I won a giveaway!

Earlier this month I won a giveaway from Michelle at Delicate Construction. The prize was an apron from Amanda of Kaleidoscope of Colors. I was really excited about the apron, but I was also blown away with the entire package and wanted to share it here.

I firmly believe that all handmade Etsy sellers should go the extra mile with their packages, as people who order from a site like Etsy are looking for that extra touch. Amanda definitely went that extra mile.

The little flower is a pin! She also included a gift tag and a business card.

The biggest surprise of this package is that Amanda included one of her brand new items: a bag! I immediately put the little flower pin on it.

I am super picky about bags, but I love this little one. The only thing that it doesn't have is any kind of closure on the top. I think that I'll be able to rig something up so I can use this during the spring and summer.

And of course, the apron is wonderful. I love the fabric, and it fits me perfectly. I tend to make a mess in the kitchen, especially when I'm baking anything with dry ingredients (i.e. flour). I've never worn an apron because I've never been able to find anything affordable that fits me well. I've already worn this a couple times and love it.

Thanks to Michelle for hosting this giveaway and to Amanda for sending me such a generous package!

Has anyone else won a giveaway lately?

April BBA Giveaway and the Memories Software Giveaway Winner

Erika of ArtfulRising is hosting the April BBA Giveaway.  She's giving away a prompted journal, handstamped keychain, and a workshop.

The journal has 25 prompts that are designed to help you focus on purpose and passion.  All of the pages are lined, and there are additional blank pages at the end.  The front cover is made of green heavy weight paper.  The back cover is chipboard.  The journal measures 4.25"X5.5", which is a great portable size.

Erika's brother handstamped this keychain with the word "Dream."

Finally, the winner will have the chance to participate in a future Artful Rising workshop that is going to debut in late May.  You can learn more about Erika and the workshops that she offers on her web site.

Head over to the BBA blog to enter!  Please don't leave me entries here.  They must be on the BBA blog.  Thanks!

The second topic for this post is the winner of the Memories Software giveaway.  I used a random number generator to pick the winner.

The tenth entry is Judy of JNOriginals. Congratulations!  I have contacted Judy and will be sending her a code for her software download shortly.  Thanks to everyone who entered and promoted this giveaway!

Do you have a giveaway going on right now?  Leave info about it in the comments so we can check it out. 

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final package (for now), new book recommendation

As some of you may remember, Heather (Joy De Vivre) hosted a feature/giveaway for me on her blog earlier this month, which Sharla (BeadedTail) won. The winner was allowed to choose any size and color combination for a bead woven pendant or pair of earrings. Sharla chose my raspberry filled design. Because Sharla is awesome, I decided to make her a coordinating leaf pendant as well, and Angel decided to throw in a toy mouse for Sharla's kitties Isabella and Angel. Angel got a HUGE gift basket of goodies for Christmas from my in-laws that they won, and she's been sharing some of her toys with others. I took a picture of everything before I shipped it.


Sharla, with the help of Isabella and Angel, blogged about their goodies today. You have to check it on her blog here! Thank you so much, ladies!

I found another great beading book at the library over the weekend. This one is The Art of Beaded Beads edited by Jean Campbell. Jean Campbell always provides great directions and lots of pictures. Like the Beaded Garden book, you have to be a little more experienced with a variety of beaded stitches than I am to complete a lot of the projects. There are a lot of great projects, though, and a few simpler ideas that I'm looking forward to trying. My beading book wish list keeps getting longer haha. That's okay! I'm glad that I'm able to preview so many books at the library so that the ones I do end up purchasing/asking for as gifts are ones that I will use frequently or keep coming back to.