Yes we are alive :)

Merry Christmas from our Family to yours!!!!!

This picture is of the kiddies at 6 am Christmas Morning... two hours after they woke up! Can you tell? Little Nathaniel was sick on Christmas so he didn't make it into the photos. He slept like a rock through all the squeals and screams of "Merry Christmas Mom and Dad it's 6 get up please!!!!"

As for why I fell of the blogging map for so long in the middle of the 12 days of Christmas giveaway no less well, I'll fill you all in tomorrow.
The good news is as Catholics we celebrate Christmas through the feast of the Epiphany (the visitation of the wise men) on January 6th so yes I will be finishing the giveaway, and there are still some amazing gifts left to win, that wont limit you to Christmas decor.

Wishing you and your Family Peace and Joy!
Canela

12 day delay...

On the 7th day of Christmas my true love gave to me.... 6 kiddies with the flu!

I've had to delay the 12 days giveaway a little longer, sorry to keep everyone waiting and wondering.

My little guys are all getting a tummy bug, so I've had to take a little break from the giveaway but as soon as tummies are settled, and wash cloths are cleaned I will be back to introduce the wonderfully talented artist for day 7.

xoxo
Canela

Winner for day 6

Another day of computer troubles! But the phone company says it's all taken care of now so we shouldn't have any more Internet problem!

With out further ado the winner for day six is....

Shanny!

Shanny e-mail me so I can get your info over to Sara and I can send out the necklace .

Day 7 will be posted in the evening!

On the 6th day of Christmas....

Day 6 of the 12 days of Christmas Giveaway!

Today meet Sara!
Sara is the amazing artist behind Sara B Illustration

Sara's Illustrations are ethereal, dreamy,full of life and hope, and simply Gorgeous!

I love that she draws Mermaids, Faeries, and Angels. In her SHOP sells originals, prints, stickers, bookmarks, cards and ornaments with her beautiful art work!

Tell us a little about yourself
I am a wife and a "mom" to our adorable and never ending needy cats Madeline and Talor. They always keep me on my toes. Other than all of the jobs I do (teaching, drawing, painting, etsy, etc.) I truly enjoy cooking and making up my own recipes. My husband and I get a lot of fun out of sitting back and watching movies too. You can also find me searching through etsy and online at other artists in my in between times. I have a very supportive and loving family on both sides who I love very much and a church family who I can't imagine my life without now. I feel very blessed with the life God has given me!

How did you get started painting and drawing?
This has always been a difficult question for me because I can't remember. My dad is an art teacher, and has always encouraged drawing with me. I think it started before I could retain memories...because I've known nothing different. Although, I think I truly took a hold of it as "something" when I was in 3rd or 4th grade when a friend at the time was drawing Belle from Disney's Beauty and the Beast. That inspired me to push my abilities.

As for painting, I always hated watercolor. My dad tried to teach me acrylic and it wasn't my medium. I stayed black and white with a graphite pencil till my junior/senior year of high school. I truly began to love watercolor right before college.

What is your favorite medium to work with?
As much as I love watercolor, my absolute favorite medium is and always will be pencil. Preferably, now that I've discovered it more deeply, colored pencil. It's much fuller to sketch with than a mechanical graphite.

What is your biggest goal for 2011?
My biggest goal is to get my paper work in order and better organize my time. I think secretly I like the chaos, but the forefront of my mind needs convincing. This past year I feel I've gotten pretty organized in my studio because I decided to take my Etsy shop a lot more seriously. Hopefully 2011 will be even more so.

Share a favorite Christmas memory.
So many to choose from! Yikes. I'll pick a more recent one. Two years ago we got together at my dad's (with mom, sister, bro in law, husband, dog, and me) for Christmas Eve. It's tradition to stay the night together and celebrate then. We had some pretty nasty weather out and as my mom showed up, unpacked her things, she realized she forgot the stockings for the fireplace. She lives 30mins away from my dad here in the city. She wasn't going to go back for them, although we ladies tried to convince the boys it would be an adventure for them. That didn't fly so we had to come up with something else. We decided to use plastic grocery bags, and I drew stockings on each one with a sharpie and wrote the persons name. It was so funny seeing all of these plastic bags hanging from the mantle. We joked about it being a hick Christmas, with us being from Iowa n' all. We have brought it up several times since and always laugh.

Today's winner will receive 4 of Sara adorable Christmas Fairy ornaments!!!

In addition to these little cuties, today's winner will receive my sweet little fine silver bird necklace :)

Now how can you win these lovely prizes?

You will receive one entry per each of the following.
~Head over to Sara's shop and then come back and leave a comment sharing your favorite Illustration of hers ( if you can pick just one?!!!)
~become of follower of this blog
~facebook about the giveaway with a link for others to find it
~Blog about the giveaway so others can get to know Sara
~add my button to your blog
~Become a Fan of Cinnamon*Sticks on Facebook

Be sure to leave one comment per entry. Lots of chances to win!!
Winner will be announced tomorrow before day 6 starts!
xoxo
Canela

Day 5 winner!

We had some technical difficulties with the computer this weekend but the giveaway is back up and running :)

The winner for Day 5 is Dana of TUTU Monkey!!

Congrats Dana!!! E-mail me to I can get you in contact with Sandi and send your little Queen bees buzzing your way ;)

Day 6 will be posted soon!!
xoxo
Canela

On the fifth day of Christmas...

Welcome to day 5 of the 12 days of Christmas Giveaway!

Today meet the fabulous crafty momma Sandi of Portabellopixie!


Sandi is not just an amazing seamstress, but the designer of the Portabellopixie fabric line, creator of adorable sewing patterns, author of "Sewing bits and Pieces", and salvager of vintage treasures.

Tell us a little about yourself
Me in a nutshell? I am an overly creative person with too many ideas. I love my family and faith. I am a foodie and love really good chocolate. I have severe OCD over some things, and am completely lackadaisical about others.. For example, we recently painted our bedroom and I went through 5 paint samples and debated for a week before deciding on the color. But not showering until noon and taking the kids to school in my pj's - meh. No biggie.

How did you get started crafting?
I fell into design purely out of a need to do something creative. I was working as a phlebotomist when my daughter was born. For me, sending her to day care wasn't an option, but I knew I needed to find a source of income to generate from home. I started sewing children's clothing in custom sizes, which led to a greater love of fabric. One day I decided to just give fabric design a try and luckily, it came quite easy to me.

What is your favorite medium to work with?
My process involves a mix of paper sketching, digital rendering and then physical color samples that I send off to the Michael Miller who then sends them to the printing mill. But I have to say my favorite part is the sketching on paper. I start with a Derwent sketching pencil and then layer in color with Copic Markers and Prismacolor pencils. Copic markers are a new find for me and I am in love.

What is your biggest goal for 2011
A few things happening for me in 2010 are the addition of stationary goods and fine art prints to my line-up of goodies. I would love to have a scrapbooking line of paper and have actually designed one. Here's to hoping. :)


Share a favorite Christmas memory.
I would have to say that the year I was married was a magical Christmas. We were married on December 19th, 2002 - so every year when Christmas rolls around, it is wonderful because of the Holiday spirit that is floating in the air, but it is extra special for us because it remind us of our marriage.

Sandi has been so kind to offer today's winner 2 of her new patterns and 3 yards of Fabric!

In addition to Sandi's amazing prize today's winner will receive 3 of my exclusive Queen Bee Keychians. You can keep one and give 2 to friends :)




Now how can you win these lovely prizes?

You will receive one entry per each of the following.
~Head over to Sandi's Website and then come back and leave a comment sharing your favorite of her fabric lines

~become a follower of Sandi's blog
~become of follower of this blog
~facebook about the giveaway with a link for others to find it
~Blog about the giveaway so others can get to know Sandi
~add my button to your blog
~Become a Fan of Cinnamon*Sticks on Facebook

Be sure to leave one comment per entry. Lots of chances to win!!
Winner will be announced tomorrow before day 6 starts!
xoxo
Canela

Winner for day 4!

Diane!!

Diane e-mail me so I can get your goodies out to you.


Day 5 is on it's way (as soon as I get Mr. grumpy down for a nap!)

xoxo
Canela

On the Fourth day of Christmas....

Day 4 of the 12 days of Christmas giveaway!

Today meet (drum roll please ;) Mindy Gledhill!!!!!

Mindy is the creative mind voice and sweet soul behind, well Mindy Gledhill! Her latest Album Anchor is probably one of my favorite albums EVER. I've never purchased an album before where I love ever single song, until I picked up Anchor.

There is something magical about Mindy's music. Like for a moment you can step back into your little girl shoes and dance and spin in the glittering sunshine on a spring afternoon.

Her songs are inspirational, up beat, and positive. I love listening to her with my kiddies, and it melts my heart when Nathaniel sings her songs in is two year old language.

Oh and I should mention much of your jewelry is made while I listen to Mindy and dance around my workbench, hammer and torch in hand. (yes I do keep a fire extinguisher handy)

I had the pleasure of hearing Mindy perform and meeting her twice! As if it isn't enough being an amazing singer, songwriter, musician, Mindy is spunky, down to earth, and so genuine!

Have I gushed enough? Let's get to know Mindy a little better in her own words...

Tell us a little about yourself

The Cliff's Notes version of my bio would be this: Mindy Gledhill is a bilingual, musical, holistic, design obsessed, tree hugging northern California native who now lives in Utah with her husband and two sons.

How did you get started singing?
I started singing when I was a kid. I could hear harmony in all things including the hum of the microwave and the honking horn of the family van. However, I didn't make the high school chamber choir, or musical; nor did I make Women's Chorus in college or Young Ambassadors. No extensive musical training. Some scattered piano and voice lessons and an unfinished music degree. Impressive, right?

What is your favorite song from your album?

My favorite song is "Circus Girl." The time signature is impossible to figure out but still very catchy. Try it!

What is your all time favorite song?

My all time favorite song is "Harvest Moon" by Neil Young. It has been for 20 years now.

What is your biggest goal for 2011?

My biggest goal is to get a few of my songs licensed to TV/Film. I actually just got Anchor licensed to an independent film, so I'm really excited about that. I'll still be working on more licensing opportunities though.

Share a favorite Christmas memory.

I get all choked up when I think back to Christmas morning in my childhood. We had one of those winding staircases and all nine of us kids would sit at the top in tremendous anticipation until Mom and Dad would give us the green light to see what Santa had brought. It was a crazy stampede down the winding staircase with a few casualties on the way down every time.

Thanks for having me as a guest! I love Canela's incredible jewelry. Merry Christmas everyone!Loves,
Mindy Gledhill

Mindy has signed a copy of Anchor for today's winner, and....

They will receive one of her fabulous organic cotton t-shirts, and.....

(photo of T borrowed from portobellopixie)

And today's winner will also receive my initial heart hand made bracelet with your choice of initial! Simple and sweet these little gals will be in my shop later today, I have several ready to ship!!


Now how can you win these lovely prizes?

You will receive one entry per each of the following.
~Head over to Mindy's website and Preview her album you can preview 3 of the songs!!

~Head over to You Tube and watch one of her videos

~become a Mindy Gledhill fan on Facebook

~become a follower of Mindy's blog
~become of follower of this blog
~facebook about the giveaway with a link for others to find it
~Blog about the giveaway for others to find it
~add my button to your blog
~Become a Fan of Cinnamon*Sticks on Facebook

Be sure to leave one comment per entry. Lots of chances to win!!
Winner will be announced tomorrow before day 5 starts!
xoxo
Canela

Winner for day 3

Is Blanca! Please e-mail me so I can get you in contact with Joy and send you your little bird :)

I'm finishing up day 4, you don't want to miss this one so come back by!!!!!!!

Day four is on it's way

xoxo

Canela

On the Third Day of Christmas....

Day 3 of the 12 days of Christmas Giveaway!!

Today meet Joy !

(how cute is she!)

Joy is the creative Genius behind Snazziedrawers.

Tell us a bit about you
I LOVE to create. When I am not creating I am thinking about creating. I have two darling little girls, Ava and Addy who make my life so richly blessed. My hubby quit his accounting job in 2010 to help me with the growth of my business. We have loved traveling around the country, emailing patterns on the laptop and me up to my knees in lace and silk sewing headbands in the passenger seat with our babies in the back of our fuel efficient car this year.

How did you get started Crafting?
I got started crafting when I was in junior high making cross stitched items for family members and remember how much I loved seeing my family enjoy their gifts for years to come.
I lost my crafting for years though and found it again when my daughter was born and I started scrapbooking her photos in collage art that really wasn't scrapbooking at all. Then I bought a sewing machine and my husband said it will be a year before you can sew a dress ya know. Ha ha. I am so stubborn. Go ahead and tell me I can't do it. So I finished the first dress about 22 hours later. Pretty hideous really but I had found my heaven on earth.

What is your favorite medium to work with?
My favorite medium in sewing is vintage hand embroidered lace, vintage rhinestones, and beautiful high quality silks.

What is your biggest goal for 2011
My biggest goal for 2011 is to be able to use photoshop and illustrator like a pro. I design pattern pieces in Illustrator and love to play with collage work in Photoshop layers now but I have a ton to learn in both!

Please share a favorite Christmas memory.
My favorite Christmas memory is strangely the year after my father passed away when I was 17. My mom decided to take my two younger brothers and I skiing and honestly it was our first time to really have any joy since he had passed. I remember a lot of tears up in those mountains without dad but lots of laughter and a very snowy, calm, serene Christmas. God was definitely with us that holiday.





Wouldn't your little princess look adorable in these Headbands? Meggie will be gussied up this Christmas with her vintage pink snazziedrawers headband and flowy pink dress.

In addition to making and selling headbands, Joy offers instructions on how to make them!!!!

Joy has been most generous to offer a $65 pattern Gift card to her shop, so you can make these beauties too!!!!

And because 2 prizes are always better than 1....
This sweet little bird will fly home to the winner of day 3!!
(I'll have these gals in my shop this weekend when the ready to ship goodies are listed)


Now how can you win these lovely prizes?

You will receive one entry per each of the following.
~leave a comment sharing your favorite item in the Joy's SHOP
~Mark Joy's shop in your etsy favorites (these are perfect for special event, or photos!!)
~become a snazziedrawers fan on Facebook
~become of follower of this blog
~facebook about the giveaway with a link for others to find it
~Blog about the giveaway for others to find it
~add my button to your blog
~Become a Fan of Cinnamon*Sticks on Facebook

Be sure to leave one comment per entry. Lots of chances to win!!
Winner will be announced tomorrow before day 4 starts!
xoxo
Canela