#TheSpunkySoul Guitar String Eyeglasses Holder #Review

     Do you know what I don't have enough of?  Accessories.  I do get the occasional necklace or earrings, I suppose.  But I never really accessorize the way that I see a lot of women do.  I never wear a scarf, almost never wear bracelets or headbands.  I'm a pretty sad case actually.  But I am trying to up my game some now that my kids are getting older and I have a bit more motivation than I used to.

     One thing that I never really thought to accessorize until recently is my glasses.  But there are ways that you can add some flair to them, albeit, not many.  One way is to use eyeglass charms.  They clip onto the frames, but there are few options and most of them are for kids.  Another way that you can accessorize your eyeglasses is with an eyeglasses holder or chain.  They keep your glasses from hitting the floor if they fall off your nose, making them useful and pretty.  They're also great for keeping your glasses handy around your neck, so that they don't get lost or left behind.

      The one I just got is from Spunky Soul.  It's beautiful and is made from guitar string in both turquoise and purple.  The design of it is very simple, but also very pretty.  It alternates turquoise and purple guitar strings and separates them by about eight light blue seed beads.  Because it's made of guitar string, it has a neat springy feel to it.

     The eyeglass holder pieces at the end are adjustable to fit thick and thin frames.  They add 2 1/2 inches to the over all length of the holder, making it 31 1/2 inches total.  It's a nice length.  When looking at my photos, keep in mind that I'm quite short.

     Usually a person will probably lose their glasses off the tip of their nose, but I actually lose my gasses off the back of my head because I forget that I placed them up there.  I'm not too keen on wearing them all the time and set them up there without thinking.  So I will be wearing the holder much like a necklace instead of your typical way, like above.  I might even add a pick to finish it off, since I'll be wearing it up front.  I love that the possibilities are endless.

     It comes nicely packaged and ready for gift giving.  To be honest, I'm not sure that I would give it as a gift to anyone that I don;t know for sure wears this type of thing.  As The Big One put it when I asked her if she'd wear one, "They're an old granny thing."  So maybe just make sure that they would use it first, it's become somewhat eccentric.  But for someone who does wear them, I think this would make a great gift, especially for a musician.

     All in all, I think this is a really pretty eyeglasses holder and I will probably use it every time that I go out somewhere so that I don't lose my glasses.  I love the guitar string look and feel and it will definitely come in handy.  Do you have glasses?  How do you keep them safe?
     To learn more, check out Spunky Soul on Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, and their website.

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

#TheSpunkySoul Navy Eyeglasses Case with Cleaning Cloth #Review

     This is The Big One.  Beautiful, isn't she?  She's also pretty amazing.  I mean, sure, she picks fights and does the overly controlling big sibling thing.  Truth be told, she drives me nuts.  But she is so compassionate, she always has these plans to raise money for needy people and to donate her things to homeless shelters.  And she always sticks up for people, she knows when something is wrong.  She won't let her shyness get in the way of what's right.  She is so unlike me in all the ways that could make her great.  I don't know how I got her.  That kid up there... she's mine... it baffles the mind.  How did ANY of my kids come from me?  Except Baby Bee, she's all me.  I claim her.
     But really, I don't get it.  From the minute she was born, I didn't understand how I was so lucky.

     Anyway, enough bragging on her, just wanted to let you know that it's her birthday!  As of 9:42 this morning, she will be 11 years old.  CRAZY!  How did she get that old?  Well, as part of her birthday festivities, she is getting one present from me and her dad.  It used to be a big thing with lots of gifts, whatever we could afford.  The thing with that is that some kids would have birthdays at a really tough time in the year and always get shafted.  Poor Streaker, one year she got a bucket from the Dollar Tree with four other Dollar Tree cheapie things in it and that was all we could do, but her brother a few months earlier had a birthday at tax return time.  See where I'm going with this?  It wasn't even close to fair.  So now one gift and one outing of their choice is the plan.  Punk just chose a trip to the mall and The Big One chose the Water Slide Park next weekend.  Lord, please let the hot weather last until then.

     So this year, the gift isn't a super fun one, but it's a much needed one.  And as far as much needed things go, it's about as fun as it will get.  It's a Navy Glasses Case from Spunky Soul and it comes with a cleaning cloth to match.  The case itself is a metal-bodied case with a strong metal hing.  The inside is covered by a soft velvet and the outside in a leather/vinyl type material.

     As you can see, the case and cloth both have a cool gear style design.  The case is plain on the outside, but has an embossed silver gear decoration on the top of the inside.  I thought this was a pretty neat add-on that makes them a bit unique from other plain cases.

     The cloth is double sided, with the same design on front and back.  The print is very beautifully colored and is a striking and bold design.  I wanted this case for my daughter because she is very much a tom boy and loves things like football, cars, and machinery.  Blue is also a favorite.  But I think that this case would be well favored by men and teen boys as well.

     The size of this case is perfect for small to medium glasses.  It might not be ideal for the big aviator style sunglasses.  The exact dimensions are L 6.25 H 1.5 W 2.75 inches on the outside and a touch smaller at L6 H 1.25 W 2.5 inches for the inside.  It will be more than enough room for The Big One's glasses and would have worked fine for any other pair that we have in our home.

     Ans as you can see by the pretty helpful list on the side of the box, glasses cases don't necessarily need to be used solely for glasses.  As a photographer, I envision using a glasses case for extra memory cards, a back up battery, battery charger and a USB cord.  But you could use the case for any small electronic accessory kit.  For instance, ear buds, cord, cleaning cloth, and stylus for a tablet loving kid or maybe some spare Nintendo DS games and the cleaning cloth for the gamer in the family.  Of course it would be great for a travel art kit or purse catch-all.  It makes the perfect carry case for the van too, no matter what the interest.

     My personal thoughts on it are that it seems really rugged.  Of course time will tell, you never can know until you've had lots of time with it.  But I don't doubt it's ability to stand the test of time.  The thumb notch in the front that helps you open it easier is certainly convenient.  We've owned a case or two without it and we definitely prefer one with.  From looking at the photos, the inside gear decoration looked as though it popped out, but it doesn't.  That was a relief.  Overall, we really like the case.  The Big One brought it to school to keep her glasses safe there and I have no doubt that her friends will like it.  And it will keep her glasses scratch free long enough for me to be able to get a second pair for home.  So we're happy!
     What would you use a case like this for?
     To learn more, check out Spunky Soul on Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, and their website.


Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.

Firmoo Review

     My daughter has astigmatism.  I was surprised to first hear that she may need glasses after a routine eye check at school.  She had passed her Kindergarten test with no real concerns.  But come 1st grade, all of a sudden there was definitely concerns.  We knew she would need glasses.  She was nervous about the idea of being seen in glasses, so to calm her worries, I decided that I would make myself an eye appointment and we could do this whole thing together.  Having never worn glasses, I knew I was in desperate need for an eye exam and I knew I probably would need my very first pair.  I was actually glad when I received a prescription (though a small one) because it meant that The Big One wouldn't be by herself in that venture.  But when I went to choose frames out for myself, I was told that my insurance would not cover glasses for me, but only for my children.

     I went a year without glasses waiting for the funds to cover a pair.  Then I did finally get a pair from online and it lasted a month or so before my children destroyed them.  They used to like to play with such things, and so I waited a bit longer and got another pair, but accidentally ordered them with a strong tint which I thought to be transitions that would clear up indoors.  No luck, I really only use them while driving.

     So I went another whole year without glasses.  I think my eyes are probably worse now.  But I am happy to say that I have new glasses again and they are the best I have owned.  I don't have to keep reshaping the ear pieces or adjusting the nose bits.  It's just a comfortable and stylish pair.  Though they are made of plastic, I have no worries about them breaking anytime soon.  They feel VERY strong.

     These glasses are from Firmoo.  I had heard about Firmoo in the past.  My sister owns a few pair and she had only good things to say about them.  After seeing them in person, I had to agree that they were awesome.  So I checked out their online eyeglasses store and saw how easy it was to navigate.  Right away I was able to choose to see only women's frames and from there I was able to choose to see only the style frame that I knew I would look good in, which is rectangle.  There were lots of great options for my favorite frame style.  So I decided to use the Virtual Try-On feature on the site.  It showed me what I would look like in the frame that I chose.

     What I love about the Firmoo online store is not only that it is super easy to find the look you are going for, but that you can tell if the glasses will fit you before even opening the individual frame's page.  You get a page full of choices and each choice comes with everything you need to decide if you even want to look at the pair up close.  You can see the measurements in the upper left and the price in the lower right.  You can also see whether they are eligible for single, bifocal or progressive lenses on the bottom along with their average overall rating among customers who have purchased them.  And if you happen to have other questions or needs, they have a great help section with the most frequently asked questions.

     I opted to get a pair of unisex full frame acetate glasses.  It came in the mail after a minimal wait (about a week and a half) and came with a drawstring case, a hard case, a repair kit and quite possibly the best lens cleaning cloth ever.  I love that the screwdriver from the repair kit is a key chain, that is a great little feature for someone like me.  The hard case is very sturdy and about the size of my billfold wallet.  I am glad to have the soft case as well and I think I will use it for my sunglasses to keep them safe in the van.

     These glasses will only set you back $39 plus S&H, which is crazy when you consider that I would have had to pay $80 for JUST the frames at my local eye wear store for the very cheapest they have.  That doesn't include the lenses themselves or shipping.  It also doesn't include a hard case or repair kit.  But Firmoo is amazing in that they have a program where you can get your first pair absolutely free.  Because they are giving away free eyeglasses, they do ask for S&H which is a good deal at just $6.95!  That is an insane deal!
     Have you ever used Firmoo?  Are you going to now?  You can't beat $6.95 for a new set of prescription eye wear :)

Except for the product(s) given to me for the purpose of reviewing, I received no compensation for this post. All opinions are 100% my own.