10 Ways to be a Total Cliche on St. Patrick’s Day

We have a guest blogger today, Florine Church from collegecrunch.org

Listen up, lads and lassies! St. Patrick's Day is around the corner, and if you want to celebrate the holiday the right way, you'll need to dress up and act the part of a true Irishman or lady. That means wearing green regalia, drinking green beer and speaking with a wee Irish accent all while attending a St. Patty's Day parade and doing an Irish jig at the pub. If you're up for the challenge, here are 10 ways to be a total cliché on St. Patrick's Day:

1. Wear Green: Wearing green is the standard dress for St. Patrick's Day in America, even if the color is considered unlucky in Ireland. To truly embrace your inner Leprechaun, go for a completely green getup and top it off with a shamrock headband or green, sparkly top hat.
2. Pinch Anyone Who's Not Wearing Green: To truly be cliché on St. Patty's Day, you should pinch anyone and everyone who's not wearing green. Who cares if they're complete strangers or two feet taller than you – pinch away!
3. Drink Green Beer: Drinking green beer is mandatory for a cliché St. Patty's Day. Why would you settle for an Irish stout like Guinness when you can have a festively dyed Miller Lite instead? If you're throwing a St. Patty's Day party, don't rob your friends of this tradition, serve homemade green beer.
4. Wear a "Kiss Me, I'm Irish" Pin: You can find these cliché pins at just about any store around St. Patty's. But just because your pin says "Kiss me, I'm Irish" doesn't mean you'll get that lucky.
5. Eat Corned Beef and Cabbage: It doesn't get much more Irish (or cliché) than having corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's Day. You can order the dish at your favorite Irish pub, or better yet, make it at home.
6. Attend a St. Patrick's Day Parade: It doesn't matter if the St. Patty's Day parade is in Chicago, Tallahassee or Butte, Montana – you have to be there! And while you're attending the parade, you might as well try to march in the parade or sneak on to one of the floats, because that's never been done before.
7. Say "Top o' the Mornin' to Ya!": Get your St. Patty's Day off to a roaring start with an Irish coffee and saying the cliché line "Top o' the Mornin' to Ya" to anyone and everyone you encounter. To master this old saying and others, you'll need to practice your Irish accent again and again.
8. Pretend You're a Leprechaun: If you're already dressed like a leprechaun, why not act like one too? You can talk about your hidden pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, making shoes for a living and how "they're always after me Lucky Charms!"
9. Do an Irish Jig: Once you've slammed a couple of Irish Car Bombs and Jameson shots, you might be tempted to break out an Irish jig to impress your muckers. Just watch where you leap and high kick because no St. Patty's Day should be spent in the hospital.
10. Look for a Four-Leaf Clover: St. Patty's Day wouldn't be complete and cliché enough if you didn't search for a special four-leaf clover to bring you good luck. Get your friends together to search lawns and pastures for four-leaf clovers. Of course, you'll have the most luck looking during the day.

Thanks for sharing you article today with us Florine.

Happy St. Patrick's Day
Bette and Deena
Http://www.byyourhands.com

Free St. Patty's Day Printables

Are you ready for St. Patty's Day? No? Well maybe this will help. I found some really cute FREE printables to download just in the nick of time for St. Patrick's Day.


First is this LUCKY printable pillow box from, goodgravydesigns.blogspot.com

Check out these yummy printable cupcake toppers to print from tomkatstudio.blogspot.com

Next we have this adorable bag topper from onecharmingparty.com. I love the little gold candy coins they used. Kids would love 'em!

Last, but not least, are these Lucky Penny printables from pumpkinpetunia.blogspot.com. These are really really cute.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Deena Davis

www.byyourhands.blogspot.com

Organizing - Decluttering For Dummies

Today we have a guest blogger. Please welcome, Bethany LeBedz of bethanylebedz.blogspot.com as she shares her decluttering ideas.

“Help! I don’t even know where to begin organizing!” To quote a well-known song, “When you read, you begin with A, B, C; when you sing you begin with do, re, mi.” When you organize, you begin by decluttering.

My handy-dandy spellchecker is trying to tell me that decluttering is not a word. Let’s decode the word and you’ll see that it really is a legitimate word. Clutter is basically “a crowded or confused mass or collection” (Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary). The prefix de- means to reduce or remove, so to declutter means to reduce or remove extraneous collections. I can already hear the gasps and see the heart attacks. Relax; it’s really not that painful, I promise!

Basically, before we can organize, we need to get rid of things that are not currently useful. If an item in your closet hasn’t been worn in the past year or so, it’s time to pitch or donate it (unless you’re pregnant). Same thing with your kids. If you’re saving clothes for the next child, put the nicest ones in a labeled box or Rubbermaid container and store it in the attic, basement, or garage. If you’re never going to read a particular book again, put it on Paperback Swap, sell it, or bless someone else with it. All of those papers you think you just have to save? Chances are, you don’t. Sort your mail over a trash can, shred financial documents over seven years old (and don’t bother keeping statements), and file the rest regularly.

Let’s talk about the sentimental items now. You know, the broken ornaments your grandfather gave to your grandmother; the three teapots that came from your great-aunt; the stained, hand-embroidered napkins; the too-small sweater knitted by your mom; and the list goes on. First of all, go through and throw away everything broken and stained. Next, go through and choose one or two items to display. Ask your children if they would like one special item to keep for themselves.

Here’s a non-cluttered approach to dealing with your other sentimental things: Take a picture of the stuff. If you’re not into scrapbooking, store your pictures in a labeled shoebox. Journal about the memories. After all, that’s what we’re really trying to preserve by letting stuff take up real estate in our homes, right?

What about collections of saltshakers, thimbles, mugs, teapots, dolls, shells, etc? I’m not against collections, really, but only if you have room for them. One idea is to rotate a few items at a time on display (or for usage) with the rest being kept in a box in storage. If you don’t have room to display, use, or store these collections, it’s time to let them go. Choose a few of the most meaningful items and bless somebody else with the rest.

In addition, I always keep two bags/boxes handy in the back of a closet: one of stuff to donate, and one of stuff to sell. Easy in, easy out.

By decluttering, we are making room for living life right now. We’re making room for making more memories. And, we’re making room for organization, peace, and harmony in our homes.

___

Thanks for sharing your article with us today, Bethany!

Deena & Bette

www.byyourhands.blogspot.com

Blog Party Sunday --- Show Off Your New Handmades

It's blog party time again. It's your time to share your handmades. We would love to see what you have so don't hesitate to join us today.


The rules are simple:


1. Follow our blog


2. Handmade items only.


3. You may list up to 3 items.


4. Family friendly items only.


The success of this link party depends on the participants so spread the word to your friends, visit the shops, post about it on your blog, in a forum or on your favorite social networking site, grab the button and put it on your blog or website.


Just click on the Add Your Link button at the end of this post and add your items.


And if you would like to add a link to the party you can grab this button below.

<a href="http://www.byyourhands.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i782.photobucket.com/albums/yy110/ByYourHands/blogparty.jpg" /></a>

Handmade Sampler Giveaway - Crocheted Dishcloths DONE

Today's giveaway is sponsored by The Dishcloth Shoppe.

About me and my shop:
My name is Deon, better known as The Dishcloth Shoppe. I create
luxurious, 100% organic cotton dishcloths to suit you and your home
decor. I'm passionate about being eco conscious which is what led me
to start using, then selling my cloths. I live in Eastern Ontario on
my own little slice of heaven tucked away in the middle of nowhere
with my hubby and two kids.

  Enter to win this set of handmade dishcloths from Deon.

This  100% organic cotton dishcloth set is not only gorgeous, it's
incredibly useful and ecofriendly! It is handmade in a style that
creates little "nubs" that are great for scrubbing and practically
eliminates the need for a store bought scrub pad. The bright colours
are a wonderful way to brighten your kitchen, so you'll be able to do
your dishes with flair! Who said dishcloths can't be beautiful?

You can earn up to three entries by doing the following...

1. Visit Deon's Etsy shop,  http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheDishclothShoppe  and come back here and post a comment with your favorite item in her shop. Be sure and leave your email address so we can contact you if you win.

2. Earn one extra entry by becoming a follower or reader of this blog. Already a follower? Just let us know so we can give you credit.

3. Earn an extra entry by posting this giveaway on your blog along with a link to this blog. Be sure and let us know you have done this.

Open to USA, Canada and International.

The giveaway will start today, Saturday,  March 12. The last day to enter will be March 31, 2011  and the winner will be announced on Apr. 1, 2011. We will announce it here and contact you by the email address you have left.


Have fun and good luck!

Would you like to sponsor a giveaway? Are you interested in promoting your store or blog. If so, just email us.

We would be happy to send you the details. byyourhandsblog@gmail.com