Artsy Chaos

A Necessary Holiday

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 15:13:00 +0000

Happy Holidays to all my fans, friends and sponsors!

We will be taking a break for December to spend the season with family. We are in the midst of a serious health crisis and at this time, we need to concentrate on getting well. Thank you for the messages of hope and love. You never know what will strike in life, or how things may change at any given moment so we hope that everyone takes the holiday to reconnect with those that they love!!

Merry Christmas to all!!

Home For The Holidays Event!!

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 07:01:00 +0000

Welcome!!

Love the Holidays? Love home decor? Love to give gifts you have put together yourself? Love Giveaways too!? Well then YOU ARE IN THE RIGHT PLACE!! Welcome to the Home for the Holidays Event where you can enter to win some great prizes for your home and the Holidays! Hosted by us here at Artsy Chaos, Kelly's Lucky You, My Chaotic Ramblings and Shopping for Savings, this event will have you visiting each blog for prizes from some amazing sponsors each valued of at least $25. Use the linky at the end of this post to hop to the next blog.

We are offering some really spectacular prizes valued at $196.00!! Here is what you can win:

A custom 16x20 photo canvas from PhotoArtPeople! ($127) US
AquaNotes, waterproof paper pad/pencil! ($7) US/CAN

Foldin' Money design kit to turn your cash gift into the perfect present! ($15) US/CAN
Green Field Paper Company seed paper products! ($22) US/CAN
Lovable Labels 'Holly Jolly' gift pack! ($25) US/CAN

Learn more about these amazing products by visiting our review articles!

PhotoArtPeople **they are offering all Artsy Chaos readers 30% one canvas!! The code is in the article!!
AquaNotes
Foldin' Money
Green Field Paper Company
Lovable Labels - coming very soon!

Please use the form below to enter. It may take a minute to load! If you cannot see the entry form or the GFC widget to follow, please refresh the page and that should do the trick!

Please note that the hosts of "Home for the Holidays Giveaway Blog Hop" and the "Home for the Holidays Giveaway Blog Hop" bloggers are not responsible for sponsors that do not complete fulfillment of prizes. In most cases, sponsors are responsible for shipping directly to any winners. Sponsors are represented and expected to fulfill prize obligations. If an issue does arise, we will make every effort to assist you in obtaining your prize to the best of our ability but cannot be held responsible. "Home for the Holidays Giveaway Blog Hop" is in no way associated with Facebook and by entering, you agree that Facebook is released from any liability in this event.

We have a professional relationship with the giveaway sponsors and have reviewed their products with samples. No monetary compensation has been exchanged.

Paper That Grows!!

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 21:35:00 +0000

Have you ever heard of plantable paper? The concept is amazing and lends a true sense of style to cards, tags, and other paper products. With cards made from plantable paper, you can literally plant them and they will grow. Green Field Paper Company has been creating eco-friendly papers since 1992 including junk mail paper, hemp paper, and seeded paper.

We were thrilled to be contacted and given the opportunity to try some plantable cards and tags. They have just expanded their papers to include chia seeds. And since you can plant the card after its use is over, it doesn't have to go to a landfill, it can grow in the ground instead! I have decided that a gift basket full of gardening supplies and topped off with these adorable gift tags is perfect. The quality, ink, and texture of these cards and tags is really nice and so much more in person than in photos!

Here are some more points about Green Field Paper:

The papers are crafted one sheet at a time.
They offset 100% of their company-wide electricity use by purchasing wind energy credits.
Even the water used to make the 100% recycled paper is reclaimed and used in the next batch.
They sell their papers in bulk.
Customized paper is available.
Seeded papers have a 3-year shelf life.

I also want to tell you that the designs on the 2011 Holiday Collection are some of the cutest I have seen. They're whimsical yet very classy and perfect for all kinds of style tastes. They can be purchased online at Green Field Paper or at many fine retailers in the US, Canada and worldwide.

We are also thrilled to let you know that Green Field Paper is one of our wonderful sponsors for the Home for the Holidays Giveaway Blog Hop starting Monday, November 14th!

We received a sample of the above named products for review to facilitate this article. No monetary compensation was received and all opinions are those of the editors and owners of Artsy Chaos.

Boring Cash No More!!

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 23:53:00 +0000

Ahhhh! I just learned how to turn money into a really cool work of art!! Seriously, this is really cute and fun too. Foldin' Money can help you turn plain old cash into a really fun crafty gift! It's kind of like paper crafts with a real monetary value. Ha!

Foldin' Money has design kits to help you make the perfect gift for anyone on your list this year. Both US and Canadian currency directions are included in these design kits. For review, we received the "red" kit which has templates and step-by-step directions for a cake, tree, heart, and tie. We found the instructions to be very, very easy to follow. Ladies, I think even your husbands could fold money into the perfect gift! Did that sound rude? Sorry Fellas!

What we found really fun was the endless ways that you could possibly use the Foldin' Money designs. I thought it would be really fun to put one of those little strands of battery operated lights onto the folded money tree! What a fun gift idea and you could put the money tree onto the real tree for Christmas morning! Both my mom and grandmother give cash gifts for Christmas and what a fun thing for all the grandkids to come over to a mini-money tree all lit up on the big tree! You could also decorate with stickers, ribbons, gems, buttons, decorative papers; really your imagination is the only limit.

We're excited that Foldin' Money will be sponsoring the Home for the Holidays Giveaway which begins Monday, November 14th! One lucky reader will receive the same kit that we reviewed! Be sure to stop by.

We received a sample of the above reviewed product to facilitate this article. No monetary compensation was received and all opinions are those of the editors and owners of Artsy Chaos.

Home for the Holidays Giveaway Event starts Monday!! #HHEvent

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:16:00 +0000

It's almost here!! The Home for the Holidays Giveaway Blog Hop starts Monday, November 14th! Over 30 blogs bringing you some great giveaways just in time for the holidays.

Our sponsors here at Artsy Chaos include:

PhotoArtPeople - Please read our review of this amazing company that turns your photos in a real work of art on canvas. They are also offering all Artsy Chaos readers an exclusive 30% off one canvas discount! Use code WRedfe30. Be sure to order by December 1st for Christmas delivery!
AquaNotes - Doodle, leave notes, write your Christmas shopping list... all in the shower! Check out our review for all the details on this fun product.
Foldin' Money - Lets you turn your cash gift into a work of art!
Green Field Paper Company - Plantable gift cards and tags, perfect for assembling gift baskets for the holidays.
Lovable Labels - Providing adorable holiday labels and gift seals.

We have a professional relationship with the above mentioned companies and have received samples of their products.

Write Your Thoughts in the Shower? YES you can!!

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 22:41:00 +0000

Most moms would agree that there is one place in the home where you can disappear (well, mostly) without being hounded to death. Yep, the bathroom. Although I do remember little toes peeking from under the door and "are you done yet"? coming from my kids when they were little. I finally had to tell them hey - unless there is a fire or someone is bleeding, if the bathroom door is shut you can wait! So for many moms, relaxing in a hot shower or bubble bath is a true luxury and maybe even when we get our best thinking done. But what do you do if you suddenly have an idea for new pillows or things you need to put on your shopping list for the holidays? AquaNotes is a notepad that you can use near the water because the paper is waterproof! What a neat idea!

AquaNotes in action! In my tub!

The cute little pad is held in place in your shower, tub, or by the sink with little suction cups and has 40 3.5" x 5.25" sheets to get your thoughts down. It also comes with a pencil which is held in place also by a suction cup so that you'll have "no more great ideas down the drain!" Another neat thing is that AquaNotes products are recyclable, environmentally friendly and non-toxic. They're also great for putting on your boat and for people who work outside in the weather, really anywhere where regular paper would get soggy and ruined. I'm even thinking for notes inside lunchboxes where there can be moisture and condensation and regular paper gets soggy.

Check out AquaNotes because they are one of our amazing sponsors for the Home for the Holidays Giveaway Blog Hop! Next week you will get the chance to win one of your very own AquaNotes! Of course, if you can't wait you can always order one from AquaNotes directly!

We received a complimentary sample of the above mentioned product to facilitate this review. No monetary compensation was received and all opinions are those of the owners and editors of Artsy Chaos.

Photo Art People Photo Canvas is THE PERFECT Gift #HHEvent

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 03:41:00 +0000

Starting November 14th, we will be hosting the Home for the Holidays Giveaway Blog Hop with lots of holiday and home goodness! Find out about some great gift ideas to make yourself and some neat things for your home during the season. Each of the 30+ blogs participating will be hosting a giveaway that you can enter. Here at Artsy Chaos, we are beyond thrilled to have Photo Art People as a sponsor for the event.

A photo canvas is the perfect gift for so many people on our gift giving list we cannot wait to share this amazing company with you! Every year, I try to put a lot of thought into the gifts that I give and it's not always easy. It is just so much more meaningful (in my opinion) to give a gift that has true sentiment behind it. I remember reading once that if you make something with real love, it will shine through every time. Picking out a photo, a memory, a moment in time, can really be the perfect gift when made into personalized photo canvas gifts.

Photo Art People is a company which not only makes photo canvases but carefully specializes in them. They can help you be creative. Want a sepia tone in your photo? They can do that. Need help editing the colors or maybe removing red eye? They can do that too. Or maybe you'd like to turn a family heirloom photo into a canvas. Photo Art People can work with regular photos and old photos too, not just digital ones. What we found extraordinary is the time they take to find the best part of the photo to turn your snapshot into a real piece of memory art. Hey, they also make custom sizes too so nothing is out of the question!

We were so excited to be able to review a 16x20 canvas print. It wasn't too difficult to pick out a photo since the hard drive that contained all of my digital photos died a few months ago, taking my photos with it. Insert sad face and tears here. After selecting the photo, we sent it off and waited for the magic. We were informed that our photo had too much yellow/green in it so that was corrected as much as possible as well as evening out some of the skin on my beautiful teens' faces. Let me tell you, it did not take long at all from the time the photo was sent until we received a very lovely canvas in the mail. I could not have been more pleased with the customer service, the quick and safe shipping, and the final product.

Our canvas has a new home in our entry way on the wall of photos and it fits in perfectly. I would not hesitate to order another from Photo Art People for Christmas photo gifts.

Now, you must be sure to come back on November 14th to enter to win a photo canvas of your very own from Photo Art People! You don't want to miss it!

And in the meantime, check out Photo Art People and the amazing promo that they are offering. Right now, you can use code "2for1" and get a second identical canvas FREE when you buy the first at full price. FREE!! This is an amazing deal for the grandparents on your gift list!

We have also been authorized to offer another amazing discount only for Artsy Chaos readers! Use code WRedfe30 for 30% off a single canvas!!
*One code per order. It cannot be used in combination with any other discount code. Code should be used at checkout on www.PhotoArtPeople.com and when “update total” is clicked the discounted price is calculated before charging.

We received a sample from PhotoArtPeople.com to facilitate this review. No monetary compensation was received. All opinions are those of the editors and owner of Artsy Chaos.

Sore Throat?

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 02:45:00 +0000

It's that time again!! Yipee!! Sore throat season is upon us. Ya, strike that "yipee!".

Have you felt that scratchy sore feeling yet? We hope not. However, we do have good news in case you have. Pine Brothers lozenges are back and making their debut this fall! The original "softish" throat drops are once again available. Want to learn more? Of course you do and you can, soon, right here at Artsy Chaos. Watch for an upcoming review!

Thanks for stopping by!

CouponCabin’s 25 Crazy Dayz of Giveawayz! Win Discovery Girls $70 Prize Pack (US) #CouponCabinHop

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 04:00:00 +0000

Welcome to CouponCabin’s 25 Crazy Dayz of Giveawayz! This multi-blog event is hosted by Simply Stacie, Makobi Scribe and Sassy Mama in LA and is sponsored by CouponCabin. This is the biggest event the blogosphere has seen with over 400 giveaways each at $25 value or more plus a huge giveaway with some major prizes like a MacBook Air, iPad2 & Visa Gift Cards. You can find all the giveaways from the participating blogs by visiting the host blogs, Simply Stacie, Makobi Scribe and Sassy Mama in LA. Each host blog will feature a different set of giveaways for you to enter!

No matter what type of coupon you're looking for, you'll find it and over 100,000 others at CouponCabin.com, a leading destination for coupon codes, printable coupons, deals and more. Now with a new and improved grocery coupons section and the largest selection of coupon codes that are guaranteed to work, CouponCabin is the best place to start your search for savings. This holiday season, CouponCabin is dedicated to making holiday savings as easy as pie by bringing you the best deals for Black Friday and Cyber Monday. You can also download our CouponDetector and we'll let you know when the site you’re shopping has coupons and deals available. Never pay full price again with help from CouponCabin.com!

CouponCabin is giving away the following fabulous prizes:

Grand Prize: MacBook Air (11-inch, 128GB; ARV $1,199)
2nd Runner Up: iPad2 (16GB, with Wi-Fi +3G; ARV $629) & $200 Visa Gift Card
3rd Runner Up: iPad2 (16GB, with Wi-Fi +3G; ARV $629)
4th Runner Up: $300 Visa Gift Card
5th Runner Up: $200 Visa Gift Card
6th, 7th, 8th and 9th Runner Ups: $100 Visa Gift Card each

Please visit Simply Stacie, Makobi Scribe and Sassy Mama in LA to enter the giveaway and make sure to say Artsy Chaos referred you! You can enter on all three sites or just one- it’s up to you! If you enter all three giveaways that just means more chances for you to win.

Here at Artsy Chaos we are thrilled to be offering a fabulous prize package from Discovery Girls Magazine worth $70!

1 year subscription to the magazine (a $20 value!)
1 set of the Discovery Girls Fab Girls books ($40)
1 collector's edition magazine, which encompasses 10 years of the best content from Discovery Girls plus more special features ($10)

To learn more about Discovery Girls, please visit our articles HERE and HERE. Discovery Girls is a wonderful resource for tween girls and highly recommended!

Please use the Rafflecopter form below to enter here for the Discovery Girls Prize Package. Be patient as it may take up to a minute to fully load. If you are unable to see the form to enter or the Google widget to follow this blog, please refresh the page and that should do the trick!

Enter the other blogs' giveaways in the CouponCabin’s 25 Crazy Dayz of Giveawayz by visiting the links below!

Thank you to Discovery Girls for sponsoring our giveaway. No monetary compensation was received for this article. Any opinions are those of the editors and owners of Artsy Chaos. Giveaway is open to US residents only.

Real Girls Read Discovery Girls Magazine

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 03:24:00 +0000

A good portion of my daughter's childhood was spent reading Discovery Girls Magazine. This month, Discovery Girls was awarded a 2011 Mom's Choice Gold Award and they definitely are deserving! They are also the recipient of the 2011 National Parenting Publications Award. Discovery Girls is about girls, for girls and even by girls. It isn't about turning your 8-year-old into a little makeup wearing fashionista but about real girls with real issues. This mom totally approves.

We have had the privilege in the past of reviewing some magazines and books from Discovery Girls which you can read about HERE. The magazines are full of advice, fun quizzes and timely stories for girls ages 8-13. Recently, we were sent the 10-year Collector's Edition to review. My daughter's eyes lit up when she saw it in the mail pile. Now keep in mind, my daughter is 16 but she still to this day loves Discovery Girls.

The Collector's Edition boasts 10 years of the best Fun Quizzes, Embarrassing Moments, Helpful Advice and Sticky Situations. My daughter's favorite was always the embarrassing moments. This issue is packed with a past issue timeline, real readers, bloopers, crafts, hairstyles, growing-up advice, school stuff and so much more. A definite must-have for any lover of Discovery Girls Magazine! If you have a daughter, niece, cousin or any little girl in your life between the ages of 8 and 13, we highly recommend Discovery Girls Magazine for them.

Come back on November 1st and you will get the chance to WIN a prize package worth $70 from Discovery Girls as part of the CouponCabin's 25 Crazy Dayz of Giveawayz multi-blog event!! Don't miss it!!

No compensation was received for this article and all opinions are those of the editors and owners of Artsy Chaos. A complimentary sample of the described product was received in order to facilitate this review.

Reader Comments, a Winner and a #Recipe!

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 20:08:00 +0000

Recently, we posted about the Jacob Bromwell All-American Flour Sifter. The comments were amazing from you all!! We asked if you had any recipes or foods which have been passed down through the generations. Karieann even shared a recipe for Pumpkin Bars in her comment and they sound amazing!

Paul's Pumpkin Bars

Ingredients

4 eggs
1 2/3 cups white sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 (15 ounce) can pumpkin puree
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt

1 (3 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a medium bowl, mix the eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Stir into the pumpkin mixture until thoroughly combined.
Spread the batter evenly into an ungreased 10x15 inch jellyroll pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in preheated oven. Cool before frosting.
To make the frosting, cream together the cream cheese and butter. Stir in vanilla. Add confectioners' sugar a little at a time, beating until mixture is smooth. Spread evenly on top of the cooled bars. Cut into squares.

We'd also love to try Jennifer's crustless apple pie with a sugar cookie topping, Deb's noodle pudding (what is noodle pudding? sounds interesting!), and Tammy's chicken and dumplings! YUM!

Thank you to Jacob Bromwell for the fun with this review and giveaway and congrats to our randomly selected winner, Melissa, who has a family recipe for pork dressing. We really enjoyed reading all of your wonderful comments!

Trick or Treat Halloween Hop!! 3 #Giveaway Winners!!

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 02:05:00 +0000

Welcome to the Trick or Treat Halloween Hop hosted by Tales From the Nursery, Formula Mom, and Mama on a Green Misson, where you will go trick-or-treating virtually at each blog for a chance to win some totally ghoul prizes. Will they have tricks or will they have treats? You must click through the linky to find out!

Here at Artsy Chaos we want to treat you to the chance to get a jump on your holiday cards with Shutterfly! We will have THREE winners who will each win 25 free 5×7 flat or folded cards!! (Retail value approximately $50 each!) Check out these amazing designs for Halloween:

To enter, simply use the form below. After entering here, be sure to hop on over to the next blog to see what you can enter to win there! The blogs participating are in the linky below the entry form. Good luck and have fun!

Please note that Tales From the Nursery, “Trick or Treat Halloween Giveaway Hop” or the “Trick or Treat Halloween Giveaway Hop” bloggers are not responsible for sponsors that do not fulfill their prizes. We have represented each sponsor with the expectation they will fulfill their prize and in a timely manner. We will contact the sponsor regarding your prize(s). The sponsors, in most cases, are shipping their items to you directly. We will make every effort to assist you obtaining your prize. If there is an issue with a sponsor, please notify the blog you won a prize from within 30 days for assistance, after that we may be unable to assist you.

We were provided with 3 codes from Shutterfly because of a professional relationship. All opinions are those of the editors and owners of Artsy Chaos. No monetary compensation was received. Prize codes are for 25 free 5×7 flat or folded cards. All applicable taxes, shipping and handling will apply to orders in which these codes are redeemed. Prize codes will expire December 31, 2011.

Holidays Cards with @Shutterfly

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 04:53:00 +0000

Halloween signals that slow slide right into the holiday season.... soon it will be Thanksgiving and then yikes Christmas! There is certainly something to be said for getting ready early as it cuts out a good portion of stress. This is part of the reason that we love Shutterfly. You can get your holiday cards ready to go as early as now.

Let me back up a little bit though. I have ordered personalized greeting cards from several different companies and Shutterfly remains a top favorite. They are big enough to have lots of designs and items to choose from yet they maintain a very friendly, helpful and just plain happy feeling. Shutterfly's service is speedy and well executed which appeals to my overly perfectionist side! Several months ago, we needed to get some cards for my daughter to use as thank-you's. We were able to personalize one of the cards on the site to fit exactly what we needed at an amazing price. Plus, Shutterfly often has fabulous promotions happening which make their great prices even better. It is always a treat to receive that happy orange Shutterfly package in the mail.

This year, I'm thinking of sending some Thanksgiving cards which I haven't really done in the past. I like keeping my family off guard, ha! Here are some of my favorite designs from Shutterfly:

I also LOVE these designs for Christmas cards:

What do you think? Do you have a favorite design? Leave us a comment and let us know!

If you'd really like to get a jump on your holiday preparations, Shutterfly has some great options for calendars, home decor and photo books. These are perfect gifts for those hard to shop for people on your list. Speaking from experience, these make gift giving so easy when it comes to helping your children shop for their other parent! And yes, also for Grandma Phoebe who just so happens to have everything imaginable.

We have a professional relationship with Shutterfly and will receive free product as a result of this article. All opinions are solely those of the owners and editors of Artsy Chaos.

What's that Smell? #Clean it up with @NaturalHousePro! {#Giveaway}

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 04:09:00 +0000

Do you ever get the feeling (or smelling, as it were) that maybe your home might have an odor? Certainly, there are odor hot spots that can make us cringe; the bathroom, the sink, the trash can. Can you relate? We certainly can and recently our big outdoor trash can had taken on a monstrous odor. So much so that everyone dreaded actually having to open the lid. Yes, it was that powerful.

Luckily for us, Natural House had asked us if we'd like to try out their revolutionary new natural household cleaning products that clean the parts of your home you'd rather forget about. The Natural House probiotic cleaners are named Trashy, Sinky and Flushy. Clever names we thought. Heck ya, we'd love to I said! Clean that monster trash can odor? Bring it on! Could this possibly work? We set out on a month-long mission to find out.

Trashy, Sinky and Flushy are non-toxic and safe for use in your home yet strong enough to use in a commercial setting. Here's some additional information right from Natural House:

Our products use an eco-friendly cleaning method of probiotics that create a beneficial, odor eating ecosystem to naturally drive out and digest odors at their source.
Natural House's plant-based ingredients are eco-friendly, non-toxic and biodegradable to naturally fight the toughest problems you face in your house.
Our products, Sinky and Flushy even break down and digest fats, oil, grease, and solid waste to ensure your disposal, pipes, drain lines or septic tank run smoothly.
Our cleaners contain good probiotics which continue to scour, clean, consume odors, grime, grease, and germs, and they continue to do so until your next weekly treatment!
We earned the coveted Retailers’ Choice Award” at the 2011 National Hardware Show!

The surfaces in your house are like a garden. If you don’t seed with good plants, weeds will grow. You have the same choice with your household surfaces: sanitize for a moment with harsh chemicals leaving your surface open to recontamination or seed with probiotics to continuously weed out the bad micro-organisms.
Traditional cleaners “clean” a surface for a moment in time; the second the rag is finished wiping the surface, that surface is almost instantly polluted once again with ambient dust, dirt, and micro-organisms.
Natural House probiotics creates mini-ecosystem on a microbial level that produces enzymes which break down odors, dirt, fats, oil, grease, food scraps, waste and toilet paper products on a continuous basis between applications. This creates a natural, clean, balanced environment that is safe for even the most sensitive members of your natural house.
The action is in the foam! The foam releases the cleaning agents.
The short and skinny of it is this... our natural probiotic cleaners keep on cleaning long after you've stopped!

Now onto the tests...

We were more than eager to get the test underway for Trashy. Each of the products comes packaged as a four week supply. Trashy is a convenient little spray bottle with enough for 30 days, you just use 1/4 of the bottle for each application. So into the big stinky trash can we sprayed the wintergreen scented probiotics and crossed our fingers. That first week, and even the second, we really did not notice a difference. On week three the can did indeed smell a little better. Was it a fluke? Week four and everyone opening the lid started to cringe and then looked puzzled. Someone even remarked that the odor was markedly better. Success!

Flushy is a nice fresh mint scent and works to clean not only your toilet bowl but also clean the drain and works as a septic treatment. Ya, I can't believe I put our toilet's photo on the internet either. Toilets are not usually a topic of conversation here at Artsy Chaos but we all have at least one I would hope! Our experience with Flushy was not as noticeable as Trashy but we're excited about the fact that it works to consume some of the gunk that might stay in the drains and pipes. I did notice that the cleaning power of Flushy is not as strong as the regular toilet bowl cleaner that I normally use and did have to supplement cleanings during the test weeks.

We were also excited to test out Sinky which is a disposal scrubber and drain maintenance probiotic cleaner. Sinky has a nice fresh citrus scent. We decided not to use it in the kitchen, but rather, in the bathroom. Our bathroom has double sinks and for some reason when you run the water the drain smells swampy or some other damp moldy type smell. Ya, gross. It's not strong but is not pleasant when you're brushing your teeth. Indeed, after just one use, Sinky helped with the swampy smell in the bathroom sinks. The probiotic power seems to have worked on this problem until the next weekly treatment was due and seemed to last longer progressively with each week of use. Success again!

These natural household cleaning products can be purchased directly from Natural House and also at Amazon. Trashy, Flushy and Sinky each retail for $4.99. Want more information? You can visit the Natural House website and also connect with them on Facebook and Twitter.

We are also thrilled to be able to host a giveaway for all 3 Natural House products. Please use the form below to enter and one lucky winner will get to try out Trashy, Sinky and Flushy in their home. If you are unable to see the form, refresh the page and that should do the trick! (Refreshing should also allow you to see the Google widget to follow if it is not showing up.) Good luck!

FTC Disclosure: We received a sample of the products in this article in order to facilitate a review. No monetary compensation was received. All opinions are those of the owners and editors of Artsy Chaos.

Live Your #Dreams with #Financial Peace, it CAN be done! {#Giveaway}

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 23:07:00 +0000

Today is the anniversary of Black Thursday. On October 24, 1929, the stock market plummeted and led to the Great Depression. Today we live in similar times... much to our dismay and sometimes horror. Our financial lives are in question, stress runs rampant and many of us just don't feel secure anymore. Where do you turn for comfort? Where do you find hope? Hopefully you have your own belief system to lean on along with supportive friends and family. Honestly, though, sometimes we falter in our own emotions and spirit and need a little guidance in a tough and changing world.

I am a big believer in the power of motivation and affirmation. I've seen the vast capacity of the human psyche to overcome challenges through sheer brainpower. Negativity is poison. Positivity is the life blood of success.

We're thrilled to introduce you to Trudy W. Evans C.H., who wants you to learn, grow and prosper. Yes, prosper!! Is that even possible, you ask? I mean, prospering today seems like such a difficult task. Yes, you can prosper, have hope and even find solutions to situations that arise in your life. Now, I am no expert but many would agree with me that if you start telling yourself things will be wonderful, they DO find a way to BE wonderful. No one can guarantee anything but seriously, try it out for yourself.

As part of this article, we were able to review Your Path to Financial Freedom from TrudyWEvans.com. The download comes with 4 audio mp3 files full of motivation and affirmation to use to help you achieve your dreams. Put these files onto your iPod for an emotional boost with every workout! You can listen to a sample HERE. I honestly believe that Ms. Evans can help you be more creative, have a better family life, and use your own personal talents and abilities for financial success.

Would like to have a chance to win your own copy of Your Path to Financial Freedom? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain! Enter below using the form. If you are unable to see the form (or the Google widget to follow this blog) please just refresh the page and that will usually do the trick. Good luck!

FTC Disclosure: We received the above product for review to facilitate this article. No monetary compensation was received and all opinions are those of the owners and editors of Artsy Chaos.

#Halloween Costume Accessories from Wholesale @CostumeClub

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 03:04:00 +0000

Halloween is almost here! Do you have your costume ready? Our family loves Halloween and we have always made a big deal about dressing up. This year is no exception, even though the only kids left at home are 15 and 16.

Oliver has decided to be an Old West Gambler and Josie is going to be a female Musketeer. One of the hardest parts of putting together a costume is the accessories that go with the outfit. What Musketeer outfit is complete without the big feather plume and what kind of Old West Gambler doesn't have a cowboy hat? Luckily for us, we have options like Wholesale Costume Club to complete our costumes in style. Costume hats can be hard to find and it's even harder to find good quality ones at the right price. The selection and prices at WholesaleCostumeClub are hard to beat!

We were sent a Buccaneer Tricorn Hat for adults to review and couldn't be happier with the quality of the hat. It is not flimsy or cheap looking and is sewn rather than glued together. The hat has elastic sewn into the hat so that it will stay put and not move around. The gold trim and big plume really add to the hat. The Buccaneer Hat sells for $11.96 at the member price which I think is fantastic! This hat could also be used for a pirate costume, a colonial soldier costume and of course, a Musketeer costume.

So this Halloween, don't forget the little details to make your costumes authentic. Trust me, it really adds to the costume's appeal. If you'd like to learn more about Wholesale Costume Club, you can visit their site at http://www.wholesalecostumeclub.com/ and connect with them on Twitter and Facebook.

Happy Halloween!!

FTC Disclosure: We received a sample of the above reviewed product to facilitate this article. No other compensation was received. All opinions are those of the owners and editors of Artsy Chaos.

#Halloween Cookies to Make You Smile! @SmileyCookie

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 23:20:00 +0000

Smiley Cookies. The name just makes you happy, right? Us too!

I'm kind of a cookie gourmet, queen of the cookie eaters, if you will. Cookies are my weak spot. Well, that and cinnamon rolls but we'll save that for another day. OK, yes, chocolate cake as well but that's beside the point here. *deep breath* So, you might say I've seen a cookie or two in my day. I love the concept of Smiley Cookies with their cute little smiling faces just begging to brighten your day for a moment. I also love Halloween so you can imagine my delight to find Halloween Cookies with smiles in my mailbox!

12 little hand iced Jack O Lantern cookies were sent to us by Smiley Cookie to share about here on our blog. That's one dozen if you're counting. The packaging was amazing with a cute smiley face box holding our nicely wrapped and packaged cookies. Absolutely nothing was broken when they arrived. Not a single broken cookie! Which means that you could serve these cookies for a Halloween Party Snack and not worry about having to compensate for breakage.

Halloween Smiley Cookies make a great gift too and can be shipped to whomever you specify. You can get a Halloween Gift Basket to send to your college student, grandparents and anyone that you really like. I suppose you could send some to someone you dislike although that might be strange unless they don't really know you dislike them in which case it might be....umm, ya, strange. So, forget that idea and just send them to someone you like.

These cute little suckers are a little on the pricey side so run over and like Smiley Cookies on Facebook and they will give you a 20% off coupon for Halloween Cookies.

Happy Halloween!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

#Halloween Spaghetti & Eyeballs for Sadie Hawkins {The Daily Chaos 10/14/2011}

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Sat, 15 Oct 2011 04:01:00 +0000

This post must be written lightening fast because I must leave soon to pick up my daughter from the high school's Sadie Hawkins dance and ferry her and her date to their next destination. How's that for a long, stressful run-on sentence full of far too many prepositional phrases.

We had the distinct ~~pain~~ honor of hosting the dance dinner for 19 teenagers tonight. I don't know about you but I remember Sadie Hawkins as the dance where the guys always said no. Seriously, teenage boys can cut a teenage girl's confidence to shreds. Oh who am I kidding, grown men still do that. So we had dinner in the backyard complete with Halloween lights and a cauldron full of bubbling homemade root beer. My husband loves the homemade root beer and is always the dry ice master chef of the brew. At one point, he came in from outside all dejected because apparently the ladle had fallen into the cauldron and the kids had been trying to fish it out with their hands.... he didn't feel like drinking root beer with possible teenage cooties I guess.

"Moldy Rolls" created with green food coloring.

We also served Spooky Salad, Moldy Rolls and Spaghetti and Eyeballs. Interested in making some eyeballs of your own? Check this out...

Halloween Meatball Eyeballs

1 pound ground turkey
1 pound ground beef
Salt and Pepper
Seasoning Salt
Green Olives
Black Olives

Mix the meats together thoroughly with the seasonings. You could also finely chopped onion and/or garlic salt if desired. Set aside. Remove the pimento from the green olives. Slice black olives into thin strips. Replace the pimento in the green olives with a small slice of black olive to look like a pupil. To make the meatballs, roll a small amount of meat mixture into a ball. Press your finger into the center of the meatball to make a hole where you can insert the olive "eye". Place the meatballs onto a cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil and bake for 35 minutes at 350 degrees.

I can't wait to get all the post-dance drama dishing later. Or maybe I should be scared....

*UPDATE:
After all was said and done (and Josie is now home in bed) pretty much all I got was "I sure like dating because it shows me who I don't want to spend the rest of my life with". Ha!!

The Daily Chaos 10/13/2011 {My Life with #Teens}

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 05:41:00 +0000

Thursday proved to be a very busy day. I wore my taxi driver hat 8 times today. 8 times=8 trips to drop off/pick up and back home again. Seriously, when will these kids get their driver's licenses...? And the real crappy thing is, I don't even have a taxi driver hat. Do they sell taxi driver hats? Do they come in pink? Hmm..

On one of these trips it was just me and Oliver. Somehow we got talking about birthing babies. Ya, I know, weird. He said he didn't think anyone could really remember actually being born, like the actual birth. I said ya, I don't think so, and he made some strange "squirming and trying to be born" movement. My kids are unique. Then he asked me about his older brother's "autopsy". Say what? Autopsy? Ya Mom, you know when he wouldn't come out and they had to cut him out. Oh yes, C-Section, I said, not autopsy because that's what they do to dead people to find out how they died. And so he says don't judge me, I'm not good with words. Fair enough.

#FashionistaGiveaway is Here, Win Beautiful Fashion #Jewelry

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 04:09:00 +0000

Welcome to the 2011 Fall Fashionista Giveaway Event! The 100+ bloggers participating in this event are so excited to bring you the chances to win thousands in drool-worthy fashion items! You can enter at each blog participating and enter for the grand prize of a Fendi Mini Beige Red Pochette Bag!!

Here at Artsy Chaos you can enter to win over $60 worth of gorgeous fashion jewelry sponsored by DuelOnJewel.com and GoFavor.com. To find all about these great sponsors, please visit our review posts for Duel On Jewel and Go Favor.

Please use the Rafflecopter form below to enter the giveaway here. You may do either mandatory entry to enter; you must complete both to unlock extra entries. Make sure your java is up to date and be patient, the form may be slow to load. If you are unable to see either the entry form or the GFC widget to follow us, please refresh the page and that should do the trick! After you enter here, use the linky at the bottom of this post to hop to another participating blog and enter their giveaway. You can enter them all for chances at winning! Good luck!

@JacobBromwell #Vintage Authentic Sifter and an Old Recipe Too! #cooking

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 04:33:00 +0000

So many things are just not like they used to be; sturdy, solid, simple and built to last. Everything these days seems so rushed, hurried and disposable, including so many of the products on the market. Honestly, we get real tired of rolling the dice every time we purchase a product. I bet you do too.

Jacob Bromwell is out of the ordinary. Established in 1819 with an idea to create solid cooking and kitchen ware, Jacob Bromwell creates products the same way they did back then and they are expected to last for generations. I inherited one of Jacob Bromwell's fine flour sifters from my father's family's estate. It may have belonged to his great-aunt Josephine or possibly his grandmother but in any case, it made its way to me many years later. I used to just turn the handle to feel how smoothly it turned the little wires inside the sifter. It was mesmerizing. Unfortunately, the sifter suffered during one of our moves in my early 20's and couldn't be put back together. I was thrilled to be able to review a brand new (yet oh so vintage feeling) flour sifter from Jacob Bromwell. As soon as I opened the box, I could feel the need to find some vintage recipes to try with my new sifter.

Inherited Vintage Recipe Box

I also inherited a recipe box that belonged to my father's great-aunt and grandmother's mother. Whew. Did you catch that? That makes her my great great grandmother. She came to the US from Holland as a young girl so seriously, some of the recipes are.... weird. Like pigeon pie. Care for a slice? Yea, I didn't think so. In this recipe box are booklets, brochures with recipes amongst the handwritten recipes and newspaper clippings. I decided upon a recipe for Apple Rolls - perfect for this Fall/Halloween season. The recipe is taken from Betty Crocker's 15 Prize Recipes celebrating their 15th Anniversary, 1921-1936, and is typed exactly as it was printed.

Apple Rolls

4 medium sliced apples (or 2 cups berries or other fruit)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups water
1 Tbsp. butter
Sugar and Cinnamon

METHOD - Select apples that will cook quickly. Peel, core and chop fine. Put sugar and water in a pan 2 inches deep. Cook about 5 minutes over slow fire. While syrup is cooking, make up a rich biscuit dough. Roll about 1/4-inch thick. Spread with the finely chopped apples (or other fruit) and roll into a long roll. Cut into pieces about 1 1/2 inches wide. Place cut side down in the pan of hot syrup. Dot with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Place pan in oven and bake until apples are cooked and the crust is a golden brown. Lift out on platter and pour syrup around them. May be topped with whipped cream. TIME - bake 23 minutes. TEMPERATURE - 450° F., hot oven. SIZE OF PAN - 6x12 inches. AMOUNT - 12 servings. VARIATIONS - Fresh cherries, blackberries or loganberries, or other fruit, are just as delicious as apples in this dessert. Canned fruit may be drained and used, the juice added to the syrup. Part brown sugar or maple sugar may be used in the syrup.

Finely Chopped Fresh Jonathan Apples from the Backyard

Making Biscuit Dough with Jacob Bromwell's All-American Sifter (you can really see the frankenstein scar on my hand in this pic, yuck!)

Dough and Apples Before it's Rolled Up

Slices Ready to Bake

Finished Apple Roll

In case you may wonder, this recipe was really really tasty and not too sweet, not too tart and not too much cinnamon. They were so good, in fact, that just a few hours after making them only 3 rolls were left. My husband said they were "fantastic". So, yea, there ya go. I'm thinking I'll dig out more of these recipes from a simpler time.

So now you're sitting there reading this and thinking "hey, I'd like to get the vintage cooking bug too!" and guess what? Jacob Bromwell is generously offering one lucky Artsy Chaos an All-American Flour Sifter just like the one we reviewed, how generous and fun too! To enter, just use the form below. Make sure your java is up to date and be patient, the form may be slow to load. If you are unable to see either the entry form or the GFC widget to follow us, please refresh the page and that should do the trick!

FTC Disclosure: We received a sample of the above reviewed product to facilitate this article. No other compensation was received. All opinions are those of the owners and editors of Artsy Chaos.

#Halloween Clues, Spells and Curses #Party Game... FUN!

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 03:05:00 +0000

There are a lot of party games and printable games out there on the internet. A lot of party games that well, are pretty much all the same and not that clever or involved. I mean, don't get me wrong, if you have a crazy family like I do a lot of lame games can be fun. But I found something much different and WAY BETTER. Insert = PartyGamesPlus.com!

Halloween is coming up and I have something perfect for your upcoming parties and get-togethers: Clues, Spells, and Curses Scavenger Hunt. Just the name is intriguing, right? I mean seriously, who doesn't want to cast a spell on smelly Uncle Charlie and Little Tommy's loud friend Helga! This downloadable game comes with everything, literally almost everything, you will need for an entire night of laughs and fun. The .PDF game is 25 pages long and you can use it over and over and over - it might even become a yearly tradition. The price may seem a little steep at $14.99 but remember that is on par or even less expensive than buying a box game at the store and this one you can continue to print and use for many, many years.

The game directions have you use a few items around the house to make some props, like this Dragon Blood. Fun, right? We're very excited to use this Scavenger Hunt game at our Halloween Party this year!

We'd also like to mention that PartyGamesPlus.com has games for many other occasions and themes including consultant parties. If you're a consultant for any number of companies like 31 Gifts, Tupperware, Scentsy, or *insert your company here*, you're sure to break the ice and engage your customers with the games available.

Eat, Drink and Be Scary!

Happy Halloween!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

#Halloween Discount on Costumes from @CrazyDogTShirts

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 00:52:00 +0000

We wanted to share a quick discount available from Crazy Dog T-shirts for Halloween. Did you know that they also have Halloween costumes available at some great prices? Of course, if you did you're thinking 'duh' and if you didn't, well, now you do.

Courtesy of Crazy Dog, you can use these codes:
TRICK for $5 off any costume order, OR
TREAT for 10% off any costume order;

whichever gives you the greater discount.

Happy Halloween!!

FTC Disclosure: We received no compensation for this post, monetary or otherwise but do have a relationship with CrazyDogTshirts.com.

@DuelOnJewel Unique #Fashion Jewelry for Every Occasion

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 21:49:00 +0000

We are pleased to introduce you to Duel On Jewel, one of our fabulous sponsors for the Fall Fashionista Giveaway Event, October 14-19, 2011. Over 130 blogs are participating, each with a prize minimum of $50 to give away. Don't miss it!

From the Duel On Jewel website, "jewelry is an accessory that helps to enhance your outfit and style". We couldn't agree more. Jewelry is like the icing on the cake, the part of an outfit that pulls it all together in your own unique way. I, myself, have more of a bold style in jewelry and I have a particular love of fashion jewelry. I like big pieces that you won't see anywhere else; Pieces that have a charm and style of their own. If you're unsure of what style of jewelry to wear or what to wear together, Duel On Jewel has a great jewelry tips section to give you direction in your jewelry style.

We were able to review 3 lovely pieces from Duel On Jewel and we weren't disappointed. This 16" glass bead necklace is a stunning shade of green. I particularly like the copper pendant in the bell shape. It is certain to be a focal point necklace.

My favorite of the pieces sent to us for review is this resin bangle bracelet. It has a great copper/gold sheen and is very light weight. I wore it to dinner the other night and it complimented my outfit perfectly. I haven't had such a chunky bangle bracelet in years and I'm glad they are back in style.

We also received these sure-to-impress chandelier earrings with lots of sparkle. What a beautiful way to make a statement on a special outfit! These earrings are a little on the heavy side so I won't be wearing them everyday but they will be a great addition anytime I need to dress up. They certainly sparkle and shine!

Duel On Jewel has very reasonable prices and quick shipping with great customer service. They can help you with any fashion jewelry needs for every occasion. You can also gain insider news on promotions and coupons by following Duel On Jewel on Twitter, Facebook and by signing up for their newsletter too.

FTC Disclosure: We received the above jewelry samples from Duel On Jewel to facilitate this review. Duel on Jewel is also sponsoring the upcoming Fall Fashionista Event. No monetary amount was received for this article and all opinions are those of Artsy Chaos owners and editors.

Thursday Blog Hops!

noreply@blogger.com (ArtsyChaos) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 04:06:00 +0000

Welcome to Thursday! ...which is almost Friday, but not quite. What better way to pass the day than to do a little hopping around and maybe finding some new favorite blogs to visit. Leave a comment and we'll be sure to follow you back.

To find more blogs to visit, just click any of the hop buttons below!