A - Hackberry Wooden Bowl from Urban Turn ($20.00)
B - Set of Truffle Rings from Beatblack ($15.00)
C - Lace Study One Print from Elly Nelly Prints ($20.00)
D - Citrus Fern Sachets from Inleaf ($20.00)

Wow, I’m almost a jerk! I kept myself fairly busy today and almost forgot to make a post! Yikes! And it’s a good one too. This weekend, I made some Lemon Shortbread Cookies courtesy of Gourmet Girl. Although, follow her ingredients and don’t think it’s okay to substitute out for the fresh lemon ingredients. While my batch was still mighty tasty, it really didn’t have much lemon flavor. I blame it solely on the fact that I used lemon peel and some lemon juice I had in the fridge instead of fresh squeezed and fresh lemon zest. I cut mine into fancy diamond shapes after baking it for only 20 minutes (as opposed to the 40 minutes listed - mine already browned on the edges after that amount of time). Since Gourmet Girl has so many good recipes, go check out her blog instead of having me type it all out for you. Okay, it’s also because I have to walk the dog.

This week’s giveaway is full of pure cuteness! Cupcake Cuddles is giving one lucky winner a Flipper toothbrush holder of their choice. They are available in adorable animal world, dinosaur and cute little puppy designs which will be sure to delight your little one. The Flipper is the perfect solution for storing toothbrushes in a hygienic manner. A gentle pull will ‘flip’ open the cover and once pushed back, it will close on itself to safely store your toothbrush til next time. There are vents on the side of this toothbrush holder to allow the toothbrush to air dry. Did you also know that the first packaging ever designed was for toothbrushes to be hygienic? (I read about that in the book Gone Tomorrow.)

Cupcake Cuddles features some seriously fun items for the coolest kids around. Won’t your little one appreciate the warmth of the Pink Polka Dot or Blue Brown leg warmers? Any little one would also love the texture of the Silkies for the ideal security blanket. Or check out their extensive selection of other soft blankets as well. I love the colors of the lime sprinkles blanket that is backed with white minky material. For those upcoming baby showers, you may be interested in their gift sets.

HOW TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY:
• Post a comment here saying which product you like most from Cupcake Cuddles. Otherwise, your entry will be removed.
• Make sure your e-mail is entered correctly in the form in case you win.
• Privacy is protected and e-mails are only passed onto the shop to work out the details for mailing the winner the item(s) won during this giveaway
• Duplicate entries will be removed. One entry per person please.
• Only USA / Canada residents are eligible for this giveaway.
• Giveaway ends on Saturday, January 10th at midnight CST.
• The winner(s) will be chosen using a random number generator
• Winners will be announced the following day and a new giveaway will begin. Good Luck!
• To find out about our giveaways, sign up for our monthly newsletter, subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on twitter.

Please join me in congratulating Kelli in winning the silk-screened tote and greeting card from Megan Lee Designs. #164 was selected using a random number generator.

Kelli January 1st, 2009 at 9:21 pm (164)
I love the zebra tote!!

Thanks so much to Megan of Megan Lee Designs for sponsoring this giveaway! Our readers were in awe over all the beautiful illustrations! The Peacock Feather Tote and Brown Scarf were top picks. Our next giveaway will begin shortly.

SPECIAL DISCOUNT: As a special thank you for our readers for the wonderful comments for the Megan Lee Designs giveaway, they are offering 20% off on your next purchase in their etsy shop.

Just buy your item through Etsy, and put “ppo” in the comments section and they will send you a revised paypal invoice with the discount included. This offer is good through January 31, 2009.

Please visit our previous posts for some more savings! Sales and coupon codes are a great way for indie shops to thank their customers for all their support. We would love to feature your shop’s indie sale, please submit one.

Expires in January 2009:
• AMIE J DESIGNS: End of the Year Sale going on for a limited time on selected handmade bags and totes!
• BFCSCAPES: Get 10-15% off selected one-of-a-kind natural stone jewelry and loomed beadwork through 1/11/09.
• BODY SYSTEMS: Their moisturizing Cotton Candy and Pear Berry bath bombs are more than half off the original price.
• DALIM: Buy one, get one half off on their selection of romantic, vintage and nature inspired jewelry collection for a limited time.
• DASHE DESIGNS: Buy one, get one half off on their handmade jewelry featuring pearls, swarovski crystals, gemstones and sterling silver.
• MAU STUDIO: Free shipping on all orders with no minimum amount needed to qualify through 1/31/09.
• MAU STUDIO @ ETSY: Receive some serious savings of 50% off on all of the super cute clearance items!
• NICOLE LEE DESIGNS: Huge Clearance sale plus free shipping on orders of $10 or more. Going on through 1/31/09.
• TWIXI DESIGNS: Offering an end of the year sale on a selection of their handbags through 1/31/09.

Expires in February 2009:
• LAUREN’S DESIGN: All tees are on sale through 2/14/09. Also get 20% off your next purchase by sending in a photo of you in her designs!

A few months ago, I ordered my mom the Plum Pear Blossom Bath Gel for her birthday from Body Systems. She said it smelled really nice! And of course, I had to order myself something because I can’t resist bath stuff and as a matter of fact, I already had my eye on something from this shop. The Pomegranate Sugar Scrub! This sugar scrub worked much better on helping my dry winter skin than the body lotions I had on hand do. Don’t laugh, but I tried so hard to not scratch my skin, so using the sugar scrub was rather soothing at times with its exfoliating powers. The sweet almond oil in the scrub really help keep my skin moisturized. Much like the body wash I picked up for my mom, this smelled great! My husband would always say how good I smelled at night. Who can resist compliments like that? After trying this, there are many other goodies I would love to try from Body Systems such as the Hibiscus Papaya Sugar Scrub, Orange Blossom Soap and the Fig Body Butter.

Miss Pacman Cuff IN HOPE	Nintendo Controller Pouch BRAVE MOONMAN	Atari Stick of Joy SHANALOGIC
Donkey Kong Button MONSTER KITTY DESIGNS	Space Invaders Keychain 1337MOTIF	Super Breakout Tee Gnome NYC

Can you believe another year has already passed? Remember when you were a kid and time just seemed to drag? It has been a pleasure making many new friends through the blog. There are so many amazing folks and I feel honored being able to feature all their talent here. Also, our readers are so important to the success of this blog and I want to thank each of you for your continued support. We hope you’ll continue to visit us in the new year and see what new features we have in store. May 2009 bring you the absolute best in all aspects of your lives!

I’m looking forward to this year. For those who don’t know, I decided to go back to school and will finally be graduating in May. Then, I will start back into the workforce which I’m really looking forward to. I’m really fortunate to have such a supportive husband that allowed me to do this. Once I secure a job (let’s hope that economy improves), I want to start tackling our debts full force. While we don’t have credit card debt - we still have the so-called good debt like student loans, car loans, mortgage, etc. That’s probably my main goal for 2009 and directly correlates with our five year plan. What are your resolutions or goals for the new year?

Purely functional and fun! That’s part of the excitement going on over at Lemonade Accessories with their vibrant coin pouches, headbands, wristlets and more! I simply adore the aviary pattern as seen in the headband below!

A - Bento Lunch Box from Heliotrope ($14.95)
B - Eco-friendly Six Pack Coasters from Branch ($18.00)
C - Blue and Green Glass Mobile from Leah’s Glass Creations ($25.00)
D - Sculpted Teddy Bear Figure from Doll Project ($10.00)