8th Anniversary & Giveaways!

Eight years ago today, I started this blog. What began as a hobby, creative outlet & way for me to spread the word about cool handmade stuff I discovered, unexpectedly blossomed into what is now my full-time job! I am so thankful for the opportunities Funky Finds has afforded me & my family, as well as all the funky artists, crafters, designers, authors & food makers we have met over the years. Thank you so much for your continued support of Funky Finds and handmade!

We recently hosted the 6th Annual Funky Finds Spring Fling, our tenth art & craft show held in Fort Worth, Texas. Quirk Books, one of our generous event sponsors, donated Quirk DIY tote bags & copies of Sprinkles for our swag bag giveaways. We received eleven additional copies of Sprinkles to giveaway on the blog! We also have some other goodies we're giving away as part of our anniversary celebration.

Sprinkles is full of beautiful photographs of desserts that somehow incorporate cake sprinkles. There's also instructions & projects showing you how to swirl sprinkles into waffles, “embroider” them on cookies, and bake them into pretty pie crusts! You’ll find dozens of creative, colorful, super-fun recipes, plus quick-and-easy projects (ideal for little kids), holiday treats, and party-perfect edible gifts.

*** GIVEAWAY - Closed ***

 PRIZES:
 

• Six winners will receive a copy of Sprinkles courtesy of Quirk Books.
Congrats to intensev5, Tina Reynolds, Sky Evans, Jean R., jdine & Craftylas

• One winner will receive a FULL swag bag from our recent event (includes Sprinkles).
Congrats to Sunday Afternoon Housewife

• One winner will receive a large "Crafty Minds Love Funky Finds" t-shirt,

as well as a Quirk DIY tote bag & copy of Sprinkles.
Congrats to Made to Lather

• Two winners will receive an extra-large "Crafty Minds Love Funky Finds" t-shirt,

as well as a Quirk DIY tote bag & copy of Sprinkles.
Congrats to Kittykill & Slick Vickie

• Two winners will receive an extra-large "I'm a Funky Find" t-shirt,

as well as a Funky Finds tote bag & copy of Sprinkles.
Congrats to Anne & Heidi V.

TWELVE WINNERS IN ALL!!!!!

TO ENTER: Leave a comment on this blog post. Please include t-shirt size & email address.

ADDITIONAL ENTRY: Like Funky Finds on Facebook & leave a comment noting that you have done so. Please include t-shirt size & email address.

ADDITIONAL ENTRY: Subscribe to our monthly email newsletter, then leave a comment noting that you have done so. Please include t-shirt size & email address.

ENDS: Thursday, April 10th, at 6pm CDT.

4th Annual Trick Your Pumpkin Contest

ETA: Voting is now open through October 30th, 12pm EST. Check out the fabulously funky five finalists & vote now!

One of our fall event sponsors, Plaid Crafts, is hosting the 4th Annual Trick Your Pumpkin Contest! Will yours be spooky, boo-tiful or frightfully fun? Submit a photo of your most creative pumpkin by October 25, 2013, and you could win a $250 gift card to Michaels along with a Mod Podge and FolkArt Prize Pack, and bragging rights of winning the 4th Annual Trick Your Pumpkin Contest! Find all the details on this page of their website.

Receive $10 off your $45 purchase with the following promo code: 1045SEP13. Shop here!

Market Mommy's S.T.A.R. Mom Entrepreneur Award

Funky Finds is a proud sponsor of Market Mommy's first annual S.T.A.R. Mom Entrepreneur Award! Read the below information from Market Mommy to learn more.

Are you {or someone you know} a S.T.A.R. {successful, tenacious, accomplished, remarkable} Mom Entrepreneur? If so, Market Mommy wants to honor you for your continued dedication to your business and your family!

Are you a leader? Are you balancing your business and family in a creative way? We want to hear what sets you apart from the thousands of other mom entrepreneurs! Why are you determined to succeed? Have you invented a product that is helping others? What have you done to show the world that you’re confident, remarkable and steadfast? Tell us, and you’ll be entered to win an absolutely awesome prize package.

We know it’s far from easy to balance a family and grow a business at the same time. And, many of you put in hour after hour and jump hurdle after hurdle in the pursuit of success. That’s why Market Mommy created the first S.T.A.R. Mom Entrepreneur Award...to recognize you for all the sacrifices you make in the name of entrepreneurship.

Not only will this award garner you the respect you deserve, it also comes with an unprecedented prize package! The winner will receive more than $3,500 in prizes. Visit the Sponsor Page for a full list of prizes & their sponsors. Once you’re nominated, you’ll be listed in the S.T.A.R. Mom Entrepreneur Award photo album on Facebook. There, your supporters can endorse you with their ‘likes’ and comments!

A fabulous panel of judges will review nominations and endorsements and chose the mom who best exemplifies success and tenacity. Market Mommy wants to honor a mom who is accomplished, has overcome adversity to make it and aims to balance her business and family life seamlessly. An all-around remarkable mom!

Is that you? It’s easy to nominate. Visit the Nominations Page to fill out the short form, and then e-mail one image {your logo, headshot, product image or another photograph that represents your business} to star@marketmommy.com. Once your nomination form & image is received, your image will be posted in the Facebook album & you will officially be registered. Nominations are being accepted through February 29, 2012. For a complete list of Official Rules, click here.

Timeline

Nominations Open: January 16, 2012

Nominations Close: February 29, 2012

Endorsements Accepted on Facebook until:
March 16, 2012

Winner Announced: On or around March 30, 2012

2010 Handmade Olympics

The RikRak Studio recently announced the 2010 Handmade Olympics! Now's your chance to show the world your own creative creations or send some hand-making love out to other crafters that inspire you in the hand-making world! Plus, there are over $2,000 worth of amazing handmade & vintage prizes! Here's how it will work:

* There are 8 fun handmade Olympic events, each based on a tenant of my the RikRak blog!

* For each event, you can nominate ONE of your own fabulous creations, shops, blogs, etc. (please read rules for each event) + nominate ONE of your favorites from another shop, site, blog, etc.

* By nominating yourself + others, you will automatically be entered in the randomly chosen FAN prize pack drawing (the first of many prizes!) - a $50 shopping spree in the rikrak shop!

* Once nominations close, the judges will take a look at the amazing nominations in each category. The judges will announce a short-list for each category of their 10 favorite nominations!

* Once the short-lists are announced, EVERYONE will get a chance to VOTE on their very favorites!

* The top-3 vote-getting WINNERS in each category, as determined by you, the readers, will be awarded a prize!

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

So, here's what you need to do:

1. Nominate + spread the word between January 11-31.

2. The FAN PRIZE will be randomly selected from the total nominations on February 1.

3. The judges' TOP 10 shortlists will be announced February 8.

4. VOTING will then begin on each top 10 event list February 8-17.

5. The top 3 vote-getters in each event will be announced on February 18 & awarded their Gold, Silver & Bronze prize packs.

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

The events are: (just click on the links to enter each one!)

{Event 1} :: our favorite handmade goodie with an innovative design

{Event 2} :: our favorite handmade goodie for kids

{Event 3} :: our favorite handmade eco friendly goodie

{Event 4} :: our favorite handmade item that inspires loveliness + wellness (in our homes, for ourselves, etc.)

{Event 5} :: our favorite handmade personality/group forwarding kindness thru hand-making

{Event 6} :: our favorite thrifty-forward, sustainable-minded blog, shop or site

{Event 7} :: our favorite FUN-FILLED handmade OR vintage goodie

{Event 8} :: our favorite hand-making focused blog

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

Find out more about the prizes & all the rules on the RikRak blog.

She's SO Creative Contest

She's SO Creative is a funky greeting card company that was established by San Francisco-based designer Stephanie Orma. Her whimsical designs stretch the literal to hilarious limits. This month, She's SO Creative is holding their first ever contest.

The mission: Come up with the inside greeting for the clever new card, The Origin of Turkey Bacon (pictured), and be named the Winning Witty Wordsmith.

Winner: One talented entrant will win instant fame (sans fortune) with the larger-than-fine-print credit line imprinted on the backs of all the cards. With the cheeky paper products being sold in hundreds of boutiques nationwide, you'll become an instant household name (or at the very least, friends & family may stop calling you "hey you"). In addition to a dozen complimentary copies of the cards, the winner will also receive a dozen She's SO Creative clever cards of their choosing. And, of course, you will be blogged, Twittered, and FaceBooked by the fine folks at She's SO Creative.

Rules:
1. Don't make it cheesy.
2. The inside greeting must contain a purpose (i.e. hello, thanks, happy birthday, miss you, love, happy v-day, etc.) combined with a cheeky, fun, irreverent and/or playful message.

Deadline: October 1 - Winning entry will be announced the week of October 5th.

Enter: Email your witty words to hello[at]shesocreative[dot]com.

May Crafts & Hobbies Giveaway

The May Crafts & Hobbies giveaway you’ve all been waiting for has begun! I have 30 fabulous items to giveaway thanks to all the generous business owners who are participating.

Giveaway Guidelines:

Visit each of the businesses listed on the May giveaway page that have donated prizes. Leave a comment ON THIS POST including a link to one of your favorite items. You may enter multiple times by linking to a product by a different company in each comment. Be sure to leave your name AND email address or website link so I can contact the winners.

Winners will be chosen on June 1 using a random number generator & will then be notified by email & announced on Funky Finds.

This month’s contest begins today, May 25, and ends at midnight CST Saturday, May 31. Feel free to spread the word to all your friends so they too will have a chance to win these terrific prizes! Good luck!