Spotlight on Simply Sweet Home

Tara at Feels Like Home and Adrienne at Adrienne's House are hosting a great event where they are helping fellow bloggers to get connected with PR professionals. In January I received my first advertising offer, and since then I've had the chance to work with a few companies on sponsorships and product review/giveaway opportunities. It's been very fun and exciting for me, and I would love to get more opportunities like these in the future to grow my network and build relationships. For this event, I have to write post introducing myself and my blog to the PR professionals.

About Me
My name is Jerri. I've been married for two and a half years to my college sweetheart and best friend Mark. We don't have any children yet, but we hope to start a family in the next year or so. In the meantime, we have two kitty cats that we adore. (Our parents jokingly refer to them as the "grandcats.")

My husband was recently laid off from his job, so we're in the process of starting a new business, which I hope to share with everyone as soon we get started. And I'm also getting ready to open a small handmade jewelry shop on Etsy in the coming weeks.

Why I Started Simply Sweet Home
I started Simply Sweet Home nearly two years ago, because I thought it would be a good creative outlet. I enjoyed reading other people's blogs, and I thought it would be fun to be a part of the blogging community and be able to share ideas and give advice and tips to women just like myself. And I hoped that it could open the door to other opportunities.

About Simply Sweet Home
When I got married I fell in love with all the aspects of being a wife, and I wanted to create a blog that would encompass any and all topics related to home and family. Since this blog was started, I've always posted a Recipe of the Week, and this year I began posting it on several weekly carnivals. I also host a special feature called Sweet Thursday, which is a monthly dessert carnival where people can submit a dessert that goes along with the month's theme. These two features seem to be the most popular among the readers and have helped me to increase my readership. Because of this fact, my blog would be great for promoting food products and kitchen items.

Other topics that people enjoy and find helpful are my posts on organizing, party planning, seasonal/holiday posts, and home decor. I love highlighting new organizing products and sharing ideas and products for seasonal decorating and parties.

Also, every few months I try to do special features and events on my blog. For example, last year I had a Christmas Festival for the entire month of December, which I plan to do again this year. I've also written a series of articles called "Back to College" for potential college students and parents of college students. And I recently did a series of Bridal Shower Posts.

And because I've worked in a small business before and am in the process of starting a new home-based business with my husband, I would like to start writing some posts, advising work at home moms. With this in mind, I would love an opportunity to review office products and any products and services that are designed to help small business owners, bloggers, and people trying to make money from home.

Contacting Me
If you're a PR Professional, thank you for visiting and considering my blog. If you would like to work with me, please send an email to simplysweethome@hotmail.com.

-Jerri

Giveaway Sneak Peek

Do you love shopping for Dining Room Furniture and decor? Then you should check out Dining Rooms Direct. They have a ton of brand name items to fit your style and your budget.

Be sure to stop by my site again in the near the future for a chance to win your own Signature Housewares Sorrento Pitcher from Dining Rooms Direct in your favorite color! More details to come!

-Jerri

Easy Cinnamon Sticks

Like those cinnamon sticks you get from the pizza place? A couple of weeks ago I was hungry for something sweet, but I didn't want to spend an hour mixing and baking, so I decided to make my own cinnamon sticks. And they turned out great!

These would be perfect to have for dessert with any meal, especially your own homemade pizzas! And they would also make a great snack and a perfect breakfast food. Enjoy!

(I apologize for the lack of exact measurements, especially on the frosting. This recipe was an experimental-throw-together type thing. It's amazing what "a little bit of this" and "a little bit of that" can do!)

Recipe for Easy Cinnamon Sticks

Bread Ingredients:

1 can refrigerated pizza dough

1-2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted

Cinnamon

Sugar (optional)

Icing:

1 8 oz cream cheese, softened

a splash of milk

sugar

Directions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Unroll pizza dough and place on baking sheet. Take a knife and make nine cuts in the dough (as shown below). This will make 10 bread sticks. Don't cut the dough completely in to separate pieces. Just make slits in the dough. When the bread is baked, the sticks will pull apart easily. Next melt your butter, and spread it over the dough. Then sprinkle the dough with as much cinnamon as you desire. If you want your cinamon sticks sticks to be topped with sugar, sprinkle it on at this time too. Bake the bread as directed on the package, about 15-18 minutes.

While the bread sticks are cooking, prepare your frosting. There's no recipe per se for the frosting I made. Just take a block of cream cheese and can cut it into a few pieces and place it in the microwave for 10-30 seconds, or until soft. Then add a small splash of milk and and sugar. Just add a little sugar at a time and stir it until you get your desired taste and consistency. (You can also use confectioner's sugar if you prefer.)

-Jerri




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I'm posting a link to this post on the following sites:
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday is hosted by Blessed With Grace.
Homemaker Mondays is hosted by 11th Heaven’s Homemade Haven.
Making A Happy Home Monday is hosted by As For Me and My House….
Make Something Monday is hosted by Go Graham Go! and Jolly Mom and Diana Rambles.
Tasty Tuesday is hosted by Balancing Beauty & Bedlam.
I Am Blissfully Domestic is hosted by Blissfully Domestic.
Ultimate Recipe is Swap is hosted by Life as Mom.
Friday Feasts is hosted by Momtrends.
Works for Me Wednesday is hosted by We Are THAT Family
Hooked on Fridays is hosted by Hooked on Houses

Blog Hoppin' Tuesday: Kid Pictures

For this week's blog hop, everyone is sharing their favorite kid pictures. I chose to share a funny picture from last Christmas. This is my niece and nephew. My nephew got some toy power tools. One of the tools was a chainsaw. In this picture, he is trying out the new saw on his big sister. Doesn't he look happy?

-Jerri

Tips for a Successful Yard Sale: Misc Tips

Misc. Tips

-If you have friends, family members, or neighbors that want to have a yard sale, you should consider having your sales together. This way you'll have more items at your sale, which means people will be more likely to stop, and if you're advertising in the paper, it's a plus to be able to say that you are having a "2 family (or more) yardsale."

-Or if you know that another family on your street will be having a yard sale, you could consider coordinating yours around the same time. If people are looking in the paper for yard sales to hit, they'll be more likely to go to areas where there is more than one sale going on.

-For quick pricing, buy the price stickers that are pre-made. It saves so much time.

-If you really want to get rid of stuff, plan to do price mark downs. If you're having a two day sale, do your mark downs at the end of the first day. And if you're having a one day sale, do your mark downs around lunch time.

-Be sure that you are up at least an hour before your sale will start. Even if you put a note in your ad that says, "no early birds," you are bound to have some. Many yard sale enthusiasts leave out before the sun is up to start hitting yard sales. It sounds crazy, but it's true.

Display Tips:

-If you can't get racks for clothes, you could hang clothes on your front porch or get some wire to create a temporary clothesline.

-If you don't have enough table space, try moving your items closer together and place big items somewhere else, perhaps on the ground.

-There are many things you can use to substitute for a lack of table space. If you have a pickup truck, you can put the tail gate down and place items on the bed of the truck.

-Lay out an old bed sheet on the ground, and you can put a lot of toys, books, and other items on it.

-If you're selling any tables, you could use them to display other items temporarily.

-If you have a lot of books to sell, consider bringing one of your bookshelves outside to display your books.

-Boxes and tubs that your items were once stored in, can be used to make temporary tables. Just lay few on them on their sides, and you're good to go.

Finding Things to Sell:

-The obvious source for items to sell is the attic, garage, and basement, but you should look around the entire house for items that may be unnecessary and better off in a yard sale.

-Always go through your closets. Pull out any clothes that don't fit or that haven't been worn in a long time. Do the same with shoes.

-Go through kitchen cabinets and drawers and discard any items that never get used. Don't forget to go through the "junk drawer" if you have one.

-Go through the toys in your child's room and get rid of things that never get played with. (Tell your kids who may object to this, that if you find some things to get rid of, then there will be money to buy new stuff in the future.)

-Look around your home office. Get rid of unnecessary supplies, books, magazines, etc.

-Consider de-cluttering your bathroom. If you have a lot of extra shower gels, bubble baths, and body mists that never get used, sell them.

-And of course, if you have your own etsy shop or a home based business, this is a good time to put some of the items that you sell out on display. Even though it's a yard sale, and people are expecting to pay cheap prices, if they see something they like that's brand new, they will be willing to buy it. (Don't forget to have some business cards available.)

-You should also consider selling refreshments. Take out a cooler and fill it full of ice and bottled waters. You could also sell sodas if you'd like. And if you have kids, you can let them run their own lemonade stand. You can also offer homemade snacks like cookies, brownies, or cake slices.

-Jerri

Tips for a Successful Yard Sale: Advertising and Signs

Advertising:

-Be sure to place a sign at the end of your street, and at the end of other streets in your neighborhood. Also, post some signs on main roads outside your neighborhood.

-Post flyers for your yardsale on bulletin boards in your community. Some places you can post these include civic centers, grocery stores, laundry mats, etc.

-About a week ahead of time, be sure to tell your family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, and fellow church members about your yard sale. Tell them the kinds of things you'll have and encourage them to tell people they know.

-Post about your yardsale on your blog. If you have friends and family who you may not talk to on a regular basis, but they read your blog, this will be a great way to get the word out to them. You may even have blog followers who'd be interested in purchasing items from you that don't sell at your yard sale.

-Place an adveritsement in the newspaper. Be sure that you list some specific items in the ad. Some things that will bring the people in are baby clothes and baby toys/items, children's clothes, furniture, toys, and antiques. You may also want to specifically list big items such as a couch or table and chairs, and you may want to list the clothing sizes that you'll be selling.

-Depending on what you're selling, you may want to contact local shop owners or flea market booth owners. My parents used to sell a lot of antiques, and they'd have a lot of antique dealers and flea market dealers come and buy a lot of stuff.

Advertising Sign Tips:

-If you are having a 2-Day yardsale, you should make 2 different signs, one that says, "Friday & Saturday," and another that just says "Saturday." At the end of the day on Friday, you can take down your Friday & Saturday sign, and replace it with your "Saturday Only" sign. "Why?" You ask. If someone drives by on Saturday morning and sees your yardsale sign, they will be more likely to stop if your sign says "Saturday Only." If they see that the sign says, "Friday & Saturday," they may assume that all your best stuff was already sold on Friday and they'll go on to another sale.

-Be sure that your sign is sturdy enough to withstand winds without bending or blowing away. Cardboard is a good material to use or you could something sturdy from the craft store. Also, be sure that your writing is large and dark enough to see.

-Do not let kids help make the sign.

-Keep your sign simple and neat, and be sure that the writing is legible. Also, have one person make your signs to be sure that handwriting on the signs is the same. This way when people see all the signs you have out, there will be no doubt that they are advertising the same sale.

-After your sale is over, be sure to go back and get your signs. Many places have laws requiring you to take them up after a certain amount of time. Also, if you have a good sign and are planning to keep it, you'll want to get it before someone steals it. (Yes, it's hard to believe, but if it is a good sign, there is a chance that someone will take it.)

Coming Up: Display Tips, Things To Sale, and Misc Tips

-Jerri

Sweet Thursday: Cool Summer Treats

Welcome to another edition of Sweet Thursday. This month's theme is Cool Summer Treats. Too hot in kitchen? Then you should try cooling down with some of these great recipes. Thanks to all of this month's featured bloggers! You've definitely given me some inspiration, and I'm sure our readers will be inspired too!

Join the Round-Up: If you have posted a dessert that goes with this month's theme and would like to be included in my round-up, just leave your link in the comments section and I'll add your dessert to the post.

Next Month's Sweet Thursday Theme will be: Muffins/Breads. If you'd like to be featured in the next Sweet Thursday Round-Up, send an email with a link to your post to simplysweethome@hotmail.com. Deadline: August 19.

Fruity Yogurt from Chaya's Comfy Cook Blog

Chilled Blackberry Pie from Secrets of a Southern Kitchen

Strawberry Frozen Delight from Marin's Creations

White Chocolate & Strawberry Mousse Cake from Kopiaste...to Greek Hospitality

S'mores Ice Cream Pie from Tanya's Table

Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes from Nina's Recipes

Vanilla Ice Cream Eclairs with Strawberry and Chocolate Sauce from Nina's Recipes

Strawberry Sorbet from Her Cup Overfloweth

Pavlova with Strawberries and Cherries from My Kitchen Treasures

Milk Way Ice Cream Pie from The Cozy Country Home

S'more Sundaes from Simply Sweet Home

-Jerri

Tips for a Successful Yard Sale: Laws and Planning

Since summer time is right in the middle of yard sale season, I thought it would be pertinent to go over some tips for planning a successful yard sale. If you've never had one, you're probably thinking, "There's nothing to it. Why would I need tips?" But yard sales are actually a LOT of work. Hopefully these tips will lessen the stress. Today I'm starting with some basic tips about laws and planning.

Knowing the Laws:

-Check your local laws and neighborhood ordinances regarding yardsales. Many places require you to get a permit and have it displayed at your yardsale. If you fail to get a permit, you may get fined or have your yard sale shut down.

-Also, if you plan on having more than one yardsale, keep in mind that some places now have laws limiting the number of yard sales you can have in a year.

-In some areas there are also laws restricting sizes for signs or limiting the number of days that you may display your signs.

Planning Ahead:

-It takes a lot of time and work to plan a good yard sale. Make sure that you allow yourself enough time to get everything ready. If you're planning to clean out your garage and attic, I recommend that you start going through boxes at least a month ahead of time. (I'm actually planning a project, where I'll be going through each and every box in our outbuilding to decide what will be kept and what will be sold. I'll be pacing myself and going through 1 or 2 boxes a week, so that we can have a yardsale next year. This may be a good option for you too.)

-At least a month ahead of time, you should line up tables and racks to be used at your yard sale. If you don't have any on hand, you can usually borrow some from a friend or family member. Or you can get some from a rental place.

-Throughout the year, keep an empty box in your house. Whenever you run across an item you don't want, you can just add it to the box. When the box is filled, label it and place it with your other yardsale boxes in the garage or attic. Then get a new empty box to put in the house.

-Don't forget to plan for rain. If it rains, will the yard sale go on as planned or will it be postponed? You should include this information in your newspaper ad.

-Don't plan to have your yardsale on a holiday weekend, as many people will be out of town or going to special events with their families.

-Decide on the exact date(s) and times for your yard sale, and make plans for taking a vacation day at work.

-Before deciding on a date to have your yardsale, look at the paper to see when the majority of people are having their sales. Friday seems to be the most popular day. If you can't get off work, then Saturday will do, but you probably won't get a lot of customers past noon. If possible, try to plan for a two-day sale that will run All Day Friday and Half the Day Saturday. Thursday and Friday is good too. You can try it on other days as well, but Thursday through Saturday is your best bet.

-Be sure to get plenty of change from the bank. There's no perfect amount to have. Obviously you'll need a lot of ones, but it's a good idea to have plenty of fives and tens, because at the begining of the day you are liable to get customers who will want to pay with a twenty. You should also have some twenties on hand in the event that you are selling furniture, antiques, or other more expensive items. And even if you're not selling any high priced items, it's likely that you may have someone who will spend a lot and possibly need twenties for change. (Also, before you go to the bank, check around your house and car for extra change. We always roll our coins as we get them and eventually take them to the bank; if you already have a lot of change at home, you might be able to save yourself a trip.)

-Be sure that you save plenty of grocery bags to put your customer's items in. If you don't save grocery bags, and you don't think you'll have time to save enough of them before your yard sale, you can probably get some from a friend, or you can go to your local grocery store and ask if you can get bags out of their bag-recycling box. You can also order grocery bags online from wholesale companies.

Coming Up: Advertising & Sign Tips

-Jerri

Chicken Poulet

Chicken poulet is my favorite recipe to make. We have this about once a month at our house, but if you've read my previous menu posts, you already know that! I originally posted this recipe about a year ago, but since this week's Mcklinky blog hop theme is "favorite recipes" it seemed like the perfect time to post it again. Hope you enjoy!

Recipe for Poulet:

Ingredients:
Stuffing Mixture:
2 pkg. stuffing mix (12 oz total)
1 stick melted butter
1 c. water or chicken broth

Chicken Mixture:
2 1/2 c. cooked chicken, chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup chopped onion (I leave this out)
1/2 tsp. salt

Other ingredients:
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions: Butter casserole dish. Make chicken mixture in one bowl and set aside. Mix together stuffing mix and broth/water. Melt butter, add to the stuffing mixture, and stir until combined. All stuffing crumbs should be moist. Layer stuffing, chicken mixture and then stuffing mix again. Beat eggs and add milk. Pour over casserole (do not pack or smooth down, leave loose). Let chill in refrigerator for 2 hours or overnight. Before baking, pour cream of mushroom soup over top and bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes. Take out and sprinkle cheese over top of casserole. Bake an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

-Jerri

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I'm posting a link to this post on the following sites:
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday is hosted by Blessed With Grace.
Homemaker Mondays is hosted by 11th Heaven’s Homemade Haven.
Making A Happy Home Monday is hosted by As For Me and My House….
Make Something Monday is hosted by Go Graham Go! and Jolly Mom and Diana Rambles.
Tasty Tuesday is hosted by Balancing Beauty & Bedlam.
I Am Blissfully Domestic is hosted by Blissfully Domestic.
Ultimate Recipe is Swap is hosted by Life as Mom.
Friday Feasts is hosted by Momtrends.
Works for Me Wednesday is hosted by We Are THAT Family
Hooked on Fridays is hosted by Hooked on Houses

Online Poster Printing Giveaway

How would you like to have a free 16x20" Gallery or Museum Wrapped Canvas Print? Online Poster Printing is offering a free poster to me and to one Simply Sweet Home reader. (If you win, all you have to do is pick out a photo you'd like to have printed and pay the shipping costs.)

About Online Poster Printing
Online Poster Printing specializes in printing high-quality posters using premium materials. We offer a money back guarantee on all our products, such as photo canvas prints, vinyl banners, wall stickers, and rolled or mounted poster prints.

In the email I received about the giveaway, I was told to choose a summer time/fun in the sun picture that I'd like to have a poster made of. As I'm more of an indoor person, I don't really have any "fun in the sun pictures" other than some pictures from our canoe trip (but those aren't exactly poster worthy photos), so I'll share a couple of pictures that were taken last summer instead. As my husband said, "it was fun in the sun for us at least...."

When we were still living in Mobile, my mom and stepdad came down for vacation. Here's my mom and I sitting down for a picnic lunch:

And here's a picture that was at least taken outdoors. Two summers ago my husband and I visited Gettysburg, PA. This is a picture of a monument dedicated to the soldiers from Alabama that tried to take the Little Round Top. My husband would love a poster of this to go up on his side of our office:

This Giveaway is now closed.

Other Rules, Restrictions, and Additional Entries:

-This giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents ONLY.

-The winner of the giveaway is required to pay shipping for the prizes.

-Don't forget, if you don't have a blog or a profile with a visible email address, please include your email address in your comment so that I can contact you if you win. (Can't stress this enough!)

-All products will be awarded by coupon code by Friday July 31, 2009.

-For extra entries, you can follow me on blogger and/or twitter and facebook, or subscribe to my mailing list. Just leave additional comments, and please leave a user name or something so that I can verify. Thanks!

-Jerri

New Poll: An "Age Old" Question

I've added a new poll to the site. Sorry the question's not too creative. I thought of a bunch of summer-themed questions I could ask, but then I decided it would be helpful for me to do a series of polls on the blog's demographics, so that I can make the site as enjoyable to you guys as possible.

So the first question, I'm asking is: How old are you?

Here are your choices:

Under 18

19-25

26-35

36-45

46-55

56-65

66+

You'll find the poll in the right-hand sidebar. Thanks for your participation!

-Jerri

Blog Hoppin' Tuesday

I've decided to participate in the Mcklinky blog hop. I've seen a few blogs that I visit participating, and I thought it would be fun to try it out. If I enjoy it, I may even make it a permanant weekly feature here.

For this week's blog hop, the theme is "3 Things You Didn't Know About Me." Here are my 3:

1. I started making my own beaded jewelry a few months ago, and I plan on opening my own Etsy shop in the next few weeks. (More details to come soon...)

2. I'm a huge fan of the Harry Potter book series and the movies. (Can't wait to see The Half-Blood Prince!)

3. I love collecting things! Some of the things I collect are mice figurines/ornaments, Hallmark ornaments, dolls, bears/animals (especially Beanie Babies), and antiques. I also have a China cabinet filled with figurines and other little treasures that I've collected over the years.

-Jerri

Millie's Place

I've found another wonderful etsy shop to visit. It's called Millie's Place, and it's your place for all things baked and sewed!

Donna of Millie's Place sells a yummy assortment of baked goods that are made fresh when you order them. And you'll definitely be hungry after you see what she has to offer! You'll find brownies, oatmeal raisin cookies, lemon glazed shortbread cookies, jumbo chocolate chip cookies with walnuts, and even low-fat chocolate chip cookies. And how would like to try some ginger bars or ginger whoopie pies like the ones pictured here? Yum!


And if you've got a massive sweet tooth, you can try some homemade fudge. Millie's Place offers chocolate fudge and peanut butter fudge with or without walnuts. And if you like coconut as much as my husband does, you'll definitely want to try some chocolate covered macaroons.

But Millie's Place isn't just a shop for baked goods. It also features some lovely items that Donna sews. You'll find handmade dresses and adorable preemie sized clothes, such as the 3-piece set pictured below. There's also a Kitty Appliqued Bib and Kitty Doll that would make a great gift.

You'll also find some cute items for your kitchen like vintage tablecloth napkins and vintage tablecloth grocery bag holders, and much more!

The baked items at Millie's Place are baked fresh when you order them and are carefully packaged and shipped Priority Mail to ensure that you receive them in 1-3 days.

Go visit Millie's Place today!

http://milliesplace.etsy.com/

-Jerri

Barbecue Chicken Pizza

I've never really been into pizzas that you make yourself. I remember getting frozen pizzas when I was a kid, and sometimes we'd also buy the pizzas that are refrigerated and just need to be baked. They're usually found in or around the store's deli. But I always loved restaurant pizzas much better.

Now we usually order take out when we want pizza, or we go to the Cici's Buffet, and sometimes we get "take and bake" pizzas from Papa Murphy's. (Their 5 meat stuffed is awesome!)

But occasionally I will make a pizza at home. Red Baron's are really good, and sometimes I'll throw my own combination together. For an example, today I'm sharing the barbecue chicken pizza that I made recently.


Recipe for Barbecue Chicken Pizza:

Ingredients:
1 Pizza crust (homemade or refrigerated)
1 bottle barbecue sauce
1 bag cheddar cheese (or other cheese combination)
1 lb chicken (2-4 chicken breasts)
bacon (as many pieces as you desire) or bacon bits
1 onion, diced (optional)

Directions: First cook your chicken. I just boiled mine on the stove, but you can however you prefer. I like to boil it, because this makes it nice and tender; the crock pot would also work well. You can also bake or grill it, but I'd recommend brushing the chicken with some sauce beforehand, to ensure that it's not to dry. After your chicken is cooked, chop or shred it.

Next preheat the oven. The directions on the crust I used called for 400 degrees. Next prepare crust. If using a refrigerated crust, unroll the crust onto a pizza pan or cookie sheet. (I actually used an 11X7 casserole dish for mine). For a large pizza, you could use 2 crusts and put them together. Next pour the barbecue sauce on the crust; use as much as you desire, and spread it with a spoon, spatula, or brush. Next sprinkle your onion, if using. Then sprinkle on your chicken, bacon, and top with plenty of cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes, use whatever baking instructions you have for the crust recipe you are using.

(before baking)

(after baking)

-Jerri

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I'm posting a link to this post on the following sites:
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday is hosted by Blessed With Grace.
Homemaker Mondays is hosted by 11th Heaven’s Homemade Haven.
Making A Happy Home Monday is hosted by As For Me and My House….
Make Something Monday is hosted by Go Graham Go! and Jolly Mom and Diana Rambles.
Tasty Tuesday is hosted by Balancing Beauty & Bedlam.
I Am Blissfully Domestic is hosted by Blissfully Domestic.
Ultimate Recipe is Swap is hosted by Life as Mom.
Friday Feasts is hosted by Momtrends.
Works for Me Wednesday is hosted by We Are THAT Family
Hooked on Fridays is hosted by Hooked on Houses

Uprinting Custom Sticker Giveaway

I'm happy to announce the start of a new giveaway sponsored by our friends at Uprinting.

Uprinting is an online printing company that provides high quality prints for a number of different items including brochures, company letterhead and business cards, vinyl banners, window clings, menus, greeting cards, catalogs, and more!

The company also provides sticker printing. Stickers are a great tool for bloggers and business owners. You can use them to advertise and hand out to customers like business cards. Or you can use them to label your products or spruce up your product's packaging.

They can also be used in your personal life. You could use them to label your bakeware or label your child's school supplies. Or you can create address labels or letter seals for the back of your envelopes.

Uprinting is offering 250 custom stickers to one Simply Sweet Home reader. You can choose a design from the Uprinting website, or you can upload your own design.

For my own custom sticker, I'm using my blog button. I think a sticker like this would be great for promoting my blog. Don't you?

This Giveaway is now closed.

Other Rules, Restrictions, and Additional Entries:

-This giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents ONLY.

-The winner of the giveaway is required to pay shipping for the prizes.

-Don't forget, if you don't have a blog or a profile with a visible email address, please include your email address in your comment so that I can contact you if you win. (Can't stress this enough!)

-All products will be awarded by coupon code by Friday July 17, 2009.

-For extra entries, you can follow me on blogger and/or twitter and facebook, or subscribe to my mailing list. Just leave additional comments, and please leave a user name or something so that I can verify. Thanks!

-Jerri

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This post is featured on Frugal Friday at Life as Mom

Oh My Gluestick

Looking for a shop that sells hair bows, baby shower gifts, and room decor? Look no farther than Oh My Gluestick. This shop is owned by a mother of two named Tommie. Tommie began making hair bows for her daughter, which led her to sell her bows in local shops, and now she is sharing her craftiness with the world on etsy. Her shop features an array of lovely items, and she also makes custom items and gifts to fit your needs.

I was instantly drawn to the monkey stuff in her shop. She has adorable Sock Monkey Ornament/Cake Toppers, a Funky Monkey Stuffed Toy, and very cute monkey die cuts for room decor. She even has sock monkey cupcake toppers, which would be perfect for your child's birthday or a baby shower!

She also offers adorable party favor gift bags specially customized for your party's theme and colors, and she makes custom diaper cakes too!

And if you like wall lettering, but can't find any that matches your child's room, Oh My Glue Stick is the perfect place for you to look. She has lovely examples of wall lettering in her shop and will be happy to create a customized design for you.

And of course, you'll find plenty of bows here, as well as pacifier clips, and baby headbands. These are uniquely designed and available in a variety of bright and beautiful colors and themes. They are so adorable, I think you'll find it almost impossible to buy just one!

I hope you'll all stop by Oh My Gluestick on etsy today, and also check out the Oh My Gluestick blog!

http://ohmygluestick.etsy.com/

http://ohmygluestick.blogspot.com/

-Jerri