I was thrilled when my friend asked me to review her new business.  Paige, and her mom, Laurie have been friends of our family for many years.  If their family is involved in something, you know it has to be good.  They formed a mother/daughter team and are now selling Origami Owl.

I had never heard of this company before, but when I checked it out, I quickly became a huge fan.  Personalized jewelry.  Every woman’s dream right?  You can order online, but what would be even more fun is to have a jewelry party (or Jewelry Bars) with your friends.

Creating your jewelry is a personalized process.  Choose the locket size and metal of your choice (blingy or no bling). Then for me, the fun part was, choosing my charms.  I picked ones that had a special meaning for me.  I choose a cross to represent my faith, the number 3 to signify my children, an angel wing to represent my son in Heaven and an orange leukemia awareness ribbon representing a significant journey in our life.  I then picked a plate, Blessed, to show how I feel in my life.  Then the finale was choosing my chain.  You can also add additional dangles (your initial, flower, etc).

Paige gave me a great suggestion.  I was struggling on what metals I wanted to use and she said “mix them”.  It’s the “in” thing and would allow for me to wear with anything.    And most importantly it allows for future additions to your collection.  The locket opens (and securely latches) so that you can change out your charms.  Or do what I did and just buy additional lockets (varied sizes) with different “themes” and add them to your necklace.  Go for the layered look and wear a shorter chain with a longer chain.  The possibilites are endless.

Origami Owl also makes a great gift.  They come packed in an adorable teal “take out” container and nestled in an oriental pouch.

My daughter has been begging me to take her to see this movie. She is extremely excited..because it’s The Lone Ranger or because Johnny Depp is in it? Hmmm….

I was able to tie in our reveal party with my daughter’s 6th birthday party.  We invited over friends, bought the birthday cake (with Tinkerbelle on it of course) and planned a selection of fun fairy games.  Throw in some tiaras and wands and we were good to go!  Our guests were blown away with the transformation.  Mouths were hanging when they saw realistic fairies painted on the wall and even more in awe when we turned out the lights to see glowing accents all around the room.

My favorite part of my daughter’s new room (besides it being so neat and clean) would have to be the glowing wings on the fairies.  It is such a special detail that I know will delight her friends over and over.  I also love that I can walk into the room and there is no longer paint odor.  It is great to have a product that is easy to match your accessories with as well.  Disney items can readily be found around town, especially at Walmart.

I would highly recommend the Disney line of paint from Glidden and I would definitely be using it again.  We recently purchased a can of the Magnificent Metallic paint for my older daughter’s room and I foresee the Great Slate Chalkboard paint in our future as well.

Compensation and products for review were provided by Glidden via MomTrends.  The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions of Glidden. 

Does Disney ever sleep?  It seems they are constantly creating new adventures for our eyes to behold.  BIG HERO 6 is their new animation that will hit theaters on November 7, 2014.  What immediately grabbed my attention was the beautiful concept art.  Below is a small teaser…it was enough to keep me wanting more!

Shopping is something I enjoy even though I don’t find myself doing it as much as I would like.  I usually like to shop online because it is convenient and I can do at all hours.  An added bonus is my size is almost always available.  When I go in the store I hate when I find something I love, but they don’t have my size and then don’t carry it online.  Luckily Sears has solved that problem for me.  The Sears website is larger than their stores carrying more sizes and colors than you would find at the local store.  You could even find the same style in a color or print you like even more.  Sears even takes their customer service one step further you can purchase online and schedule an in store pickup at your convenience.  Sears guarantees to have your item ready in 5 minutes or less or they will give you a $5 in store coupon.

Happy Mother’s Day!

I’m a mom.  I mean, obviously.  And maybe I’m just a little aware that Mother’s Day is right around the corner.  As in, mere days away.  Well, lucky me, I got my Mother’s Day gift early this year and have already been sporting it at work!  What is it, you ask?  And why is it so special?  Well, I’m glad you asked.

Uncommon sent me a customized case for my well-used, well-loved iPad.  Also well-loved are the lovely photos of my children and their artwork that are printed right on the case!

The case features a collage of three images, including a gorgeous picture of my two girls, and two photos of their artwork.   In this age of technology, I love that things like this are available to us.  Gone are the days of carrying school pictures in your wallet!  Now, it’s all about carrying your kids’ pictures on your mobile devices!

This case is amazing.  Well-made, sturdy construction and gorgeous color.  It adds instant pizazz to my iPad.  Just the other day, I walked into a morning meeting and proudly showed my best friend my new treasure.  The first thing she said was, “Oh my.  I love that.  Where can I get one?”

Uncommon can send you a customizable case for a multitude of items.  iPhones, iPads, iPods, and MacBooks can get the makeover that you choose and the protection that they need!  If you choose not to upload your own image, Uncommon has an entire gallery of designer motifs to choose from when creating the perfect case.

What a fantastic Mother’s Day or Father’s Day gift idea.  Practical, yet personal.  The best of both worlds.

Here’s your chance to win a $50 gift certificate – just in time for you (er..um..a Father’s Day Gift)

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