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Support Women in Business: Welcome Lucinda from Scentsy!

ScentsyWelcome Lucinda Faragher from Scentsy to the NEW Direct Sales Directory!

The brand new Direct Sales Directory will be launching soon – {Click the new tab in the navigation bar to learn more about it!} – and while I’m still in the process of building it, I’d like to introduce you to some of the AMAZING women who will be a part of it!

Coming Soon!!

My new Direct Sales Directory will soon be a great place for you to check out a bunch of different options, and find the company that is right for you! All of the women joining are total pro’s, and can answer your questions, and get you started on your way to success! Plus, what a great way to support other women in business – Do your holiday shopping by ordering amazing products directly from these great ladies!

Why Direct Sales?

Direct Sales is SUCH a great option for busy moms – you have total flexibility on your hours, which is so important. Whether you want to earn a part-time income, or build a full-time career for yourself, the sky is the limit! And when you shop from a Direct Sales Rep, you are able to use your purchasing power to help other great women in business!

Meet the First Member of the Direct Sales Directory – Lucinda Faragher!

Are you a candle lover?  Have you tried Scentsy yet? Maybe you’ve seen or heard the name but haven’t had the time to find out what its all about.  Well now’s your chance!

Scentsy candles are flameless, soot-free, candles that use a low-watt bulb to melt over 80+ wonderful flavors of wax. Everything from Pumpkin Marshmallow to Black Raspberry Vanilla.  In addition to being safer then traditional candles Scentsy candles are more economical -Scentsy bars costs $5 and contain as much fragrance as most 12oz jar candles at a fraction of the cost lasting 60-80 hours.

Host a Party to get FREE products!

Check out my website at lucindaf.scentsy.us and browse the complete catalog.  Before you order consider hosting a party – and getting your warmer at half-price or for free.  It only takes a party order of $150 to earn $15 towards any Scentsy product + 1/2 off an additional item.

Join the Scentsy Team – and Start Earning!

Are you looking to earn some extra income while staying at home with the kids? Scentsy was named the number one consumer products company on the 2010 Inc. 500 list.  I have twin girls and a 4 year old and Scentsy has provided me with a creative outlet that I enjoy and some extra spending money.  Its the perfect time of year to buy, host or join with the holidays around the corner.

For more information:

Email me for more information at lucinda.faragher@comcast.net. Also like my Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/lucindaloveswickless for all the latest info and deals.

What do you think?

Who else looooves Scentsy products? To be honest, I was a bit skeptical at first – I have a ton of candles, why would Scentsy be any different? But myohmy! I made my first purchase at an open house about 8 months ago – and I am in LOVE! The bars last so darn long, so they are totally a great value. And I love that I can leave a warmer plugged in all day long, not like a candle that can only burn for a couple of hours. So – if you’re ready to learn more, contact Lucinda today, and tell her you saw her on Sunshine and Sippy Cups!

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A Complete Nursery for $526 Bucks? Learn How…

Free American Baby Magazine

Free Years Subscription to BOTH Magazines!

Get a totally free subscription to AmericanBaby magazine –  this is another one of those great magazines that always have loads of great coupons in each issue. The other is Baby Talk Magazine, which you can get free too!

Why I love them…

Of course I love the coupons and savings. But there’s also so many great articles – I learn something new in EVERY issue of these mag’s – plus, I usually can totally relate to the questions people ask, and the funny parenting stories. As a stay at home, working at home, meaning seldom leaving the house MOM, I love to hear that others are going through the same stuff!

A few favorites from this months issue of American Baby:

  • Health: What so say when teaching your tot, the perfect serving cup for baby bites, and how to spot a developmental delay – {hint, it can show up as early as 6 months!}
  • The $526 Complete Nursery: Learn how they put together EVERYTHING you need for baby with super frugal finds, but still made it adorable. They included a crib, glider rocker, changing table – and all the fun accessories – all just over $600!
  • Mom to Mom: Each issue has the opinions of real moms on issues we deal with daily! Love to read these comments.

Holiday Savings!

If you’re not getting either of these yet, subscribe today! They are both thinner mag’s, and do have a lot of ads. But honestly, as a first-time mom, I love ads, because I’m always wanting to see what new stuff is out there. And bonus – most of their ads have coupons and online coupon codes too. Especially with the holidays coming up… Last year there were $10 off at Amazon coupons in there!!

Love the content – love the savings – love that they’re both a quick guilty pleasure when they come in the mail – love that they’re both FREE! 

Why be the only one missing out? Subscribe to both for FREE today! You’ll get diaper coupons, learn about the coolest new baby gadgets, and more!

Love my Frugal Tips??

Coupon Blogger ContestGive me a vote today, and help me get a job as a Coupon Blogger over at Cheap Sally!!

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Super Simple Peek-a-Boo Cookies!

Pook a Boo Cookies

Can you say, Yummm??

This is from the super fun, super easy, super frugal-friendly recipes over at Mr. Food! I’m such a fan of the Mr. Food cookbooks, that’s definitely my style of cooking – simple and quick! I’ll share some ways to get bunches of his recipes FREE in a minute, but first – lets get to the important part of the post, how to make these amazing cookies….

These bakery-worthy homemade sandwich-style Peek-a-Boo cookies have yummy jam that peeks out from holes in their sugar-coated tops. Whether you make ’em to enjoy at home or for a bake sale, these will go fast!

Peek-a-Boo Cookies

Makes: 4 dozen cookies
Cooking Time: 10 min

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup jam or preserves (see Options)
  • 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, with an electric beater on medium speed, beat butter, granulated sugar, egg, vanilla, and salt until creamy. Gradually add flour, beating until well mixed. Cover and chill 1 hour.
  2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
  3. Divide dough into 4 pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll out each piece to 1/8-inch thickness. Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out circles and place 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Using a plastic drinking straw, randomly cut out circles of dough from half the cookies.
  4. Bake cookies 10 to 12 minutes, or until light golden. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.
  5. Spread jam evenly over solid cookies. Sprinkle remaining cookies with confectioners’ sugar. Place the cookies with holes over the jam-topped cookies. Serve, or store in an airtight container.

Busy Mom Tips:

  • In a hurry? Or, like me, and hate getting out a mixer? Use a refrigerated cookie dough instead!
  • These cookies are delicious and adorable! Try putting out a plate of these along with mugs of steaming cider. Mmmm…..
  • Any flavor jam can be used, but we like to use an assortment so there are different colors peeking through the holes in the cookies.
  • You can also make these with frosting, chocolate syrup, caramel sundae topping… Get creative!

Love it?

Super simple, super yummy, and they are just so cute and fun – perfect for holiday entertaining, or to give as gifts.

Get the FREE Recipe Books!

Sign up for these great free recipe books, and you’ll also be able to get the once a week FREE newsletter from them too – filled with really fun ideas. That’s actually where I got this cookie recipe from!

  • Free eCookbook – Mr. Food Best Brunch Recipes: 29 Easy Brunch Recipes to Celebrate Any Occasion, featuring 45 pages of easy Easter recipes for entertaining! Click Here.
  • Free eCookbook – Blue Ribbon Casseroles: 23 Easy Casserole Recipes, featuring 31 pages of easy casserole recipes to comfort you all year ‘round. Click Here.
  • Free eCookbook – No Bake Desserts: 18 Easy Dessert Recipes from Mr. Food, a tempting collection of triple-tested quick and easy no bake recipes, features all of your favorite no bake desserts – no oven required! Click Here.
Thanks for reading! Have a great day…..
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An easy {and FREE!} way to get monthly coupons, freebies, and baby advice!

Another FREE Baby Magazine!

Get a totally free subscription to AmericanBaby magazine –  this is another one of those great magazines that always have loads of great coupons in each issue. The other is Baby Talk Magazine, which you can get free too!

Holiday Savings!

If you’re not getting either of these yet, subscribe today! They are both thinner mag’s, and do have a lot of ad’s. But honestly, as a first-time mom, I love ad’s, because I’m always wanting to see what new stuff is out there. And bonus – most of their ad’s have coupons and online coupon codes too. Especially with the holidays coming up… Last year there were $10 off at Amazon coupons in there!!

Love the content – love the savings – love that they’re both a quick guilty pleasure when they come in the mail – love that they’re both FREE! 

Why be the only one missing out? Subscribe to both for FREE today! You’ll get diaper coupons, learn about the coolest new baby gadgets, and more!

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Share your BEST Halloween Pictures on my Facebook to get Featured!

Who else Loooooves Michaels Craft Store??

I used to work for Michaels back in my early 20’s, supervising the front end of the store, and teaching classes on beading and scrapbooking. I loved it! So, while there are a lot of other craft stores that have popped up in my area over the past 10 years, Michaels will always be my favorite.

HUGE Halloween Deals!

We were there this past weekend, and my mom went overboard with the Halloween shopping. Again. AFTER having just shopped at the Dollar Store and the Halloween store that afternoon. {Clearly you can tell where I got my love of holidays from, right?} The house is getting totally spookified, and I’m excited to share some pic’s later this week!

Right now most of the Halloween goodies are 50% off, and there’s also some great clearance to be found {at least at my store}. Check out the ad for some cool ideas, great sales, and awesome coupons.

And…. I’d LOVE to see some of YOUR Halloween decorating!!! If you’ve got some cool stuff set up, snap some pictures and come share them on my Facebook page! No, there’s no prizes, but I will be picking some of my favorites to feature in some posts the week of Halloween!!! So share your decor, costumes, how-to’s, whatever– as long it’s Halloween related!

A couple of you have asked how to add a picture to my wall – Just click like you were leaving a comment, and there’s an option to “add a picture/video”. Click that, then go into your pictures in your computer, pick the one you want to add, and add a comment with it too to tell us all who is in the picture!

What’s your FAVORITE Michaels department? 

Are you a scrapbooker, beader, knitter, painter? Or….?? Share with me in the comments! I’m kind of a random-do-a-little-of-everything crafter. I’d love to hear more about you guys too!

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Best Business Books for Creative Thinkers

I wanted to share a few of my recent favorite business books with you guys. I’m always looking for great books to teach me new tips, new ways to think, and help me really boost my skills to the next level. And, I’m definitely a creative type, so old-school business books just bore me. Yes, I’ve read some, and there is some awesome information, but I like books that encourage me to think outside of the box, and include actionable steps that I can take to be more successful. Read on…

My Picks for Best Business Books for Creative Thinkers:

The Creative Business Idea Book:

The Creative Business Book

The Creative Business Idea Book: Ten Years of Breakthrough Thinking is a spendy book – Right now, it’s $50 bucks for the hardcover edition. But it looks uh-MAY-zing. I saw it today on Klout.com – you can possibly get it for FREE if your Klout score is above 45, and you are influential in these topics: Advertising, Copywriting, Creativity, Digital Photography, Journalism, Marketing, Public Relations. It talks about how traditional advertising is pretty much over, and shares the stories of how campaigns like the Dos Equis’ Most Interesting Man in the World, Evian Roller Babies, and other memorable ad’s came to be. Love it!

The Creative Entrepreneur: 

The Creative Entrepreneur: A DIY Visual Guidebook for Making Business Ideas Real – This is SUCH a fun book! There is so much great art on all of the pages, and it totally inspires and motivates me! The concepts are simple to follow, and lead you step-by-step to take your big ideas to real results. I’m a visual learner, and have a desk covered in notebooks with lists, drawings, scribbles, post-it’s – my mom says it reminds her of that movie a Beautiful Mind, lol. But I love the idea of using creative journals to think and plan out a business idea. So my style.

IdeaSelling:

Idea Selling BookIdeaSelling: Successfully Pitch Your Creative Ideas to Bosses, Clients & other Decision Makers – I just ordered this, and am beyond excited to get it! It’s all about learning how to do more than just “tell” people about your ideas, you need to “sell” them on your ideas! I’ve had years of experience in sales, but am always interested in learning more. And as a blogger, it’s very important to learn how to pitch companies, partners, and even other bloggers – if you have a great idea, you don’t want it to fail just because you didn’t know how to get people excited about it, right? The reviews all say that the techniques are easy to start implementing, and will help you improve right away. I’ll share a full review when I get done reading it!

Gamestorming:

Gamestorming Book

Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers, and Changemakers – This is something that I would LOVE to have had when I was still working in sales management! Getting people working together in a non-traditional way, by playing a game, is a much more effective way to teach new skills and come up with new ideas! “This book includes more than 80 games to help you break down barriers, communicate better, and generate new ideas, insights, and strategies. It contains a unique collection of games that encourage engagement and creativity while bringing more structure and clarity to the workplace.”

The Idea Hunter:

The Idea Hunter Book

The Idea Hunter: How to Find the Best Ideas and Make them Happen – This book starts with a simple step, “Know your gig. In other words, decide what you’re all about as a professional, and where you want to be heading in your career and projects. Without a concrete sense of purpose and goals, you won’t know what you’re looking for.” And continues until the end with “Focus on ‘Try-ability.’ Make it easy for people to try out your idea, before buying into it. Think like Apple, which lets people listen to 30-second snippets of music on iTunes before they buy a track or CD. Customers and colleagues are far more likely to sign on if they’re less worried about making a decision they’ll come to regret.” I love a book with “actions” to take, instead of just vague advice!

Remember to use Swagbucks to earn FREE Amazon Gift Cards, then you can get these great books for free. Swagbucks is one of the EASIEST ways to earn freebies online – and is how I buy all of my Amazon goodies!

What do you think?

Have any of you read any of these books already? If so, what did you think? Share your review in the comments, so other readers can benefit from your feedback too! And if you have some favorite books that have helped YOU in your business, please tell me about them! I might feature them in the next post, and mention that you recommend them!

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Women’s Small Business Month Giveaway – Become a Dove Chocolatier

Dove Hostess Package

Who Loves Chocolate?

Well, considering that over $16 million in chocolate was sold in the U.S. in 2010, a LOT of us love chocolate! In fact, the US consumes almost half of the entire world’s chocolate every year. And if your a chocolate junkie like me, you know that Dove makes some of the best products you can buy! If you host a party, as soon as your guests eat it, they’ll be back for more. That’s a tasty repeat business for you.

What exactly is a Chocolatier?

A Chocolatier is the name given to the amazing DOVE CHOCOLATE DISCOVERIES team members. A Chocolatier gets to sample delicious chocolate, encourage purchases, invite their friends and family to super fun Chocolate Tasting parties, and encourage others to join them in earning an income as a Chocolatier. At Chocolate Tasting parties – where the host invites her friends – you’ll share delicious new treats and demonstrate easy entertaining ideas. Sounds fun, right?

Dove chocolate party invites

Interested in Earning an Extra Income?

You don’t need experience to be a Chocolatier, just an ability to share your enthusiasm for chocolate. Like most direct sales careers, this requires NO previous sales experience, and only a small start-up fee! Then you have total flexibility to set your own hours, be rewarded for your energy and effort, and grow your business at your own pace. You’ll get an amazing start up package – in the top pic you’ll see the training videos that they partner with some yummy chocolate chai tea, and helpful information to get you started. You’ll also get some amazing recipe books and invitations, to get people excited about your first party! The start up package includes TONS of Dove products too, you’ll read more about them in a minute…

Why Direct Sales is the Perfect Fit for Busy Moms –

Whether your a stay at home mom who wants to earn a full time income while still spending time with the kids, or a working mom who just wants a fun part-time job to earn extra holiday cash, Direct Sales is the perfect option for you! I myself just jumped into direct selling, and am now a Discovery Toys Independent Sales Rep, and I am incredibly excited for a chance to start building my own business, while still spending my days with the baby.

Six reasons to consider joining the more than 15 million Americans in the direct selling industry:

  • Freedom: Work for yourself and be independent, setting your own business goals.
  • Flexibility: Set your own hours and schedule work around family priorities.
  • Finances: Pay bills, take that special vacation or replace your full time income. How much you earn is entirely up to you!
  • Fuel your development: With top notch training programs and tools, you’ll gain entrepreneurial business skills and savvy that will make you a hot commodity in any market.
  • Friends: Meet new people through Tasting Parties and a supportive network of Chocolatiers.
  • Fun: Love what you do and share that joy. It doesn’t feel like work when you make people happy! After all who doesn’t love chocolate?

Sound like a great option for you?

I am a big fan of Direct Sales, and have worked for other companies in the past. {I made President’s Club with Avon when I was only 19!} To help busy moms easily compare Direct Sales opportunities, find the perfect company to join, and give them an easy way to get started, I’m starting the new Direct Sales Directory, which will launch very soon! I want to give you a way to quickly get an idea of what’s out there, and some great reps to get information from. Stay tuned, and you’ll see it later this week! Why not join the growing group of entrepreneurs who’ve started their own chocolate businesses and party your way to sweet rewards! Learn more at Dove Chocolate Discoveries – it’s only $79 to get started right now!!

Dove Chocolate Discoveries Kit

Win a Full Chocolate Discoveries Kit!

Or…. You can WIN the entire business kit from me!! One lucky fan will win the same great Dove Chocolate Discoveries Starter Kit that I got to check out. Super cool, right?? Use the easy peasy Rafflecopter entry form to enter to win! Whether you decide to join this great Dove for this great Direct Sales Career, or simply enter to win some tasty treats for holiday entertaining – Good luck!

{Disclaimer: I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of DOVE Chocolate Discoveries and received a Starter Kit to facilitate my review.}
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