Blogger Opp: Caribbean Cookbook and $250 giveaway

Blogger Opportunity – Cookbook and Cash Giveaway with Dinner

Simply Caribbean is celebrating and  launching a Lighter Caribbean Cookbook and I will love my blogging friends to CELEBRATE with me

BLOGGERS:

This is a free/paid blogger opps  hosted by SimplyCaribbean and Sodality Underground

PARTICIPATION DETAILS

This event is FREE to join with an announcement post!  HTML ANNOUNCEMENT

Choose ONE free link if you sign up to participate in this blogger opp!

You can choose Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or Instagram as your free link with the announcement post .

If you do not wish to post the announcement, you can submit the $4 Non Post fee via PayPal.

The first 25 paid bloggers to sign up will get two additional free links.

• Event Dates: Aug 5 – Aug 18, 2014
• Eligibility: Open Worldwide
• Sign Up ends July 17th 2014

REFERRAL PRIZE:

• Two bloggers who bring in the most sign-ups/referrals will both receive a FREE Co-Host spot. If the winner has already paid for a spot, their co-host fee will be refunded!

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

5 Lucky Winners will receive one prize each

Date is tentatively set for 8/5 to 8/18.

Signups for this event will close on 7/17/2014.

• $250 Cash PAID through Paypal
• $100 Cash PAID through Paypal
• $50   Cash PAID through Paypal
• Simply Caribbean Lighter Fusion CookBook
• In Home Dinner Party for 8 people (Will work on menu together after you win)

.

Co-Host: $18 (includes 6 links, on top of Rafflecopter + Blog link mention in html + a Host page , picture) Must post Giveaway on your blog and social media at least 2 -3 times a week

Benefits of becoming a Co-Host include, increasing your followers, increase your traffic, increase number of backlinks/links in, and help better stats, ranks, and ratings, plus you will receive other blogger opportinites as it become available.

PAID LINKS

• 1 Link   - $3.00
• 2 Links -  $5.00
• 3 Links -  $7.00
• 4 Links -  $9.00
• 5 Links -  $12.00

Extra links after 5 can be purchased for $1.00 each, up to 3 additional links.

Please remember the more you promote the giveaway, the more views your blog will receive and the more fans you may get.

Click Here to Fill Out the Sign Up Form

 

Free Pattern Friday: Floral Designs!

Happy Friday everyone! For today's free patterns I'm showcasing my own floral design afghans that I made over on stitchboard.com! All three of these are perfect for summertime with their cool floral inspired motifs.  While each of these would be a good size blanket to take on picnics or to wrap up in on chilly nights, you could also customize each one with a nearly endless variety of borders if you so feel inclined. As usual, these three patterns are hosted at www.stitchboard.com, which does require a completely free registration. I promise, registering at stitchboard really is completely free and easy, and they definitely will not spam your email at all.  I've been registered over there for several months and haven't received a single email from them :)

Kaleidoscope Flower

1. Feel free to change up the colors on this bright floral kaleidoscope piece.  Any 5 or 6 bright, solid colors would look great. Add a few rows of complementary border and this throw blanket would be great for a teenagers room or as a stunning picnic blanket.

Lotus Afghan

 2. This next afghan pattern is ultra chic and elegant and would be perfect for the more sophisticated and zen people in  your life.  I love the calming feel of blues and purples, but this could be made in any color to match your decor. Add a wide matching border all the way around and this blanket is sure to add a spa-like atmosphere to any space.

Harvest Wheat

3. Lastly, this golden wheat afghan is perfect for the lazy dog-days of late summer and into the Indian summers of early fall.  I can imagine curling up with this blanket on an evening hay ride or taking it to the county fair. It would also make a gorgeous housewarming gift.  I would recommend using a deep golden yellow yarn to make this, and maybe adding just a few rows of solid border, or some type of decorative geometric border.






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Book Review: Georgia On Her Mind by Rachel Hauck

Rating: 2.8/5 I finished this book yesterday after having it on my Kindle for a few weeks after I downloaded it when it was free (it now costs $0.99) I honestly wasn't all that interested in it from the description, but hey, a free book is a free book. Once I got around to eventually reading it, I was pleasantly surprised yet unimpressed at the same time. Rachel Hauck has a good writing style and there are a lot of funny moments in this book. Macy Moore, the main character, is rather witty and almost a bit naive, which is fun to read. However, I just could not get past all of the old, recycled Christian romance plot cliches. Seriously, woman has awesome career but neglects her spirituality, woman's career tanks, annoyingly perfect friends gently remind woman about how much Jesus loves her, woman finally meets good man, various hijincks and "big decisions" ensue, woman ultimately makes the "right" decision and they all live happily ever after. I would have loved more drama in the story and was incredibly disappointed by the last several chapters. I was confused by the authors mix of the literal and metaphorical, especially in reference to the bible verse Isaiah 61:3, "...to give them beauty for ashes...", which prompts Macy to leave behind the metaphorical ashes of her corporate life and literally return to Beauty, her hometown in Georgia. If the author was going for subtlety, she failed and may have just gone all in and had Macy's house burn down with all her possessions, but I guess that would be too literal. Also, just once I would like to see a Christian romance where the protagonist's dream goal/profession is actually the "right" thing and they are moved to pursue that goal instead of settling for something else.

I can't highly recommend this book, but if you have a spare 99 cents and want to get a few laughs from an otherwise tired story line, go ahead and purchase this book.

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Book Review: Dragon's Curse by HL Burke

I received this book free of charge in return for my honest review. All opinions are my own and I never commit to a positive review prior to reading.

Dragon's Curse on Amazon.com

I thoroughly enjoyed Dragon's Curse (The Dragon and the Scholar vol. I)  by H.L. Burke. I kind of accidentally stumbled upon this book when I was searching for other bloggers with similar interests. As I've said before, finding a good, talented, upcoming author is a bit like mining. You get a lot of dirt and junk, but occasionally you find a real gem. H.L. Burke is one of these rare gems, and I would give Dragon's Curse a solid 3.5/5 rating. (Not that this book is bad, I just have extremely high standards to give a 4 or 5).

If you enjoy fantasy novels and tales about magic, dragons, and a bit of romance, this is a good book for you.  The main protagonist, Shannon, is an adorable and stubborn scholar whose first assignment out of the academy (which is basically college) is to treat a neighboring king's poisoned dragon wounds. Although slightly nervous, Shannon is confident in her ability as a healer and is determined to prove her worth to her mentor at the Academy, a man named Martin. Shannon quickly discovers that all is not well in the kingdom of Regone and finds herself allied with a dragon to overcome some unexpected challenges, including an over-zealous would be suitor and an evil witch.

I personally enjoyed the strong fantasy plot of this novel.  While not exactly a brand new story, Dragon's Curse is told in a fun and inventive way.  I liked that Shannon is strong willed and mostly unafraid from the very beginning. Her intelligence and natural curiosity are her main strengths and not merely personality quirks.  I found the dialogue to be overall fairly good, although some of the conversations between characters felt almost too tongue-in-cheek or trite at times and I was unsure if what I was reading was supposed to be serious or not.

I definitely recommend this book for anyone who likes epic fantasy and dragons.  It is also a good book for fans of romance novels, although romance is not the main theme of the book.  I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series, Dragon's Debt, and the third book, which is set for release later this year.

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Happy July 4th!

Happy Independence Day to my American readers! It's a busy day for my family, so here is a quick post with some links to FREE 4th of July and Patriotic themed crochet projects! Enjoy.

1. This patriotic bunting would be adorable draping the side of a little red wagon as you pull your little ones in a 4th of July parade or take them to a festival. It could also probably be made in a larger size and used as porch or patio decoration for a barbecue or party.

Patriotic Bunting

2. If the beach is more your style for the holiday, check out this cool 4th of July Beach Bag by Lily Sugar N' Cream. It would be just perfect to carry some sunscreen, towels, and maybe a cover-up for evening while you watch fireworks over the ocean or lake.

Beach Bag

3. These Stars and Stripes Cushions are just the right size to take along to a summer get-together. Add a little cushion to your lawn chairs or benches while showing off your patriotic spirit.  

Stars and Stripes Cushions

4. Use this patriotic granny square by April Moreland to create any number of 4th of July themed household decorations. Make a lot of them and join together to make a throw or blanket, or make them individually as trivets or dishclothes.

Patriot's Pride

5. Even though July is usually too hot for blankets, this Colors of America Throw by Redheart would be nice to keep the chill off while watching fireworks or sitting out on your patio late into the evening.  Make it during those long winter days so you don't overheat working on it during the summer.

Colors of America Throw

6. Last but not least, showcase Old Glory with this American Flag Afghan. Just big enough to cover your lap, this throw would be a beautiful decoration for your home.

American Flag Afghan

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Free Summer Fonts

Now that July is here, summer is in full swing.  July is a great month for outdoor entertaining and your parties and picnics can have some extra sparkle with customized printed menus, placecards, and decorations.  If you're having a big buffet style party, it's nice to print out some labels so your guests know what each dish is and if there are any ingredients they may want to avoid.  There are thousands of great free fonts out there so you can match your print-outs to whatever theme you want instead of just using plain old, boring Times New Roman.  I personally like to browse FontSpace to find new decorative fonts, but there are other good font websites too.  All you need to do to use these free fonts is download the .zip file, scan it for viruses (just in case!), and then open and install it.  They'll be ready to go after installation and are compatible with most common word processing programs. Most of the fonts available are licensed for personal use only, but if you want to sell your work you may be able to contact the artist directly and pay a fee for a commercial use license.

Here are some of my favorite free summer fonts:
1. Reed of Love

2. Sweet Nature
3. Summer Sunshine
4. Beach Type











And here is a sample menu printed with the BeachType font:

Book Review: Flabbergasted

Ray Blackston's Flabbergasted can best be described as enjoyable word vomit. The manic pixie cliche of contemporary romance meets the standard "character discovers faith in some near death experience" of Christian fiction. in this verbose novel. It takes a while to get used to the author's prosaic writing style, but the overall writing is not bad at all. The characters are likeable enough, and the setting is described fairly well. I like the simple, non preachy message about faith and coming to know God in a real and personal way. This book was first published in 2003 so some references feel slightly dated, but I would still recommend this book to anyone who enjoys lighthearted Christian romance novels. This ebook is currently free  on Amazon so you have nothing to lose except a few hours of reading time so go ahead and check it out! 

Flabbergasted

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