Review: MiO

I'm a BzzAgent and was given the opportunity to try out MiO (fruit punch flavor).
MiO is a liquid water enhancer. Use it to add some flavor to your water, or be creative and add it to other drinks or food items. MiO currently comes in 6 flavors-- Fruit Punch, Berry Pomegranate, Strawberry Watermelon, Sweet Tea, Peach Tea, and Mango Peach. At 0 calories, it's the perfect thing to use if you're trying to avoid extra calories, but you don't want to avoid flavor and taste.
Each container can provide you with 24 servings. You add one squeeze of MiO per 8 oz of water. (If you're like myself and drink from a water bottle often, make sure you add 2 squeezes.) You can also add a little more to get the exact flavor intensity you want. The top locks with 2 clicks, telling you it's secure.
I have been using MiO for a few weeks now and absolutely love it! I'm a college student, and the water we get in our dorms is incredibly disgusting. I always carry water around with me, however, so I needed to find ways to make it taste better. I turned to water flavorings and enhancers. I have only tried the Fruit Punch flavor that was sent to me, and I have enjoyed this flavor. If I add just enough to my water bottle, it doesn't even seem like I'm drinking water anymore. MiO now goes with me everywhere. It's small, and locks securely so I feel comfortable putting it in my backpack or purse so I can take it with around campus. I have never had it spill, even though I'm pretty rough with my backpack.
Would I purchase this product? Definitely. I used to use other products that I will not name, and they only added a little flavoring to the water and gave it a sour taste. I have yet to find something better than MiO.

*Click Here to check out MiO's Facebook Page to Stay Up-To-Date and Get Ideas on Creative Ways to Use MiO, Other Than a Water Enhancer. (They also announce new flavors)
*Click Here to check out MiO's website.

Review: Maybelline Baby Lips and Lots of Lashes

I am a BzzAgent and recently I was accepted in the Maybelline campaign which provided me with Lots of Lashes mascara and Baby Lips lip balm to try out, review, and give away to friends/family/others. I received 5 mascaras and 5 different varieties of the lip balm. *This was all free from BzzAgent and Maybelline. Everything that follows is my honest opinion of the products.

Maybelline Lots of Lashes mascara comes in 3 different shades. It comes with a new applicator brush designed to build your lashes, prevent clumping, and to get to those hard to reach corners of your eyelashes. You can find it at mass retailers at around $6.40.

I have been using this mascara for a few weeks now. I really like the new brush design. Getting the corners of your eyelashes has always been a big problem with other brushes I've used. This brush gets in there without making a mess. I have experienced a small amount of clumping, but a lot less than other mascaras I have used. Price-wise it's a bit cheaper than the other main mascara I use which is usually anywhere from $7 to $8. Would I buy this when I run out? Maybelline Lots of Lashes mascara would definitely be a top contender on my list when the time comes around in which I must buy mascara again.

Maybelline Baby Lips lip balm is a relatively new product. It comes in 6 different varieties. (Pictured above left to right: Peach Kiss, Pink Punch, Cherry Me, Peppermint, Quenched) I did not receive the sixth one, Grape Vine, to test out. The lip balm has an SPF of 20 so not only are your lips hydrated, they are also protected. It comes in two clear varieties (Peppermint and Quenched), and the others have a hint of color to them. (Peach Kiss- nude/tan, Pink Punch- pink, Cherry Me- red, Grape Vine- purple.) They can be found at mass retailers for around $3.99.
I decided to try Peach Kiss because I either like lip balms with little to no color or with a natural looking color. The other varieties were given to friends and family to try. This was definitely an enjoyable product. It left my lips smooth and gave them a bit of shine and just the right about of natural-looking color. I found myself using the lip balm on a daily basis. Would I buy this again? I think I definitely will be buying the Peach Kiss lip balm again, and also the Grape Vine one mainly because I love all things purple/grape scented and because I didn't get to try it here. Do you want to try it and save some money? Coupon links listed below.

Click Here to Save $1 on Maybelline Lots of Lashes MascaraClick Here to Save $1 on Maybelline Baby Lips Lip Balm

Free 20 oz Coke Coupon

VocalPoint Coupon Offer Coming Soon

If you are not a VocalPoint Member make sure you register for the site. The site offers you chances to try products for FREE or at a reduced cost, and along with that you get some great coupons to keep or pass out to friends and family.
Soon they will be offering a BOGO coupon for Del Monte Fruit Naturals cups. These fruit cups have 100% fruit juice instead of the usual sugary syrup found in similar products. This offer will go live on Tuesday, September 13th.

Try out Swiffer for FREE!

Check out your VocalPoint Account for a chance to get a Swiffer sample!
I LOVE the Swiffer brand, and recently got the 360 duster from a Facebook Promotion and it works well! So head over to Vocal Point so you can have the chance to try one as well!

Free Bounce Bar from VocalPoint

The next VocalPoint offer is a coupon for a FREE 2 month Bounce Dryer Bar and some coupons to share with friends, better hurry because it's for the first 5,000 people. Everyone after that will receive a coupon for $2.50 off.

Have Unwanted Gift Cards? Sell Them!

It happens... sometimes you'll receive a gift card as a gift, for your birthday, or even for winning a sweepstakes/IWG and it's for a store you rarely go to or don't shop at, at all. So what do you do with it? Give it away to someone else? Let it sit around forever and forget about it? Why not sell it for something you can use?

This happened to me recently. I had received a $25 Macy's gift card after winning an Herbal Essences Instant Win Game. There aren't any Macy's stores nearby, and I rarely if at all shop there. I don't like using store gift cards online because shipping would be taken out of it as well. I decided, why not sell it? So I began searching for sites that buy and sell gift cards and came across a few of them, but ultimately decided to try out Gift Card Rescue. It was quick and easy. I entered what my cards were that I was selling and what they were worth. I chose to receive an Amazon Gift card as a payment and it quickly told me how much money I would get for selling the card. I then went on to mail them my gift cards. I was a little nervous at first, because I sent them in the regular mail without tracking or anything. Maybe around a week later I received an email that they had received my cards, and a day after that I received my gift card code in my email. Quick, easy, painless, and I now have $$ I can spend somewhere I actually buy things. I will definitely be using their site again when I have more unwanted giftcards.

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Steps to Take When Selling a Gift Card:

1. Search for sites that buy gift cards.
2. Separate the legit from the scam. You can do this by checking out the site, but also searching for customer reviews of the sites. If you see an overwhelming majority of disappointed people, avoid the site.

3. Compare Prices. If you've found a few sites you'd be willing to use, start the process to find out how much they will pay you for your card so you know you're getting the best deal.

Vinyl Lettering Contests

If you check out the Vinyl Lettering facebook page you'll see that they have an "Enter to Win" tab. When you go there, fill out and submit your information, you are entered for a chance to win some pretty neat decals. For example, they give away 5 FREE Eiffel Towers every Friday.

AND you only have to enter ONCE. You will be automatically entered in each new contest they run. (Plus they plan on giving away an Ipad 2 in the future!)
Today they're giving away 3 Family is Forever decals, plus it looks like they have deals of the day where you can order decals from them at a % off the cost to you. So make sure you check out their page, "Like" it, and enter to win!

Free Fresh Express Salad

Are you a Vocalpoint member? If not, you should join, and if you are-- I hope you signed up for the latest opportunity.

Vocalpoint is offering us the chance to try Fresh Express Salad washed in fresh rinse, for free!

Fresh express uses an environmentally friendly way to wash their salad, so they're ready to eat instead of ready to wash.

So if you want to get a coupon to try this product for free at your local store, a salad bag clip, AND extra coupons to share with friends... go to the link below to sign up.

vocalpoint.com/FreshSavings

Upcoming Giveaways

On Monday, July 11th, Scrubbing Bubbles will be giving away 500 brand new One Step Toilet Bowl Cleaner products which aren't even available in stores yet! This will happen "later in the evening" and that is all the info their currently is pertaining to the time. This is a few more than their usual product packs they give away, but they will STILL go EXTREMELY fast. I would suggest Robo Form or Auto Fill as your best bet at getting these, along with constant refreshing.

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On Tuesday, July 12th, VocalPoint will have an offer on their site so if you aren't currently a member, make sure you join. They occasionally offer some awesome freebies, generally full size samples of new products not even in stores yet as well.

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On Tuesday, July 19th, EMI Yoshi will be having a giveaway sometime between 12 p.m. - 3 p.m. EST. (That's 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. PT, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. CT) They will be giving away an undetermined amount of 10ct packs of their brand new 5 oz. Square Wave Bowls. Usually the amount is around 200/250. You have to be fast for this one too, although so far I've never had any trouble getting it in time. Autofill is a big help here.

Downy Unstopables Product Review

I, as a member of VocalPoint, got a free full size product to try out--- Downy's new Unstopables. Unstopables is an in-wash scent booster that you add to your washing machine. Inside the container are a bunch of scent beads that will dissolve in your water for a lasting freshness. It's safe for all colors, fabrics, and loads and you can use it with or without fabric softener.

So when it comes to new things I'm not a patient person so I gathered up a small load of towels and clothes and headed to the basement, Unstopables in hand.

I like the product design. The cap comes off easily and is easy to use to shake some of the product into. The lid is easy to open, but also stays shut tightly enough where you wont accidentally spill. I filled the cap maybe halfway since it was a small load of clothes. As you can see below I'm shaking it over the clothes (although in the directions it had you put them in before the clothes... but I don't think this matters.)

So the beads did dissolve and you could smell the scent once you took the clothes out of the wash, but the main question in my mind was could it withstand the dryer? Because fabric softener, for example, always fades while in the dryer. Took them out of the dryer, and YES the scent was still as strong as ever. In fact, I may have added a bit too much for my small load of clothes. Could still smell them in my room when I entered it later on at night.

Do I like the product? Yes.
Does the scent last long? Yes.

Would I buy it again? This would depend on the price in the stores. It's a new product and I haven't seen it in stores yet, so I'm not sure what the price is, but the price definitely would influence whether or not this would be something I purchase.

Another VocalPoint Freebie

Check out your VocalPoint account for a free sample of Glad Forceflex Odorshield with Febreeze Freshness bags.

http://www.vocalpoint.com/glad/address.aspx

Smaller Products for a Better Price

As I'm organizing my coupons and looking for deal match ups before I do some more of my minor shopping tomorrow, I am reminded of my absolute favorite section of the store--- the Travel Section with trial/travel size products. This is a great place to start getting overage at places like Walmart or just free products in general for anyone not knowing where to start. I honestly have the products offered at my local Walmart's travel section memorized, so I immediately know what coupons I can use there. I'm excited to go to a much bigger town tomorrow with a Walmart that definitely will have a lot more options for me to try for. And everything there is something people can use-- deodorant, body wash, facial cleanser, band-aids, shampoo/conditioner etc. Plus these are things you almost always find coupons for, although you do have to read your coupons to see if there's a size limit or a limitation on not being able to use it on trial/travel sizes.

So make sure you check out this section in Walmart or Target to see if there's anything you would use (especially since you can get it for free) and to see if you can match any coupons to them for some good deals.

What's BzzAgent?

BzzAgent is a social networking company that uses word of mouth to help drive sales.Members of the site, bzzagents, will be able to write reviews on the site on various products they use everyday which will help increase their status. They will take surveys in order for companies and the website to know a little more about you and if you're the type of person they're looking for. Occasionally you will receive a campaign offer-- the chance to try out a product (or even multiple products) or software.

When you receive the campaign, which if it's a product it will come with the item and usually some decent coupons to keep and hand out to friends/relatives/strangers, you get to test out the product. You then review it on the website so the company knows what you think about it. Then during the remaining days of your campaign you continue to use the product and submit "Bzz Reports" explaining who you've talked to about the product, what you said to them, and how they reacted. If you do 2 Bzz Reports that are approved, this also increases your status. Increased

status means you get campaign offers before those with a lower status.

I joined BzzAgent back in April. I didn't expect much from it right away because many people told me it took months for them to get their first campaign, but luckily I received 2 within the first 2 weeks. For newcomers to the site--- it all depends on how many campaigns are coming up and how many spots are available when it comes to whether or not you'll get in one quickly. Could take weeks or it could take months. Things such as your age, gender, and location could also play a role into what campaigns you can receive. They just started doing this, but another way to get into campaigns is to watch their Facebook page. Occasionally they'll post that they have a few more openings and either the first so m

any to comment will get it, or else they'll draw random people from those to comment...etc.

Overall I'm enjoying this website. It's an easy way to get products to review, and it's fun trying them out and giving your honest opinion. (You're not penalized for being truthful and giving a negative opinion of the product. They WANT to know what you think.)

Below are the picture of the campaigns I participated in:

Kind of a dark picture, but this was my CoverGirl Natureluxe campaign. I received two full size products--- foundation and lip balm. I also received 5 coupons to pass out (although I'm keeping one for myself) for $2 off the foundation.

Not an actual picture of my stuff, but my second campaign was the TRESemme Color Revitalize one. I received two 15 oz. bottles of shampoo and conditioner. I also received 10 coupons for $1 off.

Check out VocalPoint

Mott's for Tot's has 40% less sugar than 100% Apple Juice. A great juice for kids.

Check out Vocal Point to learn more about it and see if you can get some good savings from the site. ;)

www.vocalpoint.com/mottsfortots

Printable Coupons

These are some of my favorite online places to get printable coupons--- coupons.com, Smartsource, and Redplum. I mainly get them from coupons.com, but I remember getting a few coupons that got me overage off of Redplum. The great thing about coupons.com is that for most of the coupons you can have them mailed to you which comes in handy if you're nowhere near a printer or are out of ink.

If you're a member of Swagbucks and you coupon, make sure if there's a coupon on coupons.com you want that you get it off of Swagbucks, because if you use it- you'll receive 10 SB.

Facebook is also a great place, and a lot of the higher value ones are located on your favorite brand pages, but they tend to go fast with only a few thousand being available.

I'm starting to use Recyclebank which is a decent place to earn points for coupons for free products. Make sure to save your points though, because eventually a lot of them are discounted at a much cheaper point value. Got a lot of free cat food this way.

Vitafusion Gummy Giveaway Tomorrow

Another Giveaway happening tomorrow will be on the Vitafusion Gummy Vitamins facebook page. They will be giving away 10,000 samples of their Fiber Gummies. This will go live at 9 a.m. PST, 12 p.m. EST.

I'll warn you on Facebook when it's about to go live.

TRESemme Color Revitalize BzzCampaign Review

I'm a BzzAgent, in other words I'm a member of the BzzAgent website. I get to review products on the site from my everyday life and occasionally I get the chance to participate in "campaigns" where I get to try out products for free, review them, tell others what I think, and pass out coupons.

For the past few weeks I've been participating in the TRESemme Color Revitalize campaign. I received two 15 oz bottles of the shampoo and conditioner. I also received quite a few coupons for $1 off the shampoo and conditioner that I can pass out to friends/family/strangers that I think would be interested in the product.

I probably wouldn't have participated in this campaign, but I planned on coloring my hair so I figured this would keep me motivated. So yes, I colored my hair to more of a golden brown color. I was sick of the flat/dull brown my hair turns during winter because I don't spend as much time in the sun. I wasn't patient enough to wait for the summer sun to return my natural high lights to me. And right after I colored my hair I began using the shampoo and conditioner.

Let me first talk about the products before giving you my opinion. The shampoo and conditioner are supposed to prevent hair color wash out and preserve your color for 8x longer. The 32 oz bottles' suggested retail value is $4.49, but I've seen it in stores for around $4.00 even. I didn't see the 15 oz bottles in in Walmart yet, but through google product search they should be around $2.89 in stores.

So I've been using the product for a few weeks now and am quite pleased with the results. I've experienced wash out many times even with other shampoo/conditioner brands that promise to protect color so this is more of a comparison against those brands. I prefer the TRESemme Color Revitalize a whole lot more. I haven't used it for 40 washes yet, but my hair color is still going strong! If I had been using any of the other color protecting shampoos/conditioners that I tried in the past there would definitely be a lot of fade-out/wash-out by now.

Another thing I love, maybe this is just the TRESemme brand in general (I wouldn't know, this is my first TRESemme experience), this shampoo/conditioner leaves my hair incredibly soft which is quite an accomplishment by itself. I live out in a rural countryside area where we use well water and we don't filter it very well. It's full of minerals that basically do a lot of damage to my hair and start to give it a straw like feel overtime. Right now, for example, it's been two days since I've washed my hair and it's still soft! I'm impressed!

So in comparison to other products that promise the same thing I would give TRESemme Color Revitalize 5/5 stars. I really can't wait until I do my hair a wild color (like purple or blue) to see if this helps for those colors as well. That's when I really have problems with wash out, but for natural colors this is really working great. I would definitely buy it again whenever my hair is colored, which it will be a lot from now on (going to be a red-head next I think.)

High Value Bounty Coupons

The Bounty Facebook page is having a promotion throughout the month of June. Every Friday throughout the month of June, the Bounty Facebook page will be giving away 5,000 coupons for $5 off of any Bounty product. These are really great coupons if you're looking for overage (well and if you need paper towels or napkins! haha) I've seen the 2 packs of paper towels in my store for a little under $4 so this would take care of the sales tax and go towards the rest of my cart at Walmart. The Bounty napkins are also pretty cheap.

These will definitely go fast, so make sure you're there in time! (I'm going to have to get up early tomorrow because I'm not sure when this will start!!)

Are You Participating in the Swiffer Giveaway?

If you didn't already know, Swiffer has been giving away duster kits this month. They give out 12,500 two times a week, and they will give out a total of 100,000. The next giveaway is TONIGHT, May 26th. No specific time, but you should be watching out for it. I'll try to keep an eye on it for my page on facebook, but I have so many things to do today.

I managed to get one the first day they gave them out. Then two nights ago they held a giveaway and I signed up all of my relatives that asked me to sign them up for one (because they couldn't be online all of the time, they weren't fast enough at these giveaways, or for other various reasons.)

And on a side note I finally managed to be fast enough for the Scrubbing Bubbles giveaway which is awesome. Been trying each time for that one.

Playtex Sport Body Wipes Review

I am a member of a website called Crowdtap, where you complete actions and answer questions to earn money for gift cards and charity, while letting brands know certain things about a wide variety of people. Sometimes you get to sample products. I was selected to try out, review, and let some of my friends try out the Playtex Sport Body Wipes.

I must admit that at first I was a bit confused at first, as to what they were. When you think of Playtex, you first think of feminine...products. So I had to read what others were saying and I realized the obvious--- they're just body wipes.

The Playtex Sport Body wipes are a quick refresher for anyone who has worked up a sweat or become dirty, whether due to being in a sport or doing any other demanding activites. It saves you the time of having to take a shower to feel clean and refreshed. They have a slight scent of cucumber, and it's not overpowering. I'm sure if guys don't hear the word "Playtex", they would give it a try as well. I was able to get some male friends to try it as well and the opinion was favorable.

Let me honestly save that I love these things. I've used them quite a few times, after my main activities being- taking long walks in the country, or really working out by playing Just Dance 2 on the Wii (yes, I REALLY get into that game). They feel cool when you use them, which is great when you're feeling hot and sweating like crazy. Unlike most body wipes, they don't leave your skin feeling sticky. If anything, it slightly felt like my arms were smoother/softer. The scent is pleasant, but it isn't strong. They do leave you feeling clean.

Some other great things about them would be their size. They can easily be packed in a purse or bag without taking up much room. They are easy to dispose of- you can either flush them (only one wipe at a time though), or throw them in the garbage.

They are definitely a keeper.

My Latest Mail Call

As you can see, my mailbox was a bit full a few days ago when I received:

Nutrition First Pancake and Waffled Mix

Shout Color Catcher

Emergen-C samples along with a coupon and some stickers

Zapzyt Sample

TRESemme bzzkit with shampoo, conditioner, and coupons

Coupon for a free naanwich

and H20 Pure sample

I'm currently trying out the zapzyt sample. Have a few stubborn acne spots that my daily Clearisil routine hasn't gotten rid of yet.

I plan on trying the Nutrition First mix this weekend the morning of our garage sale we're currently setting up. That way I can make my relatives and myself breakfast before the long days ahead of us, and more people will be able to sample it and give their opinion.

The TRESemme is an ongoing thing. I'll post a review in a few days, hopefully.

Have You Joined Recycle Bank?

This is a website that allows you to earn points while learning about basically "going green", and you can also earn points by buying certain products that have codes on them. The points you earn can be used towards coupons, gift cards, or % off certain purchases at places.

So far I've gotten coke coupons, coupons for free pistachios, and coupons for free cat food. In fact, I just used the $1/any Coke product to get a 2 liter bottle of Sprite for free at Target, where Coke 2 liters cost $1.

The site isn't too hard to figure out and it doesn't take up a whole lot of your time to complete activities or take quizzes for points.

I only ask that if you wish to join, you use my referral link below, because I get 10 points for everyone that registers because of me. You might need to copy and paste it. Thanks!

http://www.recyclebank.com/referafriend/?___store=us&bl=cHJvd3Jlc3RsaW5nZ2lybHh0cmVtZUB5YWhvby5jb20=&utm_campaign=Refer-a-friend&utm_medium=direct%20link&utm_source=S0801888&cm_mmc=Refer-a-friend-_-direct%20link-_-S0801888-_-referral

Amazon.com Giftcard Giveaway

If I can get 250 fans of my facebook page, Foraging For Bargains, by 9 a.m. Central Time tomorrow, I will be giving away a $5 Amazon.com Giftcard code I got from Swag Bucks. Right now I'm at 130 fans, so 120 to go.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Foraging-For-Bargains/191511987556926

Upcoming Facebook Freebies

Tomorrow, Wednesday April 27th, Scrubbing Bubbles AND Downy will be having freebies on their facebook page. If I remember correctly, Downy is at 12 p.m. EST, 11 a.m. Central.... Scrubbing Bubbles generally doesn't announce the time until it's actually happening. And they never specified that tomorrow is the date, a lot of us are just basing this on their status hints about "27 reasons". Downy is giving away 5,400 sun blossom samples. And due to the fact Downy has 200,000+ fans which will definitely increase as the giveaway draws near, this is one of those you better be quick type of giveaways. Scrubbing Bubbles, no word on how many they'll be giving away, but last time it wasn't a whole lot and they were gone almost immediately.

To keep up to date on this, "Like" my facebook page Foraging For Bargains. I'm at 65 likes, I believe. As soon as I get to 100, I might have a mini coupon giveaway. I kind of have various fan landmarks in my mind for when to host giveaways and what to giveaway.

CoverGirl Natureluxe BzzCampaign Review

I'm a BzzAgent on the site www.bzzagent.com

It's a site that you can join to review some of your favorite products and occasionally get offers to test out/try/review new products. Sometimes you'll get full size products, sometimes samples, and sometimes coupons.

This is my first Campaign, which is the CoverGirl Natureluxe Campaign. I received full products- 1 foundation (flax) and 1 lip balm (Hibiscus). I also received coupons for $2.00 off of the foundation. In stores the foundation averages $9.74 and the lip balm goes for $6.48.

First off the lip balm is not my color. It's a bit dark, and I prefer more natural colors, but we get whatever they give us to try out. I like that it has an SPF of 15, not a whole lot of lip items have SPF. The balm goes on smoothly which is also nice, considering that with many other lip colors I usually have to apply chapstick first..

At first you laugh a bit to yourself when you realize the foundation was the full size product. It appears to be quite small, but after using it you realize you don't need a lot of it. The foundation is incredibly lightweight and applies smoothly. My main foundation before trying this was another CoverGirl foundation which was the best I could find at the time and I still wasn't happy with it because it would definitely show if I had dry skin and I would always have to use some sort of lotion before applying it. With this, I don't need to. I'm 99% positive that this will be the only foundation I use for quite some time unless something better comes out.

Freebies to Watch for On Facebook

Since I started signing up for freebies/giveaways..... not a day goes by when there isn't at least ONE on facebook. Hence my freebie binder with lists inside detailing what I should be getting continues to grow only though I've been doing this for 12 days so far.

So what is currently known to be coming up on Facebook?

Well, Degree Women is going to do another giveaway on April 13th. If you've already entered this one, you cannot enter again.

Duck Tape is continue it's giveaway of sample sheets on April 11th at 6 p.m. ET. That's 5:00 p.m. for those of us in Central Time.

All You magazine is still running it's daily freebies. I have found that they generally post their freebie of the day around 9:00 a.m. Central Time. Some are repeats and some may be ones you've already signed up for if you're fast on finding these things and know where to look. I know there have been quite a few days I check on the freebie item as soon as it was posted, only to be disappointed that I had already got that item the night before because I'm well informed.

Allure still has 2 things going on. The rest of this week you need to fill out the request form at 12:00 p.m. ET and the first 500 people get the item free. You don't find out if you were one of the first, until the item arrives at your door.

There are still free coffee samples left.

"Like" my page, Foraging For Bargains, on Facebook and I'll keep you up-to-date on the freebies/giveaways/sweepstakes/coupons I find. Depending on whether or not I'm in a class at the time, I'd say I'm still one of the faster pages out of others I pay attention to, when it comes to posting the freebies deals.

What I've Noticed about Facebook Freebie Pages

A lot of them are more interested in updating their blog than posting the information on facebook. And a lot of them don't even have that many followers on their blog compared to facebook.

I would only post freebie info here if A. a lot of people followed this blog and/or B. the freebie or giveaway had a lot of items and would probably be open for a few hours. What's the point making a blog post if the people aren't going to see it in time?

I also dislike certain pages that when they finally inform you on facebook, the link they provide is to their blog and then you have to click on a link IN their blog to get to where you're supposed to be and perhaps even hit a few more links. Waste of time and an annoyance.

I compared timing to some of these people, and I posted freebies at least 30 minutes before they did. And I never link it to here. Relatives that follow me don't want to deal with that crap, they want the stuff and they want it fast. Because hey, you sometimes have thousands of other people to beat to it.

I'm on Facebook

LINK BELOW

I decided to make my own Facebook Fan Page dedicated to finding freebies/samples/giveaways and sometimes coupons. This is because I have been helping out friends and relatives and sending links to them was flooding my profile and theirs as well. This way I only have to make one post and it's all in one place.

Also, being a fan of multiple freebie fan pages, I realized that in some cases I'm faster than they are at finding the deals. Or that they were offering a lot of stuff I wasn't into..... weird company stickers, baby items..... so I wanted a place for my friends and relatives who didn't want all of that. I post things I know that I would want or I think someone I know would want. But mainly the facebook decision was so I wouldn't have so many links/pages/comments on my facebook wall.

So check me out--- "Foraging For Bargains"

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Foraging-For-Bargains/191511987556926?sk=wall

Tide Giveaway and Sample Showcase Box TOMORROW!

Are you ready?

Tide is redoing their GIVEAWAY of a 10 count pack of Tide Stain Release Tablets, tomorrow at 9 p.m. Eastern Time on their Facebook Page. So go ahead, get over their and "Like" their page. I would suggest being on the page 5-10 minutes before it's starts... because hey, sometimes your clock is a few minutes ahead or behind. So keep refreshing it and HAVE PATIENCE. Last time they suffered technological difficulties possibly due to the large amount of people on their site. I don't have to be as worried about this one because my form managed to go through. Although I will be going for another one for a relative.

There is a Sample Showcase box being released around 11:15 a.m. Central Time. (I say around because I estimated it out.... it only gives us a countdown timer on the main page.) I believe the picture should link you to the website. I'm not sure, I'm just starting out trying to post links to pictures. So what you have to do is join the website, fill out some information, and then wait to request the box. You may not get it depending on the amount of boxes, and based on the type of people they're looking for. Each box contains a variety of samples and sometimes coupons.

*IT DOESN'T WORK SO HERE IS THE LINK---- http://www.startsampling.com/showcase/

Also the free coupon book being offered by Home Made Simple is still available. https://www.thepromotionaloffer.com/hmsdrtv/?source=mrclean

READ Your Coupons

This just disgusts me. There's a woman on youtube who told her 2 thousand or so subscribers that if they had a coupon and it had a limited amount (size-wise), I believe it was for Tide?, to just go ahead and use it on a larger size because sometimes the register will take it. Someone explained to her that it isn't right to do that or tell others to do that, and now she's acting like a child in her responding comments. Swearing, keeping the caps locks on, and getting her ignorant friends to back her up.

This is one of the reasons that policies are changing- misuse of coupons. So make sure you read yours over to know what the limits are. And make sure you abide by them and don't try to screw over a store.

Helping Out and Freebie Tips

So now quite a few of my relatives are requesting my help in locating good deals, samples, coupons, and freebies. So lately I've been keeping them informed on "where and when" this stuff occurs. And the great thing with family, is that if they don't use a product I do, and there's a free item with a limit of one per household, they'll get it for me and I'll do the same for them if there's something they want and I'm not that interested in. So I make sure to include them in on everything that I find out about just in case.

Here are some quick tips that I can think of off the top of my head before I rush over to the dining hall to get something to eat.

1. You might want to create an email account specifically for getting deals, coupons, newsletters, and other various forms of information. Sometimes before you get an item you have to subscribe to a company's newsletter. I tend to get more spam messages than I used to, and there are generally 10 new emails every day.

2. I'd have to say All You magazine is one of my favorite magazines that offers a lot of coupons. Not to mention on their website for the past few months, every day they'll inform you about one freebie item you can get online. Sure, some days it's repetitive or if you might be faster than they are and have already gotten the giveaway item hours or even days before.... but occasionally it's something that has slipped past the radar of major freebie websites or fan pages.

3. Get on Facebook. Facebook has become the new "in" thing. Many popular and even some lesser known companies are creating Facebook Pages for themselves in order to advertise to a larger audience. And they're looking for ways to get you to "Like" their page. So many of them will offer an occasional giveaway of full size products, sample items tend to happen a bit more frequently, and coupons are almost a given. There are very few large company pages that don't have any coupons. So think about some of your favorite brands and look for them on Facebook.

Well that's all I can type up for now, because the dining area is open and I must be going.

You know, maybe I should just create a facebook page to help out people with finding these things.... at least I know I'll get quite a few fans just with all of my relatives....

Happy and Disgusted

So the Tide giveaway was supposed to be today, but they were having technological difficulties. And the thing that disgusted me was..... the "fans" of Tide. A lot of us patiently waited and refreshed the page every now and then.... checking up on the updates Tide was giving us.... but then there were immature and rude people posting hateful, negative comments, some cursing.... Here's my take on the issue. Tide is NOT obligated to give out free samples. The company chose to, which is great. And it's not their fault that there were problems. Technology isn't perfect, things happen. A lot of those comments upset me, and you just KNOW that a lot of these people only "liked" the page probably a few minutes before the contest only to get the sample and then immediately "unlike" it. I, for one, have and always will like tide. I was exited for this giveaway because my mother LOVES the stain release tablets and says they smell amazing. So I was going to get them for her. I'm still happy, because Tide is going to retry this whole thing, but this time with 150,000 samples. I just hope it's at night again, because I don't think my professors would understand the concept of me being late to class to get a sample of a product. :) Hehehe. Anyway, to sum it up, I think it's perfectly fine for Tide not to be able to do the giveaway. I just think rude people should keep their comments to themselves or not be on the page. I still love you, Tide!!!!

Anyway, I'm happy because a few minutes after Tide apologized and whatnot.... I found out that I won a contest. And at first I'm like, what the heck? I had completely forgotten that I entered a contest about six hours ago. And I was one of the lucky random people who won.

I'm pretty sure I got some other free items today as well, but I can't remember what they are. Oh well. I'll post about them and reviews etc. when I receive them in the mail.

Ciao!

Facebook Freebies are the Greatest Thing Since...

Sliced bread?

I can remember back in the day (I can't believe I feel old enough to say that.... I'm only 19 goin' on 20!!!) when the only way I heard about getting free products or samples was through magazines and occasionally a store would be doing a promotion, but that was quite rare.

Now I don't know why this hadn't occurred to me before, but recently with my whole big "You can save money?" awakening after watching TLC's Extreme Couponing, I thought.... why not "Like" some of my favorite brands on facebook and see if they offer coupons there? And not only did I find out that they offer some great coupons.... but a few brands will once in awhile give out samples or a free product. So this has officially become my new favorite thing.

What are some of the issues with this, however? You have to be extremely fast and know where to look. Not even 3o minutes ago there was a free sample promotion on Pantene products.... only 8,000 samples were available. I was of course waiting on the page before it even began so I would be ready. Lucky that I was, because either their time was a bit off or mine is... because 2 minutes before they were scheduled to start, the offer was open. I managed to be one of the first to sign up for it. And in less than 13 minutes, 8,000 samples were gone. My favorite thing to do is to watch the page's number of fans increase by the second. If you're on the page beforehand and you refresh it you can watch the numbers go up. They increase dramatically when the offer begins. If I remember correctly, in the first 2 minutes the page's fan count increased by over 2,000 people. So yeah, these are people who are following multiple freebie pages and learn where to go and when, and you have to be ready... and faster than they are.

What have I got so far from Facebook, after barely starting this, maybe not even a week ago?

2 free Suave full size products

1 cosmetic item, don't remember the brand...

Crystal light sample

Pantene Sample

And in about 2 hours Tide will also be having a sample giveaway. And tomorrow morning (10 minutes before I have class so I have to run if I'm staying for it) Biore is also apparently doing something.

So make sure you stay up to date with these things on Facebook. It's quite fun.

Trying a New Lotion

On the way back to college from Spring Break, I realized I left my lotion at home. So during one of my store stops to pick up last minute items I went to look for lotion at Walmart. Now, I don't know what's going on there, but recently I haven't been able to find a heck of a lot of variety like there used to be. And my favorite lotion wasn't there so I had to choose something different from the limited selections. I picked up Neutrogena Moisture Wrap.... this is the first neutrogena product that I've ever used.

So I've been using it for about two weeks now and it works just as well as my favorite lotion. Only a better thing is that it's fragrance free. Sometimes you don't realize how many products you use and how sometimes scent can be overpowering when mixed or when using multiple products. So now I can use this lotion and body spray among other things, and not be overwhelmed by an over powering scent.

Sometimes...Mistakes are Good

So yesterday I was in a bit of a hurry.... let me say that again just to accent the point-- yesterday I was in a bit of a hurry. I stopped at my college's campus store to pick up some food, beverages and snacks. As I was grabbing the last item, a microwaveable soup, the word "Bugles"caught my eye. And in less than a second I managed to think to myself..."You know... I haven't had Bugles in a long time." Then I grabbed the bag and headed to the front desk to buy the items. I didn't read the bag at all. So I get back to my dorm room and later that night I was starving. Yes, for some reason lately even after eating an entire meal... 2 hours later it's like I never ate. So I grabbed the bag of Bugles to snack on, only to wonder about the color of the bag. It was then that I read it... Bugles Hot Buffalo Flavor. So I'm almost positive you can't return things to the store, so I thought, what the hell I'll try them.

First bite they actually taste a lot like regular Bugles. The Hot Buffalo Flavor comes a few seconds later. Now I don't know if it was because I had just brushed my teeth (yeah, stupid idea), but it was HOT. I couldn't grab my water bottle fast enough. So today, here I sit, munching on them again and this time it's not as bad. The flavor kind of reminds me of Doritoes, except hotter. I can in all honesty say that I never would've bought these at a store to try. I mean, I'm all for trying new things, but sometimes it depends on the wording of the product and flavors. I'm not a huge fan of "hot" snack products.... but these are good. I can't say I'll buy them often, but I may pick them up again sometime. But I'll always make sure to have some cold beverages around to go with them.

Benefits of Going to Auctions

So I'm a movie lover.... or basically a movie addict. I buy a lot of movies, I rent a lot of movies, I watch a lot of movies....

And at a recent auction there were dvds up for bid. I managed to score 46 DVDS for around 40 dollars. They were all in PERFECT condition. (Make sure you check any DVDs or CDs for that matter if you plan on buying some at an auction or a garage sale. Some could be horribly scratched/scuffed up or as was the case when I looked in the cases of some cds at a garage sale... they might not even have the disks in them!!!) A few of the DVDs were still in plastic wrap and had never been opened or watched. So this is one of the cheapest ways to get movies, unless like myself you manage to find a few sites where you can occasionally get them for free which is niiiiiiiiiiice for movie lovers like myself.

Now of course, I'm not going to keep all of them. Some of them I'm not interested in at all so I'll be selling them at our twice yearly garage sales and if they sell I will definitely be earning a profit on them, because many I could probably sell for around 2 or 3 dollars.

Oh, and if you go to garage sales.... for movies or anything make sure you try to bring the price down if they're a bit too high in your opinion. I've found that 8 times out of 10 I can get a person to lower their price on anything. Heck, even a 25 cent reduction is saving money.

Extra Dessert Delights Review

So I've been chewing Extra gum for years. And awhile back I "Liked" their page on facebook, which caused me to learn about their latest flavors--- Dessert Delights. They come in three flavors; Strawberry Shortcake, Mint Chocolate Chip, and Key Lime Pie. The concept and flavors alone made me curious and wanting to try it. It slightly reminded me of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory... you know the gum that's a whole meal? Well this gum is dessert flavored.

So a week or so ago I was wandering around Target to see what kind of deals there were, and they had three packs of desserts gum on sale (it was like half the price of a 3 pack of the regular Extra gum flavors) so naturally I bought a three pack of each dessert delights gum flavor. And here's my opinion (I'll be chewing on the pieces as I write about them, because you tend to forget exactly what the gum tastes like).

Strawberry Shortcake---It smells great. It actually has a bit of a cake scent to it. Tastewise.... at first it seems like regular old bubble gum. A bit of chewing and you start to get the strawberry/cake flavor going on. It's decent. It seems like something I would chew if I'm trying to stay away from major calorie junk food temptations. Not necessarily something I would use if I wanted fresh breath (that's reserved for the more minty flavors).

Key Lime Pie--- Let me tell you right now that I've never actually had key lime pie the dessert.... so I can't judge whether the gum tastes like it. I eventually plan on having one of my relatives who eats key lime pie try it and give me their opinion. It smells like lime.... it reminds me of the scent of lemon-lime sodas. It kind of has a creamy feel to it when you chew it, which is interesting. I can taste the lime. I think my favorite part of the gum is the feeling of chewing it.... This one is also decent. I'm not sure if it's something I'd go out of my way to buy.

Mint Chocolate Chip---You can definitely smell the mint, and I swear you can slightly smell the chocolate. Now let me tell you that I've tried Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream and I absolutely hate it. And the funny thing is.... this is my FAVORITE desserts gum. I LOVE it. You can taste the mint and the slight hint of chocolate. It is just simply amazing. I'm going to eventually try to get my mother to try it because she likes mint chocolate chip ice cream, so I'm curious how a mint chocolate chip ice cream lover will feel about this gum since myself, someone who doesn't like the ice cream, absolutely loves the gum. For the past few weeks I've had it, it's been the one I've been chewing the most often. The flavor lasts a long time, as Extra's Gum tends to do. My favorite gum to chew during college classes. This might even replace my Extra Peppermint gum.

So I encourage you to try some of the flavors if you ever find them on sale or have a coupon, because sometimes you don't really want to spend the full price on something you may not like.

Just Dance 2 is the Reason I Bought a Nintendo Wii

It's true!

So a few months ago at a birthday party my cousins brought along their Nintendo Wii. Eventually they put in the game Just Dance 2 and I decided to try it. I instantly loved it.

I'm the kind of person who when a song comes on the radio or I'm listening to my MP3 player, I just want to dance and sing along. I find myself randomly dancing in my room if I'm listening to music. So this is definitely my kind of game.

When the Wii console was on sale at Target, I immediately went out and bought it, using the Target card which saved on additional 5%. I also bought the Just Dance 2 game that day. This was a little over two weeks ago, and I can't think of a day since then when I haven't played it. Every day I do at least 1 song and on average play for an hour or more. You can definitely tell you're getting a workout. I'm not really in shape, so after the first night of playing it non stop I woke up in the morning incredibly sore. That's starting to fade the more often I play the game.

The game comes with over 40 songs, some you can download for free or for a small fee online. I haven't been able to download any yet, because my college's internet doesn't really allow for me to hook my game up to it, so I'll have to wait until I go home again. The majority of the songs are ones that I've heard of, which is nice. Although the ones I haven't heard of and have tried are also entertaining.

There are various levels of difficulty in the songs/dances. Some songs are easier than others, and some make you sweat more. Which reminds me of my favorite dance mode which is Just Sweat- it allows you to keep track of the calories you're burning every week. I love it because I have yet to buy more controllers so I've been playing by myself.

I plan on buying the first Just Dance game eventually, and hopefully some of the others coming out or already out.

If you're like me, and love dancing to music this game is for you. Right now my favorite song to dance to is Rasputin... which is a bit difficult at some points and makes you sweat a lot.

BzzAgent Site

So I've recently joined this site where you can review a wide variety of products and sometimes receive free products and samples to review. So we'll see how that goes.

It is quite fun reviewing products, and reading the reviews of others...especially if you don't agree with them.

Starting Off

Well, quite a few months ago I was watching Extreme Couponing on TLC and was just amazed at the amount of money people can save and the various ways you can use coupons that you never realized before. How sometimes store just might have to pay you to walk out with the products.

So now I'm intrigued and decided to use coupons more often. But the other main thing- I plan on getting free stuff. At first I thought I started today, but I realized that in reality I've been getting free things for a few months now, I've just forgotten about them.

Things I've gotten for free:

DVD I'm No Dummy

DVD The Day After Tomorrow

$25 dollar Amazon Gift card (for taking surveys.... about to get another one soon)

Things that I should be getting soon:

2 Suave Professional Hair products

1 make up product

And pretty sure I'll be getting a few more dvds within the next few months. I buy a lot of movies so it's nice getting free ones every once in awhile. And sometimes I basically get them free once I sell them at our garage sale. Take for instance an auction I was at recently.... bought over 40 dvds, all in new condition (some were still in the packaging). And I'm still sorting through them deciding which ones I want to keep. But the rest, if I manage to sell them for at least 2-3 dollars a piece I'll be making money off of them and the ones I decide to keep.

I also just got started in that whole www.swagbucks.com website. So we'll see how that goes.

That's all for now.