Winner!

The winner of my first blog giveaway is...

Gaby Montero!
I sent you an email to get your info.

I will be doing another giveaway in November so stay tuned!

Halloween Blog Giveaway

I'm giving away this adorable halloween bag. Use as a purse or a trick or treat bag. Will arrive by halloween if shipping info is made within 24 hours of notification of winning! Giveaway runs through Thursday October 22 at noon EST. Open to US addresses only!
How to enter:
One entry for each of the following:
* go to one of my shops, www.creativejenv.com or www.creativejenv.artfire.com and choose your favorite item and add a link of it to the comments of this post
*become a fan of my facebook fan page, www.facebook.com/creativejenv, add your facebook id to the comments of this post
*blog about my blog giveaway, adding a link to the mention in the comments of this post
*follow my blog
* follow me on twitter (creativejenv), leave a comment in this post with your twitter id
*Tweet about my blog giveaway with a link to my blog making sure to add @creativejenv
For 5 entries place an order on either of my sites and put "blog giveaway" in the notes to seller.

I will add each entry to a spread sheet and then use random.org to choose a number to pick the winner. Winner to be picked on October 22 at 2 PM EST!

33 Items For Under $33!

CreativeJenV got creative at Giant Eagle this morning. I love coupons and stores that double up to $1. This week I was able to get 33 items for $32.57! I saved 70, here is what I got. Sorry no pics.

4 Danimal crushable yogurts FREE
4 Dannon yogurts FREE
3 small boxes of cheese its $1 each
4 Turkey cheddar subs, the kinds with water bottles, $1.99 each
4 Glade Soy mini candles .99 each
4 Glade Reed Diffuser 1.49 each
4 pilsbury pizza crust 1.80 each
2 pounds of grapes 1.74
3 loaves of bread .33 each
2 Reese crispy candy bars FREE!

That works out to be less than $1 per item!! The Glade diffusers were reg. price $8.98
Hope this helps someone save money this week! Sale ends on Wed.

Summer 2009

Summer is winding down. We have been blessed with low temps and low humidty this year. Haven't even ran the AC for 2 weeks total! We will be getting in the back to schoo mode soon and with that comes some new challenges.

Lauren my 11 yr old is being tested for muscular dystrophy. She spent 4 days middle of July in the hospital where the EMG showed something and the genetic testing was ordered. Takes 6-8 weeks to get results back and it has only been 10 days. Lauren is still having pain if she has to walk to much. During a trip to a craft store last week we were only there about 25 min when it became to much. It has made doing anything next to impossible right now.

Emma just got home from New Orleans for the Youth Gathering. She had a blast and loves the area. She saw the 9th ward and says not much has been done to make things normal.
It has been a huge blessing that she has her license and a car with everything going on. Even though she complains about the price of gas all the time!

Brian did the Bike to the Bay again in June and did 100 miles each day! I don't know how he can even move after that!

Me, well I've been doing a lot of sewing to fill up my shops for the holiday season.

Hope everyones summer is going great!

Getting a lot for a little

My coupon box and I spent about 45 minutes today at Giant Eagle. We had a great time. I did 2 purchases and of course got the 1 grumpy cashier that have there. Oh well I didn't let him ruin the excitement.
First purchase:















I got 4 Fabreeze Air Effects Reg. 2.99 on sale for 2.50 and used 4 $1 off coupons that doubled. Received a $5 off your next order coupon.
Also got 4 Crest toothpaste Reg. 3.69 on sale for $2.50 and used 4 $1 off coupons that doubled. Received a $3 off you next order coupon.
Total spent: $4.81

Second purchase:















Cascade reg. 4.69 on sale for 4.00 each bought 4 and used 4 $1 off coupons that doubled. Received a $5 off your next order coupon.
Fantstick bought 2 reg. 2.49 each no sale used 2 $1 off coupons that doubled.
Pretzels bought 4 reg. 2.09 on sale for 2.00 each used 4 .75 off coupons that doubled.
Granola bars bought 3 reg. 4.49 on sale 3.00 each used 3 $1 off coupons that doubled.
Colgate bought 4 reg. 2.19 on sale for 1.50 used 4 .75 off coupons that doubled. Making them FREE
Candle Refills (splurge item) not on sale 3.89 used 1 $1 off coupon that doubled.
Pledge Dusters bought 4 reg. 2.99 on sale for 2.50 used 4 $1 off coupons that doubled.
Deodorant bought 4 reg. 2.14 on sale for 2.00 used 4 $1 off coupons that doubled. Making them FREE
Suave Shampoo bought 8 reg. 1.29 on sale for 1.00 used 4 $1.00 off 2 coupons that doubled. Making them FREE
Total Spent $15.22

Saving Money

Happy Wednesday!
Lately I have been asked how I spend $100 or less a week for food, paper products, cleaning supplies, laundry stuff , dog food and health and beauty products. The answer is simple. COUPONS!

I’m going to try to keep this simple for now but please feel free to contact me with questions or wanting more info.

First things is to remember if you want to cut your grocery bill it will take time. You will need to build a stockpile so that you never pay full price again. This begins with buying your Sunday newspaper. You will need to find out what paper in your area gives the best coupons. We really only have 1 here but when I can get my hands on a Detroit Free Press it is like striking gold. The other thing I do is I buy 4 papers. I get mine on Sunday mornings at the Dollar Tree since they normally sell for $1.75. Why 4 papers? Because the main store I use coupons at will allow me to use 4 of the same coupons at a time. You will need to contact your grocery stores and find out their coupon policies. The store I go to will double up to $1.00 so say x brand of deodorant is on sale for $2 and I have a $1 of one I get that for fee! Ironically the store I go to is one of the more pricier stores in town but combining sales and coupons make it worth the 18 min drive there once a week. I try to only buy what is on sale that I have coupons for there to keep my cost down. I get what I can’t get there at Aldis.

Another huge way to save money is with rebates. I only do Rite Aid and I take my rebate and put it on a gift card and only use that money to buy more things that are cheap or free after rebate!

Things I don’t pay for or pay very little for:
Toothpaste
Toothbrushes
Deodorant
Yogurt
Shampoos and Conditioners
Boxed potatoes
Makeup
Dishwasher detergent
Salad dressing
Frozen veggies
And lots more.

My trip for this week. Remember I don’t shop like a lot of you do so this is obviously not a weeks worth of groceries for us but things to add to the stockpile for when we need them. Oh and please don’t to food banks if you end up with to much.

1/19/09 at Giant Eagle
8 Reese’s Whips
4 Four Piece Rubbermaid food containers
2 mild Ortega taco sauces
2 Suave deodorant
4 boxes of Nature Valley granola bars

Paid $6.20
Saved $32.67 85% savings!

You will spend more time at this in the beginning because it is something new. I spend about 45 min a week clipping and putting coupons away and maybe another 15 minutes pulling the coupons I will be using. Remember if the store is out of something get a rain check!

I know this a just a little bit of information so like I said please contact me if you have any further questions.

Overwhelmed!

I seem to get overwhelmed very easily. It can be when I need to clean something if it is too bad I just don't know where to start or I get distracted. Example cleaning craft room and take a dirty glass to the kitchen then I start picking up in there. I also find that some days I just have no idea where to start. I know what I need to do but again don't know where to start. I would make lists of things to do and then it would become overwhelming to me. I finally have found something to help! Instead of making a list of what I need to do I right stuff down on a list after I do it. Something in my strange head wants to see my list longer and I get a lot more done. Feels so much better to me than to check something off a list and see 5 other things that I need to do.
Strange huh?!

New Year

I know we are almost 2 weeks into the new year but I'm just getting around to accepting the fact that 2009 is here! This is a big year for us. I have a daughter turning 16 so I'm planning the Sweet 16 party to hopefully live up to what she has dreamed of but I doubt that because her dream has a Jeep Liberty as a gift and that isn't going to happen.
My husband and I will be celebrating our 18th wedding anniversary this year in May and in Dec I will be turning 40. None of these seem like they are possible!

I'm working hard this year to find a balance in my life. So far I've been doing good. Still lots of room to improve but finding peace which was the goal!

Hope 2009 is good to you!

Merry Christmas!

Just wanted to say Merry Christmas to all of my friends and family.

It is just my family at home today which is very nice. The girls are off playing with their gifts and I am actually sewing. I think everyone but Brian is still in their PJ's. Christmas dinner is started and we will probably sit down to watch a movie later on tonight.

However you are spending today enjoy!

Another Opportunity!

I have decided to expand my horizons and have started listing items on a new handmade site. The site is in its beginning stages and still has a few bugs to work out but I love the information I get from it.
I'm working very hard on managing 2 sites so right now I'm not listing much on artfire.

For you crafters and artists who are looking to keep more money in your pocket you may want to check it out. You can join one of 2 ways, either the free membership that is limited or the $7 a month plan which allows you to list as much as you want and no fees when you sell.
Check it out here!
http://www.artfire.com/modules.php?name=sevenforlife&afuid=5665

Cyber Monday!

I plan to make some online purchases and I'm running a special on my etsy site today too.

I find it funny that today something was posted that we are in a recession and have been since Dec 2007. I took us a year to figure that out???? Maybe now that is has been declared we can recover.

Happy Cyber Monday!

Oh No!

Well the day has come. My oldest has her temps. In 6 short months she might be out on the road alone. That will be a scary day. I haven't been out with her but her father and sister have and they have both been returned home safely. With the exception of an incident that no one is allowed to speak of (I did get it involved a stop sign out of Lauren) she seems to be doing well. I just don't know if my nerves and control issues can be in the passenger seat. Lauren has a soccer game tonight and guess how wants to drive there? Funny thing is last season she wanted nothing to do with her sisters soccer games!

I have included a picture of her just for proof to those who may doubt it!

Hello Again

I'm a self proclaimed blog failure. But I will not go down with out a fight! Life just gets busy some times and this is what I have to let go to make life work for me.

I'm trying to spend equal amounts of time on my business and my home and family life. I have never been good with balance and I know it shows. I wish that was a trait I had, organization, juggling, balancing, what ever you call it I ain't got it!

Family life: Going good, I have a new niece and although my sister is having a rough time with some problems from the delivery the baby is great. Sleeps 5 hours or more at night and nurses like a champ!
The girls have 18 school days left and yes they are counting down! Me a little but not so much. With summer vacation comes even more lack of balance. I like the routine of school but not the getting up at 6 am.

Business Life: Going good too, seem to be having steady sales and getting several items made every week. Working on a few new designs but really concentrating on what I already know.
I set up a yahoogroup for my customers to let them know of new products and specials. The link is http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/CreativeJenV/ if you interested in joining. It is an announcement only list and will not generate a lot of emails.

Well that is it for now! To all the moms reading this, have a great Mothers Day!

New Design

I'm so excited! I just finished a new design for a tote and it came out perfect! That just never happens. This is a clear pocket tote and you can use it for pictures, catalogs or to advertise.

I think a cute scrapbook page would look very cute!

I can see this will be a new addiction for me.

Large Totes!

I worked on a large tote today but I think it is larger than what I want for a "large tote" so I'm going to have to market it as an extra large tote.

To me this thing would work for an overnight bag! But I know some people want larger totes. Well I probably won't list it until tomorrow or Monday but I do love it. I will add a link to it when I do.

Have a great weekend!

Good Bye 2007

I must say 2007 wasn't the best years. I am getting a new niece so I'm sure things are going to be great in 2008!

I will be spending a lot of my free time working on my esty shop.

So goodbye 2007 and hello 2008!

Merry Christmas!

First just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas! Getting ready to go to my in-laws for dinner and gifts in a few.

Hope everyone had a great day! This year was not one of the kindest for my family and I'm so looking forward to 2008! I also hope to blog better in the next year. I'm kind of a blog drop out at this point!

I'm working on lots of new totes for the new year. Found a wonderful fabric supplier so look for better patterns in hipper styles soon.

Halloween Totes

I now have a section on my etsy site for my Halloween stuff. Anything in that section is 20% off from now until Sunday night at 6 pm est.

I'm spending the day playing catch up! I need to get a few totes made and take more pictures and list. Of course today is going to be hot again. I think the next 4 days will be in the upper 80's and flirting with 90's. YUCK! Where is my cool fall weather?

Homecoming!

Here is my daughter before she left for homecoming tonight.

I can't beleive how grown up she is!

She kind of re-did her hair after this. It is the same but straighter.

I know this has nothing to do with my creativejenv but I did create her so I just had to share!

Baby Gift

I spent what free time I had this weekend working on these for a upcoming baby shower. I made a rag quilt and a matching tag blanket.

Hope the mommy to be likes them as much as I do!