Still Looking for A Special Gift for Mom? NOVICA Has What You Need!! {Review & Giveaway}

I cannot believe that Mother's Day has come and gone already...I had a fantastic day with my family and hope that your Mother's Day was full of beautiful memories as well. My husband bought me a dozen roses and my daughter picked out a balloon...she was SO excited to give me the balloon too, it was just too cute. She is so precious and it was her that made me a mother for the very first time so it was even more special to receive a gift that she picked out herself. Being a mom is definitely a special career for any woman to hold and one that I cherish. So, it is no wonder Mother's Day is so special...we recognize and express our love for our mothers.

This post was supposed to go up last week but unfortunately, my husband had some surgery that set me back a bit for blogging so I am putting it up today as my "day after Mother's Day" post. I guarantee that it is still a special post that you will love! Just because Mother's Day was yesterday, doesn't mean that we can't celebrate mom every day! If you didn't have a chance to pick something up for your mom yet, don't despair...Novica is a wonderful company that features hand made gifts from artisans around the world! The have some gorgeous unique gifts for mom that will still stun her and make her feel very loved. In case you are not familiar with Novica, here is a bit more about them...

We want to give artists and artisans around the world a global platform to express their true artistic talents and to spur their creativity. And, we want to provide you with access to unique, hard-to-find items at great values that only the Internet infrastructure can allow.

At the deepest essence of our philosophy, we want to create a bridge between you and the many talented artisans across the globe.

We want you to know about who you're buying from. We want you to feel that attachment to the product and to the hands that created it.

In the spirit of the Internet, let us bring you together.

NOVICA. The World is Your Market.

I have worked with Novica on many occasions and each item I have received has been simply gorgeous. The quality is wonderful and the craftsmanship is stunningly beautiful. Some items I have given away as gifts and each time, the recipients are so happy with their gifts. So, if you are still hunting for the perfect Mother's Day gift, look no further...Novica is going to get just the right gift in your hands.

So, today's Novica review comes from some artisans named Javier and Efren. These glassblowers hail from Mexico and have been preserving Mexico's blown glass artistry since 1990 and their work is simply stunning. For this review, I chose to receive the "Spring" Water Glasses. I am kind of partial to beautiful glasses and these immediately caught my eye.

I think my favorite part of these water glasses is the cobalt blue accents on the rims and stems. Isn't is beautiful? It adds so much color in just the right places and truly, any beverage would look great in these glasses.

Tall, thin stems are elegant but certainly are not the requirement for beautiful glasses. The stems and bases on these water glasses are short but still lovely. They are also made with blue glass so that is another way that the color just pops out of these.

These shapely water glasses are handcrafted by Javier and Efrén. Each glass is individually handcrafted to bring you the magic of quality Mexican art blowing. These beautiful water glasses will complement any table setting or stand alone with their classic blue rim and base. Because each piece is handmade, shape and size can vary slightly and tiny bubbles may appear within the glass. This exemplifies the hand-blown technique, making every piece a unique example of blown glass craftsmanship.

I did notice some bubbles and imperfections in the glass itself but knowing that it was a part of the uniqueness gave each glass it's own character and I loved it!

Also included in my order was a small card containing information about the artist and a description of the product. This is always a really nice, classy touch that Novica adds when packaging and sending out their products. Each item is given it's own card and you, or the recipient, can read and fully appreciate the story behind the artwork.

This set of 6 "Spring" Water Glasses retails for $45.49 and is available for purchase directly from Novica's website. Also, you will find that Novica carries hundreds of other wonderful gifts for mom and you can check more of those items out when you visit Novica. Please be sure to check out Novica on Facebook, follow their boards on Pinterest and keep up with all of their latest tweets on Twitter! Always something fun going on so don't miss out...visit them today!

So, in my opinion...Novica has some wonderful gift ideas for mom. Make every day Mother's Day and celebrate your mom by giving her a gift she will remember and cherish forever. I am LOVING the water glass set that I received and think that it will be quite an amazing and elegant addition to my dinner table. I would definitely recommend Novica to anyone who is looking for a special gift...whether it be for mom or anyone else!

How would one of you like to win a $50 gift certificate to Novica? You have the chance to do that right now!! Here are your entry options...
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: I received no monetary compensation for this post. However, I received a free NOVICA gift code in exchange for this post. All quotes and stock photos are from the NOVICA website and email. Prize is provided by the sponsor. This blog is not responsible for lost, stolen or damaged prizes. All thoughts and opinions are 100% mine.

MakIt Prepaid Art Plate Kit...a LOVELY Mother's Day Gift Idea! {Review & Giveaway}

I am all about giving personalized gifts. It seems that there is always an occasion that calls for a special gift...whether it be a birthday, anniversary, Father's Day or Mother's Day (which happens to be on Sunday!).   For as long as I can remember, I have always loved making gifts for people. When I was a child, I was making cards and small art projects to give to my family members and friends. There is just something so special about giving something to someone that has been hand made by yourself. Now that I am a mother, it is so fun to work with the children and have them make personalized gifts for loved ones. The ideas they come up with are so cute and honestly, they are ideas that I probably would have never thought of myself.

So, when it comes to giving a homemade gift, I wanted to introduce you to MakIt - a company that makes kits for you to make into fun gifts! I wanted to focus in on their Prepaid Art Plate Kit today and how much fun it can be to actually make something that will be useful and loved for years to come. The Prepaid Art Plate Kit is perfect for children and they can create a lovely plate (or plates) for mom this Mother's Day! Here is a bit more information about MakIt.

Makit began as the creation of Bob Hodges in 1969 . One day a neighbor, who was a teacher said, "Wouldn't it be fantastic to capture kids' artwork on something useful, instead of it falling off the refrigerator and throwing it out?" With a background in plastics and dinnerware manufacturing, Bob saw an opportunity to create an arts and crafts medium that children and parents would love. The Make A Plate was born! School teachers across the country continue to use MakIt for class art projects and fundraisers. Family traditions also have sprung up as new generations create designs that become heirlooms.

Today, there's more to MakIt than just the Make A Plate. Not content to rest on our laurels after 30 years, we worked for almost a decade until we found a way to make beautiful Photo Plates you will love to call your own. Now, whether you create amazing art or take beautiful Photos, we will embed those images in a range of products including bowls, mugs, tumblers and platters. 

We are also proud to offer personalized Photo Products featuring your favorite Disney characters.

All of our products are nontoxic, BPA-Free, and dishwasher safe. Our products are proudly made in the USA, and we purchase all of our materials and components from American businesses. Since we don’t ship things in from overseas, we also reduce the environmental impact of your beloved MakIt purchase.  

I love the idea of personalizing a plate...it is definitely something that will be used and can be viewed on a daily basis. This is such a wonderful concept and I am so glad that a company like MakIt exists!

So, for this review I was sent a Prepaid Art Plate Kit to try out. My kit came with 25 paper templates, a set of markers, return instruction form and an envelope in which to return the templates. Once the plates are finished, they are mailed back to you and are made of break-resistant, durable melamine. They will also measure 10 inches in diameter.

I love how they give you 25 templates...this gives you plenty if you make a mistake or something happens to one of your pictures. These templates are about the size of a medium-sized dinner plate and therefore, have plenty of room to be artistic! They are pretty thin too so you have to make sure your child doesn't color too much over one area or they will tear. This happened quite a bit to my little artist.

I called my daughter in to the dining room to start her art project for the day and she was SO excited! I simply laid out a template for her, instructed her to stay within the circle, gave her the markers and watched her go. The ideas she had were endless...writing her name, rainbows, tracing her hand, flowers, hearts, you name it...she drew it! I also enjoyed letting my creative juices "flow" as well...I forget how fun it can be to draw and doodle!!

I found that for my daughter, having a border to stay inside of worked the best so I made sure I traced a circle on the inside of each template so she would have a guideline. As you can see, our plate templates turned out wonderfully! Each one is unique and special in it's own way and each one represents Hannah's lovely artwork.

As we speak, I am still waiting for my plates to come back in the mail and am very excited about how they will look. I am pretty certain that they will look fantastic! I will be sure to share pictures when the are here. The MakIt Prepaid Art Plate Kit retails for $17.99 and can be purchased directly from MakIt's website. There are also pricing options for you to purchase additional plates, which is nice.

So, in my opinion...I love this kit! It gives you everything you need to be creative and preserve memories all while having fun and making useful, cherished gifts. For children, this is a wonderful way for them to give gifts that are memorable and adorable...their creative expressions will be seen in each design! I would definitely recommend MakIt to anyone looking to give a unique and special gift this Mother's Day, or any holiday for that matter!

MakIt has offered to give away a Prepaid Art Plate Kit to one of you! Here are your entry options...
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: I received no monetary compensation for this post. I did receive free MakIt products for review purposes. All quotes and stock photos are from the MakIt website and email. Prize is being provided and shipped by the sponsor. This blog is NOT responsible for lost, stolen or damaged prizes. All thoughts and opinions are 100% mine.

Holiday Gift Guide ~ Give the Gift of Christ's Love This Holiday Season From Dayspring {Review & Giveaway}

This post will be a bit different from my other Holiday Gift Guide posts, but I think it will still be a blessing to you.  :) 

My memories of Christmas are wonderful. Growing up, my five siblings and I were taught by our parents that the reason we celebrate Christmas is because it is Jesus' birthday. Now, I do not believe that Jesus was born in December but I am glad that the world takes time to recognize that He was indeed born and was born to die. Because of our belief in Christ we were never taught that Santa Claus lived in the north pole, had little elves running around making gifts, flew a sleigh around the world on Christmas Eve delivering gifts and was the reason we received gifts on Christmas morning. Our parents made sure that we understand that Santa Claus was not real and was not a part of our celebrations.

On Christmas morning, we would wake up and sleepily gather in the living room. Some of us (me!) would bring our pillow from bed and snuggle under a fluffy blanket on the couch, waiting for the rest of the family to make their appearances. Once everyone was gathered, dad would get his Bible and sit down with us. We would read the Christmas story that is found in Luke chapter 2 and then we would talk about it. After reading, we would go around the room and each person would say a prayer. We would pray for those who were not fortunate enough to be able to afford gifts and would also pray for the missionaries who were serving God in other places in the world. Doing this truly made us appreciate what we were about to receive and helped us to be more thankful than we ever had been before.

Well, I am now a mother and am looking for ways to teach my children about Christmas and why we celebrate. I have recently received a lovely soup tureen and cup set from Dayspring and have been able to really use this set to help my daughter understand Christmas better. She loves having parties and so we often will just sit down (just the two of us) and have a little party together.

This set is called Love Came Down ~ No Greater Love ~ Soup Tureen & Bowls Set and it is gorgeous. As you can see, there is beautiful writing and scrolling, decorative artwork on these pieces. Each bowl reads "Perfect Love. Jesus". I can't think of a better way to describe Christmas...LOVE. God sent His only son to die...for us. That, my friends, is true love.

The soup tureen is very elegant...it comes with a matching ladle and lid, perfect for serving up soup or any other foods that would require serving in a large dish...mashed potatoes, applesauce, vegetables, or even salad!

Another really nice touch to the bowls is that inside of each bowl is an inscription that reads, "Love Came Down". After finishing the yummy goodness that has been served, each guest is reminded of the true reason for Christmas. I love this!!

So, this Christmas, I am looking forward to helping my children learn more about the true reason of the season. I am also looking forward to using this gorgeous set to teach and give them small reminders of what it truly means when we say "For unto us a child is born...".

Also, Dayspring sent me a beautiful Advent Tabletop Calendar that you can also use to help your family better appreciate the Christmas season. During the month of November, you can purchase this calendar for just $5.99! :)

If you would also like to share the joy and true meaning of Christmas with your loved ones, you can enter to win this same gorgeous "Love Came Down" Soup Tureen and Bowl Set that I received! Here are your entry options into this fantastic giveaway...

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer: I received no monetary compensation for this post.I did receive  free products from Dayspring for review purposes. All quotes and stock photos are from the Dayspring website and email. Prize is being provided and shipped by the sponsor.  All thoughts and opinions are 100% mine.