Christmas Almost Is Here...

Hard to believe the year is almost over! I haven't written in a while as I've been quite ill this year and 3 surgeries later with more to come. I tend to look obtimistic toward the New Year. Last week I thought I needed to arrange all my Christmas DVD's and took a bad fall off a chair. I was never really good on chairs and forget the ladders, lol... No stop for the weary though with still so much to do! This weekend I will be working on some last minute listings of plenty of Bethany Lowe and just some gorgeous holiday products. If I could I would be working around the clock! If only we didn't need that sleep... I just wanted to touch base and tell you I am still among the living! May the spirit of the holidays brighten your hearts~Linda

Happy Fall!

I apologize for not keeping my blog more up to date. Although, we have been updating our website with new products on a regular basis. I must say Christmas has arrived and with no room to virtually walk around in our warehouse our elves are hard at work.

I have been undergoing Iron Infusion (has anyone had them?) with some not so fun side effects and this week I will be having surgery on October 7th & hopefully this will bring me back in full swing and full of the energy I once had! I have plenty of help so no worries there! We still try & ship within 24 hours and offer exceptional customer service! I just felt that I should thank all my loyal readers and followers and give you all an explanation for my absence.

This is my favorite month of With Halloween in full swing! I had some requests for some recipes from my last years Halloween post so I am going to list them for you

Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes

Pull-Apart Pumkin Patch Cupcakes

Bewitch a hungry crowd with our amazing cupcakes topped with pumpkin cookies

1 tube (16.5 oz.) refrigerated cookie dough at room temperature

2/3 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp orange concentrated food coloring

6 yellow hard candy balls, such as Charms Candy Sour Balls, finely crushed

1 tube (4.25 oz.) each orange, green & black decorating icing, each fitted with small writing tip

1 1/2 cups butter, at room temperature

6 cups confectioners' sugar from 2 (1 lb.) pkgs.

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp kelly green concentrated paste food coloring, such as Wilton

18 unfrosted baked cupcakes

2 Tbs, green edible glitter, such as Wilton Cake Sparkles

Finely ground Oreo cookies, optional

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. On medium speed, beat dough, flour and orange food coloring until combined. On floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4" thickness. Using 3" and 1 1/2" pumpkin shaped cookie cutters, cut out 16 large and 28 small cookies, reroll scraps as necessary.

For "eyes," using 3/4" triangle-shaped cutter or small knife, cut out 2 triangles in each large pumpkin. Using spatula, transfer large pumpkins to 1 baking sheet and smaller pumpkins to remaining baking sheet.

Fill each "eye" with about 1/8 tsp. crushed candy balls, as shown. Bake cookies 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned and candy is melted. Cool completely on pans on rack. Using icing, decorate cookies. Let stand until set, about 30 minutes.

On medium-high speed, beat butter until fluffy. On medium-low speed, gradually beat in sugar 3 Tbs. water, vanilla and green food coloring until fluffy. Transfer to pastry bag fitted with large leaf tip. Arrange cupcakes on platter. Pipe frosting over cupcakes, connecting them with frosting "leaves;" top with glitter. Press some cookies into frosting; serve remaining with cupcakes. If desired, garnish with Oreo crumbs. Serves 18

The next recipe is for some Green Zombie Floats.

Green Zombie Floats

18 cupc ginger ale, from 3 (1 liter) bottles, chilled

12 drops green liquid food coloring

1 1/2 qts rainbow sherbet, 6 cups

Gummi worms, optional

Evenly divide ginger ale among 12 (16 oz.-20 oz.) glasses; add 1 drop food coloring to each.

Top Each drink with 1/2 cup sherbet . Let stand 1 minute before serving. If desired, garnish with gummi worms. Serves 12

Tomorrow I will be listing Our Fall In The Country Contest where you could win a $75 gift certificate for use on our website! Just in time for some early Christmas shopping!

The 7th Day Of The 12 Days Of Christmas In July!

Join us today July 19th for the 7th day of Christmas In July! Our featured product for the day is a set Of Autumn Splendor Dinner Plates that you could win. If you haven't entered click on our picture for details!

Our Autumn Splendor Dinner Plates Will Add That Autumn Touch To Any Table... You get four whimsical folk art styled plates. They feature a salt box house with pumpkins & leaves. Serve up some memories this season with these porcelain plates. Food safe, dishwasher & microwave safe. Four piece set, 11.5", match with our dessert plates or buy the whole set found in our store! This pattern was discontinued.


At Sweetheart's Nest, we are proud to offer a wide range of quality products to enhance the beauty of your home. We specialize in unique, heirloom quality gifts and home décor. We pride ourselves in our attention to detail, personal care and a little Sweetheart's Secret in every package.

Christmas In July Shabby Cottage Shops Contest Starts Today!

Click On The Above Banner To Enter!

It is now time for Sweetheart's Nest & Shabby Cottage Shops Christmas In July Event starting today, July 13th and will end on July 25th! If you haven't taken the time to enter yet you can click on any of the banners in this post for more information and how to enter!

12 Days Of Giveaways!!
Enter for a chance to win a daily giveaway!
July 13th ~ July 25th!
Please click on the banner below for more information!

We're also going to have a fabulous giveaway on our blog at Shabby Cottage Shops which will end on July 25th at midnight, EST. The winner will be announced on July 26th! Visit our "Shabby Cottage Shops" blog to enter! Click on the picture below for more information on how to enter!

Christmas In July Coupon

All the creatures are stirring this month at Sweetheart’s Nest! Join us as we celebrate Christmas in July, enjoy a 10% discount off of any order of $50.00 or more during the whole month of July, and be sure to sign up for our Christmas in July giveaway. You could win a $50.00 gift certificate from our website. Stay tuned for more exciting news... (shhh it’s a secret!!)

Enter code: Holiday Spirit

Upcoming Christmas In July Contests

It's hard to believe that Christmas In July is finally almost here! We have some great contest going on so make sure you get signed up for them all! Read on...

For all updated information please check our~

We have four different promotions going on for Christmas in July that will give you 15 different chances to win some truly fantastic prizes. So be sure to sign up for all four! Start with our own right here on Sweethearts Nest Blog!

(contest #1)
Sweetheart's Nest
Christmas In July Contest

You Could Win A $50 Gift Certificate
See instructions below!
1. Make sure that you are signed up for our newsletter!

2. As some of you know we have been working on our first cookbook for some time now & in honor of Christmas In July we are looking for some of your favorite family traditions or memories for the holiday season that we could share in our new book! Contact Us and tell us your favorite memory or traditions that you hold dear to your heart! You will automatically be entered in our drawing for a chance to win $50 gift certificate & if we use your memory or tradition in our book you will receive a complimentary copy of it!
Contest ends July 25th, 2010
(contest #2)
The Christmas In July Shop Hop
July 16th ~ July 20th
Click on the image below to register & find out more information!

MMP Shop Hops are a type of contest where you try to find as many “You Found It” (see example image below) images as you can. Each of our participating boutiques has hidden an image on its website that says, “You Found It!” on the tag. Click that image to return to Make Mine Pink and get credit for finding it. The more images you find, the better your chances of winning great prizes.
There is no cost and no obligation to purchase anything. However, if you do happen to find some products you might be interested in, don't forget to bookmark those pages so that you can come back later! Good luck!


The image above of, the purse with the "You Found It" is only an example and is not clickable!
The real one is hidden somewhere else on my website!
Did you really think it would be that easy!


(contest #3)
Sweetheart's Nest tm & Shabby Cottage Shops are also having an event called the "12 Days of Christmas in July" starting July 13th and will end on July 25th!

12 Days Of Giveaways!!
Enter for a chance to win a daily giveaway!
July 13th ~ July 25th!
Please click on the banner below for more information!



(Contest #4)
We're also going to have a fabulous giveaway on our blog at Shabby Cottage Shops which will end on July 25th at midnight, EST. The winner will be announced on July 26th! Visit our "Shabby Cottage Shops blog to enter! Click on the picture below for more information on how to enter! Also, watch for details very soon!

Summer In The Country

Hello Everyone! I hope everyone had a great Mother's Day! I know I did! Mr. Ford made his fabulous barbecue hamburgers to start off the season! Summer is just around the corner so I predict there will be a lot more barbecues! I included a picture of some flowers I received! The scent of the star gazer lilies fragranced the whole house! Thank you Paul!We have started a new contest called Christmas In July! You can have the opportunity to win a fabulous Gift Certificate valued at $50! Our $50 Gift Certificate will get you started on some early fall & holiday shopping!

Sign up Today!

1. Make sure you are signed up for our Newsletter

2. As some of you know we have been working on our first cookbook for some time now & in honor of Christmas in July we are looking for some of your favorite family traditions or memories for the holiday season that we could share in our book! Contact Us & tell us about a favorite memory or a special tradition that you hold dear to your heart! You will then automatically be entered in our drawing for a chance to win a $50 gift certificate & if we use your memory or tradition in our new book you will receive a complimentary copy of it! Good luck!

Your memories or traditions can either be from your childhood or from the present time. I would love to hear from some of our overseas visitors & learn about your customs & traditions for holidays! I look forward to reading your responses!

We have been busy listing new & exciting products and here are just some of them! To see more of them check out our New Arrivals category!

Here is a sneak peak at our upcoming fall items that we already have in stock! June & July will be extremely busy months for us as the inventory for both fall & Christmas will be arriving! These items below are a couple of my personal favorites that I felt I must add to my collection of Halloween vintage decor.

I wanted to take the time to introduce to you a couple of our sweet family members that were both rescue cats. Our gray cat is Harriet that we adopted when she was 4 years old from a no kill shelter. As you can tell her previous owners slammed her tail in a door and broke it. I can't imagine the pain she endured. When they first found her they didn't even know what color she was as she had no fur. Poor thing, but now she is extremely happy & enjoy antagonizing her best friend Lacie. (It is a love-hate relationship) This is lacie, we rescued her when she was just a kitten when we moved in our house. The former owner had left these poor kittens to starve to death when he moved out. Who knows how long they were without food & water. As you can tell she is a vision of health!

I also wanted to include some before pictures of my flower garden! These are pictures of some of the areas and by looking at them you would think there is no hope! It definitely looks pretty bad. Living in Oregon we seem to get never ending rain and have not had a lot of opportunity to get outside. I can say I've had a couple days here & there. My gardening skills I must credit to my grandfather who planted vegetable gardens every year. Next to his garden I was able to plant a flower garden with seeds, complete with pathways & decorative fencing. We are very much hoping this weekend to be able to start on our vegetable garden. I have started all the seeds & Mr. Ford will be preparing the ground. Will keep you updated with my Cottage/English style & vegetable gardens with more pictures.

If you haven't had a chance to view our newest newsletter, Summer In The Country, 2010 click Here!

Starting April 25th thru May 1st join Sweetheart's Nest & Make Mine Pink for the annual MMP Mother's Day Shop Hop! There are lots of great prizes to win for yourself or that special mom on your shopping list. It's easy & fun to play. No purchase necessary! Just click on the link above to register!

MMP Shop Hops are a type of contest where you try to find as many "You Found It" images (as shown below) as you can. Each of the participating boutiques has hidden an image on its website that says, "You Found It!" on the tag. Click that image to return to Make Mine Pink & get credit for finding it. The more images you find, the better your chances of winning great prizes.

There is no cost & no obligation to purchase anything. However, if you do happen to find some products you might be interested in, don't forget to bookmark those pages so that you can come back later! Good Luck!!!

Spring Is In The Air!

I can't begin to tell you how excited I am for spring! I have all these plans for my vegetable garden & the fact I can do up my cottage style garden this year! Our house has had major undertakings done on it for the past 3 years so my plants would have been destroyed. This year should be an amazing journey of color! I can't wait to bring you those pictures! Above is a picture of one of my English roses from last year!

I just sent out a new newsletter Sunday but if you haven't had a chance to read it or any of our newsletters here is a link to all of them! Our Newest one is Spring In The Country 2010 and there are some great announcements in there, including our new contest!

Here is a picture of what you can win:

Here's how to enter!

Just~

1. Make sure you are signed up for our newsletter, you can do that easily by signing up on the left side of the page!

2. Send me your product suggestions. Contact us & let us know what products you would like to see on our website. We would love to hear your ideas & have the opportunity to help fulfill your search!

That is it! You will automatically be entered in our drawing for a chance to win one of our beautiful sets of our 3 Tier Ruffle Cake Stands! Winner will be announced April 30th in our newsletter! Good luck!

A Rare Find

Recently, Mr. Ford came across a hidden treasure while traveling through the tiny town of Elk, in north eastern Washington. He came across an amazing restaurant almost in the middle of nowhere. He was on his way to a meeting & noticed a beautiful log cabin style building & the parking lot was overflowing. He made note of it & went on. Mr. Ford travels a lot & so he also eats out fairly often. He is always on the lookout for a great place to eat along his way. Later in the day after his meeting, he decided to stop in & see what all the commotion was about. What he found, kind of caught him off guard. He noticed the authentic log cabin decor as he entered & walked on in & seated himself. As he looked over the menu, he was not overly enthused by the offerings, as it looked pretty much like every other deep fried menu he sees day after day in his travels. He asked about the days specials & decided to give it a try. A barbecue chicken sandwich with a choice of sides. He asks them to hold the bun & ordered a cup of soup as well. It wasn't long before the soup came out & to his amazement it was homemade! It was good & the serving was huge! Pretty soon the barbecue chicken comes out & sure as heck it was amazing as well. He is still not sure what they coated the chicken with before they sauced it, but apparently he considers it the best barbecue chicken sandwich he has ever had. As it turns out, what at first look seemed to be a run of the mill menu, actually turned out to be truly fantastic home style cooking. It seems like a long story for an above average lunch, but it really was amazing. As was the service & the building itself. The restaurant is called Grub & More. (They also carry some unique gift items) It is owned by Skipp & Ruth Snyder. They opened their doors in June of 2009. They are located at 39115 N Newport Hwy. In Elk, WA. Just 40 miles north of Spokane on Hwy 2 near Diamond Lake. You won't find crystal stemware or silver utensils, but you will find great food at a fair price in a gorgeous building.

By, A Hungry Traveler

Cupcakes & Ice Cream

We have been so busy lately getting in new products! I love my Christmas in the mail year round! I can't believe how fast the year is going by~ it is already March 1st & 299 days until Christmas! I actually start getting in products for Christmas in June & one of my all time favorite holidays~ Halloween! Below are some of the items we have received from our new cupcake & ice cream line:

Click On The Pictures Below For More Info!

There is more available on our site so be sure to have a look under New Arrivals!

I have finally take the plunge & joined Facebook! Become our fan by clicking on the picture below! I will be announcing promotions & unadvertised specials & would love for you to join us!

How Sweet This Is...

Today I received A Birthday surprise in the mail! Mr. Ford brought in this package & I was thinking I wasn't expecting any new inventory until tomorrow or the next day! I will let you in on this story~ several years ago I went to this gift show and saw this sweet bunny all tucked in this cute little bed I tried to convince the rep to sell it to me (sometimes in this business they will let you cash & carry) but he wouldn't give him up :( I kept telling Mr. Ford I needed the special one! So several weeks ago I came across the catalog and put it on his desk and told him I wanted one for my Birthday! Ask & you shall receive! Here in this box was that bunny, but he went one step further and had the words, "My Special One" embroidered on it! How sweet was that? Just had to share this and the pictures!

The Gift Show Was A Success & Happy Valentine's Day Month!

February is actually one of my most favorite months! Mostly because it's Valentine's Day & my birthday month! Not that I am into counting Birthday's anymore they are now anniversaries! Since it is my birthday month, years ago I started a tradition called, The Birthday Month & The Birthday Week! This is where you pretty much have everything done for you & get just about anything you want by simply reminding your family "But it is my Birthday week", Take a hint everyone this is an exceptional tradition and works very well but look out when it is someone else's Birthday in the family, lol... What goes around comes around they say!

Mr. Ford & I had a great gift show experience. We were hopelessly bad and bought lots of new & exciting products for decorating your nest. I will include a few pictures in my next post to show you a small preview of what is in store for the year! You can't tell I am just a little excited...

First, to get off the subject for a moment I'm not your average magazine fanatic I am 10 times worse if you can actually imagine. I wonder if they have support groups for this??? I just had to scan this picture of our post office hard at work with this magazine, or shall I say what is left of this magazine! The part that humored me the most was the sticker they added which said: RECEIVED, POSSIBLY DAMAGED. Just for fun we decided to take this torn front page to the Post Office and request the rest of my magazine! I'm sure you can imagine what was said but all in all we had a good laugh!

Speaking of the show I have picked up a vintage hanky line that we are really excited about and a spring type of line for kids that I thought was unique & clever so I will be unveiling that later this month! You still have time to drop by our site and order one of these cute Valentine Pink Cupid Buckets by Casey Mack for the one you love!

Super Bowl is tomorrow & we are throwing a small get-together like we do every year. I don't know what you have on your menu but every year I make chili except for this year I am having Paula Deen's Taco Chili with Mix, I substitute the canned beans in place of the dry. For the bread I am making her Lady and Son's Onion Cheese Bread. Both of these recipes are a hit! One of my appetizers is just so easy but yet so good. I buy this Pepper & Onion Relish from one of beloved stores, Harry & David's. I just take a decorative plate & spread some cream cheese on it and add the relish. Then use a spreader & serve with your favorite crackers! This relish is like a sweet salsa and I am not one at all for liking my salsa sweet but this is heavenly! Just wanted to wish everyone a happy Super Bowl day!!!

New Buying Trip! Gotta Love To Shop!!!

It's time for our spring buying trip! I've made out my list with ideas I have for the forthcoming holidays. We actually start shopping for Christmas in January! I feel like I am truly celebrating Christmas year-round, lol... But I absolutely love shopping and decorating for Halloween. I drive Mr. Ford crazy! He enjoys shopping as much as I do. I mean, think about this... If I am on a buying mission for a dress ( I design my clothes in my mind and then search endlessly for something that doesn't exist until years later, I should have been a designer!) He will help me search endless stores & malls for weeks on end. What guy does that?? He is very much appreciated!

So with keeping in mind all those endless hours and days of being on my feet I prepared a little bit by having a little retail therapy! I found a really good buy on some Uggs~ they are so comfortable and I loved these when I first saw them in the US Magazine that Kendra Wilkinsen bought for her bridesmaids. Here's a pic~

Did I mention I got this incredible buy? So then I thought I better get some new walking shoes that would match some of my outfits and I love sketchers~ I can walk for days in comfort so I couldn't resist these!As you pretty much can tell I love the color pink! I'm also a fan of Victorian colors, the mauve & burgundy colors to name a few. I snapped a couple pictures that I wanted to show you before I took my Christmas tree down so this will give you a little idea of my color scheme in our living room.

Right before Christmas Mr. Ford Bought me some of my favorite roses, mostly because they go with everything. I actually can't believe these roses are still alive today! They are still absolutely gorgeous.

Now back to the shopping side of things! Make sure and follow this link to sign up for the "Sweet Treats" Valentine's Day Giveaway! This Valentine's Day giveaway is valued at $350 for one lucky winner!

We would like to congratulate Donna from Oklahoma who won one of our gorgeous Beverage Jugs! I hope she finds many uses for it with spring & summer around the corner! This leads me to discuss our newest contest! For February Customer Appreciation Month we our giving away a set of our Nostalgia Easter Plates, Set of 4. I absolutely love these, they are a vintage style and you can either use them as dessert plates or use them with their metal stands to spread a little springtime cheer! Another good thing about these is they are gift boxed individually so they make great little Easter gifts for friends & loved ones! (You can replace a greeting card with these!) To enter, just make sure that you are signed up for our website newsletter and either send us a website comment or sign our guestbook! That is all it takes to enter! The winner of the drawing will be announced February 28th 2010. Good Luck to all that enter!

Make sure and check out "Ring Out The Old, Bring In The New Sale" We have dusted off the shelves and restocking our store with some great Spring and Summer products that are sure to please! So please take a moment and check out our sale products, Sweetheart's Sale/Ring Out The Old and our New Arrivals Category for our newest additions!