storewide discount

It's one week until my birthday.  That can only mean one thing if you read yesterday's entry.  The storewide discount has begun, peeps!  Here's what you do to get the 27% discount.

1.  Go to the LBT Store.
2.  Add as many items to your cart as you can/want/need to purchase.  Easter is coming up soon so don't forget gifts for your loved ones.
3.  Checkout and enter in the code:  thebig27 (and update total).
4.  Wait for your purchases to arrive.

It's as easy as 1, 2, 3, 4.

Thanks for helping me celebrate my 27th birthday!

it's a celebration with a discount

It's getting close...VERY CLOSE.

My birthday weekend is next weekend.  eek!  How old will I be?  Well, older than I feel I should be.  I still think of myself as a 17ish year old.  It's crazy to to think I am another year old.  Sadly once I hit 21, all birthday years have been not-so-thrilling.  I have enjoyed my celebrations though...just not the new number that I turn.

To kick off my birthday week through the birthday weekend (that's 10 days of celebrating!), I am doing a discount store-wide!  (Get excited people!)  You too can celebrate my wonderful, new number by getting a 27% discount in the LBT Store.  (And yes, I will be 27.  3 away from 30.  Not too thrilled about that at all.)

Don't forget that Easter is roughly 3 weeks away and your loved ones would love an ellebeeTee Originals gift.

I will post the discount code on the blog and facebook page on Thursday evening. 

Happy Shopping!

and happy 27th birthday to me on April 8.  :)

Spring Fever in action

Yesterday I was feeling extremely spring-y.  I decided to change out my front door decor from

this

my Valentine-slash-St. Patty's Day door decor

to

this.

my Spring-slash-Easter door decor

ellebeeTee wreaths look great on your front door celebrating that special time of the year...whatever season.

Have you ordered yours yet?

the series continues: kitchen curtains

Another weekend and no new products for viewing.  It has been a bit hectic lately so there is a good excuse for not showing anything new today.  I have been in a "remodel the house" kind of mood though.  Weird.  So to honor that mood, the series (y'know the series that began with unique picture frame) continues with our homemade kitchen curtains!

When we bought our house in May 2009, I wasn't too excited about the bay (like) windows in the kitchen.  I have never really liked bay windows anyway.  They remind me of something straight up from the 80s.  And I am not a fan of fashion, trends, and ESPECIALLY music (unless it's country music) from the 80s.  I know, I am weird.  Here is what I was working with...

This was after we had painted it a guacamole green, which I LOVE!!!!  My husband wasn't too thrilled about it, but it sure does beat it being white which it was when we moved in.  How boring.  Plus we have navy blue countertops.  Again not my first choice, but they have grown on me.  They look great with my kitchen decor and colors (green, blue, orange, and yellow).  Now back to the curtains...

I knew that I wanted something different from the rest of the house when it came to window dressings for the kitchen.  The only window in the house that had blinds on it when purchased was the tiny window in the master bathroom.  We had bought blinds for 7 of the windows so blinds were out in the kitchen.  I wanted the kitchen to stand out and be different.  I was leaning more towards roman shades, because I wanted something to cover the entire window at night-time.  I get MAJORLY freaked out at night when the windows are open thinking that someone is looking in.  Creepy.

Do you know how much roman shades cost?!  Not to mention 3 custom roman shades?!  And do you know how much a cheap-o I am?!  A special thanks goes to my mom for giving the inspriation to make my very own kitchen curtains.  And voila!

My custom kitchen curtains.  I made all 3 for around $25!  Very thrifty.  Here's the breakdown:

-one bed spread of fabric from Urban Outfitters:  clearanced to $4.99

-3 spools of navy ribbon from Hobby Lobby:  $2.00 each (they were 50% off)

-Liquid Stitch from Hobby Lobby:  $2.50 (also 50% off)

-3 tension rods from Wal-Mart:   $3.97 each (11.91 total)

Grand Total:  $25.40 plus tax

 

I am not much of a sewer so it was MUCH easier to use Liquid Stitch instead of my sewing machine.  It wasn't until over a year later when I actually used the sewing machine to make our master bedroom curtains. 

 

Enjoy!

c'mon, I know you want to

Have you "liked" the ellebeeTee Originals page on facebook yet?  Come to think of it...are you a follower of the blog?  Y'know...are you listed over there?  ~~~>

If not, you need to do both.  Lucky likers and followers will be jumping for joy....very soon.

a new series and a background

Get ready.  Get set.  It's time for the weekly update featuring LBT!  I know you are completely pumped about this.  It has to be the highlight of your week, because it sure is mine.

I don't have anything new to introduce today to the store.  However, that doesn't mean that I don't have ideas and crafts bought for future items.  I also have been getting quite a few "special" requests for items that aren't in the LBT Store.  To that I say...keep 'em comin'!  I love to try something new especially if it something that you want to see me make.  You can email those special requests to my email:  info{at}lbtoriginals{dot}com.

Since there's no new products today, I thought I would introduce a new series to the blog called "Other items that I have made in order to show you how crafty I am."  The title is kinda wordy and I am looking to shorten it just a touch.  At any rate, we are living in money-tight times.  With gas beginning to skyrocket again causing groceries and other essentials items to increase as well, we are all looking for inexpensive ways to live and give.  (This is why I begin the year's Christmas shopping on December 26th.  You can get some of the best deals and spread it out over the course of the year to trick your wallet.)  With that said, I need to give a small background to who I am. 

Hi, I am Leslie (aka LBT).  As a young child, I was never the thrifty one.  If I had a dollar to spend, I was looking for something to buy whether it was a Lisa Frank pencil or a pack of gum.  As I have grown, I learned to respect what a dollar stood for and not just any dollar:  a hard-earned dollar.  My college years taught me a thing or 2 about that.  I graduated from Auburn University with a degree in Finance.  I am all about money since those 4 years focused on the study of money and how to invest and make it multiply.  I must say that I am not very good when it comes to knowledge about investments such as stocks, bonds, 401k, IRAs, etc.  I know just about as much as the average person.  However, I do know how to look for the best deals and crafts items out of those deals.  And here I am sharing those tips and ideas with you. 

My first featured item is a gift that I made for a one year old girl.  Because I have 3 dog children and no human children, I am not the best at knowing what toys or clothing items children of any age need/want/should have.  Plus I knew that this little girl would be getting a lot of toys and clothes (which is wonderful), but I had a fear of duplicating a gift.  And me being me, I wanted to give something different and meaning full to the little girl's mother since she is a close friend of mine.  So I came up with a picture gift...

Basically the whole point was to have a picture frame that could match Farley's room and could be easily interchanged with newer and more current pictures. 

The frame is an 8x10 black from Hobby Lobby, which was about $8 to $10.  If you are looking for some decorative or even plain frames, they have the best selection and prices.  They mark them down to 50% on a regular basis.  What a great deal!  The background paper is a sheet that I found in the clearance section at Hobby Lobby.  I think it was maybe 10 cents.  You can also use wrapping paper or tissue paper...just whatever is lying around the house will work.  Then I traveled over another craft aisle at (you guessed it Hobby Lobby) and found these cute stick-on letters.  I think they were about $5 for a pack, but I am sure you can find other less expensive letterings at Wal-mart or even make your own!  The last touch was a 19 cent 4x6 picture that I stole off the mother's fb page.  sneaky.  And there you go!  You have an inexpensive and personable gift for a loved one or for yourself.

Thanks for joining me.  I will keep crafting and you keep reading.

Justice Sacrifice Patriot: my contribution

For a long time I have felt like I needed to help out.  What could I do to show my support?  I want to give, but it is hard to send hundreds of dollars.  Times are tough.  If there was a way that I could make something and show my support and give, then I could make that work.  And it came to me:  the Justice Sacrifice Patriot Wreath (also known as the "JSP" wreath).

Some of your may or may not know that my brother-in-law is currently serving our country.  He is in the 720 EOD unit which is currently deployed.  His job is to disarm bombs, not one of the safest jobs in the miliary in the least.  He is awesome at what he does. 

Then there is my sister.  She is awesome at being his support system.  She has never lived anywhere but at home and when they married, she had to move close to halfway around the world to Mannheim, Germany to be with him.  Is that dedication/love or what?

This is how my thought process started.  I mean I am related to "awesomeness".  Here I am living in the good ol' Alabama being an average citizen.  What could I do to help them out?  What could I do to help out his unit?  What could I do help out the men and women who currently give their life for you and me every day just so we can have our freedom?  That's when I thought of making a military line:  a wreath and Hair Blooms.  It's not much, but it is more than just sitting at home taking advantage of being an American.  The "JSP" line honors my brother-in-law, Josh, and his unit. 

Justice Sacrifice Patriot "JSP" Hair Blooms

 Justice Sacrifice Patriot "JSP" Wreath

Half of every sale from the "JSP" line will go directly to the 720 EOD Unit FRG Fund.  This fund is set up to directly support these soldiers and their families.  My sister told me a heartbreaking story about how thousands of dollars were supposed to be raised last year for the fund, but the events (ie bake sales, etc) never happened for whatever the reason.  Their unit is without most of the needed funds.  I hope you will help me support the 720 EOD Unit by purchasing an item (or 2) from the military "JSP" line. 

If you would like to contribute any other way to the 720 EOD Unit, please contact me at info{at}lbtoriginals{dot}com.



sooner than you think

Have you made your first ellebeeTee Originals purchase yet?
No?
What are you waiting on?

Oh, I know.  Stay tuned.  Your first purchase might be sooner than you think.

(Did that sound too creepy?  What I meant to say was that you will want to make your first purchase once you see what is to come.)

the giveaways of all giveaways

Have you heard?  Have you seen?  Peggy Ann Design is celebrating Month of Hannah.  It's all about Hannah from February 14th to March 14th (with the celebration of Valentine's Day, her birth, and her anniversary).  That is a lot of celebrating, but I can't blame her.  My birthday is always a week long.  It is more like a birthweek instead of birthday.  (Come to mention it...we have just over a month until my birthweek.  Now that has me thinking...hmmm.)

So in honor of the celebrations, is currently having the giveaways of all giveaways and ellebeeTee Originals is participating!  You can win a $15 store credit to the LBT Store.  How awesome is that?  uh, VERY!  So make sure you follow directions and make a comment.  While you are there check out the the precious makings of Hannah.  You will not be disappointed.  I even own one of her creations and I love it!

my husband, Daniel, and me. 

See!  Look at the cute pom-pom pin, a Peggy Ann Design original.