Betty Cora Press on nails Review & Giveaway!

 

Sometimes I want my nails to look nice, but I don't always have the time or the funds to get them professionally done. My solution? Press on/Glue on nails. They look just as good at a fraction of the price, and if you are like me & hold onto them after they fall off you can use them more than once. I recently found a brand online called Betty Cora who offers a wide range of nails for both your fingers & your toes. One of my favorite features about their website is that you can sort your search by nail shape, color or season to help you find what you are looking for quicker. I was lucky enough to be sent a few sets to try out & review along with hosting a giveaway. 

They have a lot of fantastic designs, so it took me a while to decide which nail sets, I wanted to review. I tried to go with an assortment of shapes and lengths to try. The prices on the site are great the nails range in price from $7.99-$10.99 however if you look in the clearance section some go as low as $3.99 and they even have a mystery grab bag for $1 so there is something for every price range. 

One of the first things I noticed & love about the nails when I opened up the box to apply them is that it comes with both nail glue squares and regular liquid glue. I was in a rush when I put them on last week so I went with the glue square option, I had all of the nails applied & was ready to go in less than five minutes. The nails look great, they feel great and they are quite sturdy. They lasted for about five days before the first one popped off. It might not seem like the longest amount, but I think that is a pretty good time given how much I did with my hands during that time including being in the pool & a hot tub. If you've ever worn press on nails with the glue strips then you know that sometimes they won't even last a full five days before they start coming off. They were easy to keep clean & looked great the entire time I had them on. 

When I was ready to take them off, they were easy to remove & I love that they did not get misshaped when removing them. I've had fake nails in the past that get a little bend in them which then cannot be reused as it doesn't sit flat. The nails also come with a nail file, a manicure stick and a prep pad. The glue strips come in an assortment of sizes so you can determine which is best for your nail size. There are a ton of cute designs I would love to own so I can see myself placing an order in the future to get some of the other designs I like. They add more to their website through out the year so keep your eyes out for new designs. 

★GIVEAWAY★

Win a set of gold leaf glue on nails. They feature a pattern that has trees & birds. 

This is open World Wide! Please remember if you DO NOT leave a comment on this blog post as your mandatory entry into the giveaway then all of your entries will be void. Doing the Daily entries will increase your chance of winning. Winners have 72 hours to respond to the notification email! I will personally be mailing the giveaway prize to you.

This giveaway ends on 09/02/23

Giveaway entry question: Leave me a blog comment letting me know another product from their collection that you'd be interested in. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer- The products mentioned above were provided by Betty Cora for the review & giveaway free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

Museum of Illusions a silly & fun time!

 

If you are looking for a fun & quirky way to spend an hour or two with loved ones, or a fun place to go on a date you should look to see if you have a Museum of Illusions near you. We recently went to check out the Museum of Illusions in Scottsdale & it was such a unique experience. First  before I get into telling you more about the illusions, I wanted to note that if you are worried about how many people will be there when you visit, there is good news, they sell the tickets with time slots. There is a certain amount of tickets sold for each time slot to help prevent the museum from becoming too full at any point in time during the day. There is no rule to how long you can stay, you just need to check in at your designated time. You can look at all of the illusions & take photos in order of how everything is set up, or if a spot is busy and you don't want to wait you can move on then back track to anything you missed. Tickets are $24.95 per adult & $18.95 per child, it is located at the Arizona Boardwalk. 

We went early in the morning; it was slightly busy when we arrived however it didn't seem like it as we were walking through, we arrived just as a group were about to finish up and they had left by the time we wander over to the last section of the museum. There wasn't really a long wait for any of the illusions, so it was nice being able to take our time and go at our own pace. If you were to stay & sit at each puzzle until they were completed you'd significantly increase your time spent here furthering the value of what you spent on admission. We tried out a few of the wooden puzzles but didn't stay to complete them. I'd say in total we were there for around an hour looking at everything they had to offer. They also have a small gift shop where they sell an assortment of puzzles similar to what they have for you to do in the museum. They do not however have a bathroom, there is one located a short walk from the building which you are allowed to visit & return back to the museum without any issues - just let a staff member know you will be back. 

I like that they offered a variety of interactive puzzles, illusions to look at and photo opportunities. They had a small plaque with instructions next to each spot, and if you were to have any issues with seeing an illusion or trying to capture one in a photo a staff member was there to help you. As for the puzzles you will try to complete, there is a QR code you can scan that will take you to a Youtube video showing you how to complete the puzzle. The QR codes are helpful if you get stuck & want to complete the puzzle before moving on. The only thing I would change about the section is having the addition of a small photo next to the puzzle to show what it should look like completed so you at least have a starting point. We had a few employees ask if we were having a good time while we were walking around, otherwise the staff will leave you be to explore everything. 

They had a wide variety of illusions to try out, but out of all of them I would hands down say my favorite was the infinity room. Not only was it fun to do silly dances and see all the mirror reflections of yourself doing the same thing, but the celling was decorated with flowers, so it felt like you were in an endless garden. My least favorite was the vortex tunnel they had; it is similar to the spinning tunnels they have at carnivals sometime but as I've gotten older my brain just doesn't like the spinning rooms. My husband and kids had a fantastic time going through it a few times. With the tunnel spinning around you it makes you almost feel as if you were on a boat out at sea. I did however like the color and how the tunnel was lit. The spot they had set up to look like you were dangling off of a balcony with someone above trying to help you or acting like they are scared created a lot of laughs as well. It took a minute to photograph it properly, but we had a lot of laughs while doing it. Even though I do not believe the illusions ever change, I would visit again.

If you were to visit alone, some of the spots would be a little challenging to capture yourself so the staff members & more than happy to help you take a few photos. So even if you are a solo adventurer don't be afraid of paying the museum a visit. 

There were guests of all ages having fun, there is no age limit to being able to enjoy this museum. I also like that it is in a convenient area where there are several other family friendly attractions so you can make a whole day out of it. I have a lot of photos of the museum along with the illusions, I have too many to post them all here so I will be sharing more photos from our visit on my Instagram account if you want to check them out. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. 

Disclaimer- Tickets to the center + exhibit mentioned above were provided by The Arizona Boardwalk + Museum of Illusions for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

Let's play Everdell, an adorable critter board game!

 

When it comes to board games one of the first things that draws me in is definitely the aesthetics of the game from the cover to how the photos of the game laid out on the back of the box looks. I love board games that involve character tokens, collecting items and a good theme, so when I first spotted Everdell I knew I wanted it for our ever-growing board game collection. Everdell is a game full of stunning artwork & cute as can be critter cards. It is by Starling Games, I was lucky enough to be gifted a copy of the game from their publisher Tabletop Tycoon. This game is recommended for ages 10+, It can be played with one to four players and is played over the course of forty to eighty minutes. In this game you will play as cute woodland creatures competing to build the best town & earn enough points to become the champion. 

Your town will consist of building cards & town folk cards, the luck of the draw really helps you progress in this game, as starting off with cards that require a ton of resources to build can really put a damper on your movements. When you first start there are a lot of rules to digest & I am not going to lie, our first game was a little rough as we all tried to get used to the new game. Once we finished our first game we had a better understanding of how the rules worked & how to plan better for the next game to make our cards work to our advantage. Every game after the first has been quite smooth & the game is a lot of fun to play. 

The character cards are quite adorable & very well drawn, we love seeing the different creatures and buildings that can be added to our towns. Along with character cards there are also coins & resources that will be collected during each round of the game. The resources you collect are what allow you to build & place creatures in your town, they are each a form of currency. If you get lucky you may get a free character card added to your town by having the building that they go with already in your town. It is extremely helpful if you are able to get a few buildings built up then get lucky enough to have a free creature character for each one. 

Your town can only have fifteen cards in it, so you want to make sure you are building cards that are worth as many points as possible. There are cards that are worth zero points & even some cards you can play into an opponent's town that gives them negative points. There are four stages to the game & during each you will have a different number of turns, for example during the first round you may end up with a bad hand, so you are only able to take two turns before going into the next phase. However, if you have a hand that is easy to build & collect resources right you could have several extra turns before needing to move onto the second phase. All players will move at a different rate so when the first person ends it may take a little while until everyone is done. Once the last person finishes all of their possible moves, you can then add up your point total & see who won. So far, my husband has been the only one to win, but the rest of us have been close & victory will belong to one of us soon! 

The various aspects of this game are beautiful. From the main board to the cards and even the small resources are very well made. In the original edition the coins and the little closed doors that are used are made from cardboard, but in the collector's edition you will get metal coins & wooden doors along with the original cardboard versions, so you are free to choose which you'd like to play with. We personally prefer playing with the solid metal coins because we like how they feel in our hands. I can see this becoming one of our go to games when we have a game night. It has already claimed a higher spot up on our game shelf which is where we stick the best of the best. This game can be purchased for $75 on their website, it might seem like a lot but if you are a board game player you'll know this is a great price for how much comes packed into this game. As an added bonus this game has several expansion packs which can add extra players & lengthen gameplay. If you love board games head over to their website to check out Everdell & see some of their other wonderful games. 

Disclaimer- The products mentioned above were provided by Tabletop Tycoon for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

UFO Experience in Scottsdale,Arizona!

 

Have you ever wondered if Aliens really exist? Ever wondered how some of our ancestors were able to do the amazing feats they accomplished such as the pyramids, Stonehenge and more?  For anyone who is curious to know more about the unexplained & unknown you can check out the "UFO Experience" that opened up at the Arizona Boardwalk earlier this year. They are open seven days a week from 10am-6pm & it is located in Scottsdale. It is $21.95 per adult & $15.95 per child, you can expect to spend about 35-60 minutes here. 

The UFO Experience is a small alien focused exhibit that has been set up like a museum. You'll find a few interactive spots, replicas & props along with a ton of information on different UFO/Alien sightings. We got lucky & there were not a ton of people around when we visited so we were able to take our time & read each of the plaques and screens they had set up with information. Some of the events we know of & have heard of while others we haven't so it was neat being able to learn about some events we didn't know about. Everything is self-guided so you can go at your own pace, the flow of the exhibit is straight forward and easy to navigate. 

In the first area you visit you will find a wall with headphones that you can put on & listen to real 911 and air traffic control calls of people who have experienced something out of this world. You will also find a few TV's playing videos of UFO's people have taped, court cases and more featuring aliens and unknown flying objects. There are also some highlighted events such as the Phoenix lights, a reenacted alien autopsy and a moon walk for the kids. (It is big enough adults can get in it as well). 

Following this room, you will wander into a section that has a number of weapons & props from different alien related movies. You'll find an alien shooting range, a Men-In-Black featured corner, an interactive game on the floor and a fake autopsied alien body that you can poke & feel if you wish. In the other sections you will find busts of various alien species that are said to have been seen on Earth, clips from movies about aliens along with some large replicas of the aliens themselves plus more alien encounter moments.

There is also a whole section on pyramids & similar structures that are incredible when you really think about how they managed to build them without some of the advantages we have today. I was very excited in the room with the pyramid information because they actually have a replica of a very old artifact that I've read about before. In 1973 a three-thousand-year-old artifact was found in Turkey; hundreds of artifacts have been found all of the world so what makes this one so special? The shape of it looks like a rocket ship with an astronaut (missing its head) sitting in the cockpit. For a time period that did not have rocket ships, it really makes you wonder, how and why it was created or what inspired them to make it. It looks like a piece that may have been made to be used as a toy for young children. It is kind of hard to see in the photo that I took above due to the lighting so I have also provided a sketch from google of what the artifact looks like so you can see it for yourself plus a photo of the actual artifact. 

You will find a lot of fun photo opportunities along the way so be sure to have a camera or your phone with you. Is the experience worth a visit? My family & I enjoyed what they had to offer, this is something we were already interested in and discussed so it was neat getting to read about some experiences we haven't heard of. I liked that they had some things for small kids to enjoy as well like the moon walk, touching the aliens' insides, they had an area with two sofas plus some kids alien themed books for them to read and more to keep the little ones occupied. Before you leave you can put a chip into a voting bin to state whether you believe in aliens or not! You can see in the image below that there is a decent amount of people who have said no, along with many maybe's however the yes has a large majority of the votes. Where do you think you'd stand with your vote? As you exit you will exit into the gift shop where you'll find a number of cute alien products from kitchen goods to stuffed animals and jewelry. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. 

Disclaimer- Tickets to the center + exhibit mentioned above were provided by The Arizona Boardwalk + UFO Experience for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

Can you beat a Guinness World Record @ The AZ Science Center?

 

If you live near Phoenix, AZ & Have kids, but haven't stopped by to see the current featured exhibit at the Arizona Science Center, then you are missing out. The current exhibit which will stay put until January 1st, 2024 is the science of Guinness World Records. It is a blast for the whole family from small children to teens & it would even make a fun date idea for couples to do together. This attraction requires a separate ticket from center admission so make sure you have both in order to get in! It is located on the third floor of the science center, so you can choose to head straight there then work your way down the science center or save it for last. Tickets for this exhibit are $8.95 per person.

You will not only get to see a little bit of information on current world records that have received Guinness certificates, but you'll also get a chance to see how good you are at some of the records. The exhibit is filled with a number of interactive stations where you can test out your speed & dexterity. Some of the challenges are for a singular person to do while others allow you to compete against each other at the same time.  

Each station has a clear set of instructions to follow & it will also tell you what the current record holders time is. Some of them are absolutely insane with how quickly they manage to complete the task. We visited on a Sunday morning & were happy to find the exhibit wasn't packed, so we didn't have to wait in a lot of lines to try out the different stations which made the experience even more enjoyable. We had a blast trying to top each other at each station, there was at least one thing that each of us were able to beat the others in. If you haven't worked your arms out in a while, you will get an arm work out during the challenges, from trying to get as many drumbeats as you can in a minute to fastest fist bumps and even seeing how long you can hang from a bar, you might be a little tired at the end. But you'll hardly notice while it is happening, because you'll be having too much of a good time. The exhibit as a whole felt almost like a game section at a carnival, you'll want to stop and do it all. You might not get a prize to take home like at the carnival, but if you beat the others in your group at various stations you will have the bragging rights to take home! 

In the back section of the exhibit they have a small seating area where you can sit or stand & watch some clips showing some of the world record holders & see them performing their feats. There is also a bathroom + water fountains near this section so you won't need to leave and come back. If you do happen to have any questions or need help with one of the stations, there were a number of employees walking around that are happy to help & someone is stationed at the front entrance as well. We had a lot of fun & have been talking about it since we visited, we highly recommend that you check it out for yourself. You'll even find some fun video game stations where you can try to beat the top record holder! The two video games they have are a giant pac-man game & a DDR machine. 

Tickets to the AZ Science center are $21.95 per adult & $15.95 for children 17& Under. Sometimes "extras" such as visiting museums, going to the movies, etc can be hard for low income families so the science center participates in a program called Museums for All that allow EBT card holders to purchase tickets for a highly discounted rate. I recently wrote a post about this program & some of the great museums you can visit with the program, you can check that post out by clicking here. 

🌵 If you live in Arizona check out the "Things to do in Arizona" section of my blog to find entertainment, restaurants, vacation spots & more. 

Disclaimer- Tickets to the center + exhibit mentioned above were provided by The Arizona Science Center for the review free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.

August Beauty & The Book Giveaway!

 

It is that time again, it's the start of a new month so it's time for a new Beauty & The Book Giveaway! I don't really have much of a recap for the last month, we've been keeping busy with getting ready for the kids going back to school, beating the summer heat and just enjoying a bit of summer. Though I have been excited about Halloween products being put out in the stores already, it means I get to go get some new home decor. It also means that slowly but surely it is almost time for it not to be a giant oven outside. Coming up this month I will have some great products to share with you & some fun places to visit in Arizona. For those of you who love entering giveaways don't forget to check out my other posts! I have another giveaway up that is open for another week. 

If you don't follow me on my other social media channels yet (Instagram/Facebook/TikTok) you should check them out! I've been sharing some extra content that hasn't been posted here on my blog. Last month's giveaway just ended so the winner will be announced over on my facebook page within the next day or two (before the 7th). 

This month's Beauty & The Beast bundle has a retail value of just over $100! While putting together this month's giveaway it kind of turned into a pink theme. 

Here is everything that is included in this month's giveaway bundle;

☆ Hard Cover copy of Arlo Finch in the valley of Fire
☆ Rachel Couture Eye Kit Trio
☆ Wet N Wild gel lip liner
☆ Sweet & Shimmer eye shadow palette
☆ Three Cessy Charm Cosmetics Lip Glosses
☆ Cessy Charm Cosmetics Mineral Blush
☆ Pure'am Super Glow Dew
☆ Carmex Lip Balm
☆ Ioni False Eyelashes
☆ Spalife Blackhead extractor tool
☆ Puravida Bracelet 
☆ Pretty Woman Faux Nails
☆ Ulta Face mask

This is open World Wide! Please remember if you DO NOT leave a comment on this blog post as your mandatory entry into the giveaway then all of your entries will be void. Doing the Daily entries will increase your chance of winning. Winners have 72 hours to respond to the notification email! This giveaway is hosted by ME.

This giveaway ends on 09/08/2023

Giveaway entry question: Leave a comment answering at least one of these questions.

Which item in this bundle are you most excited about?

Do you have any fun plans this month?

What is something you are looking forward to this month?

What are you currently watching or reading? 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

You can complete as many entries as you want, there are several one-time activities and daily activities that can earn you more entries into the giveaway. Be sure to keep an eye on my site & social media pages for more giveaways headed your way.

Dreambox Beauty Review & Giveaway!

 

I recently found a company who can help you reduce the look of wrinkles while you sleep! Want to know how? Dreambox Beauty makes silicone pads whose goal is to help skin retain moisture & allow it to plump us thus reducing the look of wrinkles. So how do they work? Silicone pads sit smoothly on the face & create a tight barrier that prevents air from getting underneath which allows moisture to draw to the skins surface & retain there. This also helps the blood flow to the area, increased blood flow helps collagen production which helps your skin look refreshed. The treatment pads can be worn for short periods during the day or longer periods at night when you are sleeping. 

The pads are a slightly thicker than your traditional disposable skincare masks/pads & have a little bit of squishiness to them. They are easy to apply & are pretty light weight. Each pad is a flesh tone & it actually blends in pretty well with my skin so when I have the under eye patches on under my glasses you can hardly notice they are there from a short distance. I was comfortable wearing them and after a while it is easy to forget they are there. You are able to use them from anywhere from 3-12 hours or even just an hour if you only have a short time you'd like to use them. I think the best results would come from wearing them over night. They are quite sticky & the barrier they create on your face will make it to where you won't need to worry about them falling off in your sleep. They currently pads for your under-eyes, the forehead, neck and one for your chest as well. Aside from a very light silicone scent that you can only smell if you put the appliance right up to your nose, they have no smell.

I haven't worn them over night just yet, I had a spot on my face that was broken out then dry so I've been using moisturizer at night & the patches need to be put onto clean dry skin so once my problem spot is 100% I will test these out overnight. In the mean time I've just worn them for a short time in the evening before doing my bedtime skincare routine. I am not quite at the age where I have a lot of wrinkles, but I do tend to get a little bit of bags under my eyes from time to time so I am using these to help with that. My skin feels refreshed & moisturized after using these. Removing them when you are done using them is as easy as applying them & it doesn't hurt. You might be wondering how much they cost? They are $23 per silicone pad (the eye reducer comes with one for each eye) which would be a little expensive if it were a one time use item. The good news is, if you take care of them per the instructions they can be used up to 25 times which means you'll be paying about a $1 per use which is awesome and cheaper than some sheets masks. The packaging they come in is re-sealable so you can stick it back onto the sheet it arrived on & zip it back up into the bag. Along side the plump treatment pads they have a wide range of other products to help your skin look its best, stop by their website to check out everything they have to offer. 

★GIVEAWAY★

One lucky reader is going to win the following;

Eye Wrinkle Reducer $23
Forehead Wrinkle Reducer $23
Chest Wrinkle Reducer $23

Prize Total: $69

This is open World Wide! Please remember if you DO NOT leave a comment on this blog post as your mandatory entry into the giveaway then all of your entries will be void. Doing the Daily entries will increase your chance of winning. Winners have 72 hours to respond to the notification email! I will personally be mailing the giveaway prize to you.

This giveaway ends on 08/12/23

Giveaway entry question: Leave me a blog comment letting me know another product from their collection that you'd be interested in. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer- The products mentioned above were provided by Dreambox Beauty for the review & giveaway free of charge no other compensation was provided. However, no product compensation will influence the outcome of any review. My honest opinions are used in all reviews, they are solely my own & they may vary from others. My reviews are posted for readers in order to provide an informed decision before purchase.