Old Time Pottery Review

Do You Have an Old Time Pottery Store Near You?

Hopefully you do! If you’ve not been there before, then you need to go! You will find a massively big store that has just about anything you could need for your home.

Be sure to give yourself plenty of time! This is not a store that you zip in and back out of quickly. I don’t know if I have ever spent less than an hour in here.  Oh wait… yes I have. I had to run in to get some extra baskets one time and spent only about 15 minutes in it. (But that was an exception)

One thing about Old Time Pottery stores is that merchandise varies in each store.  They buy huge quantities of merchandise (hence the good prices for some high end products) and they get new shipments in each week. This is one of those stores that it really pays to shop frequently! And if you see something you really like, don’t hesitate to buy it, because there will be others who like it as well…. and it might not be there next time you go to the store!

Ok, so you know many stores like that right? But do they also have discounted prices on everything? That is why it is so fun to go to Old Time Pottery.
I have made many trips there recently. I used plastic baskets from there for my pantry, refrigerator and freezer reorganization.  These are the ones I used on my pantry, I got red ones for my ref. and freezer.

I also got some wire organizers that I used under my sink, and pantry and also plastics cupboard.

It isn’t your fancy-smancy store.  It is very basic. Grab your cart and start your adventure.

There is a little bit of everything.  I love all the baskets they have there.

But I have recently been there for items to decorate in my dining room.  (You’ll see those in a later post when I show you my finished dining room….but if you watch the video close you’ll see what I got on the check out counter) Here are a few other fun things you’ll find at Old Time Pottery (that you haven’t already seen in my video)

They also have a contest going on. You can see rules for the VIP Old Time Pottery card contest below (hint…. it can earn you five extra entries into this contest! Double whammy goodness!)

To Enter to Win 1 of four $25 gift card to Old Time Pottery!!!

Tell me: If you have an Old Time Pottery Around You. Which store (or state if you don’t want to be specific)  If you don’t know go to Old Time Pottery and plug in your zip code to find out. (sorry, no online sales – in store only) **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Go to the Old Time Pottery Web site and sign up to be a VIP OTP (Old Time Pottery) shopper. No purchase necessary. You will register and then you can print out a coupon to take to your OTP store to enter. You are entering to win a $50 gift certificate! (They are picking weekly winners) This promotion is good until June 17th. (5 extra entries – add 5 comments)

2) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 1 chance to win!

3) Follow me on Twitter @OrganizerSandy (Leave me your twitter name) 1 chance

4) Stumble one of my posts for 5 extra chances to win. (tell me which post. Post 5 comment entries)

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. You can use the tweet button at the top to make it easy. ( Pls leave your url link) 1 chance for each tweet.

Please keep in mind I approve my comments. So you won’t see them right away. Never fear!

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Wednesday , May 25, 2011  *THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED*

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. Must be 18+ to win.  One person per mailing address only. Winner will be chosen by Random.org

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

I was given a $50 gift card for Old Time Pottery, but this in no way swayed my opinions.  I was talking about going to Old Time Pottery on my past posts, before they contacted me.  The pictures and videos and opinions are my own.

Paintstick Review

HomeRight EZ-Twist Paintstick

I was very excited to review this EZ-Twist Paintstick by Homeright.  I have several areas I am going to be painting in my house.  I was starting with my dining room.

I was being daring with colors. I remember a friend who had a room that was periwinkle and I loved it.  Trying to find the right color was the hard part. Bright enough, and that combination of blue and purple that isn’t too strong one way or the other. I ended up going with the color on the left.  The lighting really effects it.

I watched the videos that I was sent of the paintstick being used and I was psyched! This looked awesome! It was so easy and fast!

When the box came from HomeRight I had a few other things to review also!  There was a Quick Painter and Quick Mask and a Paint Sprayer (which is not part of the package being given away today -  I will review later once we can try it)

The Quick mask is a combo tape and drop cloth for edging.

It is set up like a roll of packing tape with a sharp edge to cut.

This was nice. You can tape along the edge and then pull out the drop cloth. It isn’t a full room drop cloth.. just edging.  You just have to be careful that you don’t pull it on the sharp edge side.. (just sayin’.. not that I might have done it or anything, but if you were to do that I bet you would tear the drop cloth.  LOL)

I also used it on the edge of the windows.

It worked well although I had to be careful around the corners. It didn’t always stick as well there and I had to fix it on most corners before I painted them.  But I don’t know that it was much different than most other tapes I’ve used in the corners.  I would use it again.  It was nice to have the drop cloth along the edges.

They also included the Quick Painter.  I have used a tool similar (the red handle one) and really liked it.  But this had a tube to load, so it seemed really convenient.  There was not a roller edge, so it didn’t work for the ceiling edges, but it was nice especially around the window edges.

There was no problem loading it up.Just fill it up like a squirt gun.

Once the paint was loaded it was very easy to manage.

I did learn that you have to be careful when you push the little pump handle to get the paint flowing.  I first tried it when the brush was not on the wall and it came flying out.  Thank goodness for my Quick mask drop cloth! Really!!   The trigger seemed a little touchy.  Not hard enough and I had to paint over things a couple of times because I wasn’t getting enough paint. Just a little too hard and I had too much with several big drips down my drop cloth to prove it.

But when I had the right amount, it worked great.  I think it just takes a little getting used to the “feel” of the trigger for it to be a fantastic tool.

Now for the EZ-Twist Paintstick!  Please be sure to watch the whole thing through. I did have some trouble with it… but for my husband it worked with ease.

I also think a big factor may have been that the paint I used was very thick. I got the Behr ultra paint with primer all in one. I think next time I will use a thinner paint and I bet I would have better results.

I want to point out that the splash guard around the roller is very nice. You don’t get the splatters that you get with a traditional roller. If you noticed, my husband walked in wearing his coat and didn’t take it off while he tried the paintstick. He didn’t have any paint on him.

The paint in the handle goes pretty far.  That was one of the things I wanted to see.  How far one “handles worth” goes. It holds 18 oz of paint and will paint a 8′x8′ wall according to HomeRight.  I do agree that it did seem to go a long way on the 2nd coat.

You don’t have any paint trays to worry about sitting around which is really nice.

I would advise you to follow the directions and white down the roller first and let it dry. There is a bit of lint on it if you don’t, but it is explained in the directions that wetting it down first and letting it dry will help solve this issue.

I can recommend this after watching my husband use it.  I think there is a bit of a learning curve, and I would advise you not to use a really thick paint with it.  I think that was the main problem for me.

You might want to go to the HomeRight FB page. There are many people who have taken their EZ-Twist paint challenge and did not have the difficulties I did. I just watched some more myself and keep wondering why I had such troubles.

To Enter to Win one of TEN Ultimate Home Painting Kits!

These kits will include the EZ-Twist Paintstick, the Quick Painter and the Quick Mask like I showed you above.

Tell me: Why you need painting done around your house? **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Post a picture of the room you would like to paint on my FB page saying “This it the room I want to paint with the EZ-Twist Paintstick.“  (5 chances to win, be sure to leave the link and make 5 separate comments below)

2) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 1 chance to win!

3) Follow me on Twitter @OrganizerSandy (Leave me your twitter name) 1 chance

4) Stumble one of my posts for 5 extra chances to win. (tell me which post. Post 5 comment entries)

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. You can use the tweet button at the top to make it easy.  ( Pls leave your url link) 1 chance for each tweet.

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Thursday , May 12, 2011 **THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED**

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. One person per mailing address only. Winner will be chosen by Random.org

If you are chosen as one of the 10 winners, I will ask you if you would mind if the rep from HomeRight contacted you. They would love it if you wanted to post a video for their FB page on your experience. But this will not be a requirement and I would not release your information without your permission.

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

I was given the above paint system to review. The pictures and videos and opinions are my own.

Also be sure to enter my other Painting supply giveaway going on until May 2, 2011

Green Toad Pivoting Paint Brush Review

An Eco-Friendly Pivoting Paintbrush!

Congrats to Karen @Karenmed409 for winning the giveaway! Random.org picked #54!

Painting walls of your home, is not a chore very many people enjoy. I know I sure don’t.  I get sore, my hand cramps up from the paintbrushes or rollers and I actually broke my ankle painting one time – although that had nothing to do with the paintbrush.  Hint: Don’t use a chair to stand on… it may tip. Just sayin….

I got the chance to review the Green Toad Pivoting Paint Brush last weekend when I painted my dining room. I used it for the trim and corners.  I told them I didn’t want to review the roller because I was reviewing a different paint roller system, but I wish I had offered to try that too – just to see what it was like.

As you can see, the handle is bent! The  ergonomic pivoting paint brush was designed with the help of physical therapists. Which I think is cool. So many people have issues like carpel tunnel or arthritis and something like painting can be really hard to do.  I will tell you that as I was using my old traditional paint roller to do my dining room walls, my hand was cramping up like crazy. That is the reason I said I would have liked to have tried their paint roller with this handle – to see if it had the same effect. But I bet I wouldn’t have had the cramping.

Now… the other cool part about this brush. The pivoting part.  The brush head turns  360-degrees and locks into eight different positions! You don’t have to do any fancy stuff, it just turns and kind of clicks and then you can tell when it is locked in place.

So…. let’s say you are painting around a light socket. (Ok… so I forgot to get more than picture of when I was actually painting, so I took most of these this morning and yes… I know the electrical socket cover comes off when you paint. But I do have video down a little further from when I painted)

Turn the brush head this direction to do a space like this.

Then to do underneath it, you can turn your brush head this way.

The rubber grips make it easy to hold and the built in finger grooves help to make it comfortable to hold. It is also very light and that makes a difference.

Yes.. this is the picture of when I was actually painting. Notice light socket off the wall, paint on the brush and on my hand! lol! You can see the natural finger grooves and a  rubber place where your thumb naturally sits.  There is a small black button underneath that you push to release the brush head. Then the black oval grips on the actual paint head help make it easy to turn the brush head when changing positions (especially if you have paint on your hands) Look at the flat edge of the brush – the black right by the bristles – that is a drip guard that helps any dripping you may have.  I didn’t have any problems with any bristles coming out. I hate that when you get a paint brush and you have to pick the bristles off the wall that have fallen out of the brush. ewww…

(Update:  I used these again this last week to paint my bedroom March 2012) and I had a terrible problem with bristles falling out. The one brush I was opened, but I do not think I had used it with any paint. The other brush I opened and it wasn’t as bad, but I still lost a few bristles out of that one.)

Now you can see it in action:

Now for the “green” part.  It really is green! I mean it is environmentally friendly! All the plastic parts which include the handle, the brush, the brush heads, the bristles and most of the internal parts are treated with Earthgreen polymers.  Evidently this makes them biodegradable. They can be recycled and they are even compostable! So how can you argue with that? I think that is great that the company went to the effort and extra step to make them “green”.

There are different size brush heads. The 1.5 and 2.5 inch tapered brushes, the 2 and 3 inch straight brushes and the 4, 6 and 9 inch rollers.

They are also have roller extension poles, paint pad attachments (I love those!) and earth-friendly paint trays in development! So this is only getting better.

I am extremely happy with the Green Toad pivoting paintbrush.  I actually hid them from my husband and kids!  They are going to be painting the shed out back, and I want to keep these nice to work on some other painting projects I am going to undertake soon.

What I liked:

1) Comfortable to hold
2) Easy to turn angle & change paint brush heads
3) Bristles didn’t fall out
4) Nice edge on the tapered brush. I could paint my ceiling edge without taping off.
5) The rubber grips were in the perfect place
6) Easy to clean up
7) Environmentally friendly
8) Priced right!

What I didn’t like:

1) I didn’t also ask for the paint roller
2) It would be fun in pink
3) I don’t know if there would be a time that I would want the handle to be able to be all the way straight like a traditional paintbrush or not.

To Enter to Win a Green Toad Pivoting Paint Brush system!

Go to the The Green Toad.net and look at the paintbrush on the main page. There are 8 highlighted green dots. Tell me what 2 features of the paintbrush are, according to those dots.  You will be entering to win a system like in the last picture on this post. **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Stumble this post with a brief review – The button is the first one at very bottom of this post under where it says “Sharing is Caring” (For 5 extra chances to win! I have to see the review – leave separate posts)

2) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 1 chance to win!

3) Follow me on Twitter @OrganizerSandy (Leave me your twitter name) 1 chance

4) Follow @GreenToadBrush on Twitter.(Leave me your twitter name) 1 chance

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. You can use the tweet button at the top to make it easy.  ( Pls leave your url link) 1 chance for each tweet.

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Monday, May 2, 2011  *THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED*

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. One person per mailing address only. Winner will be chosen by Random.org

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

I was given the above paint system to review. The pictures and videos and opinions are my own.

Be Sure to check out my other painting supply giveaway here that ends May 12, 2011

The Perfect Picnic

Includes…No ants, no flies, no mosquitoes and  a Man you love

The weather changed out outdoor picnic plans (as it often can) to an indoor enchanted evening

With spring coming up…. and the flowers starting to bloom….we want to get outside and enjoy the nice crisp warm weather…. by the water….. with your man….

But….. it was doing this instead.

So… you move your perfect picnic inside! Grab some candles…. a bottle of wine..

Add your wine glasses and silverware

Pick up the food you know your man loves.  To me… making a perfect picnic is keeping it simple, easy and low cost (this meal cost $18.50. The wine I already had at home) and I love that!  Picking out his favorites,  let’s him know that I was thinking specifically of him.

Make sure you have a quilt to put down for your picnic.

Spread this monster queen size quilt out on the floor

And begin to enjoy your evening

Start with the cheese and crackers

Your glass of wine together

Enjoy your meal with the chicken, cole slaw and ham salad that were easy and taste great.  I found these Reese Cup Cupcakes for dessert …. he loves Reese Cups (and so do I)

Oh yum

This was my perfect picnic…. with my perfect man

I don’t know if a picnic could get any more perfect than this!

Thank you Better Homes & Garden for the Perfect Picnic!

I love your comments!

I was supplied with the picnic basket, plates, plastic wine glasses, and Better Homes & Garden Quilt along with being compensated for the meal.

Donating to a Dog Shelter

Kibbles ‘n Bits Bistro Dog Food to the rescue

I had the opportunity to purchase some dog food for my dogs to try and also to donate a bag to a local dog shelter. The timing couldn’t have been any better.  E has been talking about wanting to be a vet for some time. She is in 4th grade now.  She has also talked about volunteering at a dog shelter or vets office at some point.

Evidently the Second Chance Humane Shelter came and talked to the  kids at their school.  She decided that she wanted to go and help out.  Dave got the phone number for her and she wanted him to make the call.  Dave told her no, that he thought it was best if she made the call on her own.  She made the call and discussed it with the woman, and then they of course asked to talk to Dave to verify it.

They were all set for this last Sunday.  The perfect timing came in when last week I got the chance to go to Walmart and purchase a 16 pound bag of Kibbles ‘n Bits Bistro Dog Food to donate to a shelter. I was also supposed to buy one for my dogs, any size I wanted.

So off I went to Walmart.  I had some other shopping to do also, but didn’t have any trouble finding the dog section. I had been there many times before… so I should hope not. But there are hanging signs to make it easier.

The Kibbles ‘n Bits Bistro Dog food in the small 3 pound bags was on the end cap.  It was $4.95 and I decided to get that bag for my dogs.  We had an experience with changing their dog food once a year or so ago.  They both got sick and that isn’t something I want repeated! I figured I would let them have one bowl full and see how their systems handled it. Then if that went well… they could finish off the bag.

I had to find the bigger 16 pound bag also.  I went down a couple aisles. Found the dog toys, leashes, bowls etc… and the smaller bags of dry food.  But I didn’t see this brand in the small bags other than this end cap display at first.

I went down the aisle with the large bags and then I spotted them.. up near the front of the aisle (of course)

I knew I wanted to buy the new Bistro Meal dog food. I have to say that I was impressed with the picture on the bag.  Looked like  a really nice meal!!  lol

I then saw that there was a $2 off coupon right on the bag.  Coolio!!  So I grabbed one 16 pound bag and figured I’d be on my way. Then I spotted the other end cap (not sure how I missed it coming in!) with the big bags!  It was $12.  Of course then you take off the instant coupon of $2 and now I’m down to $10.  To make the pot even sweeter I printed off a $3 coupon at home.. so now I am down to $7 per bag.

Now I am no math wiz.. but I am smart enough to know that here I am with a 3 lb bag of food in my cart for $4.95. I could get a second bag 16 lb bag of food for $10 (I only had one of the $3 off coupons).  It was kind of a new brainer.  So I put the small bag back and got a 2nd big bag (that had a $2 coupon on it.. not all the bags did)

I did the rest of my shopping, and then checked out with a total of 3 coupons (two of the $2 instant and one $3 off).  Another fun surprise was that the big bags rang up as $11.48 instead of $12!   Wonder why they didn’t have that on the signs?  Just makes sense that the lower price would attract even more people to buy right?

Home to check out what my girls think of it. Sadie is 8 years old.. and she is checking out the picture of good food! Gizzy is my food hog, she is 6 years old.  She also was very excited.

According to everything that it says on the bag… this stuff looks really good.  There are vitamins, antioxidants and protein.  We buy our dog food primarily on cost.  I would like to say we get our food at the vets office (I used to years ago when money wasn’t so tight) but we have 5 kids at home and 8 total.  We just don’t have the money in the budget to spend on the best food for the dogs.  They are both happy, healthy, and in good shape.

I let them both try it first.. and then I used it for some tricks.  Sadie is the pickier of the two when it comes to food.. and she was ready to do about any trick after she first tasted it…. so that was a good sign.

Then the big test.  I cleared out their other food from their other food.  I washed the bowl out… and then put the Kibbles ‘n Bits Bistro Dog food in.

Instant run for the food.  You would have thought these girls had not eaten in a week.  Seriously!  They had food in their bowl before I switched them out…. and they hadn’t been hungry!.

These dogs ate for like 20 minutes! I cleaned the kitchen and folded clothes and put in another load in the laundry and they were still eating. This is what the bowl looked like after their “dinner”

I think it was a success.  And a bigger success in that I can say two days later that neither dog has gotten sick from it.

Now for the rest of the adventure.  On Sunday we went over to the shelter in Johnstown where E was volunteering.

I told them what I was doing and asked if I could take some pictures. They were fine with that.  It was a house, actually Holly’s house and her sister Paula was there working.  There were also 3 girls (including E) and the one girls father helping out.

I don’t remember all the dogs names or who had what name.. so I won’t even try. lol

She said that they had about 50 dogs there presently and that the cats were in the other part of the house. We didn’t go in to see them. Paula was wonderful with all the dogs.

The place wasn’t in the best of shape… there was nothing fancy about it.  Repairs were needed, but the dogs were all clean, they all had beds up off the floor with blankets.  They had clean paper on the floor and their play yard was clean.

The cages were full walk in cages.. not small little ones that can only hold one dog.  They all had assigned cages and they knew which ones were theirs. They got to come out in groups to eat and play outside. Can you imagine the food that 50 dogs go through?

Or all the work involved with taking care of them?

This is a shelter that is supported by donations only.

They had the smaller dogs inside and the larger ones out back.

E is getting ready to go out to show us the play area.

Someone was getting their belly rubbed…. ahhhh…

I went out to the back area.  Holly was back there with the bigger dogs.  She brought a couple out to show me… they had their own little house back there with heat.  There were cages inside and ones outside so they could play.

Each dog had a story attached to it. The reason they were there. These two brothers had been indoor dogs since they were pups. Then a new baby came into the house and suddenly they were outdoors only.  A neighbor turned them in when the yellow lab got caught under a fence and torn his back open.  Holly said she’d never separate these two.

This pit bull was the funniest thing. He came running out to see me.. all excited and smiling.  She said that he had been in a home with one other pit bull.  The law evidently says you can’t have more than one. This guy had two.  They were going to put this dog down, even though he had never hurt anyone.  Holly said he was the sweetest thing ever.

The biggest problem they were having when we were there was the fact that they had no water.  They were trying to figure out if it was the pump on the well that went bad.  Holly was saying she was probably going to have to go and buy water at the store, but wasn’t looking forward to the cost involved.

I suggested they put the girls to work while they had them here and have them collect snow in these buckets.  There was a whole big yard of untouched snow they could let melt for water.  Holly was concerned about the snow and what was in it.

I have to admit that I chucked a bit on that one only because.. heck, the dogs eat their poop! Snow wouldn’t be that bad would it? But, it also shows the concern that they have for the well being of these dogs doesn’t it?

It was a good experience.  I dropped off the bag of food and got to learn about a new place. I know E is going to go back. I am thinking of the extra blankets I have that I can donate.  A 16 lb bag of food is like nothing compared to what all they need.

I got home to see my girls.. and realized how lucky they were.  Sadie had been a rescue dog. She was 11 weeks old when I got her. But her litter of 7 pups had Parvo and were going to be put down.  The vet at the Annhurst Animal clinic in Westerville wanted to save them. He treated them and only lost 1 of the 7.  Thank goodness because Sadie has been an awesome dog.

Disclosure: I was compensated for this post by Del Monteto but the pictures and thoughts and opinions are my own.  Sadie and Gizzy’s opinions are pretty obvious too.

Dymo Desktop 360D Label Manager Review

Organizers Love Labels!

I explained last week how labeling  your office at work can really benefit you. I used the Dymo Rechargeable Desktop Label Maker that I was sent.  Let me tell you about the actual label maker

It came with 3/4″ tape, an ion battery pack and wall charger, along with the label maker of course.

Here is the cartridge that you use.

The Li-ion battery just fits down in the bottom without any problem.  So once it is charged it holds the charge so you don’t have to keep it plugged in or worry about it eating up your batteries.

When you first turn it on you have to do some simple programming. But I left it like it was and it was just fine.

I like how clear and easy the screen was to see.  I liked that the set up was simple. One of the things I didn’t like was that to use the caps you hit the alt button to go to caps… but then you have to hit it again to turn it off. I tried holding it just to press the letter… and that didn’t work. You still had to hit it again to turn it off. That was a bit annoying.

The print button was easy to see and that was nice.  But every time I wanted to print it asked me how many copies I wanted.  So I had to hit the print button a 2nd time every time.

Once I hit the print button I couldn’t find the label at first. lol It came out the back.  Not sure why they did it that way. This is meant for a desk, so you have to reach behind to find the label. Or lift the unit up to see it.

But if you have a short word like the word “cord” it is hard to even get to. It comes out a little curled and lays against the machine..so you have to get the edge of it underneath. Remember… this is the back, so the whole time you are lifting it up to get to it.

I love the cutter.  It is on the side (where I think the tape should be coming out too) and just presses down nice and easy. It cuts it nice and clean.

The print is nice and bold and looks good.

This is also another nice feature. The tape is split on the back so you can easily feel off the backing. My other older labeler that I still love has a little tool that you have to “curl” the tape to get the edge lose from the label to peel (does that make any sense?)

Looks good!

The “Income” on the left ended up the size I needed it, but the “expenses” was a little long. Rather than cut the edges I just stuck it around the corner.

I decided to try them on my cubbys. I wasn’t sure that they would stick, but I decided to try.

But alas… a couple days later…

Just as I thought…. it didn’t stick.  But this was also fabric, so I can’t complain that it didn’t stick.

But the edges of the “expenses” also did not stay stuck either.

But this one stayed stuck without any problems.

Here are my honest thoughts over all.

1) I liked the side of the desktop manager labeler.
2) I liked the ease of set up and use
3) I liked the print and the look of it.
4) I like the cutter
5) I like the split back of the label for ease of peeling
6) I like the Ion battery and that it also has a wall plug

1) I don’t like that the caps has to be hit x2 to turn off/on
2) There wasn’t a “-” sign. If there was, I couldn’t find it with ease
3) I didn’t like that the label came out the back, it was hard to get to
4) I didn’t like that I had to hit print twice to by pass the “number of copies”
5) I don’t like the cost of the refill tapes.  The 1/2″ was $19.00 and the 3/4″ was $26.50.  If you are working in an office, and the business is paying for it, that might be one thing…but so often we like to have these label makers at home and I know that would be over my budget to use.

Keep in mind that I did not study the owners manual.  There more than likely are ways to take care of many of the issues I had problems with the caps, the “-” sign etc..  but I don’t like to look at the instructions on purpose when I do a review. I want to see how easy things work without having to spend a lot of time reading.

Would I recommend this for an office. I more than likely would not…. and the main reason would be because the label comes out the back and it is hard to get to. I think most of the other issues more than likely can be solved… but for a unit that is meant to sit on a desk, to have to reach behind to get the label.. and most cases I had to lift the unit up to see what I was doing to find it and reach it.  In my opinion this was a poor set up in the design.

Disclosure: I was given this Dymo label maker to review and I am also being compensated for the post. The pictures are my own and the opinions are my own.

Cleaning – Reviewing Mr. Clean

Everyone Knows Mr. Clean Products!

Organizing is my thing.  Cleaning… well… isn’t as much. (hate it!)  Yes.. you do clean when you organize, but the general house cleaning… and deep cleaning are no fun for me. I do wish that i was a bit OCD about it (only a little) and kept on top of it like I would love to.

I will admit that my husband got me the best early birthday present ever! I had a (almost entire house) deep cleaning done professionally.  There were 4 people that came in my house and were here from 9am-7:30pm!  Honest!  Everything… vents on walls, lamp globes and shades, behind the washer & dryer and refrig and oven! They did the windows!  I have been so busy and my house needed it… and I was getting more and more frustrated because I couldn’t get it done.  I’m not superman…. I can’t do it all!

I recently was asked to review a couple of Mr. Clean products. Mr Clean.. Mr. Clean… (can’t you just hear the song in your head?  Ok…if you can’t it’s because you aren’t old enough.. sigh)

First thing I did was the downstairs bathroom.  It needed it.

The first thing I noticed was the smell. I even looked at the bottle again. Oh..that is right it has Febreze in it! That is why it smelled so good.  Clean with a fresh smell… ahhhh..

Don’t forget those pesky tools you hide behind the toilet…

It says that it kills 99.9% of bacteria…. that I like!

Especially when cleaning these areas.

Now upstairs to the master bath.  Here is something that I have been using daily.. but not too fond of at the moment… lol

The shower track. Oh… what a pain that is to clean. But how nice it is to have clean.

They also sent me a Mr Clean Magic Eraser bath scrubber.  I love these things! They are amazing!

This is bigger than the normal Magic Eraser, and has the little texture to it. Plus a curved edge to help with the grip but also makes it easier to get in the corners.

This also came with that nice scent of Febreze!  The other thing that I liked about it was that it wasn’t falling apart when I scrubbed hard. That was the only negative thing about the Magic Eraser was that it kind of fall apart as you were cleaning.

This is one area of our shower that gets so much soap scum. That bar of soap drains down the side and leaves a terrible soap scum.  I love that I have the new Magic Eraser Bathroom scrubber to keep on top of it.

A clean bathroom is a happy bathroom.. is a happy mom!!

Disclosure: Mr Clean sent me 1 bottle of the Mr. Clean with Febreze Disinfecting Bath Cleaner and 1 box with 2 Mr Clean Magic Eraser Bathroom Scrubbers.  I was not compensated in any other way for this post. (other than a clean bathroom) The pictures and the thoughts are my own.

Organize Your Office Using Labels

Does Your Work Place Use Labels?

Does your office at work need some New Year Cleaning?  Do you have the same problems there with people not putting things where they belong?  Using your stapler and not returning it?  Opening every drawer of a file cabinet because you can’t remember what drawer has the file you want?

Personally I feel that labeling makes things easier. Office organizing is so much easier when using labels.  Do I think office work places should label?  Yes!!  Why?  I’ll give you 6 reasons why…

1) It gives a professional appearance
2) There is no question who an office accessory belongs to (stapler, hole punch etc)
3) Everyone will know what is in a specific drawer without having to open them all.
4) It makes more efficient use of everyone’s time. Not so much time is lost hunting in the wrong cabinets or files
5) It makes searching through the files a breeze
6) It makes it clear exactly where to return an item, or which shelf to store your stock on.

Here is an store room that has supplies from a Dr. office. It needs some organization.  It is actually a store room that I organized a few years ago.

I went through and reorganized were things were to go. I did a chart that had a location item, what shelf it belonged on and where it went.  There were several store rooms in this 2 story office and knowing which store room and where it was located was a problem.

What I did was to establish numbers for shelves and names for each store room.  After I had gone through and taken items out of boxes to make them quickly accessible to the Doctors to grab quickly – I reorganized them on the shelves.

What I did use to label was hot pink paper to label the names of the shelves.  I wish now I had used labels from a labeler.  I think it would have just looked neater.

This is a nice desktop label manager from DYMO.  It isn’t too large to carry around with you, but is a nice size to put on a desk.  I think this would be a nice thing to keep in an office, in a place that everyone could have access to it. Wouldn’t it be nice to have your stapler labeled?  No one would take it off your desk anymore! Just little touches like that can make an office run more efficiently.

It could make sprucing up your office or cubicle at work…. really nice!  This is the 3/4″ size tape. Large and easy for anyone to see. Don’t you think it is going to look great?  I know I just finished my home office and I labeled all my files,

So let me know… does your office at work label?  Do they use a label maker or do them by hand?

Disclosure: I was sent the Dymo 360D labelmanger to review (review on the labler will be coming up next week) and keep also compensated for my time. The pictures and opinions are my own.

Lose The Weight

Using Lean Cuisine & Skinny Cow

The beginning of a new year.  The goals we make.  One of mine is to get healthy this year. I feel yucky! I am way too heavy (heaviest ever) and I am totally out of shape.

I lost 47# in 2008, but I’ve put it all back on, plus about 3 pounds – but it has come back on worse. I don’t know why? Menopause maybe? But I didn’t use to have the fatty arms and my hips and thighs are bigger now, than they were (and that was when I was still even under my previous high weight)  Ok…. this is a killer and I hate to admit it, but because my “Lean 11″ are being so brave, I will be too. I am 199.5 # on 1/1/11.  I am 5’10″ and would like to weigh 145.  I actually hit 201.5 about 3 weeks before Christmas, so I’m happy that through the worse of the holiday season I actually lost a little (lol.. I know..it is so sad) and I didn’t gain.

I love the sweets… and I know I have to get off them.

There are a couple things I am going to be doing this year.  One is to be working with Lean Cuisine/Skinny Cow through Collective Bias.  I am the community leader for the new #31 challenge.  There have been 11 bloggers who are going to be documenting their struggles and successes during the month of January. They will be working on a whole lifestyle change.  They will be using Lean Cuisine and Skinny Cow products to help them achieve their goals.  They will not be eating these food exclusively though.
Even though I am running the group of “Lean 11″ and I wouldn’t really have to do it with them…. I want to. I NEED to!!  I am real excited about how excited they are.  I think we are all motivated to feel better, exercise and eat right.

Here is a list of the Lean 11 and their blog links.  (great idea ladies… I’m copying it!)

1) Mel Lockcuff Mama Buzz
2) Zippy Sandler Champagne Living
3) Nicole Brady SAHM Reviews
4) Wendy Hammond The Local Cook
5) Naomi Shapiro Super Dumb Super Villian
6) Tara Altier This Military Mama
7) Shelby & Steve Barone Glitterful Felt Stories
8) Elizabeth Ferree Home Mom 3
9) Brandi Jeter Mama Knows It All
10) Ellen Christian Confessions of an Overworked Mom
11) Lisa Harris East Texas Saver

I have 55 pounds to lose in this next year. Another goal I have is that I want to run. I have never been a runner, I have problems with my feet and I don’t know that I’ll be able to… but I want to try.
You know.. I watch those people on The Biggest Loser. I think to myself, they HAVE to be in pain, they HAVE to have sore feet and bad knees etc… If they can do what they do on that show, then there is no reason that I can’t have the goal to run 1 mile this year.
I wanted to do it before I turned 50, but I didn’t succeed. But that doesn’t mean I have to give up either.

I am also using the Genesis Today products again. I felt so good while I was drinking them last year, and have no excuse as to why I stopped.  They are so healthy for you and since my goal is to have a healthy lifestyle …. I will be using those products this year too. (they are not part of the  31 day challenge)

Disclosure: I am being compensated for being the community leader of the Lean Cuisine/Skinny Cow group for Collective Bias. All opinions and the picture (sadly enough) are my own.

Magic Garden Hand Painted Shelf

Congrats! Winner – Kathy Pease Random.org #129

Who Says They Don’t Make Things the Way They Used To?

Isn’t this Magic Garden shelf darling?  It is made by Teamson designs. This is their Teamson Kids line.  When the PR rep e-mailed me she offered me the doll house or kitchen. I wanted to say yes to one of those SO bad.. but my triplets are 9 years old, just a little too old for it. (Darn it!)  I mentioned I thought this shelf was really cute and I love shelves for helping kids to organize.  I like them much better than toy boxes because you can see what you have. It makes it easy for the kids to be a little more organized.

She sent this Magic Garden shelf and my first thought when I went to pick up the box on the front porch was, “Woo Nelly… this is heavy! It’s going to be a nice one!”  I was right.  This is very high quality, from the hand painting that makes each one a little special and unique to the hardware (according to my husband.)

What really sealed the deal for me on the quality was my husband. He is putting this together on the floor in front of me and at least 3 or 4 times he turned to me and started talking about the quality.  ”Sandy, Who made this?  This is really nice. I am impressed… the  wood is solid, the instructions are clear, even the way they have it packaged in the box – you can just tell there is a difference.  I have exactly the amount of hardware I need and even it is high quality. Everything lines up perfect.”  This is coming from a man who is a senior project manager for a construction company!  It takes a lot to impress Dave… and Teamson Kids did it. This is one of latest products to review and it has made my top 10 list for my Gift Guide this year!

To ENTER to Win a Magic Garden Shelf like in the review:

Go to Teamson.com  and tell me if you like the New York Mansion Doll House or the Ultimate Play Kitchen better.    **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

2) Subscribe to my Chat with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

3) Subscribe to my Explore Ohio with Sandy blog.  Come back here for 5 separate chances to win.

3) Follow me on Twitter. Leave me your twitter id in your comment

4) Subscribe to my YouTube channel

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. (one comment for each tweet) Pls leave your link

6) I can’t ask you to “like” me on Facebook, but I can ask you to leave a comment for an entry.  3 chances for each comment on any of my FB  pages:

Organize with Sandy

OrganizerSandy (Organizing Fan page)

Explore Ohio with Sandy

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Friday, December 17, 2010 (This will NOT come before Christmas if you win)  *CLOSED*

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. One person per mailing  address only.  Winner will be chosen by Random.org

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

You can see my other giveaways going on here:

Card Cubby – Dec. 10, 2010

Dirt Road South Etsy Jewelry Shop – Dec. 10, 2010

pouchee purse organizer – Dec. 17, 2010

1-800- Flowers Cheryl’s Cookies & Fannie May Candy – Dec. 10, 2010

Genesis Today Omega Orange Juice - Dec. 17, 2010

lia Sophia Wisteria Necklace – Dec. 17, 2010

Disclosure: I was given this Magic Garden Shelf to review. The pictures and thoughts are my own, and husbands.

pouchee Review

Congrats Winner – Toni Marie! Random.org #122

You Know I Love The pouchee to Organize Your Purse!

This is the pouchee purse organizer.  I know there are several other kinds of purse organizers out there… but I prefer this one!  It is not too big (there is one that is much larger and has to components to it. There are many purses that would be much too big for.  It also is very pricey.  But the pouchee is a wonderful size. You can fit your checkbook in it. (I actually carry 3 checkbooks in mine) and it has metal ring handles. They fold down to stay out of the way, but they are there if you want to move this from purse to purse (as it was designed) or purse to diaper bag or gym bag. You can also carry it on it’s own…

The pouchees come in several colors and in either the cotton or the Outback (leatherette) styles.  I will be giving away an orange pouchee. You may think…but orange doesn’t match my purse!  No…that is the idea. It is great when they are in contrast to the lining of your purse. That way when you look down into your purse, you will see it immediately… it will stand out and you can find your checkbook or phone in a split second.  They aren’t designed for everyone to see… but if you do carry it on it’s own… orange is a great fun color!

To Purchase a pouchee  -

Go to Organize with Sandy Store and buy one!  Now through December 31, 2010 if you put in the discount code “GiftGuide10″ you will get $2.00 off of a pouchee.  (While supplies last. Back orders will not be discounted)

To ENTER To Win an orange pouchee:

Go to Organize with Sandy Store and tell me why you would like a pouchee.  **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

2) Subscribe to my Chat with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

3) Subscribe to my Explore Ohio with Sandy blog.  Come back here for 5 separate chances to win.

3) Follow me on Twitter. Leave me your twitter id in your comment

4) Subscribe to my YouTube channel

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. (one comment for each tweet) Pls leave your link

6) I can’t ask you to “like” me on Facebook, but I can ask you to leave a comment for an entry.  3 chances for each comment on any of my FB  pages:

Organize with Sandy

OrganizerSandy (Organizing Fan page)

Explore Ohio with Sandy

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Friday, December 17, 2010 (I can not guarantee this will make it in time for Chrismas) *CLOSED*

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. One person per mailing  address only.  Winner will be chosen by Random.org

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

You can see my other giveaways going on here:

Card Cubby – Dec. 10, 2010

Dirt Road South Etsy Jewelry Shop – Dec. 10, 2010

Teamson Kids Hand Painted Book Shelf – Dec. 17, 2010

1-800- Flowers Cheryl’s Cookies & Fannie May Candy – Dec. 10, 2010

Genesis Today Omega Orange Juice - Dec. 17, 2010

lia Sophia Wisteria Necklace – Dec. 17, 2010
Disclosure: I sell the pouchee purse organizer. I do not make the pouchee.

Card Cubby Review

Congrats to Karen Med Random.org #10

Who doesn’t love their Card Cubby?

Isn’t this a fun Card Cubby?  The Zebra print is just way cool. The one thing that I like about a bright or noticeable card cubby is that when you look down in your purse … it is EASY PEASY to spot! If you have a black entire lined purse..and have a black card cubby….it is just a little harder to spot.

I use my card cubby constantly. I do not use it for business cards. You could… but I use my for gift cards, frequent flyer cards, library cards, etc..
Being able to go into a Target or Walmart, not sure if you have any gift cards left.. or maybe you have a few dollars left on that one from Christmas? You can just go to your letter “T” divider for Target or “W” for Walmart and look. That quick and simple. You don’t have to sit and thumb through a whole pile of cards (maybe with a rubber band around them). I heard of someone else who used a ring and punched holes in all of their cards and put them on a ring. Kind of a neat idea.. except – do you always have that hole punch? I know what would happen. You would start with the cards you presently have. It would be good at first (until someone needed swipe that card and you had to take it off the ring) …but then you would have a constant changing of the cards.. and the system would break down.

To Buy a Card Cubby

Contact Me!! I sell them. Go to Organize with Sandy Store You can go here and order and if you use the code “GiftGuide10″ I will give you $2.00 off through December 31. (only while supplies last)

To Enter to Win a Card Cubby

You can win a “Zebra” card cubby as pictured in the top picture!

Go to the Card Cubby tab in my Organize with Sandy Store and tell me 2 facts about the Card Cubby  that you find on the site link.  **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

2) Subscribe to my Chat with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

3) Subscribe to my Explore Ohio with Sandy blog.  Come back here for 5 separate chances to win.

3) Follow me on Twitter. Leave me your twitter id in your comment

4) Subscribe to my YouTube channel

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. (one comment for each tweet) Pls leave your link

6) I can’t ask you to “like” me on Facebook, but I can ask you to leave a comment for an entry.  3 chances for each comment on any of my FB  pages:

Organize with Sandy

OrganizerSandy (Organizing Fan page)

Explore Ohio with Sandy

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Thursday December 10, 2010 *THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED*

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. One person per mailing  address only.  Winner will be chosen by Random.org

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

You can see my other giveaways going on here:

Dirt Road South Etsy Jewelry Shop – Dec. 10, 2010

pouchee purse organizer – Dec. 17, 2010

Teamson Kids Hand Painted Book Shelf – Dec. 17, 2010

1-800- Flowers Cheryl’s Cookies & Fannie May Candy – Dec. 10, 2010

Genesis Today Omega Orange Juice - Dec. 17, 2010

lia Sophia Wisteria Necklace – Dec. 17, 2010
Disclosure: I sell the Card Cubby – this is one of my own products I am using for the contest.

Dymo 450 Twin Turbo LabelWriter Review

Lot’s of Mail and Shipping? Then you might want to pay attention

This convenient gadget – The Dymo 450 Twin Turbo LabelWriter or cool twin labeler for short – can print out your postage, mailing labels, and any other labels you want to make. Like name badges or labels for storage containers.

Here is what came with it. There are also the cords that plug into the labeler. One goes from the labeler to the computer and the other one plug into power.  I have to admit that I wish there was an on and off switch on the unit. I have to bend way back and down to plug it into my power strip and its a bit of a pain.

The lights turn blue and blink – the little pearly button under where the label comes out. I thought at first that was the power off switch, so I pushed it and a blank label popped out.

I loaded the CD disc into my computer and downloaded the software. It wasn’t hard. Believe me.. when it comes to anything techie..I’ll be the one to mess it up. So if I say it is easy…you can believe me.

After it is loaded.. I just double clicked (I have a Mac) on the icon on the sidebar and it came to this page.  You pick which way you want to format your label by picking which one you like. Write in what you want…. here I wrote ” Organize with Sandy”.  Then you hit the “Print” button in the bottom right hand corner.. and wa -la..

Simple as that. It really is simple.  You can get different size labels. You can see how wide of one you can get from the size of the slot.

For the postage from what I read you have to download it …but be sure to use the Dymo postage because it is free. The other one is not. But I have not done the postage download myself..

To be honest, as cool as this is – I’m not sure how much I will use it.  The main postage I use is for sending out my products. I just use the Paypal labels. It is set up… pulls the money out of my paypal account – and prints.

I don’t have to go load up my Dymo account for postage.

But if you do a lot of shipping or other things that you would use a desk labeler frequently… I think this could be great! It is a nice size – it looks really slick….it isn’t noisy and it works really cool. It cost

Neatnix Stuff Bucket Organizer Review

Congrats to Michelle H. #289 with Random.org

Organize all those “little” things in a cute organizer by Neatnix

I was asked to review one of these Neatnix organizers and I was just all excited about which one and which color to pick! There were several different styles with a variety of fabric colors to pick from. I picked this one the Medium Stuff Bucket. It comes in round or square designs.
Here are the details – There are 19 pockets on the outside (some pink and some brown).. 7 pockets on the inside. It is 8 inches high and made from a nice heavy duty nylon Cordura like material. You can almost see the kind of fabric it is in the picture… that stiff study kind.
This could be used in SO many places. I initially think of scrap booking and taking your supplies to a crop using the handle to carry with. But since I am not currently scrap booking I decided to use mine in my bathroom.
I am not putting all my supplies in here. I just put my daily routine in it. It is cute.. makes finding what I use daily extremely easy…. it is cute… I can find what I need and …oh yes… it is cute! LOL
Neatnix has many different organizing products to look at. You need to check out their site… I realized as I was getting this post together that I had been given one of their “Stuff Tool Box” carriers at Type A Mom Conference by Kadi Prescott filled with all kinds of goodies.

To ENTER:

Go to Neatnix.com and tell me which stuff bucket you would pick if you won. **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.
1) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)
2) Subscribe to my Chat with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)
3) Subscribe to my Explore Ohio with Sandy blog. Come back here for 5 separate chances to win.
3) Follow me on Twitter. Leave me your twitter id in your comment
4) Subscribe to my YouTube channel
5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. (one comment for each tweet) Pls leave your link
6) I can’t ask you to “like” me on Facebook, but I can ask you to leave a comment. 3 chances for each comment on any of my FB pages:
Organize with Sandy
OrganizerSandy (Organizing Fan page)
Explore Ohio with Sandy
See lots of way to enter!!
This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Thursday November 4, 2010 *THIS CONTEST IS CLOSED*
Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. One person per mailing address only. Winner will be chosen by Random.org
You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

You can see my other giveaways going on here:

I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Grilling Set - Oct. 25, 2010
Kodak Pulse Picture Frame – Nov. 2, 2010
Disclosure: I was given this Stuff Bucket from Neatnix to review and keep. It did not influence my review…as I have no problems telling you if there are things wrong with a product. The pictures and thoughts are my own.

Kodak Pulse Digital Frame Review

Congrats to B.Ringer who won with #275 Random.org pick

Organize and View those Pictures that You love Daily!

The Kodak Pulse Digital Frame is another way you can organize your pictures!   Does that make sense to you?   Yes…it should.  Why?  Because, I am always saying to take pictures of “things” and then get rid of those things. Right?  Like your children’s art work from school… those greeting cards from loved ones….those stuffed animals you had since you were a child..but now smelled moldy…. etc. etc…etc…

If you are going to take pictures of them, then wouldn’t it be a great thing to enjoy them? Of course it would.  With this Kodak Picture Frame you can do that.

This is the 7″ Kodak Pulse Digital Frame that I reviewed.   It uses your wireless internet (so you do need wireless internet to use this).  It holds hundreds of pictures (because mine loaded 800 pictures to begin with..I did erase most of those).  The other neat thing about this picture frame is that it coordinates with the Kodak Easy Share Camera.  I just did a review and giveaway on the Easy Share Camera and Pulse frame on my Chat with Sandy blog.  You can take pictures with your Easy Share Camera and then set them to go to your Pulse Frame …. from a distance!

So let’s put this into perspective.  You give this picture frame to the Grandparents who live in California. They can’t make it for most of the holidays because you live in Ohio.  Christmas morning they wish they could be there…but they can’t.  You take oodles of pictures with your Easy Share Kodak Camera…. program the pictures to go to the frame (at Grandparents). Then after the craziness of the morning, you plug your camera into your computer and the pictures will automatically travel to their frame. So that same day they get to see all the pictures on their frame from your Christmas morning!  How Cool is that?

To ENTER:

Go to Kodak Pulse and tell me 2 facts about this camera that you find on the site link.  **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

2) Subscribe to my Chat with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

3) Subscribe to my Explore Ohio with Sandy blog.  Come back here for 5 separate chances to win.

3) Follow me on Twitter. Leave me your twitter id in your comment

4) Subscribe to my YouTube channel

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. (one comment for each tweet) Pls leave your link

6) I can’t ask you to “like” me on Facebook, but I can ask you to leave a comment for an entry.  3 chances for each comment on any of my FB  pages:

Organize with Sandy

OrganizerSandy (Organizing Fan page)

Explore Ohio with Sandy

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Tuesday Nov. 2,  2010 *THIS CONTEST IS CLOSED*

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. One person per mailing  address only.  Winner will be chosen by Random.org

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

See my other Giveaways Going on Now

MiracleBody Jeans – Ends Oct. 14, 2010

Avery Customized Binder  - Ends Oct. 18, 2010

Avery Basket of Goodies – Ends Oct. 21, 2010

I Can’t Believe it’s Not Butter Grilling Set – Ends Oct. 27, 2010

Disclosure: I was given this Kodak Pulse Frame to review and keep. The pictures and video are my own. The thoughts are my own….and I like it!

Avery Products

Congrats to Tawnda!!!  Random.org picked #107

Celebrating Teachers is one of Avery’s Missions

Would you love to win this basket full of Avery Products? (So cute isn’t it?)

They had a huge sweepstakes for teachers. They know that teachers use a lot of their own money for supplies for their kids, and they want to help.

I did a post about the Celebrate Teachers Sweepstakes a few weeks ago.  Because I helped Avery out by bringing awareness to the contest for teachers, they sent me a basket of Avery products that I could have… so that I could tell you about it – and then give one away on my blog!!

Check out that basket!! For one thing the basket itself is great. Cute and sturdy. But look at all the Avery goodies inside! There are labels, highlighters, post it notes, a large binder, glue sticks… etc.. a $50 value I am told.

I love this basket full of goodies…but I am going to keep the teacher giving going. I am taking part in a promotion with Office Max and I am going to get to give a teacher a gift card for supplies. I talked to Avery and asked if they would mind if I donated my basket I was given (in pic) to this local teacher that I am going to award (because she is SO awesome and gives of herself each and everyday to her students). Avery was thrilled.

So…. I will still be giving back…and thrilled to help out this teacher. Thanks Avery….you are the bomb!

To Enter to Win a Basket full of Avery Products:

Go to Avery.com and look at one of the 3 videos (their TV commercials). Tell me which one you watched… (I have my favorite) and what the product was.  **Be sure to come back here and leave me your answer in your comment. Your e-mail has to either in your comment or on your profile.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

2) Subscribe to my Chat with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

3) Subscribe to my Explore Ohio with Sandy blog. Come back here for 5 separate chances to win.

3) Follow me on Twitter. Leave me your twitter id in your comment

4) Subscribe to my YouTube channel

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. (one comment for each tweet) Pls leave your link

6) I can’t ask you to “like” me on Facebook, but I can ask you to leave a comment for an entry. 3 chances for each comment on any of my FB pages:

Organize with Sandy

OrganizerSandy (Organizing Fan page)

Explore Ohio with Sandy

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Thursday October 21, 2010 *THIS CONTEST IS CLOSED*

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. One person per mailing address only. Winner will be chosen by Random.org

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

You can see my other giveaways going on here:

MiracleBody Jeans - October 14, 2010

Avery Customized Binder - October 18, 2010

I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Grilling Set – October 25, 2010

Kodak Pulse Digital Picture Frame – Nov. 2, 2010

Disclosure: I was given a this basket of products by Avery. I did the initial post for Celebrate Teachers for them in order to receive this basket to review and one to giveaway to my readers. My basket will be going to a teacher.  The pictures and thoughts are my own.

Avery Personalized Binder

Congrats to the 5 Winners!! All picked by Random.org

1) Monique
2) Alexis
3) Karen
4) Lori
5) Beth

I’ll be contacting you via e-mail!

I Love Personalized things!

You can now customize a binder! Avery has a binder that can be customized by Zazzle.com. There are many to choose from if you want to use one of their designs.
Make keep sake binders for your kids for each year of school. You can put their pictures from that year right on the binder.
If you are planning a wedding, personalize the binder that has all the plans in it, with wedding pictures.
There are SO many things you can do with these binders….

I have to admit that the first time I saw them all piled up on a table at SocialLuxe in NYC… they didn’t sweep me away. It wasn’t until I saw the what I could do with them.
I created one for a client with their logos on it (in a really fun way). Those binders will be used to present marketing information to a big name Brand. Neat idea huh?

Once I created my own binder….now I have all kinds of ideas of what other binders I would like to make for my kids to use. (and a few more of my own….recipes!! )

To Purchase:

Go to Avery.com and go to their binders. They are $18.95 each if you purchase one. The price goes down if you order a few of them at one time.

To ENTER  There will be 5 Winners!!

Go to Avery.com (Zazzle.com) and tell me which binder you would like with the link to it.

FOR EXTRA CHANCES TO WIN:

**Each of these HAS to have a separate comment to win. The winner is picked using Random.org. It just goes the number of comments….not by what you say.

1) Subscribe to my Organize with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

2) Subscribe to my Chat with Sandy blog This is for 5 chances to win! (use 5 separate comments)

3) Subscribe to my Explore Ohio with Sandy blog.  Come back here for 5 separate chances to win.

3) Follow me on Twitter. Leave me your twitter id in your comment

4) Subscribe to my YouTube channel

5) Tweet this out up to 3 times a day. (one comment for each tweet) Pls leave your link

6) I can’t ask you to “like” me on Facebook, but I can ask you to leave a comment for an entry.  3 chances for each comment on any of my FB  pages:

Organize with Sandy

OrganizerSandy (Organizing Fan page)

Explore Ohio with Sandy

See lots of way to enter!!

This contest will run until 11:59pm est on Monday October 18, 2010 *THIS CONTEST IS CLOSED*

Any comment that comes in after the above time will be deleted. This is open to US mailing addresses only. One person per mailing  address only.  Winner will be chosen by Random.org

You will have 48 hours to reply to my e-mail if you are picked as the winner, or else I will go on to the next winning number.

You can see my other giveaways going on here:

MiracleBody Jeans – October 14, 2010

Kodak Digital Picture Frame - Nov. 2, 2010

Disclosure: I was given a binder for no charge to design and review.  Avery also sponsored me for the Type A Mom Conference. They did not ask me to do a post, I am choosing to do this post because I love the product.  The opinions and pictures/video are my own.

DYMO 260 Electronic Label Maker

Organizer’s Love to Label!

This Dymo 260 LabelManger Electronic Label Maker is a handheld labeler. One of the things that I love about it is that it uses a rechargeable lithium battery!! There is a portable wall plug so that you can charge as you go. (love this feature!).
There are 3 fonts and 6 different text styles. Another really nice feature is that you can print up to 9 copies of the same label & there is a memory feature.
The DYMO LabelManager 260P uses the DYMO D1 labels in either 1/4″, 3/8″ and 1/2″ widths.
It is uses what an “ABC keyboard layout (this is the part I don’t care for, but other people may find it easier). But I do like that it is a nice hand held size.  That makes it very portable and easy to throw in a work bag.

You can purchase it in many retail stores or find the DYMO LabelManager 260P Label Maker on the site for $65.99.

I mean seriously, what organizer doesn’t like to label?  But does it mean you have to be an organizer to use this. Of course not.  But if you are wanting to sort your things out, wanting to find things easier – this makes a great way to do it.

Any kind of labels work great.  This is just a luxurious way to do it!  It makes things look a little more professional, it is great for anything business.  The one thing I have found with this kind of label that can be a bit of a problems is that they often do not stick well to other plastics. Those plastic bins we use in the basement or garage for storage. They tend to peel up and fall off.  So I suggest reinforcing them with clear packing tape.

Disclosure: I was given this DYMO label maker for no charge. The picture and video are my own, along with my opinion.

Cache-Cachet Covertures Review

A little bit of luxury to store your delicate and fine clothing and accessories

There are times when you want a little bit a luxury to store your dine clothing items. The Cache-Cachet coverture might fit the bill for you!
This is a soft silk bag that has a button closure.  It has been used by Katie Holmes and Kate Bosworth who I’m told have both outfitted their closets with the Cache-Cachet covertures to store their clothes. (now wouldn’t that be a closet to have? wow!! – insert jealousy here)

One of the features that I love for organizing is that there is a clear window so that you can see what is inside.  That is so important to me.  Organizing items can be done, but to make it efficient and usable organization…you need to be make your storage solutions  accessible and easy to use.

Here is a picture off of the www.cachecachet.com site that shows how great these can be for organizing a closet.  (Wishing this were my closet!!)

There are 2 sizes of Cache-Cachet Covertures, the small one is big enough for 2 sweaters – (which is exactly what I have stored in mine).  The other they said is large enough to store a jacket in.

You can use these for everyday storage. If it is for a little longer storage you can use the herbal sachet that comes with it.  This is a herbal mix that will keep any bugs out of your clothing.  Much nicer than moth balls..that is for sure!

Clothing Care Tips from Cache-Cachet:

1) Don’t use plastic bags: storing clothing in plastic bags or containers suffocates clothes and accelerates the aging process, causing your garments to take on a yellow color.

2) Don’t hang your knits: Sweaters and other knitwear will stretch over time and elongate.

3) Do Clean your garments before storing them: Wool and other fabric can become damaged by insects such as moths, carpet beetle larvae, cockroaches, beetles and silverfish.  Insects are attracted to fabrics stained with food, beverages, perspiration’s and oil from the skin and hair.

4) Do keep your closet looking as beautiful as the things that you have in it:  Don’t fill your closet with plastic bins and bags. Not only are they bad for the life of your clothes, but they distract from the beauty of the garments you love.

5) Do extend the life of your clothes and accessories: Store clothing in cloth storage bags with herbal sachets, like Cache-Cachet covertures and garment covers.  This will protect your clothing from snags, deter insect damage and other harmful elements.

My thoughts:

I think this would be a very nice way to store your fine clothing.  I folded and refolded my 2 sweaters a couple of times to try and flatten them out a bit in the bag, so that it would lay a little flatter. But I think if you stacked no more than 2, maybe 3 bags you wouldn’t have any problems.  The silk is so nice, that I could see them sliding a bit if they weren’t flat enough, or you stacked too many on top of one another.

Price: The small one is $39 and the large one is $49.  That works for some budgets, but not all of course.  But even if you have one or two special things, it might be worth the investment to keep them nice.

Disclosure:  I was given a small Cache-Cachet coverture for review at no cost.  The pictures above (with the exception of the closet organizing picture that I mentioned was taken from their web site) are my own and the thoughts are my own.  I did use the verbiage from the clothing tips card and from the Cache-Cachet Web Site.

External Hard drive by Hitachi Review

Do you use an External Hard drive to back up your work?

Kind of cool looking isn’t it?  This is the LifeStudio Plus mobile external hard drive by Hitachi.  See the little flash drive (integrated USB key to be precise) on the front? That holds 4GB worth of pictures or whatever you need on the go.  That has a magnet that attaches it. You can load what you want to it and carry it with you.  You’ll see more of it on the video I did. I don’t want to bore you with a bunch of writing… to really appreciate what neat things this can do (other than save your data of course….) watch my video.

Hitachi worked together with Cooliris to get that 3D wall! That is my absolute favorite thing! This has more capabilities than just being able to get a neat 3D wall of pictures though. You can access not only Facebook, Picasa, Flickr etc.. but it also organizes your pictures, music, videos etc….

I also love that I can carry around the main hard drive….just throw it in my backpack and go to conferences etc.  I like the conviences and how easy it is to back up, once you are set up.  Very impressive!

Notes: I did have a little bit of a hard time setting this up. But keep in mind I am very technically challenged (lol) and this was a beta version I received….so I wouldn’t worry about having troubles yourself.  Also….I am not sure if what I received was the final package – but when I first opened the box, I couldn’t find the smaller flash drive (key that goes on front).  It was still inside the box. I opened it wrong and what should have been a flip open lid with the key showing…ended up being inside the box and I spotted it when I went looking for the key.  (Again…might be different on the final version).

The cost depends on how much memory you want. You can the LifeStudio mobile Plus drive with 320GB for around $120.00, with 500GB for about $140 or go up to the Desk Drive and go up to 2TB for $220.00 Not bad… because it is more than just an external hard drive.

Disclosure: I did receive this from Hitachi without cost. The opinions, video and pictures are all my own.