Back to School with Staples - Deals for YOU and a way to give back!

Last week I attended a Staples Back-to-school event hosted by Moms And the City, Melissa Gerstein, Denise Albert and Raina Seitel. A midtown Manhattan Staples store played host to a group of mom and dad bloggers who were divided into groups and taken to three different learning stations around the store.

The first station was for learning all about the ways that Staples is giving back. You know I love featuring 'Shopping with a Conscience' opportunities! If you can do something good for you, at a good price AND give back, that's shopping nirvana as far as I'm concerned.  Staples partnered with the organization, Dosomething.org,  to design new products and also for their 4^th Annual Staple for Students School Supply Drive where Students are encouraged to collect school supplies for children in need and drop them off at Staples.

The second station is where we got to learn about the laptops, service plans and easy comparison checker that you can use to compare and contrast features from different laptops at the display just by pulling them up on one without having to walk all around and read all those cards. Me being in the market for a new laptop after the back to back lemon experiences I have had with HP, made this demo one of the highlights for me! I'll be going back to Staples soon and checking out the laptops, although I'm kind of leaning toward an iPad 2 instead of a standard laptop this time around.

The third station is where we learned all about the Staples Savings Pass, a $10 discount card where you can get everything for back to school every day through September 17th at 15% off. (Think about the savings if you have to buy a laptop or other electronic items! And for larger families, this savings pass certainly pays for itself!).

Melissa, Denise and Raina then showed us all their favorite new back to school items. That's where I noticed this cute notebook!

I didn't realize it until I got home, but this cute Butterfly Notebook is by our friends at Carolina Pad, how butterfly perfect was that? Everywhere I go I ALWAYS have a butterfly sighting!

You know how I feel about new notebooks right? They are like perfect blank slates, and I'm dying to grab my colored pencils and draw on the first page! I have so far managed restraint, but I'm sure it won't be long before I start drawing butterflies all over the first and last page!

We also had the opportunity to make fun photo bookmarks with the folks at Photo Op NYC

It was fun posing for these pictures, the results are a way hipper, way cooler photo booth type picture! PhotoOp was recently named the Best Children's Family Photo Studio in New York by New York Magazine in their "Best of New York" issue and I could see why by the looks of my own and other bookmarks I got to see, they are very easy to work with and have a way of bringing out the best in their subjects! I'd highly recommend them. I hope my scan is doing it justice!

Our Staples visit ended with a 'Staples Bingo' Game with fun prizes and we left with goodie bags (but shh, let's keep that our secret, unlike last year, I didn't tell my niece and nephew about this one, I am NOT giving up my butterfly notebook! But I'm definitely not called the 'cool aunt' for nothing, I'll end up taking them to Staples to buy some fun Back-to-School supplies of their own very soon).

Check out your local Staples weekly ads for sales, don't forget the 1 cent specials to help you REALLY stock up, sign up for your Staples Rewards card for great rebates, and up your cool factor by sharing the fun videos made by Modern Family's television show co-star, Rico Rodriguez, who shares what kids need for Back-to-School in a series of funny videos HERE.

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FTC Disclosure: This is NOT a compensated post. No monetary compensation has been received. I attended a local event and was under no obligation to write about it. I did receive a gift bag after the event, and lunch was provided during the event however the opinions expressed are solely my own. I really do beleive in featuring corporations with a conscience that give back to the community and world at large!

Winner Announcement - Staples $50 Back To School Giveaway Winner!

And the Winner is:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Jessie C.

Congrats Jessie! Your $50 Staples Gift Card is on it's Way! That sure buys a lot of pens and pencils!

Active Giveaways:

1) Ends 09/14 - "Fall Into Bags' - Elliott Lucca's Granada Trapezoid Satchel in Twilight Giveaway! HERE

2) Ends 09/07 - Smashbox Brow Tech Trio Review and Giveaway! HERE

3) Coming Soon: Back To School Giveaway with PlayDoh!

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Ascending Butterfly is actively seeking brand ambassador opportunities and sponsorship for the Blogalicious Weekend Conference in Miami, if you would like your brand represented at  Blogalicious, which is aimed at celebrating the diversity of women of all ethnicities in social media, please let me know by contacting me on my contactify form HERE

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T.G.I.F

We are still processing entries so we can close the Staples Giveaway and announce an official winner! This is going to be a working TGIF for me........someone send snacks!!!!

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Back to School with Staples $50 Gift Card Giveaway! Ends 08/27

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This giveaway is now CLOSED. Thanks so much to our wonderful sponsor Staples! We look forward to working with you again! The winner is 'Jessie C'. (We have many Jessie's, please note this Jessie, has already sent her address and claimed her win!) Remember: There are great giveaways active on the upper right hand side of the page! Watch for the return of our Monthly Book Club!

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Ascending Butterfly Back To School Editor's Pick, Sponsored By:

A few weeks ago, I attended a Staples Back to School themed event in NYC (Thanks to Lisa @ New York Chica for sharing this information with me!) and not only did I have fun re-connecting with New York based Bloggers I know, but also got a chance to preview some great items for back to school that I am looking forward to sharing with you!

As most of you know I'm not a Mom but I am an Aunt and a God-Mother and actually enjoy helping my nieces and nephews shop for their Back to School items. I've got a range of ages to help shop for, but I don't like having to visit too many different stores to get the lists completed. Being able to tackle each age group in one place is a huge time saver, let's face it, 'Time is Money'.

Here are some cool items you can find at Staples for Back to School:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Supplies for a Cause - Teens can be encouraged to convert their energy and ideas into positive action with the new DoSomething.org-inspired products ($0.99-$11.99), exclusive to Staples. These products help students stay organized while learning about important issues impacting their communities. The collection includes planners, notebooks, comp books, pocket portfolios and 3-ring pencil pouches featuring cool designs including background on social issues and tips on how students can make a difference. Ascending Butterfly loves 'guilt free shopping' and products that give back. Encouraging young people to get into a mindset that teaches them that their dollars are buying power that should be leveraged to make a difference is important!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Go Glam- Add some ‘bling’ to the classroom with the new Glam Rocks Collection. Sparkle in style with the hand-crafted Glam Rocks Staplers ($4.99) and Glam Rocks Pens ($4.99). Designs available in purple floral, pink color fade, royal blue and crystal clear. Students can also do some sparkling number-crunching with the Glam Rocks Calculators ($4.99).  These went over quite well when I attended the event at Staples, and I scored major auntie brownie points with my niece when I got her these!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Flash Forward- Exclusive to Staples, get a little flashy with the Omnitech 2GB Swivel Flash Drive ($12.99), designed to keep the cap in place. Available in new black and white, multi-colored dots and peace-sign patterns.  These definitely went over well, and I couldn't resist picking one up for myself!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Cool Calculators- Math has never been more fun with these calculators, exclusive to Staples. Students can “flex” their math muscles - literally- with the new Staples Flexible Calculator ($3.99). It’s uniquely bendable with translucent and tie-dyed designs.

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - With the new Staples Soccer Buddy Calculator ($3.99) and its functional mini-soccer ball, achieving math “goals” will be easy. My soccer loving nephew named his FIFA and said this one was for HIS desk!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Organize in Style- Students can let their personality show with Staples Brand fashion products ($1.99-$5.49), including binders, portfolios, notebooks and comp books, fashion dividers and more. Available in an assortment of stylish colors and designs from funky geometric prints to free-spirited paisley creations. The Staples BETTER binder™ is built for long-lasting durability and to withstand heavy-duty daily use available in an assortment of vibrant back-to-school colors ($6.99-$14.79). I was tempted to keep one of these for ME, but ever the good aunt, I gave it up, but I am thinking of going back and picking up a few for myself!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Zip-it - How do you make a pencil case out of a really long zipper? Just pull it and watch it zip into shape! The brainchild of a student whose class project called for turning an everyday item into something new, the Zip It-Unzip Your Mind pencil pouch ($5.99) is perfect for teen trendsetters. Available in stylish colors including black, purple and pink with exclusive rainbow-zipper design for Staples. This was my favorite product that was shown to us at the event, and my enthusiasm for it rubbed off on my niece too, she wanted one in every color, but I kept the hot pink for me because my ipod protector is pink and I've decided to put it into the Zip It Pouch so it would be safe inside my bag! (During the event Staples held 'zip and unzip offs' where the fastest bloggers won prizes!) I of course immediately asked about how well it washes to use as a cosmetics bag, and all you have to do is UNZIP it completely and throw it in the wash, the makeup residue comes right off and it looks like new again! The uses for this pouch are endless!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - WIN IT! - Thanks to our friends at Staples the lucky winner of this giveaway gets a $50 Staples Gift Card to help with Back To School Shopping (and with their 99 cent specials - check your local ad for details - this gift card will certainly go a long way!) Don't you just ♥ Staples? 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 (this must be done for all others to count): Visit Staples and post the URL Link (NOT THE NAME) of any OTHER back to school item aside from the review items!  (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.

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 Wednesday, August 18, 2010 until Friday, August 27, 2010 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 - Blog about this giveaway, linking to this giveaway post. Leave the URL in a comment (+5 entries, leave 5 comments with the URL to your blog post!)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Grab our Button and put it on your Blog. Leave the URL where we can see it in a comment (if you already have our button, just let us know, you will still get extra credit!) (2 credits, post twice)

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

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Tweet this:

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - #ascendingbutterfly + @StaplesTweets #win a $50 Staples Gift Card for Back to School #Giveaway - http://tinyurl.com/2co77zk

(Leave a comment with the tweet’s url so you can get a valid entry. Get the Tweet's URL by clicking 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 - Follow @StaplesTweets on Twitter HERE

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Follow/Like Staples on Facebook (and remember to tell them that Ascending Butterfly sent you, post the URL of where you posted on Staples wall) HERE  (+1 for liking and +3 extra credit entries for wall post, (please post 3 comments!)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Vote for Ascending Butterfly on: Fuel My Blog

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Follow/Like Ascending Butterfly on Facebook (remember when we have giveaways which allow for multiple winners, one winner will always be selected at Random from our Facebook Page, so make sure you are following us there too!) HERE

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Follow Ascending Butterfly on Networked Blogs HERE

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

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Subscribe to receive Ascending Butterfly emails using our Feedburner widget on the upper right hand side of the page below the follower thumbnail pictures! (If you are already a subscriber you will still receive extra credit!)

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - Review this blog on Alexa HERE

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ -  Ascending Butterfly is a nominee for the Bloggers Choice ’10 Awards in the ‘Best Blog About Stuff’ Category - http://bloggerschoiceawards.com/ You can press the button below to go straight to the page where Ascending Butterfly has been nominated!

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ - NEW! 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: This is not a paid insertion. This is a non-compensated post and all opinions regarding the products are expressly my own experiences. I was provided product to facilitate my review and for the giveaway. The sponsor is fulfilling directly to prize winner(s), this in no way influenced my opinion of the product. Once a winner is selected and their information has been forwarded to the sponsor, the responsibility of prize fulfillment rests with the sponsor.