Black Friday & Cyber Monday ZoiShop Promotions

Get the lowest prices of the season at ZoiShop! Specials last until Tuesday morning.

40% off photo prints with promo code:
FPOE11 at checkout

10% off calendars, cards, vintage items & ornaments with promo code:
10PERCENT at checkout

Free shipping on all orders over $100 USD with promo code:
SHIPPING100 at checkout

***promotions cannot be used on already discounted sets or any listings that don't bear Black Friday or Cyber Monday in the title. The 40% coupon and 10% coupon CANNOT BE USED CONCURRENTLY. Please purchase prints separate from all other items.

Every order you make between now and Monday enters you in our Cyber Monday raffle. The raffle item is a $30 gift certificate to our shop. Winner will be chosen at random using a cyber random number tool on Monday night.

Some of the items that will be on sale are:

Happy Thanksgiving!

What are you doing for Thankgiving?

Joe and I are visiting our families and friends this weekend and we are stoked! We also plan on doing some Black Friday/Cyber Monday shopping. Stoked for that too.

We hope everyone has a fun and safe Thankgiving weekend filled with family, laughter, and lots of good food!

:]

Featured Seller: Lisa Lehmann

A lot of people might not realize that being a jewelry maker can be fiery. But Lisa Lehmann isn't afraid of a little heat, in fact getting to play with fire is what profoundly plunged her into the craft.

"I have a fine arts major in photography and illustration. I did graphic design for years, I hated it. I started playing around with making jewelry and I liked it a lot. Then I learned to play with fire and I was so hooked. It is my passion!" Lisa said.

You can find Lisa's sleek and rustically feminine handmade jewelry for sale internationally through her Etsy shop, Studio Jewel.



"I've wanted to be an artist since I was handed a crayon. I was meant to create," Lisa said. Although she knew she was meant to be a creator she wasn't so sure about the success her work would have.

"When I started making jewelry 10 years ago, I never knew it would take off like it did," Lisa said.

But her success has left her with almost a thousand Etsy sales, and only one possible regret. Because she was unsure of her success, she titled her shop, "thebeadgirl", though that isn't her brand name. "I'm trying to shift people to realize my actual store name is Studio Jewel even though I may be 'thebeadgirl'," Lisa said.

Whether you call her the bead girl or know the shop as Studio Jewel, Lisa Lehmann's jewelry is plain and simply organically pretty.



The finishing result may be visually appealing, but according to Lisa, the actual act of creating can be otherwise.

"Making beautiful pieces of jewelry is a VERY dirty business!" Lisa said.

But this fact far from deters Lisa from her passion. What makes her such as wonderful seller is that she plunges into the often unrecognized mess of creating beauty, and loves it.



Besides making jewelry, Lisa still enjoys photography as well as cooking. She also homeschool's three of her four children, making her life a balancing act of work and family.

In five years Lisa would like to continue to see her company grow, but with a little bit of help so she can concentrate on simply being a jewelry designer and not so much of everything else that comes along with it.

You can follow Lisa's journey through her Twitter, Facebook page, and Blog.

SPECIAL OFFER FOR MY READERS: Get 15 percent off your purchase from Lisa's shop by using the promo code: justbecause15 at checkout.



(photos curtesy of Lisa Lehamann's Etsy shop & Facebook page)

Laughing Burns Calories

Did you know that laughing burns calories?

According to Livestrong.com laughing for 10 to 15 minutes a day helps you burn between 10 to 40 calories. This may not seem like a lot, but laugh for an hour and you could be looking at burning at least 100 to 160 calories, the caloric intake of a soda or a cookie. Laughing not only burns calories, but it also raises levels of immunoglobulins, which according to a research at Loma Linda University can ward off disease by 14 percent.

Want a laughing boost? Check out some of my favorite comedies on TV and video.

Paul:


Big Nothing:


Amelie:


Friends the show:


Raising Hope the show:



What is your favorite comedy?

(photos curtesy of Google Images)

Fitness Boost: I Can Do 30 Push Ups!

A couple weeks ago I posted a link on building your way up to 100 push ups. I really had to revisit the topic and talk about it some more, since I absolutely love the program. After only seven days I can do 30 full body push ups! And believe me, I'm so stoked about it considering that before I could barely complete one, which was frustrating and I'll admit a little sad.

How the program works is that you figure out how many push ups you can currently do, once you've got that figured out, there are three paths you can take depending on what level you're at. You do five sets each day, split up by 60 to 90 seconds of rest, and you only do the program three times a week. Each day you increase your push up outtake and intake amazing results. If you can't do full body push ups, start on your knees like I did.



So what are the benefits of push ups?

They not only serve to increase your bicep and tricep muscles, but they also help strengthen your core through the use of your own body weight, which means you're building lean muscle unlike with weight training you can often times simply bulk up. You can also do them anywhere in only a little bit of space, so you can go on vacation and do them instead of your full regular workout if you don't have enough room. Plus, you'll no longer need to ask someone to open a seal-tight jar.

Best of all though, you feel empowered over your own body, and therefore more likely to feel empowered within the day.




(photo curtesy of Real Beauty)

ZoiShop iPhone cases and skins

Loves, have you heard of Society6?

It is a website where artists can upload their work for free and it is then sold by the admin in the form of prints, iPhone cases and skins, laptop skins, and shirts and sweatshirts. The artist then gets a small cut of the profit when someone purchases an item with your artwork on it. It allows you to get your work out while doing minimal work, which is what makes it wonderful.



I had joined the website a while ago, but this week I took some time to put up new photography and be more social within the site.

And I have to say I'm totally in love with my iPhone skins and cases! The skins sell for $15 and the cases for $35. They're a great and affordable gift for a friend, family member, even you significant other for the holidays. Check out some of mine below.

Two Year Anniversary

What did you do this weekend?

Besides celebrating having made our 50th sale in our Etsy shop, Joe and I celebrated our two year anniversary this weekend. We went out for sushi on Saturday to one of our favorite restaurants in South Lake Tahoe, The Naked Fish, and on Sunday we had our first Thanksgiving meal of the month. Joe made an array of really amazing food including a whole turkey, mashed potatoes, and corn bread. I made sweet potatoes with marshmallows melted on top, which were the perfect dessert. It was a relaxing weekend, and what is one of many anniversary celebrations to come.







What is your favorite Thanksgiving food?