Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Review Time! Jen's Crown Jewels: Ear Cuffs

Last Saturday I discovered a wonderful little booth called "Jen's Crown Jewels" at the Hoggetowne Medieval Faire in Gainesville, FL. That morning I was feeling kind of down, having lost one of the sterling silver earring I had made for the faire. So my niece and I set out to find some sparkly things to put me in a better mood. Which is how we came to find Jen's booth. Her booth had many styles and colors of jewelry to choose from. She helped me find a pair of cuffs that matched my Lord of the Rings inspired dress perfectly! For the past few weeks I have considered getting an ear cuff just to try out since I have never worn them before. Now I have two gorgeous ones that are hand-made! Over the past few days I have realized that I enjoy wearing my ear cuffs more than traditional earrings. Unlike tradition earrings, the ear cuffs are NOT piercings so they do not cause the problems that wearing earrings do. For me wearing earrings has always been aggravating, since most earrings cause my ears to turn red and itchy. Usually I am only able to wear earrings for a few hours, but I can wear my ear cuffs all day comfortably, without any issues! I usually forget that I am wearing them.

The Princess Ear Cuff:
This ear cuff is hand-crafted from nickle-free sterling silver and features a lovely green cat's eye bead. It is light weight and comfortable. Due to its shape, it gives the appearance of pieced ears. The Princess Cuff is available in sterling silver for $18.00 and in gold for $20.00. Cuffs are available in the following beads:  Amethyst, Lapis Lazuli, Malachite, Garnet, Opalite, Black Onyx, Hematite, Tiger's Eye, Amber, White Pearl, Pink Pearl, Blue Cat's Eye Glass, Lavender Cat's Eye Glass, Green Cat's Eye Glass and plain silver or gold beads.


The Small Beaded Ear Cuff:
This smaller ear cuff is also hand-crafted from nickle-free sterling silver and features an intertwined green cat's eye bead. It is very light weight and very comfortable. If I am not careful,  I often forget to take this one off. The Small Beaded Cuff is available in sterling silver for $6.00 and in gold for $8.00. This cuff is available in the following beads:  Amethyst, Lapis Lazuli, Malachite, Garnet, Opalite, Black Onyx, Hematite, Tiger's Eye, Amber, White Pearl, Pink Pearl, Blue Cat's Eye Glass, Lavender Cat's Eye Glass, Green Cat's Eye Glass and plain silver or gold beads.

My Personal Opinion:
Personally, due to my allergies, I have found ear cuffs to be a wonderful alternative to traditional earrings. They are light weight and comfortable. But more importantly, they do not cause allergies issues with my ears! If you are searching for quality hand-crafted jewelry check out Jen's Crown Jewels at http://jenscrownjewels.com/ you won't be disappointed!

ReviewTime! Red Apple's Gluten Free Lip-Stick & Lip-Gloss

Finally! Truly allergy-free lipstick & lip-glosses!

As many of you know, I suffer from severe allergies and I am unable to use store bought cosmetic brands (well unless I would like to spend a few hours at the ER!). On the bright side. This issue has actually been beneficial, as I am now reading labels and more conscious of what is in the products I use. Come to find out, there are many unhealthy ingredients in store bought cosmetics. Some of which has been linked to cancer! That is a truly frightening thought... Thankfully there are cosmetics out there that are not only allergy-free, but also use all natural-safe ingredients. Red Apple is the first brand I have found that stands by this. They guarantee that you will not have any problems with their products or they will give you a complete refund!

My Experience with Red Apple:
I am truly amazed at the quality of Red Apple Products. Not only am I able to wear their lip-stick and lip-glosses without any problems - I enjoy wearing them. Their product are just as they claim - truly safe. While wearing their products I have not had any problems with itching, rashes or asthma. As someone who is severely allergic to gluten, wheat, soy, eggs, carmine, red 40, animal fats (beef and chicken), fish and shellfish. I find this to be very impressive.

Review: Dancing Princess Lip Gloss by Red Apple
Gluten Free • Paraben Free • Allergen Free • Vegan • Mineral Based • Cruelty Free * Awesome!

This is by far the best lip-gloss I have ever used. It is not sticky, it goes on very smoothly and most importantly it stays on a long time. Unlike most lip-glosses I have tried, this one last for hours. As for the color, I love the look of "Dancing Princess" it is a lovely medium pink that can be worn by itself. It adds a beautiful sparkle which I love and is semi-sheer so that you can wear it on top of your lip-stick. Below is what Red Apple has to say about "Dancing Princess"
 "Once Upon a Time…. You are a woman who believes in love at first sight and true love’s first kiss. With this luscious light mauve shade of red adding shimmer to your lips, you will be ready for that life-changing kiss from your prince! You’re only one glass slipper away from finding your happily ever after!

Dancing Princess© Lip gloss by Red Apple Lipstick™ is an exciting color!. A special blend of reds on the plum side combined with a short sparkle for a one of a kind look. Blend this color with any Red Apple Lipstick™ for unlimited combinations.

Dancing Princess© Lip gloss by Red Apple Lipstick™ is gluten free, paraben free and allergen free.

This awesome formula helps your lips stay moist, stay plump and stay healthy.

The Red Apple Lipstick™ Lip Gloss formula is unique and a highly guarded secret. Our lip gloss formula converts non lip gloss wearers to wearers every day!

As with all of our lip glosses, Dancing Princess© is designed to work flawlessly both over Red Apple Lipstick™ or straight up on it's own.

All of Red Apple Lipstick's™ lip glosses are specially formulated by an award winning team of designers. It glides on smooth, it isn't sticky or gummy and has a wonderful light fragrance and taste. What most women rave about our lip gloss is that isn't sticky. This lip gloss won't stick to your teeth or your hair when it blows into your face.

Our lip gloss formula converts non lip gloss wearers to wearers every day!"

This color can be purchased at

Review: Mauve Me Lipstick by Red Apple



Gluten Free • Paraben Free • Allergen Free • Vegan • Mineral Based • Cruelty Free * Awesome!

 "Mauve Me" lip-stick is simply awesome! I love the rich color of this lip-stick and how long the color lasts. This lip-stick lasts for hours without needing to reapply it! It goes on smooth and creamy. It is also a wonderful moisturizer for dry-lips. The color is a reddish-mauve which is prefect for everyday wear.  Below is what Red Apple has to say about "Mauve Me".  

"This deep shade of red is for the hopeless romantic; a woman in love with love. Give your pouty lips a reason to be kissed, as if you needed one. Mauve Me© by Red Apple Lipstick™ is a wonderful shade of deep red / Mauve lipstick. It goes on smooth, stays on and doesn’t stick to your teeth. With a slight glimmer, Mauve me is a love color, a hither color, a come kiss me color.

As with all of our lipsticks, Mauve Me© red lipstick is a mineral based lipstick that is Vitamin E enriched. It is allergen free, gluten free and paraben free.

It is designed to nourish and moisturize your lips while staying put without sticking to your teeth. Our special formula also gives our lipsticks an awesome one of a kind fragrance and taste you just HAVE to discover!"

This color can be purchased at 

About Red Apple Products:
Red Apple strives for quality gluten-free products. All of their products have been tested by BIA Diagnostics to ensure their safety. Red Apple products are preprocessed in an allergy-free environment. All of their product are Paraben-Free, this is very important as parabens have been linked to breast cancer and fertility issues! Products are enriched with soy-free Vitamin E and Shea Butter, making them a quality moisturizer as well. The Shea Butter also adds a wonder texture, fragrance, and taste.  Below is some information about Red Apple from their website. I feel that they said this best.

A Safer Lipstick
  • Paraben Free.
    Paraben is flat out scary. Paraben is a toxic set of chemicals used as a preservative in makeup. Parabens are esters of para-hydroxybenzoic acid, from which the name is derived. Do you know why other companies put them in their cosmetics? Because it can make the shelf life of the product extend through a nuclear holocaust. Do you know why WE DO NOT put them in our products? Because doctors keep finding paraben in breast tumors during research. (google Dr. Philippa Darbre)
  • Gluten Free.
    Gluten free is important. Many more people than you think (and this could include you without knowing it!) are sensitive to gluten. It's called GSE or Gluten Sensitivity Enteropathy. It is thought that 1 in 133 people in America have a sensitivity and do not know. And of course people with the expanded form of GSE, known as Celiac disease cannot have gluten even come CLOSE to them without being severely effected. Minor symptoms are easy to be mistaken for other things. Symptoms such as abdominal cramping, excess gas, diarrhea and/or constipation, fatty stools, anemia, weight loss even when eating a lot, delayed puberty, mouth ulcers, joint pain, osteoporosis, fatigue, migraines, numbness in hands or feet, gall bladder malfunction, essential vitamin deficiencies, etc… To this end, we decided there was a way to make an awesome product without gluten. And we fought tooth and nail until we figured it out!
  • Allergen Free.
    That's right, Red Apple Lipstick is made in a fashion that makes it completely allergen free!
  • Vitamin E Enriched.
    At Red Apple Lipstick we want your lips to feel enriched and silky smooth kissable ALL the time. That's why we enrich our product with Vitamin E in a top secret manufacturing process that no one else knows about. As you read our reviews, you will hear people talk about how their lips feel after a short period of use. And by short, we mean a day or two! Ladies with rough lips suddenly have smooth, enriched lips. It works just as planned.
If you are going to put ANYTHING on your body that you are going to ingest, it might as well be the best stuff it can be!

100% Money Back GuaranteeHere at Red Apple we stand firmly behind our product by offering you a 100% money back guarantee.
If you try our lipstick or lip gloss and you are dissatisfied for any reason please send it right back to us within 30 days of receipt and we will refund 100% of your original purchase! You'll enjoy our simple policy: no gimmicks, no hassles, no additional fees.

Read Their Entire Refund policy

Made In The USA
When Jay started Red Apple Lipstick, the choice of making his product anywhere other than the USA was out of the question. As a company, we never even consulted with groups outside of the USA.
Americans manufacture all Red Apple products in the US. Jay, being a veteran and a patriotic, red blooded American wanted his products made here, by Americans. He wanted to provide jobs for people here that needed them and he knew that in the end, the product would be superior. Let's face it, Americans DO know how to manufacturer quality products and Red Apple products are prime example of the American spirit and ingenuity that this great country of ours offers to the world.

My Personal Opinion: 
As you can see, I am very impressed with this company. They are upfront and honest about their products, which I highly value.  If you suffer from allergies or not, I highly recommend Red Apple products as their lip-stick and lip-gloss are the best I have ever used. They are well worth every penny.

Check out the link below!