Category Archives: FAMILY + KIDS

Family Craft Fun Books from Quarto Knows – Yes, I’m Down With This!

September 13, 2017

is your go-to for the best crafting books on the block. Listen peeps, gift season is swiftly approaching! Get this website in your back pocket!

Quarto is killin’ it with a new batch of all-in-one crafting kits. No, not just for amazing kid prezzies. I am totally IN ON THIS ACTION!

So whether you’re interested in macramé, felting, cross-stitch, or embroidery, these kits have everything you need to get started, including the supplies for two projects.

These boxes are the perfect way to learn something new, or to give to loved ones who are interested in needlework but unsure where to start. (Like moi!)

Currently on our studio desks:

Modern Macramé by Justine Vasquez

10 Simple Projects to Enhance Your Home

ISBN: 9780760355022

becker&mayer! | September 19, 2017

Macramé is making a big comeback, and this kit provides exciting and attractive projects inspired by classic favorites, like an owl hanging, and a market shoulder bag. This is macramé for a new generation, though, and includes modern twists like coasters and a customizable hanging shelf. Includes 10 elegant designs, step-by-step instructions, an introduction on knot tying techniques, and all the supplies needed to create a mini plant hanger and a mini wall hanging.

DESCRIPTION

Macrame is back! The retro art of tying cords into patterns has become the home decor trend of the moment. Modern Macrame brings this easy and fun craft up to date with ten stylish projects featuring bright colors, new materials, and elegant lines.

Complete with all the materials you need to make two projects–a mini plant hanger and a mini wall hanging–this fabulous kit also features an illustrated book with instructions for ten sophisticated projects. A knotting tutorial guides you through classic macrame knots to teach you the basics so you can move on to making your own unique designs.

Create items for your home, like the classic hanging owl, or show off your skills to the world with a mesh shoulder bag. Throughout, each project is accompanied by photographic step-by-step instructions that will make you a macramé expert in no time!

THE AUTHOR

Justine Vasquez is a content marketer who has always had a flair for anything crafty. When she is not working or making new macrame pieces, she is finding new, exciting places to take her boys, baking, and drinking a lot of coffee.

[endif]Felt Friends: Woodland Critters by Aimee Ray

Create 20 Cute Forest Friends
ISBN: 9781631063756

becker&mayer! | September 12, 2017

This unique kit includes a fully-illustrated book of 20 cuddly, felted, animals and plants, plus all the tools and supplies needed to create ten sweet woodland creatures. Each project includes step-by-step instructions along with a photo of the finished product and how to customize each critter. Includes an embroidery needle, a fabric pen, die-cut templates, felt embroidery floss, and stuffing; everything you need to get started.

DESCRIPTION

Felt Friends: Woodland Critters gathers a menagerie of lovable felted animals and plants in one fabulous kit, complete with a detailed guide for crafting twenty projects.

From a fuzzy fox to a winking owl, these adorable projects can become a variety of accessories; hanging ornaments, magnets, finger puppets, broaches, garlands, and more! The fully illustrated book includes an introduction to all the stitches and knots needed for the embroidering and sewing projects, and step-by-step instructions and photos of the final product.

This unique kit comes fully stocked with an embroidery needle and a fabric pen, as well as all the materials and supplies needed to create ten projects: acorn, bear, beaver, deer, frog, hedgehog, leaf, raccoon, robin, and tree. Bring these snuggly critters into your home and your heart with felting!

THE AUTHOR

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My Favorite Childhood Vanity Mirror Is Back!

September 1, 2017

Ok so growing up this mirror was life. I was looking for a fun mirror for me and my now tween and thank you Amazon. I LOVE THIS! Ok, full disclosure – my 11 year old nabbed and is doing fake Youtube slime tutorials while looking in it – but it’s all good.

Super fun and affordable for the holidays as they are UPON US NO JOKE!!

Jerdon’s Tri-Fold Two-Sided Lighted Makeup Mirror .

Here’s why it’s one of the most-loved mirrors on the market:

Adjustable magnification, 1x and 5x

Adjustable light settings for daytime, evening, home and office to view yourself in the best light no matter your environment (this can be SCARY!!! office? NO PLEASE!)

Built-in electrical outlet to plug in a curling iron or cell phone charger

LOVE IT! Has a totally retro 80’s vibe but I don’t even think they are thinking of that when selling it. I do, and it’s so fun.

Enjoy!

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LOS ANGELES HAUNTED HAYRIDE UNVEILS MOST ICONIC AND HORRIFYING THEME YET AS “CLOWN” IS ANNOUNCED FOR 2017

August 27, 2017

You’ve been to Rite Aid and Target and it’s clear that…HALLOWEEN is upon us.

Sorry, there is only so many healthy, sugar free stories I can cover. A girl needs to lighten up sometimes and by that I mean…burning calories and getting your heart rate up the easy way. Simply sweat your ass off scaring the crap out of yourself here!

Ten Thirty One Productions (TTO) is excited to announce the highly anticipated return of the most popular Halloween attraction in the country, the Los Angeles Haunted Hayride coming September 29^th to Griffith Park with limited pre-sale tickets available now.

TTO will allow guests to come face-to-face with their biggest, darkest fears for the scariest Halloween immersion experience on the West Coast.

I for one, love scary shit! And I have always wanted to check this out for some light (and dark!) fun. I hear this year they’ve pulled out all the stops.

Los Angeles Haunted Hayride (@LAHauntedHayride) returns with the most thrilling ride yet as guests become completely absorbed within the experience. Clown will feature four zones guaranteed to make your skin crawl: Haunted Hayride, House Of Shadows, Trick Or Treat, and Purgatory. Take a seat on our Haunted Hayride as we slither through the genuinely haunted woods of Griffith Park’s Old Zoo. Meet a legion of vicious clowns waiting with more psychopathic fun than any wagon can handle. And if you think you know clowns…you don’t know our clowns. The evolution of demonic apparitions that live within these trees have created a darkness that will leave with you and infiltrate your dreams. Clown – will literally have you on the edge of your seat and then forced out of those seats as you become immersed within your darkest fears escaping on foot to experience the winding, weaving Corn Maze smack dab in the middle of the ride!

“Hayride fans have been asking us to bring back the Clown Tent Finale for years. We just couldn’t escape it. Once we started we got so sucked into this rabbit hole of incredible clown content that we couldn’t just do one finale scene. So we decided to take the number one fan favorite experience of our entire history and make it the entire 30 acre attraction. I don’t think I’ve been this excited for the hayride since year one ” explains TTO CEO and Haunted Hayride Founder and author of the upcoming book “READY FIRE AIM: How I Turned a Hobby into an Empire”, Melissa Carbone (@MelCarbs).

Legendary fan favorite scare zone, House of Shadows, will leave you completely blinded in total darkness, as the shadows of the most vicious, ugliest and depraved souls chase you through the re-imagined, colossally possessed demonic house – Southern California’s only true dark maze! At Trick Or Treat, it’s Halloween every night. Go get candy from strangers! The interactive neighborhood has doubled in size and has tripled the mischief. The suburb of Hell welcomes trick-or-treaters to go door to door and come face to face with its freakish occupants. You’ve always known your neighbors were a little off, so tonight let’s pull back the curtain. “Ding Dong!”

An ALL NEW layout may just make Purgatory the best part of the entire attraction. The charm and magic of our old world ‘haunted village’ invokes the nostalgia of Halloweens past; smell the freshly cut hay, feel the chill of cold fog, and see the deep, rich orange glow of jack o’ lanterns as you pass through our gates. Become a part of the show at Theatre Macabre, ride the Scary-Go-Round, enjoy food & drink at the Grub Shack, shop in the Bootique, visit a psychic, and get ready to see Purgatory like you’ve never seen it before from a seat around our 20-foot Living Bonfire that will send your jaws to the ground. Get ready for this never before seen spectacle.

If you’ve ever thought about going to Los Angeles Haunted Hayride, this is the year to do it.

The terror of Los Angeles Haunted Hayride begins on September 29^th, 2017 and will be open select nights until October 31^st, 2017. Operating hours are Sundays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 7pm-10:30 pm and Fridays and Saturdays from 7pm-12am. General Admission is $44 and VIP passes that surpass the line are $62. There are also a limited number of Hayride Only Passes $35, all expected to sell out during the pre-sale.

Pre-sale for tickets will begin August 1^st. Visit www.losangeleshauntedhayride.com for exact nights of operation and other details.

Ten Thirty One Productions is an entertainment company that creates, owns and produces live attractions in the horror genre. Launching one of the most popular Horror attractions in LA, “Los Angeles Haunted Hayride” in 2009, TTO has quickly grown as one of the premiere horror genre attractions companies in the country being featured in Forbes, Fortune, Entrepreneur, The Today Show, The View, Bloomberg and many more. A major component in the business model has and will always be a strong social awareness element that is integrated into the content of the attractions. For example, Environmental Conservation, Animal and Wildlife Welfare, City Park Preservation and more are issues that are addressed in creative ways in every TTO production. Ten Thirty One Productions recycles, composts, features plastic free concessions, hybrid/electric production vehicles, biodiesel fuels, 100% reused/recycled sets and wardrobes, plant based concessions, carpool discounts and more in an effort to minimize the environmental footprint.

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K+ Organics Healthy Sports Drinks For Kids? YEP!

August 23, 2017

Velana Colon got tired of seeing all the sugary drinks get fed to her kids after their sports game and finally had enough. She and another family with a total of six kids came together to create something different and healthier for their young MVP’s and K+ Organics was born.

K+ Organics is a new electrolyte sports drink with ONLY 14 grams of sugar per bottle (more than half of other leading brands) and no artificial preservatives, flavors, colors or sweeteners and is certified organic.

I have to admit, I have occasionally ‘treat’ my kids to the chemical concoctions of crappy, sugar-free versions of sports drinks – ya know the kind, filled with hideous things I am too ashamed to spell out. I was so excited to try these healthy versions out on my kiddos (and my self!). Huge hit. We all loved them. They for sure look, taste and feel like sports drinks – sweet and refreshing in sporty bottles. My son especially luurrrveed them.

K+ Organics Founder, Velana Colon

K + Organics comes in three fun flavors: Fruit Punch, Orange and Lime and is available at Gelson’s and Bristol Farms in Southern California and can be purchased online at http://www.kplusorganics.com .

And don’t forget, adults can drink it too!!

More information can also be found at K+ Organics .

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BACK TO SCHOOL KERATIN TREATMENT AT BRAMBILA SALON

August 19, 2017

My teenage daughter, Margot, has frizzy, brittle, impossible-to-tame hair. She spends every morning battling with anti-frizz serums and flat irons, only to eventually admit defeat and pull her unruly hair back into a pony tail. Last week, for the first time in her life, I decided to do something about it. After all, every year I shower her with back-to-school clothing and supplies.Why not add silky, swingy, shiny hair to the list?

After researching the best salons in Santa Monica, I surprised Margot with a trip to Brambila Salon — and her life is forever changed (or at least for the next six months). After doing a little research or hair smoothing options, I decided to go with the Keratin Treatment. After seeing the smile on Margot’s face, I am so happy I did!

First of all, Brambila Salon is super cute. One of the best kept secrets in Santa Monica, Brambila is located in a beachside bungalow off Ocean Ave., right around the corner from The Fairmont Hotel. Sitting in my chair I had views of palm trees and sand, and lunch delivered next door from Blue Plate Oysterette — not a bad way to spend an hour and a half! Plus Brambila is stocked with all my favorite Oribe products — and even offers delicious coffee and fresh baked goods.

Our stylist, Morgan Yee was amazing. Warm and down-to-earth, Morgan had zero of the attitude that can be found in Beverly Hills or Hollywood salons. She was super approachable and gave us some great tips about how to keep Margot’s hair healthy and how to keep the Keratin lasting longer.

After a quick shampoo and condition, Morgan applied the Keratin formula. To my surprise, there was no bad smell, no scalp irritation, and no discomfort whatsoever. Once Margot’s hair was completely saturated, she was given a blowdry, and then her strands were straightened. And voila — done!

One week later, Margot’s frizzy hair dries smooth, silky, and shiny in under ten minutes. She no longer plays tug-of-war with her hair in the morning, and, most importantly, her smile is brighter because she looks — and feels — beautiful. She still haves her beachy waves, only now they are silky and manageable. This was, in fact, life changing for her. Great way to start the school year! Thank you Brambila Salon!