Drama Queen Seams

Thank you to Jeanna at Drama Queen Seams for such a lovely post about the recent Origami Owl Living Locket giveaway sponsored by designer Tiffany Scraper! You MUST see all of Jeanna’s stunning photos wearing her new chain, locket, charms, and tag!

Please contact Tiffany at thehootsuite@gmail.com, her Facebook page, or her web site if you have any questions about creating your own Living Locket or becoming an Origami Owl independent designer.

And be sure to check out Jeanna’s amazing creative talents as well in this Shop Love! post, on her blog, in her Drama Queen Appeal Boutique, and on her FB page. ♥

The Origami Owl Blogger Locket Winner Is . . .

Thank you SO much to everyone for entering the Origami Owl Blogger Locket Giveaway and for all your lovely, encouraging comments. Seriously, every time a new one popped up, I said to myself, “Oh . . . I hope SHE wins!!!” But the time came to draw one name out of the hat, and the lucky winner is . . .

Jeanna of Drama Queen Seams!

Congratulations, Jeanna! As soon as you email me your mailing address, I’ll send your prize and Tiffany will send the extra charm you chose—the crystal clear crown. And for all of our other blogging friends . . . thank you again for your enthusiasm and support for small businesses, and feel free to contact Tiffany at thehootsuite@gmail.com, her Facebook page, or her web site if you have any questions about creating your own Living Locket or becoming an Origami Owl independent designer. You’re the best! ♥

Blogger Locket Giveaway (Hmmm . . . wish I could win this!)

My lovely art teacher daughter-in-law Tiffany just became an independent designer for Origami Owl. Have you seen these amazing “Living Lockets” yet? You choose your locket size and design, fill it with hand-picked charms, and (if you like) add plates, dangles, and tags. Then you either purchase a chain or wear your creation on a chain or ribbon you already own. They’re absolutely beautiful! So Tiffany and I put our heads together and came up with a “blogger locket” giveaway that we think you’ll love! It includes:

• the large silver Living Locket with crystals,
• 5 charms: a laptop computer, a camera, a pair of scissors, a cup of coffee (or tea!), and the April stone,
• an 18-inch silver ball station chain,
• and an “Inspire” tag that can be worn either with the locket or separately.

You can see close-ups of all the components below!

To enter this giveaway, you only have three easy steps to follow:

(1) “Like” Tiffany’s Origami Owl Facebook page here. (But if you’re not on FB, no worries! You can still enter by skipping to Step 2! )

(2) Go to Tiffany’s Origami Owl web site and find your favorite charm here. (Click on “Charm Collections” on the “Living Lockets” page.)

(3) Leave a comment below telling us you’ve liked the FB page (see note on Step 1) and what your favorite charm is.

That’s it! A week from today (Monday, April 8) we’ll draw a name out of a hat and announce the winner right here at Pillows A-La-Mode. And not only does the winner get the blogger locket, but Tiffany will mail her the other charm she chose, too! So please join in the fun, and thank you for visiting Origami Owl today or anytime from my Shop Love! page above. ♥

P.S. I forgot to mention that Origami Owl’s packaging is amazing—a drawstring bag for the tag and a “fortune cookie” made of kimono fabric to keep your locket in, all delivered in a cute little take-out box! Oh, and Tiffany has also put together a Shutterfly book with design ideas. You can check it out here.

A Design-her Gals Goodbye . . . OR a Business Opportunity?

Last September I wrote a post about how I designed the gravatar I use for my WordPress blog and gift tags. I was very happy that many of you checked out the Design-her Gals business, and some of you even made and shared your own “gals!” For example  . . .

• Just look at this fun version of Liz at A Ponytail Kind of Day with her Cavalier King Charles and Diet Coke!
• And this fun version of Kelly at Boomdeeadda with her camera and cats!

Now, sadly, Design-her Gals is closing its doors on April 15 . . . UNLESS someone else takes over the business. Could that be one of you? If you’re interested, please explore their web site and then email the owner, Jeanne Fitzmaurice, at Jeanne(at)designhergals(dot)com. As Jeanne says, “Spring is the perfect time for a new owner to lead Design-her Gals forward with a fresh perspective!”

And ALL of you can use the promo code GOODBYE to get 35% off business cards, notecards, and other paper goods with your very own “gal” on them (in an outfit and accessories YOU put together!) through the closing date. Remember that a portion of every purchase also supports Stage IV breast cancer research! ♥

I’m getting ready for my biggest refashion yet!

This beautiful bride, Christin, now has an amazing 8-year-old daughter, Allyson, and I’ll be transforming Christin’s wedding gown into Allyson’s First Communion dress!

Allyson chose Butterick 3350 with sleeves, scalloped neckline, and straight hem.

I’ll admit I’m a tiny bit nervous about working with and on two such important dresses, but I’m excited about it, too!

And I have a cheerleader! My dear friend Faye transformed her daughter-in-law’s wedding dress into the stunning First Communion dress below for her adorable granddaughter, and she’s only a phone call away if I need advice and encouragement.

Watch for the big reveal in April . . . and wish me luck! ♥

Cozies for a Cause!

My blogging friend Kayla of The Art of Creating Joy has some exciting plans!

She is raising money for a mission trip to India in the fall!

To jump-start her funding, she has opened an Etsy shop featuring these adorable handmade knitted and embroidered coffee and tea cozies.

I chose these three and can’t wait to give them as gifts!

Now she even has one in French!

Click here for Kayla’s blog and here for her shop from this post or anytime from my Shop Love! page above.

She’ll keep refilling the shop as her supporters keep ordering.

Thank you for my fun purchases, Kaylee, and thank you most of all for your vision to help the world. ♥

Lunch with Friends

A common recent lunch-with-friends topic is how to know when it’s time to make a change—any kind of change. Most of us comment that we’re extra content with our lives right now, but we remember some of the big, sometimes scary changes we’ve made in the past and know that we may have to make new ones someday, too. Although a big part of the conversation is about prayer, we also marvel at the way inspiring quotes or words from songs and poems—whether funny or serious—often come our way just when we need them. I love this “chic chick” question (it’s on a pillow!), and another friend shared a “chapter” quote she keeps on her bulletin board. Here they are . . . just in case this is a bit of the inspiration YOU need today. ♥

One Year Award and Giveaway!

UPDATE on 9-22-12: Click HERE to read the heartwarming results of this post! ♥

One week from today is the anniversary of my first WordPress blog post! Since I’ve discovered how many people around the world I’d love to have for next-door neighbors, I’d like to celebrate with a new award and giveaway!

AWARD: Please nominate a WordPress blogger (or lots of them!) for the “Good Neighbor Award” in an email to me at k[underscore]scraper@hotmail[dot]com (to keep it a surprise!), including a link to the blog and why you’d like this blogger to live next door. To cook/sew/craft/shop/write together? To learn to do something new? To be inspired? To visit over a cup of tea? Nominees will receive the award button on September 22.

GIVEAWAY: The person with the MOST nominations will be invited to send me a formerly-loved garment that I’ll make into some fun treasures (a-la “What can you make with a flannel shirt?” or “What can you make with a lace tank?” or “What can you make with a polo shirt?“) and return. THANK YOU for reaching out in friendship this past year, and I hope to hear from you soon! ♥

Design-Her-Gals

If you’ve ever wondered where my WordPress Gravatar originated . . . now you get to find out! It’s from one of my all-time favorite online businesses called Design-Her-Gals.  If you LOVE putting together outfits, you’re going to love this site! You pick your “you,” then dress and accessorize her and put her on stationery, business cards, mailing labels, notecards, aprons, mugs, caps, luggage tags, and all kinds of other cool items. PLUS, Design-Her-Gals supports research for Stage IV breast cancer. PLUS, they have the BEST sales! For example, right now they have 37% off all their stationery and paper products! They even have print-order and print-at-home options available! So, even if you’re not in the market for something like this right now, please explore their site when you get a chance, and get on their mailing list, too, so you’ll know about their frequent sales. I have a card for my writing business in one outfit and square gift cards for my sewing and crafts in this outfit . . . and check out the fabric swatches and sewing machine! ♥

 

New Year’s Resolutions

As writers, we know all about the “magic of three” . . . beginning, middle, end, The Three Bears, three adjectives, three wishes, three clues.  Three items create a pattern but don’t produce a mundane list. Comedians set up jokes with two scenarios and use the third for the punch line. Decorators use three candles on a mantle, and chefs use three garnishes on a plate. Even military officials use the “Rule of Three.” According to neuroscientist Tina Sellig, “The military has found that people can only track three things at once . . . when they experimented with a ‘Rule of Four,’ effectiveness dropped precipitously.”

Based on this real-life evidence, I decided I should stick to three New Year’s resolutions this year:

(1) Walk 10,000 steps a day. This may be a bit of a challenge since I work at a desk now instead of an elementary classroom, but check out my new pedometer! 

(2) Start a “Year of Homemade Gifts” project, with photos, links, and tutorials posted on PILLOWS A-LA-MODE. (Hopefully those are cheers I hear, not groans! )

(3) Host a resource-sharing gathering for women sometime this year . . . more on this to come.

These, along with time spent with my family and friends and writing projects fill me with anticipation for 2012. Happy New Year, and may God bless you and yours! ♥