The Pleated Poppy: A Giveaway

{petal pusher pin}

I'm a fan of The Pleated Poppy, so when its lovely shop owner Lindsey contacted me to see if she could give one of you something great, I was totally on board. You know how I love spreading the word about handmade goodness.

That was in September. (ahem)
I follow through on my word, but sometimes I'm very very slow about it.
Just so you know.
{Thankfully, Lindsey is very forgiving.}

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But here we are, it's finally time...
so please feast your eyes on the beauty that comes from The Pleated Poppy shop:

{covered notebook}

{petal pusher pin}

there are hair clips...

and zippered pouches...

and pins...

and headbands...

and even petal drop necklaces...

There are even MORE categories of items than what I've shown you here, of course, over at The Pleated Poppy Shop, so please head on over and feast your eyes on the pretty things.


Lastly,
my personal favorite...


{The scarves are actually sold out right now, but they'll be back, so I'll be patiently waiting for their return and trying to decide on a color in the meantime.}


So friends, would you like a....
???


You can enter to win this generous $25 gift certificate, given to one lucky winner, by leaving a comment here, that's all you have to do. That is, unless you're an overachiever and want more chances, then go ahead and tweet about this giveaway and let me know that you did in a separate comment.



The giveaway will be open until one week from today, Monday, January 31st at 10:00am and the winner will be announced the following day.

Thank you and good luck!

What Think Ye of Christmas?

This is the painting that my friend Jana Winters Parkin created for my Great Aunt and Uncle after they lost their daughter Susan. Jana doesn't know my Aunt Elsie and Uncle Keith, but she felt moved to do something for them because that's just the kind of person that she is. Her talent is enormous, no?

And this Christmas, Jana's illustrations are being shared in a beautiful book called What Think Ye of Christmas by Ester Rasband.
This book is an inspiring (achieved) effort to bring to life the spirituality of Christmas. The pages detail the meaning behind so much of what has become frivolous to us, almost unseen...the lights, a song, the trees...What Think Ye of Christmas rejoices in the small things of the advent season and then celebrates the fact that these small things are true symbols of the Christmas story coming to life--a star and a stable and redemption found.

Jana's illustrations throughout this book are nothing short of magical. Her water color paintings are a symbol of joy in themselves.

Would you like to see them? You can browse through Jana's website to do just that, or you can get your own copy for your family or for the perfect gift here. There is also a discount on Jana's website if you purchase more than 5 copies (they're only $9.95 each anyway, for this hardcover book!) (you can also get an extra 5% discount if you type CHARRETTE in the discount box at checkout.)

OR, maybe you'd like to win a free copy? I have an extra here for one of you, of course, and all you have to do is leave a comment to enter to win it.

Tell me, what is one of your favorite things about this season? Wrapping? Trimming? Baking? Carols?

This giveaway will remain open until 9pm (CST) on Tuesday December 14th and the winner will be announced the following day.

(Disclaimer: I did receive a free copy of What Think Ye of Christmas for myself as well as a free copy for one of you.)


P.S. Here are some things I love about Christmas:

our living room (I love to stare at this)

My Grandma gave me this in 1987 (it plays O Holy Night and makes me cry a good cry)

old Christmas ornaments (because I just love old things)

a real tree (with some bling)

This giveaway is now closed.

Gifts for Life: giveaway winners!

Firstly,

Thank you to everyone who donated items for this Gifts for Life extravaganza, and to each of you who took the time to learn more about these gifts that give back!

Now for what you really want to know...(please read all the way through because even if you did not win, there are discount and donation codes being offered from the providers of the giveaways!)


And the winners are....

Paper Culture:

Winner #1 - Amber (#6)
Winner #2 - happygeek (#58)
Winner #3 - Becky (#2)
Winner #4 - Tate and Abby (#48)
Winner #5 - Suzanne (#22)

Congratulations to all of you! You've won yourself $25 to Paper Culture!

**Paper Culture is also generously donating 20% of any order you make to Bead for Life! Just use code: BEADS at checkout**

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The Artist's House:

Winner #1 - Pamela (#22)
Winner #2 - MollyinMinn (#4)

Congratulations to you both! You've each won a $25 credit to The Artist's House!

**Angela is offering a 20% off code for each and every one of you. Just enter code: heatherrocks at the Artist's House checkout to receive your discount! (She chose the code, I did not. She is the one that rocks, yo.)**

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Shining Stones

Winner: Shaina (#43)

Congratulations! You've won the Black Raspberry Pearl set from Shining Stones!

(and remember friends, if you saw something you loved at Shining Stones, Ellie is also donating 20% to Bead for Life with every order that includes the code BEADFORLIFE at checkout. Thank you, Ellie!)

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{So}Sartina

Winner: Celeste (#23)

Congratulations! You've won a $25 credit to the {So}Sartina shop on Etsy!

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Butters and Beans and Playful Planet

Winner: Jolene (#11)

Congrats! You've won the beautiful set of organic baby clothing with a bib, blanket and burp cloth from Butters and Beans and the Storyland Yoga DVD and t-shirt!

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{sweeter than me} designs

Winner: Sara Sophia (#19)

Congrats! You've won TWO items of your choice from {sweeter than me} designs!

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BEAD FOR LIFE

winner: transplantedx3
Congratulations!

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• Each winner was chosen by random.org

• If I don't hear from and/or am unable to contact any winner by Friday Dec. 10th, a new winner will be chosen.
• Thank you, thank you, thank you all! I heard so many exciting things about donations and purchases to support Bead for Life. That was the goal, friends, and I can't thank you enough. Please keep Bead for Life in mind for gifts, bead parties, and charitable donations. What an amazing organization! It's been a pleasure to shout Bead for Life from the rooftops!
  

Gifts for Life: BEAD FOR LIFE

OH friends...
today brings you so much goodness from the...





to eradicate poverty
in the lives of the women
with the hands
to roll and string
and gather and process and prepare

so we can help

Today, Bead for Life is offering one winner all of this:

the 5 strand necklace

the Madaala Necklace


one pair of the single earrings


THREE bangle bracelets

the band bracelet

the 3 strand bracelet

one shea butter soap


a fabric jewelry bag


one shea butter lip balm

and a Bead for Life CD

(the jewelry will not necessarily come in these colors)

Thank you, thank you, thank you Bead for Life...

All you have to do is leave a comment on this post to enter for ALL OF THE ABOVE. Just imagine the gift-giving opportunities (and of course, gift a little something to yourself).

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Because our goal with this Gifts for Life gift guide is to support the wonderful cause of Bead for Life, we have made it possible for you to increase your entries (and odds of winning!) by doing a couple of things:

1) Buy jewelry at the Bead for Life store and earn ONE ADDITIONAL COMMENT for every $10 spent (or donated) on ONE GIVEAWAY (not one additional entry on each giveaway or more than one).

2) Registering to host a Bead for Life Bead Party earns you FIVE (5) ADDITIONAL COMMENT entries in Gifts for Life giveaways.

These are simply options for extra entries to win, they are not required to enter the Bead for Life giveaway. Still have a question about extra entries? Check out the full details here.

This giveaway (and all other Gifts for Life giveaways both here and at O My Family from this week) closes at 10:00pm CST Sunday December 5th. The winner will be announced the following day.

If you happen to have them in your pocket, you can use your extra entries on today's or any of the giveaways from this week. Please leave a separate comment for each $10 spent/donated. But keep in mind all your extra entries must be used on ONE giveaway of your choice, not separated.


Previous Gifts for Life giveaways for your entering pleasure:

• Paper Culture (5 winners-$25 gift certificates)
• Paper Culture (5 more winners at O My Family)
• The Artist's House (2-$25 gift certificates)
• Shining Stones (jewelry set)
• Earth Mama Angel Baby (set)
• {So}Sartina ($25 gift certificate)
• Bird E Studios ($40 credit)
• Butters and Beans and Playful Planet (2 sets)

This giveaway is now closed.

Gifts for Life: Butters and Beans and Storyland Yoga

Here we are on our second to the last day of the Gifts for Life event. *virtual fist bump*

And today we're going to wrap things up (before the HUGE Bead for Life giveaway tomorrow, of course), with a double-whammy bang...

How about a generous package from both Butters and Beans and Playful Planet?

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Here are a few of my favorite things from Butters and Beans (a place to find absolutely adorable baby and toddler clothing, bibs, burp cloths, blankets, dresses and more).

An Acorn must-have, no?

Mommy loves orange.

Let's go over what will be included in this giveaway package, shall we?

burp cloth

blanket



bib

and pants just like these, but in the pattern above.

Everyone knows a baby! And there you have it. The perfect gifts.

FOUR items thanks to Ann from Butters and Beans.

(I have a confession. I'm hanging on to these goodies, they're right here in my office, waiting to be sent to the winner. It's hard to not "lose" them "accidentally" and then "find" them when the Acorn arrives. Let's just say that Butters and Beans is a new fave of mine. Check out the website, friends. There is a whole lot of nomnomnom there, trust me.)

Oh, I can't stand it...just one last photo...

nom nom nom

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And now. As if all of that were not enough for one giveaway, my friend Karen from Playful Planet has also gifted 2 items to this worthy Bead for Life cause. One lucky winner will win all of the above

AND:

A Storyland Yoga DVD with a Playful Planet message t-shirt!

Karen was kind enough to give me a copy of Storyland Yoga, an award-winning children's yoga DVD, at Creative Alliance this year, and I'm telling you the truth when I say that my boys love it. (I realize I've already told you this in a previous post, but just in case you're new, Storyland Yoga is a peaceful trip through stories in which kids learn while moving their bodies, stretching and acting out parts of the story.)

(Disclaimer: I was given the Storyland Yoga DVD as mentioned above. Other than that, I was not compensated for sharing my favorites with you in support of Bead for Life.)

Previous Gifts for Life giveaways for your entering pleasure:

• Paper Culture (5 $25 gift certificates
  
• Paper Culture (5 more $25 gift certificates)
  
• Shining Stones (jewelry set)
  
• Bird E Studios ($40 credit)
  
• The Artist's House (TWO $25 gift certificates)
  
• {So}Sartina ($25 credit)
  
• {sweeter than me} designs (2 items of your choice)
  
• Earth Mama Angel Baby (package)

PHEW.

P.S. You are not going to want to miss the last-but-not-least giveaway tomorrow, friends!

BEAD FOR LIFE!

This giveaway is now closed.