Capture Those Precious Holiday Moments with Canon Available at Best Buy!

The reviewer has been compensated in the form of a Best Buy Gift Card and/or received the product/service at a reduced price or for free

My love of taking pictures came almost 5 years ago when my nephew was born. I became an aunt for the first time so I wanted to capture every little moment of his life. I used my trusty little Canon digital camera. I loved it because it made picture taking super easy. All I had to do was point and shoot and I got beautiful pictures.

Things got busier when my niece and then daughter came along so I just used my iPhone to take pictures. When I look back and look at all the pictures of my three favorite little people I see a huge difference in quality of the pictures of my nephew and the ones of niece and daughter.

Now that I entered the world of blogging I can see how much work goes in to get the best shots for each post. There is backgrounds, lighting, props and angles involved. I decided to take the plunge and get a fancy camera to take place of my iPhone pictures. I want to keep improving on my blog and pictures so a new camera is a must. Since I loved using my Canon digital camera years ago I decided to stick with what I know and shop around for a Canon.

Whenever I want anything electronic I also depend on Best Buy. It is the best place to shop for the latest cameras to capture your special memories including the upcoming holiday memories. The Canon EOS Rebel T5i is one of the best-selling DSLRs. This camera makes advanced photography easy and fun, and gives you amazing image quality, along with lots of features to help your creative expression.

With the Canon EOS Rebel T5i you can:
  • Capture Hollywood caliber full HD video  
  • Continuous autofocus while taking HD video
  • Features an 18.0-megapixel CMOS sensor and a DIGIC 5 image processor to ensure vivid, crystal-clear images.
  • The 3" vari-angle touch screen simplifies navigation.


Save $150 on the Canon EOS Rebel T5i at Best Buy*. Visit Best Buy to learn more. *offer valid 12/7-12/20"

What are your best photography tips? 

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Fleece Frozen Elsa Inspired Hat Tutorial


Like every little girl my daughter loves the Frozen movie. She has these little Elsa and Anna dolls that she takes everywhere with her. I wanted to make her Elsa and Anna hats that she could play with but that would also keep her warm if she wanted to wear them outside. I saw crocheted hats all over the place so I decided to create my own fleece tutorial to make it a bit warmer and softer.


Supplies:
  • 1/2 yard light yellow fleece fabric (You can probably get away with a 1/4 yard but I always buy extra)
  • scrap piece gold fabric
  • turquoise diamond sew on gem
  • fusible web
  • thread to match
  • sewing machine
  • 12" piece of turquoise ribbon. 
  1. I used the instructions from Monkey See, Monkey Do to make the hat. I measured the circumference of my daughter's head and the length from below her eyebrows to the middle of the top of her head to get the measurement for the hat. I made two of the main hat and used one as the lining to make it double thickness and warmer. 
  2. Draw three shapes like the picture below to make the bang shapes. Add a 1/4" seam all around. Cut two pieces of each shape out of the yellow fleece. 
  3. Sew all around each shape except the bottom straight side. Trim seam allowances and turn each inside out. 
  4. Make a pattern for the braid that is 2 1/4" x 11" long. Taper one of the ends to make more of a hair strip shape. Add a 1/4" seam allowance all around. Cut out 6 pieces of this pattern from the yellow fleece. Take two pieces and place right sides together. Sew all around using at 1/4" seam except for the straight top side. Trim seam allowances and turn inside out. Repeat two more times. 
  5. Lay the three bang pieces like the picture below and sew in place.
  6. Stack up the three braid pieces staggering a little bit from the top flat side and sew in place. 
  7. Pin bang pieces to the front middle of the hat. Pin braid to the right side of the hat. You can put it on your model to make sure to pin it right behind the right ear. 
  8. Place lining hat on top of hat making sure to tuck in bang pieces and braid. Sew around the circumference of hat using a 1/4" seam and leaving a 3 inch opening. Turn inside out and whip stitch the opening closed. 
  9. Flip up the bang pieces and sew in place with small hidden stitches. Braid the three pieces of the ponytail and secure with the ribbon making a bow. Trim excess from ribbon.
  10. To make the crown I downloaded the pattern from Britta Blvd. I resized it to be 5" by 3" keeping the aspect ratio. Trace the pattern onto the paper side of fusible web. Iron on the fusible web to a 6" by 3" piece of gold fabric. Cut out the crown. Peel off the paper backing and iron on to another piece of gold fabric. Cut out the crown from second piece of gold fabric. 
  11. Sew on the turquoise gem to the middle of the crown. Sew on the crown to the Elsa Hat. 


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The Elves Have Landed at the Rockefeller Hallmark Store!

I was invited to the Hallmark Store to experience the interactive displays. I was gifted with a Hallmark Store Gift Card. All opinions are 100% my own. 

A couple of weeks ago my daughter and I got to talk to real live elves with the Northpole Communicator at Times Square, NY. Now the special Hallmark elves have made their way to the Hallmark Store in Rockefeller Center.

They are so excited about the new Northpole Products that they created some interactive displays to show just how great they are while making it fun for the whole family. The displays include:

“Dance Like an Elf!”
Crank the tunes and get the whole family dancing with this elf dance machine. You'll love busting a move in Northpole traditional elf styles, like "Stir the Hot Chocolate," "Build a Snowman" and "Ski Down the Mountain."


“Talk to Northpole”
With the Northpole Communicator you can stay connected to the whos and whats of the Northpole all season long. Every day Dec. 1 through Christmas, push the button and turn the knob to have a conversation with Santa or one of his Northpole friends.


“Story Time Nook”
Little ones love hearing the story of how Northpole's cleverest elf inventor brings the whole city together with his most brilliant invention ever! Hear the story come to life when you touch the illustrations on this story's pages.


“Light a Tree in Fantastical Fashion!”
Count down the days until Christmas while lighting your tree the Northpole way! Press down the lever on the Treeluminator™ to activate a light and sound show for all your tree's spectators. A fun way to make your house feel like it's at Northpole!


“Merry, Bright & Outta Sight!”
Bring the magic of Northpole snow indoors with this magic snowball. Watch it glow with the colors of the Northern Lights as you toss it around.


“Bake Like an Elf”
Northpole elves have revealed their secret recipes and are sharing their tiny tools!


My daughter, mom and I had so much fun interacting with all of the displays. If you are in the area come down to the Hallmark Store at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, Concourse Level to see it yourself. This will surely get you and your family in the Christmas Spirit.

Which one of the Northpole products is your favorite? 

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