{CLOSED} Holidays Buying Guide Giveaway #1: $100 Wilsons Leather Gift Card Giveaway! Ends 11/15

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This giveaway is now CLOSED. Thanks so much to our wonderful sponsor Wilsons Leather! We look forward to working with you again! The Winner is: Big Happy Buddha (We Post Winner Site Usernames for privacy purposes). Remember: There are great giveaways active on the upper right hand side of the page!

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Ascending Butterfly's 2011 Holidays Buying Guide, Giveaway #1 brought to you by:

By now Wilsons Leather is no stranger to Ascending Butterfly readers, they've hosted a few Featured Handbag in the Spotlights for us (see HERE and HERE for reminders). I'm not even sure there are new words I can use to express the lifelong love affair I've had with Wilsons Leather. I've been shopping there ever since I was a teen, first at my local mall, and now online. I have purchased quite a few handbags and leather blazers from Wilsons and have always been happy with the quality, and how well everything wears and retains their beauty over time. I have purchased gifts from Wilsons that the recipients still have and very much enjoy and treasure.

This year my favorite winter jacket needed replacing (I have a hard time letting go of favorite pieces and this was one of them), it had not only seen better days, but even the lining was beyond repair, well when your favorite tailor tells you it's time to let something go and not even bother trying to repair it, you know it's time.

I knew that the only place I could trust with finding a replacement was Wilsons. And no surprise I found a jacket I loved.

Pelle Studio Smooth Lamb Belted Jacket w/ Thinsulate Zip-Out Lining

Front View @2011 Wilsons Leather

Back View @2011 Wilsons Leather

I started with Wilson's Images of the Jacket because the pro shots will give you more detail!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Shell: Genuine leather; Lining: 100% polyester

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Zip-Out Liner: Front/Back, 100% polyester; Fill /Thinsulate™

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Full-zip front with snap overlay; stand-up collar

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Attached cuff tabs

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - On-seam hand pockets

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Vertical strip down front seams; removable tie belt at waist

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Zip-out quilted Thinsulate™ lining

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Remember: When cleaning is necessary send to a special leather cleaner only

The jacket arrived at a perfect time as many fellow east coasters know we got a very snowy Halloween here in NYC (many called it #snowtober on twitter), and it's been chilly since! I wore it recently to a holiday event at the Disney Store, here I am with Mickey & Minnie and my mama butterfly, I am standing closest to Minnie, and I'm wearing my new jacket in the photo below:

Ascending Butterfly second to left near Minnie Mouse wearing Wilsons Pelle Studio Jacket!

 My Take:

I love the zip out thinsulate lining, it allows me to remove it in Spring or Fall, and then put it back in once the weather gets colder (much like it is NOW!). I love the details on this jacket, especially the way that the back stitching tapers in the back of the jacket, it truly accentuates the waist, which is where we normally curve in, so it's very flattering!

I've been wearing Wilsons for years and I already know to size up, but if you read the reviews many people are kind enough to provide their height and measurements, and you will see from petites to plus it's better to order one size up. I did that, I could have easily fit the size down from the one I ordered, but I know full well, especially in winter I will be wearing it over bulky sweaters, or sometimes even sweaters and cardigans and I wanted to be sure that I had enough room, it's actually slightly big on me, but as it gets colder and my sweaters get bigger, I know I'll be super happy I sized up.

Wilsons Leather carries all sizes and has a great variety in plus size, which I definitely appreciate, I love my curves and I love shopping brands that cater to them! :)

They have a great variety of gifts, mens and women's outwear, handbags and accessories (BTW, there are several Kindle cases on sale you might want to snatch up, especially if you are getting someone special a Kindle this year), they also have an amazing assortment of Leather Cases, Duffels & Suitcases for business and travel as well as great outwear for kids! Right now the entire site is 50% off, it's literally a one stop Holiday shop, with Handbags currently 60% off on select styles, what are you waiting for?

You didn't think I'd forget about you right? Who loves you butterfly?

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - WIN IT! - Ascending Butterfly and our friends at Wilsons Leather would like to give 1 lucky winner a $100 Wilsons Gift Card so you can select the item of your choosing!

Don't you just ♥ Wilsons Leather? I know I do!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - How to Win: (1) You must be a PUBLIC follower of Ascending Butterfly to be eligible for this and all giveaways. Indicate in your entry that you follow (if your 'comment name/user id' differs from your profile id, please let me know what name you follow under) and (2)MANDATORY ENTRY: Visit Wilsons Leather and link us to anything other than the Pelle Studio Lamb Leather Jacket with zip out thinsulate lining that catches your eye!  (3) You must also leave your email address somewhere in your comment. (You can format it this way for security, example: ascendingbutterfly AT mail host DOT com). (If your email is clearly visible in your profile, you can just say so, that's OK!) Please follow the easy 1, 2, 3 steps to winning (or in this case, the A,B,C’s of winning!) This giveaway is open to USA residents who are 18 years of age or older. No PO Boxes. No purchase necessary. One entry per Household, see Ascending Butterfly Giveaway Rules and Disclosure Policy HERE

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Please follow directions or you will be disqualified! All comments are moderated, they may not appear on the site right away (comments like "I want this" or "I want to win" will not be entered). You have from Saturday, November 05, 2011 until Tuesday, November 15, 2011 at 03:00 PM (EST) to comment and be entered for a chance to win. You will have 48 hours to confirm if we do not hear from you we will be forced to move on to an alternate. (We only notify winners DIRECTLY via email, so if your profile or your comment does not have an email your entry will not be processed)

EXTRA CREDIT:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - In honor of all things coats, tell me about your all time favorite coat, was it a cute coat you had as a kid, or something more recent?

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Blog about this giveaway, linking to this giveaway post. Leave the URL in a comment. (If your blog post contains more than just a pic and link you'll get 5 extra credit entries!)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Grab our NEW Button and put it on your Blog. Leave the URL where we can see it in a comment (if you have our old one, please swap it out, our URL address has changed!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Follow @Tracy_Iglesias on Twitter (this is ascendingbutterfly’s editor) and give me your twitter ID in a comment

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Follow @Ascending1 on Twitter (this is Ascending Butterfly's new account, we will soon be hosting twitter parties which necessitates having a second account so you can make updates throughout the entire party!)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Follow @wilsonsleather on Twitter

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Tweet this:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - @Ascending1 + @wilsonsleather $100 Wilsons Leather Gift Card #Giveaway! Ends 11/15  http://tinyurl.com/3hxazkr

(Leave a comment with the tweet’s url so you can get a valid entry (click on the time your tweet was sent to get the direct URL and then copy and paste it here). You can Tweet TWICE per DAY. If you Tweet more than that, that entry will be disqualified.)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Digg about this giveaway and leave your digg username in your comment

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Fave this blog on Technorati and leave your Technorati user name in your comment

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Like Ascending Butterfly on Facebook HERE

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Like Wilsons Leather on Facebook HERE (Tell them which item you are trying to win on Ascending Butterfly) - Be sure you leave the link to your comment here for extra credit. (You can get the link the same way you do on twitter, press on the time you left the comment, and when the page fully loads, highlight and copy the URL address and then paste it into the comment field here).

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Follow Ascending Butterfly on Networked Blogs HERE

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Join Ascending Butterfly's NEW Community/Real Time Chat, Group HERE

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Vote for Ascending Butterfly on: Fuel My Blog -This is ONE time per giveaway, NOT daily.

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Have you entered another active giveaway on Ascending Butterfly? Let me know which one and you’ll get more extra credit!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Have you commented on a non-giveaway entry? Let me know which one here and you’ll get more extra credit!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Press the button below and join, you get an extra entry for this giveaway and a shot at more great prizes, lets win together! (one time extra credit, will be verified before entry can be accepted)

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FTC Disclosure Info for this Giveaway:  The Pelle Lamb Jacket was provided for review free of charge. No monetary compensation has been received. The sponsors are fulfilling directly to prize winner(s), this in no way influenced my opinion of the products. All opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own. Once a winner is selected and their information has been forwarded to the sponsor, the responsibility of prize fulfillment rests with the sponsor.