Whirlwind of Surprises: August 2010

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Following Friday & Blog Hop Fridays! 08/26/2010 Edition

Giani Review and Giveaway is now posted.
Come and get your entry in! LOW ENTRIES!!

Hosted by Let's Just Give It Away, Made♥ By♥Jess, And Then There Were 4, Buzzing The Day Away, and Whirlwind of Surprises

Here is how you can join us.

1. Link up your blog URL on Mr Linky.

2. Follow the Hostesses ( and leave a comment so they can follow you back).

3. Grab The Following Friday button and paste it somewhere on your blog or in a post.

4. Follow as many blogs as you like and when they follow you, follow them back. (leave a comment on their blog so they can follow you back)

More blog hops I like! I love making new friends. Leave me a comment if you follow and I'll be sure to follow you back. I do check to make sure you've followed so please, no cheating!

Other than that, Happy Fridays and have fun!

Until next time,

Like what you see? Follow me on GFC and twitter (@CinnyBBS) to get the latest updates. Like us on facebook or join us through Network Blogs. Leave me a comment if you'd like me to follow back on any of these.

Saturday, August 21, 2010

I'm back!

Hi all,

Its been a really crazy week for me, I know I said I had internet...but that was only for a day...literally. I was very disappointed with the speed of Verizon MyFi. I was honestly very excited to have such a cool little gadget to run with but unfortunately, it was just too slow so I had to wait for the cable guy to come and set up the internet. I'm very pleased to say that I now have full internet access and should be up and running as normal as I can.

My schedule is really packed right now. I literally get up at 4:30am and don't get home until 5-6pm so I'm slowly catching up to everything I've been behind on. So hold on tight, if I haven't followed you back, I will be and if I forget to, just give me a gentle reminder. :)

If you haven't entered my Giani Granite Review and Giveaway yet, you should! Its currently has really low entries and it really does give beautiful results! Go here to enter. Please remember to leave your email address so I can get ahold of you if you win.

Last but not least, thanks to Josh who told me they have a giveaway scout site which helps to promote giveaways for free. You just sign up and they regularly check your blog, find your giveaways and help you spread the word. You can find them here.

Until next time,

Friday, August 13, 2010

Blog Hop Fridays! 08/13/2010 Edition

Another Friday and more blog hops I like! I love making new friends. Leave me a comment if you follow and I'll be sure to follow you back. I do check to make sure you've followed so please, no cheating!

Giani Review and Giveaway is now posted. Come and get your entry in!

Come swing by the linky/blog hop I cohost as well. Add your link here.

Other than that, Happy Fridays and have fun!

Until next time,

Giani Granite Review and Giveaway -$50 value!

Contest closed...Thank you for entering, everybody! Winner will be chosen and contacted soon...

As most of you know, I have been packing and getting ready to move. My family was moving into a smaller place and I was moving as well so between the two of us, it has been really crazy. We decided to redo our kitchen counters and make them look beautiful before we put the house on the market in hopes that it would help our house sell faster. That's why I was so excited to be given a chance to review Giani Granite Paint for Countertops in Bombay Black! Its able to cover 35 square feet of counter space. The only problem was that our kitchen had both countertops and an island that added to 40 square feet of space and we didn't want to risk leaving half an island undone. So, the solution? I used it on our old wooden table and you know what? After seeing the results, I wish we had two sets of Giani paint to do both our countertops and the table... it was absolutely beautiful!

Here are some details regarding Giani Granite Paint as taken from their website:

Unique blend of polymers and minerals create a countertop that locks out moisture - while showing off the beauty of India's exotic black granite!
Great for upgrading Formica*laminate, Corian*ceramictile, butcher block, cultured marble and traditional granite countertops and vanities
Covers 35 square feet or 16 running feet of standard 24" wide counters
Quick, fun and easy 'paint-by-number' process for beginning painters
Project time - 4 hours of painting and 16 hours of drying
Water-based safe and low odor
Hides any existing stains, scratches or burns
Granite color is adjustable to your decor
Durable automotive grade clear polyurethane topcoat
100% Satisfaction Guarantee

Before...

This is what my table looked before. It was so plain, so boring, and so old. My family were thinking of tossing it out and buying a new table to fit into the new place. Boy, are we glad we didn't! So, first I watched the instructional DVD that came along with the kit and it was simple and so easy, anyone could do it. It works by a paint by numbers system, everything was labelled; you just have to shake and paint following the order of the numbers, it really doesn't get easier than that!

So, the very first day I received the granite paint, I sanded my wooden table to get the polyurethane layer off. For those of you who don't know, its the layer on your tables that give it protection and shine with gorgeousness! :) That same night, I then went out and painted on the primer and let it dry overnight. The next morning, I blotted on the mineral colors with their special sponge that give it the granite texturing and layered look. I used mainly pearl mica and bronze mineral and very little of the onyx mineral. I loved how you could decide how much of what color you use with Giani Granite and depending on what colors you chose to use more, the effect would turn out different with every single set, creating an absolutely unique look perfect for you! After doing the mineral paints and sponging it on, I let it dry for 4 hours before going in and adding some more paint in minor areas. I let that dry and then did the final coat of heavy duty polyurethane to seal off the paint and give it that shine we all love. Let me tell you something, my family were so pleased with the way the table turned out, not only are they not tossing the table, they are already packing it and getting it ready to bring to their new place with them and they kept expressing how we wished we could have done our countertops with Giani as well. I heard earfuls before I left!

Did I mention everything comes in a kit as well? There is no need to go out and purchase any excess materials, everything is already in there, all the colors and paints you need, the sponge, the brushes, and the instructional DVD. You're probably thinking "Oh no, how much is this going to cost me?"; but amazingly, Giani Granite is not only beautiful, but its affordable (~$50) and you all know how much we all love to save money!

The people at Giani are incredibly friendly as well. They were coming out with a second generation of primer at the time that they had wanted me to wait for so that I could try their newest and best primer. This new generation was supposed to adhere a lot more easily to a greater variety of surfaces and like the video said, one layer was more than enough!

After...

Overall, I loved Giani Granite! There is no doubt in my mind and if I had more time, I would have bought more to do my countertops as well. Its affordable and the results look great. Honestly, there would be no mistake in choosing Giani for your kitchen or bathroom renovations. It was easy and fun to do. If you are sick and tired of a boring kitchen or bathroom, or you just need to spice things up for a change and on a tight budget, Giani Granite is definitely the way to go. Look at our table, it went through such a drastic transformation!

If you're curious, look at these pictures of the countertops that others have done. I didn't get the chance to use it on my countertops but I did it on my table instead and it was just gorgeous!

Buy It: To purchase any of the items from Giani Granite, shop online now. It can be purchased online or check their website for stores to purchase Giani Granite in Canada and the USA.

Win It: One very lucky reader is going to win a $50 value Giani Granite Paint Kit with their choice in color from Giani Granite.

To Enter (mandatory): Visit Giani Granite and tell me what color you would choose if you won and where you would use it on. This must be entered before the bonus entries count! I will check. Leave a contact email in all entries, if I can't contact you, you can't win. :)

Bonus Entries -Please make sure you put 1 comment for each entry. e.g. If it says 2 entries, put 2 comments.

Like Giani Granite on facebook -1 entry
Like Whirlwind of Surprises on facebook. Please leave your first name and last initial-1 entry
Blog about this giveaway with a link to this post. Please leave your link. -2 entries.
Grab my button and tell me where its at -2 entries
Follow Whirlwind of Surprises on Google Friends Connect -1 entry
Follow Whirlwind of Surprises on Networked Blogs -1 entry
Follow Whirlwind of Surprises on Twitter and ReTweet this: RT @cinnybbs #Win a Giani Granite Kit #Giveaway $50 Beautiful kitchen & bathroom renos! http://bit.ly/9auuOd (can be Tweeted up to 3x daily for extra 2 entries each time. Each tweet must be 2 hours apart. Leave your tweet link)

Giveaway ends 11:59 pm EST on September 10, 2010. Open to US and Canada. Winner will be drawn by a random number generator, posted on this blog and emailed. Winner must respond within 48 hours or a new winner will be drawn.

Disclaimer: The product/s mentioned above have been provided free of charge from the manufacturer or PR firm for the purposes of this review. Opinions expressed belong to Whirlwind of Surprises and are NOT influenced in any way. Please view my full disclosure.

Until next time,

Following Friday! 08/13/2010 Edition

Welcome to Following Fridays! I cohost this blog hop so be sure to follow me and the other hostesses of this blog hop and we'll be sure to follow you back. I do check so no cheating please! Check out the details below.

Check out my very first review and giveaway of Giani Granite ($50 value!!) while you're here. Get your entry in and win yourself a chance to beautify your kitchen, washroom, or whatever!

Hosted by Let's Just Give It Away, Made♥ By♥Jess, And Then There Were 4, Buzzing The Day Away, and Whirlwind of Surprises

Here is how you can join us.

1. Link up your blog URL on Mr Linky.

2. Follow the Hostesses ( and leave a comment so they can follow you back).

3. Grab The Following Friday button and paste it somewhere on your blog or in a post.

4. Follow as many blogs as you like and when they follow you, follow them back. (leave a comment on their blog so they can follow you back)

Until next time,

Internet problems!!!

I'm having Internet set up problems in my new place so I've been on a slight hiatus! Hoping to get it sorted out tomorrow so that I can actually work from my laptop and not my cell. If only you could see me trying to punch in each letter now; it's not a pretty sight.

I'd love to have my first review and giveaway posted as soon as I can access the Internet from my laptop again.

ETA: I'm connected!! Will have the review and giveaway posted by today... look for it!

Until next time,

Friday, August 6, 2010

Following Friday! 08/06/2010 Edition

Welcome to Following Fridays! I cohost this blog hop so be sure to follow me and the other hostesses of this blog hop and we'll be sure to follow you back. I do check so no cheating please! Check out the details below.

Check out how to get free coupons from the Entertainment book while you're here...lots of savings!

Whirlwind of Surprises is now on facebook! There's not much yet but there will be soon. Come check us out and support us by hitting the "Like" button. It's a good thing because I have an awesome first review & giveaway for this blog is coming up! I'm excited!!

Hosted by Let's Just Give It Away, Made♥ By♥Jess, And Then There Were 4, Buzzing The Day Away, and Whirlwind of Surprises

Here is how you can join us.

1. Link up your blog URL on Mr Linky.

2. Follow the Hostesses ( and leave a comment so they can follow you back).

3. Grab The Following Friday button and paste it somewhere on your blog or in a post.

4. Follow as many blogs as you like and when they follow you, follow them back. (leave a comment on their blog so they can follow you back)

Until next time,

Blog Hop Fridays! 08/07/2010 Edition

If you haven't heard, I got my products to try today and I couldn't wait!! So I already ripped it open and started trying it out. If you're sick of your boring kitchen, bathroom, or furniture. Keep your eyes and ears peeled, I have a great review and giveaway coming up!

Come swing by the linky/blog hop I cohost as well. Add your link here.

Other than that, Happy Fridays and have fun!

Cute picture I found this week...courtesy of Vivianne?? :) & eatliver.com:

Until next time,

Thursday, August 5, 2010

New Mommy? Great Freebie for you! Nestle Baby :)

I know a lot of the bloggers out there are new mommies or have many kids of their own. Here's a freebie for all of you mommies out there. If you register and sign up for a profile at Nestle Baby, you can get freebies for your babies all the time.

Nestlé Baby wants to make sure all members have the information, advice and support they need at all the right times. So, you can expect to start receiving your Nestlé Baby Program Mommy Perks like a stylish backpack (when a sample is requested), Nestlé Baby digest, valuable coupons, samples and more once your Nestlé Baby Program registration is complete. This ensures you always have what you need, when you need it, at the most appropriate time for you and your baby.

Enjoy! I hope this saves you some money and helps out on your parenting fun.

Until next time,