PMTvoice

I have this little rule that I cannot start celebrating/looking forward to/shopping for Christmas until after Thanksgiving. I like that this creates a defined holiday season for enjoying the lights, movies, parties, etc… I have found that there are exceptions (as there often are) to this rule. Namely, in order to start enjoying the holiday season on/after Thanksgiving, we who provide those celebratory products, stores, movies, need to be preparing well before. I don’t see this as a breaking of the rule, more as a facilitation of the rule that requires advanced planning. (I know, it probably is actually breaking my rule, but hey, let me think I’m staying true).

So, in honor of this advanced planning period, I thought it might be nice to break out some simple yet elegant Christmas gift giving ideas to get you going…some old/familiar some newer, but all are simple and fun.

1. Salt-Dough Ornaments - This one is perfect to do with groups of people/kids

2. Hot-Cocoa Mix Gift - Easy and simple to make lots of these. You can also do cookie mixes, and other fun recipes

3. Wine Gift Bag - You’ve probably heard of organza bags, well this is an organza bag that is the right size to put a single wine bottle into. If you’re like me, giving a bottle of wine when you are invited to dinner is sort of a standard. Think now about sprucing that bottle up by putting it into a holiday themed bag.

That’s all for now, but hopefully there will be more coming…

November 1st through the 9th I had the opportunity to travel to Cairo, Egypt, where I served with about 50 other people.  Our service was to provide a group of people known as the “Zabaleen”, with free medical, dental, vision and hair care.  Who are the Zabaleen, and why did they need service?  I’m glad you asked.

(more…)

We’re getting close to the end of the month of October and consequently, towards the end of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  As you may have read in previous entries on our blog, and also on our PrintMyRibbon website, our company has committed to donating 5% of all sales to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization to help find a cure for Breast Cancer. 

I’m proud to work for a company that is dedicated to serving its’ community, and to helping fund research to find a cure for something that affects so many across this country.  There are many of us employed here that have personally been affected by breast cancer.  My own grandma passed away from the disease.  I’m grateful to Century Marketing for being willing to help in this battle.

Many are familiar with Susan G. Komen and the Race for the Cure, but I wanted to highlight a few other organizations that are also committed to finding a cure for Breast Cancer, and could use some financial help in their goal.  The American Cancer Society is a well known organization that is continuously looking for ways to cure not only breast cancer, but all other forms of cancer as well.  The National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc. is also always looking for both financial help and volunteers.  Check out their site to find out more.  Finally, Avon has started the Avon Foundation Breast Cancer Crusade.  They sponsor a 2 day walk in various cities throughout the U.S. throughout the year.  Visit their site to find out more about how Avon is helping to fight Breast Cancer as well.

As October passes, please don’t let the issue of Breast Cancer and cancer in general fade from your memory.  Let’s help find a cure for this disease and end it once and for all!

Candy Jar Ribbon

Category: Events

Quote from the submission:

We put it around our candy jars that we give to our clients. We love that they can open the jar but the ribbon stays on the ridge, so they can always see our logo.
The next application was used around our fiber light keychains that we have placed on tables at all our events . We think the color of the ribbon /with our logo adds a lot of pop on the  white linen tablecloths.

Formal Flag Set Embellishments

Category: Events

Quote from the submission:

We use ribbons to dress up our formal flag sets. I’ve included two photos, including a close-up of the ribbons. The extra ribbons can dress up these flag either indoors, or when they’re being carried in a parade.

Contests are always fun, you get the thrill of competition. We have decided to create some of our own competition…at least on our PrintMyRibbon site by creating a contest where you, the intrepid websurfer/crafter extraordinaire can submit photos of your very best craft related ideas using ribbon. We have broken this contest up into 3 categories (General Events, Weddings, Holidays) with the top 3 in each winning prizes.  This contest will be going on for the rest of this month and we will publish the winners shortly into November.  Click here for more info and submission instructions/guidelines. Be looking out for submissions to be posted here shortly…

As a sort of point-counterpoint to Craigs Post via his new pencil/paper system, I recently became aware that a certain set of our visitors are using iPhones. Now I know there are many of you iPhone-ers out there browsing, surfing, and facebooking, but it came as a surprise that shopping for custom labels or personalized ribbon is among that list. Our General Manager is among those who see mobile commerce moving into the mainstream as our culture gets more and more jacked in to the web.

These are some of the questions I have for those of you who have experienced this brand new shopping style

1. Have you ever purchased something using either your phone’s web browser or any of the ultra-mobile devices out there?
2. What was your experience like?
3. Would you consider purchasing customizeable products online?

I think this may be a first for me.  This is only a first because my normal way of doing things has been cruelly taken away from me.  What am I writing about?  I am composing this blog by hand.  My computer has died, IT is working on a replacement for me, and I don’t want to waste company time. (more…)

We did it! We crossed the finish line! We had such a great day on Sunday.

The weather was absolutely perfect!

The breast cancer awareness ribbons we made earlier in the week (see photos here, here,
here, & here) were a hit!

The overall energy of downtown Toledo was amazing! Chrys Peterson, a local anchorwoman
and Race for the Cure enthusiast, got the event off to a great start!

Everyone was there to have a good time.

Local cheerleaders…

…and high school marching bands lined the course.

Toledo police officers joined in the fun as well, dancing to the beat of the music and placing
pink rabbit ears on their horses.

The Toledo Blade reported 18,000 people participated in the event and donations are
expected to be around $750,000, a record for the northwest Ohio area. Great job, Toledo!

Despite being a bit sore afterwards, it felt so good to support so many breast cancer survivors…

…and do our part in finding a cure.

With the excitement of this year’s race behind us, we can’t wait to sign up for next year’s
Race for the Cure!

Do you want to help support breast cancer research? Be sure to visit PrintMyRibbon.com. We have redesigned the site for the entire month of October to honor Breast Cancer Awareness Month. During the month of October, 5% of web sales will be donated to Susan G. Komen for the Cure®. In return, customers will receive FREE SHIPPING on standard shipped orders. Thank you for supporting this very important cause with us.