My most recently completed one was the bedroom makeover!

My old room was awesome, but it was cluttered, busy and not very relaxing. I had my computer desk in there and basically did everything in that room. It wasn’t a very peaceful environment to fall asleep in, or just relax in general. I have issues with sleep as it is, so I decided that I’d make a big change and move the desk out and do the room over in an effort to make it more serene.

I moved the desk into my media room/spare room (Photos to come!) and set to work.

Working With What I Had

The biggest challenge was trying to get all my disparate elements to come together, with little money. I really didn’t have a budget at all.

Everything in my room is second-hand. I don’t think there is a single piece of furniture in there that is new! That certainly posed a unique challenge. I also fell in love with the purple bed set on vacation and had to work a new colour into my palette that wasn’t there before. Originally I was aiming for whites & pinks since I had a white bedspread and pink pillows & curtains to work with. Then I remembered I wanted to bring my big black chaise into the room for a reading nook. *sigh* there’s another colour to work with!

So now I had 4 main colour accents: Purple, pinks, white & black.

Goals

The goals for this room makeover were:

• Create more space both physically and optically
• Declutter & organize
• Use the furniture and stuff I already had and find a way to unify it better
• Make the room more functional with separate spaces for makeup, jewellery/accessories, sleeping and reading
• Make a more relaxing and calm space

My main inspiration for this room is the pink & cream bird curtains. I made them when I moved in and I still love them! In the photos below, see if you can pick out all the little bird elements I used to tie everything together!

Since I was starting with the curtains, I decided to go with a lighter wall colour to brighten & enlarge the room. I picked a very light, creamy bone shade that closely matched the cream in the curtains. It’s a neutral enough shade to achieve all my goals and provide a nice backdrop for the splashes of colour in the art & accessories.

The final product

With the desk gone from my room there was tons of space for a new vanity and reading area. I got the black chaise off of Craigslist last year and the “vanity” that you see is actually a sewing table from my late aunt. I think she’d be happy with how I arranged it! I also had an old chair sitting around the apartment, so I painted it and upholstered the seat in a shiny black to match the chaise. My mom thought it came with the table! Score!

Vanity & Reading Corner

Close up on the vanity. I reupholstered & painted the chair to match!

I also took this as an opportunity to go through all my accessories and prune them down. After that I had to find a creative way to keep most of them in sight so I could remember what I had! (I couldn’t keep them all out, I have an insane amount of stuff, so just the faves are on display)

I found an old cork board hiding in a storage space and my problem was solved! (Everyone knows the cork board trick for jewellery now, right?) I painted it the same colour as the walls so it would blend in and provide a good backdrop for my pretties. Not bad! Again, just working with what I had on hand, folks!

Part 1 of the "jewellery bar"

I also finally found a way to display some of my floral hair fascinators creatively, while finding a home for my tiered tray (that thing is impossible to store!!!!)

May I offer you a rose for your hair?

All said and done, I think I did a pretty swell job of pulling everything together, and I was able to achieve each of the goals I set out for this project.

The "Other Side"

The funny thing about this room is that I really didn’t set out to have it bird-themed. It just sort of worked out that way. I went with the motif from the curtains and tried to have little details throughout to provide continuity. I may not have chosen this myself, but I think it worked out well! Sometimes you just have to let your project choose  YOU.

Birds

Curtains - The Inspiration

More bird details

If you also like the bird theme, I got the hooks and white wall-birds from Umbra. I buy from the concept store downtown, but there are lots of other retailers that carry them as well. As for the spunky wall decal, I got it at the dollar store for $2!!! Amazeballs. I bought it months ago because it was pretty and it sat around until I finally realized I could use it in this project. Win!

Royal-Tiger approves this room makeover!

BUT THEY HAVE BOARD GAMES. THOUSANDS OF THEM.

I love the concept of Snakes and Lattes, a board game cafe located just west of Bathurst station on Bloor St. In Toronto.

A $5 cover charge gets you in for an unlimited amount of time to play as many of their board games as you like. The place is crammed with tables, which are in turn crammed with folks of all stripes playing board game after board game.

A staff of young (and cute!) men man the cafe, serving up sandwiches, coffees, booze and sweet treats. They are all knowledgeable on board games and can help you find one, make recommendations and even play a couple of rounds with you! All in their official job description

My friends and I have been there twice now, within that many weeks. We love the atmosphere, the eye candy and the wide selection of board games!

Both times we have spent hours there, sipping our lattes and enjoying a variety of games. The staff were helpful, recommending a new game for us, then even playing a few rounds so we could get the hang of it. Very nice indeed!

The hours of operation are pretty great, too. From 11am-2am every day gives you lots of timing options. And you’ll need them.

One of the downsides to S&L is that it’s a little too popular. It’s hard to get in, with wait times exceeding an hour on occasion. The place is also packed, making it noisy, squished and negatively affecting the service. This plays out in a couple of ways: poor coffee and food quality, slow service and in some cases, dirty dishes/cutlery (the dishwasher just can’t keep up!).

But once you’re in there and playing, you hardly notice any of that!

S&L is still relatively new, so I hope that they will continue to iron out the kinks in their shop. I would love to see them expand into another location, and also offer some better pricing options such as a loyalty card with discounts or free admission, or waiving the cover charge if you purchase a certain amount at the cafe.

All in all I think it’s a great place, and will definitely be back! Keep your eyes peeled for the chick having a little too much fun playing Mad Gab, Monopoly or You Might Be A Redneck If…!

I found a couple of nice looking oranges and brought them home. They seemed pretty happy to be here.

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All was good.

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And then I found out she was pregnant.

>-<

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Orange babies!

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I’ve been mulling over the idea for quite some time now, and with the popularity of Alice in Wonderland bringing the focus back on this tradition, I thought the time was ripe for my own!

While I myself am not the biggest tea drinker (although my collection would beg to differ!) I have always loved the classic idea, rituals and etiquette of a traditional tea party.

The usual elements of a tea party include:

• formal table settings
• petit fours (little sweet cakes and pastries)
• tea sandwiches
• scones with jam and cream
• TEA!

When most people think of tea parties, they think of stuffy old ladies with hats and gloves sitting around with pinkies up and “hemm-hemming” over the latest faux pas someone in the community has committed. But this isn’t always the case!

I think tea parties offer a great way to get your friends together to appreciate the civilized side of life that we so often neglect in society these days.

Tea parties can be in any theme that you like, from classic traditional to wacky, zaney or even morbid! The key to setting the mood is the decor, menu and etiquette that you choose to observe during the event.

For my party, I’m going with a “funky & elegant” theme, and have asked my guests to dress up with their interpretation of the term “tea party”. I have some diverse friends each with their own unique style so I am really looking forward to seeing their outfits! With their permission I will be posting them on the blog afterwards Of course I’ll be dressing up, too!

I don’t have a ton of money to spend on this event, so the decor will be a bit on the eclectic side as I pull together all the cool serving dishes, decorations and linens that I have to make one cohesive theme. Good thing I’m an old hand at the eclectic look!

So far hot pink seems to be the dominant accent colour, but we’ll see what shows up in the end!

This week I will be pulling everything together, including the decor, table set-up, menu and trial runs of some of the tricker treats that I am preparing and posting about it on the blog.

I would love to hear of your own tea party experiences, and if you have any tips or tricks to share with me as I prepare for my own.

Thanks, and cheerio, darling!

Are you thinking of hosting or participating in one? Look no further! I have complied the answers to a few frequently asked questions about clothing swaps.

Behold,

Ginger’s Clothing Swap FAQ:

What IS a clothing swap?

Organized by a fashion community or group of friends. Everyone brings their gently used clothing, shoes and accessories they no longer want to the swap. Then the madness begins! You are free to choose and try on as many of the donated clothes as you like, and bring them home for free! The best swaps are when there are loads of clothes and ladies to try things on.

Is it really free?

Yes! A swap is an excellent way to get rid of your old things, and get some new-to-you duds at no cost. Perfect for anyone on a budget!

How much do I have to bring to a swap?

You should try and bring as much as possible to a swap, keeping in mind that your donations should be nice enough that someone else would actually want them.

It’s OK if you only have a few items though, someone may really like what you have brought! Ideally other women will bring large quantities to swap, so things usually even out in the end.

Check with the organizers first to determine whether you can attend a swap without bringing any items to donate.

What is the swapping process like?

Every swap and group will be different, but in general everyone pulls out their items to donate and quickly displays them to the group, then places them on a table or pile for someone to scoop up. If you see something you like you can grab it off the table or call dibs on it.

Part competitive free-for-all, part fashion show a swap is a really fun experience with the right group of ladies. If everyone remembers to be fair and gracious it will go swimmingly with a feeling of sisterhood and friendship all around.

What happens if two people want the same thing?

This part is a little tricky and can bring out the mean in people. Try and be on your best behaviour! Generally the person who indicates interest first (by touching the garment or calling dibs) will get to try it on. If they like it, they keep it. If not, the next person (second dibs) gets their chance with it. And so on.

If someone grabs something you like first, be sure to call second dibs, just in case they change their mind!

Is it really competitive?

Sometimes. Everyone is looking out for themselves, so there is a bit of competition and testing of wills in any clothing swap, particularly if you have two or more women with the same sense of style and size!

I would recommend calling dibs as fast as you can on pieces that are most likely to be a “win” for you. That is, garments that you have been searching for specifically (such as a Little Black Dress) or something that you know instantly will look gorgeous on you. You should know your shape, colours you look best in, and also clothing cuts you look best in before going into a swap. This will help you focus on winning the pieces best suited for you.

You may also consider tag-teaming with a friend. You can keep an eye out for things that your friend would look good in, and she will do the same for you. This can also help you bargain with other ladies when there is a hot item up for grabs.

What if there is still a bunch of clothes left over?

This is an easy fix. If you held your swap in a consignment or thrift store (both popular locations) the store will look through the remainders and take whatever they think will sell at their location. Anything that is left over after that step should be donated to a charity or women’s shelter.

It’s a win-win-win all around!

Is there any other swap etiquette that I should be aware of?

Most likely, yes. If you are ever unsure of a process or have any questions, you should contact the organizers of the swap and ask away! It is much better to ask and receive clarity than risk raising someone’s ire at the swap itself. Some ladies can be very aggressive!

Depending on the swap and group involved, there may be ground rules that you should be aware of and observe. If nothing specific is said, remember to employ common decency and fairness, but also remember that the whole point of a swap is for YOU to benefit, and to spiff up YOUR wardrobe! Don’t be afraid to dive in!

I just went to my first one ever and had a great experience! I teamed up with some fellow GTA fatshionistas from the fatshionista (plus-size fashion) community and we organized a mid-winter swap on Sunday.

I think it went pretty well! We started with a brunch for the organizers beforehand, followed by the swap proper.

The normal fatshionista! swap location downtown Toronto was undergoing some changes, so this time it was held at a plus-size consignment shop in Vaughan. What a perfect place to hold one! They provided us with space to dump our stuff, beverages, mirrors and changerooms, plus we all received a discount on any of their inventory. In the end they also had first dibs on the leftover clothing. Anything that would sell they took, and the remainders were donated to a women’s shelter.

I didn’t have a ton of stuff to contribute, but a few of my tops and skirts were snapped up lickety split that day. It made me feel good to know that they were going to someone who would love and care for them the way I did!

Some women brought absolute MOUNDS of clothing to donate. It was truly spectacular.

Overall it was a really great experience. I met some new friends, got to parade around in all sorts of clothes and be paid compliments and of course no one can deny the thrill of the hunt! There’s nothing quite like finding an amazing dress or pair of jeans that fit you like a dream and are FREE!

I really lucked out at this particular swap, and I can’t wait for the next! I’ll be posting some photos of the things I got, but until then here is a list of what I came home with:

• 1 pair dark wash jeans that make my ass look great
• 4 gorgeous vintage dresses that highlighted all my assets. I finally understand why women love vintage so much! Vintage clothes really beautify the female form!
• 1 nice Nygard summer suit set, with skirt
• 1 denim skirt
• 3 Torrid vintage-inspired dresses
• A few miscellaneous tops

I’m really stoked about all the dresses I got. They’re ones that you can’t get in Canada and they look SO GOOD. I will totally be doing outfit posts

I was hoping to find some shoes as well, but most of the selection there was for the bigger sizes so I didn’t get anything. My mom actually came with me to this event and while she didn’t get quite as much as I did I know she got some nice things for her upcoming trip to Mexico. She came home with me for dinner after the swap and we modeled all of our new clothes for each other.

I’m really glad that I participated in this. It helped me clear out some of my older stuff (which I had been meaning to do) and I met some awesome gals while I was there. I will totally hang out with them again!

I love the idea of a swap… and I got out of this one without spending a dime! Can you believe that? I’m really pleased with myself. I’ve had the “shopping itch” for the past couple of weeks, but couldn’t justify spending any money right now (it’s been an expensive few months!) so this swap satisfied my urges while keeping me frugal!

I’ve been exposed to more fashion and I hope to keep incorporating more of it into my life, and I’ll also be doing some photo shoots in the spring with the photographer that came to our event. Yes, my friends! Ginger is going to be a model!

Vogue with me now!

LOL

it’s just to help her beef up her portfolio, but it will be a lot of fun for me! I get to dress up, get my hair and makeup done and pretend I’m someone else for the day.  Plus I’ll be helping create art

So, THAT is how I spent my Sunday! I still have to report on the rest of my activities, and do that dang shoe post *glares at Pear & Melanie* but keep your eyes peeled for a quick Clothing Swap FAQ!

Morocco Snake print bathing suit by Monif C

Marilyn short convertible dress in fuschia, also by Monif C

Blueberry Babe hand-painted heels by Jellyfish

Black Diamond Platforms by Iron Fist

Flaunt dress (in any colour!) by Kiyonna

Fierce Leopard Dress also by Kiyonna

I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about fashion lately which isn’t necessarily a good thing! Because then I end up with lust for so many items…

-I wish Google Maps had an “Avoid Ghetto” routing option.

-More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can’t wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that’s not only better, but also more directly involves me.

-Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you’re wrong.

-I don’t understand the purpose of the line, “I don’t need to drink to have fun.” Great, no one does. But why start a fire with flint and sticks when they’ve invented the lighter?

-Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you’re going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you’re crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.

-That’s enough, Nickelback.

-I totally take back all those times I didn’t want to nap when I was younger.

-Is it just me, or are 80% of the people in the “people you may know” feature on Facebook people that I do know, but I deliberately choose not to be friends with?

-Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn’t work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There was no internet or message boards or FAQ’s. We just figured it out. Today’s kids are soft.

-There is a great need for sarcasm font.

-Sometimes, I’ll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the f was going on when I first saw it.

-I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I’ll end up wasting 90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone’s laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I’m still the only one who really, really gets it.

-How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

-I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

- I think part of a best friend’s job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

-The only time I look forward to a red light is when I’m trying to finish a text.

- A recent study has shown that playing beer pong contributes to the spread of mono and the flu. Yeah, if you suck at it.

- Was learning cursive really necessary?

- Lol has gone from meaning, “laugh out loud” to “I have nothing else to say”.

- I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

- Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.

- My brother’s Municipal League baseball team is named the Stepdads. Seeing as none of the guys on the team are actual stepdads, I inquired about the name. He explained, “Cuz we beat you, and you hate us.” Classy, bro.

- Whenever someone says “I’m not book smart, but I’m street smart”, all I hear is “I’m not real smart, but I’m imaginary smart”.

- How many times is it appropriate to say “What?” before you just nod and smile because you still didn’t hear what they said?

- I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars teams up to prevent a dick from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!

- Every time I have to spell a word over the phone using ‘as in’ examples, I will undoubtedly draw a blank and sound like a complete idiot. Today I had to spell my boss’s last name to an attorney and said “Yes that’s G as in…(10 second lapse)..ummm…Gooni es”

-What would happen if I hired two private investigators to follow each other?

- While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it…thanks Mario Kart.

- MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

- Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

- I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.

-Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.

-I can’t remember the last time I wasn’t at least kind of tired.

- Bad decisions make good stories

-Whenever I’m Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don’t mind if I do!

- Is it just me or do high school girls get sluttier & sluttier every year?

-If Carmen San Diego and Waldo ever got together, their offspring would probably just be completely invisible.

-Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I’m from, this shouldn’t be a problem….

-You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you’ve made up your mind that you just aren’t doing anything productive for the rest of the day.

-Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don’t want to have to restart my collection.

-There’s no worse feeling than that millisecond you’re sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

-I’m always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

- “Do not machine wash or tumble dry” means I will never wash this ever.

-I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There’s so much pressure. ‘I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on? I bet everyone is wishing we weren’t watching this. It’s only a matter of time before they all get up and leave the room. Will we still be friends after this?’

-I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Dammit!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What’d you do after I didn’t answer? Drop the phone and run away?

- I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

-When I meet a new girl, I’m terrified of mentioning something she hasn’t already told me but that I have learned from some light internet stalking.

-I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it’s on shuffle, then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.

-Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles…

- As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.

-Sometimes I’ll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

-It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.

-I keep some people’s phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

-Even if I knew your social security number, I wouldn’t know what do to with it.

-Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, hitting the G-spot, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey – but I’d bet my ass everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time every time…

-My 4-year old son asked me in the car the other day “Dad what would happen if you ran over a ninja?” How the hell do I respond to that?

-It really pisses me off when I want to read a story on CNN.com and the link takes me to a video instead of text.

-I wonder if cops ever get pissed off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.

-I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

-I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.

-The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, saw they had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someone at the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, and then estimated that there must be at least four people eating to require such a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself. There’s nothing like being made to feel like a fat bastard before dinner.

Alright, I’ve been putting things off for long enough and it’s time for me to pound out another post.

It was a long and exciting week for me. Between lots of things going on at work, the crazy, crazy thunderstorm and sleepwalking and my weekend, I just didn’t get around to writing much of anything.

I’ll give a full update on my friends’ love triangle dealy-o at a later date, but as it stands the wife is moving out sometime in September. The breakup officially happened on Wednesday, and she’s been feeling kind of down about it. I can imagine that it is a tough thing to have to live with your ex and his new fuck toy while you’re looking for a new place to go.

Anyway, a new girl I’ve been hanging out with a bit (I don’t know if we’re friends exactly just yet, but we’ve been doing things together because we live nearby and have no one else to go to fun events with. We’re sort of in a similar situation) invited me to go to the CNE on Friday, which was opening night.

I was a little hesitant since I was trés exhausted from my sleepwalking adventure but I decided to go anyway. It was opening night so admission was only $1.75. I haven’t been to the Ex since I was a kid, and there’s no way I would pay the normal fee of $15 so I figured I ought to go or I’d never get around to it.

I’m really glad I went! I called up my friend B (the wife) and invited her to join us. She has like, no money right now, but this was cheap enough to get into, and she really needed to get out of that cesspool of an apartment and have some good old fashioned fun.

We all met up and actually had a really great time. I spent more than I thought I would, but I think that this time it was ok– I had a lot of fun and so did my friends. We had corndogs, Tiny Tom donuts, played games and even went on some rides!

There was a special on ride tickets for the evening so we pooled our money and each got 3 tickets for about $6 each. Still expensive, but the last time I was on a ride… I really can’t remember. Again, I was a little hesitant because generally the seats on those carny rides run on the small side and I was worried that I would be too fat to get in. My friends are a little on the round side, too. But we fit! We went on 2 scary rides and one gentle ride and had a total blast.

I didn’t realize how much I was craving a night out like that–the lights, music, sounds, smells, everything! I really felt like a kid again and was genuinely happy that evening, which doesn’t happen often. I was really glad we did this.

Ever the PF’er, here’s my cost breakdown for the night:

Admission x2 (I paid for the wife): 3.50
Corndog: 5.00
Candy Apple: 5.50
Tiny Tom donuts: 5
Water shooter game: 6.00
Guess my age game: 5.00
Lemonade: 3.50
Rides: 6.00
Total: $39.50

Hmm, that’s not actually as bad as I thought it would be! I can’t imagine how expensive it would be if I paid full price admission and ate more food though… I really wanted to have all the classic carnival foods, but the cost was ridiculous. It was $5 for everything, or more! So I just narrowed it down to the things I really wanted and left it at that. I can always roast some of my own almonds and make an ice cream waffle.

We spent about 6 hours at the CNE and headed home around midnight. I won a prize at the guess your age game (he thought I was 19! LOL) and my friend B won me another prize because she felt bad that I didn’t win at the water shooter game. How nice!

We all left full of fair food with lots of photos and a stuffed animal or two each! It was a great night and I am so glad that I got the chance to go. Hopefully there are more fun times a’comin’!

To thank all of my valued and loyal readers (and the new ones too!) and to celebrate my big comeback I decided to pull some strings and call in some favours to do something special.

So what does special mean to me?

PRIZES!!!!

If you’ve been keeping up with my Twitter feed (@gingercorsair, y’all!) you’d know that I have been working tirelessly to make a big splash and get some cool prizes to give away to my readers. With the help of some fantastic individuals and PR reps I have been able to secure 4 prizes that you can win; one per week for the month of July!

July has some really awesome things going for it, and lots of opportunities to celebrate. It starts out with Canada Day ( and the relaunch!) on July 1^st. Following immediately after is another holiday close to my heart (being half American and all); Independence Day on July 4^th.

The next reason to celebrate? My half-birthday, of course! hehe as a kid, having a January birthday sucked, so I would always hold the party on my half birthday, July 14^th!

Last, but certainly not least is the fact that July is the quintessential summer month! School is out, summer vacations start, the weather is beautiful and sunny, and there’s a BBQ every weekend! If that ain’t a reason to celebrate, I don’t know what is!

With all these great reasons to celebrate, I thought it natural to have some prizes as the icing on the summer berry cake!

So here’s the deal:

In exchange for helping me spread the word about the blog, you’ll get multiple chances to enter to win each of the prizes! Full details will be released each week as I put up a post about the particular prize. Most prizes are for Canadians only, but I have made sure to include one for my American readers too, ‘cause I loves ya!

Here’s a rundown of the prizes to get you excited:

July 1^st: A snazzy gift certificate to Amazon.ca or .com from yours truly! (Open to Canadians and Americans)

July 8^th: Help me celebrate my half-birthday with a gift certificate for a dozen gourmet cupcakes from Duh-Licious! (Open to GTA residents)

July 15^th: Get in the mood with a His-n-Hers gift pack including lube, bathrobes and chocolates courtesy of K-Y® BRAND personal lubricants! (Open to Canadians)

July 22^nd: Cool down this summer with a perfect Tom Collins drink from a bar kit courtesy of Bombay Sapphire! (Open to Canadians)

Stay tuned, the first prize becomes open for entries later today!