Book Review: The Elemental Journal

The Elemental Journal: Create Expressive Books from Salvaged Treasures

Book Description:  "Rusty doorknobs, cardboard containers and plastic packaging may seem like trash to some, but through the creative mind, they are transformed into beautiful expressions - equally parts artful book and assemblage. The Elemental Journal will show you how to craft a wide variety of journals to hold your secrets or express your inner thoughts, and discover new ways to use wood, paper, fabric, plastic and metal in your art.”

This was quite a pretty book to look at but the whole time, all I could think was, “What would you do with these things?” The journals are made with all sorts of odd items and are strange shapes and sizes. Are they meant to be put on a shelf, given as a gift, or used? I couldn’t tell! I thought that I may get a few craft ideas from this book, but it all was just quite odd. Also, the instructions for each journal made were so specific, but the items that were being used were often things that were found at a thrift store or auction. You would not be able to make the exact project without getting the items that she used (which is impossible!). Overall, a pretty book to look at, but not one I would want to own or give as a gift.

**I was given this book for free in exchange for my honest review from the website BookSneeze.com.**

Review: McCain Purely Potatoes

McCain Purely Potatoes

Disclaimer: I was given a free coupon from BzzAgent to test this new product in exchange for an honest review.

When I opened the bag of frozen potatoes, I noticed right away that one of the potatoe chunks was rotten and black. This definitely was not a good way to start the meal! I cooked to potatoes and my husband and I both tried a chunk of potatoe before adding any condiments or mashing them. They were not tasty that way at ALL! After mashing the potatoes and adding butter and milk, they were fixed and tasted great! Overall, a quick way to make mashed potatoes and a nice product. I would buy them again for the convenience, but I would not want to pay full price (sale or coupon please!).

Review: Eat Your Peas for Mom

"A delightful book to give Mom to prove you DID listen to her advice, wit, and wisdom. If you want a special way to celebrate your mother, look no more! Eat Your Peas® Mom is a 3-minute read with a forever message. Upon opening this little package, her heart will smile through the pages filled with affirmation, appreciation, and gratitude expressed for all the ways she loves and cares for you. Each page is artfully hand-illustrated for a charming and homespun feel. It’s a perfect keepsake and reminder for Mom to hold onto forever."

I thought this book would be a bit different from all the other mother "gift" books. I've given books like this as gifts before, and this one wasn't anything special. Each page was quite pretty, but many of the sayings were very very similar. Also, with the phrase "3-minute read" I thought that it would flow better when reading it all at once. A few of the sayings did resonate with me and made me feel like the book was great, but then the next page would be something so similar, or something that didn’t really pertain to me/my mother. Overall, a cute book, but not something that I would purchase myself.

**I was given this book free from the website Book Sneeze in exchange for this honest review. **

REVIEW: This Is Your Brain in Love

"In his new book,This is Your Brain in Love, Dr. Earl Henslin takes a close look at the biological factors that deeply affect our intimate relationships. Sharing many first hand examples from his counselling practice, Dr. Henslin attributes many of the problems encountered by couples on brain dysfunctions. He outlines five different types of lovers, and describes in detail some characteristics that identify each. At the beginning of each of the five chapters, there is a checklist provided in order to determine how you connect to your spouse. At the end of each chapter, Dr. Henslin gives some tips to improve the drawbacks of each type of brain. He also offers suggestions for the spouse in relating to each brain type."

You need a quite chunk of time to read this book! Dr. Henslin is a clear, crisp author, but there was so much information that I almost felt overloaded. He goes through different types of brain functions/disfunctions to explain and try to remedy any relationship problems.  I found that he seemed to focus a lot of ADD and ADHD and I got a bit sick of reading about it! He also really encouraged getting a brain scan to see where there are problem areas. This is not something that is cheap and easy to do. I can't decide if I recommend this book or not, and that's definitely NOT a good thing when you're trying to write a review!

This book was provided to me for free by BookSneeze in exchange for this review.

Clairol Nice N Easy Foam REVIEW

I was given the opportunity to test out Clairol's new Foam hair dye a couple weeks ago. It was very exciting to receive my package in the mail, but I have to say the product was a bit disappointing.

Clairol's big selling point of the foam dye is that it doesn't drip and is "no-mess." I would agree with this, but the foam applicator was so hard for me to use that I would rather risk the drips! When I first saw the product I thought it would be a pump top applicator. Instead, you mix the two dye portions in the applicator, shake it and squeeze to dispense. This was not as easy as it sounds! I don't want a work out while colouring my hair. :)

The colour that I was sent was called "Dark Reddish Brown," so I expected a very dark colour. Second disappointment! There were not many red tones in the colour and it wasn't much darker than my normal hair colour.

I would not pick this colour over normal liquid dyes in the future.

Love On Assignment Review

This book took me a long time to finish, but I'm finally through Love on Assignment by Cara Lynn James. Having a new baby does not help my reading! I was a bit apprehensive when starting this book, as I'm not a big fan of "Christian romance" books and usually find them a bit cheesy, but this one drew me in right away. The story follows Charolette as she goes undercover as a governess to find anything incriminating on the writer of the local column promoting Christian living and encouraging good work environments. She is hoping this job will land her the next reporter position in her agency as this is set in the 1900s, there are not many women on the job. It was cute to watch her and the writer fall in love and see the way everything ends up panning out in the end. Charolette must re-evaluate everything in her life and chose which road to take--the moral high ground, or the potential reporting job. Overall, a pleasant book and one I'll be happy to pass on to someone else!

Online book description: "During the summer of 1900 Charlotte Hale, a native Newporter and secretary for the Rhode Island Reporter, accepts an undercover assignment as temporary governess to Daniel Wilmont's children in order to secretly gather evidence against him. As he helps her rediscover God, Charlotte learns that Daniel is an honorable man. They unexpectedly fall in love despite their different backgrounds and social positions. Charlotte soon realizes she must defend Daniel against the forces set against him—a willful student with a romantic crush and the newspaper editor determined to destroy his reputation."

I received this book free from Booksneeze.com in exchange for this review.