Archives for 2017

Beautiful Photo Blankets from Collage.com (Review and Giveaway)

September 29, 2017 By Marijean

The holidays are approaching quickly, now is the time to start thinking of gifts for friends and family. Sometimes it is not easy to think of gifts for loved ones. You aren’t sure if they have something you are thinking of, but you don’t just want to give a gift card. I was contacted by Collage.com to review two of their customizable photo blankets. These would definitely make great gifts!

Collage.com offers a variety of photo blankets to choose from. They offer: Fleece, Sherpa, Printed Woven, Plush Fleece, Plush Sherpa and Woven Image. The sizes of the blankets depend on which blanket style you choose. I chose to review the Printed Woven blanket and the Woven Image blanket.

The ordering process was super easy. I chose the biggest size available (60×80) for both blankets because I knew I would be using one on my couch and one on my bed. You can add as many photos you want to the blanket and rearrange the photos to show exactly where you want them on the blanket. you can upload photos right from your computer, Facebook and Instagram. You can add backgrounds, stickers effects and text. Possibilities are endless!

I chose the Printed Woven with lots of family pictures. For my second blanket, I chose the Woven Image with one large photo. I am so excited how both of them turned out. Each blanket arrived in a clear carry case great for storage or travel. The blankets are super soft and they feel very heavy-duty. I love the large size of the blankets and each photo pops with color. The photos look absolutely perfect on the blanket.

In conclusion, I am very happy and impressed with the quality of these blankets from Collage.com. I believe they are 100% worth the price, and I love how you can customize them any way you wish. These blankets would make great holiday gifts, wedding gifts, Anniversary gifts and birthday gifts!

All of the blankets are backed by Collage.com‘s Just Right 100% satisfaction guarantee: If a customer doesn’t like his or her order, they make it right or refund money.
New customers also get 60% off their first order. There’s a banner in the top left corner of the page where new customers can get the 60% off discount on their very first order.

Please click here to order!

A great thing about these blankets is that each one of them is machine washable! No need to take to a dry cleaner!

*I received the mentioned blankets in exchange for this review. All thoughts are my own.

GIVEAWAY

One lucky reader will win a gift card to Collage.com for a photo blanket of their choice! In the comments below, please let me know which photo blanket you will choose if you win. Giveaway ends on 10/13. U.S. residents only.

Marijean

My name is MJ. I have two wonderful children and work part time as well as volunteer at my children's school.

Deck the Halls: 4 Ways to Upcycle Old Christmas Decorations

September 27, 2017 By Anne

Decorating for Christmas is one of the many joys of the holiday season. Each winter, with visions of sugar plums dancing in our heads, we pull out the boxes from the garage or attic, robotically open them up and throw up all of the red and green garlands and twinkle lights. Stockings go here. Lights up there. Garland along the staircase. We’ve got it down to a routine. But where’s the holiday magic? If Christmas morning is more like Groundhog’s Day, it might be time to channel your inner elf. There’s no need for a Christmas miracle. You can make it happen with a little creativity and these three DIY projects that put your old holiday trappings to work like new.

Ornament Upgrade

When the kids were young, unbreakable ornaments were a must. Now that they are older, a few chic glass or ceramic bulbs would provide your Christmas tree with a more sophisticated look. Upgrade from your plastic ornaments and put them to use in other holiday-themed DIYs. Easy for busy moms, a quick DIY can give your home a festive look. Large, clear hurricane candle holders make for the perfect receptacle to hold your old ornaments. Once filled, you can display the repurposed candle holders in clusters or individually.

Turn Christmas On Its Head

Guaranteed to be an instant conversation starter, an upside-down Christmas tree makes for a whimsical way to decorate for the holidays. With this new, trendy tree you can put your old tree ornaments to work. Garland and tinsel will take on new life when hung from the modern tree, creating a fresh holiday look your friends and family will talk about well after the holiday season is over.

Garland Makeover

Put all of that old garland to good use and create something festive to wear. No, we’re not talking about ugly sweaters here. Great for holiday parties, for Christmas, or New Year’s Eve, this festive DIY uses old holiday garland in a fun and wearable way. Studio DIY takes a little Mod Podge, glitter and holiday garland and turns it into a sparkly party hat! Put out a set of these at your next Christmas party and you’ll be the the talk of the playground — “How’d she do it all?!” For instructions and to view the entire DIY visit the Studio DIY website.

Greeting Card Garnishes

Collectors and clutter bugs, this one is for you. Have trouble throwing away all of the holiday greeting cards you get each year? Instead of boxing them up put them on display. But before you do so, whip out the scissors and round up some clothespins. The Martha Stewart website has a fabulous DIY on how to gussy up the clothespins with recycled wrapping paper, too, if you’re feeling extra creative when you tackle this project.

Anne

I'm a mother of 2 who likes to get involved in too much! Besides writing here I started a non-profit, I'm on the PTO board, very active in my community and volunteer in the school. I enjoy music, reading, cooking, traveling and spending time with my family. We just adopted our 3rd cat and love them all!

Adorable Little Girl’s Dresses from DotDotSmile

September 27, 2017 By Marijean

Do you have a little girl who LOVES to wear dresses? Does she love to twirl around and dance in them? If so, she will absolutely love DotDotSmile dresses!

About DotDotSmile Dresses:

**Shine like a diamond in the sky!**
Styles of well made clothing for your littles that comes in a pattern to match your child’s unique sparkle! Bring out their shine with something special to wear and love!

You may have heard of LuLaRoe clothing. They have the “buttery soft leggings” and if you are like me, you might own a million pairs!! DotDotSmile was founded by LuLaRoe’s founders daughter! You know that you are purchasing a quality and long lasting dress.

DotDotDress is the same purchasing experience as LuLaRoe. You join Michelle’s group and browse through the albums. She has dresses available from size 6-12 months all the way up to size 12/14 girls. My daughter is in a 8/10 at the moment so I chose a dress in the 8/10 size.

I received the dress very quickly and was very excited to open it. The dress is amazing! It is beautiful, and the material feels just like the leggings material. It is so soft and will keep my daughter cozy in the cool weather months. She couldn’t wait to wear it to school and show it off! She loves twirling in it and telling me how comfy it is. The washing instructions are machine wash cold on gentle cycle and hang to dry. I followed the instructions and the dress came out great, no wrinkles at all.

The type of dress I reviewed is Classic Cap. DotDotSmile also offers the following styles: Ballerina, Classic Cap, Classic Tank and Empire. All dresses are $34. Leggings are $19 and Kick Shorts are $13. Halloween styles are also available now!

In conclusion, I absolutely love DotDotSmile. The dresses are high quality that last and wash well. These dresses would make great holiday gifts for the little girl in your life. I am looking forward to adding more of these dresses to my daughter’s wardrobe!

Click here to join Michelle’s group and to check out all of the beautiful dresses!

*I received a DotDotSmile dress in exchange for this review. All thoughts are my own.

Marijean

My name is MJ. I have two wonderful children and work part time as well as volunteer at my children's school.

Beautiful Personalized Bar Kids Name Necklaces From Wickedly Mod Review and Giveaway

September 24, 2017 By Marijean

Are you looking for a beautiful customized piece of jewelry with your children’s names on it? Look no further, Wickedly Mod has beautiful personalized bar necklaces in a variety of colors and engraving choices.

I loved personalized items, especially when they have my children’s names on them. I was able to review a personalized bar kids name necklace from Wickedly Mod and cannot wait to tell you all about the gorgeous necklace and easy ordering process.

About this Necklace:

Personalized bar necklace with your kids name is the perfect gift for mom! You will receive a beautiful laser engraved personalized sterling silver, gold-filled, or rose gold-filled 30mm x 5mm bar necklace. Price starts at $38.

MATERIALS: Made with either sterling silver, gold-filled or rose gold-filled. All pieces and components are made with the same materials.

DIMENSIONS: 30mm x 5mm.

*NOTE: The length of your chain will include the length of the bar! The bar is a little more than an inch in length*

• Available in sterling silver, gold filled, or rose gold filled
• Want one with your name? Order yours here: personalized bar name necklace (note: you can still order this one but the name will always be centered)
• We use a high end laser machine for all cuts and engravings.
• Excellent customer service
• Superb quality and craftsmanship
• Unique personalized jewelry
• Beautiful packaging for easy gift giving (this necklace will go in it’s own individual Wickedly Mod box)
• Discounts are available for bridal parties and bulk orders (depending on total order value). Please contact us for more details.

The first step to the ordering process is to decide on what metal choice to pick. The options available are: Sterling Silver, Gold Filled ($4 extra) and Rose Gold Filled ($8 extra). I chose the Rose Gold because I love that color. The next step is to choose your chain length. The options are 14″ to 30″ with that average adult length being 18″. I chose the 19″ because I like to wear my necklaces a bit longer than the average length. Prices will vary on how long you want the chain to be.

The next step is choosing your engraving font. Wickedly Mod has an engraving font example photo that will help you choose the best font for your necklace. I knew I wanted a cursive type font so I went with “Trendy” and so glad I did since it came out exactly how I wanted and exactly how it looks on the example photo provided. The last step is to choose the name separator if you are personalizing more than one name. You can pick between a heart or a dot. I chose the heart. You can also add font to the back of the bar for an addition $7.

Once your are finished personalizing your necklace, you can click the checkout button. This will have everything you have chosen listed so you can review it for any errors. Then you add your billing and shipping information and that is it! SHIPPING IS ALSO FREE!!!! You will then receive a confirmation email, and then a shipping email with tracking once your necklace ships. The process was quick and easy.

I received my necklace about 6 days later. It came in a cute little box and velvety holder. I am so thrilled with how gorgeous this necklace is and the quality is amazing. I am so excited to wear it and show it off to my friends and family. I am looking forward to purchasing a few of these for my family members for the upcoming holidays!

This necklace would make a perfect gift for any Mother, Grandmother, Aunt…etc for birthdays or holiday gifts. Use code MOMMYHASTOWORK15 for 15% off your entire order.

Click here to order!

*I received a personalized necklace in exchange for this review. All thoughts are my own.

GIVEAWAY

Wickedly Mod is generously giving one lucky reader a $50 gift card! To enter, please comment below to this question: “What will you order from Wickedly Mod if you win?” Giveaway ends on 10/10. U.S. residents only.

Marijean

My name is MJ. I have two wonderful children and work part time as well as volunteer at my children's school.

Creating the perfect logo for your business start up

September 19, 2017 By Anne

If you’ve just started your own business, then finding the perfect logo is a must. Logo design is a crucial part of any business strategy and is one of the first things you should consider when laying out your plan for web domination! A good logo can help a company to truly thrive and when you’re busy at home after a busy day at the office, it’s reassuring to know that your business logo is doing a great job in promoting itself why you’re away!

But what goes into creating that perfect business logo? A company like smartsign can assist you, but here, we’ll look at a few tips about how you can build one, that works for you.

Ideas for your logo

A good place to start with your business logo design is with a brainstorming session. Begin with a collage of images that you collect as inspiration for a project. In the case of a logo, this might consist of logos that you like from other brands, images of your own products and images of things that relate to the name of your brand.

While you’re doing this you should try to avoid ‘clichéd’ ideas. Go online and search for ideas and inspiration, there are many articles with insightful tips you can use. Try looking for logos and help related to your business, such as Restaurant Logos or e-commerce logos. However, the majority of tips can be used for any logo really. when choosing your design. That means avoiding things that are used too frequently in other logos and thus won’t be unique or appear creative and thoughtful. Globes, ticks and speech bubbles are all over done and should thus be avoided.

Creating your logo

Once you have an idea for a log design, the next thing to do is to actually start creating it. Of course this requires a more measured approach than other aspects of design. Remember: this is going to be used on your websites, packaging, advertising and more and will become an ambassador for your business. Consider adding unique elements, like some lettering that could stand out with colorful foil stamping. This will draw customers in and give you something to elevate your brand. The quality needs to reflect the quality of your business and thus should be flawless.

You can purchase software that you can use at home to create your desired look, or you can even work with a graphic designer who specialties in company logos. If you choose to outsource this work then it’s crucial that the designer knows about the inner workings of your business, they are familiar with how you work, what you do, what you sell and your companies mission statement. This way, they’ll be able to create you something that will become the voice of your business.

Remember!

Remember, before you even start working up a logo design concept, ensure you research your target market thoroughly!

Be enticing and make sure it appeals to your target audience. Be unique, and avoid obvious clichés – make your logo memorable! Be timeless and make your logo eternally relevant – so avoid trendy fonts.

Use colour to reinforce your message and make good use of any white space.

Don’t follow trends – create them with a bold design but always keep things simple. Don’t make your logo too “busy” and if you have a message – express it.