sarahabbott

Thanks @influenster for letting me try @elfcosmetics, great products in time for the #holiday season!

C9 Sports Bra

The latest VoxBox I was lucky enough to receive was the Jingle VoxBox complimentary from Influenster for testing purposes. It was a wonderful and completely filled up with many products I haven’t had the opportunity to use before. Below you can see what I received and my thoughts:

Hallmark IttyBitty’s

I received a Spiderman IttyBitty from Hallmark. Itty Bitty’s are basically small really cute stuffed animals. Hallmark offers a ton of different types of IttyBitty’s in their collections including but not limited to Marvel, Star Wars, Frozen, and other Disney collections. I think these are great for kids, perfect as gifts,  or collectibles for anyone.

Cetaphil Moisturizing Cream

I have never used the Cetaphil moisturizing cream before but upon opening it up I discovered it’s a really good product, especially with this winter weather, it brings my dry skin back to life! I also thought for a moisturizing cream it was gentle, extremely hydrating, and didn’t smell bad!

Pure Ice Nail Polish

I really liked the love the color I received, a nice sparkling pink! It’s really nice and really pigmented and it applies really smooth, a did notice with the glitter I need to apply a few coats for full coverage but that’s not uncommon for this type of polish. The good news is I have now been wearing it for a few weeks and it has lasted great!

NYC Waterproof Eyeliner

I have used a lot of various eyeliner products in my day and I have to say this product actually glides on smoothly with no tugging, lasted all day, and I didn't notice fading or smudging. I was impressed and would use this product again. Another great fact is that this is an affordable eyeliner and who doesn’t appreciate that!

Free OreIda Tater Tots Product Coupon

I’ve always loved OreIda products and well anything potato. I decided to use the coupon to get some tots since Orelda challenged us to make #OreIdaTotchos. As always the tots were super good and really crispy when cooked and I appreciate thinking outside of the box and trying something slightly different, I would say it was a tasty challenge!

KISS Lashes and KISS Lash Adhesive With Aloe

This was a first for me but I tried these babies out on New Years. The lashes I received were natural looking which I appreciated. They were easy to apply, especially with the application brush provided and I found removing them at the end of the day was also a breeze. If there was a time I wanted that extra long lash look I would use this product again!

Biscoff Cookies

This was another first for me but I will say these were a tasty treat and actually paired very well with my morning tea. I think these make a great snack and I would enjoying eating more of these in the future.

I was chosen to receive the Sally Hansen Airbrush Legs lotion complimentary from influenster for testing purposes.

This lotion offers a quick and easy solution for an instant bronzing effect and smooths out the appearance of any minor imperfections you might have like scars or bruises.

The lotion is lightweight, feels sheer, and doesn't leave a sheen. Although you can tell quickly where you haven't applied it and when you're done it looks surprisingly natural!

I noted that this lotion after dry does not seem to rub off on clothing, and is water resistant which is a huge plus.

All in all, I think this is a good product if you're looking for tanner legs. I personally typically don't use a product like this, but I will say being close to fall it is keeping my color alive!

Soap = Hope!

I received a set of shampoo and conditioner free through Influenster and all of the following review is my own opinion. Before I talk about the product itself, I have to say I love the social mission behind all of the SoapBox products and the fact that with each SoapBox purchase, someone in need is provided with one month of clean water!

As for the shampoo and conditioner, I genuinely enjoyed them, they lathered great and my hair felt clean, soft, and moisturized afterwards. I feel the scent was true to what I expected, fresh coconuts. To me the scent was strong, and I would be interested in trying the other scents! 

When I found out I was going to receive a complimentary jar of Reese's peanut butter chocolate spread, I was I very excited to try some and I certainly was not disappointed.

Upon opening this jar and pairing it with several of my favorite snacks (a pretzel, a banana, plain gram cracker, a smore, and even an apple for dipping), I fell in love with this product!  I have always been a peanut butter lover, and I must say neither the chocolate nor the peanut butter is overpowering; this spread is a perfect mix of the two.

This coming year, I will get better at wearing my thoughts on the tip of my tongue. I will come to the realization that there is a difference between moving on and quitting and understand it's okay to grow out of things or people. I will walk with confident strides and my head aimed towards the heavens. I will be quicker to do anything that inspires and positively impacts me. I will speak up, and I will be passionate about the things and people that I love.

15 Things I Want To Do In 2015

1.) Train right and check running a marathon off the bucket list.

2.) Take the time to read more books, newspapers, magazines, & articles.

3.) Learn a new skill.

4.) Go on eye-opening trips. Explore & travel somewhere new.

5.) Always remember to be kind.

6.) Remember that everything passes.

7.) Be more confident.

8.) Worry less.

9.) Take more time out to realize all I'm blessed with.

10.) Expand my vocabulary, learn some new words.

11.) Be more open minded & get out of my comfort zone.

12.) Eat less junk.

13.) Get more sleep. 

14.) Watch more sunrises.

Three Trends to Follow:

Bigger Product Images - This allows for more detail visibility

More Robust Reviews - Offering additional information about the reviewer or better summarizing reviews makes it easier for Users to get the full benefit

Coupons You Can Use - Make it easy for Users to apply discounts or even automatically receive them 

Three Trends to Avoid:

Smaller Hidden Product Descriptions - Descriptions seem to be disappearing and this is no good, descriptions can answer questions, offer use, care, benefits, or measurement information that is important to Users

Adding Items To The Cart - Many sites fail to give adequate feedback, avoid too subtle changes on the page and be obvious that an item has been added

Cluttered Customer Service - Don't neglect the Customer Service section of your site, User don't want to see cluttered or cramped information, things need to be clear and accessible 

Visibility of system status The system should always keep users informed about what is going on, through appropriate feedback within reasonable time.

Match between system and the real world The system should speak the users' language, with words, phrases and concepts familiar to the user, rather than system-oriented terms. Follow real-world conventions, making information appear in a natural and logical order.

User control and freedom Users often choose system functions by mistake and will need a clearly marked "emergency exit" to leave the unwanted state without having to go through an extended dialogue. Support undo and redo.

Consistency and standards Users should not have to wonder whether different words, situations, or actions mean the same thing. Follow platform conventions.

Error prevention Even better than good error messages is a careful design which prevents a problem from occurring in the first place. Either eliminate error-prone conditions or check for them and present users with a confirmation option before they commit to the action.

Recognition rather than recall Minimize the user's memory load by making objects, actions, and options visible. The user should not have to remember information from one part of the dialogue to another. Instructions for use of the system should be visible or easily retrievable whenever appropriate.

(Read full article on recognition vs. recall in UX.)

Flexibility and efficiency of use Accelerators -- unseen by the novice user -- may often speed up the interaction for the expert user such that the system can cater to both inexperienced and experienced users. Allow users to tailor frequent actions.

Aesthetic and minimalist design Dialogues should not contain information which is irrelevant or rarely needed. Every extra unit of information in a dialogue competes with the relevant units of information and diminishes their relative visibility.

Help users recognize, diagnose, and recover from errors Error messages should be expressed in plain language (no codes), precisely indicate the problem, and constructively suggest a solution.

The things below remind us what it really takes to be successful:

– You have to make the call you’re afraid to make.

– You have to get up earlier than you want to get up.

– You have to give more than you get in return right away.

– You have to care more about others than they care about you.

– You have to fight when you are already injured, bloody, and sore.

– You have to feel unsure and insecure when playing it safe seems smarter.

– You have to lead when no one else is following you yet.

– You have to invest in yourself even though no one else is.

– You have to look like a fool while you’re looking for answers you don’t have.

– You have to grind out the details when it’s easier to shrug them off.

– You have to deliver results when making excuses is an option.

– You have to search for your own explanations even when you’re told to accept the “facts.”

– You have to make mistakes and look like an idiot.

– You have to try and fail and try again.

– You have to run faster even though you’re out of breath.

– You have to be kind to people who have been cruel to you.

– You have to meet deadlines that are unreasonable and deliver results that are unparalleled.

– You have to be accountable for your actions even when things go wrong.

– You have to keep moving towards where you want to be no matter what’s in front of you.

You have to do the hard things. The things that no one else is doing. The things that scare you. The things that make you wonder how much longer you can hold on.

Those are the things that define you. Those are the things that make the difference in your life. The hard things are the easiest things to avoid. To excuse away. To pretend like they don’t apply to you. Sometime I have to remind myself of this.

Often times we have dedicated copywriters at our office, but there are times when I myself as a designer am asked to take a stab at copywriting before the client sees the mock ups. 

I came across an article and it had some helpful tips. A few tips stuck out to me:

Embed links in relevant, descriptive language

"Most times, people don't want to read every word on the page. In fact, they're often just looking for a link. So make sure your links make it extremely clear what will happen on click.

This is super important for accessibility because screen readers let users navigate from link to link, skipping copy in between. They won’t be able to tell the difference between the dozen “learn more” links on your page. And it’ll make your SEO expert happy too."

I have found myself doing just what this example states – having multiple buttons on a page that say learn more. I do agree that it would be a better experience if the language on buttons was more specific and dialed in.

Another thing that stood out to me that I know we keep in mind at brightly was:

Design with content in mind

"Almost every design decision impacts copy, so consider whether that impact is helping or hindering your writing.

For example, that super-tall product shot is beautiful. No argument there. But remember that the copywriter has to balance that image out with copy—and does he or she really have that much to say about how Gorilla Glass is basically shatterproof and crystal clear—beyond that?

And that 64pt Helvetica Neue Thin headline looks great as “Lorem ipsum dolor,” but can the copywriter really sum up your whole product suite in 3 words? It’s worth considering."

Being a designer is as much a consultative role as a practical one; to justify our design decisions, we need to explain to clients our guiding principles and teach them the basics of good user experience. Otherwise, we’re nothing more than pixel-pushers.