Boutique Number Candle

As you know, I am in the middle of getting ready for S.R.'s Birthday Party. I am really pleased with how everything is turning out:o) I thought I would share just a little bit of what I am doing for the party:o)

Today, I want to share with you how to make your own boutique number candle.

This project was absolutely free to me because I already had the supplies on hand.

Here's what you need:

A Number Candle

Glitter

Fabric Puff Paint

White Acrylic Paint or Mod Podge(looking back now, I would have used Mod Podge)

Paint Brush

 Start off by painting the whole number with paint or Mod Podge

 Immediately sprinkle your glitter over the number.

 Let the glue/paint dry and remove excess glitter. Next use the puff paint and trace around the number.

 Since I am using zebra print in a lot of the decor, I attempted a zebra print on the candle.

I saw numbers like these on Etsy for around $7. 

So now you can have your own custom candle for next to nothing!

By the way, are you digging this cake? This was my first attempt at fondant. I am super pleased with the results!

Looking forward to sharing the rest of the party decorations with you!!

Have a great weekend!

Click: the AdWords newsletter for your small business

Welcome to Click, a Google newsletter for small businesses. In each issue, we'll offer insights and strategies on how to grow your business and get the most value out of your marketing efforts. Hear about new products, promotions and services - plus interesting things going on at Google. We want to be sure this newsletter is useful and relevant to you, so please let us know what you think. Happy reading! The Google AdWords team PS: Read about a few AdWords customers whose wishes came true this year. In this Issue MARCH 2011, VOL 1 MONTHLY FEATURE Customers are up for grabs ADWORDS INSIGHT Improve your ad's headline -- and results SMALL BUSINESS SUCCESS A flood of new business GOOGLE HIGHLIGHTS Life-saving information services Your AdWords Account

MONTHLY FEATURE Customers are up for grabs Small businesses have competitive advantages over the big guys -- namely agility and the ability to make quick decisions. Use these qualities to go beyond traditional marketing and reach customers in new, creative ways. Here are a few ideas to get you started: improve your online presence, use social networking and collect data online. Location, location, location! Since one out of five Google searches involves location, you want your business to appear in local searches. Try free online listing services, such as Google Places, or free hosting services to help you to establish a website. (Learn more about improving your virtual storefront in our Small Business Success section below). Build a fan base Satisfied customers can be your best promoters, and free services like YouTube, Facebook and Twitter can help you communicate with loyal patrons -- and help them spread the word about your business. Learn more about how these services can offer fresh and compelling information, such as photos, videos or fun facts about your business and employees. Know your customers Reaching customers online allows you to collect valuable data about their habits and preferences. Easy-to-use web analytics tools, such as Google Analytics, can tell you a lot - such as which search terms customers use, what they look at on your site, and where they spend the most (or least) time. Use this knowledge to make smart decisions about site content and keyword choices for your online marketing campaigns.

ADWORDS INSIGHT Improve your ad's headline - and results A good headline will grab attention for your ad -- and your business. You don't have to be a copywriter -- just use descriptive words that communicate what makes your business unique. Think about what your customers want -- not just what your business does. For example, "Joe's Gourmet Pizza" is descriptive, but "Seattle's Best Brick Oven Pizza" will likely get the attention of hungry, local customers. Sign into your AdWords account Select the "Ads" tab Click on the text of your ad (or the pencil icon next to the ad) to edit the headline Click "Save," and preview your new headline SMALL BUSINESS SUCCESS A flood of new business   Jessica Soler, Owner of Salon Red in Decatur, Georgia, uses a website and local online listings to help her customers find salon locations and book appointments. She says, "Here's a great example of how the web helps Salon Red: we were nominated by one of the local papers to be a 'Best Of' salon in Atlanta, and tons of people went online to vote for all of our locations. We just were flooded with business, and it all came from online." Hear more about this success in her own words.

GOOGLE HIGHLIGHTS Life-saving information services In disaster and humanitarian crises, access to information can be of vital importance. In both the recent earthquakes in New Zealand and Haiti, Google's Crisis Response offered survivors and relief workers access to critical information on life-supporting services, including the locations of shelters, water tanks, power outages and open grocery stores. In addition, Google Person Finder is helping connect people with information about missing friends or relatives. Find out more, and learn how you can help.

YOUR ADWORDS ACCOUNT ADWORDS RESOURCES SHARE THIS NEWSLETTER AdWords Online Classroom AdWords Seminars Inside AdWords Blog AdWords Help Center Google Buzz Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Email

Posted by Jenn Karakkal, AdWords Small Business Team

Ballard's Provost Plaque Tutorial

Hey You guys! What a week this has been....I have been busy working on S.R.'s Barbie Birthday Party, and I can't wait to share some picture with ya'll...it is turning out so pretty!!! I will have to say that I am a LOT less stressed since the party is smaller...and I started decorating on Monday:o) Next week will be nothing BUT Barbie Party posts:o)

btw....

S.R. IS 3 TODAY:O)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY GIRL!!

For those of you who weren't able to see my guest post at Infarrantly Creative last week, here is the tutorial of the Provost Plaque...and for those of you who want to know what this sign means....this is a replica of an antique French pastry shop sign.

So here goes...

So anyway, I started thinking about what I would want to share with you guys, and it didn't take me long to decide on a knock-off version of the Ballard Designs Pruvost Plaque. I have been drooling over this plaque for ages, and knew that I could make it. I just needed the proper motivation...i.e. guest posting:o)

Here is a picture of what Ballard's looks like:

 Photo Credit: Ballard Designs

And here is what mine looks like:

(please pardon the lighting. It was overcast and towards the end of the day)

The dimensions of Ballard's plaque was too large for the space above my kitchen windows, so I scaled it down a bit.

This project cost just under $30....and Ballard's is $249. 

I am not a woodworker. I leave all woodworking up to my husband. Every time I try a new project involving wood, it is always a COMPLETE FAILURE. However, I completed this entire project by myself!!

Here's what you need:

3- 1x4x6 Pine Boards($10.38 total)

1/2 Pint of Dark Walnut Stain ($5.19)

3 Packs of 3" Mending Brackets($7.11 total..comes in a 4 pack)

Accent Trim piece($6.18)

Wood Glue(on hand)

Picture hanger(on hand)

Acrylic Paint-Black and Green (on hand)

Cutting tools(saw, jig saw)

Screw Driver

 I started out by cutting all the boards on our miter saw.

1st Board=12" wide

2nd and 3rd Board=36" wide

4th Board=46" wide

Bottom Board=60" wide

  

These next few steps are done on the BACK of the boards.

 I drew a line on the end of each board to help me keep the boards centered. 

Once all the boards were lined up, I attached the mending brackets in the center. 

 I took a couple of sheets of paper and taped them together and made a template. I cut it out and taped it to the boards and traced it with a pencil.

 This is what the back looked like before I cut the boards with my jigsaw.

 I went ahead and put my first coat of stain on before using the jigsaw. 

 Next comes the really fun part, using the jigsaw. I didn't get a picture of this step because I was a little busy:o)

Once the entire plaque was cut out, I started on the trim. I didn't want to have to fuss with nails and wood putty, so I just used wood glue to attach the trim.

 The letters are just freehand. I drew them out with pencil first, and went back with the Black acrylic paint.

 

 Close up of the letters

 Once I got all of the letters painted on, I put my second coat of stain on, and I painted the trim green. I also dirtied up the the green paint with a little bit of stain.

 And there you have it.

 This project was really easy, and very, very inexpensive. 

I hope you enjoyed this post. Feel free to stop by Fussy Monkey Business anytime!!

Participating in:

What’s new in Docs: Mobile editing in 45 languages, printing in spreadsheets

[Cross-posted from the Google Docs Blog]

Last year, we launched mobile editing in English and more page sizes in Google documents. We’re excited to announce that we’ve expanded on both of these features this week by adding 44 more mobile editing languages and more print sizes to Google spreadsheets.

Mobile editing now in 45 languages
You can now edit your documents on the go in 45 languages on Android with Froyo (version 2.2) and on iOS devices (version 3.0+) including the iPad. Learn more at mobile.google.com/docs.

More print sizes
Following in the footsteps of last week’s hide gridlines update, there are now eight more print sizes in Google spreadsheets, including tabloid, statement, executive, folio and A3, A5, B4 and B5.

As always, feedback in the comments and on the forums is appreciated.

Posted by: Carmen Wilkinson, Software Engineer

Now available with Google Apps: User Managed Storage

[Cross-posted from the Google Enterprise Blog]

Editor’s note: Last year we launched an improvement that makes over 60 additional Google services available to Google Apps users. This series showcases what’s new and how your organization can benefit.



Welcome to User Managed Storage
As more and more people discover the power and flexibility of creating and collaborating using nothing but the web, an increasing volume of user content is stored in the cloud. As part of our effort to support our users’ move into the cloud, we’re pleased to announce that over the next couple of days we will be making User Managed Storage available to Google Apps customers.

User Managed Storage is a service that has allowed users to purchase more storage space when they fill the allotted quota on their personal Google Accounts. Over the next couple of days, we will be rolling this service out for users of Google Apps accounts as well, allowing the purchase of extra storage for Google Docs, Picasa Web Albums, and photos from Blogger. Any of these products that is over its storage quota can use the extra storage on a first-come, first-served basis. Users that upload lots of files to Google Docs, sync their Office documents to the cloud using Google Cloud Connect for Microsoft Office, or store and share pictures using Picasa or Blogger can now expand the storage space available for these files.

Pricing for this service is the same as for personal Google Accounts:

Plan	Price
20 GB	$5 USD per year
80 GB	$20 USD per year
200 GB	$50 USD per year
400 GB	$100 USD per year
1 TB	$256 USD per year
2 TB	$512 USD per year
4 TB	$1,024 USD per year
8 TB	$2,048 USD per year
16 TB	$4,096 USD per year

The User Managed Storage service is enabled or disabled by the domain administrator, and the end user purchases additional storage using his or her Google Checkout account. Additional storage added using User Managed Storage cannot be pooled or transferred to another Google Apps user account and cannot be used for Gmail.

Data stored using User Managed Storage is subject to the same ownership policy as other data in the Google Apps account.

Learn more and get started
User Managed Storage can be enabled by your domain administrator from the Google Apps Control Panel at https://www.google.com/a/[your_domain.com] (replace [your_domain.com] with your actual domain name). Note that the Google Checkout service must also be enabled to allow end users to purchase additional storage. If your organization isn’t using Google Apps yet, you can learn more and sign up today at http://www.google.com/apps/more.

For more information please take a look at our Help Center.

We continue to work to enable Google Apps users to be more productive using nothing but the web. Sign up to be notified when additional storage features become available.


Posted by Gaurav Jain, Product Manager, Google Apps

Note: User Managed Storage may not be available in all areas. A Google Checkout account is required to purchase User Managed Storage and Google Checkout must be enabled by the domain administrator.