Harvest Box

It has been a while since I've come across something that totally 'Wow' - ed me.

So there I was at my work desk doing the work thing which included looking at my not-so-work-related personal email accounts. As usual I came across the usual spam. Yet one of them had this thing called "Harvest Box - A healthy assortment of snacks personalised to your taste & delivered to your desk." It caught my eye before I ticked the box for deletion. Snacks? Personalised? Delivered to your desk? Well I wanted all of those! So I clicked on the link for Harvest Box.

The site looked cool. It came across as a legitimate healthy, fun, Australian website. And hey, they had this awesome deal whereby my first order is FREE, my second order is HALF PRICE (being $3.47) and then the third goes back to full price but is only $6.95 and that includes postage. I was like "Well, I spend around $6.95 on snacks a week anyways... may as well make it a healthy $6.95," so I signed up.

Immediately after signing I was concerned that I may have fallen for some fake deal. But today, a week later, the office clerk came to my desk and handed me a package. I was surprised "What? A package for me?"

A package delivered to my desk!

As soon as I saw the package, I knew what it was. I just didn't expect it as when I had signed up it said my first order would be delivered next week. I realised that it meant that my first paid order would be next week, and this was the free one. Quietly grinning from excitement I opened the package with the office clerk watching in curiosity. I told her it was my free box of snacks and she looked at me slightly confused, "Snacks?"

Healthy Snacks delivered to my desk!

Opening the package was really fun. It revealed a colourful treasure chest of goodies which I had to examine to see what was chosen for this special free box. It had mixes with dried mango, coconut and macadamia nuts, almonds, seeds and a whole lot more. I was definitely happy with this box. Especially since it came around 10.30am which was my morning tea time. I ate one mix and I was quite full despite initially thinking that the small serving wouldn't be enough! I can't wait for my next delivery!

So what is this really all about?

Snacks - Personalised - Delivered to your desk

Yum!

Harvest Box ships its packages of happy healthy snacks Australia wide to your office desk. It is definitely for people who need a bit of variety, want to lay off the office cookies and who enjoy receiving packages besides the work related ones.

Harvest Box has over 50 different mixed of dried fruit, nuts and seeds. When they say personalised, Harvest Box provides you with a package containing 4 mixes. After you have received your package you then visit the website and rate whether the mixes deserve a 'No thanks,' 'Try Me,' 'Like It,' or a 'Yes Please.' (To be honest I don't know the difference between the 'Like It' and a 'Yes Please'). After rating your mixes Harvest box will take it into consideration the next time they select your mixes.

Signing up and getting your first box free!

1. Go to harvestbox.com.au
2. Have a look around the site to get a jist of what it is all about. But to sign up go to 'Start Here' at the top menu bar.
3. You will then have to select the day you would like package to be delivered.
4. You then will need to fill in your personal details including place for delivery.
5. Then your payment details are required. The cool thing about this is that you can cancel your orders at any time!
6. For your first delivery to be FREE and then your second one to be half price type in this promotion code: 28691VFZ51
7. Wait for your box to be delivered to your desk.

Happy snacking!!!!!!!!!!!!

Birdsnest.com.au

Its sale time!

Everything is going on sale, and this year I had a list of things I really wanted and had wanted for a long time. I decided that this year, my sale shopping will be purposeful. Not that it isn't always purposeful, but I find that when I go shopping, though I buy things that I do need (and I stress that I really do need them.) They are things that I had not thought about or wanted for a long period of time. 

One of the things I have wanted for a while was a formal, yet not a 'suit up'  jacket like the ones I wear to work. Something that I could go out during the day, but dress up easily. So, this was one of the main things on my list. I have found that I love jackets, and hoodies, and have bought a few good timeless ones. Unfortunately, the jackets I always buy seem to be borderline trench, long coat or a bit bulky (for warmth), which clashes what I would wear for a more casual looking outfit.

So, I decided to find one of those trendy short suit-like jackets which had some 'funk' and fun to it. 

I had looked in the usual department stores and was unsuccessful. There were things that were similar to what I was looking for, but I wasn't in the mood of buying something that was 'almost' what I wanted.

Then one night I randomly started browsing the internet and found this gem of a online store. It is called "Birdsnest - For everything but the girl."

I was flabbergasted! This store had branded clothing, accessories and other items at a really good price due to the mid-year sales. 

Also the thing that really got me squirmish in my pants, was that the site provided suggestions of clothing for occasions and personality! The personality suggestions covers yummy mummy, corporate girl, classic woman, playful, study girl, party even yummy granny!!! So whatever 'girl' I felt like or was going for... was definitely catered for!

Not only that, I found that birdsnest also provided sugggestions for certain body shape ranging from pregnant, petite, big boobs, small boobs, voluptous bottom, big hips, a tummy, no waist, short legs, cankles, long body, size 16+ and big arms. This is exactly what I needed! Recommendations of items of clothing that would achieve the look I was going for!

The prices of all items are in Australian dollars and birdsnest sell brands such as Esprit, Ladakh,Wish, Ben Sherman and Living Doll.

I ended up buying a black short suit-looking jacket which was structured on my shoulders (yup, in other words it had little shoulder pads). I didn't realise how a little bit of padding on the shoulders could turn a ordinary suit looking jacket into a really versatile jacket with a bit of 'funk' and fun. 

What impressed me the most was the detail and personalisation the girls at Birdsnest put into my order. I do note that it could be because it was my first purchase, but what the heck, it was still nevertheless a special package to receive.

In my package I received my jacket folded nicely in a cotton birdsnest bag. I also received a loyalty card for future purchases which after a certain amount of purchases I would get a free gift or something. For me, this was quite a nice package to receive, as most items when bought online, are usually just thrown into the mail wrapped in some plastic bag, transaction complete.

But that was not the coolest part! A few days after my purchase I was folding the birdsnest bag to put away, thinking I may not use it despite how cool it was. As I was folding it, I heard something crumple, so I opened it up and found a little piece of paper at the bottom of the bag. I decided to have a looksee, and this is what I found:

There was a HANDWRITTEN note! How Sweeeet!

Have a closer look:

I thought it was mighty sweet, and birdsnest definitely won me over! I was already very happy with the jacket as it was really nice, and I was already impressed in how quickly I received my jacket, (I received it within 3 days, buying it on the Friday and received it on the Tuesday!).

So very very happy! I definitely embrace the approach birdsnest is taking in order to establish returning customers!  =D

Cute Heat Bags

It has all of a sudden turned into winter. Those bright sunny days where you could feel the heat pulsating off the pavement to warm your legs have turned into the deceptive 'bright sunny days' when the sun smiles at you mockingly as the dry icy cold wind rushes under your clothes and drapes its itself all over you. Leaving you with that deep chilled to the bone feeling. It has not necessarily been a wet one so far, (which is a boo for water levels) but yes, there has been rain. Oh, and lets not forget about that freak storm on 22 March 2010. What freak storm am I talking about you ask? Have a looksee here.

Anyways, I realised that like all other years I will have to take out the quilt and rug up on layers upon layers to keep me warm because heaters are a no go for me. Heaters just leave my mouth and throat dry. Eventually you get a dry throat which ultimately leads to the sore throat and well, we all know what happens then. You are dragging your feet into the pharmacy to get those trusty strepsils, and making yourself honey and lemon teas before you know it. All because you just wanted to stay warm.

I then remembered an old friend of mine letting me borrow her heat bag. I remember thinking that the heat bag was a only weird sack of 'stuff' which she would put in a microwave and go to sleep with. It never dawned on me then, but it rang so loud now that I could not, not look for one for myself. (double negatives... ew... I apologise). So I googled "heat + bags" and found that they are quite popular for not only keeping one warm, but for rehabilitative purposes from injuries. Physiotherapists use them and some pharmacies sell them. So why have I not heard about them before?! Another neato thing about these heat bags is that the insides are not synthetic or manufactured material, but are comprised of various dried plant products varying from of wheat, lupin, barley to buckwheat.

There are a few sites that are good sources for purchasing heat bags, all of which have various colours, shapes and sizes to cater for where you would like to place the heat bag, such as around your ankle, neck and shoulders and your back. You can try Heat Bags Plus, Wheat Bags Australia or Heat Wheat Products. 

Amore Gifts Heat Bags

For me, I really just wanted something to keep me warm and to cuddle a bit in bed. I then decided to try my luck at Ebay to see what I could find there. There are A LOT to choose from, but I ended up placing my bets on a new Ebay Seller called Amore Gifts. She provided handmade heat bags that were so cute and funky in colour and at such an affordable price. I ended up purchasing two bags at $10 AUD each!

Amore Gifts is based in Tasmania and so I was able to receive my bags within a few days of the purchase! Such a smooth transaction and the seller was so generous in offering to post my bags by express post at the standard post rate!

The two bags I purchased are the ones pictured. They weigh approximately 1kg each and are approximately 21x24cm, a good hugging size. I can easily place one in my front hoodie pocket and walk around the house keeping my hands and torso all warm! I bought two so that I could place one bag at the foot of my bed, warming up my feet, and the other one at the middle part of my bed to warm up everything else. They have truly made my winter so so toasty. Not to mention that they are so adorably cute! Amore Gifts do have other designs which are more toned down and masculine for the fellas, but like I mentioned earlier, Amore Gifts is a relatively new seller and will hopefully have more products and have her own website set up in the near future.

Benefits of Heat Bags

1. They can keep you warm all night without making your room overly hot and leaving your mouth and throat dry, by simply placing them in the microwave for approximately 1 minute (though it is recommended you reheat 30 seconds at a time.) 
2. They can be used as cold bags too! Just put your bag into a plastic bag and into the freezer. The recommended cooling time is 30-60 minutes.
3. The bags keep you warm and cool using very little electricity. Bonus points for being ECO-FRIENDLY!!!
4. Being able to be heat and cold bags and being malleable to fit around your body allows them to be great for treating injuries such as, well BAD ankles. Though if you were to use them solely for ankles or shoulders I would suggest to look into getting one that is made specifically for that area. Ankle heat/cold bags are a lot smaller and usually has a strap that wraps around the ankle and holds the heat/cold bag in place.