Organizing Your Kitchen Cupboards - Where to Start?

Organizing your kitchen cabinets!

I don't know about you, but my kitchen cupboards get messy (and we won't even talk about the odds 'n ends drawer!).  I think in my mind I believe I should have a walk in pantry, but in reality I don't which means that it's not big enough!  Back in the real world I'm sure that my pantry is big enough for my household, I just need to review how to organize it better!

I did buy an expandable metal shelf for the cupboard that houses my mugs and teas and this was fantastic, but I didn't think it would work the best for my pantry.

Problem number one is herbs and spices.  Now the old spice racks that I used to have would be great except I have no where to put them and also I have a couple of herbs and spices that I buy in larger containers as I use more of them.

Problem number two is cans.  I buy quite a few canned goods especially when they're on special, but I have to stack them on top of each other to see what I have and if I want to use something it can no longer be stacked so it sits behind something else and get's doubled up.

A solution?  I came across a three tier cabinet organizer and thought yes, this could be it!  I tested it out with my herbs and spices and then with my cans and went back to get a second one.

Now I know you can get can organizers that you can fit lots of cans in and they just roll out, but I just didn't think that would work very well in my home.  With this three tier organizer I can pop on my cans and see at a glance what I have.  Now you might look at the image and think well I can't read what the label says, but I pretty much know what the cans I buy look like so I can see enough to know exactly what's there.

Click image to go to Amazon and check the price of this awesome organizer (and buy it if you want to!)

As far as my herbs and spices go I find it works well, but it may not be the best organization solution for you as you don't really see the names on the spices.

Photo by Lou16

Check out my image to see what I mean.  Now this is fine by me because I keep my herbs and spices in alphabetical order except for the the larger containers which aren't showing (they're to the right if I had a better photo to show you).

If that sounds a little OCD - it's not, I just worked retail for a decade and in my mind alphabetical for herbs is the way to go!

I also know exactly what herbs and spices I have - someone coming into my kitchen may have problems using my organizer, but you know what?  I don't care, I just want to have it organized for me (and my husband as he's a great cook)!

I have a few other problem areas that need to be organized and I'm working on them.   I need to organize my cake decorating stuff - I have an idea on how to do that so stay tuned!

Another problem area is all of the bulk foods that I have especially since my daughter turned vegan.  I also think I have a solution for this problem too so there will definitely be a follow up post on organizing your kitchen cupboards.

Do you use anything special to organize your pantry?

One thing that my entire home lacks is enough storage so I've tried lots of different ways to keeping things organized, I hope to share more with you in the future.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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A Novel Gift for a Sudoku Fan

If you know someone who loves Sudoku (and don't we all have at least one person on that list?) then you're probably sick of buying them Sudoku books and no doubt they already have (or don't like) the electronic version of Sudoku.

Let's review other ideas for s Sudoku fan and there are a couple.  A gift that I thought looked really neat was one of the Sudoku mugs (mind you I always think a mug is a cool gift idea) that's available, but from experience these really don't seem to be appreciated as much as an actual puzzle book.

What is left?  Well there are some  Sudoku calendars which look really good.  I have debated getting these, but so many people just use their phones instead of a physical calendar  these days.

This leads me to another idea - something very unexpected and a very novel gag type of gift.

Introducing the Sudoku Toilet Paper!

Reviewing a Puzzling Gift Idea

 Sudoku Toilet Roll/Paper - A Great Gag Gift for Puzzle Lovers

Now I have to be honest I can't claim credit for this gift idea, it comes with a little story.  My boss passed away a couple of months ago and we had to clean out his office and we came across some Sudoku toilet paper.

One of his friends called in as we were still sorting through things and noticed the toilet paper and told us that he'd given it to him as he loved to do Sudoku.  I immediately asked where I could get some as I thought it would be a great idea for my mother.

The paper seemed good quality and I personally think it makes a great gag gift, but also if you're going to be in the 'little room' for a while why not exercise your 'little grey cells' at the same time!

I give it a big thumbs up as a novel gift idea for a Sudoku fan and if you're a fan and on my Christmas list - surprise!  You're getting toilet paper.

The only question now is - can I find a toilet paper holder that has a pen/pencil holder attached because you just know that you'll forget your pen when you want to solve the puzzle and I don't think it's fair to try and do Sudoku in your head!

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What do you think a great gift idea or not?

If you prefer Suduko books or you want to give one as well then Cynthia reviews one of her favorite (like her I prefer the pen and paper form of Suduko to the electronic ones and this book sounds awesome!)

Brain Games 10 Minute Sudoku Puzzles Book Review
The 10 Minute Sudoku Puzzles Book satisfies my love of Sudoku really well, it's also a ring bound book which I appreciate as it is easier for me to use when traveling or waiting for appointments.

If you're thinking wow that's a great idea, but I don't know anyone who likes Sudoku then you might be pleased to know that you can get all kinds of novelty toilet paper (who knew?) and what better gag gift for a work colleague or your best friend?

More Gift Ideas

You can find lots of different gift ideas here at Review This from gifts for tea lovers, vegan teens, cat lovers, writers and more.  Be sure to check out our Holiday Gift Guide (by clicking the picture below) or just search gifts for lots of great ideas.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Perfect Mugs for Your Christmas Hot Chocolate

 Christmas Elements Mug
I love drinking hot chocolate while we decorate the Christmas tree and it has become a bit of a tradition in our house. I do think that if we had Christmas mugs it would make it even better though so I'm on the hunt for some cool Christmas mugs!

So let's review some festive mugs that will help make our holidays jolly and bright!

I fell in love with the featured mug a few years ago when I first saw it on the site Zazzle. I have designed a few of my own Christmas mugs on Zazzle as well and I love recommending them because I have had a Zazzle mug since 2014.

My Zazzle mug has been used constantly and still looks like new, the print hasn't faded and the inside has been easy to keep clean despite the amount of tannin that it's held!

I personally love the weight of the mug and it's a perfect feel for a festive hot chocolate.

Everyone Needs a Christmas Mug!

Even if you don't drink hot chocolate you need a Christmas mug - you can add coffee, egg nog, tea, just about anything you enjoy over the festive season.

If you don't like the Christmas Elements mug above then you might like to check out one of the Christmas mugs from my Zazzle store that features Santa himself...

 Santa & Reindeer Mug

I do think that this mug is pretty cute as well and you know even if you already have a Christmas mug for yourself they also make great gift ideas for people. You can add lots of things to a mug to make it a perfect gift.

Now I've already told you my favorite mug is the elements one and that's because it combines lots of things about the holidays on one mug.  I think Santa mugs are probably the most popular of the Chrismtas mugs, but if you don't like the one I've added then feel free to check out a great selection of some of the best Christmas mugs available which includes snowmen, Christmas trees, reindeer and more.

Let me know if you have your own Christmas mug or not and if you do is it from Zazzle or somewhere else?

Now hot to make your hot chocolate?  You can use a coffee machine - my moms coffee machine makes a great hot chocolate - or you can use this delicious homemade hot chocolate recipe.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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The Coffeehouse Mysteries - A Series Review

Buy the Coffeehouse Mysteries by clicking here!

If you love reading murder mysteries in coffee shops then Cleo Coyle's Coffeehouse books are ideal for you. Well maybe not the one where the caramel chocolate latte is poisoned, but.....

I do like murder mysteries - both the easy to read cozy mysteries (which Cleo Coyle's ones are) and the grittier ones by the likes of Ruth Rendell or Kathy Reichs.

The Coffeehouse books are a little different in that they involve coffee - yes a whole series of books that unite both coffee and murder, want to know more?

Let's review the series of The Coffeehouse Mysteries, be warned this could become almost as addictive as your morning cup of Joe!

Clare Cosi is the Star of the Coffeehouse Mysteries

A Coffee Lover & Sleuth Too!

Clare Cosi is the heroine of these murder mysteries and she works as manager (soon to be partner) of The Village Blend a coffee shop that has been in Greenwich Village, New York for decades as it was started by her ex-mother-in-law, referred to simply as Madame!

As well as being the manager Clare seems to somehow have a connection to murder on a regular basis and then wants to solve the case - her ex-husband (and soon to be partner in The Village Blend) claims she has a Nancy Drew fixation ........and he might not be wrong.

Throughout the book Clare shares little tidbits about coffee - making it, the differences between beans, coffee folklore and more. To give you some background Clare moved away from New York with her daughter Joy when her marriage ended and only recently returned to New York for the first book in the series - On What Grounds. During the time she was away she worked as a food and coffee writer so has all of this knowledge which gets sprinkled through the books.

Clare has a good relationship with her ex, but the man she'd like in her life is a Police Detective called Mike Quinn which is pretty handy when you're after details of a case as well. Clare also has a good relationship with her ex-mother-in-law who is also a little nosy and loves to help Clare out when she's trying to solve a case.

Image from Pixabay, adapted by Lou of Lou's Designs

Why I Like The Coffeehouse Mysteries Book Series

The murder mysteries always seem to have a connection to The Village Blend Coffeehouse which could give you pause before drinking there ....... unless you like puffer fish that is. For those of you who don't 'get' that sentance then you need to read book #3 - Latte Trouble!

What sets these books apart from other whodunnits is the coffee. As I mentioned before sprinkled throughout the books are little bits of coffee trivia which I found really interesting. The trivia didn't detract from the story line, but it did add another layer to the story which I enjoyed.

To further seal the coffee influence with these books you'll find recipes from the stories at the end of the book. If you're in a book club you could recreate a Caramel Chocolate Latte to drink while you discuss the ins and outs of Latte Trouble to really get in the mood.

Who is Cleo Coyle?

The Author of the Coffeehouse Mysteries

Cleo Coyle is actually two people, husband and wife writing team - Alice Alfonsi and Marc Cerasini. They released the first book - On What Grounds - in September 2003 and now they even have their own website with recipes and a forum for fans - The Virtual Village Blend.

Cleo Coyle Books in Order

I'm linking to books here for you, but I should mention that I've been reading the kindle editions of these books and am thoroughly enjoying reading them that way.

On What Grounds (Coffeehouse Mysteries, No. 1) is the first of these books and it's where Clare Cosi returns to take over as the manager of The Village Blend.

I actually haven't read this book yet as I started off reading book 2, then book 3 and I haven't looked back! I will read it once I've finished the rest of the series though.


 Through the Grinder (Coffeehouse Mysteries, No. 2)
Through The Grinder is cool because you get to see inside the murderer's mind without it revealing who the person is.

In this book we also see Mike Quinn's jealous side as Clare gets herself a love interest who (rather predictably) turns out to be a main suspect in a rash of murders made to look like suicides and all customers of the Village Blend.

 Latte Trouble (Coffeehouse Mysteries, No. 3)
Latte Trouble is the third book in the coffeehouse mysteries and this time the murder hits even closer to home with the murder weapon being a poisoned latte poured by the lovable Tucker - can Clare's chief barista be a murderer?

This book could be the end for Clare as she's taken into the seedy underworld of the fashion industry and drugged, but wait I know I have more of these books so it'll turn out okay!

 Murder Most Frothy (Coffeehouse Mysteries, No. 4)
Murder Most Frothy doesn't actually take place in Greenwich, but at the Hamptons.

In Latte Trouble we were introduced to David Mintzer, celebrity restaurant owner, who was impressed by Clare's coffee knowledge.

In this the fourth book in the series, David has brought Clare, Joy and Madame to stay at his Hamptons' home to help train his staff up as baristas and of course this means that someone is going to be murdered while they're partying their way through a Hamptons' summer.

 Decaffeinated Corpse (A Coffeehouse Mystery Book 5)
Decaffeinated Corpse is the fifth book in this series and is the one I'm currently reading.

One of the interesting things I've found with this book is about how decaffeinated coffee is made because this book is all about a new coffee bean that is grown as a decaffeinated bean.

I was surprised by the first body that we 'meet' in this book (although it's the second murder in chronological order and the first wasn't a surprise to me), when the body fell onto the sidewalk I thought I knew who it was going to be and I was wrong which is always a good start to solving a whodunnit!

The following books are the rest of the series in order. I haven't read these yet, but will add a short description to them as I do.

• French Pressed 
• Espresso Shot 
• Holiday Grind 
• Roast Mortem 
• Murder by Mocha 
• A Brew to a Kill 
• Holiday Buzz 
• Billionaire Blend 
• Once Upon a Grind 
• Dead to the Last Drop 
• Dead Cold Brew 

 Due to be released in April 2018 - Shot in the Dark

Do You Love Cozy Mysteries? We Do!

The contributors here at Review This often review books for you and I've found that a lot of us really enjoy a cozy mystery or two, in fact one of our contributors, Bev Owens, has actually published a couple of her own cozy mysteries which are awesome. 

So, if you want a break from the fast pace of New York (where the Coffeehouse Mysteries are set) then why not take a trip to Beaver Falls with Beverly Owen's Up cycling mysteries.

Here are a few of the other cozy mysteries we've reviewed for you..

Mystery Series Review: Cats, Cupcakes and Killers
Author Sylvia Selfman has done just that with her Izzy Greene series in Cats, Cupcakes and Killers. All seven mysteries are published together ...

Reviewing Cozy Mysteries and Favorite Women Sleuths
Like cozy mysteries starring smart, female sleuths? ... My favorite genre is mystery and right now I'm particularly attracted to easy-to-read cozy mystery stories

Mrs Fix-it Mystery Series Reviewed
A very enjoyable series of mystery books with Mrs Fix It as the female sleuth. ... I was a little sad when I came to the last page of the 15th book.

Reviewing The Mystic Notch Cozy Mystery Series
I recently read the Mystic Notch Cozy Mystery Series by Leighan Dobbs and enjoyed it immensely. It was pretty easy to get attached to the ...

Chef at the Water's Edge by Kee Patterbee - A Mystery Review
A celebrity chef is found dead in a lake. Was it an accident as the police reported? Or was it suicide or murder? Can you solve the mystery ...

We're not all a 'murderous bunch' and we review plenty of other books too, but at the moment I just can't get enough of the cozy mysteries that are out there and I'm sure that you'll love them too.

 If you're not into the more grisly murder mysteries then the cozy mysteries are for you. I once heard them described as the Mills and Boon of mystery books and that made me smile because they are light reading and in general they don't contain descriptive violence (although obviously there is murder involved). I think of them as 'genteel murder mysteries' similar to Agatha Christie's books, but without the nostalgic feel of a different era.

Grab a coffee and let me know what you think of this series of books and don't forget to check out some of the other cozy mysteries too.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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How to Create Pinterest Images with Photoshop

Today I'm going to review how to create Pinterest images with my favorite photo editing software - Photoshop!  I create most of my Pinterest images with Photoshop, I have tried a few other places, but I always come back to Photoshop.

I've been asked quite a few times how I create my images for Pinterest which is why I thought I'd just show you.  Now I can't promise you that your images will take off in popularity on this social media platform, but I can promise you that the steps will be easy to understand.

I have been using Photoshop for a few years now, but the way I create the majority of my images are easy for beginners and experts alike to follow.

The first thing you have to do is open up your Photoshop and select a new file, I simply press Ctrl N to do this, but you could use the file menu and open it that way.

You will be greeted with a pop up box where you have to select your image details, it looks like this -

I only change two things on the default and that is the width and height as you can see on the image.  I have changed the image height a few times, but the majority of the time I just use the standard 738 x 1105.

The next step means finding the image you want to use for your pin so I've decided that I want to do a pin for my welcome to Lou16.com post (I can't believe I was missing a Pinterest image on that post until I wrote this!)

I'm going to use the image I have in my introduction as the main image for my Pinterest image as well so let's have a look at what we're going to do....

So the first thing I do is create a new file, then I open up the photo I want to use and drag it onto the new file.

1.  Here you can see that this image has a border that I created previously.  I'm going to use this color for the background so to do this I need to use the eyedropper tool to select the exact color.
2.  This is the eyedropper tool.  To use this you click on the tool and then click on the color that you want to select.
3.  After selecting the color I make sure to select the correct layer (in this case the blank one as I'm using this for background.
4.  The paint bucket tool will cover the layer with the selected color.

After doing all of these steps you'll be left with the next image.

3.  I'm going to do things backwards here and get you to look at number 3!  When I did the background color the teal was on top and the white was underneath, as I'm thinking of doing the text in white I switched them around.  Sometimes when you're using two colors you can just change between these two to save having to use the eyedropper tool again.

Back to our image..

Now I want to add some text to the image so I have to select the text box.

1.  This is the Text box and you have to click on this before adding any text.
2.  This is the text tool bar, you can change the color from here (it will default to the top square at number 3 unless you change it), you can also alter the font, the font size and whether you want to use a bold or italic or both.

As you can see I dragged the image down a little so that I could add text above and below it.  Above I just used regular and underneath I selected italics.  You can also highlight just one or two words and change their color or size in order to make an impact.

1.  There are different things you can select on the side including a border which I always use for my Pinterest images.  You select the border (or arrow as I have done on these images for you) and click apply - the color on top of the color box is what color the object will appear as.

I didn't want to use white as a border because the website background is white so I used the eyedropper tool to select another color from the photograph.

I always try to pull either the border, background or text (sometimes all of them) from the actual photo as you know it's going to go.

I always keep Photoshop open until I see the final image uploaded to the website.  In this case I uploaded the border from a light green in the foliage that really made it pop on Photoshop, but looked strange on the white background of the website.

I then changed the border to the blue of my t-shirt, but again on the white background of this site it just didn't look quite right.  The third and final one is what is pictured above and I've use the brown of my hair!

Now you don't always have to use a photo, sometimes I'll use a graphic from a site like Pixabay and use that.

This is a very basic way to create a Pinterest image using Photoshop, as you get used to using it you can get more and more creative with using several images merged together like this one from another post I created -

In this image I used an image of traffic which I reduced and played with to get it to fit onto the laptop screen.  The background is taken from the laptop color and you can see I changed the color and font size of the 21 in the image.

Start off simple and as you get used to using these tools you'll find yourself creating all kinds of images, try not to become too addicted to Photoshop as once you start down this rabbit hole you can lose all sense of time!

You might be interested in my other Photoshop tutorial (and there will probably be more to come!) -

How to Remove Blemishes From Photos Using Photoshop
Let's review how easy it is to use Photoshop to remove blemishes from photos, trust me it's really simple and well worth the time spent to restore old family photos.

Our contributors here on Review This also use other platforms to create their images for Pinterest so be sure to check out our tips for writers including -

• A Review of Picmonkey Photo Editing Site
• FotoJet Free Photo Editor Review

... and let's not forget our Pinterest tips -

• Reviewing Best Practices for Pinterest Success
• How to Embed Your Pinterest Board in Your Blog Post

Before leaving I'd like to tell you one of the things that really helped me with getting traffic from Pinterest (obviously the images help!) and that was using Tailwind, I highly recommend this scheduling tool for anyone who wants to harness the power of this visual social media platform.

If you've found this article helpful please share on your favorite social media platform.

Image by Lou of Lou's Designs

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Gifts for Your Vegan Teenage Daughter

Photo by Lou of Lou's Designs

When your teenage daughter becomes a vegan there's a lot of adjusting to do in order to accommodate her diet, but just when you think things are going well - boom!  It's her birthday or Christmas and you have to come up with gift ideas that fit in with her vegan ethos!

So, what do you get your vegan teenage daughter as a gift?  Well if you look at a number of different gift ideas for vegans they seem to revolve around food - items like a spiralizer or a nutribullet, not really something a teen living at home would appreciate!

In this post I want to review some of the gift ideas I'm contemplating for my own vegan teen and hopefully that will help other people searching for a vegan friendly gift idea.

Gift Ideas Your Vegan Teenage Daughter WILL Love!

• Vegan Jewelry
• Lush Bath & Beauty Products
• Vegan Dreamcatcher
• Cotton Mandala
• Vegan Chocolate
• Vegan T-Shirt
• Vegan Cosmetics
• Vegan Clutch
• Vegan Mug
• Adopt an Elephant

Vegan Jewelry

There are some awesome pieces of jewelry which I know my own daughter would love, but I particularly like the pieces of jewelry that declare their stance.  If your daughter is a little quieter or more introverted about her ideals then this piece may not be the best one for her!

 Hypoallergenic Bracelet with a Vegan Message

There are lots of other types of vegan jewelry available including vegan leather or vegan suede wrap bracelets and/or choker necklaces, wrapped beaded jewelry and many others to choose from.

Lush Bath & Beauty Products

My daughter and her cousins absolutely love Lush - I think of it as their generation's Body Shop!

Lush's natural products are great to use and they have vegan products available as well - my daughter had a selection of bath bombs given to her last year by her (also Lush devotees) cousins.

She has since added to her selection of Lush body products from body scrubs to face soaps, shampoos and more, despite this I know she'd love more of them - this seems to be something they can't get too much of!

Vegan Dreamcatcher

Although my daughter does have a dreamcatcher it doesn't stop her looking at other ones and apparently you can have more than one!  This is a gift that I gave to my eldest niece a couple of years ago that is still finding it's way onto teen's gift lists.

There's lots of different dreamcatchers to choose from, but I do think this vegan dreamcatcher from Etsy would be a very popular choice.

 Vegan Dreamcatcher with Tree of Life

Cotton Mandala

Mandala Photo by Lou16

Mandalas are very popular and can be used in a range of different ways.

My daughter has a gorgeous one that she puts over her bed like a bedspread (as you can see in the photo)  Her best friend, however uses hers as a wall hanging.  You can even get circular mandala style beach towels as well!

The range of mandalas available are amazing and it's really hard to choose just one to feature.  I do like the colors in my daughter's existing one, but she would like another one so that she can swap them out when she want's a change!

 100% Hand Printed Organnic Cotton Indian Mandala Wall Hanging

Vegan Chocolate

Let's face it most teenage girls love their chocolate and it's not always easy to find vegan chocolate, certainly not as easy as regular chocolate.  I think when my daughter first became a vegan this was one food that she really missed having, although we've found a few ways of indulging her sweet tooth with cacao energy balls and the like.

 Chocolate Truffle Collection (24 pieces) - Gluten Free, Milk Free, Egg Free, ...

Of course you don't have to give them a box of chocolates, you could give them a gift bag with lots of different chocolate bars and other vegan candy for them to indulge in.

Image by Lou16

Vegan T-Shirts or Other Clothing

There's lots of different pieces of vegan clothing that you can choose from, but with every teen they seem to have their own style and if their mom chooses something then it can't be cool!   The only piece of clothing that it seems safe to buy a teen without getting the exact details from them seems to be a t-shirt.

Now you may have a different relationship with your child so go ahead and buy them whatever type of clothing they'll wear, but for my daughter I'm trying to decide which funny vegan inspired tee will make her smile!

 Womens I Don't Eat My Friends Funny Vegan Vegetarian T Shirt Medium Royal Blue

Vegan Cosmetics, Make-Up Brushes, Nail Polish

Unfortunately my daughter does have a bit of teenage acne so she's always looking for skin products to help with that.  As well as turning to a vegan diet she has been moving towards natural skin care and now likes to embrace vegan products (especially from Lush!).

She does have some cosmetics that she does use, but I know she wants to get vegan products when she buys any more.   She already has a set of vegan make up brushes, but if she didn't I would make up a little gift box and add brushes, cosmetics and even nail polish.

Stop the presses!  I've found a couple of brushes that she could add to her existing set that are also vegan, one is a double sided concealer brush which looks amazing.  The other one is for applying powder and sounds like it would do a much better job than the brush she is currently using.  You can find both of them through Arbonne, just click here.

What teen wouldn't love a 'beauty' box, especially an all natural, vegan based one.

Vegan Clutch or Bag

There are lots of different types of vegan bags that you could get as a gift for your teen depending on their personal style.  My daughter loves the clutch style of purse and I think she'll totally flip for some of the cork clutches you can get like this one...

 Vegan Cork Wallet Purse for Women - Eco Friendly Durable Cork Clutch Bags

Vegan Mug

A mug isn't always something you think of for a teenager, but my daughter does like statement mugs so I thought one that says something funny or espousing her world views would be a great idea.  There are lots of mugs that she would probably like, but I decided on the one below.

It's basic and a message that she'd really like without being OTT.-  the colors are also pretty cool.

 .Peace.Love.Vegan. Two-Tone Coffee Mug

Now I do believe that mugs make great gift ideas whether the recipient drinks hot drinks or not.  When it comes to your teen you can add other things to the mug to make a cool gift, here's a few ideas -

• Fill with vegan candy
• Gift with a selection of herbal teas, coffees or vegan hot chocolate mixes
• Vegan cake in a mug ingredients and recipe - this is a very popular option.  You can get a recipe, print it off for them (or write it out) and include all of the ingredients either bagged up in the mug or already mixed together in a mason jar with the mug.  Here's a cool recipe for a chocolate peanut butter vegan mug cake.

Adopt an Elephant

As vegans inherently love animals the idea of adopting an elephant, koala, polar bear or panda in their name is always a great idea.   Bev wrote this great article about adopting an elephant and I think my daughter would love this.

Like Bev's granddaughter my vegan teen absolutely adores elephants, so much so that she's talking about volunteering to look after injured elephants in Thailand during her gap year.

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I hope you've found some great gift ideas for the vegan in your life and please feel free to share these ideas with other people who are scratching their heads trying to think what to buy.  I do think that other vegans besides teenagers would probably also like some of these gift ideas.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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Top Three Group Costume Ideas for Halloween

Let's review some group costumes ideas that I know you'll love.   Group costumes can be a great idea for Halloween or indeed any fancy dress occasion, but first you need to agree on what everyone dresses up as.

You can check out the big list of group costumes for a plethora of ideas or you could just have a look at this years top three group costume ideas...

The best group costume ideas for 2017 (according to industry insiders) are the Avengers, Star Wars and the Flintstones.

The Avengers Group Costume Ideas

I would say choose your favorite Avengers character and dress up as that, but with any group costume you will need to make sure you don't end up with five of you dressing up as Thor!  Remember the Big Bang Theory (albeit they were dressing up as DC Comics superheros and someone had to be Aquaman, they couldn't all be The Flash!) and decide on who is dressing up as who!

With the Avengers there are lots of different options for a costume including -

• Thor
• Iron Man
• Captain America
• The Hulk
• Black Widow
• Hawkeye
• Ant Man
• Daredevil
• Doctor Strange
• Elektra
• Spider Man

and that's just a few of the superheroes.  An Avengers group costume could also include Nick Fury, Agent Coulson and other characters from the comics and/or movies including some of the villains.

Star Wars, a Classic Group Costume Idea

Star Wars has been a classic group costume idea since 1977 and as the fans seem to increase every year I can't see this group costume idea diminishing any time soon!  Now obviously you can't have more than one Darth Vader or Princess Leia, but it is a group costume where you can have some double ups in the form of stormtroopers for example.

I must admit when I think of Star Wars I always think of the original trilogy so Princess Leia, Luke Skywalker, Hans Solo, Chewbacca, C-3PO and R2-D2 along with Darth Vader are the initial costumes that come to mind.

With the expansion of the Star Wars Empire there are even more costume ideas to explore, so who will you be Rey or Leia, R2-D2 or BB-8?  You could even mix them up and have a selection of Star Wars era costumes on show!

I have a few friends who echo the statement below -

What do you think of this rather bold statement?  Personally I think I'd prefer the Flintstones, but I'm completely ready to be out voted in which case "bags I be a wookie!"

The Flintstones Group Costume Ideas

Who doesn't love the Flintstones?  It's great to see that these costumes are having a bit of a surge in popularity again as a few years ago you couldn't go to a fancy dress event without seeing at least one Flintstones costume (whether it was Fred or Barney or several).  I fancy being Dino myself, what about you?

I do have a couple of friends who have dressed up as Barney & Betty Rubble on a couple of occasions, but for some reason I've never had a Flintstone's costume.  Dino does have my name on it though so maybe I need to convince a group of friends to join me in the Flintstone's group costumes this Halloween!

Of course there are lots of other ideas that come to mind including The Village People, Abba, even the Addams Family.   Whichever costumes you decide on going as a group is always fun!

Have you ever participated with friends in a group costume?  If so what did you go as, I'd love to know.

More Halloween Costume Ideas

Here on Review This we have a few other ideas which would be perfect for a group costume idea.  I have written a review on Harley Quinn Costumes and you could take these costumes and either dress as Harley through the ages or dress up as members of the Suicide Squad or just Batman Villains.

Susan has reviewed how to create a Hobo Costume.  If you're looking for an inexpensive DIY group costume then I think a group of Hobos would be awesome.

Heather reviews the best animal costumes for Halloween and this really is a great group costume idea.  You could get one of your group to dress up as a zookeeper or farmer depending on what animals the rest of you wanted to dress up as.  Another idea (which is especially great if your group is made up of couples) is a Noah's Ark style of group costumes where you have two of every animal you want!

You can check out a lot of other Halloween costume ideas along with other Halloween fun by following our Halloween board on Pinterest - you won't be sorry!

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I Know This Much: From Soho to Spandau

Image and Review by Lou16

Let's review 'I Know This Much: From Soho to Spandau', an autobiography of Gary Kemp, lead guitarist, song writer and heartthrob of 80s New Romantic band Spandau Ballet.

If you just want to know who the song True was written for then this is the book to read! "Why do I find it hard to write the next line?" because you're tongue tied in love Gary! Who to? Well trust me this book reveals all which could be why Gary has used a line from his mega hit as the book title - I Know This Much.

If you're not interested in the song, but want to reminisce about the 80s and the New Romantics especially then you'll love to read this memoir from Spandau Ballet's Gary Kemp. Gary Kemp has a knack with words and I found myself laughing as he described the first time he saw a wok and cringing when he mentioned certain fashions.

Towards the end of Gary Kemp's autobiography I found myself in tears - his writing of a particularly sad event was so good I could feel the emotion jumping off the page at me.

 I Know This Much: From Soho to Spandau by Gary Kemp
Confession time - I'm a huge Spandau Ballet fan and I thought I had quite a lot of knowledge about them and the beginnings of the New Romantic moviement. Even with this background I learnt a lot from Gary Kemp's Memoirs

I Know This Much is definately a book that brings back memories of names that you'd forgotten about. I loved the trip down memory lane.

Gary Kemp is also quite brutal about himself and some of his actions - it's a no holds barred autobiography from trying to murder his brother (anyone with a younger sibling can probably relate to that!) to being a total snob and a control freak.

The book also contains a few pages of photos which also help take you back in time - oh the fashions!

Who Was True Written For?

Spandau Ballet's worldwide hit ballad True really was the love song of the 80s, but who was it actually written for? I had heard Gary Kemp say that he had written True for a girl who never realized how he felt. I've never known who he was talking about until I read the book where all is revealed. I won't ruin it for you here, you can read the book instead!

From Islington to Highgate 

Gary Kemp's I Know This Much Autobiography 

I Know This Much by Gary Kemp starts off with his very working class East End upbringing and an unwanted Christmas gift - a guitar. It continues through his chid acting and early foray into music before moving onto the Blitz Kids and Spandau Ballet. The story of Gary Kemp's own contribution towards the break-up of the first New Romantic band is told in blunt honesty.

Gary's life past Spandau Ballet, the reformation and the death of his parents are all dealt with extremely well. if Gary Kemp ever decided to write fiction I think he would be consistently on the bestseller list.

There were so many lines in this book that stuck with me, but this was my first laugh out loud line as it struck me that back then a wok wouldn't have been something I knew about either. We tend to forget that things we use so often and can be found in many homes around the world were an unusual thing to have in your English home back in the 70s and early 80s.

Gary Kemp Reads Excerpts from I Know This Much

Other Spandau Ballet Autobiographies 

Other members of the band have also written their autobiographies. Martin Kemp (Gary's younger brother) was the bass guitarist for the group and was the first to write his autobiography.....

   True: The Autobiography of Martin Kemp
Martin Kemp's autobiography was called True and was written after he survived two brain tumours.

The book was written in part as therapy for himself and also because he wanted to write something for his children who were babies when he was first diagnosed with brain tumours.

 To Cut a Long Story Short: My Autobiography
Tony Hadley was Spandau Ballet's lead singer and the next member to write his autobiography.

Tony choose to use a different song title for his autobiography - To Cut A Long Story Short.

Gary Kemp was Spandau Ballet's lead guitarist and songwriter and is the latest one of them to write an autobiography which is what I have just reviewed for you.

Let me know what you thought of the book, did you cry near the end like me, or are you made of sterner stuff?

Spandau Ballet had five members in total which means that two stories have yet to be told. John Keeble and Steve Norman let me know when you've started your memoirs and I'll be more than happy to read them!

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Let's Review My Favorite Hand Held Lemon Juicer, That's Not For You!

I absolutely love my hand held lemon juicer and when I purchased it I really believed that it was the best lemon juicer available.

If I was to buy a lemon squeezer today, however I would buy a different one, read on and find out why I absolutely love, love, love my lemon juicer, but would still buy a different one if it needing replacing!

I have a hand held aluminum lemon squeezer style of citrus press that I use for my lemon juice and what's not to like? This is what it does -

• It produces lots of lemon juice
• It is really easy to use
• The bright yellow really brightens up your day when you get it out of the drawer!

Really it does everything it needs to do and it does it really well so why would I not say that it's the best lemon juicer around anymore?

Well I was browsing Amazon as you do and I came across a citrus squeezer with that little banner over it - Amazon's Choice - so I looked at it and wondered where it had been a few years ago because I would definitely have brought it instead.

Let's look at the two of them and see if you can guess why (mine is on the left)

Enameled Aluminum Lemon Squeezer
Easy to Use
Gets out every drop of juice
Made with heavy duty aluminium
Cleans in no time!Metal Lemon Lime Squeezer
Easy to Use
Gets out every drop of juice
Made with heavy duty aluminium
Cleans in no time!

Can you spot the difference?  It's the lime insert!

Fresh Lemon Juice is the BEST Lemon Juice!

Now when I was younger no one I knew used fresh lemon juice they used a bottle of lemon juice that was kept in the fridge once opened and that was what I thought lemon juice was until I moved to New Zealand.

In New Zealand back then most people seemed to have a lemon tree in their gardens (this isn't the case as much any more unfortunately) so fresh lemons were abundant and the idea of buying lemons was almost unheard of!   When my husband and I brought our first home we had the requisite lemon tree and I realized that I was never going to go back to using 'fake' lemon juice again!

Unfortunately these days I have to buy my lemons, but I am planning on planting my own tree again soon!

Why Use a Lemon Squeezer?

When I squeezed my first lemon by hand I used one of the type of lemon squeezers pictured below, what about you?

The problem with these is that the action required is no good for my wrists (I have Rheumatoid Arthritis so twisting motions aren't the easiest for me), plus it takes more strength then the hand held squeezer I now use.  I also used to always find that the pips would manage to get into my cup/bowl every single time!

Now if you don't fancy the old fashioned lemon squeezer featured you could try an electric juicer.  I do have one and it is awesome, but if I want to squeeze some lemon or lime juice for a recipe or drink I find it's too much trouble.   To be honest making a lemon and honey drink or squeezing some lemons to add into my tea or for cooking (like this Tex Mex Lasagne) I'm not going to use my electric juicer.   I'm lazy and as great as the juicer is I'm not cleaning it for a little lemon juice!

The heavy duty hand held lemon squeezer is awesome - it squeezes the lemons or limes with little effort on your part, no pips get into the cup/bowl and you can wash it up in no time - perfect!

Why a Metal Lemon Squeezer?

I choose a metal lemon squeezer because I really wasn't sure that a plastic one would last for long.   The one I have is an enamel coated heavy duty aluminium lemon squeezer and I've had it for years.  It still looks brand new even though I couldn't begin to calculate how often it's been used.

My lemon squeezer was also available in two other sizes -

The smallest one is for limes, the yellow for lemons (which is the one I chose) and the orange for oranges.  My husband was going to buy the green one for me as well, but I said no.

I have actually used the lemon one for limes as well because basically I didn't want two gadgets that did the same thing cluttering up my kitchen drawer.  If the other hand held juicer had been available with the lime insert in it I would have purchased it in a heart beat!

So as much as I love mine, it's not the one for you - the one I recommend for you has a lime insert with it

So Which Do You Think is the Best Hand Held Lemon Juicer

I recommend the hand held metal lemon/lime squeezer myself, but I do still love my own lemon squeezer and I have no problems squeezing limes with it!

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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