Tuesday, May 8, 2012

iPhone Photo Case Shutterfly Giveaway and a Review of Blue Ribbon Pizza (Encinitas, CA)

iPhone shots from Blue Ribbon Pizzeria - Encinitas, CA
It's not often that I'm the really cool girl in the room, however, last weekend I was all that and more.  Decked out in my dance mom best, my iPhone was thrust into my front hip pocket with just a portion of the back visible.  Less than five minutes after entering the dressing room, one of the girls pointed and said, "Wow!  What's on your phone?".

I had forgotten about my new Shutterfly iPhone Case featuring none other than myself... well, myself and my family.  Pulling my phone out of my pocket it was immediately grabbed and I didn't see it back for nearly half an hour as it was passed around the room filled with nearly 40 dance girls all donning makeup and costumes for their weekend competition.  Smiling, I have to admit I did enjoy the "Wow!  That is totally cool!",  "Whose phone is that?", and  "I've never seen anything like that!"  comments that were exclaimed over and over from the girls and moms alike.  I heard at least a dozen, "Mom... you HAVE to get me one of these!", and also had numerous queries from the moms as to where I had purchased my ultra cool cover.

Once again, Shutterfly (my favorite online photo spot - love the photo books and gifts) is on the cutting edge of coolness (just like me...) with this new iPhone Photo Case.  Customizable to feature up to three photos, background designs, words or a mixture of all of the above, you can have a case that is all you.  Literally... it can be all you on the back of your iPhone.

While I designed numerous cases before choosing my favorite family version, I'd really love to have different cases for different occasions.  Dance Mom mode?  I would need a cover filled with Liv's leaps and kicks.  Liv Life blog event?  I'd definitely need a case featuring photos from some of my best posts.  Vacation?  That one would be ideal to feature shots from my last trip.  And last but not least, I'd need a Maltese case to feature my spoiled little white fluffs when walking them along the beach.


Edited 12/10/12 - while we love the look of our iPhone case, I don't think I can vouch for iPhone protection.  The case is a hard shell and does indeed protect from scratches, however the first time our phone was dropped the glass shattered.  Great looking, but perhaps not the most protective in the case of durability...

As we are all positively attached to our phones and toting said phones to our each and every event, the improved quality of the iPhone photos has grown to be acceptable enough to catch what we would have missed without planning ahead to bring a camera.

The Blue Ribbon... Mozzarella, tomato sauce & Basil
For example... stopping in at Blue Ribbon Pizzaeria, in Encinitas, CA, just a few weeks ago I knew at first taste that this was a restaurant I needed share.  Unfortunately my camera was home, but my husband suggested using my phone.  Whipping it out I began shooting our food and low and behold the shots turned out darn well, especially considering my light was fairly low.

Located in coastal Encinitas, California, this small establishment makes pizza the way it should be made.  Featuring organic ingredients and supporting local farms, breweries and businesses, the restaurant not only serves fabulous fresh food, but does it in a way that they can be proud of.

With dough that undergoes a 3 day fermentation process, the pizza crust is thin and crisp, especially after baking in a true wood burning oven.  The mozzarella is hand stretched daily in house, and the sausage is house-made from sustainable Berkshire Pork.

Bruschetta... just like Italy!
A special treat, the Heirloom Seeded Black Seed Popcorn with Truffle Salt and Parmigiano Romano is absolutely irresistible.  My other favorite, the Rustic Bread Bruschetta with Marinated Cherry Tomatoes and Saba, reminds me of my days in Rome while dining below the Colosseum, and the BLT - Butter Lettuce Salad with Artisan Bacon, Bread Crumbs and Cherry Tomatoes has me craving my greens.

And then there is the pizza.  Whether your taste is plain cheese, all meat, or purely vegetarian, Blue Ribbon will make you happy.  While my favorite is simple cheese with cherry tomatoes, basil and a few sprigs of arugula, my father in law is partial to the "My Father" (Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Fennel Sausage, Pepperoni and Red Onion).  Looking for something a little different from the norm?  How about the Signature - EVOO, Fresh Mozzarella, Ricotta, Lemon Zest, Red Onion and Basil?

Eel River Porter
Which brings us to the beverage portion of the menu.  My dad always says, "You can't have good pizza without good beer", and at Blue Ribbon your choices are excellent.  Featuring local Southern California brewers such as Ballast Point, Stone Brewing and Eel River, your tastes are covered.   In addition, a wine list covering California as well as Italy, France and Argentinia is sure to pleasure your palate.

Last but not least, Blue Ribbon offers only one dessert, a decadent Butterscotch Pudding with a Caramel Sauce that is worth each and every calorie.  The Blue Ribbon staff has kindly posted the recipe on their web site and thankfully I've so far resisted making this heavenly concoction at home as I'm fairly certain I'd eat nearly the whole thing.

If you happen to find yourself in our coastal San Diego, make time for a stop at Blue Ribbon.  The ideal finale after a long day at Legoland or Sea World, Blue Ribbon will be the perfect finish to your day.

Butterscotch Pudding.  Yes, I ate the whole thing...
Shutterfly iPhone Case Giveaway
(Giveaway is closed....)

Liv Life is thrilled to be sponsored by Shutterfly to give two lucky winners customizable iPhone Photo Cases of their own (we have one more case to giveaway and will run another giveaway in a few weeks!).

Chosen at random from the responses below, you just might be the lucky winner who gets to choose what photos you will put on your case.  Will it be food?  Family?  Pets? or all of the above?


To Enter:

Up to 5 entries possible (Please leave an email address if you do not link to a blog) AND please leave a separate comment for EACH entry.
  1.  Leave a comment telling us what photos you would feature on your Shutterfly iPhone Case.
  2. Like Liv Life on Facebook and make a post about this giveaway.
  3. Life Shutterfly on Facebook
  4. Like Liv Life on Twitter (@livlifetoo) and tweet about this giveaway.
  5. Pin any photo from this post to Pinterest (You can like us there too if you like!).
This Giveaway closes at 2 PM (PST) on Sunday, May 13, 2012.  The winner will be notified by email and will have 48 hours to respond.  If we do not receive a response to our email within 48 hours another winner will be chosen.

After confirmation, Shutterly will credit your Shutterfly account with one iPhone Photo Case, the creation is up to you!  We will have two winners.

Thanks to Shutterfly for sponsoring our giveaway, and "May the odds ever be in your favor!"



Note... our winners are numbers 19 and 36!!

42 comments:

  1. sequoia Hellenga-neffMay 8, 2012 at 10:35 AM

    I would put pictures of my food! no seriously I would. I love the food I make. or my puppy :-)

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    Replies
    1. shellen2@gmail.comMay 8, 2012 at 10:41 AM

      I forgot to leave my email so I added it

      Delete
  2. Like Liv Life on facebook and leave a comment CHECK. Like Shutterfly on facebook CHECK. Like Live Life on twitter and tweet about giveaway CHECK. Pin any photo from this post to pinterest CHECK.

    Last but not least, If I were to win this giveaway I would make a collage of all the great memories my girlfriend and I have shared together on my Shutterfly case! Thanks and best of luck to the other contestants! :)

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  3. That is such an awesome giveaway my friend - nice one :D
    And blue ribbon pizza? That is one fabulous dinner :)

    Cheers
    Choc Chip Uru

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  4. Best giveaway ever!
    Id LOVE to have an IPHONE case to add pics of my almost 2 year old son and 4 year old 'daughter', who is a dog to most people, but a daughter to me. :)

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  5. It would be a picture of the Shore. My favorite place to be.

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  6. It would be a picture of the shore. My favorite place to be.

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  7. Ok, since I don't own an iPhone, don't include me in the giveaway, but I did want to say that yours are so cute! Also, I want that pizza. Finally, whenever I come to your site Chrome asks me if I want to translate it from Norwegian to English.

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  8. I pinned a photo on Pinterest.

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  9. I 'like' LivLife on Facebook and posted about the giveaway! :)

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  10. Ive 'liked' Shutterfly on Facebook for years. I LOOOOOOOOOOVE me some Shutterfly photobooks!

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  11. Im following LivLifeToo on Twitter and Tweeted about the blog and giveaway.

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  12. I would put a picture of Michael and I, one of our spoiled little Lucy-cat, and something from my blog...maybe my logo! This is too cool!!

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  13. I already like you on Facebook and will post about the giveaway on my page later tonight!

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  14. Great review - the pizza looks fantastic!

    Love the phone cover. I would surely do a family one of us on vacation as well!

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  15. I would put pictures from summer concert tailgates on my case

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  16. I would make a iPhone case and feature my niece and nephew for my sister.

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  17. I like Shutterfly on Facebook.

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  18. Liv Life on Twitter and tweeted about giveaway.

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  19. Probably a picture of my best friends and I! And OMG...Blue Ribbon is my favorite! I've definitely eaten an entire Signature pizza by myself, it's heavenly! And that butterscotch pudding is to die for. They actually have the recipe online on their website...I've made it, and it's just as good! Mmmm...I know where I'm going as soon as I get back to San Diego!

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  20. I like shutterfly on Facebook

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  21. I would put a picture of my dog on the case!

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  22. I pinned one of the pizza photos to pinterest. It looks so good!

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  23. WOW, Kim, you ARE the cool mom :) I'd have to put photos of the dog on mine. My kids hide when they see me with my camera :/

    PS...that Blue Ribbon pizza is calling my name!

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  24. How cool is that? I would put the food photos from my blog on it!

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  25. Hi Kim

    I love love love the last phone case! Liv is an amazing dancer and she's so beautiful! And you're one of the coolest Moms I know!

    If i win I'd put Tiffany's photos on it <3

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  26. What a great giveaway..wow! Amazing Kim! Would love to put my family too, food of course..
    Thank you for hosting!!!

    Great post and review!

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  27. Following you on the Twitter!

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  28. I would put photos of my doggies and hubby :)

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  29. This is a wonderful give away! However, since I live an hour from nowhere-there is no cell phone service in this area. In addition, there are several cell phone services that do not even recognize our area code. I am out of the norm, so I am sure there are quite of number of people that would love to have this. Good luck to the entrants!
    PS-the pizza looks amazing, stunning photo from an IPhone!

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  30. Would use pictures of my grandchildren. Cute case.

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  31. I wanted this!!! What a great giveaway! I'd like to put my family's portrait, my kids picture, and maybe my blog logo? Teehee. Not sure about the last one. =P

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Your comments make our hearts sing!