Teaser Tuesday-Impossible by Nancy Werlin

02 Mar, 2010 by in nancy werlin, penguin teens, speak 3 comments

This is a weekly book meme hosted by Miz B. of Should Be Reading.

This is how it works:
Grab a book that you are currently reading
Turn to any page and grab two teaser sentences from that page
Make sure it’s not a spoiler in case anyone wants to read the book
Include the author and name of the book

“Lucy directed her gaze accross the street, to Miranda’s abandoned shopping cart that stood next to Mrs. Angelakis’s front steps.
“She stripped the ruined camellia off her wrist and tossed it to the ground”.” p.62
Book: Impossible by Nancy Werlin, a National Book Award Finalist

Bottled Gnome and Skull Ring Giveaway

02 Mar, 2010 by in etsy, polymer clay, woodland realm 24 comments

Today’s giveaway is from Etsy seller Rude & Reckless

What is Rude & Reckless you ask?
It is a one woman run D.I.Y. business with you in mind!
For those of you who live by your own laws of outward expression and arent afraid to be yourselves. Most everything I sell is handmade by me out of polymer clay or resin and may vary slightly, meaning: each piece is as unique as each and every one of you!
And most importantly, everything is made with love.

Myspace users feel free to visit me at http://www.myspace.com/rudeandrecklessclothing.

Find me on Deviant Art!
http://www.rude-and-reckless.deviantart.com/

I also have a brand new folklore store under construction: http://www.woodlandrealm.etsy.com/
It will feature handmade fantasy art & sculpture!

Seh has donated a gnome in a bottle or a PINK skull and crossbones ring to two winners!

To Enter to win one: leave your name and email address below
Additional entries
+2 go to her shop and comment on your favorite item w/ the link
+2 go to Etsy and heart her shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/rudeandreckless

+3 tweet this contest-leave the link
+5 post it on your blog or facebook- leave the link
+5 add our button to your blog
+3 follow us on twitter @FireIcePhotos @rudeandreckless
+3 become a fan of Fire and Ice on Facebook and Rude and Reckless Facebook.com/rudeandreckless
Add your entries up and leave the total in your comment

Contest ends on April 2, 2010 and is open internationally. Please email us of you cannot comment below. Thanks and Good Luck!

Mom’s Monday-Little Red Riding Hood

01 Mar, 2010 by in sam taplin, usborne 1 comment

Usborne First Fairytales
Little Red Riding Hood
Age: 2+
Board Book:
ISBN: 9780746093764
10 pages
Author/Editor: Sam Taplin
Illustrator: Jo Litchfield
5 stars
A chunky board book retelling the beloved fairytale for very young children. Little Red Riding Hood is on her way through the forest to visit her grandmother, but meets a big, bad wolf instead. With robust tabs to help children locate their favourite scenes.
Very simple text accompanies each picture making this book perfect for reading aloud to young children, or for children who are just beginning to read to tackle alone.
This is a series I absolutely LOVE! Usborne First Fairytales are sturdy, easy to handle and have gold glitter accents on the pages. They are worth every penny you spend for them and will be the longest lasting on your shelves. Who wouldn’t love this classic fairytale with wolves and little red in vivid color? 5+ stars from our family!

Little Red Riding Hood T-Shirt Giveaway

01 Mar, 2010 by in etsy, tee shirt giveaway 45 comments

Today’s Etsy shop giveaway is from Em and Sprout! I adore her Mary Janes shoes and handmade tees.

Hi! I’m Lindsay. I have two cats named Em and Sprout, they are the loves of my life (besides the hub!) so I decided to name this etsy shop after them.

Long story short: I like making stuff. It’s fun and it makes me happy. My current obsession are these fun shoes and I hope you like them as much as I like making them!

Description of the short we are gifting:
This design of two kids playing dress up was inspired by my love of all things Little Red! It would also make a perfect gift for someone who loves fairy tales 🙂 This ladies cut tee has a sweet woodland feel and is grass green with a brown, red & white screenprint (printed by hand, by me!). Printed on American Apparel ladies t-shirts.

To Enter to win: leave your name and email address below
Additional entries
+2 go to her shop and comment on your favorite item w/ the link
+2 go to Etsy and heart her shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/emandsprout
+3 tweet this contest-leave the link
+5 post it on your blog or facebook- leave the link
+5 add our button to your blog
+3 follow us on twitter @FireIcePhotos
+3 become a fan of Fire and Ice on Facebook and Em and Sprout http://www.facebook.com/pages/Em-Sprout/190700008855

Add your entries up and leave the total in your comment

Contest ends on April 1st, 2010 and is open internationally. Please email us of you cannot comment below. Thanks and Good Luck!

Chewlry Jewelry Giveaway

27 Feb, 2010 by in etsy 134 comments

Today’s giveaway is from Etsy artist Chewlrya 20-something student who got started making jewelry from my mom, Debbie Fowles, who also has an Etsy shop (http://debbierenee.etsy.com) She is obsessed with books, my puppy, my family, volleyball, writing, eating junk food and ignoring calorie content.

Chewlry is giving away on of her chain gang necklaces!

Description
A double-chain necklace of 28” embellished with 3 different chains and metal charms supports a 2.5” dangling pendant in all different metals 🙂

Pendant is composed of a cute, stamped metal rectangle that supports a bright silver lattice charm, medium silver crown, dark, shiny silver wing charm and a unique stamped square in dark silver. A total of 5 different chains are used in this necklace!

Charms include:
– Giant shiny heart charm
– Small circle connector w/stamped cube design in dark, matte silver.
– Another dark, matte silver charm in a square shape w/etched design.
– A medium silver crown charm.
– A shiny, dark silver wing charm.
– A bright silver lattice charm

To Enter to win :leave your name and email address below
Additional entries
+2 go to her shop and comment on your favorite item w/ the link
+2 go to Etsy and heart her shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/chewlry
+3 tweet this contest-leave the link
+5 post it on your blog or facebook- leave the link
+5 add our button to your blog
+3 follow us on twitter @FireIcePhotos @chewlry
+3 visit her jewelry blog and comment http://www.chewlry.com/
+3 become a fan of Fire and Ice on Facebook and Chewlry http://www.facebook.com/pages/CHEWLRY/261092838085

Add your entries up and leave the total in your comment

Contest ends on March 27th, 2010 and is open internationally. Please email us of you cannot comment below. Thanks and Good Luck!

Friday in the Fort

26 Feb, 2010 by in giveaway, myra mcentire, new YA fiction Leave a comment

We are hanging out in the fort today with author and YA book reviewer, Myra McEntire- queen of sweet and retweet!! Her debut novel, Hourglass, a YA time slip romance, will be published by Egmont USA in 2011. Come on over and roast marshmallows with us, as well enter to win one of my handmade Steampunk Clockwork Journals!
Find us here : http://writingfinally.blogspot.com/2010/02/friday-in-fort-with-heather-zahn.html and be sure to follow her on Twitter @MyraMcEntire

Madame Scodioli Geek Scrub

26 Feb, 2010 by in etsy, free stuff, madame scodioli soap 39 comments

Today’s etsy shop giveaway is from seller Madame Scodioli. I am a seeker of all things bath and body. So of course I love her little tins of fragrance and handmade vegan soaps.
The one posted above is Hierophant: Hierophant’s purpose is to bring the spiritual down to Earth. This crisp, clean blend of sweetgrass and aromatic sage with supporting notes of bergamot, geranium and amber will do just that. A mystifying scent.
Contains beeswax, jojoba, vitamin E oil and fragrance.
Approx. 1.0 oz.
Screw-top container.

After the gates close and all is quiet on the midway, Madame S. retires to her wagon and spends her evenings sewing, crafting and making soap for the rest of the performers.Her soap and perfume are crafted from highest quality ingredients, always tested personally by her and the rest of the troupe.

And our giveaway looks heavenly. I’m not a coffee drinker myself, but every time I drive up to Starbucks to get my cocoa I admit I take a big whiff. LOVE the smell. So this is perfect for those of us trying to embrace our inner geek!

To enter to win the Geek Scrub– leave your name and email address below:

Additional entries
+2 go to Etsy and heart her shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/scodioli
+3 tweet this contest-leave the link
+5 post it on your blog or facebook– leave the link
+5 add our button to your blog
+3 follow both of us on twitter @FireIcePhotos and @Scodioli
+3 follow our blog
+3 become a fan of Fire and Ice or Scodioli
Add your entries up and leave the total in your comment

Contest ends on March 26th, 2010 and is open internationally. Please email us of you cannot comment below.

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Flickr Friday with Robert Dunn

26 Feb, 2010 by in robert dunn 4 comments

Today’s Flickr Friday artist is Rewedagain –Robert Dunn

His whimsical watercolor-like illustrations called to me. And, I so want to travel to Scotland so when I found out that’s where he is from it made him even more cool! Here’s our interview:

Where were you born?
Paisley, Scotland. I wouldn’t stop there if you’re ever driving by…

Did you graduate from college, if so from where and in what major?
I have a complicated history with the education system. It wasn’t until the late nineties that I realised I had no interest in studying or painting fine art. I quit art school after three days and ended up studying illustration in Glasgow… Having an interest in what I was doing made all the difference and I ended up doing quite well in that little class.

What are your hobbies?
Ha! You’re assuming I have time for hobbies… everything at the moment is wrapped up in drawing and being a dad. Go back in time three years and ask me the question again…

What are your favorite all-time books?
The New York Trilogy (Paul Auster)… Lunar Park (Brett Easton Ellis)… Bukowski, Hunter… you know – cheery stuff.

Who is your hero/ mentor?
My wife keeps me in check…. She takes b.s. from nobody. Everybody should have one.

What suggestion would you give young writers?
Ask yourself why you’re doing it. Is it a need? A compulsion? How dedicated are you… I’d suggest people should weigh up in their heads exactly the lengths they’d be prepared to go to to succeed.

Do you have another day job?
I am the sixth worst civil servant in the Scottish Land registry… It’s straight out of Brazil. (WOW!!!!)

Favorite music? Does music or art inspire your work?
Of course. I like bleak nosiy music that accurately recreates the sensation of screaming in a coffin… Art – I mostly just like Illustrators. Arthur Rackham, Ian Miller, James Jean, Ray Ceaser, Laurie Lipton, Derek Hess, Chris Mars… Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro are obvious influences…

Are you working on any books right now?
If I was foolhardy enough to brave crawling through the work, folios, papers and writings that hide in the empyreal that is my attic, then I could pull out at least three for you…

What is your all-time favorite children’s book?
George’s marvellous medicine… maybe it was Rick Mayall narrating it on Jackanory when I was young that added to the madness associated with that book…

What are the names of your published works?
Presently it’s all magazine work…

How did you find an agent?
I had a few names to check out… I picked the ten best pics from the forty or so pieces I’d done in the previous six months and emailed them. I got a reply a day or two later and that was that…

Where did the inspiration for your book come from?
I have a large queue of images in my head that form when I’m not looking. I don’t use source material or particularly seek out inspiration… although in saying that, words are great stimulus. I love the Illustration Friday challenge… one word and bam! – another headfull…

Check out Robert’s amazing photostream here

http://www.flickr.com/photos/39662690@N08/ Go forth and comment!

Book Review- Devils Kiss by Sarwat Chadda

25 Feb, 2010 by in book review, paranormal YA fiction, sarwat chadda 1 comment

Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Hyperion Book CH (September 1, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1423119991
4.5 stars

Summary from Goodreads :As the youngest and only female member of the Knights Templar, Bilquis SanGreal grew up knowing she wasn’t normal. Instead of hanging out at the mall or going on dates, she spends her time training as a soldier in her order’s ancient battle against the Unholy.

Billi’s cloistered life is blasted apart when her childhood friend, Kay, returns from Jerusalem, gorgeous and with a dangerous chip on his shoulder. He’s ready to reclaim his place in Billi’s life, but she’s met someone new: amber-eyed Michael, who seems to understand her like no one else, effortlessly claiming a stake in her heart.

But the Templars are called to duty before Billi can enjoy the pleasant new twist to her life. One of the order’s ancient enemies has resurfaced, searching for a treasure that the Templars have protected for hundreds of years — a cursed mirror powerful enough to kill all of London’s firstborn. To save her city from catastrophe, Billi will have to put her heart aside and make sacrifices greater than any of the Templars could have imagined.

Sarwat Chadda does an amazing job of weaving historical content, religion and myth into this story of Billi Sangreal’s effort to accept her life as a Templar. I found his writing to be rich and highly intelligent. Chadda makes the vampire, ghuls, werewolves, warriors and fallen angels his own. “The Dead should not linger” is what he told me…

Billi is a strong willed protagonist with a mind of her own who become attracted to a mysterious man who comes to her rescue and helps save her life. But also enter in to the equation Kay, her life long friend w ho is an eternal optimist and has powers he yet will realize over the occult. The classic pull between good and evil with a twist of romance and history made this an awesome read. I think you’ll find Devil’s Kiss to be creepy, yet classical at the same time. Chadda announced his second novel, the Dark Goddess “comes out July (UK) but Jan (US) and the versions will be subtly different.” We can’t wait! Follow him on twitter @sarwatchadda and check out his website http://www.sarwatchadda.com/

Here’s the trailer for Devil’s Kiss: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJ0ecooQGV4 and a photo gallery I made on Flickr with images that reminded me of the book and taught me about the Knights Templar

http://www.flickr.com/photos/heatherzahngardner/galleries/72157623488589080/ You’ll be sucked in as I was to all of the history in this book!

Win a tatted templar cross in the post below and stay tuned for more Devil’s Kiss inspired giveaways!

Tatted Templar Pendant by TotusMel

25 Feb, 2010 by in etsy, templar, totusmel 27 comments


Today’s giveaway is by etsy seller TotusMel. I found her after reading the book “Devil’s Kiss” by Sarwat Chadda. Searching for Kinights Templar items I discovered her super steam punky necklaces…
Hi, my name is Pamela Quevedo. I’m a stay at home mom to 2 wonderful little girls. I’ve been creating stuff since I can remember & I’ve never stopped teaching myself new things. While this site focuses mostly on my needle tatting, I’m also known to cross stitch, knit, crochet, sew, bead, play with perler beads, tear apart motherboards for interesting parts & I even draw on occasion.
My goal with my tatting is to not only to make it wearable, but interesting & dare I say hip. I’m always interested in feedback on my styles & color choices.

I can also be contacted at

http://totusmel.blogspot.com/
http://facebook.com/TotusMelTats
http://twitter.com/totusmel

Proud member of Etsy Steam. Search for; SteamTeam .Description of the pendant
This pendant began as the center of a vintage pattern. Hung by a corner, it reminds me a bit of a Templar cross.

The pendant measures 1.75″(4.5cm) across and hands from a silver plated ring. A black 24″(61cm) ribbon is included

To Enter to win one hand tatted necklace:
leave your name and email address below
Additional entries
+2 go to her shop and comment on your favorite item by pasting the link
+2 go to Etsy and heart her shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/TotusMel
+3 tweet this contest-leave the link
+5 post it on your blog or facebook- leave the link
+5 add our button to your blog
+3 follow both of us on twitter @FireIcePhotos and @TotusMel
+3 follow our blog or hers (see links above)
+3 become a fan of Fire and Ice or TotusMelTats
Add your entries up and leave the total in your comment

Contest ends on March 25th, 2010 and is open internationally. Please email us of you cannot comment below. Thanks and Good Luck!