Darphynia's Diary

Shiran, the creator of the Urban Raven, transforms seemingly useless junk into wearable works of art. Image courtesy of Shiran Tal @ Urban Raven Image courtesy of Shiran Tal @ Urban Raven Business establishment : I live in Zichron Yaakov, Israel and founded Urban Raven in 2013 While studying industrial design at HIT College, I became interested in jewelry design and began learning it on my own. It became a true passion, so I ended my studies in industrial design and am currently a goldsmith student. Ever since I was a child, I always loved design and working with my hands, but I never thought I would be doing it for a living. I was introduced to the world of upcycling after I had already begun experimenting with jewelry making and it was a god sent! It led me to creative searches through the flea market in Yafo (Jaffa) where I looked for items I could reinvent and sell to pay off my student loans. Unfortunately, even at the flea market, the items were too

This post is long overdue, so I apologize.  I received a Helix ThreadEase to try out (a huge "thank you" to the company!) a few months ago.  It is a wonderful threading device, so your eyebrows will always look their best.  Do you ever have those days when you feel like your eyebrows are taking over your face?  I do, especially if it has been some time since going to my eyebrow lady.  For years, I have gone to the same person.  Unfortunately the cost of brow upkeep is increasing, so I only go about once a month.  I am trying to save up for a trip to Japan, so cutting out things here and there are helping with my saving.  I digress.... For quite some time, my cousin used to wax my eyebrows or I had friends who worked in salons who would wax them.  My mom's friend was actually the one to recommend threading, and at first I was skeptical.  I thought, "What the heck does that even mean?!"  I went for my first threading session and loved it.  In my opinion, it

I know it's been awhile.  Things with my dissertation are moving along, which is why I have been away.  I promise to have more posts up asap.  In the meantime, here are a couple of photos that hint to upcoming posts:  Have a wonderful weekend!

There is a plethora of lip care out in the world.  Lip balms, serums, scrubs, lipsticks, colors...and the list continues.  This first collection are my five favorite lip balms.  Some may not be the best in terms of scent or flavor, but I take something that works over those two any day.  The products mentioned are not ranked in order of favorite to least favorite.  They are listed in the order in which they came into my head. 1.   fresh Sugar Lip Treatment Image courtesy of Sephora.com My friend introduced me to fresh nearly 10 years ago.  She said that I had to try their lip balm because it was the best she had ever tried.  At the time it was about $20.00 (it's $22.50/0.15oz now), and I thought paying that much was insane.  But then I tried it, and I was blown away!  Right away, my lips felt smoother, and the product lasted all day.  It also contains SPF 15, which is great.  Your lips need protection, too!  If you're looking to add a hint of color, they now com

Image courtesy of eos First, a HUGE "thank you" to eos for sending me the lip balms to try out.  I received the Coconut Milk and Vanilla Mint varieties, and they are wonderful!  The coconut balm reminds me of visiting Hawai'i and all of those summer days spent at the beach.  Vanilla + mint is one of my favorite combinations and works with just about anything:  lip balm, tea, scrubs; it is refreshing and warm.   Coconut Milk (left) and Vanilla Mint (right) I am a huge fan of lip products, and love these little spheres of moisture-providing balm.  I had heard rave reviews, and couldn't be more appreciative for getting the chance to try them.  Based on the look of the balm itself, I thought they would be similar to others that just feel like a film over your lips.  You know the type.  Smells and looks good, but you apply the balm and your lips think, "What on Earth is this?!".  That alone made me wonder if all of the people providing such po

Image courtesy of fritolay.com The last go-around, I wasn't able to try all of the chips.  This time, I got one of each.  Overall, I am really impressed that the flavors were able to be quite spot-on with rare exception.  My mouth never quite knows what is going on when a food tastes like one thing but is on a vessel for something else.  Anyway, here are my first impressions. 1.  Greektown Gyro Image courtesy of fritolay.com This one really surprised me, in a very good way.  My first thought was that the chips smelled like a gyro.  Unfortunately I have been misled by scents before (like the bottled PB&J soda that smelled like strawberry jelly but tasted like plastic), so my expectations were not that high.  Then, I took chip, and could taste everything:  meat, cucumber & onion, tzatziki ... and it was awesome!  I didn't think the other flavors would be as good or as close to the real thing.  Boy, was I in for an experience. 2.   Southern Biscuits and G

Image courtesy of outofthecloset.org One of my favorite thrift shops on the planet is Out of the Closet .  There are a few reasons.  One is that there can be some great finds at great prices (I got the caffitaly CBTL coffee maker for $18.00!), but the biggest one is their cause:  96 cents of every dollar goes to AIDS research ( AIDS Healthcare Foundation ).  They also take most items when you donate , so you can de-clutter your space whilst supporting a worthy cause.  Many locations also offer free HIV testing .  All locations offer resources, and condoms.  What is it they say?  "No glove, no love." Find the nearest location to you here .

Taking a road trip is just what the doctor ordered!  It won't be far, but much needed and well worth it.  Do you have any plans before summer ends?  Let me know.  When I get back, I will have more giveaway details for all of you.  I will also try to get in a few haul posts in the next week that will feature Daiso, SPF care, and more!    Stay beautiful!