{The Winner Revealed & a Quick DIY}

The winner of my photo card giveaway -- chosen completely by random --

is Holly Diane. Congratulations, Holly! I hope you enjoy them. Just email

me your address (slinky.asu@gmail.com), and I'll get them in the mail.

Thank you for all your nice comments about my card sets through the last

post and via email. I was a little blown away. These are such simple cards,

and your nice words about them made my week!

A few of you asked me specifically how I made these -- what products I use,

etc. I figured it would be easiest to show you with photos. You're not going to

believe how fast and easy these are. I mean, really.

First, you need three particular supplies:

- Photos

- Cards & envelopes

- Your favorite adhesive

Photos -- I print mine through ritzpix.com. I think the quality of their matte

prints is fantastic. The blacks are black, the whites are white and the colors pop.

The prices are totally competitive but the quality is better than your average,

one-hour places (i.e., Walgreens, Costco, etc.).

Cards and Envelopes -- I love the Kraft folded cards and envelopes by Recollections.

They have a thick and sturdy quality. The ones I use are 4.6 inches by 6.25 inches. So,

they hold a four by six photo while giving it a little border.

Adhesive -- Tombo Mono Permanent is my favorite one.

I get it at Michael's and Joann's.

Then, it's just a matter of piecing them together:

- Select the photos you want to use.

- Pull a little adhesive across the back of each photo.

- Center them on a folded card.

See? I told you they were easy.

Let me know if you make your own. I'd love to hear about it.

{My Latest Obsession & a Giveaway}

I've been making simple photo cards using some of my snapshots.



Lots and lots of them.



There's a pretty good variety in all.

It's been fun.

I made a few bundles for gifting.

One of them is top secret since I haven't sent it to it's intended just yet.

The other two went to David's mom and stepmom for Mother's Day.

Sandy received a set made of some of my favorite Arizona photographs.

The ones I made for Mary used photos I took at her cottage last summer.

I'm keeping most of the rest for myself. (I'm a big card writer.)

You didn't think I'd leave you out though, did you?

Of course I didn't. :)

I can't mail each of you a personalized note of thanks for being a reader.

But I can do little giveaways like this as a thank you for your support of my blog.

One lucky person will win a bundle with ten of my photo cards.



To enter, leave a comment on this post telling me how you feel when you get a card in

the mail from a friend or about who you're keeping in touch with. Do you have a pan pal, exchange snail mail, still believe in the United States Postal Service? Or maybe letter

writing is on your proverbial to do list. I want to hear about it. Comments will be open

until Sunday, May 15th 16th at 9AM Arizona time. Please be sure to check back on

Monday and/or leave a way for me to get a hold of you in case you win. Good luck!

NOTE: I originally posted this on Thursday but Blogger was having some technical

issues that prevented commenting and even bumped this post back into my drafts

folder. So, I'm extended the contest by one day. Sorry for any inconvenience.

{You Know You're Lookin' at a Winner}

It's time to announce the winner of the giveaway I hosted recently,

sponsored by CNS Stores. Thank you to everyone that participated!

I really enjoyed reading all comments on what you like most about

spring and your ideas for spring decorating.

I used a random number generator to choose a totally objective and

completely random victor:

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:
13
Timestamp: 2011-03-21 00:42:12 UTC

The winner is the person who left the 13th comment. That's Emily from Frilly Details.

I'll email you the code and the simple directions for using it. Happy shopping!

{Giveaway: Lighten & Brighten Your Space for Spring}

Winter weather is parting and making way for spring -- a season that's all about

rebirth and new life. Mother Nature brings that energy to the outdoors, but we

have to make the indoors shine.

I bought a few odds and ends at a local home store the other day. I think they'll bring

some needed freshness and color to the house. What would you buy if someone just

handed you $50 in shopping money?

Maybe you'd brighten your place up with pendant lighting or spring decor. You might

opt to buy luggage for your next getaway or outdoor dishes for a weekend BBQ.

Well, now is your chance to shop ... for free.

The nice people at CNS Stores have seen fit to give one of my readers a $50 gift

card to use at any of their 200 unique sites. (They sell just about everything you can

imagine. Click on the link above where it says pendant lighting and enter a world of

online shopping possibilities.)

Contest rules:

* Leave a comment right here on this post with your favorite things about spring or

spring decorating tips.

* Every comment will count as a separate entry. So, comment away for more chances to win.

* Must live in the US or Canada to be eligible.

* Contest will be open until 5PM Mountain Standard Time on Sunday, March 20, 2011.

* A winner will be chosen at random on the evening of March 20th -- the first day of spring!

How 'bout that for great timing?

Until then, I wish you less spring cleaning and more spring shopping.

{'Tis the Season to be Merry}

It can also be a stressful season for a lot of people. I thought I would be way farther along in

my holiday planning then I am at this moment. (Which, unfortunately, seems to be turning

into a holiday tradition.) It's time for me to get on the ball and make some decisions ... now.

I want to be able to enjoy people, time and traditions in the month of December instead of fighting traffic and hastily finishing my holiday to do list. Plus. it's way more fun to buy,

wrap, decorate, and bake when you don't feel rushed. So, I vow -- here and now -- to make

my holiday list and have some fun while checking it twice.

Hopefully I'll score some extra relaxation to help me get through the hustle of the holidays

with our new MAX Percussion Massager. David bought it at Brookstone. He uses it on his

legs to help repair those muscles after his long runs. (He's training for another marathon

right now.) This thing is awesome. We've had fun trading massages. It digs deep into the

muscle all on it own. So, as the massage giver, you don't have to do a lot of work. :) My

favorite is to use it on my hips. It releases all kinds of tension from the hip flexors.

Brookstone is offering a discount to my readers. (How nice is that?) They have all kinds of

unique gifts for the hard to shop for on your list. I tend to think women are easier to shop

for, probably because I am a woman and great minds think alike. But Brookstone has cool

gifts for men who have everything and for the gadget lover on your list. So, check 'em out.

You can shop online and save time.

The coupon code is: 22SAVE. Use it to save $10 off any purchase of $70 or more.

They tell me this coupon code doesn't expire. So, keep it in mind for future shopping, too.

How are you doing on your holiday check list? What are your priorities this holiday season?

{And the Giveaway Goes to...}

The giveaway -- Two people will win a 5x7 print of their favorite photo from this post.

The winners, who were literally drawn from a hat, are:

(1) Honey Mommy ~ I like the first one.. and the third one. They are so colorful and fun!

I definitely need some more color in my life!

(2) Lindsey ~ Your pictures are always so lovely. I would have to say that my favorite is

of the chilies hanging, but it is really difficult to pick just one.

Congratulations, ladies. Email me (slinky.asu@gmail.com) with your mailing information so

I can get them to you. Thanks for playing! :)

{Out in Old Town}

I recently had one of my favorite days in some time.
Me, my camera and four hours in visually rich, Old Town Albuquerque.

Took myself to a leisurely lunch at Church Street Cafe.
Browsed but didn't bother to buy anything.
Had nice chats with some shop keepers and a couple passers by.
Enjoyed the beautiful weather ... sunshine with breeze, warm with cool.

Perfect.

** GIVEAWAY: Leave a comment, noting your favorite photo. Two people

will be chosen at random to receive a 5x7 print of their favorite. (UPDATE:

Contest now closed -- winners announced here.)

We were in the area to see Art and Mary (David's parents) ...
Who were in the area to see Clem and Jean, their long time friends.
David had to work Thursday and Friday. So, I did my own thing one day
and went to Santa Fe with Jean and Mary the next. The guys played golf
on Saturday. So, we busied ourselves with the flea market, more shops
and lunch. We had dinners together and watched the Olympics each night.
It was a nice visit.

"The camera makes everyone a tourist in other people's reality, and
eventually in one's own."