We lost. Here’s a consolation prize. {a giveaway}

Since I have nothing good to say right now for obvious, Sunday’s-big-game-was-spectacularly-craptastic reasons, this seemed like the perfect time for a giveaway. You get the goods, and I get away with not talking about the heartbreaking display of 3 turnover sucktitude. Moving right along…CSN Stores has provided me with a gift certificate for $40 to give away to one lucky reader. This credit can be used at any of their over 200 websites, where they sell everything from modern office furniture to cute cookware to chic lighting.

To enter, leave me a comment here and tell me your go-to smile guarantee. What cheers you up when you’re feeling down? Gets you out of a funk? Remedies your broken football dreams heart?

Drawing will be held on Wednesday, February 16th at 12 pm EST. One entry per comment on this blog post. If you’d like an additional entry, you can tweet about the contest (I am @hopelessnflawed on Twitter ) or post on Facebook about the giveaway, using the Facebook comment link below. Up to 3 entries per person.

Forty dollars of free shopping people – you know you want it!

* Contest open to residents of the US and Canada. Shipping not included.

The fine print:

I was not given anything to write this post. Well okay, technically I am being given a gift certificate but that’s for you, not me. I personally gained nothing but the pleasure of hosting a giveaway. And the opportunity to provide retail therapy for a disgruntled Steelers fan. If you were rooting for Green Bay…stick it.

Just kidding.

Sorta.

No not really.

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Update: The winner is #15 – Shel! Congratulations, and I will email you the details of the gift certificate. Thank you to everyone who entered!

Yinz won!

Thanks to everyone who entered!  The girls drew names out of a hat, and the winners are…

Grand prize – Caren – Crazy Catch

Crayon rolls – Mandy, John, and Jenny
I have emailed all of the winners requesting addresses. Caren has already responded and said that she’d like the table runner to use as a hostess gift, so I will be sending that out to her tomorrow. I will share pictures here tomorrow, too. Makeover Monday has been on hiatus for far too long.

Thanks again for entering, and Go Steelers!

Swag. I gots it. I’s giving it away.

Why yes, actually I am still alive.

The pneumonia/bronchitis/laryngitis/evil virus of destruction has [mostly] left my body and I am able to breathe and eat and walk upright the majority of the time these days.

After a near death experience, I always like to celebrate with a good giveaway. This one is going to be very short and sweet, too, because we’re in a time crunch.

As I certainly hope you know, the Super Bowl is next Sunday. And I am oh-so-ready.

Jerseys for the whole fam – check. Terrible towels all around – you bet. Menu planned – of course. TV of embarrassingly large proportions that I only appreciate on game day – ready and waiting.

The only thing that could make the big day better for me is to share the love (and decorate the cheering section in your home.)

Therefore, a giveaway.

One grand prize winner will receive an item of their choice. Options are this terrible towel applique – I can put it on a t-shirt for you or your child, a burp cloth, a bib, a place mat…whatever you’d like, within reason.

Patchwork! I can do this in a twirl skirt for your little cheerleader

Or as a table runner to beautify your game-day buffet (or to give as a hostess gift for the party you attend!)

(imagine the Steelers fabric in place of this Valentine’s pattern)

Or a pillow with your child’s name – or Steelers, or Troysus, or Earl of Gross… your choice of lettering.

In addition to this, 3 other names will be drawn to receive Steelers themed crayon rolls – something’s gotta keep the little ones quiet so you can enjoy the game, right? I even have cute Steelers coloring pages I’ll send along.

Again, you’ll just have to envision the Steelers fabric in place of the bumble bees – I’m working on a time crunch so I have to roll with the pics I have on hand.

Winners will be drawn on Sunday, 1/30 at 1 pm EST. A valid email address is required to enter this drawing, and winners will need to supply their mailing address ASAP for pre-game delivery.

Because we’re on a tight schedule, this is a very short, 2-day giveaway. I need to get these things shipped out early next week to arrive in time for the big game, and I have to make them after the winners are drawn. Therefore, please enter only if you will be able to check your email on Sunday!

Open to US residents only.

To enter: leave a comment here with your favorite Steelers memory. For additional entries, you can post on Twitter, Facebook, or your own blog about this giveaway. Please leave a separate comment for each entry, 4 possible entries per person, and provide a link showing where you posted about the giveaway.

Good luck and GO STILLERS!
Added: For easy tweeting, you can use this link http://tinyurl.com/4tn2bpz

And I am @HopelessnFlawed on Twitter

24-21 in overtime. Oh, and a book winner, too.

My apologies.  I realize now that I told you I’d announce The School of Essential Ingredients giveaway winner last night.

Obviously, I neglected to do so.

I really should have checked the tv schedule before making such a declaration, because as it turned out, there was a very important football game on at that time.  Instead of drawing a winner, I was busy cheering on my beloved Mountaineers, who remarkably managed to pull a last-minute win out of their backsides.

Good times.

At any rate, the winner has now been drawn, and that is…

Mary B!

Mary, I will be emailing you shortly for your mailing address.  I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did!

To everyone, thank you for entering.  I will have another fun giveaway coming up soon!

Old Navy giveaway!

Hey y’all, check this out:

From Dates to Diapers is giving away NINE $65 off a $100 purchase coupons to Old Navy!  Get the scoop here: http://tinyurl.com/nhmjja.

Also be sure to check out www.OldNavyWeekly.com for more chances to win coupons.  Some are huge, like $75 off a $100 purchase, and others are smaller, like 15% off your entire purchase.  But in my book, any savings is good!

Enjoy, and good luck with your entries!

Custom Card Giveaway!

I can hardly believe it, but next week my little Catiebug will be 4.  It’s strange because in some ways she seems older – she’s got such a big personality, it seems like she’s been here a lot longer.  But it also seems like it was just yesterday she was snuggled up in her baby blanket, laying beside me and – oh wait.  That was yesterday.  But you get the point.

Anyway, it’s been such a busy time here lately I really hadn’t thought much about her party yet.  But then I got a reminder email from my favorite invitation spot, which I was so excited about!  (Yes, little things like that really do make my day.  I’m a simple girl.)  How easy, yet how genius is it to send out a reminder like that?  Perfect timing too of course, since they know when I ordered last year.

There are hundreds of card designs to choose from, so we looked through all of the girly birthday ones.  The search was over when we found this little beauty though – how perfect for my little bug!

The personalization is awesome too – I did these myself in a matter of minutes!  You have two options for getting the actual cards.  You can purchase a jpeg download and print them out yourself, or you can order them directly from the company.  What’s awesome about the direct order is that you don’t have to wait for the cards to arrive in the mail.  They are sent to the closest photo shop in your zip code!  (From my house that could be Walgreens or Wal-Mart.)  So even when you order them printed, you can have them very quickly.  A last-minute mom like me loves that!

I discovered these great cards last year, also for Catie’s birthday, when I was searching for Strawberry Shortcake themed invites.  Check these out:

And if you love matchy-matchy like I do, you will love that every card on their site has a matching thank-you!

Even cooler, you can get a ton of matching party favors like play-doh wrappers, crayon or bubble wrappers, treat bags, coloring books, edible images for cakes, & much more!

I know I sound like an advertisement, and I suppose that I am, but I am not being paid or receiving anything for free to write this!  I purchased our invitations out of my own pocket, happily.  I am writing this because I use the company, I love them, recommend them, and believe in giving good service its due reward.  Beyond that, though, I knew you would love these too, and I wanted to share the wealth.  I wrote and and asked if they would be willing to donate a design for a giveaway, and lucky you, dear readers, they said yes!  And yes in a big way too, because they are donating not one but three invitations!  So 3 lucky readers will win their choice of design! Woo-hoo!  Cool product and they are generous.  Smart marketing to know the power of a happy mom blogger!

Now you may have noticed I’ve been holding out on the big reveal.  Didn’t want to lose you too soon, because I knew when you saw this awesome website you’d be gone for hours checking out all of the designs.

So now that you have the scoop, go to uPRINT Invitations, pick a favorite, and return to tell me which design tickles your fancy.  If you really want to win, I’ll even give you an extra entry for posting about this giveaway on Twitter, Facebook, or your own blog (and let me know what you did).  Tweet @hopelessnflawed.  Contest will end at midnight EST on Sunday June 14.  Catie will choose the winner by random (ok, by random.org – but I’ll let her do the typing) on Monday morning – her birthday.

Good luck!

And the winners are…

Cindy & Soliloquy!  Congratulations ladies!  I will be in touch soon with information about how to download the ebook!

You Can Make This Giveaway

So here it is, the crafty giveaway I promised you.  I know I was supposed to deliver this yesterday, but when I posted I forgot that it was a holiday weekend.  Please pardon my tardiness.  I think the cool factor is worth the wait!

So last year I found a new project that I love to make.  I made these name pillows for my neice:

my nephews:

and all three of my daughters:

for Christmas.  I even made one for the Angel Tree child we shopped for:

I have since sold these in local boutiques, given them as gifts, and made them for friends. 

They are always a huge hit!  They are especially unique because they can be personalized to match the child’s room (as I did for my girls):

You can also use their favorite character, sports team, etc.  And they are the ultimate present for a child whose name isn’t common.  (Don’t we all remember looking through those plastic bike license plates?)

Even better than that, they are honest-to-goodness easy to make.  I promise!  You do not have to have any special equipment or sewing knowledge to make this pillow.  The instructions are easy to read, very clear, and detailed enough that you will not feel lost.

The cost of the project will vary depending on the finishes you choose, but I know you can do these for under $10 per pillow if you buy inexpensive fabric.  An easy and economical project! 

In the interest of honesty, I have to tell you that I was asked to review this item for a giveaway.  However, you should also know that when asked I was able to tell them that I did not need their free instructions to try the pattern out, because I had already bought it!  So I can whole-heartedly tell you that this is a good, high quality product that is worth every penny.

I know some of you are probably thinking that you couldn’t do this.  You are wrong.  You Can Make This is the name of the website, and it ain’t called that for nothin’.  I promise you can do this.  You’ll need your sewing machine, scissors, fabric, thread, wonder-under, pillow stuffing, and a spare hour or two.  The more you make, the faster you will get.  And did I mention that they’re fun?

Now for the goods.  YouCanMakeThis.com is offering two lucky readers a FREE copy of the Pesonalized Name Pillow e-book!  How awesome is that? 

All you have to do is leave me a comment here telling me who you would make a pillow for, and you’re in!  If you really really want to win, you can receive an extra entry each for blogging, tweeting, or linking to this post.  (If you tweet, send it @hopelessnflawed so I can find you!)  All entries must be received by midnight EST next Tuesday, June 2.  The winner will be chosen by random drawing and will be announced on Wednesday, June 3.

Good luck, and happy sewing!

Printer love

I have a printer that I love.  It’s a Canon with Wi-Fi which totally rocks – I love being able to print from all over the house.  I thought all was well, until I stumbled upon this post from Marcy at the Glamorous Life Association.  Wow, am I seriously overpaying for ink.  Who knew there was a better way?  Well apparently Marcy did.  But anyway.

Check out the ink calculator and enter to win one yourself!  Huge bonus?  The winner of the printer will then be entered in a drawing for a FULL sponsorship to BlogHer! Woo-hoo!  Of course I want this oh-so-badly, but if it can’t be me, then I hope it’s one of you.

Good luck!

Excuses, excuses

Oh blogosphere, how I’ve missed you so.

A few weeks ago we were leaving for a Disney vacation, and then I sort of dropped off the face of the Internet.  I know.  I’m sorry.  It’s been crazy crazier than usual.  I will update properly on our vacation, pictures and all, but first here are the obligatory explanations for my prolonged absence.

One new-to-us experience we had on this vacation was ‘having a child get sick in Disney World.’  I don’t really want to repeat that one.  I don’t know exactly how it happened, but long story short, Lilly was infected with e coli.  She (and I) spent the second half of the vacation pretty much tied to the resort room, and she was hospitalized the week we got home.  Not fun. 

And then came Easter.  And after she was released, my parents went away for a few days, which left me and my unruly brood in charge of our website (total plug for Garden Party Teas).  I love, love, LOVE working with the site, but it’s not easy to do with the amount of ‘help’ I get from my 2 & 3 year old daughters.  Anyway, we’ve been very busy lately – it’s Tea Party season, don’t you know?  I’m grateful for our customers, but it does keep us on our toes!

After all of that died down, I came back to blog.  I had very good intentions.  Unfortunately, though, a spammer sidetracked me.  I had to weed through and delete literally thousands of spam comments.  When I finally got that tedious task off of my plate, I checked my email, only to discover that every single comment also generated an email notificaion, so yet again I had to weed through them all.  UGH!  It was such a long, annoying process that by the time I finished (several days later), I had no desire to blog!

Then we had a crazy soccer week (I’m the coach of my daughters’ rockin’ U-6 team), busy school week (I volunteer there on a regular basis – so fun!), yada, yada, yada.  And now my poor Mom has hurt her back and is unable to do much of anything but lie in pain.  When it rains it pours I suppose!

So there you have it, the list of excuses reasons why I was unable to join the land of the living for a while.  But never fear, I’m back baby, with lots to talk about, lots to show you, and a few really awesome giveaways in the works!  Woo-hoo!