And the winner is….

Cindy at cindycindy (at) aol (dot) com!

Congratulations Cindy…I will contact you soon to get your address and color choice.

Thanks again to everyone for entering and spreading the Happy Cow love. Check out their website for all the goodies. They do stock some retail stores in the U.S…so check out their site for locations. If you’re in the Boulder area, Umba on Pearl St. carries some of their styles.

Have a great weekend!!

From the moment I saw this Happy Cow hip bag, I was in love. I’m all about being hands-free, especially with two little munchkins running about. So you can imagine my excitement when the lovely crew at Happy Cow generously sent me one to review and give away!

My favorite thing: I have everything I need around my waist at all times. It has 2 pockets on the outside…I carry my iPhone in one of them and random odds and ends in the other. The main pocket is nice and roomy and there is enough room in there for my small wallet, one diaper, and a few wipes. There is also a zipper on that compartment…along with another zippered hidden pouch on the side that is against your body.

It’s especially nice to use when we’re going on a walk downtown, to the park, or when we’re at a festival…the benefits of not carrying a bulky bag during these times are too numerous to count!

Plus, there just aren’t many “fanny packs” out there that can even compare to this gem. In fact, just typing the words “fanny packs” makes me think of my band director in high school. His was definitely not as cool as this.

The only two things I have noticed is that it’s a little harder to use in cold climates because it’s kind of awkward under a winter coat. And, I haven’t ever been able to successfully where it IN my belt loops. I think maybe my jeans are just weird. Or maybe I’m just weird. Who knows? But it doesn’t matter…I just wear it on top of whatever I’m wearing. It’s especially cute with skirts and dresses.

The leather is amazingly soft and the best part is that it is made out of discarded scraps of leather from furniture manufacturers. They also come in several colors. My friend Alicia totally ROCKS the red one. *love it*.

Be sure to check out their other bags as well. I’m kind of in love with this one.

To enter the giveaway:

• Leave a comment…any comment.
• Post this giveaway to your Facebook or Twitter page.
• “Like” the Happy Cow Facebook page

Leave a separate comment for each please!

I will choose a winner randomly on Friday, April 1. Entries must be in by 12:00 MST.

Anna Laura Hopper

I will contact you soon! Thanks so much to all who entered…don’t forget that Gina is offering FREE SHIPPING on all orders through February 28. Jump on over to Lettergirl and get yourself a sweet stamp and *smile*

Have a great night everyone!

*address is intentionally altered for privacy

The first time I saw the Lettergirl store on Etsy, I squealed with excitement. If you’ve been reading my blog for any time at all, you know that I LOVE anything that has to do with mail and stationary. And you will understand why I went nuts over these adorable stamps. I’m a little obsessed with mine (above). It’s so unique…just looking at it makes me want to run to my desk and start writing letters!

There is just something magical about one’s address. It’s home. It’s familiar. It’s happy. I’ve always loved learning the address at every new home we’ve lived in. And I couldn’t think of a better way than to say “we’re staying!” than to get a custom stamp of our new address!

These custom beauties are the handiwork of Gina in Minneapolis, MN. I just had to know more about her story and give you all a chance to win your very own stamp. She does more than just address stamps too…if you have a sweet idea, she can help! Wedding stamps, business stamps, bag or tag stamps for your retail/Etsy store, book plate stamps, you name it.

When did you first fall in love with handwritten or “real” letters?
When I was in college, I somehow tested into an advanced French class which was way over my head, and the only other class I could find to transfer into was called “Crafts”.  I hadn’t planned to take another art class, but this one turned out to be my favorite – we did traditional crafts like weaving on a loom, copper enameling, ceramics, and calligraphy.  It was a lot of fun!

Have you always had beautiful handwriting!?

As you can see, I didn’t always have great handwriting!  This recipe card is from high school when I had the same handwriting as everyone else.  My lettering style has developed through years of practice.  I started by doing traditional calligraphy, but I would always provide my clients with a sample in my regular handwriting to make sure that everything was just right before embarking on the “real” calligraphy.  One of my early clients didn’t want me to rewrite it, she wanted her stationery in my handwriting instead.  Since then, I’ve developed almost a dozen different lettering styles.

How long have you been in business for yourself?
I’ll celebrate my 19^th anniversary in May.  Things were pretty different back in 1992!

What is your favorite part of your job?
I have two favorite parts.  One is getting to know my customers – I’m grateful for a lot of repeat business.  I’ve enjoyed working with couples on their wedding stationery, and then helping them with their baby announcements.  I’m about to work on a bar mitzvah invitation for the son of a couple I first worked with 14 years ago!  My second favorite part is the flexibility.  I love being home when my kids get off the school bus.  Depending how much work is on my plate, I’m not always relaxed when they get home, but it’s still nice to have a little break and hear about their day.

What are some of your other passions?

I love reading and sewing and hiking.  I wish I had snowshoes because we’ve had a lot of snow in Minneapolis this year!

—————-

This giveaway is for one custom stamp of your choice.

There are three wonderful ways to enter the giveaway (you can do them all if you want — leave a SEPARATE comment for each one).

• Leave a comment and tell me one delightful little thing that happened today.
  
• Share this giveaway on your Facebook page.
• Share this giveaway on Twitter.

I will randomly choose a winner on Tuesday, February 22 (entry cutoff is at 12:00 p.m. MST).

AND…Gina is offering FREE SHIPPING to my blog readers through February 28!! Just enter the discount code “HAPPY” when checking out of her store on Etsy (be kind and please remember to do it when checking out so she doesn’t have to do a lot of shipping refunds!).

Happy letter writing!

The winner is Briana! (email: homeschooled4christ (at) gmail (dot) com). Congrats!

For those of you who didn’t win this time…take advantage of the 20% discount at Texture through Monday!
Enter the discount code “HAPPY20″ …or just tell Santa about the discount

But instead of seeing Teresa in person…we’ll just have a giveaway! Yay yay yay for another Texture Clothing giveaway! *squeal* I know you are as excited as I am…because the last Texture giveaway was wildly popular. And why wouldn’t it be? Teresa’s clothing and accessories are beautiful and functional and well, pretty darn amazing.

What is Texture Clothing?
Think gypsy vibe and travel savvy with the ease of real world living built in. texture is a boutique without the pretense ~ hard wearing, high fashion ~ figure flattering cuts ~ street legal HEMP product ~ not the coffee sack fashion typical of HEMP clothing ~ lovingly made, deftly stitched, beautifully patterned in the Pacific NW ~ clothing with a conscience.

Who is Teresa?
Teresa Remple is the naturally caffeinated instigator and inspiration for texture clothing. She was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and has lived in Bellingham, WA for nearly eight years. She is the proprietress of texture clothing and in that capacity she does everything from drafting patterns to sweeping the floors. She started sewing at twelve and founded the company in October, 2002. As a seventeen year veteran of the summer festival scene, Teresa embodies a compassionate, earth first vision for the under appreciated, and misunderstood HEMP fabric. A Fashion Arts graduate with a passion for textiles that makes her special, she’s all about working hard and living lean.

Our giveaway is for:

• A funky little “scrappy scarf” (made with the leftover scraps from the other Texture clothing!)
• AND…my favorite thing in the whole wide world: knit mitts!

I am only a little obsessed with my knit mitts (I already have another pair on the way!). They are, hands down, the most comfortable fingerless-glove-thingies that I’ve ever worn. I love how they cling so nice to my hands, and they are surprisingly warm. I pretty much want to wear them everywhere. All the time. But, just a little tip for ya: I’ve found that it’s helpful to take them off while eating and going to the bathroom The scrappy scarf is so so sweet and soft….and is the perfect weight to wear with anything, indoor and out. For all you dready mamas out there,  I actually like to wear it as a dread wrap as well…it’s super stretchy and just perfect for it!

There are four wonderful ways to enter the giveaway (you can do them all if you want — leave a comment for each one).

• Leave a comment and tell me your favorite hot drink. Oh how I love a great hot drink.
• Share this giveaway on your Facebook page
• Share this giveaway on Twitter
• “Like” the Texture Facebook page (if you’re already a fan, you can add another entry).

I will randomly choose a winner on Friday, December 10 (entry cutoff is at 12:00 p.m. CST).

If you simply cannot WAIT until Friday to see if you win and you must order now…Teresa is offering a 20% discount to you as well…just enter the code HAPPY20 (valid through Dec. 13). So many goodies to choose from!

Have a happy day!

*big thanks to my Dad, who was the superstar photographer for today’s post

And the winner is…

Leah Cayzer!

Congratulations Leah…watch for an email from me soon! For those of you who didn’t win…you still have time to take advantage of the discounts offered exclusively to WSLW readers. The following discount codes are valid through Friday, December 10:

Little Bird Vintage Designs: 10% off your order // enter FLOCK (check out her new mama shirts and infant gowns!)
Tweet Baby Designs: 15% off your order // enter SARA15

Kelly McCord!

For those of you who didn’t win, you still have time to take advantage of Andreea’s generous 25% discount! Simply enter the discount code “WALK” upon checkout….click here to go to her store.

Ooooooooh looky what we have here…a double giveaway!

Up for grabs:

• Little Bird Vintage Designs “Big Bird” Sport Blankie (in pink/green or blue/green)
• Tweet Baby Designs Cherry Amber Necklace + Chomping Teething Necklace of your choice

These mamas are creating all kinds of goodies for your little babes…and boy do they have expertise in baby “stuff”! Grace from Little Bird Vintage Designs is a mama to 3 (soon to be 4!) little birds and Ashlee from Tweet Baby Designs is mama to 6 little tweets. That’s a lot of little ones.

Grace’s blankie is SO soft and yummy (they make lovey sizes as well!). How cute is that bird?! And I just can’t say enough about Ashlee’s amber necklaces…I swear by them for the teething season! And don’t forget the adorable chomping necklace! Lucy used to chew on my dreads when she was that age…I think she would have liked these much better!

Both stores have more than what is featured here, so be sure to go browse around a bit! Here are some special discounts just for you!

Little Bird Vintage Designs: 10% off your order // enter FLOCK
Tweet Baby Designs: 15% off your order // enter SARA15

*note: Etsy has now enabled coupon codes…hooray!

To enter the giveaway (enter a new comment for each one you complete):

• Leave me a comment below and tell me what you are reading right now or what your most recent favorite movie/TV show is.
• Share this giveaway on Facebook
• Share this giveaway on Twitter

I will announce the winner on Tuesday, December 7. Entry cut off is 12 p.m. CST.

Fellow homebirthing/natural-minded mama Andreea Ayers has started a fabulous little company called “Tees For Change”…and we are going to kick off my December giveaway spree with the chance to win a t-shirt of your choice (short sleeve).

I love love love her t-shirts…they are so soft and yummy. Not only that, they are unique, sustainable, and act as great conversation starters! Put your happiness out there for all to see!

Check out her line of shirts here.

Here is a little more about Andreea:

I founded Tees for Change in the Spring of 2007 while living in Boulder, CO. I was going through a lot of exciting changes – a baby on the way, a recent move from New York City to Boulder, CO and embarking on a new entrepreneurial venture. I have always been fascinated by the t-shirt and the ease with which it allows you to express yourself.

I wanted to explore this concept and combine it with my love for eco-friendly products and my passion for positive thinking and connecting with people. But I didn’t want any old t-shirt. I wanted something that was fashionable, felt great, was easy to wear and was made from sustainable materials.

Andreea is offering a 25% discount to all of you through December 6! Just enter the discount code WALK. This is a very generous discount…just in time for the holidays! She has more than just t-shirts though…check out the great journals and jewelry! And one last really COOL thing? For every t-shirt you buy, one tree will be planted! Read on…

Because of our dedication to the environment, we’ve partnered with Trees for the Future to plant a tree for EVERY tee you purchase. Trees for the Future plants trees in Asia, Latin America and Africa and our last tree planting helped plant over 5000 trees in Cameroon. We’ve planted over 10,000 trees since we started our company in Spring 2007.

You can enter the drawing up to four times by doing the following (enter a comment for each):

• Leave a comment and tell me your favorite t-shirt on her site.
• Facebook or Twitter this post…tell your friends how they can win too!
• “Like” Tees For Change on Facebook
• Follow Tees For Change on Twitter

I will be drawing the winner on Friday. Entries will close at 12:00 CST.