Product Reviews - Pocketful of Joules

Challenging Myself with a DietBet

Okay guys, I’ve decided to put my money where my mouth is and try out this DietBet thing that I’ve been hearing so much about.

Oh, you haven’t been hearing about it?

In a nutshell, DietBet is an online game where you bet money that you will lose a certain amount of weight within a certain amount of time. There is DietBet 4 (losing 4% in 4 weeks) and DietBet 10 (losing 10% in 6 months), with lots of different Bets to choose from.

When the Bet starts, you submit pictures with code words to prove your starting weight. Then, after the designated amount of time, you submit more pictures with code words for your ending weight (the pictures are confidential). All the winners who reach their goals get to split the total amount of money that was in the pot.

There is also a social media aspect to the Bet, with a chance to interact with other people in your game. It looks like people share diet plans, fitness plans and also encourage each other. So that sounds kind of nice!

I decided to do DietBet 4 with celebrity trainers Heidi & Chris Powell. When I signed up earlier today, there were 609 players with over $18,000 in the pot. The game starts in 7 days, with my first weigh-in scheduled for 1/26 – 1/27 and my final weigh-in on either 2/25 or 2/26.

You may be wondering WHY I decided to do a DietBet when I JUST said that one of my goals for 2014 wasn’t to lose a certain amount of weight, but to make a workout habit. Well, STARTING the workout habit is really hard. Here it is January 20^th and I haven’t REALLY even began my new habit. Also, weight just kind of keeps creeping on… Luckily I didn’t really gain anything over the holidays, but I certainly didn’t lose anything either.

So I figured why not try this to give myself a kick in the pants into the New Year?

By giving myself a set time period and an actual exact goal, I’m hoping that it will keep me on track. While I won’t be disclosing my exact weight for the Bet, I will say that my goal of losing 4% means I need to lose between 6 – 8 pounds. Since I’ve heard that 2 pounds a week is a “normal” dieting goal, I’ve decided to stick with that.

If you’re as intrigued by the DietBet as I am, you can join the game that I’m trying out. In fact, I welcome anyone on this Bet to link up with me as friends so that we can cheer each other on! I put my profile under Pocketful of Joules so that I’d be easy to find.

I’ll probably post an update or two about how the DietBet is going over the next few weeks and I will definitely post a wrap up when it’s all over with! Is there anything else you’d like to know about how the Bet works that I should look into?

Have you done a DietBet before? If so, did you win or lose money? Are you going to join in on the Bet so we can cheer each other on?

Reviewing the Wantable Intimates Box

Can you believe it is the end of our Fashion week already? After getting some awesome deals at Twice and then using some…um, DESCRIPTIVE words for this month’s Stitch Fix order, I’m happy to move on to something a little more intimate.

And by intimate, I mean intimates.

Don’t be a perv. I won’t be posting pictures of me trying on lingerie. Not gonna happen. So if that is why you stopped by, mosey along Mr. or Ms. Perv Pervy Pants.

What I AM going to do is show you what I got in this month’s Wantable Intimates box!

Wantable actually has three different subscription boxes you can choose from: Makeup, Accessories or Intimates. I would actually love any of their boxes, but I decided to try out the intimates box because I’m currently lacking in the “camis + panties + socks + more” side of things.

Instead of just sending everyone a random assortment of stuff, there is a fun quiz that gauges your preferences in each of their categories of clothing and color preferences. I indicated on my preferences that I love: loungewear, tanks, tights/leggings, socks, “fun and flirty” looks, “pretty and polished” looks and neutrals. I liked: accessories, pantis, camis, shapewear, soft bras and brights. I would have actually disliked soft bras, but that wasn’t an option. My only dislike was hosiery, because I NEVER wear hosiery. EVER.

I was really, really hoping for a tank top that I could use for layering. I’m actually still using tank tops I bought from Target’s maternity line when I was pregnant with Jack. Um…I’m going to guess that goes under NOT sexy. I was also hoping for a pair or two of socks, because for some reason I’m at that point where all of my socks (except my running socks) feel super tight and uncomfortable at the same time. Weird.

The cost of the Wantable Intimates box is $36 if you subscribe (monthly boxes, you can cancel at any time) or $40 for a one time box. Each box will include 4 – 5 premium essentials that are handpicked to “perfectly match your preferences.”

So, I filled out the forms and within a few days a box arrived at my door.

You’ve got to love the “Hello, Knockout” note, right?! Here’s what I got:

First up, a soft bra. Hmm… I actually HATE soft bras and only used them when I was pregnant and couldn’t stand to be flopping around all over the place. I tried this one on and YUP, hate it.

Black panties… okay, these are right up my alley. I mean, a girl has to step it up from cotton panties every so often, right? And these are cute and have a fun little heart charm too. Let’s call these a win!

Ok, I really want to be that girl who wears something like this to sleep in and then wakes up looking beautifully tousled like Gisele to make my family homemade pancakes on a weekday. I’m not that girl. I’m a flannel pajama pants and t-shirt kind of girl who wakes up looking like a hot-mess with bangs all over the darn place. This slip is really pretty and even pretty comfortable, but it’s not quite sexy enough to be enticing to wear. Also, it really clings to my tummy… and frankly self-conscious isn’t sexy. This will probably live in the bottom of my drawer until I decide to try and wear it on a hot summer night. Then, I might wear it for an hour or two before I twist out of it and throw it across the room while I’m dead asleep.

I’m in love. You already know that I’m a HUGE fan of fleece-lined tights. Well, these are the QUEENS of fleece-lined tights. The waist-band is nice and thick, which means it lays flat on your tummy without rolling or bunching. Also, there are NO SEAMS! My fleece-lined tights from Target have two seams up my backside and one up my middle that always cut into my skin. If I’m hard at work and staring at the computer for a while, when I stand up my butt will actually HURT from the seams being pressed into me for so long. Having NO seams is a WONDER! These are soft, thick, totally opaque… they are quite simply fleecy goodness. LOVE THEM!

All in all, I really liked the Wantable Intimates box experience and I’d love to receive one from my husband for Valentine’s Day. Or our anniversary. Or the week before we go on a vacation. Actually, this would be the perfect thing to be surprised with any time.

Now that I think about it, this would also be an awesome gift for a bride-to-be! Not for the wedding, but for one of the pre-wedding showers. You can give her a pretty card with a gift certificate in there and she can set it up so that she gets exactly her style and size of gifts. Love it!

Something really cool about the Wantable box is that if you don’t like anything in your box you can return it and get your money back. They will even send you a shipping label! I don’t know of ANY other subscription box that lets you do that. Or, if you’re like me and you like a couple items but don’t really like the other two items, they do partial returns.

Here’s their partial return policy: If a customer is looking for a partial return, refunds are assessed based on the individual MSRPs of the items and the total amount you paid for the box, $40. If the total value of the items you choose to keep exceeds $40.00, your partial return will not be approved for refund. If the total retail value of the items you choose to keep is less than $40.00, you will receive the difference back.

I think that this is kind of genius. The fear for many subscription boxes is that you want to be surprised with something awesome for your $40… but then when you don’t like it as much as you thought, you’re just kind of bitter that you wasted the money. Well, here you get the surprise AND a chance to make it right if it doesn’t fully please you. Wantable is SO awesome that they’re actually going to exchange the two pieces that I wasn’t that crazy about. So cross your fingers that I get an cool tank top and/or a pair of snazzy socks!

What do you think, would you love a Wantable Intimates box from your sweetie? Or would you just want to order one for yourself so you get exactly what you want? Do you agree that this will be an awesome bridal shower gift?

Disclaimer: Wantable provided me with my own Wantable Intimates box to review for no cost to me. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own. If you choose to purchase a box using my special referral link, I will receive a small referral bonus toward future Wantable purchases. Thank you to anyone who uses my special link and supports my shopping addiction.

Stitch Fix-ing in the New Year: Help Me Decide!

That’s right guys, to continue along with our Fashion week…it’s Stitch Fix #5! If you’re interested in checking out my thoughts on my last four Fixes, you can find them here.

This month I asked specifically for a 41Hawthorn Moni Stud Detailed ¾ Sleeve Blouse that I’ve seen other people get and I’m dying to try it out for myself. I also asked for a work-appropriate dress and maybe even a flannel shirt.

Once again I was a Peter-Peter-Bo-Cheater and looked at my account as soon as I got an email that my Fix was shipped to me. I then googled each item name to see what it looked like, because I wanted to write down my first impressions before even seeing them/trying them on in person.

I had Claire as my personal shopper for the past two fixes, so I was surprised to have Adrienne for this Fix. I’m sure Adrienne is a really nice person, but I’m not sure if I’m a fan of her style…

Item #1: Alexander Aztec Knit Drape Front Cardigan, $68.00
Snap Judgment: Ugly. Ugly and not figure flattering at all. And um…hipster-ish. Do they think I’m a hipster? Should I put on a pair of supersized glasses and do a hipster pose when I get this in person? I’m sure I’m going to hate this and return it.

Actual Thoughts Once I Tried It On: Ugly and not figure flattering at all. It looks like I’m being devoured by an ugly Aztec blanket. I’m not sure if it’s more hideous coming or going… but it will be GOING out of my house in the pre-paid return envelope.

Item #2: Broadway Swing Skirt, $48.00
Snap Judgment: OH YAY, they must have looked at my Pinterest board because this looks like one of the skirts I pinned! I hope this fits because I could totally use a plain black, swingy skirt that fits really well. Oh crap, I hope it’s BLACK and not some weird color that doesn’t match anything in my closet…

Actual Thoughts Once I Tried It On: YAY, it’s black and it fits nicely. I feel kinda cute in a “New Girl” kind of way in the first picture. I’m not sure if it’s “special” enough to buy though. The twirly-ness is nice… so this is a MAYBE. Feel free to sway me one way or the other in the comments!

Item #3: Amiee Geo Print Belted Dress, $48.00
Snap Judgment: I couldn’t actually find this dress online when I was google-sneaking around. If it is a work-appropriate dress, that’s a pretty good price so I hope I like it!

Actual Thoughts Once I Tried It On: This is the most hideous dress I’ve ever seen. The only way it could be more hideous is if I paired it with the Aztec blanket sweater. The fabric is extremely thin, like an old handkerchief has been washed 8,000 times. The fit is TERRIBLE and clings to all the wrong places… actually; it clings to ALL THE PLACES, which is why I’m holding the dress and NOT wearing it in the picture. In this dress I look like a slutty Wilma Flinstone. I don’t know who would think that this dress is work-appropriate, but not in my world. Verdict: I cannot get this dress into the return envelope fast enough and even flipped the bird at it so it would know my true feelings.

Item #4: Ivy Tulip Print Tab Sleeve Blouse, $68.00
Snap Judgment: Well, I guess they didn’t have the Moni studded shirt in my size to send me this time, which is super disappointing. However, this EXACT top is on my Pinterest board – and in my notes I said that I loved the tab sleeves, dark color and cute (but not too cutesy) pattern. I can’t WAIT to try this on! My guess is that I’m going to love this one and buy it.

Actual Thoughts Once I Tried It On: The first time I tried this one I wasn’t in love with the fit. Then, I tried it on again 12 hours later and decided I love it. I love it untucked with dark jeans, I love it with statement jewelry and a blazer and I love it tucked into the swing skirt. No need to vote on this one because it’s already hanging in my closet!

Item #5: Gulliver Cotton Gingham Button-Up Shirt, $28.00
Snap Judgment: This is the cheapest priced item I’ve ever received in a Stitch Fix, so that’s pretty awesome! Depending on the pattern, this may be super cute. I am a bit worried though, because according to other bloggers this shirt is cut small… so unless my stylist sized up it may not fit my… um… ample bosom.

Actual Thoughts Once I Tried It On: First off, there is a price difference between the checkout screen on my account ($28) and the invoice that comes with the clothes ($34). Obviously you pay the price on your checkout, but this is disconcerting and I’ll have to be sure to check any future orders for consistency. Not that it matters, because I can’t get this shirt closed over my boobs. Come on Fix peeps, if every person returns it and says it’s sized small…DO something about that and size up! Also, it’s not flannel… it’s a gingham button up shirt. Totally different. I guess it’s kind of cute open over a t-shirt. What do you think?

At this point, I’m definitely purchasing the tulip blouse and considering the swing skirt and maybe the gingham shirt. I have a couple days to decide though, so leave me a comment below and help me decide what to buy!

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored by Stitch Fix, I pay for the $20 styling fee and any clothing I purchase with my own hard-earned money. I do have a special referral link though and if you decide to click through and sign up I will receive a small referral reward. Here’s my link. So thank you for anyone who chooses to click through and support my shopping addiction.

1/18/14 Update: Thank you to everyone for your comments! I ended up buying the tulip blouse and the swing skirt from this Fix. My next Fix is scheduled for mid-February and I can’t wait to share!

Psssst…Do you love checking out what other people received in their Fixes? I added quick links to every single one of my reviews on my Stitch Fix Reviews page!