Another Giveaway + Catching Up

Happy Monday everyone!! 

So first things first–I have another great giveaway for you today! 

Ok, I know what {some} of you might be thinking…“Another giveaway, lame!” And I totally understand. It seems that companies are reaching out to bloggers full force this time of the year as I’ve seen tons of giveaways around the blogging world this month. Personally when I see bloggers doing giveaway after giveaway, I usually think it’s kind of stupid and tend to skip over those posts. What I really enjoy about blogging is seeing people’s original content, especially at this time of the year. I want to see Christmas recipes, read about holiday traditions, see creative gift guides, etc. Doing giveaways can seem like kind of a cop-out sometimes I guess, like your just doling out free stuff for any company that comes along. 

However, on the flip side I also think that giveaways can be one of the best perks about blogging. Having won some amazing giveaways myself, I can tell you that it does happen! And I mean, who doesn’t love free stuff?! Also, I think companies are really smart to reach out to partner with the blogging community. Here is this vibrant, engaged group of creative women (yes, I realize there are men bloggers out there too, but 99% of the blogs I personally read are written by women so who I’m referring to) that love to buy things (it’s true), so it makes sense why companies would want to reach out to us.

I think that finding a balance between doing giveaways and posting original content that made people come to your blog in the first place is a delicate balance. While you don’t want to be a corporate shill, it’s also neat to be able to partner with a company that you believe in and give back to your readers. For me personally, if a company contacts me about doing a giveaway my first question is “Is this something I would want myself?” And if the answer is yes, I usually (although not always) will agree to doing a giveaway as I figure why not give one of you the chance to win something cool?! And just for doing things you normally do anyway like going on FB, commenting on my blog, etc.

That’s why today, I am so excited to announce that one of you is going to be able to win a $50 gift card to Shabby Apple!!

Shabby Apple is one of those great companies that has done an excellent job of partnering with bloggers. First of all, they have amazing retro dresses that are feminine and unique. Second, they have a fantastic affiliate program that rewards bloggers that send business their way. Third, they are amazingly generous about offering to do giveaways to the blogging community. I actually partnered with them to do a giveaway a few months ago, so when they reached back out to me, I jumped at the chance to work with them again. Here’s the deal…

One person will win a $50 gift card to Shabby Apple (must have a US mailing address to win!) and here’s how you can enter: 

1. You must be a follower of In the Pink & Green via Google Friend Connect and visit Shabby Apple and leave a comment below telling me which dress on their site is your favorite! (MANDATORY ENTRY)

2.  Like Shabby Apple on Facebook

3. Tweet about your giveaway

4. Blog about your giveaway

Please leave a separate comment on this post for each individual entry. I’ll be announcing the winner on Monday 12/17, so be sure to get your entries in ASAP! 

As for their adorable dresses, here are some of my favorites: 

 All their dresses are so adorable, I can’t wait to hear which one on their site is your favorite!

In addition to the giveaway, Shabby Apple has been generous enough to offer all of my readers a discount code to use on their site for 10% for the next month! They’ve got lace dresses, maxi dresses, casual dresses, vintage dresses, and shirtdresses that would all be perfect for holiday parties. The code is inthepinkandgreen10off so get shopping!

Also, I want to thank all of you who entered my giveaway last week to Blue Bird Bride! The winner of that giveaway is Katie from Married…With a Pup! Congrats Katie, and send me an email for the details on how to claim your prize! 

 Finally, I just want to say that I hope everyone is having a fabulous holiday season so far! I feel like this month is rushing by and it’s kind of stressing me out a little bit. I love Christmastime and I always build it up in my mind, but with the craziness of getting back from our trip I feel like December/this year are going to be over before I turn around which makes me sad. It’s hard because there are so many things I’d love to blog about this time of year too, but I just don’t have the time. I’d love to put together some gift guides and do more seasonal posts, but I’m really making an effort to try and enjoy the season instead of sitting at my computer 24/7. I definitely haven’t had as much time to devote to blogging (or reading/commenting on other blogs) as I’d like lately, but it is what it is and I know that come January things will settle down a little bit! I definitely do have some fun holiday posts lined up for the weeks ahead (provided I find the time to actually write them!) along with lots more photos to share from our trip so stay tuned for those!

Also in case you missed this recipe from this weekend, you need to make these delish cinnamon almonds. Like now.

Have a great Monday everyone! Xoxo