Big Smiles For You!

The winner of Splendid Willow’s Giveaway is….

No. 93 – Liza P.

Congratulations!  I hope you enjoy your fabulous necklace by Swedish jewelry designer Asa! (Look for my e-mail about shipping address).

And to the rest of you - thank you so much for participating and for your wonderful support. Maybe you will be the lucky winner next time!

Love to you all.

Hello friends! It’s time again for another Splendid Willow Giveaway. The person behind this fabulous giveaway is the very talented jewelry designer Åsa (Aasa) Daxberg.

First you might want to know a little bit about her because her business is thriving and she is starting to make major inroads in many leading department stores and fashion boutiques worldwide.

(Asa outside her studio on her horse farm in Texas).

I know of Asa because we are both close friends of Ingrid’s (The Edgewater Hotel gal, remember?). And whenever Ingrid is wearing something new by Asa, we all drool.

Asa, a Swede based in Texas, has always been interested in fashion and design. After getting educated in fine silver jewelry making she started her jewelry business in 2005.

“It started more as a hobby and I had no idea that five years later my designs would be featured in magazines and worn by people in different parts of the world. I am incredibly thankful and frankly somewhat in shock that my style appeals to so many people. I pinch myself every day”.

Asa’s jewelry is all made by her own hand in sterling silver, brass and different precious stones and beads.

“I always go back to my Swedish roots. I like my designs to be simple, beautiful and meaningful”. (Asa will engrave personal messages on many of her pieces).

Asa is so busy with her designs and shipments that her website has been suffering for quite a while (and most of her customers buy from her directly). But in a month or so, her site will be updated and all her latest collections will be featured.

Now, back to the actual Giveway.

Asa is now generously offering a beautiful necklace from her 2010 Summer collection. This beautiful necklace, which Ingrid gets to show off, is called “Recycled Glass Joy”. Folks, I absolutely love this chunky statement piece and think that it is the perfect accessory for the Summer!

Valued at $130 this necklace is made by recycled Petrol colored glass beads from Africa. The beads are hanging on a hand dyed leather band together with a hand hammered silver medallion.

But wait – it gets even more interesting! If you see anything else on her website that you would rather have to a value of $130 or less, then tell us about it in your comment and you might be the lucky winner of that instead!

How to win:

1) Leave a comment (one entry/person) on this post (the necklace or what else you chose for $130 or less).

2) To increase your chances of winning, you can Tweet about the giveaway or mention it on your blog. Just let me know – and I will bump up your entries accordingly.

(Tweet = 1 extra entry, new follower = 1 extra entry, write-up/link = 2 extra entries)

I hope that you already are a subscriber of my news feeds. No pressure, though. It is just a good way to get my news posts straight to your e-mail so you don’t have to look up my blog every time. (It does not cost anything and I do not share the information with anybody).

The giveaway ends on Wednesday May 12th at midnight PST and is open to anybody. I will ship worldwide.

I hope you enjoy this giveaway as much as I do! Good luck to you all!

And don’t forget to visit Asa’s website here – Asa Jewelry.

I am super busy this week (and I apologize for not being very blog alert) but one of the many, many reasons is a meeting x 2 with Swedish Royalty! I will tell you all about it next week! Cyber hugs to you all!

… but I wish it was, because I am going absolutely nuts for this fantastic giveaway.

It is my Willow sister Gina over at Willow Decor that is taking giveaways to a whole new level. (Gina and I are 2 Willows that share a lot in common but also have our own styles that complement each other well. Her blog is oh-so inspirational and packed with great design ideas and sources. And I so appreciate our friendship. If you haven’t been visiting, you better hurry over).

But back to Gina’s giveaway. You all know how I love antiques + books (and that I used to dabble with Swedish antiques). Well, there is one thing I have always wanted to collect but have not had the opportunity to become serious about (I own 3, so nothing to write home about, yet) and those are Vellum books.

Vellum is a fine parchment made from the skin of a lamb, pig or calf. It was primarily used in book binding in the 15th and 16th century.

Apparently the wonderful antiques/design shop 3 Fine Grains has over 600 of these gorgeous books which were all part of collection by a famous actor who owned more than 8oo of these beauties!  (I understand he was the largest collector of Antique Vellum books in the United States). The books range in date from the 15oo’s to the late 1800′s. Most books are written in Italian, French, or Latin.

I mean, Hello! Are these gorgeous or what!????? And because they are so classic I think that they work in both contemporary and antique environments.

Until Sunday, Willow Decor will give her followers the opportunity to be the lucky owner of one of  these Vellum books from 3 Fine Grains. The book is from 1626 in Venice, Italy. Written in Italian, the book retails for over $600.

I know you will hurry over now! Admit it! (And if you end up being the lucky winner - you better let me know!)

Big Smiles For You!

The 3 winners of Splendid Willow’s Giveaway are….

Drum roll, please……!

1. Kendra - Jonathan Adler’s candle

2. Greet L. – Nate Berkus’ pillow

3. Gaia – Peace signs (8)

Congratulations dear blog readers! I hope you enjoy your items and that you find the perfect spot for them in your lovely homes!

And to the rest of you - thank you so much for participating and for your wonderful support. Maybe you will be one of the lucky winners next time!

Love to you all.

Hello blog friends all over the planet! It’s payback time for all the kindness and friendship you all have given me.  Design has always been my true passion. To have found a forum to express myself and meet so many lovely & talented people feels just amazing.

So, as a thank you, I have done a little shopping for Splendid Willow’s second giveaway.

1) Jonathan Adler’s Muse Blanc scented candle. Retails for approx $60.

The candle is set in a a porcelain vessel that glows as the candle burns. After the candle is gone, the vessel makes for a perfect flower vase. The candle is 3.5″ high.

2) Nate Berkus’ Hope Pillow. Retails for approx $49.95.

This pillow is part of Nate Berkus‘ latest line of home furnishings for HSN. The elegant pillow is white with a bright metallic embroidery. Evoking a message of hope, this pillow emphasizes that your home is your haven. The cover has a hidden zipper.

3) 8 Thin German Glitter Peace Sign Ornaments (from Pottery Barn). Retails for approx $32. ($4 each).

These lovely ornaments with a meaningful message could be used not only for the upcoming Holidays – but all year around! (I am getting a bunch myself to give as little tokens for friends & family).

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How do you take part of the giveaway? By simply adding a comment to this post and telling us which one out of these 3 items you would like in your own home and where you would place it (we love to peek into other people’s homes!).

The contest closes on Sunday November 8th at midnight PST. All comments/names will be put in a hat. And as usual my poor husband gets to randomly pick three winners. The winners will be announced on this blog and by email Monday morning November 9th.  (Yes, I will ship worldwide!) Note: only one entry per person

Good Luck Friends! I can’t wait to announce the winners!

…of the lovely Åsa Lindström cup is… Drum roll, please!!!! (My husband got to do the honor and pull the winning comment from the “hat”)... Ms. Sylvia R. CONGRATULATIONS! The cup will be shipped to you next week. I hope you enjoy it and treasure it for a very long time.

This was fun! Thank you all for the lovely comments. They mean so much to me. You are the ones who keep me motivated and happy every day. In the early fall, when people are back from their long vacations, I have many more fun activities up my sleeves.  Don’t forget to check in then!

Warm, lovely thoughts to all of you. Wherever you are in the world, I wish you a truly joyous and relaxing summer.  (I will write a couple of posts next week, and then I am taking a few weeks off myself).

I realize that many of my readers are on vacation, but let’s have some fun amongst us who are yet to hit the beach!

I have been collecting Åsa Lindström’s handmade cups for years. (See previous article here). I think they are absolutely stunning with their unexpected enamel motifs (inspired by old books and magazines) and real gold rims. Åsa Lindström’s imagery has been described as “a nostalgic back-heel with a focus on the future and it achieves a balance between laughter and purity of style”. In Sweden many use them to drink tea or coffee from. I prefer to line them up and just enjoy the artistic side of them, or to put pencils or flowers in them for my office or next to my bed.

YOU now have a chance to win this lovely cup by Åsa Lindström, which I bought last weekat Blås & Knåda in Stockholm!  (With the delighful motif of a bunch of stylish rowers from the 40s!) All you need to do is to add a public comment (note: not under my contact tab) to any of my individual posts on Splendid Willow this week. Your comment and name will be put in the “comment hat” and a winner will be picked. The contest ends on Friday July 3rd @ midnight west cost time. The winner will be notified immediately. Good Luck/Lycka till!