Blog Anniversary Celebration with a Giveaway of a Few of My Favorite Things! Valued at $1500!

This month marks 7 years of blogging. Holy cow! What started out as a hobby for me has turned into a full time job and I am loving it! I had no idea when I started Holy Craft in January of 2010 that a blog could even become more than just a little web diary. If you've never heard the story of how this blog came to be, let me give you a little back story. In 2005, I was expecting our third child. I started a personal blog as a sort of photo album to share pictures of my kids and give a snapshot of our life to our friends and family. Most of them lived thousands of miles away and the blog became a fun way for me to share life. As my kids started to get older, I was able to start exploring some of my passion for creating again. Those creations started creeping up into my personal blog in 2009. Blogging was relatively new then and I joined in on a link party. I realized I had a lot of personal information and family pictures on our blog and directing people to it probably wasn't the smartest move. So I did what any grown-up does and asked my friends on Facebook if they would read a blog if I started one. A few people said yes and I started asking for suggestions on a blog name. Holy Craft was born. The name came from a fun play on words but I also thought it encompassed what I wanted in a blog. The blending of my holy, spiritual side with crafts and creating. There have been a lot of ups and downs in there, but today is for celebrating! I'm giving away some amazing prizes and doing it in a fun way I think you guys are going to really enjoy. Since it's my blog and a celebration of my work anniversary, I wanted to celebrate by giving away my favorite things! Any guesses what they are?!! I'm going to explode, I'm so excited!!!

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Create a Holiday Bacon Bar and Enter to Win a Year of Bacon

This is a sponsored post for Smithfield written by me. All opinions are 100% my own.

I think bacon is at an all time high in the popularity contest. I don't know a single person who doesn't love bacon. Not one. Which is why it's often at the top of my list as an ingredient in my holiday appetizers. It seems like friends and family are gathering often this time of year and food is usually at the center of it all. I am always looking for those crowd pleasers and bacon never disappoints! I've partnered with Smithfield to share some ways that you can treat your family and friends to easy-to-make, delicious bacon recipes. Smithfield has created a fun twist on holiday entertaining that you can recreate at home. It's easy for you to create your own Bacon Bar with free printable labels, decor ideas and recipe instructions so you can give your Bacon Bar a personal touch. You can even enter to win one Smithfield Bacon For a Year coupon booklet valued over $400! Just keep reading and I will tell you how!

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7 Day Rapid Wrinkle Repair Challenge

I just turned 38 a few weeks ago. Through the years I haven't been very kind to my skin. I am fortunate that I haven't had any major skin issues through the years. In high school, I never had a face full of zits. Oily skin has never been an issue and dry skin hasn't plagued me. I have been faithfully using a moisturizer that contains SPF since I was in my teens but I must confess, I am not the best with reapplying sunscreen when I have sun exposure throughout the day. I rarely if ever wash off my make-up before I go to bed. Year after year I promise I'm going to start taking care of my skin and every year I sort of forget. Which is why I was so excited when Neutrogena wanted to partner with me to take a 7 day Rapid Wrinkle Repair challenge.  I needed to hit a restart on my skin care routine.
At night I would use the Rapid Wrinkle Repair line after washing my face, during the day, I would use the Ultra Sheer collection. I planned on documenting my results every night over the course of a week to see if taking care of my face and using retinol based products with a broad-spectrum sunscreen would help improve my skin's visible signs of aging, and then I was going to share with you the results.

So lets start with what those visible signs are. I've got wrinkles. Not many. I'm not that old! But I do have some fine lines forming around my eyes, around my mouth and on my forehead. I have uneven skin tone because I have been naughty with my sunscreen usage. Like I mentioned, I use a moisturizer that has sunscreen in it, but often times I don't think to reapply. If it's hot out, I sweat and I notice in those places where I am sweating {my forehead and my upper lip} that damage is worse.
Here I am, day one ready to expose myself all for the art of science to let you decide for yourself {they do say the proof is in the pudding} if you can see a difference in my skin from the love I gave it in only one weeks time. 

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University Themed DIY Cornhole Game

This is a sponsored post by Homeright. All opinions are 100% my own.

This past year has been filled with a lot of excitement for our family. Our oldest son spent the year looking for and applying to universities and after a few visits and lots of prayers, he decided that Baylor University in Waco, Texas felt like home to him. After our visit to the Baylor campus, we did what any Fixer Upper fan would do and we hit the Magnolia Market and Silos {in case you want to go, here are 5 things you need to know before your Magnolia Market visit} and while the store was filled with eye candy, we ended up having the most fun, just hanging out playing cornhole on the lawn. 

I happened to mention to Aidan that if he decided to go to Baylor, I would make him a cornhole game for his graduation party, since cornhole seems to have not hit it's popularity out in our parts of the world just yet.

So a few weeks before his party, my husband and I got started on making a DIY cornhole game board for his graduation party complete with university logo and handmade university colored bean bags. I've got a few tips for you if you want to make your own cornhole game as well.

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Adirondack chair refresh with a paint sprayer plus a giveaway!

Adirondack chair refresh with a paint sprayer

Please tell me that I'm not the only one that hates to paint. Don't get me wrong, I love the way things look with a fresh coat of paint, I just don't have the time to brush on coat after coat of paint.  I'm sloppy too.  I usually just want to get the project done so I don't care what things get destroyed in the process.  Which I must say, isn't the best attitude to take on.  My dog has been several different colors because she's gotten too close to my project a time or two.

Not to worry! There is hope for people like us!  I recently got a Finish max paint sprayer and I have been going to town!  It's easy, fast and totally not sloppy at all!  I can't wait to show you my first project!

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The Ultimate Craft Stash Giveaway!

For longer than I would like to admit, I have had a box of craft supplies in my closet just waiting for a giveaway.  I've added to them with some awesome supplies from Silhouette, Heidi Swapp, Mod Podge and Martha Stewart.  There are too many supplies in this box to list and I am giving them all away to one lucky reader! BONUS!!! I'm not the only one having the ultimate craft stash giveaway! There are a slew of us all with awesome stuff to win!

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Jamberry giveaway and blog party

By now, you have probably heard of Jamberry nails.

It seems like they are popping up everywhere!

I finally tried my first pair at a craft fair a few weeks ago and I really liked them.

In case you hadn't heard or just passed by the booth at the local craft fair and didn't stop,

Jamberry are vinyl nail wraps available in 300 different {amazingly cute!} designs.

My tween daughter has been a fan for a few years and I have even bought her a few wraps

{they make great stocking stuffers}

but until I tried them myself, I wasn't sold.

My nails take a beating!

 Between painting projects and hot glue and washing dishes, no nail polish stands a chance!

But when I do my nails I feel super girly and I usually stare at my hands like a zillion times a day.

 If you follow me on instagram you would have seen my first {mini} Jamberry manicure.

I was prepping for a craft bazaar and had been painting and using my hot glue gun for hours each day, and I was amazed at how well the nail wraps held up.

I've used nail wraps before and love them.

Especially on my toes because they last for a month or more,

but I wasn't convinced that they would stay on my hands.

I got so many compliments on my Jamberry manicure even a week after I had put them on and believe me, they had taken a beating and were still looking pretty darn good.

I'm pretty price savvy, and the sheet of wraps can seem a bit pricey,

but believe me, one sheet isn't just one application.

I have small nails, so I can get at least two applications out of each sheet,

sometimes more if I only want to use one or two as accent nails.

Here's a helpful breakdown to how many uses you can get out of a sheet.

If I were to go to a salon to get my nails done, I would be paying far more,

and the application wouldn't last nearly as long.

I just ordered some Jamberry Juniors for my daughter.

They are the perfect fit if you have little nails or if you are buying for a little girl.

Don't forget to check out the mommy and me collection as well!

Because I share only what I love on my blog,

{it's my blog I can do what I want neener neener}

I thought I would open up a Jamberry catalog party with a giveaway for my readers.

You can plan a mother/daughter date during Christmas break,

get your nails as dolled up as the rest of you on New Year's eve, plan a girlfriends nails and wine night or stuff some stockings.

You can shop here

{don't forget those teachers and girlfriends on your list!}

Enter to win the Winters Edge nail wraps 

{as seen above}

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I know you will love Jamberry as much as my daughter and I do. Happy shopping!

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Accessorize plus a giveaway

For years when my kids were little, I wore nothing but my diamond stud earrings that my husband got me as an anniversary present.

Babies would be pulling on my earrings, and quite honestly, I didn't have enough time to hem and haw over what accessories to wear when I barely had enough time to shower!

My kids are older now, and it's been hard to break out of the rut of not making time to accessorize.

I love earrings and bracelets and necklaces, I just don't have a lot of them.

Recently, JTV gave me the opportunity to select a piece of jewelry that I loved.

Any piece.

It was hard to pick because there were so many great pieces.

I loved this cabochon cuff bracelet.

Partly because it's sapphire blue like my birthstone.

I was also a big fan of this link bracelet.

Since I'm breaking into this accessory wearing thing, I gravitate to things that are versatile

and this looks like you could wear with with so many things.

I'm always looking for simple yet classy earrings.

That color!

Talk about making a statement with this orange jasper ring.

And while we are talking statements, 

this bib necklace could take a little black dress up a notch.

If you love vintage like me, you will love the Titanic collection.

Holy cow!  I think I want one of everything.

While there were so many things that enticed me, I finally settled on these 10k yellow gold chandelier earrings.

I love the sweet simplicity of them and in my wardrobe versatility is key, and they hit the mark!

JTV was nice enough to not only give me a pair of 10K yellow gold Filigree Chandelier earrings, but they sent me a pair that I could share as well! I know you will love them as much as I do!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
To see some of my other favorite accessories, you can follow my Pinterest board.

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PERK up the smell of your car!

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of PERK for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

I have three kids and a big smelly dog that I cart around in my mom van.

I spend more time in my mini than I would like to admit.

My kids are active, my dog is active and we have lots of places to go.

Milkshakes have gotten spilled, bags with fruit that goes rotten gets left behind and the dog rolls her muddy sea weed filled self all over the car mats to dry off after a trip to the beach.

All of these things have left my nearly decade old mini van smelling less than fresh!

I am quite sensitive to smell, especially if I am in a closed in area.  My daughter is the same way.

Give us a few minutes in a closed in space with some highly potent fragrance and we both come away with headaches.

Which is why I haven't tried any air freshener in my car.

But desperate times come for desperate measures, and I heard about a new air freshener that is not only discreet, it's also not overly powerful.  

My daughter and I smelled each of the fragrances {lush valley, golden vanilla, new car and fresh clean laundry} and picked our favorite, golden vanilla to try out in our van.

The Vent Wrap comes individually packaged so that each one lasts for two weeks. After your vent air freshener loses it's smell, simply unwrap another fragrance from the pack and clip it into place.  Each package comes with 60 days of fabulous fragrance.

There is nothing messy, drippy or tacky about the discreet PERK vent wraps, they simply clip right onto your vent.

 They don't block air flow and allows your vent to function as normal.  You hardly notice it is there!  They are Invisibly Fresh!

You can find out more information about PERK by watching this informational video

The best part is that for the two of us in the family that are overly sensitive to smell, the vent wraps provide a StediScent – for fragrance that is just right.  No headaches!

Want to win a 6 month PERK vent wrap supply?

Enter the rafflecopter giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don't forget to Like PERK on Facebook

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Winners! Of the 7 days of giveaways! PLUS FREE printable

Thank you again for participating! It was so fun celebrating my 3rd blogiversary with you! Here is what you are all waiting for, the announcement of the winners. Day 1: Jeni Monroe

Day 2:  Erin Buente

Day 3: Kelley Grant

Day 4: Shannon Kjol

Day 5: Alison Reynolds Weeks

Day 6: Michelle Grhamm Unruh 

Day 7: Brooke Sanders

If you won, congratulations!

Send me an e-mail {rachelteodoro@yahoo.com} with the day that you won and I will forward your information on to the specific sponsor who will set you up with your prize package.

Don't forget that Kari Machal is still offering my readers an exclusive 15% off  your purchase in her etsy shop.  Just enter HOLYCRAFT15 at checkout.

Because all of you are winners in my book, I'm sharing with you one of my favorite things.

Dave Matthews.

Well, not Dave Matthews himself, just his song.

And not really his song, however, you can't read this and not get the song stuck in your head.

I'm sharing my first printable with you.

For free.

Yep, I'm awesome like that.

You should be able to click on the image, save it as whatever you want and print it up.

If it doesn't work, sue me.

No don't...just give me a hand, tell me how to do it differently to make it work, and I will try that.

Thanks again to all of my participants!

And a huge thank you to all of the amazing sponsors who made this giveaway possible!

It was a ton of fun!

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Final day to enter the 7 days of giveaways

Wow!  

What a week!

I hope you have had fun celebrating 7 days of giveaways with me.

Today is the final day to enter any and all of the giveaways.

I will make it easy for you and link back to each day of giveaways.

A winner for each day will be selected and announced tomorrow.

Thank you all for participating and making this a fantastic 3rd blogiversary giveaway party!

Most of all, thank you to all of my sponsors for providing such great prizes.

Please don't forget to show them some love.

Visit their sites, like their pages and order their stuff!

These guys are awesome!

And they won't disappoint!

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4 

Day 5

Day 6

 Day 7

Don't forget to check back tomorrow to hear if you are a winner!

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Day 7: Kari Machal $50 credit and Almost Gemini prize pack

What a week it has been! I'm so excited to end the 7 days of giveaways in celebration of my  3rd blogiversary with a final fantastic prize pack.
Don't forget, if you haven't entered the previous days giveaway's it's not too late.   You have until Wednesday night to enter any and all giveaways, and a name will be drawn for each prize pack and announced on Thursday.

A few years ago, Kari Machal Designs allowed me to offer one of her prints for a giveaway.  She also graciously sent me a print of my own to keep.  

This picture is hanging in my master bedroom above our little reading chair and I love it! It's one of my favorite things.
Kari is graciously offering my readers a $50 credit to her shop. There are so many fantastic items, you are bound to find something {or a few things} that you love! If you can't hardly stand the wait, Kari is being kind enough to offer Holy Craft readers 15% off of their purchase on etsy!  Isn't she a peach?!  
Just enter HOLYCRAFT15 to get 15% any order.
Almost Gemini is a team of sisters picking some amazing goodies around their home in the Midwest. Courtney and I went to school together years ago, and I know if we still lived in the same area, we would have the most fun digging for treasures and junk shopping.
Almost Gemini is giving away some sweet treasures!  The sisters Grandma makes some rad Grandma's lotion, and you get this vintage hair flair and coolio headband to go with it.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Day 6: Kids Can Design custom pendant + Creative Memories Fast to Fabulous album

Welcome back!

Hope you all had a great weekend and are ready to jump back in and continue our 7 days of giveaways for my 3rd blogiversary giveaway party!

I was contacted several months ago by Kidz Can Design.  A new company that allows you to send in your child's artwork and in return, sends you back a custom designed pendant made from that drawing.

My kids are all getting older, but I had the best time going through the old artwork boxes that I keep from each of my three kids.  When you have pre-schoolers, you think the art will never end, but trust me, it does! And can I tell you something?  I kind of miss it.  So if your child is 2 or 42, you can still send in your work and create a lasting memento of a special drawing that your child has made.

Also, my long time reader and church friend Terri Campbell, is a creative memories consultant.

She is kind enough to be offering this brand spankin' new 8x8 fast to fabulous scrapbook album to one of my readers.  I gave up scrapbooking years ago because it took so much time, but this album looks like it would be something I could complete quickly and still make it look fabulous!  And if you have been reading holy craft for any length of time, you will know that fast, easy and awesome are my favorite things!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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