January, 2016 - sparkleshinylove

Roxymandy January 30, 2016

Taste Testing Nordica’s Smooth Cottage Cheese

Taste Testing Nordica's Smooth Cottage Cheese

I don’t discriminate when it comes to shopping. I love all kinds of shopping equally, and grocery shopping is included.

Every time I step inside a grocery store I start with a renewed hope that I will put together healthy snacks and dinners, and as I approach the check out I try to shed all of the extra chips and snacks I added to my cart along the way.

Last week I tried out Nordica’s Smooth Cottage Cheese, and luckily it fits into the healthy snack category!

I LOVED the Salted Caramel flavour! So good. The texture wasn’t lumpy at all like regular cottage cheese, and each serving has 10g of protein and only 110 calories.

I’m usually a pretty big fan of Greek yogurt, but Nordica’s Smooth Cottage Cheese actually has 25% more protein than most leading Greek yogurts.

So it tastes good, and it’s good for you! Anything that is flavoured Salted Caramel and is good for you is a no-brainer – you must try it.

Taste Testing Nordica's Smooth Cottage Cheese

My husband is a creature of habit, and has told me repeatedly that he hates cottage cheese. Hate is a pretty strong word, but those are his thoughts on the subject. He was likely the most difficult person to introduce this new product to since he hates cottage cheese, but I thought I might as well go big or go home and trick him into trying it.

I got a little sneaky – not completely dishonest sneaky, but the kind of creative sneaky where I only describe SOME of my shopping spree purchases while omitting the ones that made more credit card damage. I asked my husband to do a taste test for the blog, not letting him know what he was trying, and taped his reaction.

Here was his reaction when I convinced him to try “something” for the blog!

https://youtu.be/K1gpFhLDfSw

He was a good sport, and his reaction was genuine – he really liked it!

Nordica’s Smooth Cottage Cheese is available in Vanilla Bean, Salted Caramel and Lemon flavours. We tried Vanilla Bean as well and it was also very good. Lemon wasn’t in our grocery store, but we will give it a try soon as well. So far this product is available in Ontario only, at most major grocery stores.

Taste Testing Nordica's Smooth Cottage Cheese

For more information on Nordica’s Smooth Cottage Cheese, visit their website here!

Disclosure: I am part of the Gay Lea Nordica Smooth Cottage Cheese Campaign and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.

Xoxo Mandy

Roxymandy January 29, 2016

Review of Vichy Idéalia Day Care + A Giveaway!

I don’t know what it is, but Vichy always seems to get it right! Their products always do what they say they are going to do, have a reasonable price point, and as a bonus they smell amazing! I get excited every time I try a new product from Vichy, and I was even more excited to try Idéalia Day Care because I tried the Vichy Idéalia Skin Sleep Recovery Night Gel-Balm and had loved it.

When I know I’m extra tired, if my skin is having issues, or I just want to look fresh in the morning, I use the Idéalia Skin Sleep Recovery and I wake up looking better than when I went to bed. That stuff is seriously magic.

The Idéalia Day Care had me hooked based on the smell alone. It just smells so fresh! Vichy really needs to come out with perfume because they come up with the prettiest scents!

Review of Vichy Idéalia Day Care + A Giveaway!

I have a few skin issues plaguing me on the regular, and two of them are visible pores and fine lines (eek, I’m getting older!). These two issues are what Idealia Day Care is supposed to combat.

Maybe it’s the pretty pale pink color of the Idéalia Day Care, but as soon as I applied the cream I already look refreshed! It dried quickly so I could apply my makeup in the morning (I hate having to wait for creams to dry in the morning because I am already probably running late), and it wasn’t greasy under my makeup.

Review of Vichy Idéalia Day Care + A Giveaway!

In comparison to the night gel-balm, the consistency of the Vichy’s Idéalia Day Care cream is much lighter, and well, more of a cream!

The main ingredient is Kombucha which is a tea concentrate known for it’s anti-oxidation properties. It also has Vitamin E, a natural antioxidant. Both seemed to help with minimizing the look of my pores.

Review of Vichy Idéalia Day Care + A Giveaway!

You can find Vichy’s Idéalia Day Care at most major drug stores and retails for $45. You can learn more about the product at www.vichy.ca.

Would you like to win Vichy’s Idéalia Day Care for yourself? Enter to win by commenting below this post! The contest begins on Thursday, January 28th, 2016 and ends at midnight on Thursday, February 4th, 2016. One commenter will be randomly selected to win. One entry per person, and the contest is open to Canadian residents only.

Good luck to everyone who enters!

Xoxo Mandy

Roxymandy January 27, 2016

A Pink and Sparkly Look from Pink Blush + A $50 Gift Card Giveaway!

If there are two things I love, it’s the colour pink and a lot of sparkle. When they are combined I’m pretty much sold on whatever the item is. Based on that, this sweater I’m wearing is now one of my favourites on rotation in my closet.

Pink Blush is an online shop full of clothing that makes me squeal a little when I see what they have to shop. There are so many “must have’s” that it’s hard to decide what to choose. This is a good problem – too much to choose from is never a bad thing (unless your credit card bill is addressed to your husband).

I thought pairing this Pink Sequin Accent Sleeve Knit Sweater from Pink Blush with white jeans and heels would be a great way to dress it up, but still keep warm in these frigid Canadian temperatures! I was freezing when we took these photos, but that’s to be expected for where I live.

With Valentine’s Day approaching, this pretty pink sweater makes me think of putting together the perfect outfit for the big day with the help of this sparkly sweater.

Pink Blush also has a phenomenal maternity line. I really wish I knew about it when I was pregnant, because this would be my go-to shop. They have some really cute and stylish pieces.

A Pink and Sparkly Look from Pink Blush + A $50 Gift Card Giveaway!

Pink Blush and Pink Blush Maternity have free shipping to the US, and super cheap shipping to Canada – only $9.99!

I am so glad I have a new and affordable place to buy clothing from that has items I won’t find in a shopping mall. They have a wide selection, and everything really seems to match my personal style.

To shop Pink Blush yourself, visit them here, or better yet do it with the gift card you can win on the blog!

To enter, all you need to do is like and share this post here on my sparkleshinylove Facebook page. Liking and sharing the post will earn you one entry into the contest for a $50 gift card to Pink Blush. The contest begins at 10:00pm EST on Tuesday, January 26th, 2016 and ends on Tuesday, February 2nd, 2016 at 10:00pm EST. One winner will be selected at random, and will be contacted that evening. This contest is open to both US and Canadian residents.

Good luck, and happy shopping!

Xoxo Mandy

Roxymandy January 26, 2016

Toddler Street Style with Little & Mighty

Toddler Streetstyle with Little & Mighty

Little & Mighty is a modern children’s-wear company that is run by three mothers from Texas. They have two different lines – Baby and Little Kids – and their designs are really fun!

When I was choosing something for my son on their website he happened to be with me, and he loved all of the different looks because they had pictures of things he loves like tractors, zebras and toads.

My son is getting to the age where he likes to choose his outfits, so it’s been slightly more difficult to dress him lately. It helps if we both like what he is wearing, so him choosing to wear this cute ensemble is perfect! The Toad Shirt is his new favourite.

I think this Dinosaur Hoodie is adorable! My son couldn’t stop roaring when he was wearing it. Well, actually he said he was a superhero-dinosaur, which may explain his poses in this series of photos.

Both The Toad Shirt and The Dinosaur Hoodie were well made and didn’t shrink at all when I washed them.

I love what they have to offer, and I can’t wait to see what they design next! It’s really great to see mothers who run a company like this because they know what kids will like since they have experience with their own children.

For more information about Little & Mighty visit www.LittleandMighty.com.

Thank you to Little & Mighty for collaborating with me on this post!

Xoxo Mandy

Roxymandy January 25, 2016

Joe Fresh Beauty Arrives at Shoppers Drug Mart

Last week I attended a fun launch announcing Joe Fresh Beauty arriving at Shoppers Drug Mart. It’s now available at 850 Shoppers Drug Mart and Pharmaprix stores across Canada.

Wow it is affordable! The whole line ranges from $8 – $18, and they have more than 150 new cosmetic products.

I decided to try doing a quick look using a few of the Joe Fesh Beauty products this weekend to see how they stack up.