Huge clothing swap and create - Swap o Rama Rama

"There's a new phenomenon sweeping the world called Swap O Rama Rama. Founded by Wendy Tremayne, Swap is a clothing swap and series of DIY workshops in which participants explore creative reuse from recycled clothing. Basically, you bring a bag of clothes and they get sorted into piles by volunteers. You get to sort through all the clothes and work at the various DIY stations and sewing stations to create new clothes! It is the best GREEN event going on! Come on, let's save our planet!" (quote from Hip Line Media)

Couldn't say it better.... well, actually, I CAN add to this blurb. Swap o Rama is tons of fun if you are a creative-type person looking for some new super-cool, one of a kind duds to wear. PLUS, looks of wonderful people to meet.

It's not just about clothing. There is also an area designated to making jewelry. Last time I was at a swap, I made a bracelet with matching earrings out of Monopoly houses and hotels. I LOVE them.

OK... so if you are in Southern California, mark your calendar for June 28, 2008 and mapquest 2210 Lincoln Blvd, Venice, CA because that is where the next Swap where I will be is taking place. But do not despair if you live in other areas of the country. Swap has gotten so hot, there are scheduled events in such diverse venues as Philadelphia, Oklahoma City, Milwaukee, New York and Durham, NC. You can check out where events have been and where they will be by clicking here. For info on the Venice swap, click here.

Admission is $5 with a bag of clothes and $10 without clothes.... so, go through your closet and find some stuff that needs a new home.

Going to one of these events is well worth the hassle of getting there. Have a great time.

Free Font Maker

Have you ever wanted to make your own typeface? I have.

I had a friend who was a genius at drawing fonts (typefaces). I was soooo jealous. I couldn't even hand letter a simple "This way to the bathroom" sign (which is why I learned to typeset) without it looking like a 4-year-old had lettered it.

Now, with the magic of technology, even I can create customized letters. I'm so excited!

Introduction to FontStruct from fontstruct on Vimeo.

So, check out this cool, free, downloadable font maker at fontstruct.com

Of course, if you aren't feeling artistic today, you can download someone else's creation. Just wait til my type-obsessed friend, Sally, sees THIS!

Of course, my first letter is going to be a "B."

Bank of America customers - free museums first weekend of every month!

Bank of America is now offering free museum entrance to selected museums in 18 states, on the first weekend of every month - you just show any Bank of America card.

http://promotions.bankofamerica.com/museums/ (click on link to see more details and which museums are available in your state or vacation destination)

Not all museums are included, but there are some very good ones included in this offer - in Southern California they are:

LACMA
5905 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA
90036
323 857-6000
www.lacma.org

Long Beach Museum of Latin America Art
628 Alamitos Avenue
Long Beach, CA
90802
562.437.1689
www.molaa.org

Orange County Discovery Science Center
2500 N. Main Street, Santa Ana
Orange County, CA
92705
(714)542-2823
www.discoverycube.org


Orange County Laguna Art Center
307 Cliff Drive, Laguna Beach
Orange County, CA
92651
(949)494-8971
www.lagunaartmuseum.org

Riverside Art Center
3425 Mission Inn Ave.
Riverside, CA
92501
951-684-7111
www.riversideartmuseum.org

San Diego's Birth Aquariam at Scripps
2300 Expedition Way, La Jolla
San Diego, CA
92037
(858)534-FISH

San Diego's Mingei Internatonal Museum at Balboa Park (also one in Escondido)
1439 El Prado - on the Plaza de Panama
San Diego, CA
92101
619-239-0003
www.mingei.org/splash.php
aquarium.ucsd.edu/

Escondido California Center for the Arts
340 N. Escondido Blvd
Escondido, CA
92025
760-839-4120
www.artcenter.org

In Northern California, two in San Jose, three in SF (including DeYoung) and two in Sacramento. See website for locations.

Thanks to Naomi for this post.

Free Trip Down Memory Lane .... Musically

Feel like recalling your Senior Year in High School? Well, that's what might happen to you when you click on the year you graduated from high school at the chronologically indexed music site tropicalglen.com.

Songs are indexed based on the year that they were a hit. You click on a year and the Top Ten songs are listed. You can click on a specific song and just hear that one or click on the first one and the rest play sequentially.

A truly wonderful free trip down memory lane. Plays in the background while you work on your computer.... but beware. You may find your fingers immobilized while you sit recalling your senior prom or your first kiss.

Enjoy.

Ruled Paper - Print your own lined or gridded paper

Have you ever needed just ONE sheet of gridded paper? I have. It's pretty hard to make yourself. So, you schlep (Yiddish for drive, walk, drag your body) to the local office supply store where you pay a king's ransom for a tablet of gridded paper. You justify the cost by realizing that you have just bought a lifetime supply of gridded paper.

HOWEVER, somehow or another..... EVERY TIME I need just ONE sheet of gridded paper I can't find that dang tablet I bought the last time.

So, I schlep (you know what this word means now) over to the local office supply store where I pay a king's ransom..... (go back to paragraph one)

OK. That's my story. You know it's true. It's true of gridded paper, music paper, columned paper, dotted paper, etc.

Enter the WONDERFUL folks at printablepaper.net ..... ta-ta-ta-da.

There are hundreds of free downloadable printed paper patterns (say that 10 times fast) available on the site.

A great resource for teachers, homeschoolers and small businesses.

Personally, I'm looking forward to playing "connect the dots." By the way, here is a link to a site where you can play "connect the dots" online.

Bargain Shoppers RULE!

Half Price Membership at Participating Gardens, Arboreta, and Conservatories or "See Flowers for Half the Price"

This one only lasts until the end of the month (April 2008)... so act fast.

The Los Angeles Arboretum is running a half price special for NEW family memberships. For a mere $35 you can get a family membership at the fabulous Los Angeles Arboretum and Botanic Garden in Arcadia, CA. The Arboretum is a 127-acre botanical garden and historical site jointly operated by the Los Angeles Arboretum Foundation and the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation.

What is so great about this offer (besides the half price sale) is that you can also use this membership card to get in free to any of the hundreds of other participating United States Gardens, Arboreta, and Conservatories listed on the American Horticultural Society site. (click on Reciprocal Admissions on the left hand side of their home page)

This includes wonderful venues like: Descanso Gardens in La Canada, CA; Quail Botanical Gardens in Encinitas, CA; The National Aviary in Pittsburgh, PA; The Brooklyn Botanic Garden in (where else) Brooklyn, NY; The Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University in Boston, MA; and many, many more.

These places are truly wonderful family outing destinations. My mother used to take us to see the Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh when I was a kid. I can still smell those flowers. (My mother, by the way, was notorious for her "black thumb." Guess she figured if we were ever going to appreciate flowers, she best take us to the Botanical Gardens.)

Anyway, as time is running out on this great bargain .... best to just call the LA Arboretum Membership office on the phone (626.821.3233) and pay by credit card. Ask for Yvonne - lovely woman. Tell her Bobbi at Bobbi's Bargains sent you. She'll give you a good deal :-)

Dodgers Tickets - dirt cheap - going fast

Better jump on this one fast! As part of a special deal with Travel Zoo, you can get tickets to see the Dodger's play for as little as $2!! Now THAT'S what I call a bargain! A field box ticket is only $15 (usually $50).

Click here to go to the special page on the Dodger site.

The games that are available for this discount are the April 23rd & 24th, 2008 Dodgers versus Diamond Backs and the May 5th & May 6th, 2008 Dodgers versus Mets games.

The discount code is: "TZOO" (those are "Ohs", not "zeros").

Hurry, hurry, they are going fast. Take me out to the old ball game at bargain prices!