Thursday, July 22, 2010

slumber party { part 13 } : who are your top 3 beach party dates?



vintage postcard via Savannahsmiles4U
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don't you just love a slumber party? comfy pjs, silly movies, telling your friends, old & new, your thoughts & crushes & dreams.... such fun! join us! you can catchup with some of our other slumber party fun here: and for today's party question: who are your top 3 beach party dates?
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tomorrow i'm having a beach party!

can't wait to see you all there!
tune in to see the beautiful handmade outfits everyone's decided to wear. but today, i wanna know: who's your celebrity date to our beach party?

only rule:
---> they have to be at least a little bit famous. sorry - real hubbies or wives or girlfriends or boyfriends need not apply!

so think: which of your celebrity crushes would be the funnest to invite?
who would you love to spend a beach party day {frolicking in the sand & waves!} & night { think bonfire cuddling! } with?

{shhhh.. don't tell mr.rikrak! :) }

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george clooney
*swoon*
i'll take george for quiet walks & talks along the shore. we'll chat about humanitarian efforts & laugh laugh laugh as the sun sets!

i blush just thinking of it!

i think george would love to attend with sand n' surf on the itinerary: we know he loves his lake-side villa in italy and i see yachting photos of him all the time in cyber world.

in fact, here's a photo of him arriving just now by boat for all of our beach party fun!


did i mention... *swoon*?



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young robert redford
ah, my quintessential california coast boy.

i think he'll likely arrive for our beach party galloping down the beachy shore on a horse, and he'll be perfect for building the bonfires, and fun evening chats about film festivals, the world. you know.... anything....

good heavens!

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josh holloway
heck - he survived & thrived on a beach for years on the show lost as james *sawyer* ford.

so i think he'll be a perfect beach party date!


and just incase any scary beach party mishaps arise (like those thugs from the original karate kid movie showing up to fight ralph macchio on motorbikes!) we'll all feel safe with him protecting us!

*sigh*




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okay! so i've confessed!

there are my choices for top 3 beach party dates!

now... let's snuggle into our cozy sleeping bags, open another bag of sour cream & onion chips, crank up the *beach boys*, put another log on the beach-side bonfire, giggle & whisper and hear yours! can't wait!

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Wednesday, July 21, 2010

my friends giveaway!



yay to new friends!
while i'm out meeting my fabulous new neighbours, thought we'd have a little cyberly neighbourhood party here on the blog!

a few months ago i started compiling a thanks to
my lovely handmaking & vintage-finds friends! now you can WIN a $20 gift certificate to any one of their lovely lovely shops! you choose the shop!

AND better yet... you & your fun fun handmaking or vintage or supplies shop can get added to the fun, too!
{fun free advertising for ya!} just click here to find out how to add your shop!

i'll be updating the list of shops every day and rotating the order, too, for maximum exposure!



and yes - participants can play, too!
and now... the prize....
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::






:::::::::::: the prize ::::::::::::
a fabulous $20.00 gift certificate from me to YOU to spend in
ANY ONE of the e-shops below.


that's right... one lucky winner will get to spend the prize in any one of the e-shops participating.



1. visit my lovely friends' shops.
just click on the etsy mini's below to go to the shops!

come back here and tell us YOUR FAVE item and why you love it from each shop you visit.

PLEASE NOTE: ------> YOU can visit up to 10 different shops!
= up to 10 entries!

the shops are:



























































































































































































































































































































































































2. in the spirit of friends, tell us about one of your dearest pals.
& why you love them!
= 1 entry


3. what makes a great friend, in your book?
i'd love to hear your thoughts!
= 1 entry


4. come follow or subscribe to my little blog
(please note: to win this particular giveaway you
must be a rikrak studio follower or subscriber! thanks nicies!)
and join the fun everyday! = 1 entry
please leave me a comment about it.

5. tweet about this giveaway
= up to 2 entries (one for each tweet!)
and come back here and tell me about it. please include my twitter account in the update: i'm @therikrakshop on twitter!)

6. follow me on twitter
i'm @therikrakshop
= 1 entry

7. blog about the giveaway
and tell me about it here.
= 1 entry

8. do a facebook update
about the giveaway with a link, and tell us here = 1 entry

9. please just make sure that each entry is its own comment!

.................................

RULES:


a) it is possible to have numerous entries total per person.
b) please make sure to leave each entry as it's own comment. thanks!
c) for this particular giveaway, YOU MUST BE A RIKRAK studio follower or subscriber to WIN,
old or new! thanks!

d) the winner of this giveaway will be chosen from random.org on
friday, august 6th @ 9pm EST.

e) please be sure to leave me an email where i can reach you if your account doesn't link to one. thanks.
f) thanks so much everyone! and thanks for visiting the blog!

............................

yay to great friends, old & new!
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Tuesday, July 20, 2010

congrats!



a happy happy congrats to lucky #119: liz, love who has won my fun little summertime craft pack!

thanks so much to everyone who entered, and i loved reading what you'd make with the goodies if you won!
liz finds such fabulous images for her glittery blog. check it out!

and still one more day to enter to WIN the july sponsors' shopping spree! weeee!
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come advertise with the rikrak studio blog!


happy summertime, sunshines!

i just love my sponsors!

i'm so thankful for their kind and crafty support each month! and i'm just delighted with how things are going & growing here on the blog with you lovelies. thank you.

so in honour of SUMMER! (yay!) and SAVINGS! (yay!) i'm very happy to be offering a few new ad spots for August at a very special savings price of just $20 per month! WOW!

i only have a few spots left but i wanted everyone to know about the celebratory fun!

if you feel that your shop, group or blog would be a good fit with the rikrak studio blog feel & focus, please email me at ---> rikrakmail @ yahoo.com <--- .

there's lots of continued fun coming up on the blog this summer: funfun guests, more fabulous giveaways you're not going to want to miss, great games, fantastic features and, as always, a few extra fun surprises, too. being part of the fun is a great way to boost sales, gain exposure and build your little business in the handmade community, too!


i'm a handmaker & mommy and know it's a challenging economic time out there...
so i always try to keep the rates nice & reasonable.


i also love designing ads for folks that need them, too.
so just let me know if i can help!

so come & be part of the fun!
thanks so much, lovelies!
and yay yay yay to summer!
k.
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Monday, July 19, 2010

home

home sweet home
as long as you are here with me,
this will feel like home

home is where the heart is
let's stay home

...............

we're home, nicies!
thanks for all of the well wishes.
the move was filled with fun adventures {& mis-adventures!} , great friends and family helping all around, safe travels and funny-nutso-ness that will make for great memories & laughs down-the-road! :)

i've been thinking so much on the idea of *home* of late.
home is many splendored thing, indeed.
i feel so fortunate to have a safe, happy, loving place to call home. we're so lucky for that.

thought some great art might say it best.

and i'll see you tomorrow for some
happy congratulations/winning names,
and fun new goodness.

til then...
don't forget to enter the sponsors' shopping spree giveaway
(ends wednesday!)
and
add your fun outfit to the *beach party challenge!*

woohoo home!

what says *home* for you?

.................

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Friday, July 16, 2010

saying goodbye




this is it!


we move this weekend.
so in the immortal words of the muppets... it's time for saying goodbye.

gosh... goodbyes can be so hard sometime, huh?

so instead... a little song for you, nicies.


see you monday, from our new town & new home.

wishing you great new things this weekend, nicies!
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Thursday, July 15, 2010

what do you love in a neighbourhood?


pretty peapod writes: "I live in a charming little neighbor hood in Michigan. Grand River City. It is a historic district abundant in beautiful parks and trails. My home is an old farmhouse built in 1909. Grapevines and gardens abound. You will often find me outside with dirt under my fingernails, chasing little children and picking herbs. I love my little sub-urban paradise."

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what do you love in a neighbourhood?
i asked last year here and here, and i'm delighted to share some of the wise & wonderful sentiments you shared, nicies.

i will so fondly remember our wonderful neighbourhood here in ottawa when we move: it’s so pedestrian-friendly, family-friendly, has a great sense of community, offers access to amazing parks, recreational fun, lovely little spots to grab a teaparty, & amazing schools! i love it!

and i can't wait to be part of our next wonderful neighbourhood! woohoo!
just a few more days!


tell me about your neighbourhood, on soil or cyber-wise!
what makes a great neighbourhood for you?
i’d love to hear!




i heart that dance writes: " It's funny, I don't really live in a "neighbourhood" anymore, but for the first time EVER I feel like I've got neighbours! When we were in {another city}, there were tons of people in a 100 meter radius that I never ever met or barely talked to as we drove to work every day. But now that the next house over is four football fields away I come home to new green beans tied to my doorknob straight from the garden "next door", a knock on my door means the lady three farms down wants me to try out her cranberry muffins (MUCH better than someone trying to sell me better natural gas prices) and the guy one farm over plowed my driveway with his tractor every time it snowed last winter (and yes, pulled me out of a ditch once LOL).

When we moved out here I wondered if I'd be lonely without a "neighbourhood". Turns out you just need neighbours :)"

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AEBDesign writes : "I live in the historic district of Hot Springs, AR. My house is a late Victorian. Our street runs around the base of a mountian that is part of Hot Springs National Park. The back of my property actually backs up to the park. We get fox, roadrunners, deer, etc in our yard. We live about 3 blocks from downtown. Hot Springs was the first area specifically set aside to preserve a local environment- the natural hot and cold springs. We are the only city that has the official postal code with "National Park". Tony Bennett sang "I Left My Heart In San Francisco" for the first time here. Al Capone used to reserve an entire floor at one of the local hotels and he had secret tunnels under the city to escape the coppers. Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, various presidents, and many athletes vacationed here "to take the waters". Its a small town (less than 50,000 people) but it is a pretty cool mix of the wilderness and the city."

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donna writes: " I live just down the road from you (Hi, Neighbour!) and agree - the pedestrian nature of the 'hood is so super wonderful. HUGE reason why we bought our house here."

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GildedCageDesign writes: "My neighborhood has streets lined with palm trees. It is full of historic houses. We know most of our neighbors which is 140 houses in the sub division. The neighborhood is called "El Encanto" and was originally founded by a CA company. My house was the first built so a model if you will. No home could be built in El Encanto for under 10K in the 1920's. I love my neighborhood.

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beenadolls writes: " I live in a rural area in the lower peninsula of Michigan.Our house is on 20 acres at the end of a long driveway,not visible from the road,which is a main road with lots of traffic.Being so far from the road gives us lots of privacy though,and at night it's so nice to hear the tree frog choirs and the crickets (as long as the latter aren't in the house)

We are smack in the middle of farm country,lots of rolling hills with hay fields,corn fields and many,many beautiful big trees,mostly pines,oaks,and poplars."

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meanoldbags writes: "For the most part, I love my neighborhood and most of my neighbors - we are close and adore our chatty mailman. We watch out for each other - celebrate holidays and milestones together - and support one another in times of sadness and need. We are blessed to live in a lush heavily wooded area near Forest Park in Portland Oregon - simply gorgeous! I left most of my blood relatives when I moved here from Colorado - but now I have my Oregon family, I love it. No neighborhood is perfect, but a lot depends on what you make of it:)"

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bloomsburygroup writes: "I like privacy, but like being able to say 'hello' when I walk down the street! I live in an English village. We are close to the sea and have the South Downs behind us in the distance!" The local shops and people exude a community feel, and still a little old fashion, which is great! "

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ellenray writes: " I live just outside a small midwest town in the country. There are several houses that we can see from our house(before the corn gets too high), and we're friendly with about half of our neighbors. We have a woods and river behind our house, and lots of crops everywhere else. It's a great place to raise kids!"

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WryAndGinger writes: " I used to live downtown where there was always something going on. Poo"

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elanknits writes: " I live in a great neighbourhood. We've got a library, stores, schools & restaurants all in our own little center - Wortley Village - that we can walk to. We're close to downtown London and Old South has lots of character. Beautiful walks, whether you like to check out the wildlife along the river or the interesting architecture (from century homes to ultra modern). We have a variety of festivals through the summer, which officially starts in Old South on the first weekend of June when we have the annual Gathering on the Green."

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scenicartisans writes: " what i love in a neighborhood is-
-is it walkable?

-are the neighbors friendly?
-is there mass transit?
-is there stuff to do and be inspired by nearby?


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ColorfulCasual writes: "My neighborhood is heavily wooded with tulip poplar trees. A road winds through it, and about 40 families live here. Idyllic, especially in the heat of the summer! We've literally got it made in the shade!!"

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ElloPoppet writes: "I live in the village of Manorhaven in Port Washington, NY. It's mostly 2-3 family houses, lots of pink flowering trees & yellow daffodils, and yellow, red, & purple tulips. Many types of people & families throughout the area. The streets are all alphabetically placed wood streets (Kirkwood -> Linwood -> Marwood, etc). There's a yacht club & boat docking area, and a lovely park with softball fields, tennis courts, and other recreational amenities. I'm within walking distance from the best Sangria I've ever had, as well as my morning coffee, though that is usually obtained on the way to the train station, which is about 8 minutes away. Hubby works in Manhattan, which is about 45 minutes away via Long Island Rail Road, straight into Penn Station. Lucky for me, he works in the Fashion District, so I can tag along occasionally and buy goodies for my craft projects. I'm originally from California and have only been here for just over a year, but I quite like it. I survived my first winter with snow, and even that didn't make me want to move away."

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chicki writes: "Here is why I love my neighbourhood. I love to live in a rural neighbourhood. I love the open space and the close knit community we have all created here. I love the freedom of living in the country."

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tofunutloaf writes: "My neighborhood is really chill. Most of the houses were built in the 1920s, it's close to downtown, and it's really green right now. It definitely straddles some socio-economic lines as well, and no one cares if you hang your underdrawers out in the back yard to dry.

I dig it. "


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