Giveaway: Mini Pillow from Arrow&Ink!

As you know, Tori & I recently had our first venture as co-founders of Arrow&Ink and we would like to wish all the Glow-in-the-Dark Soul blog readers a Merry Christmas with a little giveaway of a mini pillow!

These little pillows are SO cute. You can use them to display brooches, pins, & earrings or just toss them in an armchair with a bunch of other pillows for a charming look!

Tori & I both have one and we love them for decoration and functionality!

The best part is that you have the chance to win one for yourself before they are released in our coming etsy shop! All you have to do is comment below with your name and favorite accessory you always pull out for parties and events during the holidays! I'll announce the winner tomorrow here on the blog!

<3
E

Giveaway from Pretty & Lucky!

I'm here now with an exciting giveaway from a new up-and-comer in the Etsy world: Pretty & Lucky Etsy shop! This beautiful and inspiring shop just opened recently and has the most trendy graphic pieces I have ever seen! The owner and operator, Maki Miller, is the cutest, sweetest, most fashionable girl and her shop is no different!

Maki has generously donated a few items for the blog party giveaway today including a set of 12 adorable graphic gift tags and 5 drawstring gift bags! One lucky winner will win this graphic holiday prize package!

To win, comment below with your name & favorite color combination for the holidays! These will be the perfect addition to your gift wrapping arsenal! I know I want some for myself! :) I'll post the winner of the giveaway tomorrow afternoon!

Also be sure to go visit the Pretty & Lucky Etsy shop and add it to your favorites. I'm sure Maki will be adding more incredible pieces to her shop soon!

<3
E

Folks, we HAVE a winner!

I'm sorry this took so long to post, but life is insane. Right now I'm juggling a full time job, school, photography, wedding planning, and mentoring curriculum. BAH! Goodness. Anyway, we officially have a winner of my apple cozy giveaway! So without further ado, the winner of a cute little autumn coffee cozy is:

Carly!

Congratulations, Carly! I'm going to email you tonight and you can reply to me with your mailing address and the color you want your apple cozy! I wish I could give one to all of you, but I CAN tell you this: there are going to be some of these very apple cozies in my upcoming fall update in my etsy shop! I'm going to have several different colors and I'm excited to have them for sale! Give me a shout in the comment if you're interested in a custom color order!

Ok, well I start school tomorrow and I just can't believe my summer is over.
Let's all take a moment of silence for this amazing summer that has come to pass. lol
<3 to all!!!
E

a Tasty Giveaway!

"An apple a day keeps the Dr. away!"

For back to school time, I'm doing a fantastically tasty giveaway! The winner of this giveaway will win something very special! This is a new product that will soon be in my etsy shop that I came up with recently. I was trying to think of a way to incorporate an apple design in my knitting in a very old school "apple for your teacher" way, and I decided to try making a cozy! This adorable little apple coffee cozy would be PERFECT for your fall time Caramel Apple Spice or hot chocolate!

After I had drawn the design for this in my sketchbook, ELsie posted a picture of the apple cozies from Twinkie Chan, so check those out too! Great minds think alike!

I will be giving away ONE apple coffee cozy in green or red (your choice) made by me! The winner will come from the comments of this post of course! I don't always require you to faithfully read my blog to enter a giveaway, but this is a little appreciation giveaway for my followers. Loooove you! So to enter this contest:

1. Comment on this post telling me a topic you would love to see me blog about. OR tell me something you would love to see in my etsy shop.

2. Tell me how you FOLLOW me regularly. (ie: Google Reader, blogger follower, etc.)

3. Sign your name and email address with your entry!

4. Tweet this giveaway for an extra entry! Comment separately and link me to the tweet! I want to follow you on twitter too! haha

I'm using this adorable giveaway to gather ideas for my blog arsenal. I'm planning a big blog reboot for fall and I want fresh, new, desirable ideas to expand upon! This giveaway will end this Friday August 20th at 12:00 NOON EST. I'm so excited to hear all of your ideas so get those comments in and cross your fingers!

In the next few days I have several things coming up for you: home decor, inspiration, fashion, life, photography, and more!
Happy commenting!!!
<3
E

Winner winner Chicken Dinner!

well I have utilized my random integer gerator: Ian. :) I told him to pick a number and we landed RIGHT on our winner! So let's review our prize one more time:

So thanks to Ian, I am about to announce that the winner of the soft braided bangle is none other than:

Miss Jane!


So Jane-- please email me your address where I can send your lovely prize! keread(at)bsu(dot)edu
Thanks to everyone who entered! I loved hearing your inspirations and SUCH sweet comments about my blog! You're all too too sweet!
<3
E

Video and GIVEAWAY!

Valentine Giveaway VLOG! from Elaine R. on Vimeo.

*my drawing book no. 4 flickr set
Happy Love Day, all!

<3
E

P.S. what was that CRAZY deranged laugh that I did in that video!? hahaha

Nerd Alert

ok so check it out! For my project in Flexography Printing class, our project this semester was to design, process, and actually PRINT a run of adhesive "labels" (to me, they're stickers) for our very own. Imagine my glee, haha. So I decided to go the hard route and do a hand-drawn design which meant 3 or 4 more steps to the whole process. So I took a sketch from my personal drawing book and created these RAD labels!:

I actually wanted a more Cyan/aqua type color, but i DO like the blue I ended up using! I have hundreds of these things now and I'm stoked to be able to stick them on every surface and be able to say that I actually produced them! Which leads me to my next point:

GIVEAWAY!
For the first 5 people that comment on this post, I'll send them some of my lovely hand-produced Nerd Labels! I'm so excited to share these!!! PLEASE comment with your email address!


PLusssss check the first pages from my Style File for the Style School online class!





SO excited to spend a lot of quality time with these pages this weekend adding, printing more pages, and cutting/pasting!

Also a big shout out to Lehua for sending me this WONDERFUL stack of wedding magazines! What a creative lifesaver! THank you soooo much! Be expecting happy mail!!!

Alright, time for an evening of shows with my fiancé and some style file action!
Don't forget to comment!

<3
E

mounds of mail*joy

what a WONDERFUL day. the weather is truly perfect. It's 70 degrees with a cool breeze and SUNNY! omg I'm loving the weather as long as it stays beautiful out. it makes me yearn for summertime. only 2 more weeks! then I can ride my bike to the library, go walking with my dog, mow lawns, repaint my bedroom and all the other things I love so much about summer. :] 2 more weeks...

This weekend was Operation Prom Makeover for ian's sister, Riley. I love that girl seriously. She was GORGEOUS. Renee (ian's mom) asked me to make her jewelry, do her hair, and take photos which i LOVED doing. I ended up making a hairpiece for her too. here's a select few shots from the event:





She was a gorgeous mermaid inspired princess. love it.

Also, this weekend was KNITTING TIME! I finally finished-count em- 3 BOWS! here's a pic of 2 of them that i attached to knitted headbands i made!

I have plans to make many more and put them up in my shop. I think I'm off to get more yarn tonight! Hobby Lobby's yarns are on sale right now and they have lots of choices. I want mango, grey, and magenta. <3

Today in the mail i got CRAZY amounts of happiness. I got my package from Paper crafts regarding the RAK i won. o.m.g. i never expected to get this much stuff seriously. The photo i showed in the last post is a photo of all six winners' prizes together but they SPOILED US. seriously I about died. lol


I got the K & Company cut 'n paste collection and its all so beautiful and vintage and fabulous. it is seriously the best one for me. i love it all! Included are rub ons, stickers, die cuts, brads, 3D embellishments and TONS of paper! Thank you Paper crafts!!!

Also, this little lady was kind enough to send me THIS STUFF from her Mom's scrapbook store and I was excited to receive that package today too!

She got me the American Crafts Backyard Collection, 4 packs of thickers, a uniball signo in white, and some Stickles in a shade called "Mermaid!" How perfect is THAT? Thanks darling dearest!

Alrighty, now time to announce the winner of my little RAK! I had one name that really really stuck out to me! *drumroll please* My new blog name is..........

Swimming with Mermaids!

Therefore, the winner of the ACEO is Blogger McMGrad89!!! Please email me your address and what you would like your card theme to be at keread [at] bsu.edu ! thank you all for playing!

All in all this past weekend was brilliant and the coming week is looking promising! I hope everyone is happy and inspired! <3

weekend*warrior RAK

Hey there kids. This weekend has been nuts. Lots of peer mentor retreats, carnival funness that I helped with, lame evenings, etc.
THought I would drop by and share a few thingies before tomorrow rolls around.

A few new layouts. One for scrapjacked:


another for a Fairy Tales Creative final project!


It was very therapeutic to get these done this week. I've really been doing a good job on getting art journal layouts out. I'm hoping I'll get a LOT going this summer.

Portfolio review went well. He was a really nice guy. I didn't get much feedback to be honest. He didn't say much of anything negative OR positive. Sort of weeeiiiird. hm.

ALso, and this is VERY important:
I'm trying to think of a new name for my blog and I need suggestions! PLEASE submit suggestions in the comments section of this post and if I like any of the names, I'm going to USE it! We're talking brand new title here, and please nothing to do with cupcakes: new direction! Whoever's blog name I choose will receive an ACEO Artist Trading Card made by me with a theme of your choice. :]

yayayayayay! I want to do a blog re-design and incorporate the new name! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE leave me some fun titles!!! It doesn't have to have ANYTHING to do with cupcakes.

ok, i hope your weekends are going fantastically! My mom and dad are coming tomorrow to take home LOTS of my stuff from the dorm! It's going to look so sad, but that just means I'm one step closer to SUMMER VACATION! :]
<3

Fashionista*and RAK

Alright. I don't know how many of you would consider yourselves an expert on fashion. Iiiii am not one of those people, but i consider myself an expert on MY PERSONAL style. Some things were said about my sense of style this week and I just wanted to share it a little with you. :] Also...maybe give you a few tips on how to develop your own personal style of your own. yey!

1. don't be afraid of color. One of my favorite things to do is to grab Old Navy Perfect Fit Tees in every color I can get. They're wardrobe basics and feel wonderful and as most Old Navy things are, they're really high quality.

Old Navy also has some ribbed tanks that are affordable and awesome as well. (you'll find that my 3 fave places of all time to shop are Old Navy, the Gap, and Target. haha)
One great thing you can do is just snag some perfect fit tees, tanks, polos and cardigans and just mix and match! It's so easy knowing that you have a closet full of colors to play with every day almost like a blank slate. :] Here's some awesome cardigans that i really love. Love the big buttons too.

2. be yourself. Figure out what it is that you really really like and then DO it! I find lots of fun ideas at Wardrobe Re-Mix on flickr. 2 words: love. it.




I've been thinking about actually uploading some stuff for awhile now, but i just haven't made it that far yet. haha

3. don't others dictate your fashion sense. I don't care WHO says WHAT about your outfits. Just let it roll off because chances are, they're not as cute as you. hahaha That's my philosophy. There's really no RIGHT or WRONG to the way you dress, so why let someone else make you question it?


4. wear what you want to wear. Sometimes the clashing is the best part! If you see 2 things that don't really fit the "matching" scheme...just do it anyway. I mean...complimentary colors are good things to keep in mind, but stopping there would be silly when there are SO many new combinations of clothes out there to try! Who knows, maybe something will look stellar.
Check out THIS amaazzzing look! I about died because i loved it so much. It's like nerdy meets prom which is to die for. :]


5. Get inspired by designer, but shop budget. Find something you love and then thrift or shop at Target and try to mimic it.
Here are some super cute peep toes that i just adore. I'm currently searching for a pair of budget home-girl priced ones. haha

They have prrrreetttty purses here at Manos.


6. try mixing large prints with small scale prints. It's never a good idea to overpower a large print with something equally as large. Mixing patterns is perfectly FINE as long as they're not competing for attention. If you have an article on that's making a huge statement, it might not be a good idea to overpower it with something else.
Check out this super SA-WEET Audrey Hoodie! want want want.


7. Please please please accessorize!!!

Some of my favorite things to use are long beaded necklaces or pendants, fun glasses, and big hair bows. Here is one of my favorite Etsy Shops: Westergard Jewelry. There are lots of really inexpensive pieces that are fun and have that vintage look.
Anthropologie has TONS of cute hair accessories for springtime right now! I fell in mad love. <3

Most of the time, I go for the more kitschy look, though. Bows, bracelets, charms, etc. I almost never leave the house without some sort of headband on my head.
Check SeamSewSwell for really really adorable cloth bows. Bekah showed me that one and i fell in LOVE. :]

More bowsss:



8. THRIFT! Probs the best advice i can give you! The decades that aren't OUR decades are the besties. SO. COOL. I'm an old soul and i love to go thrifting and find something totes cute to wear. OR. Grab something off the rack that maybe doesn't fit, cut it up, and make something NEW! Grab some really interesting pieces to spice up your wardrobe. If there aren't any thrift stores near you, Google it or go here Bleubird Vintage is FAN-freakin-TASTIC and if nothing else, gets you tons of inspo.


9. If you're still unsure, look to your fave fashionista and follow suit. I get lots of inspiration from none other than Miss Elsie Flannigan. I think we can all agree at her loveliness. <3




Here's one final random list of awesome sites and shops for wardrobe awesomeness:
*Madame Cupcake for purses and clutches.
*Grey Owl for magical headbands.
*Madebyhank for more purses and clutches.
*Michelle's Charm World for fun kitschy necklaces and charms.
*Flower for Your Ears for springtime accessories.
*KIMONO'S for knitted and fleece products.
*Red Velvet Art is new and COLORFUL! They finally got their website back up and running too! I love almost EVERYTHING that those girls put out there. :]
*We Heart It will assist you with pages and pages and pages of ideas.
*I like Polyvore for just...compiling and sifting and creating. <3

Final list of wardrobe items I can't live without:
>long necklaces
>Chanel earrings
>Tiffany's jewelry
>Old Navy perfect fit tees
>dark wash jeans
>ballet flats
>big bows
>stretch headbands
>pashminas and thin scarves
>glasses
>big and slouchy bags
>tunic length henleys
>polos with ruffle sleeves
>VS PINK line panties
>bermudas (in summer)
>oversized sunglasses
>bright cardigans


I hope this gave you a better sense about what I think is GORGEOUS and maybe gave you some ideas about things you might want to try! Step outside your fashion bubble!!!

So...what's YOUR style? I want to hear all about it! Comment about what YOUR style is, maybe post a link or something or describe it in detail and I think i'll pick a winner after my Spring Break to win some sort of fashion RAK that has yet to be decided. :]

***please note: I won't be posting again until AFTER my Spring Break is over which ends March 16th I think. I hope everyone has an EXCELLENT next week without me! :]