FPGirl.com is a Little Girl’s Dream Come True

**I received a gc to FPGirl.com as part of the US Family Guide blogger program. No other compensation has been received**

UPDATE: The fp site no longer exists

When I was a young girl I used to love to draw. One of my favorite things to draw was outfits. At one point in my life I wanted to be a fashion designer. Even as now I envision shirts I’d like to have, a dress look I wish I could find, etc.

FPGirl.com let’s a creative girl select articles of clothing choosing the color and designs she wants. Granted it’s not completely free form but I would have loved something like this when I was a girl. Now that I have my own little girl I love looking at the styles and things available for her. She’s only 6 months old, she doesn’t care what she wears at this point but it’s so much fun to dress her up.

I had the chance to review the FPGirl.com site and create an article of clothing. I wanted to find something cute, practical, but still girly. The smallest the size went down to was a size 4 in girls but I figured I could make it and put it away for her. Then when she’s old enough I’ll let her create her own piece.

You can choose to create shirts, dresses, hoodies, and even accessories like jewelry and backpacks. There are different styles of each in each category.

I ended up choosing a light weight long sleeve hooded tshirt with a pocket in the front. I chose the color HollyHock. There are so many different designs to add depending on your little girl’s personality. Everything from sports emblems, to skull and cross bones, and more. You can put thing on the sleeves or only one sleeve, the left chest or right, I chose a rainbow colored crown for the front and put her initial on the left chest.

I was so excited to get her shirt and see that it actually turned out even better than I expected.

I love it, I love the color, I love the style, I love how the accents turned out. I think it’s awesome! Getting your daughter, granddaughter, niece, etc a FPGirl.com gift card for the holidays would be awesome. You can get they’ll get what they want and it will fit. You’ll also give them the gift of creativity and individuality. You can have it sent through snail mail or as an e-certificate.

You can find FPGirl on the following social media sites:

Twitter: @FashionPlaytes
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fashionplaytes
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/fashionplaytes/

And hey, for us moms they have a survey site called FPMom. Take surveys, earn reward points to trade in for things like gc to FPgirl.com, Amazon gc, and more! It’s free, sign up here: http://fpmom.fashionplaytes.com?ref=2-1218023

Gortons is Wicked Good Seafood

**I’m a Gorton’s Seafood blogger. I received a review packet to facilitate this post. I also have a chance at a cash prize for this post. No other compensation has been received. Giveaway is sponsored by Gorton’s Seafood**

I’ll admit I’m pretty picky about my seafood. I’m not a fan of lobster, I don’t care for things like sushi so if you can get me to eat seafood and actually enjoy it, well you got something there. I’ve always liked shrimp though so when I go to eat seafood that’s usually the choice I make.

Since I started working with Gorton’s Seafood on my blog I’ve made myself try some different things and my seafood palette has expanded. I LOVE, I mean LOVE their potato crunch fish fillets. I don’t normally even like fish but I LOVE the potato crunch fillets (did I say that already? 🙂

My boys love the Gorton’s fish sticks and popcorn shrimp. My husband his favorite is the lemon herb fish fillets. Gorton’s has lots of seafood products to choose from. They even had a bunch of recipes using Gorton’s products on their site if you want to change up your seafood routine. You can find family pleasing recipes like the fish stick tacos pictured below.

As for me I made up a meal for my kids. I’ve seen all these people creating little pictures and things to create a fun looking meal for their kids. Well I used my imagination a bit when I made Gorton’s fish sticks and popcorn shrimp for the kids as well as french fries and italian cut green beans.

Ok so the top one is supposed to be flowers in a pot. The bottom one is supposed to be fish stick figures playing shrimp ball in the yard. I don’t know, what do you think?

Want more inspiration for your Gorton’s meals? Wouldn’t a trip to Boston for your family be wicked fun? Enter the Gorton’s Wicked Good Sweepstakes to win a trip for 4 to Boston, MA that includes airfare, lodging, activities, and spending money!! Sweepstakes ends October 18 at 3 PM EST. See Gorton’s site for official rules.

You can also find Gorton’s on the following social media sites:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gortonsseafood
Twitter: @GortonsSeafood
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/gortonsseafood/

You can also download a $1.00 off Gorton’s Seafood products coupon

GIVEAWAY

1 Luv Saving Money reader will win:

3 – $2 off Gorton’s product coupons

1 Gorton’s branded ship wheel keychaing

and an assortment of recipe cards and Gorton’s postcards

US only

Entry -Form

Create A Wow Look for Your Team or Just For Yourself

**I received a sample of the below mentioned products in order to complete an honest review. No other compensation has been received**

When you’re on a team or in a group like cheerleading, dance ensembles, etc sometimes it’s necessary to create a uniform look. Looking uniform and pulled together adds to the performance. When it comes to make up you want something that’s going to show up, something that’s going to last, and something that looks great.

BA Star Make up has custom kits available for your group. They can even create custom make up charts for your team for free so everyone knows how to apply their make up. I think that’s a pretty neat service from a make up company.

I received a sample of the BA Star Stardust loose minerals and a tube of the BA Star liquid glue primer base.

The BA Star liquid glue primer base comes in a bottle that reminds me of a lip gloss tube. When you take the cap out there is a wand with a sponge applicator on it. I was a little nervous about the glue at first because I was thinking it would feel sticky. I was also concerned that it would be hard to get off. Neither were true. When applied only felt it initially until it dried which on took a couple seconds. You don’t see it at all once it’s dry. I then applied the BA Star Stardust loose mineral in the color Chocolate that i received.

The color is very vibrant and shimmery. The glue really helps it to stay put. It feels very light. Even with the glue I was able to blend the stardust easily into the look I wanted. I created a video to show you how easy it was to apply.

You can check out all the colors, how-to videos, and more at bastar.com.

This make up isn’t strictly for teams though. The beautiful vibrant colors would be great for holidays, a night out, and more. Think about adding this shimmery make up to a fairy costume or princess costume this year. You can also use it to create glitter tattoos to show off your school spirit!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Ozeri Duo Ultra Salt and Pepper Grinder in Stainless Steel

**I received the below mentioned product in order to complete an honest review. No other compensation has been received. This post does contain Amazon affiliate links**

When I have the chance, I prefer sea salt over regular salt. You don’t seem to need as much and the different varieties of sea salts available can add a different flavor to your dish. I’ve only recently started using fresh cracked pepper corns as well.

I wanted a nice looking reusable salt and pepper grinder that would be durable but easy to use with the kids. We’re slowly converting the things in our kitchen to stainless steel as thing break or get worn out. I had the chance to review the Ozeri Duo Ultra Salt and Pepper Mill and Grinder, Stainless Steel I like that it’s a 2 in 1 kitchen item so it will save a little space. I don’t have much storage space and counters in my kitchen so every little bit helps.

It has a nice big handle on the top so it’s easy even for my 4 year old to turn the grinder. There is a cap on the bottom so salt and pepper doesn’t leak out and accumulate on your counter or in your cupboard. There was instructions on how to fill it and use it.

The bottom lid actually doubles as a funnel to help fill your salt and pepper shaker. The one complaint I had about this is that there is a sliding piece on this part and it was very stiff when I first took it out of the box. I tried hard to slide it over and I couldn’t get it. I even used a flat head screw driver to try to get it started. I finally handed it to my husband and he was able to get it after working at it for a minute. After the initial trial I was able to slide it back and forth with little effort.

Lid that doubles as funnel that stuck

My son wanted to try it first. I had made some edamame as a side dish with dinner and he wanted to add a little salt to it. When you turn the handle one way it dispenses the salt, the opposite direction is the pepper. The salt tumbled out pretty fast and it was a bit messy but after the initial use and a little tweaking, it worked fine as well.

It’s a solidly built grinder and is attractive enough to keep out in site if you like. It certainly looks better than the lime green shakers I was using prior to this. While the initial issues were a little frustrating, once we got it working it ended up not being to bad for the money.

The Ozeri Duo Salt and Pepper grinder is available on Amazon on sale at only $12.95 (originally $25.00)

Help Little Ones Be More Independent with Potty Training with The Shandle

**I received samples of the below mentioned product in order to complete a review. This is also a paid post**

My son took a long time to get fully potty trained but we finally made it. He is fully potty trained and was able to start preschool this year. Still he needs help with some aspect like cleaning himself properly, reminders to wash hands, and lifting the toilet seat when he has to go number 1.

The Shandle toilet seat handle is a simple handle to attach to your toilet seat that makes it easier for little ones to lift the seat up and keeps them from touchy the germy seat. For me, living in a house with 4 males, trust me the seat is germy. There’s some nasty grime that won’t come off on the under part of the seat no matter what I try.

I got to choose 2 different designs. I let my 4 yr old pick one then I chose one. I chose the seahorse design while my son chose the Robot design.

I first applied the seahorse one to the toilet in my basement. The kids, especially my youngest son, use this one a lot during the day, I guess because it’s more convenient. The Shandle was easy to apply with a a sticky strip on the handle itself. You simply stick it to the underside of the toilet seat, apply pressure for 30 seconds, and they recommend waiting at least 24 hours before using. I imagine that might be a hard thing in a house if there’s only one bathroom. Luckily we have two working toilets in the house.

I did have an issue with the upstairs toilet though. The underside of the toilet seat has a slightly concave shape. I attempted to apply the Robot Shandle to that one. I realized as I was applying pressure that the seat was concave and the center of the sticky strip wasn’t going to stay. sure enough the first time I lifted the seat the handle fell off. I tried reapply and even sitting on the seat with the lid down to apply more pressure hoping it would help it to stick in the center of the sticky strip. No such luck. After trying to apply it a few times the sticky strip started loosing it’s stickiness and wouldn’t stick at all anymore.

I tried to show the gap in the center because of the shape of the underseat but the gap is so small it’s hard to show. It was enough though that the handle would not stick. The one in the basement has been working fine through many uses. the underseat is also completely flat too.

lol my son demonstrating on the toilet in the basement. He was not super enthused about me taking this picture

I think this is a great tool to help little ones become more independent with potty training. My only advice is to make sure that underneath your toilet seat is flat before ordering.

You can get a 3 pack of The Shandle on their website: http://theshandle.com/ for $9.99

You can also find The Shandle on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheShandle