Canvas Press Review & Giveaway (2)
Posted by Sarcastic Mom, aka Lotus in Uncategorized on May 18, 2010
***This giveaway has ended, and the winner has been notified***
(For some inexplicable reason, comments are suddenly not being accepted on the first version of this post. All comments on the previous post as well as this one will be counted as entries.)
I recently had a chance to have one of my photographs printed on canvas by Canvas Press. I’ve seen this type of thing online before, and have always thought it was a really cool idea – turn your captures into artwork you can hang on your own wall.
I have taken so many photos that I love dearly, so it took me a while to pick one. I chose this photo after much deliberation because I love the color and the state of mind that looking at it puts me in.
The ordering process was easy, and there are a lot of pretty cool options to choose from (you can see them all here) so that you can get your piece to look exactly as you want it.
My print was a 16X20, 1.5″ gallery wrap with image wrapped around the sides. There’s a great assortment of choices for your size, thickness, and the type of wrap you can have applied (mirror, image, color of your choosing). There are also some great effects you can apply from basic things like black & white or sepia, all the way to retouching, mimicking oilwork, or completely altering the background. Pretty wicked. (You can also add text to your image, if you really want it to “say” something.)
The product was shipped quickly and packaged carefully – the piece was well protected and wrapped. When I pulled it out of the packaging, my breath caught in my throat. I was worried that the quality of the image would suffer once printed on canvas at that size. That proved to be silly, because the quality is fantastic. I can’t believe how gorgeous it looks up close.
Here it is on the wall in my living room:
I’m already trying to decide which photos I’m going to have printed on canvas next. This is a really great way to decorate your home – choose images and photos that you truly love and will complement the rooms in your home and have them made into wall hangings.
Canvas Press wanted you to be able to easily afford to add these touches to your home, so they’re giving a discount code to my readers: enter mamasays15 when you order through the end of May and you get %15 off the price. Yay!
Even better? They’re going to give one of you a free canvas. Is that not awesome? (Hint: it’s freaking awesome.) The value of this canvas is $113.99 and shipping is included. Woot!
To enter to win a Canvas from Canvas Press, leave me a comment below telling me what photo or image you’d choose to have printed if you win.
Entry comments will be accepted through May 19th, 2010. The winner will then be notified by email, and must respond to claim the prize.
Please use a valid email address on the comment form.
Rules:
• No duplicate comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by linking on twitter and leaving a link to your tweet in the comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by linking on Facebook and leaving a link to your update in the comments.
• Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.
• Once notified of having won, you have 48 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
Disclosure: This is an uncompensated review. I received a canvas for review, free of charge.
Canvas Press Review & Giveaway
Posted by Sarcastic Mom, aka Lotus in Decor, Discount, Giveaway, Home, Photography on May 12, 2010
***This giveaway has ended, and the winner has been notified***
I recently had a chance to have one of my photographs printed on canvas by Canvas Press. I’ve seen this type of thing online before, and have always thought it was a really cool idea – turn your captures into artwork you can hang on your own wall.
I have taken so many photos that I love dearly, so it took me a while to pick one. I chose this photo after much deliberation because I love the color and the state of mind that looking at it puts me in.
The ordering process was easy, and there are a lot of pretty cool options to choose from (you can see them all here) so that you can get your piece to look exactly as you want it.
My print was a 16X20, 1.5″ gallery wrap with image wrapped around the sides. There’s a great assortment of choices for your size, thickness, and the type of wrap you can have applied (mirror, image, color of your choosing). There are also some great effects you can apply from basic things like black & white or sepia, all the way to retouching, mimicking oilwork, or completely altering the background. Pretty wicked. (You can also add text to your image, if you really want it to “say” something.)
The product was shipped quickly and packaged carefully – the piece was well protected and wrapped. When I pulled it out of the packaging, my breath caught in my throat. I was worried that the quality of the image would suffer once printed on canvas at that size. That proved to be silly, because the quality is fantastic. I can’t believe how gorgeous it looks up close.
Here it is on the wall in my living room:
I’m already trying to decide which photos I’m going to have printed on canvas next. This is a really great way to decorate your home – choose images and photos that you truly love and will complement the rooms in your home and have them made into wall hangings.
Canvas Press wanted you to be able to easily afford to add these touches to your home, so they’re giving a discount code to my readers: enter mamasays15 when you order through the end of May and you get %15 off the price. Yay!
Even better? They’re going to give one of you a free canvas. Is that not awesome? (Hint: it’s freaking awesome.) The value of this canvas is $113.99 and shipping is included. Woot!
To enter to win a Canvas from Canvas Press, leave me a comment below telling me what photo or image you’d choose to have printed if you win.
Entry comments will be accepted through May 19th, 2010. The winner will then be notified by email, and must respond to claim the prize.
Please use a valid email address on the comment form.
Rules:
• No duplicate comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by linking on twitter and leaving a link to your tweet in the comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by linking on Facebook and leaving a link to your update in the comments.
• Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.
• Once notified of having won, you have 48 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
Disclosure: This is an uncompensated review. I received a canvas for review, free of charge.
Lisa Leonard Jewelry: Necklace Review & $75 Giveaway
Posted by Sarcastic Mom, aka Lotus in Beauty, Gift Certificate, Gifts, Jewelry, Shopping on October 11, 2009
Giveaway has ended: Congratulations to the winner, Hope.
******
I’m not extremely girly, and I’ve never been one to spend very much on jewelry, but I most certainly can appreciate a pretty trinket or two. I got very lucky recently: Lisa Leonard let me choose a piece from her collection to call my very own.
I have to admit to you that I had a very hard time choosing. I narrowed my selections down to this cute birdie necklace, because I think it’s timeless, beautiful, and it made me feel so peaceful when I saw it…
And this one, because, well… it says everything I know to be true that I do for my son. And every single one of those things is a cherished task for this woman. Those of you who know my personal site know that I joke and rant about the “perils” of motherhood. I tell you that sometimes this Mommy Gig seems like too much for me. And that’s true, sometimes it does seem like too much.
But there’s never a time when I’d actually give it up. There’s never a time when I’d want to stop being a hand holder, dream soother, or love giver. So this is the piece I asked for, and she even customized it to say “Mommy” instead of “Mama,” since Braden calls me the former most often.
When it arrived at my door, I felt special, even though I had chosen it for myself!
Look how it was packaged:
Simple and beautiful.
I’ve worn it traveling, running errands, and at home. The metal is sturdy, yet delicate and feminine. Holding the charm in your hand you feel the strength in the design, and at the same time, the soft chain that dangles from your fingers is dainty and fine – feminine.
I’ve had people remark about it, and I honestly feel at home with the cool pendant resting on the warm spot right above my chest. It sits above my heart, announcing what lies inside.
Now I need to figure out a way to get that birdie necklace for myself, too. Maybe Santa? 
I asked Lisa if she would be willing to give you guys a chance to win one of her lovely pieces, and she suggested that we giveaway a $75 Gift Code that can be used towards anything on the site! I’m so excited to host this giveaway – when you visit her website you will see how special these works are. *happy dancing*
To enter to win a $75 Gift Code from Lisa Leonard Designs , visit the website, find your favorite piece, and then leave me a comment below telling me what that is.
Comments will be accepted from 10:00 a.m. (CST) October 11, 2009 until 10:00 a.m. (CST) October 18, 2009. The winner will then be notified by email, and must respond to claim the necklace.
Please use a valid email address on the comment form.
Rules:
• No duplicate comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by linking on twitter and leaving a link to your tweet in the comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by linking on Facebook and leaving a link to your update in the comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by blogging about this contest and leaving a link to your blog post in the comments.
• This giveaway is open to Residents of the US and Canada only.
• Winners will be selected via random draw, and will notified by e-mail.
• Once notified of having won, you have 48 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
Disclosure: This is an uncompensated review. I received the necklace for review, free of charge.
Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife: Book Review & Giveaway
Posted by Sarcastic Mom, aka Lotus in Book, Humor on October 6, 2009
Giveaway has ended: Congratulations to the winner, Martha Foster.
******
Anyone who tells you their marriage is *perfect* is either still on their honeymoon, lying, or is stark raving mad. (Or drunk, oh so drunk.)
If you’re years (or even months) in, you know that all is not of fairy tales and dreams. Hey, marriage takes work (and that rat bastard rarely does his share of it, freaking good for nothing… oh! I digress!) and any woman today knows that there are bumps and humps and lumps. And other umps.
This is not to say that we don’t love our husbands, or that we don’t want to have a happy home.
But hell, we KNOW there are stinky moments.
Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife by Nava Atlas is a parody of a recipe book that will make you laugh at any and all of these types of moments. You’ll find “recipe” after recipe that makes you nod along and belly laugh in understanding. (And I pray not too many of them will have you crying with woe, but that’s another topic entirely.)
I read a few of these “recipes” out loud to my husband. He fidgeted a little while I laughed my butt off. A couple of times I think I stressed a few words to much, and raised my eyebrow a little too hard. I may have actually pierced him with a few hard glares. I can’t remember if I actually shook the book at him or not. But I definitely laughed out loud. Long and hard. (After I wept a little.)
Then he quietly backed out of the room. Not sure why.
Some examples of “recipes” in the book:
- Beans ‘N’ Weenies of Sexual Tension
- Midlife Stress-Stuffed Cabbage
- Control-Freak Cookies
About the author, from the back cover of the book:
“Nava Atlas is an artist and author who is best known for her bestselling vegetarian and vegan cookbooks, including the classic Vegetariana. She lives in the Hudson Valley Region of New York with her husband and two sons. You can visit her website at NavaAtlas.com.”
Want to grab a free copy, signed by Nava Atlas herself, and chuckle through it like I did?
To enter to win a free copy of Secret Recipes for the Modern Wife, leave me a comment below.
Comments will be accepted from 4:00 p.m. (CST) October 6, 2009 until 4:00 p.m. (CST) October 10, 2009. The winner will then be notified by email, and must respond to claim the book.
Please use a valid email address on the comment form.
Rules:
• No duplicate comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by linking on twitter and leaving a link in the comments.
• You may receive an additional entry by blogging about this contest and leaving a link in the comments.
• This giveaway is open to US Residents only.
• Winners will be selected via random draw, and will notified by e-mail.
• You have 48 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
Disclosure: This is an uncompensated review. I received the book for review, free of charge.
