Review: Woolzies Dryer Balls

 

Something I struggle with as I journey toward finding eco-friendly ways to change my lifestyle is finding effective solutions. Sometimes what's better for the Earth isn't always what works well. I have yet to find a dishwasher detergent that I like for this reason and I hate rewashing things because it's wasteful. But trying new products can be costly and equally wasteful when they don't get the job done.

 

About a year and a half ago I think I saw a Woolzies review on someone's blog because I have had them on my Amazon wishlist for just under that amount of time. The trouble was I had yet to see anyone noting a similar situation to what we have here in Montana. Our climate is DRY. We're in our moistest time right now and it's barely changed the humidity. White vinegar in the rinse cycle really does a nice job of softening fabrics but just hasn't cut it for the static. Which means the dryer gets our clothes and linens dry... and shocking. It's downright painful doing laundry.

 

When I saw Woolzies was looking for bloggers interested in trying and reviewing their dryer balls I was at a point where I was intentionally doing less wash just to avoid the static. Desperation had set in. I just wasn't sure—until I saw the chance to try them for review—it would be worth the investment. I am pleased to report that they have surpassed my expectations!

 

But it's important that you know a little bit about our family's needs before I dive right in.

1. Sensitive skin in every member of the household
2. A desire to be gentle to our Earth
3. Two long haired humans, one long haired dog, and two sheddy cats live here
4. Affordability is a must for this single-income family
5. Ease of use and time saving are essential qualities
6. I use Biokleen Citrus Laundry Liquid and Oxiclean on occasion (Got a better option? Leave me a comment!)

Woolzies retail for around $35 for a package of 6 dryer balls. It is suggested you use at least 6 per load so it seems like a huge investment at first. That was what initially held me back. I didn't want the hubs having ammo to bemoan my (at times) costly crusade to rid our home of unhealthy chemicals.

As you can see, before use the balls are about the size of a navel orange or baseball. The packaging claims that these are noise free but let me tell you... unless you're using a specially insulated dryer that cuts noise you will hear them. With my basement laundry room door closed I can still hear them upstairs! The hubs is not a fan and complains about it, but most of the time it's only enough to be mildly annoying if you're trying to do something quiet. I imagine it'll have a lot to do with where your dryer is located and what features it has.

Woolzies are intended to soften fabrics, reduce static and drying time, as well as fighting wrinkles. I've been using them for about 30 loads now and they have done all of those things. I was actually pretty surprised at the reduction of the drying time and have had to adjust my habits accordingly. Considering I very rarely use anything other than the low heat setting that's saying something.

As far as wrinkle reduction goes... I haven't noticed a dramatic change but a big part of that is that loads are drying faster than I can get to them! It's insane. In a good way. ☺

The static reduction is what I was really after and Woolzies delivers it well. The secret to it though, is that you need to periodically stuff them in a sock and run them through the washer (as noted in the FAQ). I got about 15 loads before I noticed a need to do that. One wash and they were fine again.

It's worth noting that for the past few loads I've done I added white vinegar to the rinse cycle in the washer and then used my Woolzies in the dryer. It's a great combo. Everything has been so soft and I've noticed much less of my hair and the dog's hair clinging to everything.

(The above half was written in early May, I wanted to give them another month to see if there were any changes I noticed worth noting. ☺)

I'm really excited to finally be able to get this review finished up and finally share it with you guys!

One of the key factors to my recommending Woolzies is that they do the job I need them to do without harming the Earth or my family.

For years my husband suffered with miserable itchy skin until I started going with all fragrance and dye free products. But that only reduced it. Since moving to mostly fragrance and dye free eco-concious products it's only when winter dryness is really bad that he has trouble. On top of that, our daughter has highly reactive skin. Woolzies has given me a new tool in the fight for my family's health that I feel confident about. If you are trying to find a healthy, eco-safe fabric softener I cannot recommend them highly enough!

After 2+ months of use and about 75 loads of washing I am a fan for life. I've even used them to fluff up and freshen a pair of down pillows on a strictly air cycle. I had a much longer run with static reduction before needing to throw them in with the wash (I noticed I get the very best results with this if I am adding vinegar to the rinse cycle). About 35 loads this time!

They have started to pill a bit—I notice it more when they run with anything made of fleece like blankets—but it hasn't caused any issue with performance.

I've been so impressed with them that I did the math and decided they're actually CHEAPER in the long run. If I do 1 load of laundry a day Woolzies will last me about 3 years. Doing the math on a cheap dryer sheet (the one I used for a long time) it would cost me $87 for 3 years! Plus the dryer time reduction which saves on energy and thus more money.

So, when it's all boiled down... not only do Woolzies do a great job while being eco-friendly and great for those with sensitive skin, they SAVE ME MONEY! Could I ask for much more than that in a single product? No.

The only thing I don't love about Woolzies is that they're not sourced or made in the USA, which would be even better but isn't a deal breaker.

Think you'd like to try Woolzies? I've got to finalize the details on it but I'll be doing a Woolzies giveaway very soon, so stay tuned! (Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+ for more great reviews and awesome giveaways).

Disclaimer: I was provided this product to test and review by it's distributor. All opinions here are my own and not influenced by the freeness of said product. ☺

Unboxing: GIRLS NIGHT IN Cravebox

 

There are few things in life that really give me a lot of pleasure. Even things that do, often come with stress... like writing up blog posts for example. Fun, but tempered with the stress factor of trying to make it informative, coherent, enjoyable, and oft times meeting a deadline (or being timely) it can be a little bit like... well... work.

 

Since most of my friends don't live anywhere near me it's not easy to put together a girl's night, let alone a girl's night in. But I was so excited when Cravebox announced the GIRLS NIGHT IN Cravebox because I loved the categories of products, this was pretty much a box with my name written all over it. Then came the bad news... they weren't going to be able to ship them to certain states because of laws regarding alcohol. How ironic is it that children can go into bars in my state but I can't have wine shipped to my home within it? Maybe it's a good thing because I'd be allllll over getting certain hard to find wines and liquers shipped my way and have no money for Craveboxes. lol

 

Then good news came. Cravebox heard the cries of those of us afflicted by the issues of our state's laws—mine is actually the weirdest of them all—and decided to let some of us have boxes MINUS the nakedwines.com giftcard. A bummer in that I would have given the giftcard to my mom in one of the okay states but still a cool move on their part.

 

When my box showed up I was super excited. What better way to end a really exhausting week than with a box of goodies just for moi? As you can see it is backed with a cool variety of goodies.

 

 

 

There at the top was this pamphlet from Ford's Warriors in Pink charity and tucked in is a seriously gorgeous scarf. I have always been fond of the designs they've put out but the truth is, I'm a horrible person. I don't support breast cancer. I know... you're freaking out wondering why I'd say such a controversial jerk-faced thing but after reading this article when it came out I realized that the feelings I already had about breast cancer getting so much attention weren't a crime. If you think I'm a horrible person for saying any of this please, please, please read the article!!!

 

For me personally, I prefer to focus on other cancers and wish more charitable sponsorships would stop giving boobs all of the love and focus on our under appreciated ovaries! Kudos to Ford for caring though.

My little rant aside, how beautiful is this scarf? It reminds me of saris, in fact... my mom has the two that belonged to my grandmother and they're this shade of pink and a blue very close to this! I've got a birthday thing to go to on Friday that I think I'm going to wear this to.

 

The 'meh' item of the box was this bottle of grape flavored Fruit2O. My stance on artificial sweeteners (this one has sucralose) is well noted here at RhiAlistic and this bad boy was so sweet that one sip was too much. I tried... okay! I left it sitting on the coffee table to go swap laundry and the tot got hold of it though and she loved it. *snort* Figures... the 3-year-old would find uber sweet grape flavored water awesome. lol So against my better judgement I let her drink it.

 

How many of you love comedies? Then you're probably already familiar with Fox's sitcoms, New Girl and The Mindy Project. Are they any good? 'Cause I have a confession... I don't like sitcoms. I make an exception for The Big Bang Theory (I'm a geek so this just stands to reason) when I'm in the mood for something funny which is usually when I'm dying of the flu. That whole 'laughter is the best medicine' thing or something.

Anyway... the box had these gorgeous nail polishes and a jumbo file! How cool are those?

In an ironic twist of fate I had just bought a bottle of Essie's Ballet Slippers four days earlier and these two are nearly a match. Methinks it's mani-pedi time... when I can find some time to not be using my hands for a dozen things.

 

The oddity of the box is the Zaca organic recovery patch. I popped mine open to see if there was more info about it because of my seizure disorder making certain naturals unsafe. After reading the website info I'm in the clear so I'll be giving them a try at the aforementioned birthday bash I'm going to. Should be interesting to say the least. I've tried other anti-hangover products before and wasn't all that impressed. It's supposed to just make you feel great period... so we'll see how I feel on Saturday. ;)

My favorite item in the box hands down is the Renewing Hand Cream from Tree Hut. It's not obvious in these unboxing pics but I spent the morning painting (as mentioned in another post). My hands were so dry and cracked from scrubbing all of the paint off and sore from gripping the rollers and brushes. One small squeeze of this cream had my hands feeling soft, hydrated, and soothed. It wasn't greasy and gross feeling and even though rose isn't a fragrance I typically gravitate to, the Moroccan Rose is insanely lovely. I also LOVE that this is made in the USA! My hands still feel good four days later and I haven't re-applied it since that initial test.

As if the box wasn't already full of great stuff... there's still more!

 

 

I fell in love with Hills Bros. Cappucino mixes about 5 years ago so you can imagine my excitement at seeing not just a box of it, but a coupon too! I've actually been trying to finish a box of the Double Mocha flavor over the past two months because I didn't care for it. I'm not a big vanilla fan in general so I rarely buy French Vanilla but it's a great flavor none-the-less. Don't like vanilla or mocha? There are lots more flavors! The store I shop at only carries a few (and the sugar-free and 'skinny' vanilla ones) and my favorite, English Toffee, is almost always sold out. Here's hoping when I get to the store I can find one!

One of the things I like best about Hills Bros. Cappuncino's is that they're good hot but make amazing cold frappe style drinks! In fact, I usually only buy them in the summer because it's easy to whip up a batch fast. The original recipe to serve 'em cold had ice instead of ice cream... but I happened to have some ice cream handy so I blended some vanilla almond milk, ice cream, and the mix into this tasty treat... more like a thin milkshake but still delicious!

My husband's ex (long-story but we're actually very friendly with each other) made "homemade Kahlua" and gave me some that I might slip into my next batch for a true GIRLS NIGHT IN treat. ;)

Lastly, a Revitalizing Lip Palm in Fresh Plum from Neutrogena. A sheer lip tint with an SPF of 20 it's an unexpectedly lovely balm. I didn't think I could pull off the color but it's just sheer enough to flatter even my pale complexion, chances are if it worked for me it looks good on everyone. It lasted well through dinner and left my lips soft and happy. I have two makeup products I cannot live without—mascara and lip balms—and this will definitely be one I buy again.

It says something about how much I enjoyed this box that I immediately went and ordered the instant box version of it to be sent to my mom. Since she's in a wine friendly state I thought it would be a great Mother's Day surprise that would give her a little treat and let her feel pampered. I can't wait to hear how the wine giftcard works out for her... maybe she'll be able to bring one of the bottles she gets with her when she visits me this summer. lol

Overall, one of my favorite Craveboxes yet and that's without a $50 wine giftcard being in it!

Would you like to get this box for yourself? Check out the Instant Boxes page on Cravebox, it's currently available for $16 and be sure and grab the Cooking Light FAST MEALS box too...  New to Cravebox? When you sign up tell them rhiviews referred you and I can earn Cravebucks too. :)


 

 

Recipe: Dill Pickle Egg Salad

 

How's your week going dear readers? I'm admittedly already worn out and it's barely lunchtime on Monday. The hubs and I spent Saturday morning painting a big wall at the local American Red Cross. I suppose it's not well known, but as a non-profit sometimes they can't afford to hire people to do these kinds of things. Since I spent what would have been my junior year of high school homeschooling and working doing cleaning and painting for low-income housing... offering to help paint the wall was a no-brainer. Now I've got to help get a local business to donate signage which I fear will be the hardest part. Do you do any volunteering?

 

This past week I decided it was time to try out a recipe I had been brainstorming since I started consulting for Tastefully Simple last month. They have a great new line of Spring-Summer products but one of the ones that most popped out at me was the Dill Pickle Dip Mix. Pickles have always been one of my favorite foods so I could hardly wait to find a way aside from the dip to make it. I had two ideas... using it mixed with yolks as Deviled Egg filling... and as a twist on classic Egg Salad. Since my hardboiled eggs weren't coming out of their shells pretty I went with the latter.

 

 

Dill Pickle Egg Salad

Ingredients

• 8 hardboiled eggs
• 2/3 c. mayonnaise
• 1/3 c. sour cream
• 1 packet Dill Pickle Dip Mix

Directions

Peel hardboiled eggs and rinse in cold water to make sure you get rid of all shell bits. Pat dry and place in large bowl. Using a knife, raggedly chop eggs and yolks until desired texture is reached. Measure mayonnaise and sour cream, add to bowl. Add packet of Dill Pickle Dip Mix. Gently fold all ingredients together. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight for best flavor. Serve on rye or other hearty bread. Makes about 4 servings.

Tips & Tricks

• You can chop your eggs before putting them in the bowl but I like to use my quick and rough chop method to save mess and time. Plus, I like the texture of the rough chop better.

• If desired chop a dill pickle up and fold in with other ingredients to add crunch.

• I recommend a hearty bread because regular white bread doesn't hold up well with this. I used Franz Columbia River Sweet Dark Whole Wheat bread which is one of my favorites for sandwiches or as toast.

• Don't like dill pickles? Try this with 2 Tablespoons of Spinch & Herb Dip Mix instead.

Eat me!

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Disclaimer:

 

For the sake of legalities, I have to note that I am a Tastefully Simple Independent Consultant. The Tastefully Simple products I featured here in my recipe can be purchased through my website if you'd like to try this recipe.

Unboxing: Cooking Light FAST MEALS Cravebox

 

The past month has been insane! Anyone else feeling like they'll never get caught up on blogging and such? I have three unboxings to write, four recipe posts, two product reviews... and that's just for this blog. *phew* All the more reason to be loving the Cooking Light FAST MEALS Cravebox. I just have not had the time to cook quite as well as I prefer to. I hate admitting it but we've had fast food three times in the past week!

 

So what's inside the box eh? Read on...

  

I'm actually a Lean Cuisine fan already, but I cut back on buying them when the expense was getting to be too much. As a very busy mom and blogger I am really bad about eating a decent breakfast and lunch. For years I bought Lean Cuisine entrees so that I could entice myself to eat lunches that weren't ramen noodles and toast with butter. The box included coupons for their new Salad Additions, which I've wanted to try but haven't gotten around to. A coupon for Fresh Express salad was also included, so you can get the greens to go with, naturally. With five different types I was hoping they weren't all chicken (bleh!) but I think I'll probably try them anyway. The Harvest Fruit & Chicken sounds pretty yummy.

My husband had Popchips years ago when he was out of town and they've since become a family favorite. I wasn't so sure I'd dig the ones in the Cravebox though. The bag arrived flattened (as in the seal was popped, oh the irony!) and the chips were pretty crushed. They were actually pretty good, just not wowing. I wouldn't go for the Salsa ones again but I will be on the lookout for more of the tortilla Popchips, especially the Chili Limon ones, when I'm at the one store I can find them at locally.

One of my favorite items to find in Craveboxes is actually the coupons. One of the cashiers at my Walmart is a fellow coupon geek and she always asks where I get such great ones. The FREEBIE item ones are awesome, of course, but I also like high value ones that let me save $$ on products I already enjoy or have wanted to sample. This time it's Triscuit crackers, Belvita breakfast biscuits, and fruit Newtons! All products I enjoy and buy for my family.

And speaking of Fruit Newtons... I have to giggle because my daughter saw them and had to have them. So I gave her one and she took the other from me because she liked them so much! I'm pretty sure the 100% Whole Grain Triple Berry are new too, because they're not even listed on the Newtons website.

The other product that is shown here with them is the Zone Perfect nutrition bars. I've had these in past Craveboxes and they're okay but not something I would intentionally buy. Like most protein/energy/nutrition bars they're pretty chalky and I just don't enjoy them.

The most exciting addition to the box has to be the spice blends from McCormick. I'm already a big fan of McCormick's Gourmet Collection and their Recipe packets specifically—the Bourbon Spiced Pork with Roasted Sweet Potatoes & Apples and Sweet Basil & Oregano Bruschetta Chicken are my favorites.

As a bit of a foodie I'm always excited to find new spice blends to make exotic dishes with, especially since they save me time by having the various spices pre-blended. I loved the Moroccan Seasoning and the Easy Moroccan Chicken recipe we got to try (sent in an email and part of a contest) it in.

The Perfect Pinch line of spices is awesome because many of them are salt free (something I'm trying to cut back on). Included in the box was the Perfect Pinch® Salt Free Southwest Sweet 'n Smoky Seasoning. I also made the recipe for the contest featuring it and while I only thought it was okay, my husband loved it. Follow me on twitter or here to see the recipe featured later this week!

 

One of the other items in the box that I was happy to see was an herbal tea sampler from Stash. If you've followed my blog for a while you know that I've had this from another product discovery box before and that I've been a Stash fan for more than a decade.  My favorite is the Licorice Spice, which is included in the box, and I am dying to try a couple of their new ones, Breakfast in Paris in particular.

If you're a tea drinker, you should definitely hop over to the Stash website. Not only do they have more teas than you can imagine AND they have an amazing selection of tea pots, strainers,  scones, honeys, and even chocolate! It has lots of gorgeous giftable items too so if you're still looking for a gift for your mom (Mother's Day is only two weeks away!) you might want to give it some consideration.

The final two items in the box were sweetener products, neither of which I can have. :\

Equal has recently redone their packaging and has a new product so if you need artificial sweetener info do check out their website. I don't do artificial sweeteners unless they're in chewing gum because they give me the shakes, a headache, or they leave a taste in my mouth—usually all three at once. I'm just not a fan at all. I think I might ask my grandmother—who is struggling with diabetes—if she uses it and send it her way. There are some nice recipes that came along with it that might be nice for her to try and you can find them on the website if you want to see more.

 

Stevia (as you've read in other unboxings here) and my digestive system do not mesh. Pure Via might be a good choice for those looking for a sugar and artificial sweetener alternative though. My mom is a big stevia lover and used to carry a little baggie of it in her purse for when we went out. lol

So there you have it Cravers. Another Cooking Light box featuring some good products and a few duds. It happens. Overall, I'd probably rate it a 4 star box because I didn't love it, but I liked most of it. While none of the products were new to me it was a great overall collection of products. We even got an email to receive a free digital issue of the magazine—which I've been too busy to get to yet. So as far as the value goes... it was a pretty good box.

Would you like to get this box for yourself? Check out the Instant Boxes page on Cravebox, it's currently available for $16 and be sure and grab the Girl's Night In box too... I'm going to write up an unboxing for it too and it was so good that 15 minutes after I opened mine I logged on and ordered one to be sent to my mom for Mother's Day. New to Cravebox? When you sign up tell them rhiviews referred you and I can earn Cravebucks too. :)


 

 

Recipe: Easy Moroccan Chicken [Cooking Light FAST MEALS Cravebox]

 

Cravebox & McCormick are having a contest focused on the spices from the Cooking Light FAST MEALS Cravebox. They email Cravers a recipe (one for each of the spices from the box) and we either make the recipe, adapt it, or make something of our own featuring it.

 

As it happens one of my favorite recipes is one called Chicken Sultana. It's pretty much this same recipe but with chicken breasts and curry and no honey. My family isn't fond of it and I usually make it when company comes to stay for more than a week since it makes a nice change from the everyday.

 

What can I say? I grew up in the culturally diverse Pacific Northwest where many of my childhood friends and/or their parents were from other parts of the world. I've been to a Hindi wedding reception (wow!) and grew up with much of my family not eating red meat. I've tried ostrich and eel. When it comes to food, I'm pretty adventurous and love to try new, exotic or unusual things. But if you have picky children or a spouse who was raised on white bread and their greatest culinary adventure was chicken alfredo... you know my plight.

 

This dish only takes about 30-40 minutes total prep and cook time but looks so fancy it's perfect for entertaining. I had a Malbec with mine but was thinking my new favorite Reisling from Pacific Rim might be nice too. I'm no wine snob and this dish is spiced but not spicy making either a lovely accompaniment. I was also thinking a coconut ice cream with almond wafers would be a perfect dessert.

 

Easy Moroccan Chicken

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
6 small bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed (about 2 pounds)
2 medium onions, sliced into thin wedges
4 teaspoons McCormick® Gourmet Collection Moroccan Seasoning
1 teaspoon McCormick® Gourmet Collection Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
2 tablespoons honey
1/3 cup raisins
 

Directions

1. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet on medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 8 minutes or until browned, turning once. Remove from skillet.

2. Stir onions into skillet; cook and stir on medium heat 5 minutes or until golden brown. Add Seasoning, garlic powder and salt. Stir in tomatoes and honey. Return chicken to skillet. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 10 minutes. Stir in raisins; cover and simmer 10 minutes longer or until chicken is cooked through.

3. Serve with cooked couscous, if desired. Garnish with toasted slivered almonds and chopped fresh cilantro, if desired.

 

 

 

Tips and my adaptations:

 

• I chose to use 3 large chicken breasts cut in half when I made this. I wanted smaller portions because of my kids and I admit I'm not fond of chicken so I didn't want a giant piece to eat either. Sliced in half longway makes them cook much faster too so it can cut down on cooking time.

 

• I also swapped the garlic powder for another product, and you can easily use fresh garlic though I would recommend less if using fresh. Just add the fresh garlic at the same time as the onions.

 

• I enjoy couscous but my husband HATES it, and my kids don't like it either. I had some quinoa in the cupboard I've been avoiding because the one time I've had it it was horrid. Seriously... one of the most disgusting things I've ever tasted. But I want more variety in our diet so I thought the spiced flavors of this dish would hide the gross. I had bookmarked a post from the Kitchn to help me ages ago and it turned out to be genius. Well rinsed, toasted with garlic infused olive oil, and cooked with chicken stock the Quinoa turned out amazing! Fluffy, mild, and my daughter actually said 'yum' when I made her try it. I highly recommend giving this a try, it was the perfect swap for couscous.

 

• Want to make this dish but with a kick of heat? Swap the Moroccan Seasoning for McCormick Gourmet Curry Powder (the yellow, not the red).

 

P.S. -- If you'd love to get a Cooking Light FAST MEALS Cravebox featuring this seasoning blend... there are instant boxes currently available for only $16 (& you get a 2 Cravebucks rebate for buying in the next 2 days!) right now. New to Cravebox? When you sign up tell them rhiviews referred you and I can earn Cravebucks too. :)