Amazon is coming in like a lion, just in time for spring! Another round of our latest Amazon wins, from home to fashion to beauty and more is here! The LIY Team did the shopping and the trying and the returning [lots of returning], to share only the BEST with you! All just in time for Spring!

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Spring Fashion Finds

Erin’s Finds [5’4, size S/4]

Jumpsuit [true to size, wearing in M]

Jumpsuit [true to size, wearing in S] // Tank [true to size, wearing in M]

Dress [true to size, wearing in S]

Sunglasses // Earrings // Layered Necklace // Denim Jacket [true to size, wearing in S]

Claire’s Finds [5’5″, size M/8]

Amazon Bikini [TTS, wearing M]

Sandals [True to size]

Lauren’s Finds [5’6″, size M/L or 8/10]

2-Piece Set [true to size, wearing in large] // Sandals [true to size]

Amazon Crochet Top [true to size] // Denim Shorts [true to size] // Sandals [true to size]

Swimsuit [true to size, wearing in large ] // Coverup

Black Swimsuit [true to size, wearing in large] // White Beach Shorts [true to size, wearing in large] // Sandals [true to size]

Katy’s Finds [5’4″, size XS/S or 2]

Skort [true to size] // Sports Bra Tank [true to size]

CRZ Yoga Tank [true to size] // Skort [true to size]

High Waisted Bikini [size down if in between, wearing S in Blue/Green]

Set [size down if in between, wearing S Brown] // Necklace [LIY10 for 10% off]

Sunglasses

Devon’s Finds [5’8, size S or 2]

CUPSHE Swimsuit [true to size, wearing small]

CUPSHE Dress [true to size, wearing small]

CRZ Yoga Tank [true to size, wearing small] CRZ Yoga Beach Shorts [true to size, wearing small]

Macy’s Finds [5’0, size XS or 00]

Women’s Lounge Set [true to size]

Home Finds

Faux Peonies

Framed Floral Print // Bunny Figurine // Blue Candle

Outdoor Rug

Spring Wreath

Spring Wreath

Place Mats / Table Runner / Vase / Faux Eucalyptus

Faux Eucalyptus / Touch Lamp

Gold Bird Statues

Gold Bird Statues

Faux Tulips

Green Faux Branches

Random Finds

One Italian Summer [possibly, my favorite book I’ve ever read]

Beauty Finds

Medicube Pink Collagen Glow Jelly Mist Serum

Clear Sunless Tanning Gel

Policemen are vital for our country’s safety.

They deal with theft cases and many others.

Solving them all, and we don’t have to worry.

The policemen work day and night to protect us.

A big salute to these policemen with a smile!

A navy chore coat, pink tee, and olive chinos walk into a bar. They get along great.

The post Workwear, but Make It Spring appeared first on Primer.

Reuse or Recycle the trash you can’t put in your curbside bin.

Recycling is not easy.  It takes time, money, and more knowledge than I certainly had before learning about Ridwell.  Recycling is expensive, and many towns and municipalities are not able achieve optimum recycling practices due to the cost and lack of facilities.  Comingling of recycled items (one bin fits all) is easier on households, and less expensive for towns, but makes it more difficult to clean, prepare and reuse or recycle the items.  That means that for many Americans, home recycling efforts go to waste, and much of what they recycle ends up in landfills anyway.

A Landfill

I learned about Ridwell from ASE reader Susan W. and was impressed by what I read.  The founder, to clean out his basement and teach his children about caring for their environment, came up with a project where each week he would choose an item from his basement to reuse or recycle to keep it out of the landfills.  The items, like batteries, lightbulbs, used prescription bottles, and Styrofoam, would not be eligible for traditional curbside pickups. They would search for solutions as far away as necessary and send the items off to be reused or recycled. In Portland, for example, the curbside program doesn’t accept plastic clamshell packaging, and there’s nowhere else to take it. Ridwell found a partner in Texas that would take the boxes.  On the flip side, if a municipality changes their requirements and begins accepting house paint or batteries, Ridwell will stop taking those items.  Ridwell’s mission is to fill the gaps between local recycling and what customers want to keep out of their trash cans.  This will reduce the volume of trash that goes to landfills.

Ridwell’s founders began to pick up their neighbors’ items and soon they had 4,000 Seattle households participating, and Ridwell was launched.  It passed the 100,000-subscriber level long ago and is growing rapidly.  They now have over 250 people working to keep millions of pounds of out of landfills.

Ridwell is a popular subscription-based recycling service with two options for receiving subscribers’ items – bi-weekly curbside pickups in select U.S. cities, which costs approximately $14–$20/month or mail-in bags which start at $30 for the starter kit, and then $9.00 a bag after that.

Do you know about multi-layered plastic?  All the items in the above photos are housed in multi-layered plastic which are not allowed by local recycling systems. These bags and wrappers are made from multiple layers of different materials.  Ridwell partners with innovative specialty recyclers to turn them into new products like leach-free storm water drainage material.

Plastic film

Another item not allowed in usual recycling is plastic film.  Plastic film includes zip top baggies, bubble wrap, dry cleaning bags, FedEx and Amazon plastic packaging, the cling wrap that your roast chicken is wrapped in, and much more.  Ridwell sends it all to be shredded, washed, and melted into pellets.  It then is used to make other products like new packaging, composite decking material, and trash can liners.

How much really gets recycled with Ridwell.

Ridwell is not alone in their quest to recycle or reuse hard-to recycle items. Trashie is a similar recycling intermediary.  They bring efficiency and convenience into your recycling efforts with well-researched solutions – for a fee, well-earned if you ask me.  There is also TerraCycle, which is smaller and just added mail-in bags to its services, Retold which focuses on fabric recycling, and Pact which specializes in beauty product wrapping and packaging, just to name a few.

We applaud innovative ideas like Ridwell’s and other companies like it, that see a need and try to fill it.  Recycling is complex and many of us have guiltily put items in our trash that should not be there and could be repurposed into something useful for lack of an alternative.  For the cause, and the convenience, I hope these companies are successful, and are able to slow the flow of trash to the landfills.

The post Ridwell Recycling appeared first on Sharp Eye.

The house is on fire in Washington, D.C., America.

All the neighbors come running to check on the house.

A firefighter was called, and luckily no one was injured.

He brings the water pipe to blow out the fire.

The firefighter is capable of controlling the fire in the house!

There was a man who worked as a soldier in the war.

He used to write letters to his wife with the ink.

Just like ancient times!

When is the next episode coming?

What are you up to this weekend? I’m getting over the worst cold and cough (ahem), so tonight we are staying home and ordering Indian food.… Read more

The post Have a Sweet Weekend. appeared first on Cup of Jo.

Story/ @bri.ng.schwartz

Photos / @juliacomita

Album Art Design / @stephiejae

Stylist / @andyomo

Hair / @adamesbrandon

Album Mastering and Producer / @jhevere

Morgin DuPont is anything but unlucky this Friday the 13th, as she basks in the release of Alchemy, her second EP. A departure from Pearls, DuPont embraces her ever-evolving identity. With lyrics more personal than ever, and a soundscape that is both vocal and rap forward, she staples herself as an inspiration for the New York girls who dare to be different, unapologetically.

Congratulations on the release of Alchemy. How long has this project been in the making, and what can you share about the development process of creating this EP? 

This project was born out of another project that I was originally working on. Originally, I was going for a more sad, emo, alternative route. But then life kind of inspired me to do a bit more dance, because I feel like that’s what the world needs right now. So it wasn’t necessarily planned, but I guess together with the project I was initially working on, I would say it’s probably 4 or 5 years in the making. 

“Reach Out” was the first single released from the EP. It’s such an anthem for us yearners. Have you had any memorable fan responses to the song so far?

I had one particular person who contacted me and mentioned that the song was super relatable, and that they’ve been struggling with being in a toxic relationship. They were searching for that gratifying feeling, that validation from the people who we love who aren’t necessarily the best for us.

I think people are going to love ‘I’m the doll’. Fans already love the snippets I have shared. I’m most excited for people to hear “Party from Home”, which is another track on the album. I just feel like it’s so relatable for those who sometimes feel a bit introverted and a bit tired of the nightlife and party scene. It’s almost contradictory in its sound, because it’s a very uptight, fast club type of record, but the whole premise of the song and the lyrics is talking about staying home.

Your message is incredibly raw and vulnerable. Has sharing about your experience in this way always come naturally to you? Or is that a confidence that’s been built over time?

I would say both. I’ve always been very authentic, and I’ve always been a person who follows the beat of my own drum. With that being said, following the beat of my own drum in front of an audience? Is that new to me? Yes. But I guess it is a little different when there are opinions that are shared when you put your life out there publicly. I am gonna be who I am, and I’m gonna always be unapologetic about it. But I guess it is a little new in a way, because it’s in front of people. I’m also an oversharer. I’m a person who kind of thinks everybody’s a friend in my head, so I kind of just spill all the beans and don’t leave much for the imagination. 

What advice do you have for other songwriters looking to tap more into the more personal parts of themselves in their work?

Walk towards your fear of putting your heart out there. Let the world have a piece of your heart. I think that’s where the best music lies, it makes a big difference. It hits different when it comes from a real place, when it comes from real-life experiences, and yeah, people can feel that.

What have been some of your biggest lessons learned so far in your own career?
Don’t wait for others to make things happen. I’m an independent artist, so I’ve definitely gotten a lot of no’s. At times working with other people, whether it’s producers or artists, people can be unreliable or they could have their own agendas that differ from yours.

I always like to work with people who do it for the love. We all want to make money, and a transactional relationship isn’t necessarily negative when it comes to the music business. It is a business, and everybody should be paid for their gifts and their talent. I’ve just learned to discern and enroll with the people who will do it for the art.

How do you think your identity as a native New Yorker informs your own artistic voice and point of view?

I’m a straight shooter, you know? Being a Puerto Rican tranny from New York, I have dealt with a lot of things in my life. Even my aesthetic, or how I present myself, is all an expression of rebellion. I don’t dress for somebody; I dress for me. I don’t create for people. I create for myself first. I follow the beat on my own drum and I think that’s very New York.

What advice would you say for other young trans creatives looking to push forward throughout the noise of the industry?

Embrace your uniqueness and your voice. Sometimes trans people experience gender dysphoria, and we can have a weird relationship with the sound of our voice. I want to inspire trans artists to embrace their voices, whether it’s masculine, whether it’s feminine, whether it’s everything in between, because it’s what makes you different. Do not let people put you in a box. Just be an artist.

Alchemy is being released on Friday the 13th. Do you have a relationship with superstition?

I’m not the type who’s gonna go frantic about splitting a pole, or knock on wood. I don’t necessarily believe I feel like I’m definitely more powerful than that. However, I do believe in synchronicity, numbers, and the power in numerology and astrology. I believe in a higher source, a power – the power of my pussy! When I released “Reach Out”, it was on 11/11. Little things like that do make me feel like I am aligning with something bigger. It’s not just any day, it’s Friday the 13th! 

I feel lucky to have basked in Morgin DuPont’s words of inspiration during our conversation, and to have a new soundtrack to my Spring. As New Yorkers begin to defrost and gather, I’ll remind myself to stay true to who I am, relating especially to songs like “Party From Home” as a self proclaimed extroverted introvert. Her brave and rebellious voice is a needed one in our current music landscape. As our Trans, LGBTQ and Latinx siblings and loved ones continue to face the unspeakable, Alchemy is a reminder of what it looks like to speak truth to power. 

CONNECT WITH MORGIN DuPONT:
INSTA / YOUTUBE

The post MORGIN DUPONTS PUSHES HER LUCK THIS FRIDAY THE 13TH WITH ALCHEMY EP RELEASE appeared first on LADYGUNN.