Monday, March 30, 2009

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Friday, March 27, 2009

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Another Squeem Product Update

The weather was finally warm enough for me to go out jogging and lemme tell you - my abs are friggin' SORE! In a good way, of course. Even when I just walked, the cincher's compression massaged the abdominal muscles. Even now, I can feel the newly formed muscles in my abs. Also, I went down a notch in my bra :D

Sunday, March 22, 2009

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Wow

I just got 367 hits at my Yay for Fidget Art shop! I checked Google Analytics, and this is why:

"I'll Have a Pint" Greeting Card - Size A2 (also available in a set of four)

Also, I made three sales! All this certainly made my day! :)

EDIT: *headdesk* I overlooked the awesome St. Patrick's Day edition Storque article that featured the above card. Go check it out all of the uber-nifty items from the other great sellers! and a BIG thank you from the bottom o' me heart to those who showed love to my shop!

Btw, this felt corned beef and cabbage dinner set by Ivers is just too damn precious! I showed it to Ant and Tony and they totally agreed upon the adorableness. I just might have to buy it soon...

Happy St. Patty's Day!

I'll be spending the day hiding in the safety and comfort of my apartment from the drunken college students. And I also get to spend the day with my two favorite Irish guys...NOT in that sort of way! Well, just the one of them, since he IS my hubby! :P

Sunday, March 15, 2009

Squeem update

Just recently moved from the size medium, down to the size small. My chronic back pain is no more, and I can fit into some of my smaller clothes again. Also, I've been eating less, so that helps.

I think the last of the snowfall has dissipated, so I'll be going back to my daily jogging routine to speed things up.

Friday, March 13, 2009

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Thursday, March 5, 2009

New Photography!

Just a few days ago, I was organizing my art studio and came across some of my seashell and starfish collection. Seeing my collection brought me back to the days when I used to hunt and gather them whenever I went to the beach back in California. My first seashell collection was given to me by my mom from her trip to Hawaii.

"Starfish Trio" in color and black and white, 8x10"

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Product Review: Squeem High Back Waist Cincher

For those of you who don't know me very well, I've been trying to get back into shape after boozing and poor dieting during my hectic years of college. About a year and a half later, I went from a size 14 to a size 9 - all from proper dieting and exercise.

However, I felt I needed a little extra boost to help get rid of my stubborn area (that being the entire midsection). I recalled back in highschool on how I used to keep the inches off said area by wearing a rubber girdle. For about 4 to 6 hours a day I kept it on, allowing me to sweat off the excess calories and toxins. And then I went to college and simply forgot about it.

After consuming tons of delicious foods, ballooning up, feeling gross and finally losing much of the weight, I stumbled upon the Squeem waist cincher. There were two variants: the girdle and the vest-like, high-back variant (shown in the picture above). I got the latter one, based on the reviews claiming that it helps keep the back fat in check.

It was similar to my old girdle in that it has a rubber shell to induce extra sweating. The similarities end from there. This sort of waist cincher provides instant results, in that the rubber provides little give. It sucks in and holds excess flab using high-compression, whittling the midsection down a size or two and smoothes out your silhouette (which includes eliminating the dreaded muffin top!). It also gives your boobage some extra lift :). The interior was lined with cotton to prevent chaffing and skin irritation, while the plastic boning helps maintain good posture for the wearer. You wear this vest with the rubber side out and close it on the front with sturdy, steel hook-and-eye clasps.

There are two rows where you can hook, which allows you to adjust the sizing as you gradually lose weight. The company claims that you can lose between 1 to 4 inches from the waist per month, but the trick is, you must wear it for 8 to 10 hours each day, everyday in order to see decent results.

When I first donned my newly purchased waist cincher, it took me about ten minutes to get it on. It does require a bit of muscle, so if you can't open a jar of pickles by yourself, then it's recommended that you get some help. Also, it's adviseable that you start with the top hook and work your way down.

About four hours into wearing this contraption, I just wanted to rip it off of me because it felt so tight and uncomfortable. So I only wore it for about five hours total that day. The next day I wore it for seven hours and from then on, I got into the groove of wearing it for the 8 to 10 hour time period. For me, it took about five days to get used to wearing the cincher. By the second week, I started seeing results, such as finally being able to move down to the inner notch.

So far, I've lost about five pounds and about an inch off my waist (with the cincher taken off, of course) and counting. And this would also factor in a reasonably healthy diet, with low to moderate exercise. So this cincher would not work so well if one constantly eats junk food and gets no exercise.

The downside of this product is that the straps sort of cut into my shoulders, but I solved that by loosening them up a bit. The straps are also wide, and on top of which the hook and eye closures are noticeable through fitted and thin fabrics, thus limiting your wardrobe choice. But if you layer your fitted shirts and avoid thin-strap/strapless tops, you should be fine.

One of the other downsides of the cincher is the plastic boning. If you've worn corsets with the cheap plastic boning, you know that they'll buckle around the midsection, which can get annoying. If you're really up to it, you can replace said plastic boning with metal ones and sew the ends back up. Just make sure the ends of the metal strips are capped to prevent tearing of the material. I would also like to note that this cincher may be extra uncomfortable for the more petite crowd, due to its length.

Overall, I rank the high back waist cincher 4 out of 5 stars - this product truly does work if you wear it according to the instructions. One star was knocked off mainly because of the plastic boning buckling. You will not be disappointed.

If you're looking into purchasing one, here's their size chart listed below:


Care Instructions:
Handwashing is highly recommended. I wouldn't toss this into the washing machine. Hang dry only.

Monday, March 2, 2009