Posted by Jen E @ mommablogsalot | Posted on 10-05-2009
Category : Featured Reviews, magazines
Tags: 70/30, April, budget, cooking, crafts, decorating, dinner, gardening, home, magazines, May, recipes, Sandra Lee, Semi-Homemade, subscriptions
I’m a big fan of Sandra Lee and her famous Semi-Homemade recipes – anything that can save me a step and make my life easier is okay by me. So I was very excited to review the new April / May issue of her new Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade magazine which focuses on culinary and lifestyle solutions with the semi-homemade mindset we all know and love. The magazine is going to be published in a bimonthly format with the majority of the focus on food and entertaining, but it also has sections on home, gardening, crafts and lifestyle. The magazine features Sandra’s trademark 70/30 Semi-Homemade philosophy, a formula for anyone at any skill level to combine 70 percent ready-made products with 30 percent fresh ingredients.
I loved the look and feel of this magazine. The layout was fresh and pretty, the navigation of the table of contents was easy to use and pretty to look at. The magazine was filled with fun, useful articles like a week of dinner recipes which can each feed a family of four for $15 or less. Her recipie for a Spinach and Hearts of Palm salad looked both easy and delicious, although the real prize winning temptation for me was the Pineapple Cheesecake Trifle which is on a tearout card stock page as well as featured in the main contents of the magazine. Another good one to look out for is her lemon meringue pie which couldn’t look easier to whip up. A lot of her recipes can also be found on the magazine’s website. One of my favorite non-foodie articles was her cleaning solutions which use green ingredients you probably already have in your home like olive oil, lemons, vinegar, lavendar and more.
If you are a fan of Sandra Lee and her semi-homemade approach to life, I think you’ll love this great new magazine. You can sign up for a 1 year subscription here.
Posted by Jen E @ mommablogsalot | Posted on 15-04-2009
Category : Giveaways, magazines
Tags: curb appeal, facelifts, Fresh Home Magazine, gardening, giveaway, home decorating, home maintenance, home renovation, magazines, mildew, mold, painting, Readers Digest, recyclable materials, room makeovers, spice racks, tables
I love magazines and one of my new favorites is a brand new magazine called Fresh Home. Aimed at families and men and women of all ages, it provides do-it-yourself project ideas for home renovation (and shopping guides for those who lean more towards a buy-it-yourself mentality), all the best in tips and advice for decorating, home improvement and maintenance – and all with practicality and economic reality in mind. This magazine is for REAL people, not just professional decorators.
Just flipping through this gorgeous magazine had my creative juices flowing. Despite not owning my own home yet, I love to read about decorating and plan ahead for all those decisions I’ll need to make someday. I loved their articles on choosing your own flooring, counter tops, back splashes and more. The articles each guide you through the pros and cons of all your options, the price differences and some handy pictures that show you examples of each type.
Other fun articles in the premier issue include:
- 14 Secrets for Creating Maximum Curb Appeal
- Color Magic- how to paint like the pros, the psychology of color, how to load and purchase brushes, prep, buy eco-friendly paints
- One Design= 3 Tables
- Facelifts for Every Room under $500- give 7 rooms a low-cost, no-sweat makeover in one weekend!
- How to have a mold and mildew-free home
- 3 cool ways to make spice racks—using recyclable materials!
- 15 best tips for outdoor gardening and ways to make cool new planters out of recyclable materials!
We’re giving away subscriptions to Fresh Home magazine to THREE (3) lucky winners! Here’s how you can enter to win:
- Answer the following question: What is your best home decorating tip? or What area of your home is most in need of a little TLC? This is mandatory, if not done all other entries are null and void.
- For an extra entry, you can follow us on Twitter. Post a comment here with your Twitter username.
- For a third entry you can tweet about this giveaway or post about it on your blog and leave a comment here with either the URL of your post or your twitter profile. “Do you love magazines? Win a subscription to Fresh Home Magazine @ http://www.mommasreview.com”
- For a fourth subscribe to our RSS feed, leaving a link here to tell us you’ve done so. We’ll be posting more giveaways on Momma’s Review soon so subscribing will be a great way for you to stay informed about all the great things you can win in the days and weeks to come.
- Lastly, visit Speedy @ Eighty MPH Mom and enter into her Monsters vs Aliens video game giveaway. Make sure to come back and tell us you entered.
This giveaway is open to US and international readers!
The contest will close at 12:00 p.m. EST on Wednesday April 29th.
