A winner has been chosen!!
That winner is.....
***"Crystle H.".....signed up for newsletter***
Congratulations Crystle!
I am sending the email out and she will have 5 business days to respond or a new winner will be chosen!
Thanks to everyone who entered. We had a total of 62 entries...and Crystle's entry #9 was chosen as the winner through Random.org. Be sure to check out my other great reviews and giveaways posted now or upcoming soon!!
I am a country girl. When I say that, I mean I could live out in the middle of nowhere, away from all the luxuries of supermarkets and dry cleaners (and neighbors) and far from the hustle of everyday life, and be completely happy. The closer I am to nature, the more alive I feel. That is why last October, a prayer was answered. My husband and I were able to purchase our new home on the outskirt of town on five acres. It was a dream come true!! At night, I can sit on the front porch and listen to a chorus of tree frogs and the occasional whippoorwill. It's sweet bliss!
One of the challenges a new house brings is the decorating. I sold all my previous decor items so that I could start afresh and I am slowly finding the pieces I want to match the new decor theme (which in all honestly, is a compilation of all the things I love...trees, butterflies, botanical, and shabby chic all mixed with a taste of Tuscan).
My first big challenge was my daughter's room. It had been previously decorated for a boy, therefore was dressed in a blue paint. Even though my daughter is a tomboy at heart, I wanted her room to be a little bit more girly, so I presented several options to her. I suggested a 70s decor theme, with the lava lamps and the beaded curtains and so forth, which she thought was an okay idea, but I could tell it didn't truly please her taste. We didn't want to have to repaint the walls right away so I tried to think of an idea that would incorporate the blue. She suggested we paint clouds on the wall. I liked that idea but had no clue of how to even go about painting such and I knew that if I messed up, I'd be back to having to repaint the whole room as we had no idea the exact shade of the existing paint. Therefore, I scoured the web attempting to find cloud wallies (wallpaper cutouts that apply with paste)that would be easy to apply. While doing my search I came across a site that offered something similar but a bit more appealing.
The
clouds I found were in the form of a dry rub transfer that were inspired from a hand-painted design and required no skill at all to apply. I knew this was my answer. However, a funny thing happened. After I discovered Tatouage Designs, I fell absolutely in love with their willow tree transfer. As soon as I seen it, I knew I had to have it, and therefore, my daughter's room design began with a large willow tree in one corner of her room (we still have not purchased the clouds, but they will be our next project).
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| Completed Project |
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| Close up of detail |
Putting the tree up took a few hours, mainly because it is 7.5 feet tall and I was working solo. It comes in several sheets that have to be matched up, yet it is easy to match up because each sheet is marked with registration marks which line up to the next piece.Even when I got a bit off center, it still looked great and my errors blended in.
We found this hand-painted "fire screen" at a flea market and after I modified it by removing the stand it sat in, it complemented the room quite nicely. It hangs over her bed by the wire hanger I installed on the backside. When we do finally purchase the clouds, they will go around this picture.
I found this curtain (it came in a set, but I only put up one) at a yard sale for 25 cents. It still had the price tag of $29.99 attached. What a bargain! We had also purchased a duvet off Ebay.com, but unfortunately, it didn't hold up well to its first washing and so we are on the hunt for another.
Of course, as soon as we finished my daughter's room, my son started complaining that his room didn't have a
Tatouage Designs as well, so I had to find something to put in his room. We opted for the
Horse Farm Window as it would go with his Cowboy themed bedroom (of which, we haven't completed as of yet). I ordered it when
Tatouage Designs had a special sale, so I saved quite a bit of money (be sure to sign up for their newsletter as they hold sales all the time) and was able to purchase the beautiful
Sedona Valley Window transfer as well! It will go in the spare bedroom/computer room/game room once I get that far.
What to expect: When you place an order for a transfer, it will come prepackaged. With a larger transfer, it will come in several sheets. These sheets are labeled and will alert you to any sections that will need to be cut or separated from the sheet. (This is the
Sedona Valley Window)
Find the place you want to place it on the wall. Remember, this is a rub on transfer, so it is not removable. It will become like a painted on mural and will need to be painted over in order to cover up if you change decor. For this reason, pick the spot you want carefully. Make sure the wall is clean, dry and free of nails. Position the design where you want it and tape the top to hold it on the wall. Once you get it where you want it, remove the protective backing (as seen in the picture). Don't worry, the design will not come off until you use the applicator EXCEPT if you were to accidentally forget to secure your design with tape, in which case, it has the chance of folding over on itself, which will remove the design. So be certain to secure it before removing the protective backing.
When it is securely in place, all you have to do is use the applicator tool to rub off the dry transfer. I found that if you change angles of the applicator stick (it looks just like a large Popsicle stick) it makes it easier to get the rub on to transfer to the wall. You can tell when you have rubbed properly, as the design will lift from the sheet and then you can go on to the next section. You continue this same pattern until all the sheets have been applied.
That's it!!! You're done!! Seems too easy huh? I promise you, it is this easy! One of the best things about this is that it looks like you hired someone to paint it on your wall. I assure you, the compliments will pour in and don't be surprised if your guests get up to touch it and run their hands over it. It's hard to believe that it's not wallpaper!
I chose
Tatouage Designs.com as my first review as I truly love the products they offer. They actually offer much more than just dry rub transfer. They just introduced a new line of
removable designs that can be positioned and used over and over. This is great if you are indecisive or change decor frequently. It saves from having to repaint. They have many more products and seem to always be expanding their product line.
WHAT MAKES THEM UNIQUE: Tatouage Designs lets everyone be an interior decorator! Why pay the big bucks for someone to come paint you a mural in your home, whenever you can have the hand-painted design in an easy to apply format that you can do yourself!!
THE GOOD: No messy glues. No artistic skills required. Great selection. Multiple product line allows you to customize your own mural. Fast shipping, excellent sales and specials. Great customer service! They even have an opportunity to become your own independent contractor!
THE BAD: The dry rub transfers are permanent until you repaint over them-- which I don't know if that is good or bad as those living in apartment buildings can now personalize their space and simply repaint over when moving out. However, if you change your decor frequently, it might be considered a con. It would be nice if each transfer contained transfer swatches of the main colors on the transfer so that if you mess up a tad, you can simply patch your error with the corresponding color.
HOW CAN I GET MY OWN: You are in luck!! Since I love these products so much, I am going to offer one lucky reader a chance to win a
$25.00 gift certificate to
Tatouage Designs.com
HOW TO ENTER:
***Mandatory Entry***
***Extra Entries***
(one entry for each one)- Follow me on Google Friend Connect
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- Grab my button and link back to where it is located
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- Tweet about this giveaway.
DETAILS: This giveaway begins June 16, 2010 and ends at midnight (Central time) on July 16, 2010. For further rules, please visit the Reviews and Giveaways page!
I did not receive any compensation for this review. All products have been purchased by myself, including the giveaway gift certificate and therefore Critique of the Unique is responsible for prize fulfillment. All opinions expressed herein are my own. Others opinions may differ. I have no affiliation with www.tatouagedesigns.com but did receive written permission to use their logo for the purpose of this review.
SIGN UPS FOR THIS GIVEAWAY HAVE ENDED. A winner will be chosen shortly and will be contacted via email. The winner will have five business days to reply to email or another winner will be selected. Thanks for all the entries!!
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