review

Jun

2018

How To Use Giving Artfully Kids to Inspire Compassion

While our children are young, we teach them. Some lessons, like first words, seem rather simple. Others, like potty training, are more difficult. Some are less obvious but are still very important. Things like giving, being kind, and helping others. We, of course, teach them through our own actions and through encouragement. Giving Artfully Kids makes these lessons teach kindness through the power of craft.

**Disclaimer: I received a trial subscription for free from Giving Artfully Kids in exchange for an honest review. All opinions, however, are mine and uninfluenced.**

Giving Artfully Kids has a program for everyone. From the parent to the teacher, their programs are designed and developed with everyone in mind. They can be done one on one with a child or through a group. The projects can be done by everyone, regardless of skill and age. Plus, they do all the hard work for you. The planning and the research. They provide high-quality lesson plans to help empower and teach our children to make a difference in the world; all while being both fun and creative.

Giving Artfully Kids offers two different packages so there is a package for everyone.

The Basic Membership

The basic membership is designed for anyone who only wants to complete one project a month. Each week a new portion of the lesson is released so it is manageable and not at all overwhelming.

Each month, you will receive:
- Week 1: One crafting-based service learning project for children ages 3-12
- Week 2: Pillar of Giving Activity
- Week 3: Article of Video to encourage and engage kids in kindness and giving activities

The Premium Membership

The premium membership, unlike the basic, is perfect for schools, after-school programs, churches or even a family.

Month 1 you will receive 8 crafting-based service learning project
Every subsequent month, 2 new projects will be released

Both

Regardless of which package you feel works best for you get

Instructions for crafting based projects (video instructions for more difficult crafts)
Downloadable links for a crafting-based service learning project
PDF Downloads and Worksheets to help organize you Giving Artfully Kids programs
Giving Artfully Kids Support for questions
Age group specific lessons
Monthly or yearly subscriptions available.

During our trial, we tried the premium, and we did a variety of activities. – I am a bad blog mom and I didn’t take any photos. – My kids loved knowing that their crafts were going to help someone or something and both favoured making things for the local animal shelter.

In today’s day of subscription box services, where you get a ton of knick-knack items, this is an incredible alternative. The subscription is all online, and while you have to purchase the supplies needed separately, you only get what you need. Most items can be found at your local dollar store. We completed multiple projects and never spent more than $5 CAD on any, occasionally doing more than one within the same price point.

Whether you are a teacher, a mom, or anything in between, Giving Artfully Kids has a package for you.

Dec

2017

Jord Watch: A Review.

**Disclaimer: I received this product for free from Jord watches in exchange for 
social media and blog posts. All opinions, however, are mine and uninfluenced.**

My father in law got married last fall and I was lucky enough to be part of the wedding party. I had a dress, shoes, earrings, necklace, rings, and a beautiful shawl. I even had a watch. Except, my watch was actually my Fitbit, and while it matched the colour it didn’t really suit the occasion.

That was when I came to the conclusion that I needed to get a “dress” watch for just such an occasion. That is when Jord came into the picture. I had been eying them up for a while, their unmistakable beauty at a more than reasonable price point made them a perfect addition to my jewellery box.

Their options are seemingly endless and each just as or more beautiful than the last, and so the hardest part was probably trying to decide on which one to get. I ended up with the gorgeous Zebrawood Emerald square face watch from their Reese collection.

Let’s just take a moment and talk about the box this came in. This is an intricately built wooden box that is something to be appreciated. Complete with a bottom pull out drawer to store your polishing cloth. But we’re not here to talk about the box.

The watch is… wow.

THE FACE

The square face is emerald coloured and is a classic, is stylish, and the fold numbering is easy to read. There is a slight texture on the face which can be distracting. I frequently thought it was a plastic protective layer I forgot to pull off. Overall, I believe it is just something I needed to get used to.

THE BAND

The band is flawlessly put together in a lightweight manner, not at all heavy. Knowing it was made of wood, this was my fear. The zebra wood is unique, making each an every piece different and therefore no two-time pieces are the same. The links are a larger than average, making the band a little looser than I would prefer but a size smaller would be too tight I believe.

THE CLASP

The clasp was a huge seller to me. Due to the fact that I am extremely uncoordinated, I can’t manage most clasps. This one, however, was simple and I was able to do it one-handed. It is a double fold so it is secure, but still easy to do.

This is a conversation piece. When we went to my husbands Christmas party I had at least a half-dozen people ask about my watch. All of them with admiration. Perfect for dressing up for a night out, or even for dressing down on a night in. You could wear this any day of the week, and have it blend with any attire.

Check out the Men’s line, the Women’s Line, or take a closer look at my watch, get 25% off your order; and make sure to let me know your favourite in the comments down below.

Wooden Wrist Watch