Nicole

Golden Blossom Honey – Review and Giveaway [Ends 4/15]

April 2, 2014 · by Nicole · 41 Comments

Who doesn’t just love honey? For me, it’s one of those items that can make a bland food a totally different experience. I don’t have a regular brand that I go to for honey, so I was really excited to try out the Golden Blossom Honey.

According to their , Golden Blossom Honey has been around since 1921, and they’ve become a household honey brand since then. They share their secret recipe with the world and my favorite part of this company is they make their honey from within the United States! And somehow, homegrown honey tastes that much better. They use US beekeepers and utilize White Clover, Orange Blossom and Sage Buckwheat floral sources to make their honey.

But that isn’t the only information you can find on because they have an enormous amount of recipes on their website and if you have honey in your cabnet right now (as I know most of you do), I recommend checking out the list of awesome and tasty recipes right now and printing out some to use for yourself.

(In fact, I just searched for the word “apple” and got about . Did you know you can do a lot with honey? I sure didn’t!). Not to mention they have a TON of recipes for s as well!

I concocted my own little snack mix of my own with this incredible Golden Blossom Honey that I received. I combined a few simple ingredients – honey (of course), peanut butter, and walnuts. Mix it up and you have a great snack or breakfast. Better yet, spread that on an apple or waffle and you have a tasty topping!

I am a big fan of this honey. Of course, it was sweet (and wonderfully sticky) but it also tasted rich. It wasn’t overly sweet either, it blended perfectly with the snack I made. I highly recommend choosing this for your home because it works for so many awesome things.

Follow: You can follow Golden Blossom Honey via or on their website.

Buy: You can purchase Golden Blossom Honey at your nearest grocery story!

Win: One lucky winner will receive two bottles of Golden Blossom Honey!

Thank you to Golden Blossom Honey for providing me the product in exchange for my honest opinion.

Filed Under: beauty, food, giveaway, skincare · Tagged: giveaway, golden blossom honey, honey, recipes

Kicking Horse Coffee – Dark Roast Coffee – Review and Giveaway [Ends 4/12]

March 29, 2014 · by Nicole · 82 Comments

I have to admit that I’m more picky about the coffee I drink than I am about the wine that I drink. I’ve been aware of the brand Kicking Horse Coffee for a while now, but I couldn’t wait to actually give it a try and sample some for myself!

Like all , this one launched in the garage of Leo Johnson and Elana Rosenfield in 1996. Soon after, they started to support fair trade coffee practices and in 2003, they selling only organic coffee beans. Even better, in 2007 they were 100% organic fair trade.This is why I am already loving this coffee before I even take a sip. Starting out with small batches of unground beans, this company knew right away that quality was better than quantity. They went from “schlepping coffee” to 11 years later, still going strong and being a top quality brand coffee.

Now, back to my experience with their coffee -

First of all, the coffee comes in a tin container which is extremely keep-able and I already plan on storing future coffee beans in it.

When you look inside, I knew I was going to enjoy the coffee, because the beans were so dark and they still had the oil on the coffee. By the way, having oil on coffee beans is a VERY good sign and is a sign the coffee is freshly packed. I’m not surprised this is the case as after reading their website, because they are obviously a quality company.

Next, the best part of all – the drinking part!

I usually make a large pot of coffee, so it’s usually hard for me to judge how many grounds to put in per batch, especially after getting a new brand of coffee. So, I put a generous amount and after making my first pot of coffee, I was in love! It’s rare for me to get it right immediately, so I knew this coffee was good stuff. Usually, it takes me one “throwaway” pot of coffee until I get the strength to my liking.

The coffee was very rich and strong, and it exceeded all of my expectations. I must say that I finished off this whole container of coffee within a single weekend (and I promptly went online to buy more soon after!). I see this in the grocery stores regularly and it may not be cheaper than most coffee, but actually this is one of the best you can choose from.

I get snobby sometimes and will reach for the most expensive bag in the grocery store, and expense doesn’t always mean you are getting the best quality. I have been disappointed with certain brands before and was shocked they were charging so much.

This isn’t the case here – Kicking Horse coffee may be a little outside your regular budget for coffee, but you will be wonderfully surprised. By the way, I highly recommend their strongest blend of coffee called, “Kick Ass Dark.” If you decide to buy online, their site recommends US coffee drinkers shop via Amazon. On Amazon, the prices run about $13 per 12 ounce can. I recommend going to your nearby grocery store, though, and seeing if you can find this blend. It’s worth a try and worth treating yourself!

I am so excited to announce that I get to giveaway a can of Kick Ass coffee to one of my readers! It’s open to both US and Canada readers too.

Follow: You can follow Kicking Horse Coffee via , , or .

Buy: You can purchase Kicking Horse Coffee at retailers throughout Canada and US as well as their and at .

Win: One lucky winner will receive a Kicking Horse Coffee canister, gift bag, and brochure!

Thank you to Kicking Horse Coffee for sponsoring this post and providing me a free subscription box for my honest review.

Filed Under: gifts, giveaway, home · Tagged: coffee giveaway, dark roast coffee, giveaway, kicking horse coffee

Dave’s Gourmet – Gourmet Pasta Sauce Review and Giveaway [Ends 4/6]

March 22, 2014 · by Nicole · 48 Comments

I must admit – I’m a little finicky when it comes to pasta sauce, so I couldn’t wait to taste Dave’s Gourmet gourmet pasta sauce.

But first, I must tell you a little bit . Like I’ve said before, I love a company with a unique starting history, and they are no different. After discovering hot sauce tamed the wild beast of an ugly drunk in a bar, Dave went out to create the hottest hot sauce in the world. From there came “Insanity” hot sauce which eventually became banned for being TOO hot (how about them apples!). 13 years later, Dave’s Gourmet has gone from being a hot sauce specialty company to being a specialty food company that sells gourmet pasta sauces, drink mixes, spices, and so much more.

I received two bottles of the Garlic and Sweet Basil Gourmet Pasta Sauce to try and let me tell you this, not too long after finishing off those bottles did I go out and buy two more bottles! First of all, they smelled great – it smelled just like you want pasta sauce to taste like – spicy, but sweet and very tomato-y. Also, it’s rich tasting but not too thick, which I really like.

I did a really simple meal of gluten free noodles with the sauce (I also add some oregano, olive oil, red pepper flakes and parmesan too!) and it’s such a simple, tasty, easy dinner. And boy did this sauce win me over! You can actually SEE the garlic pieces in the sauce and I loved every bit of it. I literally cleaned my plate and probably would have licked it if that wasn’t rude.

Probably the only minor downside to this gourmet pasta sauce, if there is any at all, is the price tag. It usually sells for about $8.99 a bottle. So this isn’t for anyone on a budget looking to save money as this is a little out of the price range I usually buy, but let me tell you, this is worth and it’s just as good as anything homemade.

Follow: You can follow Dave’s Gourmet via or .

Buy: You can purchase your own bottle of Dave’s Gourmet via their (I also found them in my local grocery store, so make sure you check the pasta aisles for this brand)!

Win: One lucky winner will receive two bottles of the Garlic and Sweet Basil pasta sauce from Dave’s Gourmet!

Thank you to Dave’s Gourmet for sponsoring this post and giveaway. I received the products mentioned above complimentary in exchange for my honest review.

Filed Under: food, giveaway, home, kitchen · Tagged: Dave's Gourmet, giveaway, gourmet pasta sauce, pasta sauce, spaghetti

Shoplet.com Office Supplies Sharpies and Pens [Review]

March 19, 2014 · by Nicole · 2 Comments

neon sharpies, sharpies and pens, pastel sharpies

Since I’m a writer, I’m always on the look out for new pens I can try and I couldn’t wait to share my experience with the sharpies and pens! This is my first experience with Shoplet products and I highly recommend using them because they encourage their customers to stay as green as possible and consider the environment for some of the products you buy. I love companies that work towards improving our quality of our planet!

Now, back to the review!

I received a Sharpie premium pen, a pack of Sharpie neon permanent markers and a pack of Sharpie metallic permanent markers.

shoplet, pens, sharpies, sharpies and pens

I absolutely loved the feel of the premium pen. It felt heavy in my hand but as I wrote, it was fluid and smooth. I love writing stories in my free time and since I handwrite, I use a lot of different pens. My biggest complaint is pens usually smear or run out of ink too fast. I used this pen pretty heavy duty over the last few days and I loved it! Probably the only downside is I couldn’t find a way to buy the refillable cartridge on the website, even though the pen is refillable.

gold pen, sharpie, metallic gold, sharpies and pens

As for the other markers, I loved LOVED the metallic permanent markers and I honestly think this is the best way to write a phone message or leave a quick note for someone because these babies stand OUT. I personally like the gold color of the metallic markers as it had much more “wow” factor than the silver. There isn’t much of a negative to say here except that I will probably need to make an active effort to buy black notebook paper or construction paper to use these.

Last but not least the neon permanent markers. These actually made for some fun creative inspiration over the weekend. My mom and I share sort of a “doodle” notebook and we both got down some pretty fun artwork using these pens. Not to mention the awesomeness that happened with these sunglasses -

Probably the only thing I didn’t like about the neon sharpies is that certain fainter colors were a little hard to see. But these would make fantastic pens to use for any projects coming up for Easter, so I highly recommend purchasing a pack for the kids or any kiddo relatives you have coming over for the holiday.

Follow: You can follow Shoplet via , , or .

Buy: You can purchase the , , or by visiting .

Thank you to Shoplet.com for providing me with the above products in exchange for my honest review.

Filed Under: home, office supplies, school supplies · Tagged: metallic markers, neon markers, office supplies, pens, sharpies, shoplet.com

Love With Food – Healthy Snack Subscription Box – Review and Giveaway [Ends 3/29]

March 15, 2014 · by Nicole · 42 Comments

love with food, subscription box, healthy snack subscription box

When I found the healthy snack subscription box, Love with Food, I jumped at the chance to review their product! I’ve changed my diet to being a much healthier one and that means I am having a hard time finding HEALTHY snacks I can enjoy.

Before I talk about my experiences, here’s a little bit about Love With Food. I encourage you to visit the and read about what inspired the founder Aihui Ong to create Love With Food because it’s a touching story. After a series of life changing, and especially traumatic events, found Aihui Ong discovered a passion in food. She states, “I started coding, creating a website to help food makers find alternative distribution and marketing channels and help consumers easily discover great gourmet food.” Better yet, with each healthy snack subscription box you purchase from Love With Food, they donate a meal to food banks all across the country.

So, now only do you have a healthy snack subscription box delivered to your door once a month, you will also help make a difference in the community. Isn’t that such a wonderful feeling?

Okay, now back to my experience with the box -

First and foremost, I couldn’t believe the amount of food I received! Check this out (and yes, some of those are empty wrappers, I couldn’t wait)

I got a boat load of chocolate treats (dark chocolate too!), healthy chips and popcorn, olives, and biscotti cookies. I couldn’t wait to share with my family and we sure enjoyed ourselves. Each snack was healthy, even the chocolates. This was obviously food made with love and care – I didn’t spot a single weird ingredient or something I couldn’t pronounce. I felt so good about eating these treats and sharing them with the people I care about!

I was especially surprised about the olives, to be honest. It was in a single serve packet and I was worried that it may not taste right but I had them with lunch the next day and it was perfect! It was fresh tasting and I couldn’t believe the taste (they were green olives by the way!). This little nugget made me really excited about the subscription and encouraged me to consider signing up for my own subscription. You won’t just be received the standard snack of chips and chocolate – you will have surprises like this thrown in there too.

Now, onto the subscribing portion of this post – the prices for this box is incredibly cheap – it’s $10 a month to get the tasting box where you receive about 8 snacks a month and for deluxe box, you get 16 – 20 snacks and it’s only $17 a month! I can’t believe the deal for this box and I know I am going to subscribe when I get the chance.

The only – ONLY – complaint I have is that you can’t specify certain diet restrictions when you sign up (at least, not what I saw). I’m gluten free and I would love to let them know to exclude items with gluten. But that still won’t stop me, I can tell you that.

Follow: You can follow Love With Food via , , or .

Buy: You can purchase your healthy snack subscription box with Love With Food by going to their and selecting a $10 tasting box or a $17 deluxe box! Use the link above and receive your first box for $5!

Win: One lucky winner will receive a 3 month subscription to Love With Food

Thank you to Love With Food for sponsoring this post and providing me a free subscription box for my honest review.

Filed Under: food, gifts, giveaway, health, organic, subscription boxes · Tagged: Chocolate, Food, giveaway, Healthy Snacks, Love With Food, subscription box

Weaver’s Fair Trade Coffee – Review & Giveaway [Ends 3/21]

March 8, 2014 · by Nicole · 23 Comments

I love the chance to try out a new blend of coffee and my experience with Weaver’s Fair Trade Coffee has been an incredible one. Before I get into the details of the coffee itself that I tried, here’s a little bit of information about the blend and why it’s so important to Weaver’s Coffee.

First of all, they are a fair trade company and this blend is no different. As the Fair Trade USA organization , “Products that bear our logo come from farmers and workers who are justly compensated.” To me, beyond the taste of the coffee and the price, I want to know I’m supporting an company that believes in these types of values. (Make sure to read the full article about Astral Blend and Fair Trade over at ).

Second, this particular blend of coffee – the Astral Blend – supports Breast cancer Research. 5% of the sales go to funding local hospitals and community organization that support breast health education, breast cancer screening, and treatment.

Now onto my experience with the coffee!

I must say this is such an aromatic blend. I love the smell of coffee when I wake up in the morning and this was such a wonderful experience. And now for the best part of all – the TASTE!

To be honest, at first, I was wondering how strong the coffee would end up because my first cup of this coffee was a little weak. But then, I made another pot of coffee and added a little more grains, and it was devine!

What I loved about this coffee is that it was flavorful without being bitter tasting. I think if you are against overly dark roasts at all, you will want to go online and purchase a pound or two of this coffee. As a dark roast kind of girl, I usually am susceptible to any blends NOT dark roast, but this was a perfect amount of flavor without bitterness as dark roasts can lean towards sometimes. I even enjoyed the decaf blend I received, which is saying a lot. I would only suggest that if you like really strong coffee, make sure you add more grains than you usually would when you make a pot of coffee with this blend.

Overall, I had a great experience with this coffee and I highly recommend you purchase this. It prices at $16.95 per one pound bag. This is a perfect gift to buy for Mother’s Day or Easter – which is just around the corner!

Follow: You can follow Weaver’s Astral Blend FCoffee on and .

Buy: You can go online and purchase your own bag of the Fair Trade Astral Blend Coffee by going to visiting the Weaver’s Coffee .

Win: One lucky coffee addict will be able to win an Astral Blend gift set! Enter below to win.

Thank you to Weaver’s Coffee for sponsoring this review and giveaway. I received this item in exchange for my honest review.

Filed Under: games, gifts, You forgot to give me a catagory! · Tagged: Breast Cancer Research Donation, Coffee, Fair Trade Coffee, giveaway, Weaver's Coffee

WatchBot – Easy Install Nanny Cam with Wifi Connectivity

March 2, 2014 · by Nicole · Leave a Comment

I had the incredible opportunity to review , a nanny camera that allows you the secure feeling of being able to watch your home while you are away. The features this camera includes is a motion sensor, wifi connectivity, an app that allows you remote access to the video recordings and so much more.

This was a very easy set up. The package comes and guides you directly through the process of setting up the camera and downloading the app you need to get started. I have an iPhone and the screen was extremely clear. I would say that the options in the phone are very limited in the free version, but you CAN see the live feed inside of the app itself.

A couple of days later, I also purchased the paid version and that has a few more features, including the ability to record what you see live as well as take photos of what you are looking at.

A camera shot from the Watchbot of down the hall.

The only downside to the paid app itself is that if you are recording, you can’t move away from the app, you have to keep the screen up as it records.

As for the rest of the installation, especially when you are setting it up on your computer, I found myself a little confused as to what information the software needed to get going. They do have a great little guide that comes with the camera and all the other gear, so that does make a difference. I haven’t yet figured out how to set it up to get emailed video, but I wonder if that may have something to do with the fact that my laptop isn’t usually on when I’m away from home.

The one thing I like about it is that it is portable and the video is so clear. I’ve tried other cameras before for this purpose and it doesn’t have this clear wide range for video. Plus, you can also get sound that you hear LIVE. Not only that, it’s wifi friendly. All you have to do is set up the desktop software with your WIFI information and it will work like a charm.

Also, one more downside is that it isn’t battery operated or chargeable, so you do have to leave it plugged in. For me, that resulted in a few limited places to connect to.

It’s pretty incredible and aside from the few quirks here and there, if you are looking for a nanny cam or security camera for your home, I highly recommend the Watchbot.

UPDATE: After having the Watchbot for about a month, unfortunately it broke! I did contact customer service, but received no response. I highly recommend doing more research before purchasing the Watchbot yourself and seeing if others have similar problems. For me, the plug in the back where I plug in the AC Adapter fell apart. I’m hoping to receive some type of response or fix from them and I will update if and when that happens.

Buy: You can purchase the Watchbot camera for your home by visiting their .

Thank you to Watchbot for sponsoring this review!

All opinions are my own and 100% honest!

Filed Under: baby, children, home, technology · Tagged: nanny cam, security camera, watchbot

Golden Blossom Honey – Review and Giveaway [Ends 4/15]

Kicking Horse Coffee – Dark Roast Coffee – Review and Giveaway [Ends 4/12]

Dave’s Gourmet – Gourmet Pasta Sauce Review and Giveaway [Ends 4/6]

Shoplet.com Office Supplies Sharpies and Pens [Review]

Love With Food – Healthy Snack Subscription Box – Review and Giveaway [Ends 3/29]

Weaver’s Fair Trade Coffee – Review & Giveaway [Ends 3/21]

WatchBot – Easy Install Nanny Cam with Wifi Connectivity

Beauty Box 5 – A Perfect Gift for a Woman of Style

Please Support Our Sponsors

Please Support Our Sponsors

Search Your Golden Ticket Blog

Current Giveaways

Search by Catagory

Search by Date

Grab a Badge

Your Golden Ticket Blog ~ Family Friendly Reviews and Giveaways ~ Las Vegas, NV

Get Reviewed ~ Disclosures & Policies ~ Contact