Upgrade a room in your home with beautiful furniture and accessories from Worlds Away and save money! Right now, Zinc Door is offering 15% off Worlds Away with promo code WA15. Don’t miss your chance to save on these stylish and modern designs. Enjoy this discount through July 14!
Are you ready to update the look of your walls at home with the help of two Etsy artists? If so, this giveaway is for you!
Evgie and Ev are the expertise in digital illustration, interior decoration and wall decals design behind Evgie.com. (You can also find EVGIE on Etsy.) They grew up drawing from early childhood and loved it so much it became their profession. EVGIE Studio was started in 2010 and pretty soon became a full time career.
Wall decals are easy to apply, easy to remove, easy to tailor to a specific wall or surface. It is very easy with the wall decals to take a plain unexciting room and transform it into a jungle or safari, forest or friendly animals, outer space or the ocean. We all want rooms for our little ones that spark their imaginations. Evgie.com helps to make the decorating easy, fun, and simple!
They offer handmade large and small vinyl wall stickers with designs and ideas for kids’ and grown-ups’ rooms. So if you would like your living room to have a custom family photo tree…….you can! EVGIE Studio also specializes in producing customized wall decal designs. They will create a personal design just for you that reflects the ideas you have in mind. They will tailor it to fit your unique space!
Interested in placing an order? Right now you can receive FREE shipping on your order in the US and Canada using the code: FreeSHP.
One lucky person will receive $150 Credit to Evgie.com! Giveaway ends July 3, 2013, at 11:59pm, open to US and Canada residents, ages 18+. To enter please use the Rafflecopter form below.
Disclosure: I received no compensation for this publication. My opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Cotton Ridge Designs, LLC is not responsible for sponsor prize shipment. This event was organized by Baby Costcutters and Giveaway Booster please contact tina@babycostcutters.com with questions or to see your business or blog featured on the next big event!
I’d love to create a cookbook full of my family’s recipes to hand down to my daughter when she is a little older. Certain dishes bring back such good memories of times with family – holidays and just everyday meals, tool. Some that I remember well are my Mom’s pot roast and Waldorf salad, and my Grandma’s potato chip cookies! With each entry I’ll reminisce about my memories surrounding that particular recipe and where it was found. Since both my Mom and Grandma are gone now, I think it is important to remember and pass on family traditions in fun and creative ways. Come to think of it, a family cookbook would make a great gift to my nieces, as well!
I plan to include photos of the recipes, of course, so I better dig out those old recipe cards and get started! I think incorporating old and new photos of the family enjoying meals together throughout the book would make it even more special.
Are you ready to make your own family cookbook? Right now you can receive 15% off when you make your own Blurb Cookbook! I have had several great experiences creating books with Blurb over the past year. Their high-quality books and planners make wonderful gifts!
Here is one of my favorite dessert recipes that I came up with myself – when I create a cookbook for my daughter, this one will definitely be included!
Very rich and delicious, truffles make an easy, elegant dessert. This low-carb recipe makes approximately 28 walnut-sized truffles. There are approximately 43 net carbohydrates in the entire batch, so each truffle has about 1.525 net carbs. Those who love dark chocolate may find the Truvia unnecessary.
Ingredients
3/4 cup heavy cream
1-1/2 cups Hershey’s Cocoa, Natural Unsweetened or Hershey’s Special Dark 100% Cacao
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup Torani Sugar Free Raspberry Syrup
3 tablespoons Truvia and/or
1/2 cup finely chopped almonds
Dark Chocolate Raspberry Truffles Mixture, After Setting in Refrigerator
Instructions
Variations:
Notes
When I serve truffles at a party, I like to make three or four varieties of flavors and toppings. They look like you went to a lot of trouble, but are really not that difficult to make! We’ve tried the Torani Sugar-Free Vanilla and Raspberry flavors, and they are both delicious.
Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Blurb and will receive a small commission if the links above are used to make a purchase. Nevertheless, my opinions are 100% my own, and I only recommend companies and products that I believe will be of benefit to my readers.
Copyright 2013 Kathryn Depew
Guest author Bob Emerald presents a fascinating overview of the history and process of creating paper.
It is a well-known fact that the paper we use every single day is largely made up from wood pulp. While it is true that the higher grades will also contain stronger fibres such as cotton and rags, for the most part it is still largely made from the trees around us. In the past, other materials would have been used. Famously, ancient Egyptians made their writing material from a matt of dried reeds called “papyrus”. A cheaper alternative was dried banana leaves and you will find shops in tourist destinations of Egypt claiming to sell genuine papyrus, but they are not; however, there are ways of telling the difference. Parchment was a very common paper substitute throughout medieval Europe. This was the dried hide of an animal such as a cow or a goat. It was very durable. Yet, it is wood-pulped paper that has endured as even with a few minor changes in the technology we still get most of our product from logging.
It is a complex process with today’s industrial level production. The tree is cut down, divided into logs of manageable size and then de-barked. These de-barked logs are reduced to the size of small chips and then digested. The digester removes all traces of lignin (a substance that deteriorates quickly) and creates a uniform size to make the process easier. Then it goes for a washing process to remove any remaining contaminants and to take out chemicals that were used in the digestion process. Then the solution is bleached, creating the very white plain paper that we use every day. The pulp is then beaten into fibres, processed again to remove oversized fibre and then pressed into a uniform flow (a strip with no bulges). Next, it is put into a wire or a fabric line that forms the fibre into a mat that will simultaneously drain the water. The mat is then pressed to remove as much water as possible before the product is finally sent to the driers where the finishing touches are added. By this time it should look like the paper we buy off of the shelves but obviously not in any manageable size!
Processes will always vary slightly depending on the requirements of the paper being used with colouring added or when density is increased to form card. Paper technology is something we take for granted. Look at the type of paper used in a printed book for example. It is coarse to the touch and you’d be forgiven for thinking that the high volume used means that the quality is kept low for cost purposes. However, it has been designed for durability. It can be folded without breaking, it does not become brittle until it has aged a long time (yellow pages are still very flexible) and it can be printed on both sides with a shadow effect most of the time. Book paper can also resist water damage as any avid reader can attest. When the book dries out the leaves will not stick together, although there may be a wavy effect. Most of all, it is resistant to something called “picking”. This is the process by which ink coated paper fibres come away from the paper, creating flaws in the words and eventually making it unreadable. Lower quality papers are far more susceptible to picking.
Bob Emerald is a writer who understands the important and popularised role that paper plays in today’s society, as it has done throughout history. Companies like Papercutz Limited offer a wide selection of paper types so that you can find whatever kind of paper you need.
Image Copyright 2013 Kathryn Depew.
Angela Robison has been designing and creating custom and bridal jewelry since 2011. She loves working with customers to create the perfect piece to fit their style. Be sure to visit her Etsy shop and web site to view her beautiful earrings, bracelets, lanyards, barrettes and especially her bridal sets!
Angela is so gifted at the art of crafting custom jewelry. She has made many specialty items for me and I am so impressed by her work. She has such a positive, customer service attitude and always goes the extra mile to make sure her designs fit what I described to her. If there is ever a piece of jewelry that you have imagined, I have no doubt that Angela can bring it to fruition. I highly recommend her!
- Customer Testimonial, Huntsville, AL, March 2012
Drop by the AWR Designs blog to keep up with her work. You are also welcome to visit Angela’s portfolio here on Cotton Ridge Create!
Angela has graciously offered to give away a $25 gift certificate to her Etsy shop! If the winner prefers, she can create a customized piece of jewelry. For example, the winner can choose from custom bridal jewelry, lanyards, Any combination of colors of pearls and/or crystals is available including the colors of a favorite sports team!
This giveaway ends at midnight Eastern time on July 4, and is open to U.S. and Canadian residents who are at least 18 years old. Please enter on the Rafflecopter form below. All of the winner’s entries will be verified. The winner will be chosen and notified within three days of the end of the giveaway. The winner has three days to respond with a shipping address; if there is no response another winner will be chosen.
Copyright 2013 Kathryn Depew
I would like to re-introduce you to Erin of the Etsy Shop Sapucha. A few months ago she gave my daughter and I the opportunity to review and giveaway her handmade felt fishing game, and we were delighted! Erin has graciously offered another fishing game to giveaway this month!
The fishing game was an immediate hit! As soon as it was out of the package, we were playing, laughing and squealing! The game consists of a 16″ long painted dowel, 16″ long cord, a felt hook with velcro, and four felt fish. The entire set is very well made and should last through several years of toddler and young child’s play. After we played together for awhile, my little one was able to play with the game alone – for a whole 30 minutes – that’s ages in toddler-time!
My kids love playing with it and pretend to be sailors catching their “meal” for the day. The felt fish will become easier to catch as they “felt up” the more the game is played. That is the beauty of velcro! – Erin of the Sapucha Etsy Shop
You can catch the fish anywhere on the felt body. It is easy enough so that toddlers won’t get frustrated, but difficult enough that it presents a small challenge and sense of accomplishment when the fish is caught. (I kept hearing “I did it, I caught it!”)
The game is made for children ages 3 and up, and can be wiped clean with a damp cloth. It is priced VERY reasonably at $13.00. Please see Erin’s Felt Fishing Game listing for a full description including shipping policies.
Although we have plenty of nice manufactured toys around the house, there is something about playing with a quality handmade toy that I can’t quite put my finger on. Perhaps it is a sense of nostalgia, or just knowing that someone crafted the toy with their own two hands. I also believe kids enjoy the tactile sensation of felt. (And adults, too! There seems to be a resurgence in the use of felt in art and crafts lately.)
Visit Erin’s Etsy Shop for more of her handmade toys and children’s accessories! She will even gift wrap your purchases!
Erin has offered a felt fishing game to give away to one of my readers! This giveaway ends at midnight Eastern time on June 23, and is open to U.S. and Canadian residents who are at least 18 years old. Please enter on the Rafflecopter form below. All of the winner’s entries will be verified. The winner will be chosen and notified within three days of the end of the giveaway. The winner has three days to respond with a shipping address; if there is no response another winner will be chosen.
Disclosure: Sapucha is providing a Felt Fishing Game at no cost to give away. I purchased the game that we played with and reviewed. All opinions are my own and may differ from yours. Sapucha is responsible for shipping the game to the winner.
Copyright 2013 Kathryn Depew
Wedding season is in full swing! To help you find the perfect gift for the bride and groom, Layla Grayce is offering 15% off wedding gifts with promo code BRIDE2BE valid through June 30! Browse essentials like personalized gifts, tableware and much more! Don’t miss your chance to shop this amazing sale to find a unique gift for your upcoming nuptials!
Botkier Lucy Sea Glass Shoulder Bag
I’m excited to share with you that for a limited time, Layla Grayce is offering 15% off Designer Handbags with promo code NEWPURSE – expires May 30. Stay fashion forward this summer and shop beautiful bags like the Botkier Lucy Sea Glass Shoulder Bag or the Botkier Lucy Powder Cross Body Bag. A fun and flirty option is the Be&D Parker Teal Combo Bag that is perfect for a night out on the town. Don’t miss your chance to shop this fabulous sale!
Botkier Lucy Powder Cross Body Bag
Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Layla Grayce & Zinc Door and will receive a small commission if the links above are used to make a purchase. Nevertheless, my opinions are 100% my own and may differ from yours.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Beautiful paintings from the artists on Etsy. I wasn’t very creative in naming my Treasury today – I thought I’d let the art speak for itself this time. Enjoy!
