Don't Miss this!!! #FGCS Is Your DREAM Hashtag for 11-30-14

Has IGC gone and lost their minds???  Looks that way! And thank goodness for us, they have! :)  If you haven't joined yet, now is the time to do so! You can join by clicking the image above, and have a chance of winning an Amazon Gift card worth $1-$10 this Sunday, November 30th.

Here's the rest of the details from their facebook page:

Did you see the part where it says an Amazon Gift Card will be given out "EVERY MINUTE"?!?!  I had to read it several times to make sure I was reading it correctly. Should be an interesting fun time!  That's A LOT of $$$ they are handing out.
Now, it doesn't say how many of each amount they are handing out, but hey, it's literally FREE $$$!  I won't turn it away!

If you aren't familiar with InstaGC, here is a blog post I did on it awhile back:
InstaGC Where ALL Gift Cards are INSTANT!

If you are already a member or are just signing up right now, make sure you post or tweet about it to be considered for the give-away!

Good luck everyone, and remember it's Teamwork That Makes the Dream Work!

Superpoints Black Friday Deal!

Superpoints is having a steal of a deal TODAY ONLY! All the info is in the image above.

They have changed the way Platinum works a little bit:

*  200 clicks a day on the Super Lucky Button
*  Allocated a new member instead of having to refresh the sponsorship page.


They are allocating us a new member in the order that we joined. Once the list is gone through, it starts over.  This is more fair for everyone this way, and I am excited to see how it goes. 

So, if you have a difficult time getting referrals like I do, PLATINUM can help us out!

If you have been on the fence about upgrading, JUMP OFF right now!!!  :)

As always, if you join myself or any of my referrals, contact me and let me know.  If you participate DAILY by clicking the button AND playing Stumble Rewards, I will add you to my Superpoints Invite page to try to help you get referrals from your direct link.


Have a safe Black Friday!!!
#TeamworkMakesTheDreamWork