Creative Bloggers' Party & Hop 07.03.11 + Made By Jackie Paper Products Giveaway

Happy 4th of July to all of you, my friends! I know you've been so busy for this great event that's why I'm so happy you're here to join us :) Last Friday, I got my first pay as a blogger and so...I can now officially say that I'm a professional blogger - sort of - LOL! To those of you interested in earning some $$$ by displaying ads in your blog (like the one I have below my header), just email me and I'll send you the link. I guarantee that I'm not paid to refer you to that site but I just want to help a fellow blogger if it's in my power to do so.

Giveaway

Jackie Crockett is the creator of Made By Jackie, an online business selling handmade paper goods for over 3 years, with great feedback and response. Just take a look at her Lollipop Invitation and you will understand why.

Source: madebyjackie.myshopify.com via Homemaker on Pinterest

She loves making items that people and their kids will enjoy for years to come, making their parties and products that much more special.

Source: madebyjackie.myshopify.com via Homemaker on Pinterest

Everything she creates is made with a strict attention to detail, giving you only what she would use for herself and her own children's parties.

Source: madebyjackie.myshopify.com via Homemaker on Pinterest

She finds the best quality papers and card stocks, utilizing a vast array of equipment to come up with items that are unique and found no where else.

Source: madebyjackie.myshopify.com via Homemaker on Pinterest

Her products are always being added to as she comes up with new ideas, and she's also open to your ideas. Just send her an email and she will customize something for you.

Source: madebyjackie.myshopify.com via Homemaker on Pinterest

Here's the good news! Jackie wants to reward you, my awesome readers, with a $25 store credit. If you're planning to have a one-of-a-kind party for your loved ones, you'll never go wrong with her products.

8 easy ways for you to snag $25 worth of party supplies or even for stocking on paper goodies for your Etsy shop or business such as Thank You cards, tags, personalized gift boxes and business cards.

Source: madebyjackie.myshopify.com via Homemaker on Pinterest

Important entries:
1. Like Made By Jackie on facebook and let Jackie know I sent you there. Come back here and leave a comment that you did so. (1 entry)
2. Follow Made By Jackie on twitter. Come back here and leave a comment that you did so. (1 entry)
3. Leave a comment in Jackie's blog, telling her what you'll buy with your $25 store credit. Come back here and leave me a comment that you did so. (1 entry)
Extra entries:
4. Subscribe to my blog by email (1 entry)
5. Add me in your blog roll, and leave a comment. (1 entry)
6. Follow me and leave me a comment that you're doing so. If you're already a follower, leave a comment, too. (1 entry)
7. Like me in facebook, and leave a comment. (1 entry)
8. Follow me in Twitter, and leave a comment. (1 entry)

Eight ways for you to win this terrific giveaway, dear friends! It ends on July 13th at 11:59 pm, PST. Thank you, Jackie, for this timely and useful giveaway!

Co-host
Laura from Day By Day In Our World has graced us with her presence by being my co-host this week. In our case, I would say that opposites attract. She is a Catholic homeschool mama of all boys living the life up in Alaska. Think of the opposite and that's me :) That's where our differences end because one thing that I can say that we totally have in common is our love for education, which is so evident in her blog posts.

Blog Tips
My blog posting days are much easier now because of Pinterest. See those pictures above? I just pinned them in my Pinterest, copied the code in my post and voila! Stunning pictures without the hard work of uploading and editing them in my Photobucket! It's one convenient place to virtually pin the pictures that matter to me, including the necessary giving of credit to the source. Take for example the readers' favorite blog for each week during the party - I am able to put them all in one place as you can see here. I have my friend Veronica from Life In the Thrifty Lane to thank so much for pulling me out of the dinosaur age.


Favorite Blog
You clicked, inlinkz tallied. The readers' favorite blog post this past week out of 291 links, being the most viewed post, is Unique Outdoor table, published by Stacey from Embracing Change. Who knew that doors can make such a great outdoor statement?

Source: staceyembracingchange.blogspot.com via Homemaker on Pinterest

Our Party
To the main course of this post.
For those of you joining us for the first time, we only have 2 easy, simple rules:

1) Link up your creative post - can be a DIY project, decor, photography, crafts, recipes, poem, thrift finds, link party, or that informative syndicated post that can make us laugh, or cry - in short, whatever you're proud of! And if you like to link more creative posts, go for it! We'd love to see them :) (No links to businesses or giveaways. We have another party for these exclusively every Tuesday called Market Your Biz & Giveaways at 5 pm, PST.)

2) Follow as many blogs as you desire, preferably starting first with the one who linked before you and after you, before branching out, and let them know by leaving a comment. (Following me and the co-host will be very much appreciated, and we definitely follow back. Just let us know you're following.)

Displaying the party button on your blog, while optional, is very much appreciated :)

Link opens up every Sunday at 5:00 pm, PST and ends Friday at 11:59 pm.

Because I like something different, I'm using the reverse entry for inlinkz - so the most recent participant will show up as number 1, thus giving everybody a chance to have the #1 spot.


<center><a href="http://www.homemakeronadime.com/"><img border="0" src="http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae194/homemakeronadime/creativeblogbuttonjpg.jpg" /></a></center>
Friends, go ahead and mingle with one another :) Happy partying!





Burning question:Do you Pinterest? Why or why not?

I just recently discovered it and I totally love it. One of my boards there is Products I Love and Advertise where I see in one place all the endearing products that I advertised in this blog. As soon as I pinned the pictures above from Made By Jackie, I was so thrilled to see others re-pinning them, too. How about you?