April In The Burbs

His first toy ever. Hopefully he never destroys this one haha.

When I think of the word handmade. I think of only one thing.  Love.  Love and maybe some passion thrown in there for good measure.  I believe you have to love what you're making, and put your heart and soul into it.  Love it like it were your own child. Because after all, every handmade item IS kind of like it's own person. It has personality and a story behind it. Real human hands touched it and made it and probably even were sad, yet happy, to see it go.  And you know what ? I love that there's talented people out in the world like Megan from Add Some Stitches on Etsy.  Sailor thinks I look mighty fine in my new handmade (with love) hat from Add Some Stitches !  Megan is one of those passionate people about what she does. She LOVES what she does - and you can truly tell that from her Etsy store, Add Some Stitches . She offers top quality handmade crochet hats, blankets, home decore and toys for you and your little one!  This is my serious pose. Cause I serio

 8th Continent Soy contacted me, asking me if I'd like to host another giveaway with them. Now how could I possibly turn them down ? I've been an avid 8th Continent Soy Milk drinker since early December, when I first worked with them. They're hosting this great contest below and asked me to share the details. "Until April 17, 2012, you can visit our Facebook Fan Page or our website and enter to win the grand prize of a five star luxury resort and spa getaway! You can also vote on responses in the forums, share feedback and tips and encourage one another. You also receive a $1.00 off 8th Continent Soymilk coupon just for entering! In addition to the Grand Prize of an all-expenses paid trip, 10 first prize winners will receive a $2,500 physical education program donation to a school of their choice. Twenty second prize winners will receive a $1,000 physical education program donation and 50 third prize winners will receive a $500 physical education program d

In our family, toys rule. And I know exactly what you're thinking 'But April, you don't have any kids.'.  No. No, I do not. But guess what ? EVERY adult in my family loves toys. We just can't help it. It's a fun way to connect with the kiddo inside that just refuses to grow up.  And what's cooler, is that these days, they're making toys for adults to enjoy as much as they make for kids !  Sunnydale Collectibles is JUST the place to find some awesome toys.  Bryan with Sunnydale Collectibles has teamed up with The Tattooed Type to offer a super awesome Harry Potter Themed prize pack !  Here's what you can win: A ComicCon Exclusive set of Weasley Twins busts from Gentle Giant, and two Snitch Antenna Ball Toppers ($70.00 Value) How to enter:  (Mandatory) 1. Like  Sunnydale Collectibles    on Facebook.  (Mandatory) 2. Follow The Tattooed Type via Google Friend Connect to the right >> (Mandatory) 3. Leave a comment below telling us w

Sheila's Place on Etsy a.k.a. Smitten Designs offers up a uniquely diverse collection of the most adorable custom pieces I have seen in a while.  I received this Hello Kitty Light Plate Cover for review:  Isn't she dapper with her signature bow ? Their website, www.Smitten-Designs.com has a lot more of their designs. If you want something specific, they can do absolutely anything! Any alma mater, High school logos or even pictures of your dogs ! Email with questions: Smitten.Designs@yahoo.com The certainly do more than just light switch covers!  They offer up an eclectic mix: Bottle cap, domino & scrabble tile necklaces Charm bracelets & charm necklaces Handmade jewelry - beaded necklaces, earrings & bracelets using semi-precious stones. Coasters & Art boxes You can see the last two at any of their shows around the Austin, Texas area - see their Calendar page ! Want to win your very own custom Light Plate Cover from Sheila's Place on

Since I promised Hubs I'd take it easy on the computer this weekend (and apparently wasn't very good at keeping that promise), I decided today shall be my day of rest !  Here's what you should be expecting this week:  Another review & giveaway - this time something for your home. I'm also expecting to do a couple of giveaways without reviews, where you can just come win some REALLY cool stuff.  Expect to find out about some kick-arse companies and products, and the cool people who produce them. Sailor says it's a lazy day, time to nap ! Get ready... you keep hearing that 2012 is going to be BIG for The Tattooed Type .  You have no idea ;)  Follow now to the right to save yourself the trouble later - you'll want to, trust me.

  Sailor Bear just LOVES new toys. What pet doesn't ? Shawna makes each toy by hand and when I showed him his new Squid Toy from Wags And Wiggles on Etsy, he just about lost his mind. Sailor LOVES his new Wags And Wiggles toy ! Adorable packaging, too ! Even the Wags And Wiggles business cards rock ! Shawna even sends Care Instructions for your new toy friend ! I mean, I can see why. It's a COOL toy, with lots of neat parts he can play with. He loves tossing it around or having me throw it and play fetch with it.  So as you can imagine, I was expecting him to go crazy over this new toy from Wags And Wiggles , and he did not disappoint.  The packaging made me smile. Very classy ! Now I'll tell you why *I* went crazy over his new Squid Toy from Wags And Wiggles .  It's made with excellent craftsmanship. The materials used are a nice canvas material. This is totally awesome because Sailor eats most of his toys within one hour of getting them. Not t

Congrats to cstironkat , who randomly won with the following post. Please email me your shipping address with in 48 hours & include "Neuter Day Giveaway Winner" in the subject line to have your prize shipped !   CONGRATS FROM SAILOR BEAR !!! cstironkat said... I follow you on GFC as cstironkat and I think it is important to spay and neuter pets because the shelters are full and so many are being destroyed. It also lessens aggression in pets and cuts down on their chance of getting cancer too. January 12, 2012 11:05 PM

Thanks so much, I will !! This post is to thank Vitabath & Influenster for this AWESOME Vitabath Brand Challenge Prize they sent me! I love you all too ! No wonder you've been in business for over 50 years, you treat your customers RIGHT ! One VERY happy girl. Thanks for the flower too, Vitabath ! I was so excited to get this in the mail. I'm going to have to beat my Husband & other family member off with a stick ! Showed pictures of everything I got in to my Mom & she was like "Ooh, I want to use that one, that one & that one.". I have a feeling I'm going to be the envy of all my friends when they see this post !  You have no idea...SO happy !!   Thanks once again to Vitabath & Influenster for this awesome prize. I truly treasure it !

You may currently know them as SendaFrizbee.com - however, they just changed their name to SendaFlyingCard.com ! Bet you didn't know THAT, did you ? Well now you do ? Hey..what can I say ? I'm here to help.  What is a Flying Greeting Card? "It's a replacement for a greeting or birthday card, but so much better!!!  An original Flying Greeting from SendaFlyingCard.com is a completely customized full-sized plastic disc ( approx. 9 1/4 inches round weighing 100 grams ) that will be mailed for you in place of a greeting card or invitation, no envelope and no packaging, just the Flying Greeting.  It is a card and a gift, all in one!!!  You completely customize the Flying Greeting for your recipient with your own message ( unlike a greeting card ) and you can even add a picture for free" Now, on to the Review !  Sailor gives it a solid 5 out of 5 stars ! When I got this amazing hot pink awesomeness in the mail, I knew *exactly* who it was from & I

Hey ladies & gents, this will just be a quick, quick post. A little update from Yours Truly :) Yours Truly - April a.k.a. ME ! I've been working with some small businesses and larger companies on doing more Reviews & Giveaways . If you, or anyone you know, has a business or product you need Reviewed, just contact me here.   We can also work on a Giveaway together. In fact, MANY of the Reviews I have coming up also include Giveaways :) Feel free to email me or leave a comment on this post (you can also Tweet me @TheTattooedType ) if you have any questions.  I look forward to hearing from everyone as well as introducing you all to some mighty fine products and services. 2012 promises to be BIG for The Tattooed Type , so be sure to follow along to the Right >>> & join in the fun ! Sailor says "I'm cute ! Follow this blog to see more of my cuteness!" Good job, Saysay, couldn't have said it better myself ;) - A

When I was a little girl, I used to collect all sorts of things. For a while it was stamps, then I got into coin collecting for a very short time. I would just randomly find things that attracted me to them, calling me to 'Come...collect me...start a new random collection...'. Then I got into keychains. I would collect ANY cool keychain I could find. My family members would donate their old ones, every time we'd go somewhere special or new, I'd pick up a little keychain to remember my trip by. Let me tell you, that darn keychain collection got hella huge ! I have no idea what made me initially get obsessed with collection keychains. I think it's because they were small, and typically cheap and I could hook them onto one another and make a huge keychain garland out of them. And then proceed to decorate my room with it, or hang it over my bed so I could look at all my little treasures I'd worked so hard to collect. As I got older, I got out of collecting them.

His name is Frodo. He is quite nice.

A little while ago, I wrote a post called " My Mentos Pure Fresh Moment " as an entry for an Influenster & Mentos sponsored contest. Influenster would pick the 3 'best' entries & post them for everyone to vote on.  Guess what lucky lady is a finalist ? :) :) YAY !!  I'd LOVE it if my awesome blog followers would go vote for me !  You will need a Google + account . If you already have a Google email address, you already have Google + . You just have to look for the link on the main Google page at the top right to get started. Once you've got your Google + account set up (it's super easy, just follow the instructions), then click HERE and find my contest entry.  It's the one with the Mentos Gum Pack & Wedding Rings.  Like this !   Once you see the little +1 tab under my entry (April's), that's it ! If you'd also like to share the post on your Google + account, I'd be forever grateful !!  Add me also ! I want to m