Wino Wednesday: Scarlet Five

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Welcome back to Wino Wednesday with Aubrey from High-Heeled Love and Myself!

Three Simple Rules:

1) Take the Button

2) Write a Wine-related Post

3) Link-up!

Today I'm going to do a review of sorts of my new favorite wine :)

From the CK Mondavi Website:

Scarlet Five is our winemaker’s signature cuvee, an expression of five red varieties capturing the best of each vintage. It has the backbone of Cabernet Sauvignon, the finesse of Merlot, the structure of Petit Verdot, the floral essence of Cabernet Franc and the boldness of Malbec. This full-bodied wine offers flavors of black cherries and plums and ends in a soft, balanced finish.

Our family winery, established in 1943, has been committed to creating fine wines for four generations. We harvest grapes at their peak of ripeness from prime California vineyards, creating wines with fully developed flavors.

Appellation: California

Varietals: 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Merlot, 13% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 1% Malbec

From Yours Truly:

This is honestly the best wine I've had in recent memory. When I was in Georgia last weekend I found it for an excellent price and I bought 6 bottles. It's dry, but it has so much flavor and is does have a smooth finish so the "dry" isn't as abrasive as it can be in other wines. Even my sister Megan, who doesn't like red wine, liked this one. I found it at Jax's for $8.79 for a 1.5L bottle. I spotted it in a Publix last night for $9.99 for the 1.5L bottle. So it's a good buy, and it's delicious. 

Seriously, try it. Let me know what you think of it!

Happy Wino Wednesday! Link-up Below!

February Juniper Box

So I thought I would share the contents of my Juniper Box with you this month! It was really cute and Valentine themed. The chocolate couldn't have arrived at a better time, that's for sure.

My sister came in while I was taking pics and said, "Did they actually hand-write your name on here? Is it a small company?" I was laughing and bragging then she remembered, "Oh yeah, they love you don't they?"

The feeling is mutual, I really love Juniper Boxes. The packaging, the high quality treats, the unexpected notes on my invoice. Lynn (my Juniper BFF) and I are friends on twitter and instagram so when I got engaged she sent me a little congrats. It's awesome to get great customer service from such an awesome company. If you're not familiar with Juniper you can check out my original review and video HERE.

If you are interested in Juniper, Sign-Up NOW! Tell them I sent you and we will BOTH get a free month!

Datevitation Review and Giveaway

Datevitation invited me to review one of their awesome "date coupon" books. I knew right away that this would be a perfect Valentine's Day gift for my sweetie (good thing he never reads the blog!) 

I'm not using pictures of my own book just in case, but these are some images from Datevitation, and they are dead on. The book is printed using high quality paper and the graphics are adorable!

For $20 you can get a coupon book with 5 dates. Each additional date is only $1. You need to order before February 3rd for guaranteed delivery for Valentine's Day, but if you order BY THURSDAY you can use the code SOUTHERNGIRL for $10 off your order!

Valentine's Day isn't the only thing these are good for. Birthdays, Anniversaries, Christmas, or even just because!

Datevitation is offering a free coupon book to one lucky reader! While the winner won't have it in time for Valentine's Day, think of all the other occasions you could give this book!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Wino Wednesday: Wine Improvement

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Welcome back to Wino Wednesday with Aubrey and I!

The rules are easy:

1) Grab the button.

2) Write a post about wine or anything wine related.

3) Link-up your post!

Today I'm going to tell you about Wine Improvement.

I stumbled across this company on Have Wine Will Drink a while back and I contacted them about a review and giveaway.

I received three different products to test, Smoothing Red, Smoothing White, and Rescue Drops. I haven't had an opportunity to try all three yet, but I can tell you that the rescue drops really work!

I had a bottle of Sangria in my fridge that had been opened forever (think before Thanksgiving). I'd been meaning to toss what was left, but I thought, I might as well give it a shot with these drops.

I tasted the wine first to see. In fairness it wasn't completely awful to begin with, and wino that I am I probably would have drank it as it was, but in the name of reviewing I added a couple of drops and stirred. Before the drops it had a really sharp finish, the kind of bite that makes your tongue grab hold to the roof of your mouth. After the drops? The bite was gone. It was a great glass of Sangria. Basically the same as I would expect from a newly opened bottle. I was definitely impressed with the results, and as I get an opportunity to try the Smoothing Red and Smoothing White I'll let you know what I think!

So what do you have to share this Wino Wednesday? Link-up below and don't forget to claim your entries in the January Vine Giveaway!

Also happening this month:

What's your Ista? Giveaway

Rewined Candle Giveaway

Giveaway!

Wine Improvement has generously offered all three product to THREE (3) lucky winners! Use the Rafflecopter Widget to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Wino Wednesday: What's Your Ista Review & Giveaway

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Welcome back to Wino Wednesday with me and Aubrey! Grab the Button and Link-up your wine-related post!

I love showing off my love of wine & I love T-shirts. So I was looking around online and discovered this fun site where you could order T-shirts to show off your personality! I got in touch with the owners about a review/giveaway and, Voila!

This is my Wine-ista T-shirt!

I love this shirt. It's become a weekend staple. During the cold weather I layer it over a long sleeve shirt or just wear it lounging around the house. I was actually wearing it when Jason proposed last month!

I love the material, it's a lot softer than most T-shirts, and they are pretty true to size. I tend to order up online (after purchasing several snug fitting tops) and this shirt is actually really loose. I could have stuck with my normal size.

The founders of "What's your Ista?"

Marlee is a school guidance counselor and a designer, who wants to save the world and make it more beautiful at the same time (peaceista). Amy is a special education teacher, who is a self-described word nerd (wordista or nerdista?) who loves the idea of creating new words with a clever sounding suffix. Between us, we have 5 children to put through college, I mean, who we are raising. Marlee and Amy have been friends since they met in the "transfer student" line at Clemson University in 1986. 

Our kids are tennisista, zombieista, spikeista, artista, and pizza-ista (which is just fun to say—try it).

How It All Started

Dig if you will this picture, over a glass or 2 of the house merlot, we lamented the current state of the economy and our husbands' job prospects. Someone said something like “Forget fashionista, I’m a recessionista.” Next thing you know, we are all throwing out other ista ideas. We got to thinking that it would be fun to create Ista T-shirts. 

Part of our mission is to be generous with others.  We know that many organizations have been suffering from a lack of donations. We know that passionate people like our customers will have their own pet charities.  We want our customers to suggest charities and we will donate a portion of our profits. 

Taken directly from whatsyourista.com

Giveaway!

What's Your Ista is being kind enough to giveaway a T-shirt to one lucky reader! Use the Rafflecopter Widget below to enter.

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Don't forget to link-up your Wino Wednesday post and enter the January Vine Giveaway!

Juniper Review and Giveaway!

Website//Facebook//Twitter//Instagram

Have you heard of Juniper? If you haven't then you definitely want to pay attention!

Juniper is a new monthly subscription just for women! It serves a real purpose, and you WILL need it once a month! 

That's right, it's for your period.

(Now guys don't zone out yet, there's something in it for you too!)

I stumbled upon Juniper in October. It was a must-have for me so I ordered it right then. Of course I was ordering too late to be able to use it that month! But I was still in love with everything in the box! I filmed this little video to show what all was in the box.

Wouldn't you know, after I posted this I got a response from Lynn (Juniper's CEO and my personal Juniper BFF) offering to send me some free treats in November since I couldn't use my tampons in October! 

And seriously, this was November's box!

I LOVE this subscription. It's something that I will use every month. It's convenient and I don't have to run out late at night in my flannel PJ pants and snow boots when I'm crampy and pissy to get tampons because I forgot on the way home. (Yeah, that's happened.)

Guys, why not pay for this for your wife/girlfriend? She will love you for it, and you will never be asked to make a tampon run again!

Good Questions! (& Answers)

How do I start? Sign-up at www.getjuniper.com and pick your brand. 

How much does it cost? You are charged $28 each time Juniper ships you a box.

How often will I get a box? I'm glad you asked.When you get your Juniper box there will be a sicker on your box of tampons with a number. When your period starts you simply text "It has begun" to that number. Then Juniper will begin to track your cycle. Each month your Juniper Box should arrive the week before your period.

Can I cancel if I don't like it? Sure, but you're going to like it. It makes you look forward to your period.... well, almost.

Giveaway!
**Contest has been extended through January 31st, 2013**

So, I reached out to Lynn about participating in The Vine this month. She was all about it and guess what? Juniper is giving you a chance to win your first month for FREE!

To enter all you have to do is take a picture of your favorite treat or indulgence and tweet it to @getjuniper with #periodcravings! [and mention @SSG_Danielle please? ;)]

So tell me, what do you crave most during your period?

Review: Bath and Body Works Fall Mini Candle

I've posted many times before about my participation with Influenster.com, but for those of you who are new to SSG, let me tell you a little bit about the program.

Influenster is a website where anyone can create an account and link all of their social media platforms. You unlock badges according to where you are in life and what areas you are most interested and influential in.

For example, my highest badge score is the High Spirits Badge because of my obsession with wine :)

I also have the Beauty Badge and because I have a higher score and am in good standing with the site, I received the Beauty Bloggers VoxBox Last month. One of the items that I received that I was particularly fond of was the mini-candle from Bath and Body Works.

Reviewers received different scents from the Fall Fragrance Collection and I received the White Barn No.1 Nutmeg and Spice scent. I really love this candle. It has a great fragrance that compliments the other scents I use around this time of year. I burn it in the bathroom since it is a smaller space and it really fills the room with fragrance.

I've only used about half of the candle so far and I would guess that I've burned it for a total of 7 or 8 hours, so the 15 hour burn time seems pretty accurate. For only $3.50 I'd say this is a great buy. Perfect for surcee gifts or stocking stuffers!

Soap for Your Soul Review and Giveaway!

Website//Etsy//Twitter//Facebook

Today I have a great shop to share with you! If you've been around for long you know that I'm a fan of Soap for your Soul. I bought a few great things for Fall a while back and posted about them HERE.

When I started putting it out there that I wanted to do Free Promotion on the blog, Emily contacted me to be a part of my first month!

Soap for your Soul is local to South Carolina, based in Myrtle Beach. They specialize in handcrafted soaps and hand poured Soy Candles. They sent me a cold process hand soap and a 16oz. three wick candle to review. They are both in the Pumpkin Apple Butter scent, and it is amazing! I had been burning the Pumpkin candle, and it was amazing, but the day I started burning the Pumpkin Apple Butter everyone that came through asked me what it was and where I got it!

And the soap! It has a great lather, and I find myself washing my hands anytime I walk past the bathroom, because I can actually smell the soap!

Soap for your Soul is incredibly conscious of respecting the environment and their packaging is all recycled! 

And now, they are offering this gift set for you!

Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Not Your Mother's Smooth Moves

I received a 1.5 oz tube of Not Your Mother's Smooth Moves  in my Beauty Bloggers Vox Box.

I love this product. It is definitely my favorite of everything I received. I have been using it almost every day, it really cuts down on my frizz. I love what it does for my hair. It doesn't take much, a little goes a long way with this cream. I highly recommend it. A full size 4 oz. tube retails for about $6, I plan to keep buying this when I run out.

Review: Palmetto Greetings Notecards

So for this week's Wino Wednesday I thought I would share my awesome new notecards with you!

Dawn from Palmetto Greetings sent Stationary for the Palmetto Blogger Goodie Bags, and I really loved the notecards she sent. They were perfect for adding a little note to all the packages I send out! 

So when I saw these Wine SNOB Notecards in her etsy shop, I had to have them!

Don't you just love them?! The paper is a great weight, and the envelopes are really great. I absolutely love them. I'm sure I'll go through them quickly and have to order more!

Soap for your Soul Review

So last month at the Palmetto Bloggers meet-up I was able to collect products from some awesome small businesses from around our state. One of the businesses that contributed was Good Day Sunshine, or Soap for your Soul.

In each of the goody bags they included a sample of their organic soap and a discount code for free shipping! I used my code this week to order some of the awesome seasonal items they have put out recently!

This three wick soy candle smells absolutely amazing! I haven't even burned it yet and just having it sitting in my room puts off a wonderful pumpkin scent! It's perfect for this time of year. I'm going to burn it at our Halloween party next weekend and then at Thanksgiving. I love that it comes in a reusable ceramic dish! I plan to burn this baby up this year, so next year I'll have an adorable candy dish for my desk at work!

Only $19!

The weather is going to have to cool down before we can use this adorable firestarter. J's apartment has a wood-burning fireplace so I bought this for him. I love the idea of turning the fire into a cozy scented evening in without having to work forever to get it going! Just light this little firestarter and stick it below the logs! It has a great cinnamon/spice/woody smell.

Only $4.50!

They have so many great products, and so many great gifts! Perfect for a hostess gift or that person who loves to entertain.

I love the Primitive Pumpkin Guest Soaps, and the Mason Jar Candles. I plan to continue shopping with this business. They pay attention to the details. The packaging is simple, but still perfect. You could buy from this store and ship it directly to someone as a gift and you couldn't have presented it better yourself!

I highly recommend that you check out this etsy seller. You won't regret a purchase with them!

Etsy//Facebook//Twitter

I purchased these items at full price using a free shipping promotional code.

Indie Gift Box Review

So I started seeing a lot of neat things last month about Indie Gift Box and I knew I really wanted to 1) buy one and 2) contribute to the Boxes.

I purchased the August Pretty Boho Box. 

There were glitches at checkout and I actually received a back-order box, which was slightly different than the original box.

There were items in my box from This Enchanted Pixie, Karibou Crafts, Anirtak, Kharliebug Handmade, and a CD from Sharaya Mikael

I was pretty pleased with the contents of the box. The little necklace from Anirtak was just darling, and the hairclips from Kharliebug almost made me wish I hadn't cut my hair yet. I can still use them though, and I can't wait to find the right outfit to wear them with.

The bracelet was too tight for me. I can't get it on with one hand which means I'll probably never wear it, but I love the look of it.

Now onto Contributing!


I'm going to have items in the September Cool Nature Indie Gift Box!

I'm excited to see the other items in the box. There are only 8 available so don't drag your feet. Check out the release dates and grab one for yourself!


I'm not telling you what I contributed but if you check out the Indie Gift Box Facebook Page you'll probably figure it out :)

Sally Hansen Salon Effects

I received a pack of Sally Hansen Nail Strips in my Spring Beauty Vox Box from Influenster. The style I received was Wild Child.

When I was leafing through the pamphlet that came with the box that showed the different designs I found myself loving some of them, especially "love letters". I knew I wouldn't wear Wild Child in public, it's not my thing, but I took it out and tried them on. I was very disappointed.

I followed the instructions, but the strips didn't stick to my nails very well. Once I got them on as good as I could I used the file as instructed to file off the excess. It looked really bad. I looked like I had paper on my nails. There was a gap between the strips and my nails at the tips and I couldn't make the sides lie flat against my nails. 

Overall I was very disappointed, and with a price tag of $9.99 for one application, I'd rather go for a manicure.