Dear Wendy readers are some of the most intelligent, stylish, super cool people around (it’s a proven fact), so, when a commenter suggested I create a regular feature for them to recommend some of their favorite products, it was a no-brainer and Reader Recs was born. Today’s recommendations come from Lyra, who is a 20-something Minnesota native living near Minneapolis with her cat, Opal (pictured here). She is a music teacher who loves music (duh), reading, snuggling with fuzzy animals, crocheting, and visiting Minnesota State Parks. She has also recently delved into running, and she ran her first 5k in July! Keep reading for her recommendations.
Smart Tiles
My friend has these and absolutely loves them. They are on my wish list because they look so awesome. These are perfect for those of us who rent! They are stick-on tiles that can be removed using a hairdryer. I want to make a backsplash for both my kitchen and my bathroom sinks.
Organix Moroccan Argan Oil
Shout out to DWer Kate for recommending this to me originally! It’s so great. It helps smooth my naturally wavy hair with no blow drying or straightening, and, if I do straighten it, my hair is so silky smooth and bouncy.
Da Bird cat toy
My cat really loves this toy! It helps her to get a good amount of exercise, which is necessary around my small apartment.
Automatic pet feeder
If your pet is a gobbler and you want him or her to get consistent, smaller meals throughout the day, this is the feeder for you! My cat is a gobbler. She would clear any dish in a heartbeat, so this works really well to help regulate her meals.
Cherry Blossom Tree Light
Mood lighting at its finest. This light is such a cool addition to my apartment’s decor! It also has a timer so that it comes on automatically.
Thanks, Lyra!
If you have some products you’d like to recommend to the DW audience, shoot me an email at wendy@dearwendy.com with links to five recommendations. (Write “reader recs” in the subject line, please). Your recommendations can be from any store or website, but they need to be accessible online — and I would love it if at least two items could be found on Amazon where I am an affiliate. If your list is a good fit for the site, I’ll ask you to write a brief description of each item/explain what you love so much about it.
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Holly July 17, 2014, 1:06 pm
Your cat looks like mine! More kitty pictures, please! 🙂 Also, do you wave the toy around in front of her and have her paw at it or does she chase after it? Also, I’ve been looking into automated feeders but I’ve got Amazon Review fatigue because for every good comment I hear about a feeder, there’s 4 or 5 about how the cat found a way to outsmart it. With that one, someone mentioned their cat pawing at it in a way that kicked a spring and made the next meal come right out. Has your cat been able to magic her way to more food using the feeder?
Lyra July 17, 2014, 1:20 pm
Nope, she hasn’t outsmarted it! The top closes and locks and then it rotates for the next feeding. I have mine programmed every 3-4 hours. I refill it every night before I go to bed and then her first feeding comes at 6 am. She does jump when she hears it go off though so it’s pretty funny. She’ll be “napping” and then the feeder rotates and she jumps towards it. Hilarious.
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Also the toy I basically dangle it in front of her and she paws at it. I’ll also wave it through the air and she runs back and forth. It’s pretty entertaining.
Kate July 17, 2014, 1:14 pm
Thanks for the shout-out! That stuff also has heat and UV protection in it if you DO blow-dry or are out in the sun a lot.
Lyra July 17, 2014, 1:21 pm
It’s so great! I don’t blow dry that often, usually just wash and wear and it definitely helps my hair stay under control. Dang frizz.
Lyra July 17, 2014, 1:24 pm
Confession: it was super cool to load DW and see my (spoiled rotten) cat on the main page!! 🙂
d2 July 18, 2014, 8:36 am
Opal is pretty girl!
Lyra July 18, 2014, 9:26 am
Thank you! 🙂 She’s a rescue — I adopted her last October. Right now Navy Guy’s cat is staying with me for two weeks because he’s in Seattle and Opal is so possessive of me! She’ll watch him suspiciously and then come right up to cuddle with me as if to say “this is MY human”. It’s the cutest/weirdest thing ever!
othy July 17, 2014, 1:49 pm
Da Bird is my cats’ favorite toy. They go crazy when I bring it out.
Also, congratulations on your first 5K. How’d it go?
Lyra July 17, 2014, 1:59 pm
It was the color run! I didn’t run the entire thing, but it went well. I plan on doing a “real” one with a real time at some point soon!
othy July 17, 2014, 3:33 pm
Color runs totally count. And running the whole thing is less important to me than your time. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with taking walk breaks, especially if it improves your overall time (it totally does for me!).
Lyra July 17, 2014, 3:41 pm
Yeah my team decided to walk part then run part and it worked pretty well. One of my teammates has severe asthma so she couldn’t run the entire thing and we wanted to go through as a team. It was fun! The next step is to run the entire thing. 🙂
kerrycontrary July 17, 2014, 1:54 pm
I like the idea of peel and stick tiles for rentals, but I’m terrified that they won’t come off or they’ll damage the paint. Anyone have experience with them?
Lyra July 17, 2014, 1:58 pm
The friend I mentioned has used them in a past apartment too and with the heat it came right off. 🙂 They look so cool!
Sunshine Brite July 17, 2014, 4:56 pm
I’m tempted, very tempted
mrmidtwenties July 17, 2014, 5:10 pm
Former hardware store employee here, and do not use those tiles if it is a place you own or are planning on living in for more than a couple years, they do no stand up well to consistently getting wet and when water inevitably gets behind it will mold from behind
Lyra July 18, 2014, 12:47 am
What a debbie downer! 😉 Where’s your reader rec, mrmid?
mrmidtwenties July 18, 2014, 8:05 am
Sorry, haha, I’m still thinking of writing it
Lyra July 18, 2014, 9:18 am
Do it! First ever reader recs for a guy’s perspective. I would totally use that as a gift giving guide for my SO.
Dietcokeaddict July 18, 2014, 11:15 pm
Love argan oil!! Great pick!