Arbonne International

[Muduh]

I have never in my life heard of Arbonne products before until i read this thread and whaddya know...my SIL is now starting to sell this!!!! As Alanis Morrisette once sung "Isn't that ironic?".........She's going to give me a few samples of the weight loss pills to try cause I'm pretty much a sucker for anything that may help and motivate me to lose some weight but she knows my financial situation so she knows I can't go out and buy a bunch of stuff. I'm sure she'll have a party and I'll go but she knows I don't buy stuff.

She's sold home interior products on the side for a long time (her mom is a district manager for it) and she's not one of those pushy types. Plus I don't mind buying candles because I know I'm gonna use those and they are always good to have around in case you need a last minute gift for a housewarming or teachers present or secret pal kind of stuff!

I first heard of it a couple of months ago, when a woman I know started selling it. She mentioned the thirty minute thing, twice daily and I thought, uh uh, not for me. And I really can't see buying anything that is that expensive, at a home party. I think it may be a fad, such as the Sarah Coventry jewelry parties were, many years ago, and the Tupperware parties more recently.

[Marleybone]

What is the 30-minute thing with Arbonne? I know the stuff I tried was 6 steps twice a day but I hadn't heard of anything taking 30 minutes.

Speaking of home parties, I went to the scrapbooking/stamping party I was invited to yesterday. It's called Close to the Heart. I have to admit their concept of stamps was pretty cool. You buy aset of stamps, and each stamp is a peel off thing that you place on a clear acrylic block, you can see exactly where you are putting the stamp so no mistakes. You only need to buy a couple of blocks and the stamps fit into these nice plastic envelopes. I just hate those sets though, because there are always some that I will never use. The whole thing was irritating, we got a late start because the hostess was waiting for her daughter to show up, and also a couple of the guests brought their children. One was a 5 year old who was terrified of anyone she didn't know, so she clung to her mother and whined "mommy, mommy". We made a bookmark, and of course the 5 year old and the other child were allowed to make one too, so we had the 5 year old whining because her mom wouldn't let her have the big scissors. There were not enough scissors or glue thingys to go around so it took about 1/2 hour to make a stupid bookmark that should have taken less than 5 minutes. Very frustrating. The more I go to those things the more I hate home parties, and if not for my friend being the hostess I wouldn't have even gone.

[Muduh]

The woman who is a consultant said that the six step routine takes about thirty minutes, twice a day. Then she showed some before and after pictures of herself and darned if she didn't look better before, in my opinion. I don't know the woman, just as I don't know you all, but she's a very attactive woman and probably needs to just leave well enough alone. Her face looked so slick and shiny that is was distracting.

[marybethp]

Marley - as a scrapbooker, I actually enjoy some of the close to my heart products. However, I buy them on ebay if I want them so I don't have to deal with parties.

Also, that is SUCH a specialized type of party. You're not going to drop $50-$75 on stuff if you aren't a crafty type. Listen, we all wash our face (I think ) so we could be suckered into some soaps or cleansers. However, expecting someone to come to such a party is very irritating if you aren't ever going to use the stuff!!!

[Muduh]

What is the 30-minute thing with Arbonne? I know the stuff I tried was 6 steps twice a day but I hadn't heard of anything taking 30 minutes.

Speaking of home parties, I went to the scrapbooking/stamping party I was invited to yesterday. It's called Close to the Heart. I have to admit their concept of stamps was pretty cool. You buy aset of stamps, and each stamp is a peel off thing that you place on a clear acrylic block, you can see exactly where you are putting the stamp so no mistakes. You only need to buy a couple of blocks and the stamps fit into these nice plastic envelopes. I just hate those sets though, because there are always some that I will never use. The whole thing was irritating, we got a late start because the hostess was waiting for her daughter to show up, and also a couple of the guests brought their children. One was a 5 year old who was terrified of anyone she didn't know, so she clung to her mother and whined "mommy, mommy". We made a bookmark, and of course the 5 year old and the other child were allowed to make one too, so we had the 5 year old whining because her mom wouldn't let her have the big scissors. There were not enough scissors or glue thingys to go around so it took about 1/2 hour to make a stupid bookmark that should have taken less than 5 minutes. Very frustrating. The more I go to those things the more I hate home parties, and if not for my friend being the hostess I wouldn't have even gone.

I've never gotten in to scrapbooking, but my son has made some really cute things. He made his dad a scrapbook last year, and me a calendar. He has also done a lot of picture frame mats and stuff. That came in handy when he realized that his wife had taken all of the ones that they had.

I have a thing about people taking kids who are too young to participate, to events like that and allowing them to... participate. I doubt that anyone enjoys that very much. I once gave a shower for my girlfriends son and daughter in law, and everyone brought their little kids. I had used all my best things, and didn't have enough matching stuff for the kids. Wouldn't have given them to the kids if I had. One kid threw such a fit that her mother swapped with her and used the childs melamine plate and tumbler and let the kid have my good stuff. I was a nervous wreck.

[Marleybone]

marybethp - I'm not even a scrapbooker! I intended to do a scrapbook after my dog died, but the pictures are still in a box and Brandy has been gone for 8 years now. I finally convinced myself that it's ok to admit that I have no interest in scrapbooking, although I have to admit the bookmark was kind of fun. I do like stamps though, and I'm a big ebay girl so I will check that out.

Muduh - I tried that Arbonne 6 step thing for 3 days and it never took me that long. I wouldn't have done it more than once if it took 30 minutes each time. I probably spent somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes on it. My friend who is selling it says she can tell a big difference in how her skin looks and feels, but I think you can take good care of skin and not spend hundreds of dollars.

[val123elephant]

I was using the Arbonne natural progesterone cream that I ordered from a friend down in the States since they didn't sell it up here. It helped for a while. Then this weekend I was reading a book on women's health issues during menopause and it said it was dangerous to use this without first getting all your hormone levels done at the doctor's. By the way I've since read that my friend has now graduated and is a district manager and is doing quite well for herself. So Amway anyone?

[misskitty]

I think multi-levell marketing things attract a certain kind of person and those people tend to do very well. I'm sure when you get to certain levels, you can make a lot of money. But you really have to be outgoing, sales oriented, and know a lot of people.

That, I am not. Well, not all three

[misskitty]

Well, I went to my cousin's Arbonne party tonight. Oops last night. It's after midnight now.

I actually had a nice time. There were only 8 of us and it really wasn't high pressure at all. There were a million products that we passed around and tried. The lady who presented the products was very informal and was very up front about why she is involved, and if you want to sell, have a party or whatever. But she did not make anyone feel uncomfortable or pressured to buy or participate. Although the products seemed to be quite nice, they are definitely out of my price range at the moment. One lady booked a party, and several purchased a few products.

I also had a chance to see my cousin's house and the renovations she's doing to it. And I got to meet Bear, her border collie who is a sweetie.

I did very well and came out only purchasing the body scrub which I really did like.

[Swingsongbird]

My sister sells Arbonne. I've tried and bought some of the makeup that basically cost me what Clinique did. I do it to keep her off my back. I love her to death, but I swear she's joined a cult. I can't have a conversation with her without her touting the wonders of Arbonne. She's talked me into buying the new skin care system and I got the "family discount". It was still more than I would pay for the things I usually use. I am too lazy to use it, so it will probably go bad before I get to use it.

Beware, the cult of Arbonne. Do not let yourself get sucked into it.