Lipstick to Crayons » Gifts

Diplaying Quilts as Artwork, Creating Heirlooms

lipsticktocrayons — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 17:17:55 +0000

I’ve shared with you that one of my prized possessions is a quilt made by Campus Quilts from the baby clothes of my three children. And now, Campus Quilts is in the process of creating another quilt for me that will honor my late father’s memory. I wrote about that here and I will enthusiastically share pictures as soon as it arrives.

My dilemma, however, has been how to display these treasures. I want everyone who enters my home to see them! Well, my problem was solved when I found Chuck Pederson and Generation to Generation Heirlooms. Chuck handcrafts a Website full of products that are certain to become family heirlooms, including children’s toys, quilt ladders and quilt racks. Here is the gorgeous 7.5-foot quilt ladder he made for me:

As you can see, I am proudly displaying my baby-clothes quilt on the rack and will soon be adding my father’s memorial quilt above that. It fits perfectly in the corner of my room, with an angled design at the top so it leans securely against the wall.

Chuck makes all of his products by hand with the utmost care and attention to detail. The solid construction of this quilt ladder is amazing, and the silky-smooth finish on it is absolutely beautiful. Due to the size of this ladder, Chuck constructs it to fold in the middle for shipping and some minor assembly is required when it arrives. Just so you know, I intended to add that project to my husband’s “honey do” list, but the instructions Chuck sent were so simple and easy to follow that I completed it all by myself using the tools he suggested: A screwdriver and wood glue. (He pre-drills the holes for the dowels, good man that he is).

You can purchase any of Chuck’s heirloom treasures on his Website (quilt racks, children’s toys and quilt project hangars) and he will ship them to you. Prices range from $100 for a Toddler Town Car, $300 for a handcrafted Rocking Horse, $100 for a traditional floor quilt rack and $125 for the 7.5-foot ladder (plus shipping). All of the toys from Generation to Generation Heirlooms would make perfect Christmas presents for children. And unlike the latest toy made of hard, molded plastic and running on batteries, these toys are certain to last through the generations, becoming family heirlooms as Chuck intended.

If you live in/near California, you can see the items in person at the following craft shows:

October 21, 22 & 23 – Independence Hall Quilters Quilt Show, Ironstone Vineyards, Murphys, CA

November 12-13 – Tuleburg Quilt Guild Quilt Show, Scottish Rite Masonic Center, Stockton, CA

Chuck’s other tentative shows for 2012 are listed here.

Please visit Generation to Generation Heirlooms to check out Chuck’s products. You won’t be disappointed.

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Great Idea for Mother’s Day – Scentsy Wickless Candles.

lipsticktocrayons — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 02:53:42 +0000

I have a new item in my home that I love, love, love. It’s a Scentsy wickless candle.

Scentsy wickless candles are a safe way to bring great fragrance and stylish decor into your home. They are flameless candles that are heated in a decorative warmer where wax is slowly melted by a small, low-watt bulb.

You can choose from more than 75 warmer styles to fit any size room, decor or personality. I chose the full-size Hope warmer from the Miracle collection and it is lovely amid the earth tones in my living room. The full-size warmers are 4.5” wide by 6” tall and cost between $30 and $35 dollars.

Scentsy comes in 80 wickless candle bar fragrances, including spa, tropical and romance scents. Each bar contains as much fragrance oil as a 12 ounce jar candle. And when your wax is completely used, you simply buy more for your beautiful warmer, which makes a pretty way to add some mood lighting to a room, as well.

Scentsy is a direct selling, wickless candle company headquartered in Meridian, Idaho. The company is owned by Orville and Heidi Thompson and sells its products through a field sales force of more than 70,000 independent sales representatives known as Independent Scentsy Consultants, who market and sell Scentsy products through home parties.

In addition to warmers, Scentsy sells plug-ins, foams, travel tins, room sprays and other fun, fragrant products. To find out how to host or party or to find a consultant near you, go here.

Try a random post.

$50 Snapfish Giveaway for Mother’s Day – Check out the Photobooks! – CLOSED

lipsticktocrayons — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 02:21:48 +0000

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I LOVE SNAPFISH PHOTOBOOKS! And what would make a better Mother’s Day present than a Snapfish photobook?

You can honor mom by capturing her favorite moments in a personalized photo book. You can even archive her favorite family recipes! Snapfish offers photo books with many creative layouts and a range of sizes including 8×11, 8×8, 5×7 and even 4×6 flip books, great for all occasions. And one of the really cool features of the photo books is the custom cover which lets you stretch a picture across the entire front cover (see the image with this post).

And guess what? I reccently discovered that Snapfish has integrated with Flickr!! This makes the photo book making process even easier. I am an amateur photographer of sorts — I’ve taken a few classes and I have 17,000 (no, that’s not a typo) pictures in my Flickr photo stream. I used to have time to have those photos printed and then spent hours creating beautiful scrapbooks, but with Baby No. 3, scrapbooking went out the window. Now whenever I want to turn my pictures into a scrapbook, I can create a Snapfish photobook and load the pictures right from my Flickr photostream. I no longer have to upload my pictures to two different places (Flickr, where I store ALL my digital photos and Snapfish for my photo books and photo gifts). Of course, you can still upload your pictures to Snapfish the “old fashioned” way!

Here are some other great Mother’s Day Gift ideas on Snapfish:

Leather bracelet with photo charm – Put mom’s favorite picture on a bracelet so she can wear it every day.

Sterling silver swinging locket – Looking for a gift she’ll cherish forever? Snapfish’s new sterling silver necklace with swinging locketallows you to display mom’s favorite photo in a locket that is sealed in a waterproof, UV-resistant coating to protect the image. Sent in a gift box, Snapfish does the wrapping for you.

Keepsake Box – Perfect for keeping all her prized possessions in one place, this beautiful keepsake box is made of dark-stained wood and features one glossy photo tile, measuring 5″ X 2¼” deep.

Hardcover Journal – Inspire mom by helping her record her special day and year with a personalized journal by Paper Coterie. The journal features a photo and several custom designs she’ll flip for.

Photo greeting card – Who doesn’t love a thoughtful greeting card? But why settle for one you can buy anywhere? Instead, show your appreciation for mom by sending her a personalized photo greeting card on her special day. Snapfish offers a myriad of selections with more than 3,000 designs. You can even create a recordable greeting card to show mom how much you care, whether she’s close or far.

Now here’s the best part about Snapfish and Mother’s Day — Snapfish wants to give one of my lucky readers a $50 gift credit to use on a product of her choice.

Giveaway Guidelines:

To enter the contest, you MUST subscribe to Lipstick to Crayons (subscribe button in upper right corner) and then comment below that you did so (or leave a comment telling me you’re already a subscriber). After completing this mandatory first entry method, you can gain additional entries by doing any or all of the following (but be sure to leave a separate comment for each thing you do):

Blog about this contest.
Tweet this giveaway on Twitter (You can tweet daily, but leave a comment for each time you do so).
Add Lipstick to Crayons to your blogroll or my button to your sidebar
Become a fan of Lipstick to Crayons on Facebook.
Post a link to this contest on your Facebook page.

This giveaway closes at 11:59 p.m. Central time May 2, 2011. Be sure to include a valid email address with each of your entries. The winner will be randomly chosen via random.org and will be notified via email and announced on this post.

If the winner does not claim the prize by May 5, 2011, she will forfeit the prize to an alternate winner who will be drawn at random.

USA residents only.

THIS CONTEST IS CLOSED. CONGRATULATIONS TO NICOLE, COMMENT #7.

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$50 ProFlowers Giveaway for Mother’s Day – CLOSED

lipsticktocrayons — Sun, 17 Apr 2011 16:29:54 +0000

If you are looking for Mother’s Day Flowers, you need to check out ProFlowers selection of beautiful arrangements. I recently received a gorgeous arrangement of 30 Assorted Tulips in an amethyst vase and they still look amazing. They arrived fresh with clear direction on how to make them last and look their best.

Ordering from ProFlowers is quick and easy, and you won’t believe the selection. With prices starting at $19.99, you can find something in your budget. Plus, if you become a Facebook fan, you can get 20 percent off your order. And the site has a coupons page where you can find things like a free vase, free weekday deliveries or 20 percent off your order, too.

Here’s the best part. ProFlowers wants to help one of my lucky readers celebrate Mother’s Day. So, they’re offering a $50 gift code to the winner of the contest below.

Giveaway Guidelines:

To enter the contest, you MUST become a ProFlowers Facebook fan and then comment below that you did so. After completing this mandatory first entry method, you can gain additional entries by doing any or all of the following (but be sure to leave a separate comment for each thing you do):

Subscribe to Lipstick to Crayons (subscribe button in upper right corner of the homepage.
Blog about this contest.
Tweet this giveaway on Twitter (You can tweet daily, but leave a comment for each time you do so).
Add Lipstick to Crayons to your blogroll or my button to your sidebar
Become a fan of Lipstick to Crayons on Facebook.
Post a link to this contest on your Facebook page.

This giveaway closes at 11:59 p.m. Central time April 23, 2011. Be sure to include a valid email address with each of your entries. The winner will be randomly chosen via random.org and will be notified via email and announced on this post.

If the winner does not claim the prize by April 26, 2011, she will forfeit the prize to an alternate winner who will be drawn at random.

USA residents only.

THIS CONTEST IS CLOSED. CONGRATULATIONS TO JULIE L, COMMENT #99.

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Customized Puzzles for $12.95 at Snapfish

lipsticktocrayons — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 03:26:44 +0000

Snapfish has added some great new products recently to their wide array merchandise that would make awesome gifts for loved ones this Christmas. One of those products is the Children’s Puzzle by Frecklebox for $12.95.

I just made one of these puzzles for my preschooler for Christmas and I know she’s going to love it. Frecklebox personalized puzzles are unique and each one features the child’s name in different settings. I chose the Spring Smiles design for my daughter, but there are more than 30 other designs from which to choose.

The puzzles are printed in color on matte label with gloss film lamination, then transferred to 100pt chipboard. There are 20 pieces per puzzle. They are packaged in a reusable cardboard box with gloss label and the assembled puzzle size is 8″x10”.

I also recently made a collage fleece blanket on Snapfish with several poses from the family photos we recently had taken. Here are the pictures I chose to put on my blanket, which costs $49.99.

If you the like the idea of a collage blanket or other fun photo gift (photo canvas, calendars, poster, etc.) hurry on over to Snapfish. Each day until Jan. 1, they are offering a Deal of the Day coupon code and some of them have been up to 35 percent off!

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Must-have New Toy for Preschooler — Mickey Mote!

lipsticktocrayons — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 22:43:59 +0000

Don’t you just love it when your child interacts with something she is watching on television. It makes you feel good about letting her watch T.V. when you hear her counting with Mickey or singing with Minnie or learning her ABC’s with Big Bird or conjugating verbs in Spanish with Dora.

Well, the new Mickey Mote, which Walt Disney studios home entertainment released on store shelves yesterday, is a kid-friendly remote that lets kids interact with their favorite Disney DVDs (it works with all Disney preschool dvd’s that include discovery mode — that’s the interactive watch and play mode on the DVD that offers different levels). there are lots of titles available with this feature, including two new ones that also debuted yesterday: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Handy Manny Big Construction Job.

So, I’ll tell you why I like this fun preschool toy, but first watch it in action:

So here’s why I like it:

Setup is easy and the instructions are given right on the screen. You’ll need to find your current DVD remote to use during setup — likely among your child’s toys. I’m hoping that will happen less now that she has her own.]

The Mickey Mote is a shaped like Mickey’s ears and it’s bright red, so it looks fun.

There are only 4 buttons on the Mickey Mote — a star, circle, triangle and square. So, it’s not too complicated for your young preschooler to operate. (I wish MY AT&T Uverse remote only had four buttons!!!)

As I said, the Mickey Mote works with any Disney Preschool DVD that includes Discovery Mode™, and once it’s setuup, you select the Discovery Mode feature on the menu screen and within minutes, your child will be easily responding to questions, throughout the story. Discovery Mode features include two levels of play, which provides more challenging questions as the child grows. I think Level 2 is a little difficult for a 3-year-old, but Level 1 was perfect for my kiddo. As the DVD plays, the child is asked questions and she can push one of the buttons for her answer. Then she gets an immediate response.

Once families have purchased a Disney Preschool DVD that comes packaged with the Mickey Mote, they can continue to build their Disney Preschool libraries as the Mickey Mote works in compatibility with any Discovery Mode enhanced DVD. For example, kids can immediately use the remote with any of the following titles:

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Road Rally
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey’s Adventures in Wonderland
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Mickey’s Choo Choo
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Minnie’s Bow-Tique
Handy Manny: Manny’s Motorcycle Adventure
Handy Manny: Manny’s Big Race
Little Einsteins: Fire Truck Blast Off
My Friends Tigger & Pooh: Super Duper Super Sleuths
My Friends Tigger & Pooh: Bedtime With Pooh

Note: Discovery Mode can also be played using any DVD remote control.

The two new videos are awesome and retail on Amazon for about $26.99 including the Mickey Mote!

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse: Numbers Roundup features more than 100 minutes of content with five exciting, numbers-themed adventures. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is the #1 program on Playhouse Disney as well as the #1 series with children between the ages of two and five years. Bonus features include a never-before-seen (until 1/1/11) bonus episode as well as the Discovery Mode feature.

Handy Manny: Big Construction Job is a fun-filled, full-length adventure that takes Manny out of Sheet Rock Hills and to a new construction project out of town! Introducing new tools, new songs and a never-before-seen episode, Handy Manny stars Wilmer Valderrama (TV’s “That 70’s Show”) as the voice of Manny. It is a top 5 television series with preschoolers 2-5, and is an Emmy®-nominated show, set in a multicultural, multi-generational community and follows a curriculum that models problem solving and the importance of community.

So, my recommendation: If you’ve got a toddler or preschooler, this is a for-sure purchase on the holiday gift list.

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Christian Jewelry Made Incredibly Stylish – and Custom Pieces, too!

lipsticktocrayons — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 20:57:32 +0000

I have a new piece of jewelry that gets more attention and compliments when I wear it than my favorite piece of David Yurman. It’s a beautiful cross on a simple leather cord by kpWired Designs.

kpWired Designs is co-owned by Kim Plank and Maggie Robinson. Kim started the company about five years ago and began by beading different pieces for friends and family. Then she began using wire to create unique designs. As the demand grew, Kim knew she needed help if she wanted the business grow so Maggie joined in the most awesome madness. Together, they create designs that are made from lead-free solder wire, all hand-crafted, with each piece being unique. Many of the designs have a Christian or faith theme, such as this one:

Other designs simply are simply infused with a simplicity that is beautiful, such as this one:

And the prices are extremely reasonable, ranging from about $20 on the low end to the most expensive piece that includes swarovski crystals priced at $50. Kim and Maggie also design rings, bracelets and earrings, and they will do a custom piece for anyone who asks — also within those price ranges. I’ve asked Kim to work on a custom necklace for a group of my friends and she thinks it will cost about $25 for the solder wire design on a leather cord.

Obviously, the pieces are affordable (half the price of sterling, in fact, and they won’t tarnish), and 10 percent of the profits go to single Moms in the St. Louis area. (Kim and Maggie’s company mission is to create beautiful, unique and fun priced designs in the hopes that along their journey they can help struggling, single moms in St. Louis). That’s as beautiful as their creations, in my opinion.

So, if you’d like to order a piece from kpWired Designs, you can shop by viewing the photos on their Facebook page and then email them to place your order at kpwireddesigns@gmail.com. Or, if you live in the St. Louis area, you can email them to book a show or a personal appointment to view the items in person or discuss a custom piece.

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Coolest Gadget to Come Into Our House Lately – PowerMat

lipsticktocrayons — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 02:48:53 +0000

On any given day, we need to charge three LG cell phones, one iPhone, one iTouch, a PSP, a DS and three iPods. Crazy.

I bought a fancy charging station from an organization store, and some cute little cord wraps to keep the cords from spilling all over my counter. It was no use. My $40 charging station and my cord wraps still ended up looking a lot like this:

It drives me crazy.

Then the folks at Powermat asked me if I wanted to try out the Powermat. They said it was a cordless (CORDLESS — I HEARD THEM SAY IT — CORDLESS!!!) charging system. I had no idea how it would work, IF it would even work. I understand how the wireless network in our house works about as well as I understand the concepts of thermonuclear energy. I just know that somehow my Mac, my daughter’s Compaq, my son’s iTouch and the desktop all manage to get on the Internet and talk to the printer without cords. It’s a wonderful thing.

Still, I was willing to try anything (translation — insist that my husband figure it out and make it work) in order to reduce the cords on my counter.

Guess what?!!! The Powermat is a BEAUTIFUL thing.

Now this gadget –

– which is the Portable Powermat, can charge ALL of our gadgets — three at a time — without ANY CORDS other than the one that plugs the Powermat into the electrical outlet.

The Portable Powermat comes with Powercube Universal Receiver with 8 tips so that it fits the LG phones, the Nintendo DS, the PSP, an iPod, etc. It also comes with a carrying case and has a universal, international power supply and has its own cord management system (remember — the only cord is the one that plugs the Powermat into the wall, and the itty bitty cord that connects the Powercube with the gadget it is charging.

We also got to try the Powermat Wireless Charging System for the iPhone. Again, VERY cool. It snaps right onto the iPhone, serves as its case and then just charges the phone when you simply set it down on the PowerMat!

Now, when we travel, we will take only the Powermat and all the tips. No cords necessary. The Powermat can charge all of our stuff! Without cords! And, no technological savvyness was required of me. You take it out of the box, plug it in and it works. I didn’t even need to read the instructions!

Here’s how the Powermat works: The Powermat Wireless Charging System provides a fast and efficient way to keep all of your favorite personal electronic devices charged. Enabling your devices with Powermat Receivers allows you to Drop and Charge them on any Powermat Mat to experience wireless charging. A magnetic attraction between every Receiver and each access point on every Mat assures that alignment is precise and the most efficient charging will occur. Communication between the Mat and the Receiver allows the mat to deliver an exact amount of power for the proper length of time so that the transfer of power is safe and efficient and no energy is ever wasted. A unique sound tells you that a solid connection has been made and your device is charging. A second, similar sound is heard when the device is removed.

If you have a gadget-loving loved one, or if you have a cord-hating loved one, this would make an amazing Christmas present. It’s got those charging stations beat, hands down!

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Very Unique Gift for Young Girls and Tweens

lipsticktocrayons — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 02:01:32 +0000

You’ve heard of the friendship bracelet and friendship necklaces. And you’ve probably seen tote bags that can be personalized with paint pens or jewelry kits that girls can use to make personalized accessories. But have you heard of friendship fashion? Or clothing that can be personalized again and again?

Mia My is a one-of-a-kind friendship jacket that allows girls to show off their unique personality and/or their best friends. It’s a stylish white blazer that comes with four yummy scented colorful markers for the girl’s to decorate or for B.F.F.s to sign their chic jacket. And if they want to restyle their Mia My jacket, just toss it in the wash and the ink is gone!

Mia My asked me to review one of their jackets, but my 15-year-old shot me down. “I am NOT wearing any such thing,” she declared. I’m thinking it really is for the tween set and younger. So, I asked my neighbor’s adorable daughter, Ava, to put the product to the test. She was delighted to do so, and what you see here is her third design on the jacket. She wasn’t satisfied with her first two designs, so her Mom washed it and voila — ALL TRACES of the previous design were gone!

Ava loves the jacket because it provides an outlet for her creativity. And she has something that no one else at her school has. Plus, she has some ideas for decorating it for school spirit day, St. Louis Cardinal’s Day, various holidays, etc. What FUN!

What impressed me about the jacket was the quality of the design. It is constructed like a well-made designer piece. The fabric is thick, the seams are sturdy and the cut is tailored and stylish. It’s not the kind of quality construction you can find in just any children’s clothing — this is boutique-quality stuff.

What impressed Ava’s Mom was the fact that no matter how dark she colored her designs, they washed out easily in the laundry. She did say she thought the markers were “running out” rather quickly, but you can buy additional marker sets for $4.99.

The Mia My jacket comes in two different styles, the one you see Ava wearing in the above pictures is available in sizes 4, 5 and 6. And a teen size jacket that ties around the waist is available in sizes XS, S, M, L, and XL. The jackets sell for $49.99, so they are rather pricey for a birthday party favor, which is one idea suggested by the company. I’m sure that would make for some kind of fun birthday party activity, but it would be expensive. Of course, the birthday girl could perhaps receive the jacket as a gift, and then her friends could sign their birthday wishes onto her jacket, and that would be fun, too.

I personally think this would be a great birthday or Christmas gift, so if you’re starting your shopping early this year and want something unique, Mia My has my endorsement.

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Mother’s Day Gifts, Deals & Coupon Codes

lipsticktocrayons — Thu, 06 May 2010 10:00:38 +0000

With Mother’s Day is just around the corner, here’s a list of some last-minute deals:

PayPal is helping moms get something they’ll love by offering great deals for the hottest gifts from top online stores like eBags.com , Beauty.com, ProFlowers, and Restaurant.com affordable. Using a PayPal account, you can receive up to 20% off every item at our participating partners (full list can be found here), with savings ranging from $10-$100 – and FREE SHIPPING – all in time for Mother’s Day. Also, you can follow @PayPalShopping to learn more about these great deals and find out which gift is the right one for Mom.

Kiyonna, which offers sophisticated style for Size 10 Plus, says http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=229357&u=418464&m=293&urllink=&afftrack=“>Happy Mother’s Day! Receive 25% OFF + Free Ground Domestic Shipping on all order of $150+ at Kiyonna.com. Use Coupon Code: MOMDAY10. Sale begins 5/6/10 and ends 5/10/10! Limitations: Expires @ midnight PST on 5/10/10. This offer cannot be combined with any other offer and not valid on Spanx. Discount only applied to orders of $150 or more, before taxes. Free shipping only applies to ground domestic orders of $150 or more.

FTD offers fresh and beautiful flowers that will last seven days – guaranteed! And many of the Mother’s Day Flower arrangements are packaged in gift box, starting at just $19.99. This is the perfect solution for anyone who wants to brighten the day of Moms who live out of town or just down the road. It also solve the problem for anyone who might have forgotten to get something in the mail on time.