Storkie Express, Inc Invitations & Announcements with Style Review & Giveaway 9/24 - Winner Closed

CONGRATULATIONS TO ...

Super Frugalette

An e-mail has been sent and she has 48 hours to respond before a new winner will be chosen by random.org.

Thanks to all those who enter and don't forget to check out Storkie for all your party needs!

I am really big into parties and making a big deal out of them.  Anyone who knows me knows that I go that extra length in ensuring every details is as perfect as I can get them and I spend hours looking for the perfect products to compliment my parties or special events.  I usually plan months ahead of time for Christmas and I'm currently planning my daughter's baby shower at the same time.  I had the opportunity to review complimentary Christmas cards and I liked them so much that I ordered baby shower invitations and photo stamps to match from Storkie. 

The product I chose to review was hard to decide as the styles were plentiful and all were appealing.  I chose the Christmas Cards Inventations due to the style and assortment that appealed to my wish for elegance this year with a twist of personalization and a huge "wow" factor.  Out of the 46 styles in this category alone, I chose the Rudolph Holiday Wrap and Photo.   The photos slip into the side pocket and can be fastened with an accompanying Glue Dot.  


The creation process is very easy and effortless.  When you create them, you have a sense of accomplishment as you truly did personalize and create something that reflects your personality.  Once you select the style of card you want, you click on "Click to Customize."  The next steps are equally as easy:

1. Choose the pocket color (14 choices)
2. Choose the inner pocket color (20 choices - some at additional costs)
3. Choose the pocket seal color (10 choices)
4. Choose custom printing or no printing
5. Enter Family Name and Family Members
6. Upload photo
7. After entering the iDesign area, you choose the layout of the font, font, color, size and any other editing needed for the wording and the photo.
8. You can choose to undo an action or start over with ease
9. You have the choice to review the final product or entrust Storkie with the view and provide any special instructions.

There are also recommended items shown to help compliment your purchase.  The process was very easy and seeing the results in real time helps to make the decision easier.


The cards were just as seen and are beautiful.  They are made of high quality, durable card stock with elegant lettering on another piece of card stock that is inserted.  For additional costs, you can have the cards assembled or you can assemble them yourself and you can also choose matching custom printed envelopes.  The choices are plentiful and I like how Storkie provides a cheaper choice for those on a budget and the works for those that don't have to be as concerned with the money factor.  I was very pleased with the photo quality as well.  Every step of the process is quality driven and the customer service is just as good.


The other items that I purchased myself because I really liked the products and customer service were baby shower invitations.  White Shimmer Foldover with Satin Ribbon are both beautiful and elegant.  Priced at $2.29 but are well worth it again due to the quality and beauty of each card.  Just like the Christmas cards, you can have them assembled for a small fee or assemble them yourself.  For these, I did pay the extra cost to have the envelopes addressed to add to the pretty factor.  I also purchased matching photo stamps to add to the joy of our first grandchild.  When you create your cards at Storkie, they provide wording ideas to help the process be even easier.  It's so easy and the results are worth the minimal effort to create.  Storkie even has customer service available to contact before you order if you have any questions at 1-800-771-7867 from 8 am until 7 pm (EST).


Storkie also provided detailed assembly instructions for each set of cards and assembly was just as easy.  My daughter's fiancé was reluctant when he saw the invitations online but when he saw them in person, he loved them.  He thought they were beautiful and elegant and caught the essence of their first born.

 

  

If you aren't familiar with Storkie, they offer products for a variety of occasions:

• Baby
• Religious
• Wedding
• Party
• Graduation
• Holiday

Their website is easy to navigate and even includes a step-by-step guide on how to Facebook your wedding.  There are favors to choose from to include these cute mints, cookies and more.

 

Storkie can also be found on Facebook, Twitter and their blog.  I would recommend Storkie when planning your next party or special occasion for the quality, customer service and selection.


This product review and giveaway was made possible by Mom Spark Media.  


Giveaway:


Storkie is graciously offering one of my readers one sheet of 20 custom holiday postage stamps.  If you haven't tried custom postage stamps, you should as every time I use them on envelopes, my recipients marvel at them and tell me how neat they are.  They are always the big deal for my invitations and cards.


To Enter:


Follow my blog and tell me what product from Storkie you like the most.


Extra Entries (worth one unless specified otherwise):

1. Follow Storkie on Twitter.
2. "Like" Storkie on Facebook.
3. Subscribe to Storkie's blog.
4. Subscribe to my blog.
5. Follow me on Twitter.
6. Tweet about this giveaway - can be done daily
7. Blog about this giveaway - worth five extra entries
8. Always check home page for more opportunities for bonus entries.

Giveaway ends 9/24 at midnight (EST).

Thanks to all those who enter - US only please

My Plans for a Frugal Christmas & Holiday Ideas with TwitterMoms & Staples

I started out half the year thinking about how to be more frugal with Christmas given we have five kids and three sets of parents. I was losing track of the ways I was going to make this an inexpensive yet nice Christmas so I went to Staples, picked up a cheap handy journal to keep my lists of money making opportunities ranging from surveys, buyer advantage programs, bank debit programs and other opportunities.  TwitterMoms and Staples has put together a challenge for moms to share how they are saving money.

When I think of Staples, I always rememeber my step son taking the "That was easy" button and blasting it in my ear last year for Christmas.  Staples is another great place to pick up some of those high tech gifts or even office supplies or furnishings.  An avid printer might appreciate a big supply of cartridges.  A hopeless direction finder would love a new GPS (my sister for example)!  Not only can you get your presents but you can order wonderful personalized cards, calendars and one of my favorites, gift card holders.






Deals for Busy Moms This Holiday Season Check out This Week's Deals!

About this TwitterMoms Blogging Program

Looking for more creative ways to save money?  Zazzle, if you are creative, is a great venue for making items with no costs out of your pocket. I started in the political arena and ventured into other areas such as business cards, children's products and invitations. Not quite a year later, I've made over $2,000 which has been handy for customized photo gifts and cash. This will definitely take care of a few gifts.

My latest real time frugal Christmas deals/buys.

Customized Wine Labels:

Use these to customize and accompany the wine to explain the vintage, type and other wine maker notes:

Mypoints.com is a quick way to make points to turn into gift cards and more. If you buy a lot on the internet, definitely use this site as the points add up fast! They also offer other incentives to earn points ranging from surveys to games to referrals. The points accumulated will amount to one gift off the book for Christmas in a Macy's gift card! 

My bank offers debit card rewards so whenever we click that debit button, we add on more points. Utilize those cards especially if it's via a free account! These points will knock off two more gifts in the form of two gift cards from The Gap for those hard to buy for teens:

I'm trying the survey route as many bloggers note are worthwhile along with Swagbucks but I haven't quite got the hang of that one so I'll keep moving along as a snail's pace.

Take advantage of cosmetic type freebies if you use products such as Clinique or Lancome. They have nice free items that can add up to a nice gift basket:

My employer also provides thank you for a good job points to spend with a company in exchange for gifts.  It's been a good year and here is what I'm purchasing as gifts:

I know that one isn't necessarily fair as not everyone gets a perk such as that from their employer but it's to show an opportunity that I could spend on myself but am choosing to use towards making the holiday more frugal.

My Coke Rewards points can add up quickly if you an avid Coke fan as we are.  Thanks to TwitterMoms, I took part in an earlier opportunity where I received an additional 500 points which quickly bumped up our Coke addiction points.  Not sure what I'll purchase yet but it's looking like a $50 gift card.

This year, I will also bake to save a little from purchasing some of the higher priced YET very good baked items.  I posted previously about some really simple but elegant looking from AllYou.com.

CreativeGiftWrapping.Com has very elegant and sophisticated packaging to add the final touch to your gifts.

Have you ever noticed how many bloggers have giveaways? If you have the time, enter! There are some really nice giveaways and given the volume, you are bound to win something eventually!

Holly and Hal Moose Build-A-Bear Workshop Review & Giveaway 12/20 CLOSED WINNERS ANNOUNCED

Congratulations to...

SueBrown and Snowflake07

Thanks to all those that entered and I'm working on a brand new set of giveaways for 2010!

I don't think there is one child that doesn't like Build-A-Bear Workshop and I don't blame them.  I can't imagine the fun I would have had as a child getting able to build one of these adorable animals.  My oldest took my six year old to Build-A-Bear last weekend and she made two of the new Star Wars bears.  One was Darth Vader and the other was a Storm Trooper. 

The newest collection is Holly and Hal Moose and the clothing accessories make them even more adorable.  Thanks to MomSelect and Build-A-Bear, I received the MomSelect Holiday Product Pak that had both Holly and Hal Moose.  Not only are they soft and cuddly but the antlers on Hal really light up!  There are even music choices to add such as:  Giggle Sounds, 6 in 1 Best Friend Sounds, Frosty the Snowman Song, Jonas Brother Sound and many more.  Just click here to hear samples.

With all the clothing choices, you can really build a heart warming Christmas gift for your little one.  The Holly and Hal Moose were adorably dressed in this:

Here is something that I didn't know about Build-A-Bear, you can add embroidery to really personalize a gift.  It only costs $8 more but well worth it.

My daughter went to a Build-A-Bear birthday party last year and that's what we're doing next year.  It was so much fun watching all the little girls have fun picking out their own bear, making it and then choosing the clothes.  The Associate was fantastic and was in the right place in making sure the kids had a great time.

Build-A-Bear is really a one stop shop for all kinds of fun for your little one's and even adults that enjoy receiving cute, cuddly and personalized furry little friends.

Holly and Hal even have a special Christmas Adventure.  Click HERE to watch the trailer.  If you missed the airing of the movie, you can still watch it here.   Holly and Hal Moose:  Our Uplifting Christmas Adventure book is a fun filled adventure that will delight any child.  The story is free when you buy both Holly and Hal or for $15.99.

The Giveaway:

Two Build-A-Bear eGift Cards ($10 value each).

To Enter:

Follow my blog and leave a comment in the form below. 

Extra Entries:

• Subscribe to my blog, leave a comment (2 enties)
• Tweet about this giveaway, leave a comment (can be done daily) - (2 entries per day)
• Blog about the giveaway, leave a comment (can be done daily) - (2 entries per day)
• Follow me on Twitter, leave a comment - (2 entries)
• Vote for me at DivineCaroline (widget top left) and get FIVE extra entries
• Enter any of my on-going giveaways and receive five extra entries
• Bring over any new follower and get five extra entries
• Go to HappyHollyBlog.com, watch the trailer and comment about what you saw for FIVE entries.

Giveaway ends 12/20 at midnight.  Two winners will be chosen by random.org.

Thanks and good luck!

*Note:  I received Holly and Hal Moose from MomSelect and was not financially compensated for this post.

Both have had e-mails sent and have 24 hours to respond before a new winner(s) will be generated via Random.org.

Black Friday Ads & More Good Shopping Deals

TGIBlackFriday has nine store's Black Friday Ads up HERE.  They include Target, Walmart, Best Buy, JcPenney, Kmart, Kohls, Toys-R-Us and Sears.

Here are just some deals:

• Over 40 games at $10 each
• Power Wheels Ride On at $88
• Nintendo Wii Value Bundle at $249
• Acer Netbook at $149.99
• Playstation 3 Console w/ Batman at $299
• Nintendo DS Lite at $98

Overstock has this 500 Thread Count Siberian White Down Comforter normally priced at $479.75, now at $102.99

Musician's Friend has Rogue Starter Acoustic Guitar at $34.99 normally priced at $99.

Best Buy has Sony Cybershot DSC-G1 6.0MP Digital Camera for $199.00 normally priced at $599.99.

Today from 10 am to 3 pm, 30% off of orders $60 or more at Personal Creations.  Use Code LNCH36.  They have nice personalized products that are great for gifts.  High quality!

Red Envelope has free chocolates with your order.  Offer expires 12/03.  Check out the personalized animal books.

ProFlowers has 20% off until Sunday with code GOBBLE.

Snapfish has 20% off until November 30th with code SENDEARLY or free shipping with code SENDFREE.

1-800 Flowers has a free Thanksgiving upgrade ($10 value) until 11/25.

Lands End is having 30% off regular priced turtlenecks, polos and tees using code NOV20 and the pin 00008111 with free shipping.  Valid until 11/20.  They also have women's cashmere sweaters at $49.50 regularly priced at $89.50.

Buy.com has the following:

• Curious Case of Benjamin Button Widescreen for $9.00 expires 11/20.
• Complimentary 12 Week Subscription to USA Today.
• Brother QL-570 Professional Label Printer $35.00 normally $169.95.

Much more HERE.


Beauty.com has free Origin's Ginger Souffle Body Cream with the purchase of $55 of other Origin's products.  Value of $29.  Ends once all are gone or 12/03.


Gap.com has 25% off until 11/24 with code GAPSALE25.

BananaRepublic.com has 30% off of outerwear and free shipping on any purchase $50 or more.  Expires 12/15. No code needed.

Cheryl&Co has 15% off entire brownie shop.  Use code BROWNIE15. Expires 11/23.

HauteLook has:

• Coach bags 45% off. Ends late Saturday. 
• Hello Kitty 20-60% off.
• Armani Fragrances
• PurMinerals
• GoSmila & more
  

50% off of Personalized Gift Wrap at StorkAvenue HERE <-- Great deal at $9.95!