Novica Review Part 2 and a Winner!!

Thanks everybody for participating in my first ever giveaway!! It was a really great experience and I learned a bit more about a company doing great things. If you aren't familiar with Novica, they are in association with National Geographic to work with artisans around the globe for fair trade. Partnering with them on this giveaway gave me the chance to browse their website more extensively and I was surprised at the variety of product they had, as I mentioned in my earlier review, here. Browse their line of Peruvian necklaces and you are sure to find something you like. Looking for the perfect gift for your boss or co-worker? Novica has a great selection of gifts and you can choose a price point, like say $30 or less and it will pull up all the items in that price range. Really unique items, too.

So for my review, I ordered these pillow covers, which come in a pair:

I waited about two weeks to receive my order, which wasn't bad considering it shipped directly from India. It arrived in a cardboard envelope, and inside was wrapped in a nice heavy paper, pretty ribbon and a small envelope.

 

 Inside the small envelope were a small booklet, a postcard and my shipping slip.

 The booklet contained some information about the pillow covers I ordered........

This is the postcard, which I love! I have long heard about the Bikaner Camel Festival, where they shave the camels fur into intricate shapes and designs. Don't know if that's what is being depicted here, but check this out:

Cool, huh? As I understand, it doesn't harm the camel in any way...just a really fancy haircut!! I digress.....

The back of the postcard had a hand written message...love the native script!

Even the ribbon tying the package was beautiful.

And here are my pillow covers.

I LOVE them! Much more saturated than I thought they would be, but that's a good thing. The color is beautiful, the embroidery meticulous. I couldn't be happier with the overall presentation of the product, from browsing, to ordering, to receiving, the whole experience was one I thoroughly enjoyed!

As part of my review, one reader was selected at random to receive a gift card to shop Novica's website and without further ado, the winner is....
                        
                                                 drumroll please.......................................

MelMorgan4!!!!

Congratulations!

If this is you, please e-mail me to claim your prize.

Thanks to Novica for partnering with me to bring ya'll this giveaway and thanks to all who entered!

Patience Young Grasshopper

Did you guys ever watch the Kung Fu T.V. series as a kid? I may be giving away my age here, but it was one of my favorite shows (that, and Taxi!) Anyway, there has been a proliferation of grasshoppers and Praying Mantis (Manti?) in my neighborhood...I have been seeing them EVERYWHERE! And that got me thinking about the Kung Fu series, because the 'Master' is always telling his student "Patience, young grasshopper."

I am a worrier, I tend to fret over things I have no control of, even though I know worrying is like praying for what you DON'T want. It's something I've been consciously working on. The other day I was sitting on my patio and my eye fell right on this guy, perched on one of my garden stools....

I ran to grab my camera, wanting to snap a picture before it hopped away. I was able to get this one shot before it disappeared...I didn't even see it move, it was just there and then it wasn't. You might be asking 'what's the big deal about a grasshopper?'

Well, the 'big' deal is how small it was....the tiniest grasshopper I've ever seen. It was no bigger than (ne, even smaller than) a Tic-Tac mint. It was so tiny, it made me laugh for some reason....so perfectly formed and so miniscule.

Anyway, I started thinking about things and how useless it is to worry. We all go through trials, we all have our ups and downs, but things usually seem to work out. I forget where I saw it, but I read this quote recently, which I took to heart: "It will all be okay in the end....If it's not okay, it's not the end."  And in the waiting, for the trials to end, for the good times to come, for the worry to fade, just remember............

Patience Young Grasshopper. 

BTW, don't forget I have a givewaway going on right now for a Novica giftcard!! Go here to enter!

Novica Review and a Giveaway!

Hey everybody, I have some pretty exciting news!! I am partnering with Novica to host my first ever review and giveaway! Do you guys know about Novica? I had heard of them before, but never seen the wide array of products they offer, all fair trade certified and in association with National Geographic. See their mission statement here. Novica contacted me a few weeks ago, asking if I wanted to do a product review? Heck yes! And what's even better, one lucky reader will win a giftcard to shop across any of Novica's product lines!! Cool, right?! Details on the giveaway at the end of this post.

I went to their website and was really surprised at the variety of product they offer...everything from bells to finger-puppets, tapestries to capri pants, and TONS of beautiful silver jewelry, like all these cool Silver Cocktail Rings. 

 After much deliberation, I ordered these pillow covers.

HERE

I haven't received them yet, but I will let you know when I do...I can't wait! I really love the delicate embroidery and the colors are so pretty.

One thing about ordering from Novica: because they are partnering with artisans for fair trade, quantities are limited! If you see something you love, you should probably get it, since it might not be there later.

Here are some of my favorite picks from their site:

Gorgeous Choker Here. I want this!

 

1. Here        2. Here

1. Here    2. Here

In addition to the pillows covers I ordered, there were sooo many really neat ones to choose from. 1. Here 2. Here.

My favorite thing on the whole site was probably 1. this sweet little enameled brass bowl...so pretty!  2. this pineapple spoon rest would be perfect to stash jewelry in.

Cool Artwork 1. 2. 3. 4.

In the southwest, these tumblers are a staple in tableware. 1. 2.

Super cool, graphic tapestry, here.

See? So many options! 

Now about the giveaway......
One reader will win a Novica gift certificate in the amount of $37.50! This giveaway will be open until Sept. 26th at midnight, and is open to U.S. residents only, in the 48 contiguous states (Novica ships worldwide, from what I can tell, but the shipping amount to anywhere other than the states would eat up the entire gift card!)
To enter, 'follow' me, if you don't do so already, and leave me a comment (scroll to bottom of post and click 'click here to leave a comment!')
For an additional entry, leave me a comment telling me which Novica item is your favorite.
For an extra entry, 'like' my facebook page here.

Winner will be selected using Random.org's true random number generator.

**I was compensated with a giftcard code to purchase product from the Novica website, in exchange for a review. All thoughts and opinions are 100% mine.

I am sharing this post at:

Birthday Block

So, yesterday was my birthday, but I guess I should preface that statement with some context. I have been sad lately, due to a longstanding personal situation that finally had some resolution. The resolution was not the one I had hoped for, prayed for, wanted, wished or dreamed. I think my sadness is noticeable, even though most days I try to put on my "I'm strong" face and just manage to get through the day. Most people who have known me 'before' and 'after' can see a real difference, and I certainly see a difference in myself. I try to focus on the positives, and that does help, but the sadness is still there, always there....I think it's okay to be sad, to grieve, to mourn and to feel profoundly lost, even though you know you aren't. So, because of my emotional compromise, I wasn't really into celebrating my birthday, didn't want to make any decisions (as a single mother, all I do all day, every day, is make decisions for everyone else) and didn't want a lot of attention focused on me to force me into 'being happy.' My mom was in town to show support, but also to help celebrate my son's birthday, which is Wednesday. He'll be 14...Yikes! So we went to Starbucks for birthday 'breakfast' because, sad or not, there is nothing wrong with a Venti Americano, extra breve, six splendas....yes, I drink coffee as if it's dessert.

So that was fine, not too much decision making involved. Then, because we were there and so was it, we popped into Homegoods. I didn't really need anything, but  when does one ever go into Homegoods based solely on need? Poked around for a while, nothing spoke to me. They recently had the 'Indian Bazaar' and the items left from that collection were all on clearance. It was a cool collection......some bone-inlaid little side tables, suzani embroidered footstools, carved wood mirrors.....none of which I could justify or afford when it was full price, but now it was on clearance. I spotted an interesting object that I picked up and quickly realized it was a wood carved printing block. I love printing blocks themselves as much as fabric printed with them. I have pinned several examples seen here, here and here. Once upon a time, World Market used to sell printing blocks as wall art, many of which I bought, but then had to sell in a tortuous moving process last year. Anyway, this block had only been $12.99 full price, but was now $9.00....totally affordable. So I got it. It was mounted on a piece of wood and included a bonus border print block.

This was made to hang on the wall, as a display piece, but I had intentions of dismantling the block and actually using the thing. So out came the tools......

                                                                                                 ...yes I consider a butter knife a tool.

It popped off pretty easy. The mounting plate was ruined in the process, but it was superfluous anyway.

I can't wait to print up some fabric with this! I usually use stencils to print my own fabric, but I have used stamps before and I'm sure this will be very similar. I did a test print on paper, and I think you could print on stationary and all kinds of other things besides fabric......Oooo...Hand printed wall paper!!

So during my birthday block (being sad, etc) I found a birthday (printing) block that gave me a glimmer of possibility, a slice of inspiration and a moment of happiness....

                                     
                                                                                                      ..........It's the little things.

Ikea Catalog Favorites

The new Ikea catalog is here!! While flipping through, a few things caught my eye........

Raskog Kitchen Cart 

I love the look of this, not just in the kitchen. I can see this in the laundry room, as a bedside table/cart, on the patio for plants, carting around art supplies......possibilities are almost endless. Plus, look at that color!

 

Ikea PS Side Table.....this comes in two styles, one with a flat top (seen here) and one with little 'bowls' moulded into the top. Perfect for art supplies, crayons, scissors in a kids room or remotes, plants or even snacks in the T.V. room!

This coffee table...in Turquoise or White

 Metal, industrial, on casters......I LOVE IT!!!

This sweet little night stand has a hidden shelf inside for an outlet strip and a hidden cord cable on the back leg to seamlessly and invisibly power up all your chargers. So smart!

Love this fabric. So fun and graphic. Sometimes Ikea fabrics get a little too 'out there' for me, but this one is.....spot on!

This super fun rug also comes in red.....

.....and a blue runner. So funky!

And while not new, I've always loved these inexpensive shelves. I have eight of these and I use them everywhere....in the garage, the pantry, the kids rooms and the hallway. They are so lightweight, easy to move and smaller in scale, plus the metal is easy to clean and I love the industrial look!


Ikea has many more cool new products and these have been just a few of my favorites.....what are your favorite new Ikea finds?

Back in the Saddle

Whew! O.K., the posting has been a bit....scarce...I'll go with scarce. A few weeks ago, I was in the middle of a post when I got a virus. A terrible, nasty virus that made me think I lost all my files of the last 15 years. Then my email server was down for a few days. Not that these things kept me from posting (well, actually the virus DID keep me from posting) but I was a little thrown for a loop. Add to that, I'm a single parent of two school age kids...my oldest just started high school (yikes!) and I work part time during the week, so the rest of my time is all about laundry, dishes, shopping, homework and all the other fun stuff! I do get projects in here and there; If I've got an extra ten minutes, I'll grab something that needs to be spray painted and go for it, and my sewing machine is always on stand by. You never know when you can whip out a pillow cover while boiling the pasta! I've seen so many blogs go by the wayside lately, calling it quits for all of the same reasons I gave....I don't want to quit because I have so many projects that I want to show you guys! So, I am just asking for patience and understanding...I know you all have the same issues and can totally relate and I want you to know that I appreciate YOU and everything YOU do. Yes, I'm talking to YOU, and YOU and YOU.......

Now then, I live in the desert and it is H.O.T. but we're in monsoon season and we get the best storms! The lighting, the clouds, the rain and the thunder are all so dramatic, it's inspiring. The local plants all thrive this time of year, soaking up the rains and exploding in fiery blossom and intense color. So for my first 'back-to-posting' post, I thought I'd share with you some of the things I've seen around the 'hood.

 

 The most amazing light just after a heavy rain. Gorgeous!

 Cute little green pods....but the stems of this plant were what caught my eye. Very pink.... This pic didn't quite capture it.

 Mesquite tree bean pods. Did you know, you can grind these into flour and bake with them? 

Get more info here

 The Santa Rita Prickly Pear....can you believe that amazing purple?!

 An interesting pattern 'burned' into the pads of the cactus. Or, it might be frostbite from the previous winter.

One of my favorite desert plants. The Mexican Bird of Paradise (Caesalpinia pulcherrima)

It is drought tolerant and thrives in the summer heat. I wish I could perform equally as well during the heat of high summer!

I am in love with this color combo! The purple of the Santa Rita cactus with the red, orange, yellow and green of the Bird of Paradise is jaw dropping! When in doubt, look to nature to provide the most perfect color combos.

I hope you enjoyed the view and thanks for visiting. I will never be like some blogs that post everyday (sometimes twice or three times a day!) but I will always give you my best, when I have it to give.

xox,

My Moroccan Crush....which turned into a virus!

Ok, so the title of this post is My Moroccan crush, but it became the post that turned into a NASTY computer virus!! While searching images on google of Morocco, I must've clicked a link that unleashed the plague on my laptop!! Boo Hissss. I have 15 years worth of files on that thing and was just recently going to back it up with an external hardrive. I SERIOUSLY hope I can get this recovered!!

This is how my post started:

I have always and forever been drawn to all things Moroccan. I absolutely love all the geometric patterns and arched doorways. There's just something about a Moroccan arched doorway that seems to calm and sooth me somehow.

Needless to say, I'm NOT CALM RIGHT NOW!!! I can't even provide the source for this image because I'm on a different computer. I will be back as soon as I get this virus contained and give a source credit. Until then, please send good vibes and computer virus eradicating prayers!!

Btw, I still LOVE Morocco and the image above IS peaceful (and NOT the one that caused the virus), and I WILL finish this post at some point!

A bit of shameless self promotion....

So, there's this contest going on and the grand prize for this contest is $250 in Apple gift cards. I feel a *tad* guilty for doing this, but sometimes a girls gotta do what a girls gotta do...and mama wants an i-pod! So, I am shamelessly petitioning you, dear readers to help me! The contest is for a logo for a Parrot rescue group called SoCal Parrot. Go to their facebook page link: 
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.404666139575544.84761.200322620009898&type=3
and scroll through the album to find my logo submissions (I entered two) and click 'like' next to my submissions. That's it! 

Here are the two I submitted

Go VOTE!! Thanks so much for your support!

That wasn't too terribly shameless, was it?!