Review: International Delight (TM) Iced Coffee

With the free coupons I received from BzzAgent, I purchased two varieties of International Delight (TM) Iced Coffee.  I bought one Mocha which I brought home with me to try, and another Mocha plus a Caramel Macchiato flavour to take to work for the party I mentioned in my previous post.

My first selection was the Mocha at home. At first sip, I thought “Wow, this is really sweet”.  Then I looked at the ingredient list.  It contains both sugar AND corn syrup which explains why it is so sweet.   However I was pleasantly surprised to see that it did NOT list palm oil or any other non-dairy byproducts on the list.   Hooray!  I sipped some more, and liked it a little more – I thought “This would be great as a granita!”.  I drank more, ”Hmmm, this stuff is growing on me!”.  I shook the container up lots as per the instructions and poured over ice – holy smokes, now I am addicted!  

I still think it is quite sweet, so I would not have the same amount as I would a regular coffee, but I would buy the Mocha again.  To me, it tastes more “sweet” than “chocolate mocha”, so my suggestion would be to cut the corn syrup, leave the same amount of sugar, and up the cocoa content.  I did add some extra coffee and milk to my cold cup to cut down on the sweetness.  I don't normally add sugar to my coffee so others may not feel this is necessary.

I tried the Caramel Macchiato flavour at my work party.  Definitely too sweet for me – tastes like thin syrup.  Yuck.  But, to be fair, I do not usually like caramel.  I didn’t waste my coupons on the vanilla variety as I know I don’t like vanilla at all so it wouldn’t be right to review that one.

One of my co-workers gave me a review of both work party flavours.  She doesn't like the Mocha so much as she thinks it "tastes like chocolate milk".  On the other hand, she really likes the Caramel Macchiato flavour - the rest of the container is hers to finish!  This is a person who likes dulce de leche and caramel flavourings, so if you are the same, chances are you will also like Caramel Macchiato!

If anyone else I gave free coupons to gives me a review I will post it.  Here are our drinks from the party (creamo for regular hot coffee drinkers is blocked out):

Mocha & Caramel Macchiato Flavours

A sub-note: the International Delight TM cold cup/tumbler I received really does keep drinks cold!  I was impressed and will be using it throughout the Summer.

                             

International Delight (TM) Iced Coffee BzzAgent Campaign

Hooray!  I got into another campaign!  This year is going well with BzzAgent, the word of mouth review company that sends free samples and coupons for people to give honest product opinions.  This campaign features International Delight(TM) Iced Coffees!

My campaign box has already arrived.   Inside were nine coupons for an entire carton FREE of any flavour International Delights (TM) Iced Coffee.  They come in three flavours: Mocha, Caramel Macchiato, and Vanilla.  They regularly retail for $4.99 and are on sale at Shopper's Drug Mart this week for $3.99.  Just shy of two litres, each carton should give about 7 - 8 "Tall"-sized servings.

Also inside the box were two plastic cold beverage tumblers with straws. They look like this:

They are a hard, clear plastic - definitely washable and reusable.  They look like they will be fun to fill with ice and then splash over a good serving of International Delight (TM).   My SO does not like drinking out of plastic, so the second one will be a gift - possibly to the person who gives me the most honest feedback of the different tastes when I bring all three varieties into work next week.  Lucky coworkers!

For myself, the flavour I will use my coupon on will be Mocha.  I don't like vanilla and only like caramel slightly more.  My SO will have the choice of which one of those two he would like to try.  That will leave me with four free coupons.  One will go inside the tumbler to give away, the other three - hmmm - how many should I save for myself and how many to give away to others?

*Photos are from bzzagent.com and International Delight's (TM) FB page.

Always Infinity Campaign Update

I was away for a bit and when I returned home I was happy to see a little brown box with my name on it had arrived from BzzAgent™!

Inside were a page of campaign directions, my free package of Always Infinity, three individually wrapped yellow regular Always pads, and eight $1.00 off Always Infinity coupons to share.

I am happy to report that the free package was this one:

It is the heavy with wings version, which is more appropriate for my personal cycle.

I am also happy to report that they are VERY comfortable and so thin I can't even tell just standing in my underwear that I have them on - the only giveaway is the wings on the outside of the crotch part of my underwear.  They also absorb quite a bit.  It is a great relief to not have to worry about running to the bathroom to change every hour during my heaviest days.  These ranged for me from being good from two to four and a half hours, depending on my level of flow.  This is very important so I don't get dirty or questioning looks at work about going to the bathroom often, and for my peace of mind that there will not be leakages.

It also makes me more comfortable in wearing a shirt that does not cover my bum (in case of leakages) during my period.

I like the "feel" of these against my "delicate parts".  It feels like a cotton fabric - not like any kind of a plastic.  I absolutely hate the comparison of pads to diaper by some not-so-nice women and men.  There is nothing farther than the truth and comparisons like that seek only to shame women for dealing with the natural cycles of their bodies.  For any woman out there who has felt humiliation, embarrassment, or any other negative emotion for their decision to wear pads during their period, I say that Always Infinity can alleviate that negativeness by being thin and fast/heavy absorbing.

The wrapping is fairly quiet for changing in public stalls, but the sides of the package do make some noise.  By opening them slowly less noise happens.  Again, if you are a woman who feels embarrassed by changing your pad in a public bathroom, you can open the package slowly,  but periods are natural and if someone says something or gives you a look, they are the ones who should be ashamed, not you.

The adhesive on the back of the pad is almost the entire pad in length and width in a solid strip.  No bunching happened for me!  The wings have adhesive on each rounded wing and they worked fine.  The wings are made of more tissue feeling material and for me, anchored the pad well and caught any drops from shifting.

I am planning to keep a couple of the free $1.00 off coupons for myself to buy additional packages (they also come in Overnight, so I am going to get some of those) and share the rest.

The three regular pads were put in the kit for me to film an absorption test and post it onto YouTube (you know, the famous "blue liquid" test).  I do not have a YouTube account, and I don't feel right creating one solely for the purpose of posting one video, so it is not likely to happen.

Always BzzAgent Campaign Status Update

Update for Always BzzAgent™ Campaign!

I received an email today saying that my kit has finally shipped after its loooong shipping delay.  Excellent news!  Sometime in the next two weeks I should be getting my sample pads and coupons.   Stay tuned for a personal product review!

Always Infinity via BzzAgent

I’m excited to finally have something else free from BzzAgent™ to blog about.  I have been selected for the Always Infinity campaign.  The kit status is “shipping soon” and here is what I will receive:

•    A bundle of $1.00 off coupons for Always Infinity
•   A full sealed package of Always Infinity pads – yellow colour (meaning moderate flow)
•  Three individually wrapped Always Infinity pads

The idea behind the three individually wrapped pads is for me to rip them apart and make some infamous blue liquid, videotape an absorbency test with it, and post it to YouTube for comments.  Now, I do have a digital camcorder, but I do not have a YouTube account.  We’ll have to wait and see about that.

After years of trying different pads as a young teenager, I had settled on Always as the best in terms of fit, hold capacity, & unseen-through-pants score. 

 Infinity is Always newest type of pad, with a different top layer (Microdots™) and claims for higher absorbency (Infinicel™ = up to 55% more), more comfort, and shaping/tapering (dual Flexi-Wing® design) to fit a women’s body.  

Always Infinity comes in all the regular Always sizes (moderate, heavy, overnight) and with or without wings.  My preference has always been “with wings” as they stabilize the pad in your underwear and prevent underwear side elastic staining.  

#gotitforfree

#AlwaysInfinity

#BzzAgent

Free Fabric

I love fabric.  I never do anything with it but I love looking and touching and imagining all the possibilities a flat little piece of coloured threads can become.  Of course I love it even more when it is on sale or clearance or some other huge discount.  Usually my maximum willing-to-pay price for a fat quarter is $2.00.  That is pushing it.  I like $1.00 or $1.50 better.  A fat quarter (Canadian preferably) gives me enough fabric to get a good feeling of the overall pattern, touch and feel, hang up on my quilt rack for show, and maybe (maybe) cut it up to make something practical or impractical.

Imagine my delight, then, to discover an older blog post describing how to get these little pieces of fabric for free!  Hee hee hee JOY!  I don't know why I didn't think of this before.  In fact, it is something my mother probably mentioned to me that I forgot about - along with the many other thrifty, efficient tidbits of wisdom she imparts when I'm not listening.  But I digress.  Here is a link to the blogpost from 2009 by ecokaren that details how to do it.  Now to mypoints search local upholstery stores...

http://www.ecokaren.com/2009/09/how-to-get-free-fabric-and-be-eco-friendly/

Want to see an American fat quarter size chart?  Check out Whipstitch Fabric's blog, based in Atlanta, GA, USA
http://whipstitchfabrics.com/blog/organizing-your-fabric-stash-by-size-with-a-sidebar-discussion-of-the-fat-quarter/

mypoints free and fun

One thing I love to do is browse internet sales and occasionally purchase something that is an awesome deal, taking advantage of any bonuses, extra coupons, or rewards-earning opportunities.  A great way I have discovered to do this is through using mypoints.com 

I was first introduced to this site as a rewards option through completing surveys and reviews for BzzAgent (BzzReports, etc.).  I wasn't familiar with the concept originally and I confess I ignored my first few mypoints rewards (grrr!!! dumb!!!).   Then I checked it out thoroughly and registered for an account.  It was a basic registration - pick an email address and password, enter your real first and last name, and mailing address.  I was a little leery of the mailing address, but I don't think I have had any spam associated with them and I only get about an average of three mypoints emails per month by not signing up for the daily deals alerts.

Anyways, by earning mypoints rewards through BzzAgent, answering occasional surveys, and purchasing occasional products by linking to the company's website via the mypoints site, I have earned various gift certificate rewards that I have put to good (FUN) use.

I have earned since 2009 (keep in mind that I purchase something online on average once per month):

- $50 in Williams-Sonoma gift cards 

- $125 in Macy's gift cards 

These cards physically arrived in the mail to my house about three to four weeks after requesting them and I was able to use both for online purchases via mypoints to earn rewards again on their value. It is an American website, but they still sent my rewards to Canada no problem and most companies associated with their site offer Canadian shipping if you do not have an American address you can use.  Unfortunately, the Canadian shipping on some sites is a total rip-off, so you do need to do your due diligence and remember to think of duty/customs/HST/GST.  But if you're a smart shopper, you can certainly get good deals via mypoints.com and I recommend it.