Oka b. Shoes That Love You!

I'm so excited to announce that Flip Flop Reviews will be doing a review for OKA b. soon!  You just have to check out their selection of super cute and comfortable shoes. 

Right now, when you click the above banner, you can get $10 off instantly at checkout with the listed code!!

Blog Hopping!

Hi, and welcome to Flip Flop Reviews!! :o) 

Check back here tomorrow for the Flip Flop Friday Blog Hop too!

Costume Supercenter Review

CostumeSupercenter.com offers an amazing selection for all of your costume needs.  Adults, teens, kids, and even pets can all find costumes at CostumeSupercenter.com. 

Halloween is my favorite holiday.  It has been for as long as I can remember.  I love dressing up, and it's even more fun now that I have my own children to enjoy the magic of make believe with.  However I've had so much fun with my girl's dressing up these past few years, I haven't bothered to dress up myself.  Browsing through the selection available at Costume Supercenter (it's never to early to start thinking about Halloween costumes!), I decided it might be fun if we all dressed as pirates this year.  The girls love pirates, I was just sure they'd be thrilled with the idea, and I love that it is something the whole family can easily dress up as together.  They have a fantastic selection of pirate costumes and accessories.  Since my browsing was for a review, I decided to get a costume for myself rather than just one that the girls would fight over for now.  So I headed over to the plus sized costumes (I wear a size 14, and I'd rather a costume be too big than too small, I can always take it in a little myself if needed). 

While I saw several cute pirate costumes for women, I decided on the Buccaneer Beauty Adult Plus Costume.  It offered the most coverage, as well as more versatility.  I can mix and match and add my own finishing touches with this costume.  The entire costume includes a head scarf, a top, a corset belt, and a skirt.  I love the skirt and the corset belt, but I am not crazy about the red shirt, personally.  I think white would look better.    Overall the costume is well made, and with care, it will last me for as many years as I feel like being a pirate for Halloween. 

*I was sent the above costume for the purposes of this review.  

Skin MD Natural Review and Giveaway

I was recently contacted and asked if I'd like to review Skin MD Natural.  It has been recommended by over a thousand doctors and  dermatologists for dry skin, eczema, and psoriasis, and while I don't really suffer from any of those conditions, I love trying new lotions, and all of the eco friendly, cruelty free, and vegan benefits listed for Skin MD Natural sounded great. 

Ninety-three percent of the ingredients in Skin MD Natural are all natural and/or plant-based natural ingredients. The balance are food grade or medical grade products that are on the Food & Drug Administration's most safe list.  You can see Skin MD Natural's ingredient list here, as well as find a wealth of information on those ingredients.

This lotion acts as a shield for you skin, to replace the barrier that's stripped away with the daily use of most soaps and cleansers, and protect against irritants, as well as moisturizing.

I received a bottle of Skin MD Natural Shielding Lotion, as well as some samples of Skin MD Natural with sunscreen.  My first thought, was that the lotion seemed very thin, and as I rubbed it in, I was a bit curious at the statement that it is not greasy because it did feel a little greasy to me.  The lotion dried quickly on my skin, and left no greasy feeling, so I was very happy about that.  I think I am just so used to using thicker, creamier lotions.  What really got me, with Skin MD Naturals, was that I didn't feel the need to constantly apply lotion to my hands throughout the day.  No matter how many times I washed my hands, did dishes, cleaned, my hands still felt soft, moisturized, and yes, protected.  So I began to use Skin MD Naturals on the heels of my feet.  I did not take a picture (lucky you, trust me!), but let's just say I haven't taken care of them like I should after having children and they had become hard and started to crack.  Attractive, I know.  No amount of pumice stone and/or lotion seemed to help, but I decided to give it shot with Skin MD Naturals.  So I prepped my heels by using a pumice stone, and then I began to apply the lotion nightly.  Well, I'm happy to report that my heels are nice and soft and ready for flip flop weather! 

I have also been allowing my daughters to use this lotion.  My four year old has an interesting skin issue.  Her skin on her arms and legs is slightly dry, and bumpy, almost pimply.  It doesn't seem to bother her most of the time aside from when it's too dry, and I've mentioned it to her pediatrician and they don't seem at all concerned.  I am thinking of taking her to a dermatologist though to see if we can clear it up somehow.  I've tried switching soaps, laundry detergents, etc, and haven't seen any changes.  I can't use just any lotion on her without causing it to flair up, and she will complain after using lotion that it stings sometime.  With Skin MD Naturals, she asks to use it, and doesn't complain at all of it bothering her skin and while I have not noticed that it's been helping to heal her skin, it hasn't made it worse and it doesn't irritate her, which is awesome (even baby lotions bother her). 

You can go here if you're interested in receiving a sample, however if you'd like to win a full size bottle for yourself, you're in the right place!

Mandatory Entry:

-Follow Flip Flop Reviews (publicly) on Google Friend Connect.  If you already follow us, great, let us know.

Extra Entries:

-Visit http://www.skinmdnatural.com/ and tell me something you learned about Skin MD Natural.

-Like Skin MD Natural on Facebook.

-Follow Skin MD Natural on Twitter.

-Like Flip Flop Reviews on Facebook.

-Follow Flip Flop Reviews with Networked Blogs.  (check the sidebar)

-Follow Flip Flop Reviews on Twitter @FlipFlopReviews.

-Blog about this giveaway and leave the link in a comment.

-Enter one of our other current giveaways and let me know which one you entered. (Feel free to leave one comment for each giveaway entered)

This giveaway will end on 5/11/2011 at 8pm EST. Any entries after that will not count.  Please make sure that you leave an email address or some way to contact you in your comments.  If we can't figure out how to get in touch with you, you can't win!  :o)  Good luck! 

*I was given a full size bottle of Skin MD Natural, as well as several samples of the Skin MD Natural with SPF for the purposes of this review.

Simple Green Review

Over thirty years ago, Simple Green was created with industrial marketplaces in mind, but it became popular for cleaning households quickly, and with customer demands, they introduced their products in convenient household sizes for retail stores.

The makers of Simple Green have spent over $3 million to verify the safety claims and unique formulation. Concentrated Simple Green had it right from the start. An environmentally-sensitive non-toxic cleaner/degreaser that really works and can be economically custom-diluted for many, many different uses. From floors and walls to pots and pans, from windows to sinks and drains, from stained carpets to greasy tools, it only takes a little Simple Green to get big jobs done around the house.

When Simple Green contacted me and asked if I'd like to review their products, I was honored.  I'd heard a lot about Simple Green and I've always wanted to try it out for myself, but as a crazy coupon lady who often gets free household cleaners, I had not been compelled enough to buy it for myself yet.  After debating which product I'd like to try most, I went with the Original Simple Green.  I received a full 32 oz. bottle of the concentrated formula (enough to make 10 bottles of cleaning solution!), as well as a dilution bottle and a tip sheet packed with information on usage and dilution.  I love the dilution bottle, it has a handy fill line printed right on it so I know how much water/Simple Green ratio to put in to get my cleaning done just right.  So far I have not needed to use the Heavy Cleaning dilution, the Everyday Cleaning ratio has been working wonderfully for my needs, and after a month of using this product I still have some left in my dilution bottle, so the concentrate could last for nearly a year depending on your level of usage. 

Non-toxic Simple Green All Purpose Cleaner is made of water, surfactants (surface-active-agents), wetting agents, emulsifiers, green colorant and fragrance. Simple Green does not contain chlorine (bleach), ammonia, formaldehyde, TSP or petroleum distillates.

Simple Green All-Purpose Cleaner can be used on any washable surface, from floors and walls to laundry and vehicles (see Applications/Dilution Ratio Chart). It removes the toughest stains including dirt, grease, oil, pet stains, coffee & juice stains, lipstick, blood, adhesives & much more!  I have been using Simple Green for all of my cleaning these past few weeks (the only thing I haven't tried it on is my laundry, have you?  I'd love to hear how it worked for you if you have).  I love the scent of this too, it is not overpowering and doesn't bother me at all, it has a slightly sweet, and minty smell to it.  Very light, fresh, and clean.

*I was provided with a bottle of Simple Green concentrate and a dilution bottle for the purposes of this review.  No other compensation was given.