PLEASE VOTE! {Update: I won!}

Posted on June 11, 2016 by Victoria Vitale

Happy Saturday, readers! It’s pretty unusual to find me here on the weekend, so you know it has to be for good reason!

All Free Knitting is a website chockfull of free knitting patterns for all skill levels. They receive millions of views each week, and are a staple in a knitter’s online arsenal of tools. Back in October, the editor of All Free Knitting, Kathryn Abrams, reached out to me because she wanted to include my knit tie for Anne on her site (with a proper link back to Scissors & Sage). You can find that feature on All Free Knitting here.

Kathryn reached out again in March because she selected my knit tie to be a part of her latest e-book, 9 Men’s Knitting Patterns. (Click here to download it!) I couldn’t believe she wanted to feature me as one of nine patterns. The best part? I asserted that the pattern had to be introduced using inclusive language if she wanted to include me in the book.

THEN, Kathryn emailed me a few weeks ago to tell me that my tie had been hand-picked to be included in All Free Knitting’s “Top 5 Father’s Day Knitting Patterns” contest. I of course accepted the invitation! The winner is determined by the number of favorable comments they receive on All Free Knitting’s post. The winner gets a $50 Amazon gift card! If me and my tie model win, the card is going straight into our Ball jar labeled “Wedding Fund.” The contest is open until Friday, June 17th.

Readers, please take a moment to vote for Anne’s knit tie! It would be an honor to win this contest and be recognized for my knitting. Here’s how you can vote:

Visit All Free Knitting’s “Top 5 Father’s Day Knitting Patterns” post.
Leave a comment letting them know which of the five patterns is your favorite.

Not only will one of the knitting patterns win, but there’s something in it for you, too! All Free Knitting will choose one commenter at random to win a copy of their book, Simple Scarves Made with the Knook, and the Knook Kit.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

100th Blog Post & GIVEAWAY!

Posted on September 14, 2015 by Victoria Vitale

I thought I’d celebrate my 100th blog post (!!!) and the end of summer with a giveaway. It’s thanks to you readers that I continue to enjoy blogging about my various projects, so it’s high time for me to give back! I’ve been a bit MIA this summer between our trip to Greece and moving to a new apartment in Philly. All of our belongings have been in boxes for what feels like weeks now. I’m still trying to pin down my crafting supplies and baking ingredients. They’re here somewhere…

For this giveaway, I’ve teamed up with Sticky9 once again. I absolutely love this company. (Click here to see my last giveaway with them in January.) Their printed matte photos are high-quality, and who doesn’t like to physically hold pictures these days? It’s a rarity, and it’s a shame. I’ve combatted that by creating a DIY memory game using our photos from Greece.

My favorite part of this project is that you can use photos from any kind of life event, trip, or celebration. You can create the game for yourself, or give it to someone special. The photos could be of a special birthday, a newly engaged couple, a vacation, a beloved pet or child, you name it. Plus, this game is well-suited for most anyone–from a young child to a grandparent.

Anne and I have been loving our game because it brings back so many great memories. The supplies and game rules are simple, so let’s get to it.

DIY Photo Memory Game

Materials:

13 unique photographs, each printed twice
1 title photo to represent the game*

*Sticky9 Square Prints come in sets of 27. This is perfect: 13 photos (2x) + one extra for the title photo.

Rules (for two players):

Turn all photos upside down on the floor. Scatter the pairs randomly to create either a grid (easier) or a collage (harder) of photos.
The first player turns over two cards at random. If they don’t match, turn them back over for the second player’s turn. If they do match, put them to the side and play again. Continue your turn until you turn over two cards that do not match.
Continue playing until no cards remain. The person with the most matched sets wins.
Optional: Play best of three to determine who will wash dishes after dinner, walk the dog early in the morning, or do the laundry next.

Like I said, this game is great for anyone. It can help children learn (especially if it’s pictures of them growing up), and it’s wonderful for adults and older adults to practice those working memory skills. Most importantly, it’s plain old fun!

One lucky winner will win a set of Sticky9 Square Prints to make their own DIY memory game. It’d be perfect for the next time you have friends over for drinks or host a game night. Help me celebrate my 100th post on Scissors & Sage, the end of summer, and YOU!

To enter, leave a comment below telling me what photos you’d use for your memory game. Let me know! I’ll email the randomly-selected winner on Monday, September 21st.

Happy commenting!

PS) Can’t wait to find out if you’ve won? Visit Sticky9 now to pick out your very own Square Prints or one of their other awesome products!

Homemade Soy Wax Candles

Posted on May 4, 2015 by Victoria Vitale

Candle-making is a craft that I have wanted to try for a few years now. Anne gave me candle-making supplies for Valentine’s Day this year, and we spent an afternoon making a whole batch together. It was a lot of fun, and produced some seriously pretty candles!

Are you in need of a Mother’s Day gift? It’s not too late to give this a whirl. The instructions below are adapted from Martha Stewart.

Homemade Soy Wax Candles

Materials:

Wicks with a metal bottom
Chopsticks or skewers
Glass jars
Soy wax
Double boiler
Meat or candy thermometer
Oil-based essence of your choice (i.e. lavender)
Scissors

Step 1: Clean and dry all glass jars. Use chopsticks to rest one wick in each jar. To do this, wrap the wick around the chopstick as to hold the wick in place. It’s important that the wick is centered in the jar.

Step 2: Set up the double boiler and melt the wax to 135°F.

Step 3: Remove the melted wax from the heat, and stir in 80-100 drops of essential oil, or to your desired amount. (Note: 80 drops gives off a light aromatic scent, while closer to 100+ drops will smell more like a commercial candle.)

Step 5: Carefully pour wax into jars, and place them in a cold water bath in the sink. (You may need to hold the wicks in place for a few minutes.) As the wax cools, it may begin to sink. Add melted wax as needed, and re-cool. Remove chopsticks and trim wicks with scissors.

Especially if you’re considering giving your candles as gifts, consider making labels for each of them. Use stickers, washi tape, or Sharpie markers to describe the scent you’ve used.

Are you making anything homemade this Mother’s Day? If so, share in the comments! I’ll send the mother of one lucky commenter a surprise care package. (Continental US moms only!)

Sticky9 Square Prints & GIVEAWAY!

Posted on January 12, 2015 by Victoria Vitale

I know how it goes. You spend all this time taking wonderful pictures (hundreds, maybe thousands!), and you don’t have a thing to show for your hard work. Instead, they are sitting on your computer somewhere off in la la land. I’ve been there and, truthfully, I am usually still there. It’s heartbreaking, really. I love going through printed photos from my childhood simply because they’re something I can hold onto. Is anyone else with me on this?

Today, I am here to tell you that there is hope. I have teamed up with the fantastic crew behind Sticky9 to share with you one way I have recently used their Square Prints. If you’re not familiar with Sticky9, they are a London-based business whose mission is to turn digital content into fun and tangible objects like magnets, phone cases, prints, and calendars. In other words, a dream come true!

The best part? This post comes to you with a GIVEAWAY! More on that later, though… First, I want to show you my closet! A Beautiful Mess posted my picture below on their Instagram feed, and it received more than 5,400 likes — yippee!

I would consider my closet to be quite ordinary. Our apartment has very little closet space, so it can get kind of hairy in there sometimes. In order to spruce things up a bit in my closet, I decided to order myself a set of Sticky9’s Square Prints. It’s a fantastic deal: 27 premium matte prints for $16.99 (free shipping worldwide). I may have screeched when my package arrived.

Going into this project, I already knew what I wanted my final product to look like: a colorful, memory-filled surprise every time I opened my closet. Now, I spend more time gazing at my pictures than I do getting dressed. Oops.

Here’s what I used for this project:

24 of my Square Prints
24 mini clothespins in Natural
12 clear thumbtacks
Thin hemp string

Before you start hanging, take a few minutes to spread your photos out on the floor. Figure out what order you want to arrange the photos in, and how much space you’ll need between each. I also took this time to write on the back of each photo in pencil. I wanted to remember why these specific pictures were so important to me.

To hang your photo display, place your first two thumbtacks on the inside of your closet door at equal heights (I eyeballed mine). Take the hemp string and tie a knot around the first thumbtack. Pull it taut and tie another knot to the second thumbtack. Double check that the string is level. Clip on your first four photos! (You’ll notice that the string will dip in the middle — this is normal!)

Repeat this process five more times, spacing each row about five inches below the previous thumbtacks. Then, admire your work! It’s that simple.

And now for the fun part: a GIVEAWAY! One lucky reader will win their own set of premium matte prints, courtesy of Sticky9. HOW COOL, RIGHT?!

Here’s how to enter:

Comment on this post with how you would use these Square Prints.
Follow Scissors & Sage using the email sign up in the sidebar to earn one additional entry under your name.
If you already follow Scissors & Sage, say so in your comment to earn both entries.

The giveaway is open until Friday, January 23rd at midnight EST, so get to work! The winner will be contacted directly after the 23rd.

Can’t wait to find out if you’ve won? Visit Sticky9 now to pick out your very own Square Prints or one of their other awesome products!