Review for Qwessi Kitchen tea infusers

Hello, lovelies! I've finally gotten off my behind and have done my review for Qwessi Kitchen's 4pk of multicolored tea infusers.

In my video, I walk you through my first use of this product.

I absolutely love these guys! You'll definitely get tons of compliments on these. They're also great as an affordable gift idea for a tea lover. Or you can order one and split them up among a few tea lovers! The price is right, as it's comparable to what a single tea infuser would go for, but you get 4 of them.

I'm grateful to Qwessi Kitchen for allowing me to test these out at a discounted rate. A big thank you to them!

If you're interested in these, you can find them here. 

I've started a facebook page to house all of my reviews. Please stop by here and give us a like!

Thanks for stopping by and checking this out! Until next time, shine on!

The controversial Amazon TOS update!

For those of you (well, probably all of you, really) who were not aware, I do reviews on Amazon. Not as a business (I don't get paid) or as a way to make money or profits of any kind (again, I don't get paid and I have NEVER accepted money or gifts from any seller asking for a review). Instead I did it as a way to try new things while helping other people like me who don't have a lot of money to spend on things they're merely intrigued by or slightly interested in. A review from me was an honest representation of whether or not the product in question was worth the money they were charging for it. Sometimes they were, sometimes they weren't. And sometimes, more than a few times, the product was awesome but the price was overkill. I represented alllllllllll of that in my reviews. Because, honestly... the review section is always your decision maker on anything you purchase online, don't even try to lie and say it's not.

So yes, I would receive items at a pretty good discount, or sometimes free, in exchange for my time to test it out and then my time to write up my honest review. It worked out perfectly for me because I was getting to try some things I've been interested in for a while (and some things I hadn't been interested in but found to be something I SHOULD have been interested in all along), I wasn't going broke doing it, AND I was able to spread some love to the consumer so that they weren't getting misled.

Unfortunately, there's a lot of assbags in the world who adore taking advantage of a good system. Some dickless sellers were either paying for the reviews or making the discount a condition of a 5 star review (no matter what they thought of it). I used to be part of a group who used to demand 5 star reviews. I left said group. After a while of being on their warning list for not completing reviews I had no intention of leaving 5 stars for, they simply allowed me to fall through the cracks of their impeccable system and had I chosen to stay, I could have easily began receiving items again right under their noses. That would have been wildly underhanded and I wasn't happy anyway, so I hit the road. It all seemed off to me.. and that's essentially when I discovered what they were doing was actually against Amazon's terms. Writing long winded 5 star reviews for a shitty product or, perhaps, a product it's clear you didn't bother trying? Yeah. That's been a valid concern for like... ya know, EVER.

But it was always perpetuated by these shady ass reviewers who were willing to whore out their keyboard and brown nosing vocabulary just to obtain free shit. Half the time I'd check the other reviews on something I had criticized and I would find BULLSHIT flowery rainbows. Reviewers waxing poetically about how wonderful this bullshit was and how they can't imagine how they've lived without it and BLAH BLAH BLAH KILL ME BLAH. I'm over here saying... Have you even tried the thing? Because it's not even close to the mythical being you've painted it to be.

Since this asshattery was common place and had no end in sight-- Amazon updated their TOS to include an all out ban on incentivized reviews. Anyone who received the item with a substantial promo code and then wrote a review are getting their reviews wiped out now even as I type this. They claim they're looking strictly for the "overboard" ones, but let's just face facts and understand that they aren't looking at your reviews. They are using an algorithm to seek and destroy any reviews posted for an order purchased with a promo code. Which is fine. No skin off my ass. Am I sad to see all my hard work erased? Absolutely. I'm pissed. But ya know what? Whatever. Because I know my work.

There are some people out there bitter as hell claiming it's a money grab on Amazon's part because they want to further their Vine program (where Amazon acts as the middle man for incentivized reviews so they ensure unbiased reviews as opposed to written defecation), which costs the sellers more money to participate in than offering codes to reviewers. And hey, that might be a valid perk on their end. But you're fucking blind if you can't see there was a legit issue that people kept taking advantage of over and over and it was killing Amazon's credibility. Ever heard the adage that a few can ruin it for everyone? Here's your real life example.

THERE IS A POINT TO THIS, I PROMISE!!

The point of this post was to not only express my feelings on the change, but also to issue a gripe against Amazon itself. Not for amending their TOS, not even for deleting my hard work. But because they were so wildly unprepared for the blow back of this move that I am still receiving emails from sellers-- THROUGH AMAZON NO LESS-- asking and reminding me for my reviews. I will share a few examples here-- fear not, anything that would identify the product or the seller has been blacked out to ensure privacy. I'm not in the game of putting anyone on blast, especially since this is most likely Amazon's flub and the emails could very well be automated via their system. Please note the time stamps on these, as the TOS change took effect October 3.

The screenshots posted above are a few I received from sellers via Amazon Marketplace. I assume they are automated. Amazon sent me these. Amazon even sent me this, even though seller feedback is also strictly prohibited under the new TOS:

Now, there were a few honest sellers out there who contacted me via Amazon Marketplace to assure me that in order to abide by the new rules, a review was not necessary.

These are the good guys, folks. So either Amazon has dropped the ball and didn't stop all automated messages from being sent out, or these sellers don't give a rat's ass what Amazon thinks. Either way... It's quite vexing. So kudos to the sellers who are reaching out and letting us know they are aware of the changes and urging us to abide by the rules. I applaud you. Seriously.

So from here on in, I will be posting my product reviews here. I will try to keep the products I review here relate-able to my audience, but if I do post something that doesn't catch your interest... apologies in advance. I am well aware I can't possibly please everyone. But what I will do is provide a completely honest review of the item and hopefully it will help both my audience and the seller.

Full disclosure-- I teased a review in my last post and promised it for today-- whoops! Many bads on my part on that one. Time certainly got away with me and I wasn't feeling well at the start of the day, but I will get that posted here as soon as I possibly can. It's a good one, guys.. so I hope you enjoy it.

That's it for now! Thanks for tuning in to my ravings. I really felt the need to vent about my peeves and also shine a bit more light on why I've altered this blog to include reviews. This would be it! I kinda feel better doing them here anyway. Gives me much more creative flexibility. And I can curse! I can actually say THIS IS THE NICEST SHIT EVER OMG FUCKING FUCK I CAN'T EVEN!

And that makes my little black heart beat quicker with excitement.

Until next time, my stars... keep shining!

Adventures in anxiety!

I know I haven't talked about it on here before, but I have anxiety. I usually don't talk about it much because I'm always apprehensive that people will pull away from me simply because they don't understand or think that must mean I'm a lunatic. Which has happened, sadly. I know a lot of people see me differently now than they saw me before I started having panic attacks. People are more careful with me, they handle me with care as if I'm a delicate vase they'll get in trouble for breaking. So I rarely talk about it, except in passing ("oh hey, yes, this post is relate-able because I also struggle with that" or "man, I feel ya.. that makes me nervous too"). Never in depth. Unless I'm close to you, but just the same, I'm cautious. So I've decided to talk about it. Not constantly (hell, this entire post won't even be entirely about it), but more. Time to stop feeling like I'm the odd one out, as I know many of you out there struggle with it in varying degrees. And maybe you're afraid too. Maybe you feel like you're not normal and don't fit in. Being different takes a lot more courage than fitting in with the crowd. From here on in, I'll be sharing my stories with you in an effort to be as real as I possibly can be. The real me, 100% of the time. No "don't worry, I'm fine" or "look at these pictures where I'm smiling and life seems so perfect". I'm as imperfect as they come. Let's be entirely real with each other. Let's interact. I want to see some comments. If you're going through something similar, please always feel free to share your story. You can choose to stay in the shallow end or you can choose to swim in the ocean. So let's make some waves, darlings.

Along with my newfound willingness to speak openly about my anxiety, I will occasionally be sharing some things that work for me to help calm the nerves. Tonight it's all about a quiet, safe space. Tonight I am in my bedroom as I type this and I have my candles lit and my incense burning. I have a small space to my right that inhabits my bookshelf, along with a few carefully chosen decorations and practical items. I love my special space. It allows me to find a semblance of tranquility to help me get whatever rest I can grab onto. Here I'll burn strictly frankincense because it calms me. It's actually a natural antidepressant. I'll light my candles and every so often I'll look over and enjoy the dancing flames. I'll usually couple this with music and a relaxing or mind numbing activity. Some of you may be expecting a stereotypical pagan sound like meditation music or throat singing. In actuality, I'll put on Miles Davis and let him melt me into relaxation. I'll read or sometimes, yes shame on me, I'll play a mindless game on my phone (with the backlight turned all the way down, mind you... you won't get any rest from bright lights). This is my quiet place. It's not special to anyone but me.

So tell me.. what is your quiet place? Where do you go when you need to zen immediately? I'd love to hear your story. Thanks for reading mine.

There's lots of things coming up for this quiet little blog. Tomorrow I'll be reviewing a product that I think you're going to love. Here's a hint-- get the water boiling and grab your favorite mug! If there's anything you'd like to see discussed or addressed here, please let me know! I'm always open to suggestions (lawd knows I'm gonna need them after a while when writer's block rears it's stupid face).

If you haven't already, please subscribe or follow me (located on the right). Comments and shares are always much appreciated. Until next time, my stars... shine on.

Revamping and relaunching!

Good afternoon, my bright stars! It certainly has been a long time since my last post. This is about to change dramatically, you ready?!

Unfortunately, after I started this blog in 2014, life began to get a little crazy for me. Lots of changes to deal with and it took me a long while to acclimate to these changes. You see, not too long after the start of 2015, we took my dad in to the doctor to address his frequent memory loss. After some tests and referrals, we ended up at the VA in Cleveland in their neurology department. They tested, found it wasn't entirely abnormal for someone with diabetes as uncontrolled as my dad's has been. While we were up there, they put him through a mock and then real life driving test to test his reaction times and focus. It didn't go well and we walked away with a recommendation for him to stop driving. Since it was a warning, he still drove from time to time. At his checkup months later, the doctor was firm and serious- no more driving or there could be serious consequences. For instance, if he were to get into an accident and the opposing insurance company or police discovered he had been told not to drive, he could not only be sued for the damages, but could also be arrested for negligence if someone were to be injured. Since my mother has advanced arthritis in her knee and doesn't have much mobility these days, the task of driving for my entire family fell to me. It's been a rough transition. I've gone from having plenty of time to build my jewelry and crafting business and tending to a blog to having little to no time to do so. Much of my time from day to day is spent caring for others' needs instead of my own. I've been unable to obtain employment because of the need for me to be available as needed (in case of emergencies) and my personal life, to be honest, has suffered a bit. To be fair, I do have spare time on some days-- but I usually spend that time being LAZY or taking care of the needs in my own home. Mostly just being lazy. Gotta be honest here.

So now I am working on carving out some special time that is just for my own pursuits. I shall be posting weekly-- AT MINIMUM. Hopefully more, but certainly no less. I will also be working on restocking my virtual shelves (I shall soon include a link to my Etsy store in my profile for those interested in viewing my art) and you will see a random plug here and there for it, even if it's simply a teaser of something I'm excited about working on. I've also expanded my original intent for this blog and have decided to do a few product reviews for my lovely readers. They won't all be witchy/pagan related and they will probably vary in types. I will provide my best representation of the products as possible so you can have a sound foundation on which to stand when seeking out products of that type. I will not be asking you to purchase any of the products I review-- that's ridiculously underhanded and I WILL NOT EVER. So please don't ever feel that I am pushing or attempting to sell anything that I've reviewed. It's merely meant as a tool for my readers to use when unsure of what to look for in a given product. Yule is quickly approaching and I know a lot of you will be hunting for deals and great quality gifts. Hopefully I can assist you with this as best I can.

Speaking of shopping for Yule, I will also be posting tips on saving via online shopping, as well as crafty homemade ideas for stocking stuffers and decor. But since Samhain is approaching first, be prepared for a flurry of cool ideas! Samhain is my favorite and I relish autumn. You have been warned!

One more thing before I close. This blog is, and will always be, intended to be a home away from home for my dearest pagan stars. I will make every effort to remain relateable on that thread of thought. However, this is also intended for adults, so there will eventually, and inevitably, be profanity used. It's my second tongue! So if this offends you, I do highly recommend unsubscribing now before it gets worse!

As always, comments and feedback are life to me, so if you have any comments, please leave them for me! I will always reply to and questions and feedback I receive. And if you enjoy your experience here and wish to share this with your friends, please feel free to do so! Word of mouth is the best and most reliable form of advertisement.

Until the next post, keep shining!