Vegan Shoe Line Beyond Skin Needs Your Help

Fashionable vegan footwear line Beyond Skin needs your help!

Beyond Skin is a 10 year old, self-funded, indie, UK vegan footwear label dedicated to designing cruelty-free, luxury shoes for stylish, discerning ladies.  Their current line is considered more of a luxury “boutique” one, meaning high style at a slightly higher price point.  Although the luxury line is fabulous, they have aspirations to create a new diffusion line.  This one will feature 10 styles, which have been designed for everyday wear at a more affordable price-point. This to me is a fantastic idea, being it’ll bring vegan and ethical footwear to the masses and a more pocket friendly price.  Plus, they’re all classic styles meaning they go with everything and will last season after season.

To help fund their new line, they created a Kickstarter campaign.  It’s only live for another 15 days, so if you want to support vegan fashion for the masses, be sure to do so today!

You learn more about the Kickstarter campaign as well as it’s perks by visiting here.

My Summer Vacations / According to Instagram

Sorry it’s been so quiet around here lately. This lucky girl got to go on not one, not two, but THREE extended weekends in a row so far this summer.

The first weekend I went with two of my friends to Vermont to attend the Wanderlust yoga festival. The following week, Jim and I had a wedding to attend in Philly so we hit up the city of brotherly love for a few extra days. Lastly, over July 4th Jim and I did our now annual trek to Boston to celebrate the Independence Day holiday. We love Boston during July 4th because majority the historical sites important to our country’s independence are right there and we are big time history nerds.

I’m finally back in Brooklyn with no joke, around 800 photos to sort through.  I suspect that’s going to take me a while, so for now I wanted to share some of the highlights of each weekend via Instagram.

Left to Right, Top to Bottom // The lodge where we took our first yoga class / Vegan, gluten-free pizza by Pizza for the People / Our pre-hike “hydration” / Gorgeous view at the top of Stratton, which made the difficult hike worth it!

Left to Right, Top to Bottom // The Philly skyline on our first day / Eastern State Penitentiary, by far one of my favorite highlights of summer so far / Vegan ice-cream at Little Baby’s Ice Cream / The Sphinx at the Penn Museum at Penn University

Left to Right, Top to Bottom // The Old State House in Boston, where the Boston Massacre happened (our hotel was across the street! / The Museum of Fine Arts / Brunch at North Street Grille in the North End on July 4th / The Cheers Bar!!

Are you on Instagram?  If so hit me up!  My handle is @BrooklynBliss.

Blogging Breaks and Traveling Pink Lips Vegan Cuts Box Giveaway Winner

image credit: www.wesleyumcwausauwi.org

After the Seed and my work travel to San Antonio, I’ve been crazy busier than expected. All good stuff, but my work hours have been longer, my social calendar more packed, and I’ve just had zero time to blog!

This all bums me out, but I have a lot of great stuff that’s happened since my last post, as well as coming up in the next several weeks so I’m expecting July will be jam-packed with lots of post content.  Between me leaving for Wanderlust in Vermont this week, a long weekend in Philly for a wedding and Jim and my annual 4th of July trip to Boston, I’ll have no shortage of updates once I return from this hopefully short-lived blogging break.

In the event you still want to follow along with me on my travels, you can always feel free to check in with me on Twitter or Instagram.  I’m still relatively active on those during my blogging breaks.

In the meantime, with all this business I totally spaced out and forgot to announce the Traveling Pink Lips VeganCuts giveaway winner!

And the winner is (drum roll please)…

Erica Wollman!

Erica, please contact me for Holly‘s (at Traveling Pink Lips) contact info so you can claim your prize.

I hope everyone’s been enjoying their summer so far and you’ll hear from me again soon!

My Seed Experience

I’m back from San Antonio!  While I had a great time getting to meet up with all my colleagues, customers and vendors I always feel better once I get back to NYC.  I’m such a big city girl it’s not even funny.

So I got back on Friday, just in time for me to prepare to speak at the Seed on Saturday.  The event was beyond my expectations.  I had a great time not only visiting all the vendor tables and trying lots of food, but also getting to meet and listen to many of the other speakers.  I also finally got to try that Cinnamon Snail truck everyone raves about and OMG was it amazing.

If you missed it, I talked about how to transition to a cruelty-free wardrobe, which I had previously posted about here.  To my surprise, during my talk the room completely filled up and was standing room only (aside from the few chairs in the front row, which you see in the photos below).  Cruelty-free fashion is apparently a hot topic!

For those of you who attended the Seed and came to see me speak, it was so great to finally get to meet you in person!  I loved getting to meet everyone and hope to get to participate in similar events in the future.

Come See Me At the Seed This Weekend

If you are in the New York City area this weekend, be sure to check out the Seed Expo.  I’ll be speaking!

The Seed is a huge vegan event being held from May 18th and 19th here in NYC at 82 Mercer. There will be lots of delicious vegan food, products, services, world-renowned speakers, films, and more. Best part about the Seed is it’s designed around a more “veg-curious” crowd, meaning if you are not currently vegan but are interested in the lifestyle, it’s a great place to come on out and see what it’s all about.

To my surprise, the organizers of the event have invited me to be a featured speaker! I’m on at 4:15 on Saturday, and will be talking about how to successfully transition to a cruelty-free wardrobe.

Will you be attending the Seed? If so I’d love to meet you so let me know!

Guest Post and VeganCuts Giveaway / Traveling Pink Lips- CLOSED

To start of, I would like to thank Corrie for having me here on Brooklyn Bliss. Here’s to a check off my bucket list 😉 She has helped me make a very rational decision last week, hair cutting involved. Corrie is the girlfriend you want to have around you! She knows fashion, stands for animals and knows how to cook a meal!

When Corrie asked me to be a guest blogger, I knew exactly what I wanted to share with you all, a review of my 3-month Vegan Cuts Snack Box subscription! For those of you who don’t know, VeganCuts started a movement a little while ago where they ship a monthly box filled with great snacks and coupons.

Let’s start, shall we?

February:

I started my subscription in February. After hearing a few reviews from the January snack box I knew it was time for me to give in. Now, this review is my personal opinion and taste. Let’s keep this in mind 🙂 Alright, back to business, we are. This box was my least favorite of them all.

My First VeganCuts’s Snack Box!

VeganCuts’s Snack Box Of February!

A few of my favorite items in this box were Simply 7 Pomegranate Chips, Dang Coconut Chips, and Surf Sweets Fruity Hearts! This box was sweet and love filled. The Dang Coconut Chips were amazing. I decided to take this box to work and have at it then. I loved them the most. I took the Pure Fit Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip bar with me to a wedding as my “survival snack” just in case this herbivore didn’t find anything to bite on. It was enjoyable and a good call! Along with these came one of The Merry Hempsters’s Organic Lip Balm, Righteously Raw Divine Mint Chocolate Square and more sweets. The coconut chips and pomegranate chips kept me in good spirit from this box.

I give this box a 5.

March:

The month of March was an exciting one! Between my 25th birthday, trip to California and endless work hours, a box in the mail was the perfect wind down! My snack box for the month of March came in right after I came back from LA and I couldn’t wait to see what was in store.

VeganCuts’s March Snack Box!!!

Barre Snack Bar, Nyl Body Lotion and Caramel Pops!

The Vegg, Earth Balance, VBar, Falafel Chips, Nyl Body lotion!

WOW! What A Haul!

Okay, this box was the complete “redeemer”, if you know what I mean! I was SO happy when I opened it. The first thing that caught my eyes and stomach was the Earth Balance Vegan White Aged Cheddar Puffs. I have been hearing about them for a while and I was super excited to finally have a bite at it. Delicious! They taste exactly like the regular puffs but of course MUCH better! Next up, CocomoCorn Caramel Pops, my mum fell in love with them and may have taken the bag from me. That’s a good review, right? I had no idea there was such thing as falafel chips so this was a total surprise for me. I wasn’t too crazy about them. Perhaps it was because I am not too crazy for falafel? Now, the best part of this box was the Sunflower/Cranberry Vbar!

Cranberry/Sunflower Vbar from Benefit Foods.

Vbar Sunflower/Cranberry From Benefits Foods!

It was the best bar I have ever had in my life. The savory Sunflower Nut Butter is what held this snack bar together. I love cranberries so this was another win. The brown rice cereal gave this Vbar a crispy touch and pleasant joy. I loved this Vbar and I can’t wait until I can find it in stores. If you find the chance to try this bar, go at it! You won’t be disappointed! The Equal Exchange Dark Mini Chocolate has been by far my favorite chocolate bar to taste. It was smooth and rich and not too dense. I was expecting a robust taste like other dark chocolate bars but not this one! Overall this box was exciting, I got to taste some awesome new products on the market and fell in love with chocolate.

I give this box a 7.

April:

And this was the month is the end of so ends my snack box subscription. I have had a lot of fun with this subscription. And I hate to see it go. I am thinking about renewing for another 3-month but I guess I will see what the May box holds.. I may have gone for another, hehe.

April’s Vegan Snack Box From Vegan Cuts!

Favourite Box This Month!

Cheeze Me, Please!

The ultimate win of the month! I was very happy, excited and ready to dig into this box. Some of the products sent I already had a taste at. One of my favorite products from this box was the Hazelnut Caffeine-Free Herbal Coffee from Teecciano. Wow! I never thought I’d see the day.

Hazelnut Flavoured Herbal Coffee From Teecciano!

Everyone knows I love coffee! I can’t help it; it is one of the things signed under my name. This herbal coffee was delicious. I was impressed. I didn’t think I would have enjoyed it. The hazelnut flavor was sweet and just right. I must admit, I was little skeptical after reading the ingredient list to find “dates” which I am not too much of a fan of but I couldn’t taste it one bit. Fantastic!

New Products, Yes Please!

I am currently using Meow Meow Tweet Cocoa Lip Balm and I like it a lot, minimal ingredients [candelilla wax, *cocoa butter, *hempseed oil, and *virgin coconut oil (*certified organic)] and the ultimate moisture. I have yet to try Milas’s Roasted Peppers & Artichoke Bruschetta but I can already tell I will enjoy it. Overall, this box was great and I loved it. It was a nice one to end this snack box relationship. Included was one of Teese’s Mozzarella Vegan Cheese was the cherry on the top. Of course I made pizza right away!

I give this box a 9.

Final Verdict:

Vegan Cuts’s Snack Box is a must try! You are guaranteed to find new products and tons of coupons. If you’re not ready to plunge into a 3-month subscription no problem, you can try it for a month for $19.95 shipping included. You can’t say no to that. Each box is filled with great sized-snacks and products to love, forever. Can’t find the products in your local store? Don’t fret, Vegan Cuts also provides a section with a product list of the month www.vegancuts.com/big!

Note: Caring is sharing! This is my personal review and honest opinion, eh! Unless otherwise stated, everything I review has been purchased by me and at my own risk! –TPL

NOW on to the fun stuff, a giveaway! Yes, a giveaway 🙂 One lucky winner will get the chance to experience their very own VeganCuts’s Monthly Snack Box! This box will be given by me, Holly of Traveling Pink Lips and will be for the month of June. And also open to both Canada & US!

TPL & Brooklyn Bliss Giveaway!!!

1. Like Brooklyn Bliss on Facebook/ Facebook.com/BKBliss
2. Follow @Veganadian on Twitter and Tweet about the giveaway!
3. Leave a comment below and share with us which one of these boxes would have made it on your favorite list and why.

This giveaway is open until May 24th, 11:59pm EST. Open to both Canada & US!

I’d like to thank, Corrie for having me on Brooklyn Bliss and I look forward to read all of your entries 🙂

You can find more of me on www.travelingpinklips.com where I share restaurant reviews, product reviews and personal rant. It is lovely do stop by!

–TravelingPinkLips

Headed to San Antonio

This Brooklyn girl is currently en route to San Antonio for a big convention for work.  Wish me luck!  Last time I went to San Antonio on a work trip I broke my foot doing karaoke.  I think I’m the only person on this planet capable of doing that.  Luckily I’m now banned from doing karaoke at work events, so I think I’ll return the end of this week in one piece.

In the meantime, this entire week will not be quiet on Brooklyn Bliss.  I have a few surprise guest posters lined up, as well as a giveaway!  So stay tuned and I’ll be back the end of this week.

Inside Out in Times Square

WHAT I’M WEARING // YASO Faux Leather Jacket // H&M Blouse // MAVI Jeans (Old) // CHINESE LAUNDRY Leopard Loafers (old, via Delia’s) // HURLEY Backpack // JUSTFAB Sunglasses

Last Friday, Jim and I took our friends Gina and Mark to MOMA and then headed slightly cross-town to Times Square.  The street artist JR currently has the Inside Out Project set up there and we wanted to check it out and hopefully get to participate.

JR is best known for his portraits, so as part of this project he’s taking portraits of New Yorkers throughout the 5 boroughs and installing them in areas around the city.  To make the process crazy efficient, they have a fully outfitted photography studio truck, so they’ve been moving the truck from neighborhood to neighborhood.  If you visit their Facebook Page, the portraits done around the Rockaways and other Sandy stricken areas are so powerful it makes me well up.  I highly recommend checking it out.

We had heard the photo truck was in Times Square so we took a quick walk over to see if we could participate.  Sadly, they weren’t there due to a 10k race being set up for the weekend.  But we still had a great time enjoying the incredible weather and checking out all the portraits pasted to the sidewalks.

Gina and I also wanted to take the opportunity to take our own portraits amongst the portraits.  How meta, right?

The Inside Out Project is supposed to be in Times Square through May 10th. Jim and I are still hoping to make it there one day after work to get ours done. If you participate you have the option to either have it pasted at the site, or to take it home with you. We’d love to have the portraits for our apartment, so fingers crossed we’ll be able to make it happen!

My Weekend According to Instagram

This past weekend Jim and I enjoyed an extended one, getting to show my college bestie Gina and her boyfriend Mark around town. We covered a lot of ground in three days, and I’m still getting through the few hundred photos I took over the course of the weekend.  Next time I need to learn to stick to one camera and not three!

Here’s some of my favorites I managed to snap on my iPhone and post to Instagram as we were out in about.

We enjoyed coffee from Caffe Capri EVERY morning.  They seriously have the BEST coffee in Brooklyn // Stopped for brunch at Champs Diner

We did some serious art gawking, especially at MOMA // Spotted this book at Poseman’s Books in the Chelsea Market and am convinced I need a vegan version of this Mondrian inspired cake for my upcoming birthday this July

Enjoyed beyond fantastic weather this entire weekend, especially during our visit to the High Line, where I spotted this fantastic mural // There were some new installations along the park that weren’t there during my last visit.  This one in particular was stunning, the mirrored glass made the side of the building blend into the sky

Are you on Instagram?  Hit me up!  My Instagram handle is @BrooklynBliss.

Three Day Weekend

After the insane work week I’ve had, I’m super stoked to have a three day weekend effective immediately. One of my best friends from college is passing through NYC with her boyfriend, so Jim and I get to play host and show them around our amazing city.

So far we’re keeping our plans pretty casual, but know for sure we’ll being doing a museum hop and shopping. Based on the forecast, we should have perfect weather.

Have a great weekend!