Bling Bling for God!

Does Service Merchandise exist anymore? If not, I'll always remember that store for what I bought there at the age of 12... my first cross.

I had that cross around my neck for almost 15 years when it one day broke off. I heard it fall to the ground at my friend's house and I was on hands and knees looking for it for what felt like forever.

My friend assured me that the baby or dog would find it. My guess is that they'd find it and eat it. I'm sure Jesus would not approve.

I was kinda bummed, but it sparked the search for my next cross. At this age, I was also much more attuned to fabulous jewelry and I really wanted something that popped.

Well if anything is gonna pop, it is this black and white diamond cross pendant from Apples of Gold. It's kinda got this gothic appeal. It also would match with most of my outfits.

But most of all it's bling bling for God!

I think Jesus would approve. :)

TashamSpa Discount!

There are many ways to store memories. We can repeat something over and over again. We can take a mental picture. We can touch an item with our fingertips. We can hear a certain pitch. We can associate memories with any of our five senses. And for me, the sense of smell is probably the most memorable.

Certain smells can trigger the most random memories. It doesn't happen all the time, but often it is a pleasant experience. Smells can remind me of home, friends, events and travel.

The scent of the TashamSpa shampoo and conditioner sent to me by Tasha transported me back to the Costa Rican jungle. I remember going there with my mother and sister. We were on a guided tour, simply walking along the trail.

I remember the scent of the rain forest. It was light and refreshing. It was serene and lush. It was filled the beauty of this world. It was natural.

Now every time I wash my hair with the TashamSpa shampoo and conditioner, I am transported back to that moment.

And the results from using the shampoo and conditioner are even better. My hair was refreshed, light, clean, lush, natural... pretty much the same as the Costa Rican jungle.

Tasha loves using natural ingredients in her products. Not the "natural" as advertised on a store-bought item, but NATURAL as the ingredients Tasha uses after doing hours and hours of research in the grocery store and online.

Tasha started making beauty products after having her daughter. She was this perfect, beautiful little thing, completely unspoiled by society. She found what works and what doesn't with plenty of trial and error. Now her family has grown to include another little guy, and she continues to use tashamspa homemade concoctions on him.

Tasha wants her clients to feel like they are being cared for. These are the same products she uses on her own family and friends... and she is sharing them with tashamspa clients.

"Enjoy them, use them liberally, and know that we are looking out for you."- Tasha

Don't be fooled by the "natural" products out there. Know your ingredients. Know the products you can trust... and make memories with them.

Tasha would like to offer all of you the opportunity to enjoy her products with a 10% discount, using the code "RoxyShops." Message her that you found her through this blog and she'll apply the discount to your order.

Pinka Review and Giveaway! CLOSED

I have an obsession with scarves. I guess I take after my father who also loves scarves. Anytime I would get sick as a kid, my dad would tell me it's because I wasn't wearing a scarf and protecting my neck. From that point forward he would wear a scarf around the house, and so would I.

As the colder weather descends, I'm starting to wear my scarves around the house. Now I won't just wear any old scarf. I wear fashionable scarves. I wear fashion-forward scarves. I wear retro-inspired scarves. I wear only the coolest.

This scarf from Pinka is one of the coolest. I was initially drawn to the pink lace flowers I saw on the image online. When I got the scarf in the mail, I loved it even more because of the subtle detail in the grey plaid. The same color pink is hidden within the threading. At first I thought the mix of plaid with flowers was forward-thinking. Now I see that there is actually some matching!

Then comes quality. The fabric is nice and thick, sure to embrace the neck and protect it from cold. The lace flowers are stitched very well, not allowing petals to crease over with wear. Overall it's a very high quality scarf!

Pinka of Pinka Boutique, is always sketching whenever she sees or thinks of a design. Then, she finds a fabric that work well with the design, the structure, as well as the usage. Normally for bags, she does one of a kind and custom size bags but for some, she cuts patterns out of thick papers for future usage.

Pinka love haute couture designers but she looks at real people who use the stuff she makes. She wants her products to be cute, useful, lasting, and simple. She is really big on recycling, reusing, and reducing. She reuses all cardboard boxes such as cereal, cookies, or pasta boxes to ship as well as recycle mail envelope. Those things are only used once and if that can be reused in anyway, she might save a tree or two in her life time.

Pinka is also a humanitarian, who hosts a craft bazaar on her front lawn once a year to fundraise for the local Humane Society. It's coming up on December 6th, so if you're in the Orlando area be sure to save the date!

In the meantime, Pinka would like to offer one of my readers the chance to win a SURPRISE scarf designed and made by her!

To Enter: Visit Pinka's etsy store and tell me your favorite item in a comment. She has several purses and scarves available.

If you can't wait to win, Pinka is offering all of you a 10% discount on all items in her shop.

Just message her and tell her you found her through Roxy Shops.

ENTER MY OTHER CONTESTS LISTED IN THE TOP RIGHT CORNER!

Contest ends November 25th

Winner will have 48 hours to confirm win

DISCLAIMER: Pinka did NOT pay me to do this review. I understand there are new FTC guidelines on blog giveaways. I want you all to know that *I* approach artists and designers for reviews & giveaways when I find their products online. *I* ask their permission to review their products, and I will only speak truthfully about their products. In addition, once the winner has confirmed win, *I* am not responsible for the delivery of the prize. I trust my sponsors to uphold the giveaway, and I cannot guarantee the prize will be delivered to the winner.

Wilson Graphics Wall Decals

I don't have a head board for my bed. At first I was ok with it, but I'm an adult... and dammit... I need to start living like one. As I was perusing countless sites for a bed board, I realized that though I may be an adult, I'm not paid well enough to afford the luxuries online.

I sought alternative options and came across wall decals. They were nicely done, easy to apply to the wall and an inexpensive option. In deciding exactly what I wanted at the head of my bed I came across Wilson Graphics.

Paul David Wilson, the artist of Wilson Graphics, has an unbelievable selection of wall decals. I absolutely loved the Cherry Blossom and Dove tree branch wall decal, but with the color scheme I wasn't sure if pink blossoms would work in my apartment.

Not a problem for Paul. He can customize colors on all of his designs. He can vary the sizes of all of his designs. He can flip designs in any direction to flow with your decor. If you're not satisfied with those options, he will custom-create a whole new design for you from scratch.

Paul began as a graphic designer for about 15 years on the local Air Force base. Not quite satisfied with his original printer, he took the plunge and bought a vinyl printer. It was a big step since it cost about as much as a new car at the time.

Shortly after getting the printer, Paul was asked by a local sign shop to start running prints for them and eventually picked up half a dozen more within 50 miles. Soon enough he quit his day job and focused his energy on expanding his shop.

Today Paul has over 250 designs in several shops around the net, but his primary shop remains on Etsy. I encourage you to visit this shop among his many other shops as he will be offering a fantastic giveaway on my blog in the future.

If you go to his shop now and tell me what you love, I will give you an EXTRA entry in the future giveaway...


DISCLAIMER: Paul did NOT pay me to do this review. I understand there are new FTC guidelines on blog giveaways. I want you all to know that *I* approach artists and designers for reviews & giveaways when I find their products online. *I* ask their permission to review their products, and I will only speak truthfully about their products.

Byrdie Graphics Wall Decal Giveaway! CLOSED

I moved into my apartment a couple of months ago. Knowing I would only be here for a year, I didn't bother to decorate. Eventually the bland nature of my studio got to me and I decided to do something.

My building manager painted one of my walls a nice, deep red for me. Gorgeous, but I needed to get something else going. I had been reading quite a bit about wall decals. They're great designs that are easy to get on your walls, so I went searching for them.

I found the shop, Byrdie Graphics, on etsy and fell in love with the one-of-a-kind designs... which are also quite affordable. Not having the time or the salary to deal with painting, I contacted Byrdie herself and asked for her help.

She was kind enough to send me several of the wildflowers in various sizes and in the deep red color. If you take a look at the color palette, you will see that you can get any color to match your decor!

The wildflowers arrived along with a couple of small bird decals for me to test out my wall decal skills. Let me tell you that this was the easiest decorating I have ever done. Byrdie sent along directions that were user-friendly. Within an hour, I had the wildflowers lining the walk-way from my door into the apartment.

It was a real treat to come home the next day after work and feel like I was walking along a trail into my kitchen.

Byrdie always has a list of new designs that she and her designer are working on so that inventory stays fresh and up to date. Some of their best designs come from things right around around them: beautiful flowers, antique iron work, and of course whatever is hot in fashion and home decor at the moment.

Their favorite things to create are the Wall Patterns. You can achieve the same effect as expensive wallpaper and have the option of easily taking it down when you are ready for a change. Are you ready to change your place with wall decals from Byrdie Graphics?

Byrdie would like to offer one of you the chance to win a $25 gift certificate to her shop!

To Enter:Visit Byrdie Graphics on Etsy. Come back here and comment with what you would buy with the gift certificate and what room would benefit from your purchase!

BE SURE TO LEAVE YOUR EMAIL!

Can't wait to win??? As a treat to my readers, Byrdie is offering all you 10% off using the code ROXY10 at checkout.

Contest Ends November 20th. Winner will have 48 hours to email me or I'll choose another winner!

Open to US and Canadian winners

DISCLAIMER: Byrdie did NOT pay me to do this review. I understand there are new FTC guidelines on blog giveaways. I want you all to know that *I* approach artists and designers for reviews & giveaways when I find their products online. *I* ask their permission to review their products, and I will only speak truthfully about their products. In addition, once the winner has confirmed win, *I* am not responsible for the delivery of the prize. I trust my sponsors to uphold the giveaway, and I cannot guarantee the prize will be delivered to the winner.

Pearls

I was catching up on the last season of Desperate Housewives, and there was an episode where Mike bought Catherine a strand of beautiful pearls, and it got me thinking... how come I don't have pearls?

I was born in June, so as my birthstone I should absolutely have a pearl necklace at the very least. So I went to the Apples of Gold website and fell in LOVE with this Dark Green Tahitian Pearl Necklace with Rondelles.

I think I had a bias against pearls because I always thought the white pearls were bland and boring. Little did I know that I could look like a rock star in pearls.

This necklace is definitely on my wish list... now I just gotta get a rich boyfriend to buy them for me!

Bagatelles And Co Giveaway! CLOSED

Finding the right purse for any occasion can be a trial. I have a few staples that could go with anything, but it's so much more fun to find a perfectly matching purse for your outfit.

Rym of Bagatelles & Co creates and makes purses and clutches using high quality textiles that can/will match any occasion. When she was an art student in Paris, she made purses and small notebooks to help finance a school trip to NYC. Ultimately, her company Bagatelles & Co was born last summer.

We've all had a scenario like the following: Rym was looking for a nice evening bag for a wedding she was attending and could not find anything beautiful yet affordable.

So common, so true, so annoying.

While most of us suck it up and spend the big bucks or make our "plus one" carry our ID and credit card, Rym ended up making her own purse. After that, she got lots of requests from friends which led to setting up her own little company!

Rym opened her etsy shop in May, and she has an amazing array of handmade items sure to match any occasion. I personally LOVED this Azulejos Gigi purse.

I love that it's small enough to use as a coin purse and throw in my tote and large enough to carry my keys, cash and cards should I need a little clutch for a night out.

Rym has an array of fabrics for this purse and a number of sizes she makes as well. She is inspired by EVERYTHING! Walking around in the streets, art books, folk costumes, the 20’s, films, music, flowers, paintings… even food.

Rym uses recycled fabrics and remnants from luxury tailoring and furnishing textile rolls, which makes her products environmentally friendly. She tries to avoid wasting fabric and uses any left over pieces to make brooches, earrings and barrettes. All of these items can be found in her etsy shop, Bagatelles & Co.

Now for the giveaway. How would you like to own this Azulejos Gigi purse?

To Enter:

Comment with your favorite item from Bagatelles & Co on etsy. Be sure to leave you email in the comment.

Extra Entry!
Join Rym's Facebook page (be sure to leave your facebook name or email so we can confirm)

Contest will end Nov 30th

MAKE SURE TO ENTER MY OTHER GIVEAWAYS LISTED IN THE TOP RIGHT CORNER!

Winner will have 48 hours to contact me.

Contest open to international entries

DISCLAIMER: Rym did NOT pay me to do this review. I understand there are new FTC guidelines on blog giveaways. I want you all to know that *I* approach artists and designers for reviews & giveaways when I find their products online. *I* ask their permission to review their products, and I will only speak truthfully about their products.